Dirty Band One Shots! (Requests Closed)

Don't Ruin the Moment-Ghost (MIW)

[A/N: I'm so sorry that this is like, extremely long, but hey... I like detail! It seems that you all have enjoyed my one shots so far. I thank you. Don't get impatient. It is very long, but I promise you, it's worth it. <3]

It was freezing. That's the thing about living in the east cost of America; you get the Atlantic breeze. What made it even worse was the fact that I live in Maine, up north by Canada, right in a city near the ocean itself. Some days, the cold was excruciating.
I lived on the streets, you see. 3 years ago, my mother and father died in an accident where they were parked on the train tracks because of traffic. I've held a grudge over them for years; what drove them to the point of madness to where they had parked on the train tracks? There had been no superhero to save them.

Instantaneously orphaned, and being underage at the time, DCFS (a child care American thing) had attempted to take me into the custody of a foster family. I had no geographically close relatives, and most of them were dead or very distant cousins once removed, etc. Knowing the stories of many foster kids, I ran. I ran and ran. Many officials spent lots of their work time devoted to my finding. I was filed as a runaway and a year later, the search for me stopped. Shows how much America cares. It almost seems as if I'd forgotten my own name.

For 3 years, I have been living off of thrown-away food from restaurants in garbage bins, stealing relentlessly to survive, bribing strangers, lying about my identity in homeless shelters with filth on my face. It's been great. Note the sarcasm.

So, here I sit. Behind this stinking, rotting filth of garbage. I'd made this little fort out of thrown out two x fours and little crates. My bed? A holey pillow and a blue sleeping bag I'd snatched from a RV parked a little ways away about a year ago. Everything's filthy. When you're homeless, it's all filthy. Nothing but filth ahead of you. What can I say? I'm doing what I can to survive in this shitty world.

If I could ever meet the God that everyone speaks of, he can cast himself to Hell. He is never there for the sick and the hungry. I've prayed until tears spilled endlessly down my face. I've screamed to the sky in hopes He will listen. It wasn't until late the 2nd year that I realized that He'll never come, He'll never see. Does He even exist? Or is He a figment of thousands of imaginations? Religion is hopeless. I'm hopeless.

The best part about living in the makeshift fort is that I'm right next to a venue. I can sleep to the loud music. I don't complain much; I stopped that years ago. I hate stealing, but I have to. The vans and buses that stop in, I can be sneaky with their cargo. I only take what I need, not what I want. For goodness sakes, my clothes are almost shreds.

I knew that a band would be headlining tonight. A few other bands would be joining. I don't normally have time to know anyone or their songs. It's hard to come by anything good these days, musically speaking and food wise. Money is always demanded; something that I don't have. In a few hours, I suppose, a bus should be pulling in. Bags will pile up, water bottles (that I will most definitely go after if I get the chance) and other Knick knacks. Bags could be valuable, that and they could contain things that I need; such as, clothes, valuable thingys, etc.

It was around 10 am. The bus pulled up. I don't know who they are, and I don't care. I spotted about seven men and a couple women clamber off of the bus, about six of them in some intense black makeup. They wore nothing but black. The tallest one wore some platform thingys that made him look like he was as tall as a tree. I was never interested in men that look like so, but I will not deny that they were handsome people. Note the wink.

I caught a few names, but they didn't matter to me. The band—obviously the ones in black makeup—had gone into the venue; at least, momentarily. I must be quick with this.

After the one guy without makeup went into the venue, I belted forward. I snatched one of the bags and some water just as one of the guys inside pointed at me. They ran out the door after me, and I ran as hard as I could. Don't stop now! I told myself. Don't give in! I was running short of breath. Picking up speed anyway, I turned a corner, but they were gaining. Shit.

One of them—the one that looks a little plump and fluffy, he was bald with many tattoos on his head, and had angel bites—was close enough to leap at me. I went down, knees hitting the sidewalk and arms following with a hard slap.

"Good job, Balz." One said, breathing hard. This one was tall himself, a little wide in the hip area, with slicked back short hair. He wore a black wrinkled shirt with kind-of baggy black skinny jeans.

"No problem," The fluffy one that was heavy on top of me—Balz (why is he named after a pair of genitals?)—said. Balz got up and yanked me off the ground, and not very nicely. "Who are you, and why did you take his"—he pointed at a fair-set man with hair that was split in color like Cruella deVil's, and he had a nose piercing—"bag?"

I did not answer, only struggled as the bag was taken from my arms by the guy that looked like a Goth tree and put into that one guy's arms.
"Who are you!? Why did you take it!?" Balz shook me. I looked at him cruelly and with a little fear.
"I'm homeless," I mumbled. Some whispering followed throughout the band.
"That doesn't answer my question."
"How doesn't it?" I backtalk to him.
"Who. Are. You?" He growls.
I look at him. "Would it make a difference if I told you?"

The Goth Tree said, "Ooh, she's feisty."
I grimaced at the remark, and spat at him.
"Even better." He replied.

