Bubblegum

Part 6

"That was amazing!" Eden was grinning ear to ear, finding the boys backstage after their show. She was going to opt for the pit to watch the boys play, but after a few dirty looks from some of their fans after they saw her exiting his car at the venue, Jake had wanted Eden to stay backstage. The compromise was to stay with the front of house engineers, towards the far back of the pit. That way she was behind a barricade and could still see the whole show. And she was so glad she did.

"Thanks Edie!" Josh was there to greet her first, grabbing her in a big hug. She could feel the energy radiating off him. His jumpsuit stuck to his skin from the sweat of being under the stage lights, and Eden laughed as he peeled the material away from his skin. She gave Danny and hug, but couldn't quite get to Jake before she was intercepted.

"I'm so glad I waited to listen to you guys until it was live, you guys are awesome." Sam came up behind her and pulled her into another hug, this one sweatier than Josh's, as Sam had taken off his jacket halfway through the performance. She finally found Jake, talking to one of the guitar techs as he handed over his guitar. Her stomach turned in knots at the image of him. His long hair was damp with sweat, and his exposed chest under his jacket was still glistening under the canned lights backstage. Eden wanted nothing more than to run her hands down his torso and-

"What do you mean you waited to listen? You didn't hear our albums?" Sam asked, feigning offense. Eden tore her gaze away from Jake, meeting Sam's big doe-eyes.

"Nope. I figured I'd let you wow me in person." Eden chuckled. The taller boy kept his arm around her shoulder and started guiding everyone back towards their green room. Eden wrapped her arm around his waist lazily in response. "And you all did just that. God, it's crazy how good that was. That 'Age of Man' song? I was crying like a baby it was so good! Oh and Safari Song?! God that was sexy as hell! Don't even get me started on that Weight of Dreams one!" Sam grinned widely and leaned over, placing a quick, sloppy kiss to the side of her head. Eden pushed him away and wiped her face, laughing as she rounded the corner into the room. She felt something brush against her other side and saw Jake rush by her, Danny following him.

"So, are you coming over for some post-show dinner and drinks?" Danny asked, flinging a small towel over his shoulder after he wiped sweat from his brow. Eden nodded and began to speak, but was cut off.

"Nah, I gotta take her back home." Jake called over his shoulder from the rack of clothes hanging up. He was putting his stage jacket back on the hanger. Eden furrowed her eyebrows, confused at the sudden coldness coming from him.

"I don't have anything going on tomorrow, I can hang out for a little bit tonight." she corrected, smiling back at Danny. Sam, Danny and Josh continued to talk about the show, and explained to Eden bits and pieces that meant a lot to them in the music. Jake stayed quiet in the corner, changing slowly out of his stage clothes. Eventually Eden excused herself from the room so they could get changed in peace, and she pulled out her phone to pass the time.

'Jake's fans are tagging you in photos left and right!! That is not the outfit I had sent over for you tonight.' Bryans' messages were from hours ago, but she swiped through them, rolling her eyes. A few photos he sent made Eden blush. While the band played, she'd forgotten she was supposed to be playing a role. But no one would've been able to tell the difference if she had or hadn't. She was grinning and there was a video of her swaying with that same grin, then 'whooo-ing' and clapping at the end of the song that was playing.

Eden was so focused on reliving the memories from a few moments ago, she didn't notice Jake coming out of the green room, dressed back in his street clothes. He grabbed her hand and continued walking. Eden shuffled to keep up and match his pace at first, but managed to do so, the other guys following behind.