⌑ Eternally yours/ Vinny M X OC/ ⌑ Complete

Chapter Nine

▪️2 days later ▪️

"Wake up, you couch potatoes!" Chris yelled, whacking some empty Monster cans together loudly.

Vinny and Valerie were on the couch sleeping, as they had stayed up all night playing Mario Cart again. Vinny was groaning, but Valerie sat up straight and smiled.

"Morning chris"

"Top of the morning to you," Vinny grumbled, pulling Valerie back onto the couch, where he clung to her like a koala.

"We are finally in New York, and we are at the venue we will be playing at. The first concert starts at 6 tonight, and it's already 1 in the afternoon. We need to do sound checks, and we need to practice. Let's get going. The guys are already inside." Chris informed them, smiling.

"Alright, we will meet you over there. Should I lock the bus?" Vinny suggested waking up more and letting go of Valerie to sit up properly.

"Vinny, if I trusted you with these keys, they'd be down the drain in 10 minutes of them being with you. I'll be outside waiting." Chris chuckled, and he left the bus.

Vinny's face fell slightly, but then Valerie glanced at him, and he smiled, shrugged, and chuckled dryly, "Yeah, that's for the best. Everyone knows how clumsy I am! Let's get ready, Valerie."

Vinny dressed in his usual cargo pants and basketball shirt, while Valerie dressed in black ripped jeans, one of Vinny's jumpers, and canvas shoes.

She kept peering at Vinny because he seemed to be sad. Concerned for him, she decided to give him some comfort: "Come on Vinny, turn that frown upside down. Lets not be sad!" she smiled, hugging him from behind.

"I'm fine, Valerie," he muttered.

"Vinny," she stated, placing both her hands on his shoulder.

He looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"I'm your best friend; I know when you're lying. Whats up?" She stood up and placed her hands on her hips as she interrogated.

If Vinny wasn't down in the dumps, he would've made a joke of the situation and of how short she was. But would that result in her thinking he was never a serious person and just a clown?

"I'll tell you later, okay?" He replied and continued to get ready.

The two left the bus and met Chris, and then the three of them made their way over to the venue.

Valerie noticed Vinny was being awfully quiet, more so than usual. Just as she was about to bring it up again, she was astonished by the sight.

"Holy shit! It's magnificent!" She cried out, taking in all the beauty.

"It certainly is," Vinny whispered, loud enough for Chris to hear. Chris smirked as he saw Vinny staring at the star-struck Valerie, who was running around.

"Oh, by the way, I hope it's okay if, after the concert, I slip away. I'm meeting my sister at some cafe to catch up. Is that alright, Chris?" Valerie asked him as they got to the venue building.

"Yeah, that's fine. Should one of us tag along? We don't want you to get lost."

"Oh no! It's for private matters, sadly. But I will be messaging Vinny to come find me. Since he has won a few games of Mario Cart and the race from the other day, he deserves his reward." She told him, and she skipped over to Vinny and hooked arms with him.

He smiled back at her with a small but meaningful smile.

▪️at the venue ▪️

"The kid is not my son!" Vinny sang, jumping around with a hat that resembled Michael Jackson's on his head. He and Valerie had put together a get ready playlist, and as they were painting their arms and getting ready, they were jamming out to it.

Vinny began moonwalking, and it wasn't long before the two were in bits laughing. "Do, do the laugh!" She cried, holding her stomach.

"Hee-hee," Vinny sang, making Valerie tear up slightly.

"Oh god, my humour is broken!" She laughed, collapsing onto a stool.

"This is so fun, we should've listened to music together sooner." Valerie giggled, making Vinny gleam; it looked like he had a halo on his head.

"Yeah, you can sing beautifully. We should duet sometime! For my side music." Vinny suggested putting on makeup.

"Sounds like a plan!" Valerie relied, chucking on a pair of flats. "We'd best go and participate in the sound check."

The two went on to do a sound check with the guys, and Vinny grumbled the entire way.

They all started playing, but the drums couldn't be heard at the back of the stadium.

"I think the cable is undone; see here?" Ricky points out the microphone cable to everyone.

"I've got it," Vinny said, getting up and moving to fix it.

"Wait stop, you'll break it. Let Valerie do it since she is a professional." Justin spoke quickly, and the others just nodded slightly.

Valerie looked at Vinny, and a sad look was on his face. 'Why do they treat him as if he is a child?' She thought to herself, tapping her foot angrily.

"No, I think Vinny can do it just fine, actually," Valerie replied to them, glaring; their eyes widened.

"Please excuse my... rudeness. It was just a simple cable, and Vinny is more than capable of fixing it."

Vinny smiled brightly at Valerie. "Thank you, Valerie," he whispered, moving to fix the cable.

All the other members just stared, shocked by the outburst. Then they just started practising.

▪️just before they go on stage at 6pm▪️

Valerie was walking around backstage, and she bumped into a very stressed-looking Vinny. He was shaking slightly and looked very unkempt.

"Are you okay, Vinny?" She asked him, setting him down in the nearest chair. He was bouncing his leg and could barely keep still.

"I don't know what has come over me. I'm feeling really down and anxious right now; we may have to switch out in the middle of the show. Is that okay for you? I've left the drum tabs to each tab by your stuff," Vinny rushed out, panicking.

Of course this was all a trick, but she didn't know that.

Valerie pulled him into a hug, and the two just sat there for a moment.

"Yeah, that's totally fine. Are you sure you're okay to play right now?" She pushed on, disliking how pale he had gone.

"Come on, Vin, we are about to go on!" Ryan yelled, jogging through the room to grab his guitar pick.

"We can talk later. Can we switch after we play disguise?" Vinny asks, grabbing the sticks.

"Yeah, of course!"

Suddenly, loud heavy metal music starts playing, and Vinny took that as his cue.

"Well, it's almost time; are you ready?" Valerie smiled, embracing him slightly.

"The pressure is on, can you feel it? Tonight is gonna be choatic" Vinny sighed, pulling back to just look at her.

"Yeah, but with a friend like you, I'm sure we will both be fine! Go out there and drum like your life depends on it! Dont forget how much of an amazing drummer you are," Valerie said excitedly, rubbing his back.

"Don't forget to read over the drum tabs! I'm sure you will have to take over from me sometime tonight. Stay and watch, and I'll give you a signal." Vinny told her, and as he turned to go on stage, he quickly ran back and engulfed her in the biggest hug ever, and he kissed her cheek.

Without saying anything else, the two exchanged a smile before Vinny dashed onto the stage with the rest of the band.