The extremely short and skinny one with spiderbites and long, black, flowy hair said, "What if we told you that if you don't tell us first, we're reporting you, and you're going to eat jail food tonight?"
"Anything's better than the streets, mister," I said.
"Oh, so you want us to report you?" He reached for his pocket, where I saw the outline of his phone.
I panicked. "No! No! I was a runaway and... and..."
He rose his eyebrows. "Ah. So you better tell us, then..."

They took me inside. Finally, some warmth. Frostbite is nasty. They gave me a bottle of water and a bag of chips, after mumbling a quiet thank you.

Balz, an apparent interrogator, sat in front of me. "First off, we're going to start with who you are. And you're going to tell us, or Ricky over there"—I would assume, the one that threatened me into talking—"is going to call the police."

"Fine. Macomber. My name is Adira Macomber." I mumbled and looked at him.

"That's a start, love." The one with the Cruella deVil hair said.

"Now why did you steal Ghost's bag?" Balz asked.

I huffed slowly. "I was low on provisions. I'm always low. I always need food, water. The bag could have been worth something, and some of the things in it. I'm sorry. I never mean to harm anyone... I just do what I need to do to survive."

"I see." Balz said.

"No, no you don't. You'll never see unless you become homeless." I replied.

As if he ignored my remark, he walked back over to his band and they huddled. I heard whispers, I saw glances returning to me.

The Goth Tree came to me and said, "You can work for us. You'll earn money, have showers, be clothed, and be fed. You'll be warm. And as a bonus, you can see the world with us. But, if we catch you so much as stealing, it's jail for you. Do you understand?"

I nodded. He's right—I did need this. What an opportunity to live. I didn't want to, but what choice do I have?

"Josh, show her the ropes." The one that had walked off the bus with no makeup looked at me. He had a scruffy kind-of light brown/red beard going on. He was smoking a cigarette.

"All right. Give me a sec." he said, finishing the cigarette. Josh motioned for me to come to him. I walked slowly. "Josh Korel." He shook my hand. "Come on now, sweet cheeks, we don't have all day."

I walked with him to a little tent where a girl with red ombre hair was unpacking boxes and hanging a few shirts up. "Hey, Sabrina, we got someone here. She can help." Josh whispered a few words in her ear and she nodded. "But first," he said to me, "shower."

I was walked up stairs, where all the guys in the band were. "Shower, that direction. Turn to your left, and that's the spot."

I gestured to my clothes. What was I to wear? These rags? No way. "Oh. Yeah."

Ricky threw me a pair of jeans and a random t-shirt. "You're short, like me. Skinny, like me. These should fit you." He smiled. "They might stink a little, and be a little dirty. A forewarning." His clothes smelled strongly of cigarettes and faintly of cologne and sweat.

I smiled back. "Not anything like what I'm wearing now."

I turned to the bathroom. Wow. I haven't seen anything like this in a long time. The bathroom wasn't exactly spectacular, but it was better than everything else that I could've had just now if I got away with Ghost's bag. Hell, I haven't seen a toilet in a long time! I'd rather not explain.

I started the shower, took off my rags, and threw them away. Someone knocked on the door and I peeked my head out. Sabrina stood there, holding a bra and underwear. "Hi, not sure if these will fit exactly, but you can wear them for now." She smiled sympathetically, but I thanked her.
I stepped into the shower. The hot water ran down my back and I could feel every drop of dirt washing away. I washed my hair twice, noticing all the filth. The water was wickedly black washing down the drain. I shaved my scary hairy legs and armpits, and pubes for that matter. I stepped out, and felt brand new. A mirror... I haven't seen my reflection in a few years. I am 20, and it's hard to believe it. I finally overcame myself and stared at my naked reflection. I gasped, surprised at the way I looked. My hair had been so dirty, it was dark brown. A light blonde, my hair was. My skin, a beautiful peach. I never thought I'd know myself again.

I put on the clothes. Wow, Ricky. You skinny ass. These jeans are tight!

I walked out, and noticed that they were all looking at me. "Who are you?" The one with wide hips said. I still don't know his name.

"It's Adira, Ryan." Ricky replied. "She's wearing my clothes."

I smiled and Josh took me downstairs. "You're going to be busy." He said. Josh took me over to Sabrina.

"Do they fit?" she asked.
"What?"
"The undergarments, you know."
"Oh. Yeah. Bras a bit big, but thank you."
"You're welcome." She smiled, and continued to teach me how selling the band's—I found out, was called Motionless in White—merchandise.

2 PM

The band had come downstairs after we had eaten a meal of excellent Chinese food, which, of course, I had scarfed down. Now, the guys were picking up their instruments and rehearsing.

"What's the tall one's name? The one with the three lip piercings? I never caught his name." I asked Sabrina.

"Oh." She giggled. "That's Chris. He's my boyfriend."

I looked at her, surprised. "Does he have a last name?"

"Yeah, it's Cerulli. But for the stage, it's Motionless. I assume you don't know all of them?"

"Nope."

"Okay. On that Ibanez guitar there, as you know, is Ricky Horror. Real last name: Olson. The one on the bass is Ghost. His real name is Devin Sola. He likes to dress up as people. Currently being Leatherface from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. And from the look in your eye, girl, you think that boy is sexy."

