seven hours behind | v.m

six

20 minutes.

20 more minutes until the boys were going to perform in front of a pub load of people.

this was a big deal to us all and i still couldnt wrap my head around this whole situation. the boys that ive spent so much of my time with and the van that ive known since forever were now going to be starting a journey that could lead them to god knows how many places and opportunities.

"kath how do i look? do i look presentable? how about my hair is it-?"

"van calm down. just be yourself! dont go changing your hair just for the sake of a few peoples opinions." i laughed as i put my hand in his hair to return it back to its normal messy state, instead of vans newly acquired middle parting. hes never been one to care about what people thought about him and there was no way in hell i was going to let him start caring now.

"why am i so nervous,"  he looked down at the floor then around the small backstage area. extremely small backstage area, "its not like this decides the fate of my future. not at all,"

thats one thing i wont miss after this gig is over, vans never ending worry. "be yourself. thats it. they either love you or they hate you, and by you changing yourself to become something your not isnt going to make you anymore likeable then you already are. if they cant see the van that we all see then its there loss. now get out there and put on a show."

van gave me a hug before he had to go and find the other boys. they were probably outside having a smoke, "well then, wish me luck."

"you dont need luck van."

"i know, but it would be nice to have some more."

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

1 more minute until show time.

i gave all the boys one final good luck hug and let them get into position before they went on. to anyone else this might just seem like a group of lads about to sing on a small stage in front of a small crowd of people, which realistically is what it was, but knowing these boys how i did and knowing how hard they've worked to get to this place now, i felt so immensely proud of them.

the pub owner had done his speech about respecting the place and not getting too rowdy and was now introducing the band.

"...and now tonight we have a new band taking to the stage. please give a warm welcome to catfish and the bottlemen." the crowd erupted in a cheer and whistles could be heard, even from inside of this tiny backstage room.

this was it. the moment we'd all remember for the rest of our lives.

"hello everyone. im van and this is our first song, rango."

darling, im done for once
and as soon as i get outta here
i plan on coming back for nothing
but then again, theres you

from where i was, the view of the crowd was amazing. everyone was dancing and having fun, and although it was a small crowd, it felt like millions of people were screaming along to the lyrics of a song that they had never heard before.

and although this town does flaunt
all the stuff you need to feel at home
i plan on taking from it nothing
but then again theres you

i wanted to experience this from the crowd i could see in front of me. i wanted to be able to view the boys in all their glory and just watch how natural they looked underneath the subtle lights.