A Very Warped Summer (Austin Carlile / OC)

Chapter 26

"You know what we need to have one day?" Alan said, sprawled out on the couch in the Of Mice & Men bus.

"A super ginger gathering?" Danielle asked, curled up next to Austin on the same couch with his arm around her.

Austin let out a snort.

"No...but that would be awesome, too." Alan sat up, meeting both Austin and Danielle's eyes with his own lit up like a child's on Christmas. "An after party! Like, an actual after party where we make actual food and actually have a gathering with the rest of the bands! I'm tired of pizza and diner foods, man. I want some real homestyle, barbequed burgers!"

Danielle watched him with interest. She shrugged, rather enjoying that idea. She had never really thought about it.

"We do have the day off tomorrow," Austin said. "How would we get word out though?"

"Dani, don't you send mass text messages all the time?" Alan asked.

Danielle laughed. "I don't have friends. I hardly got to know most of the bands on this tour!"

Alan grimaced before grabbing his own phone, charging next to him. "Well, fine. I guess I'll do it."

Dani shook her head at Alan's sass before checking her own phone. It was almost two.

"Shit." Dani sprang up from the couch. "Set time. You coming?" She asked Austin.

Austin took in a deep breath. "My set's at three again but I'll come."

Happily, Dani took his hand and they walked out of the bus together. Her eyes wandered across the lot, looking for any sign of Trace. She hadn't received any texts from him since the other night when she heard him whistling at her. She was beginning to think he had given up. But if she knew him well enough, she knew he was never the one to give up without a fight.

And as she climbed onto the back of the stage and got ready for her set, she checked her phone only to find a text from Trace.

Austin was talking to Erick about something so he was completely oblivious to what she was doing at the moment. She opened the text.

I heard Vic arguing with someone outside his bus last night about you. Guess the boy will never get over you now, huh?

Without even acknowledging those words so as to not show how pissed off she was, she shoved her phone back in her pocket. She then took Andrew's drumsticks from him and began tapping them on his head with a large smile on her face.

Andrew tackled her and threw her over his shoulder. She started screaming as he ran in some general direction. Before she knew it, Austin was lifting up her head and giving her a quick kiss as someone placed her mic in her hands.

"Kill it today, babe!" She heard him shout. Andrew ran in another direction that she could only guess was the stage. The shouts from the crowd proved her suspicions. Finally, Andrew placed her back on her feet and she threw a couple punches at him before turning to the crowd.

"Don't know what it is about these assholes but they love picking me up like a sack of flour." She turned toward her band. "I have feelings, guys!" She laughed before turning back to the crowd. For a moment, she thought she saw Trace's face and her smile suddenly went slack.

But when she blinked and searched the venue once more, he was nowhere to be seen. She put her smile back on and delved right into the first song.

.&.

Meet at sws bus if you wanna grab a bite!

A group text sent by Justin went to her and several others at the end of the day. Her stomach was tied in knots (lolirony) when she thought about how there was a very high chance Vic would be there, too. But she made her way over with her hand in Austin's and both of their band members beside and behind them.