I looked at her and blushed.

"On the other guitar, is Ryan Sitkowski. He's very sarcastic, as is Ghost, so don't take it personally. On the keyboards is Josh Balz. That's literally his last name. It's German..."

She trailed off, and I wasn't listening anymore. I was busy staring at Ghost, fiddling with the strings on his bass and with a mask where only his teeth and a little glimpse of his eyes was visible. My hearing tuned back in and Sabrina was still talking.

"He's a cuddle bug, though. His girlfriend, Ryan Ashley, should be in the venue somewhere. That there on the drums, is Vinny Mauro. He's not really in the band. After Brandon left, well... we couldn't find someone permanent. Vinny is just a touring drummer."

"I hope he joins," I said.

"We all do."

7 PM

The fans loaded in. If I was in my fort, hiding would have been my number one priority.

Motionless was great. Everything about their performance quality was spectacular. When Chris said to "Jump!" you want to forget everything and do so.
Sabrina and I picked a topic for the donation box, and it was donate for your favorite band member. Ricky got the most money by the end of the night (of course).

11 PM

The concert's done. I'm helping Sabrina put away all the merch that wasn't sold. It's crazy, this. Last time that I was living a normal life was when I was 17. Now I can live again.

"Adira?" I turned around. It was Ghost.

"Yes?"

"Chris told me that he's scheduling you a checkup at the doctor. To make sure you're not sick or have anything contagious."

My eyes widened. "No!" Everyone looked at me. I scratched my head. "It's just... I ran away at the age of 17, after I became an orphan. If they put me in the records, they'll find me. They'll take me in. There will be nothing that I or you could do to help me."

They all nodded. Ryan looked up. "Uh... my mom's a nurse. I could see what I could do." He suggested.

I was still worried about that suggestion, though. "I don't know..."

Few days later

We were in Pennsylvania. Ryan's mom was checking me over.

"You've got nothing wrong with you, sweetheart. Although, you've got lice. Sorry dear. It's only simple, though. Shower every day. You'll be fine."

Ugh. She gave me some instructions, and I took care of it.

No more lice.

3 Weeks later

Ghost has been coming to see me every day after every concert. We end up flirting back and forth, a constant rhythm. He's finally picked up the nerve this week to leave hot kisses on my cheek, right in front of Sabrina, which of course makes my face burn in a swell of crimson.

You're getting crazy for that man, I thought to myself. Today, though, he's observing me as I unpack merch, getting used to the constant routine. I can't wait for the European Leg of this tour. I've learned how lust-driven Ghost is, I've seen the porn on one of his blogs. It made me a little jealous, I admit. I hated seeing all those breasts on that page.

"Hey, Addy?" Sabrina said. She'd taken to calling me Addy for a while now.

"Yeah?"

"Would you mind finishing packing? Chris wants to take me somewhere and he won't stop asking." She moaned.

"Yeah, sure. Go ahead!" I say.

As I was finishing Sabrina's boxes, Ghost comes up. "Hey..." he says quietly.

Without turning, I say in a mystical voice, "Hello, Devin. What brings you to my fortress of merchandise?"

He laughs quietly. "Well, I... um..."

"Hey, Ghost! We need your help packing up gear and putting it in the trailer! Come on!" Ricky yells.

"Really Rick? Ruin the moment much?" I mumble to myself.

"I guess... I'll see you on the bus, Adira." Ghost whispers.

"Yeah."

Night

I walk up to Ghost as soon as he steps on. I have been growing anxious to hear what he wanted to say to me at the merch table since he's been loading the trailer for an hour or so. I grab his hand and drag him with me to the bunk area near the back of the bus.

"You were going to tell me something earlier, Devin..." I start.

"Yeah. I was." He confirms.

"Could you tell me?" I say, hopeful.

"Okay, but bear with me. I may stutter and stuff." He says.

"Go on."

"Well, it's been hard to say this to you. I'm very shy and quiet."

"Tumblr tells me otherwise." I say, smiling.

"Yeah, you saw?" I nod, and he smiles and chuckles. "Well, anyway. To what I was going to say." He took a deep breath, exhaling briefly.

"I wanted you to know that I really...I've taken affection... I've... Well, I've been..." He took another deep breath as I looked at him meaningfully. "My affection for you has grown strong, Addy. I can't help but want to hold you, cuddle you, kiss you and cherish you in every fucking way... it's hard not to want that with you, in my head. I'm growing crazy for you, Addy."

I smiled and gave him an Eskimo Kiss and hugged him. As I looked up into his eyes, mine fluttered closed as our faces moved to close in—

And the door opened.

"RICKY!!" I yelled as I saw his puny form. I grabbed a pillow out of a random bunk and threw it at him. "Always ruining the moment."

Mine and Devin's faces moved in, finally, and we shared an almost 3 minute kiss before we pulled away to breathe. He caressed the side of my face and kissed me softly again, and whispered, "I love you," against my lips.

Now, I know my life with clothes, food, water, money, and people who love me. Most of all, Devin. Who I love back with so much heart, it could explode.