Stranger Things Have Happened | Marcus Bontempelli

fifty-six.

It had been a wild couple of weeks, playing shows and meeting fans across the UK. We had been so lucky over the years to really build a fan base and a family over here, almost like a genuine second home. Some of the fans that came out to the shows were people we had known from the very beginning and there were so many people we'd never met before telling us they were new fans. It really was a beautiful balance between new and old and none of us took any of them for granted.

"I might have to start working out again because I am fuckin' exhausted," I said to Jake who had his head tilted back against the seat, feeling the exact same way.

"My arms feel like lead and my entire back feels like someone's stabbing knives into it," He groaned, arching his back forward to stretch it.

"Hey Rox, do you reckon there's a massage place in Dubai during our layover?" I asked from the back seat, hoping Roxy heard me over the loud music our driver was playing.

"I'll look it up but probably... If not, I'll book somewhere in Melbourne," She replied, earning a relieved sigh from Jake who was struggling more than I was.

"Thank you," I said back, looking down at my phone and catching up on what was happening back home. Marcus had been back for nearly 2 weeks since wrapping up his US trip with Dunks and Hayden so there were plenty of photos from all of them getting chucked up on their finstas.

The drive to the airport took longer than anyone anticipated and it really just exacerbated the shitty moods everyone was in, especially knowing that a 23 hour international flight awaited us. Danny and Connor were quiet in the back of the van while our tour manager, James took it upon himself to try and organise some of the final details on his laptop for the mini Australian tour that started a week from now.

"Why don't you just do that on the flight?" I asked, looking down at his laptop beside me with a quizzical look on my face.

"Because the only way I'm gonna get through this flight is by getting black out drunk and sleeping the whole time," He replied completely deadpan and I couldn't help but agree with his philosophy.

"Spoken like a true blue Aussie, J. I respect that," I chuckled and he nodded, cracking a smile before tapping away on his keyboard.

When our van pulled up at the international departures terminal at Heathrow, Roxy noticed that there was a small crowd of fans waiting for us and even though I would typically think that was sweet, I genuinely didn't think I had the energy to deal with it.

"Just say hi and keep walking," Roxy advised as we waited for the van behind us to pull up that had a couple of security guards ready to escort us through the terminal.

Once the doors to the van slid open, Danny was the first to jump out and start greeting everyone but Connor and Jake were no help at all and hid behind the security guards, not even say hello to anyone. A couple of guards stayed back with us, including James who was by my side the entire time just making sure things didn't get out of hand.

"Catie!" A few girls were screaming at me with Valencia shirts on and bright smiles on their faces.

"Hey guys," I greeted, trying my hardest not to look how I felt even though my energy was depleting at a rapid pace.

"We came to the Brixton, Leeds and Liverpool shows and you guys were fuckin' brilliant," One of them said, holding out her phone to get a photo, which I was happy to take.

"That's amazing," I replied before telling them how touched I was that they would come and support us all across the country.

I made my way down the line and stopped a couple more times, looking over at Danny who was really taking one for the team and taking photos on the other side that was barricaded off. There were a few more kids to say hello to before I turned around and signalled for the security to help me through.