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𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐓𝐌𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐔𝐌 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐌 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐄. Dawn stood backstage as she watched Jimmy perform along with the band. It seemed that Moby Dick was a fan favourite, because the crowd was bouncing around like crazed animals.
The stage was set on a huge piece of land with lights and all the vital types of equipment needed for the concert. Giant speakers stood placed in the four corners to make the music loud and audible. The crowd surged forward and back in one relentless wave like the wild waves of the ocean during a high tide. In such a situation, none could help but to push and shove the others around. The crowd provided or allowed no personal space.
Dawn and her band members watched as the boys finished up their last song for the night. She hated to admit it, but she was amazed. Jimmy looked tortuously good in his white poppy suit. His chest was exposed, and it revealed the sweat which had built up throughout the two-hour-long show. The performance was unforgettably good. The level of sound was astronomical. The decibel level was on the threshold of pain. The music roared through the streets for miles and the crowd went crazy every time the bass drum struck. The floor underneath Dawn seemed to move with the beat of each song. The vibration which each sound produced felt like electricity through her body. It felt like a festival of sensory overloads. At that instant, her body felt stimulated in every area to its complete capacity. The group eventually finished their set. They said goodnight to the rowdy crowd of fans who were now ready to enjoy The Strings' performance.
"Good luck," Jimmy winked as he walked past Dawn to greet some girls backstage.
Was he trying to piss her off? Get her jealous? Was it working?
"The Strings!" She shook off her thoughts as the band got introduced. Dawn took a deep breath before walking on stage.
The crowd seemed even larger out front than from the side of the stage. The people had now replaced the words of Led Zeppelin, with The Strings.
Dawn detected Lola's countdown, and then, the world seemed to freeze. The concerns flew from Dawn's mind like a bird leaving its nest, and now, she could only hear the sound of her own heavy breathing. Lola's drumming was flawlessly timed with Mandy's bass strumming.
Now, the eighth song had begun playing and the band only seemed to get better. They'd been performing for almost an hour. Jimmy was stood at the side of the stage. He had pushed himself away from the groupies, who followed him wherever he went like dirty fruit flies did with spoiled food, and now, his only focus was her.
Dawn's vocals tore through the atmosphere like a newly-sharpened knife. Jimmy himself was shocked. The music swelled. The crescendo of tones hit him, and they caused a cascade of memories.
He was so in awe of this girl. He was even a bit ashamed of himself. She was only a bloody girl, yet, every time she rejected him, a little piece of his heart seemed to loosen itself from the rest. He watched her, not caring if his bandmates made fun of his so-called 'heart-eyes.'
As for Dawn, she hadn't the time to realize Jimmy's stare. She was too busy enjoying the wonderful piece of music which she and Pennie had written together.
You'd have me down, down, down, down on my knees -
- Now wouldn't you, barracuda?
To Dawn's disappointment, the music stopped very abruptly.
She opened her eyes to inspect what had happened. A large group of people had gathered around Lola's drumkit. Dawn's eyes widened as she tracked down Lola who was laying face down on the floor behind her drumkit.
Dawn and her bandmates rushed to Lola's aid. She had been rolled on her back. She was unconscious.
"Lola?" Dawn asked, but no response came from Lola's lips. She just laid there, pale and sweaty. Dawn noticed a medic sticking a tube down Lola's mouth.
"No! What the fuck are you doing?" Dawn asked. A certain sense of overprotectiveness crept over her. "They're helping her, Dawn," Pennie spoke and placed a hand on Dawn's shoulder. She sat squatted next to Lola's body as she tried to help Lola to the best of her ability. She knew that screaming out Lola's name wasn't going to help out anyone, but at that moment, Dawn was in such a fuckingfrenzied state of mind that nothing seemed lucid.
"No pulse! I need a defibrillator now!"
Dawn's mind raced and she realized that Lola had in fact just gone into cardiac arrest.
Three people. That was the number of staff members it took to pull Dawn away from Lola. She screamed and begged as she was pulled away from the scene. Mandy and Pennie were just as mortified as Dawn, yet, they somehow had the strength to keep the panic within themselves.
"Dawn! Look at me!" Vin called, but nothing seemed to bring her back to a calm state of mind.
"Take her backstage, now!" Vin said to a pair of staff members who grabbed Dawn by both of her arms and helped her away from the stage.
She sobbed her way down the stairs into the dressing room. Finally, she was able to embrace her band members in a tight hug. They were all frightened for their bandmembers life. The situation had traumatized her so deeply. They'd been friends for over a decade. They formed the band. Without them, The Strings would never have been.
"She'll be okay, I know it. It's Lola," Mandy spoke and kissed Dawn's cheek.
Silence fell upon the tiny dressing room as the Zeppelin boys entered it. None of them were joking around as usual. They were quiet.
Dawn looked up and caught Jimmy's gaze. A strange, new sympathetic look had filled his eyes and replaced the usual joking one. A certain sense of comfort filled Dawn's soul when her eyes met Jimmy's. Without a second thought, Dawn rushed to Jimmy and embraced him in a tight hug. She hated herself for it, but she couldn't stop.
His arms wrapped themselves around her broken-down, sobbing body immediately.
"She'll be okay, Dawn," Jimmy spoke and caressed her hair.
Robert held Mandy in a tight hug, comforting her the very way Jimmy was comforting Dawn. Pennie was sat on the couch with Bonzo and Jonesy, trying to distract herself from the panicked situation.
"Come here," Jimmy spoke, his soft voice was so angelically beautiful. Jimmy helped Dawn over to a couch and sat down beside her. "I-I'm sorry," Dawn sobbed and wiped away the tears which had run down her flushed cheeks. "It's okay, it's okay. You don't have to be sorry for anything, just breathe," Jimmy whispered into Dawn's ear.
The two had never physically been closer. Though the circumstances were horrible, Dawn couldn't help but think of Jimmy being hers. If she only knew what he was thinking.
"Listen up folks. Lola is in the ambulance on her way to the hospital. She is stable but she needs time to rest. Whoever wants to visit her can come now." Vin spoke. A large amount of weight shed itself off of Dawn's shoulders. She breathed heavily and lifted her head to face Jimmy. "Will you come with me?" Dawn asked Jimmy. He returned a kind smile. She knew she couldn't sit in that hospital without him. Jimmy didn't speak. Instead, he took Dawn by her hand and intertwined his fingers with hers.
