over it...

Chapter 5 : Something

Chapter 5 :
Something :
 

Charlotte's POV :  
My mind was still on fire from earlier. I was so... Happy. Just genuinely happy. I hated how foreign of a feeling that was to me. My life had been so shitty for so long, now. It felt like I was finally being freed. I couldn't believe how different I felt from last night, even. The guys were stressing out about the show tonight, and failing to hide it. However, I couldn't be bothered to come down off of my cloud, though. I knew they would pull through and do amazing. They knew all of the music. They knew the changes. They were going to kill it.    
We had about 20 minutes left until we had to go on. Worry was smeared across Vic's face. Tony was practicing on our couch. I knew they really didn't want to let us down. But, I also knew that they wouldn't.
"Hey, guys," Liz poked her head in. "It's time."
    I followed the guys out. Liz pulled me aside, quick. She looked awful, like she hadn't slept a day in her life. Her eyes were somehow puffy and sunk in, all at the same time. There were dark circles in her sockets. I couldn't tell what marks were bruises from Katie, and what was left from crying. Her lip started to quiver as she stood there, just staring at me and my injuries. "I am SO sorry that I let this happen." She flung her arms around me, squeezing hard as she began to tremble. "I let things get so bad for you. I- I could've-" Her own sobs cut her off.
    "No," I whispered, holding onto her tenderly. "It's not your fau-"
    "Ladies. We need you right now." The stage manager hustled past us, eager to keep things running on time.
    "Hey," I quickly dried Liz's face from the salty mess it had become. "Let's kill it."
    She giggled, overcoming the tears as we ran on stage.
    The excited roar of the crowd was refreshing. I could almost feel the pain and fear of the past 24 hours wash away, leaving me only with the joy of this morning and the adrenaline of performing. I let my fingers fly over the frets as our first song  began. Tony nailed the opening leads, messing around with Vic while they played.
    The song ended and I revelled in the cheering, feeding off the energy my audience threw out. "How the hell are we doing in Las Cruces?"
    More cheering.
    "Fuck yeah," I laughed. "We're going to play a song off our first album. Actually, this song was our first big hit."
    Tony started playing the first riff. I loved the screams as soon as people recognized it.
    "This is 'Skin and Bones!'" I screamed out before joining in on rhythm. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Vic's gaze. He was beaming at me before ripping his gaze away and focusing on the sea of people before us.
    I wanted to drown in that fucking gaze.
    Before I knew it, our set was over. My chest heaved as I dragged myself offstage. Liz ran up to me, a huge, dorky grin plastered to her flushed face. "That went SO well," she squealed, throwing her arms around me.
    Tony hopped over, joining in. Then, Vic's arms found their way into our tangled mess. Before I knew it, Mike and Jaime were there, too. This was, by far, the cheesiest thing I'd been a part of, to this day. But, I'll admit, it was pretty nice. After maybe lingering a tad too long, our little swarm dispersed.
    "You guys were great," Mike spoke gently, shoving my shoulder.
    "Thanks," I laughed. "Thanks for letting us steal half of your band. You guys saved our asses."
    Tony stretched, mockingly rolling his eyes. "It was nothing." He held the macho act for a good 30 seconds before busting out in a fit of laughter.
    A short man with a headset and clipboard interrupted us. "You guys are up," He pointed at the boys.
    They nodded and started back on stage.
    "Hey," I whispered, grabbing Vic's hand, leading him back to me. "Thanks," was all I said before stretching up to kiss him. I had to stand on my toes to reach his face, but it was well worth it.
    Slowly, he pulled away, heading towards the stage. "Wait for me tonight?" He turned back, briefly.
    I nodded, mouthing "Of course."
    He flashed a toothy grin and the boys ran on stage. Caraphernelia started blasting out of the monitors. "SUNSHINE! There aint a thing that you can do that's gonna ruin my night. But there's just something about..."
    The song went on. Watching the crowd, I really wanted to be out there, just experiencing this...
    "Hey. Bad idea," Liz shouted over the music. "I can see what you're thinking. I know that look."
    I smiled, innocently enough, as I shrugged.
    "Don't give me that shit grin. You need to-"
    "You can't stop me!" I laughed as I ran off to join the crowd.
    I could practically feel her eye roll as she took off after me. We snuck to the front of the crowd, Liz doing her best to make sure no one hit me. By the time they finished the second song, we had reached the railing. I cheered along with the fans. One member of the security team gave me a funny look, motioning to his own neck. I understood his concern, but I just shrugged it off. I missed the feeling of just being a part of the audience...
    I watched as Vic searched the side of the stage with his eyes. The next song started, and he seemed to grow worried, still looking. He turned back to sing, facing the crowd again, spotting me instantly. He shot a devilish grin as he hopped off stage and began to sing.
    "I kissed the scars on her skin," he grabbed my hand. "I still think you're beautiful. And I don't ever wanna lose my best friend." He stared down the mic at me during those words, making them count and giving me instant chills.
    All around me, fans were losing their shit because, hey, Vic Fuentes was right there. Right by them. Close enough to touch. Just singing... They were pushing and shoving, trying to get as close as they could. But I hardly noticed any of it. All I could see or hear was him.
    I was quickly pulled back to Earth, however, as someone's elbow came crashing down hard on my neck. Pain shot through my body, reverberating back to that point. I felt like I was on fire. The girl attached to it continued to push past me.
    The world started to go black from the pain. I felt someone pull me over the rail. As my vision came and went, I saw Liz hop the rail, scold Vic to keep singing, and follow the large man who was carrying me. Embarrassed, I decided to squeeze my eyes shut until I felt myself get set down.
    When I opened them, Liz was sitting in a chair next to me. We were in a tent near the stage. The medic grumbled over, making snide remarks about my 'smart' decisions. "You really should have waited. How dumb are you? All you musicians think you're invincible."
    "Hey, uh, Mark? Shut the fuck up." Liz lounged, legs spread as she sat sunken in the chair. She looked relaxed but her face had a very 'I will kill you and no one will even notice' gare.
    He started to sweat. "Well, I, uh," He swallowed, wiping his brow. "The top two stitches popped open. Easy fix. We could honestly just glue this shit. Heal faster. And. Yeah."
    "What do you think?" Liz asked me while glaring at Mark. She squinted as she stared him down, making her already small eyes even smaller.
    "Glue, please." I mumbled through grit teeth.
    "You heard the lady, Mark. Glue 'er up!" She waved her hand, motioning for him to do his thing.
    He nodded, eager not to upset Liz again.
    The next few minutes were spent (painfully) removing the stitches, cleaning my wounds again and gluing them up.
    "Thaaaanks, Mark." Liz waved him off.
    I mumbled a quick, "thanks," as he stalked off.
    "What a dick," she shook her head, standing from her chair.
    I shrugged, staring at the floor. "He was right though. I'm acting like an idiot."
    "Hey, now." Liz tensed, almost taking personally offense. "Don't listen to him. You aren't an idiot."
    "I knew I was hurt. But I did it anyway!" I stood quickly, wincing.
    "Sweety, you are just living your life. You wanted to be a part of the crowd and experience the music. You did something for you that you wanted. Not everything you do is going to go well. But you did it. And that is okay. Plus, anyone would want to act a little crazy in your shoes," Liz Chided. 
    I sighed, not wanting to look her in the eye. I just held onto my neck.
    "Come on," she gently took my arm in hers. "I've got something for your pain." She led me back to the bus where she pulled out a J, lighting it. "Here," She passed it to me, holding the smoke in her lungs. I graciously accepted, eager to numb my gashes for a little while. We finished and made it back in time for the last song.