Jace

{24}

The long flight across the United States made us all tired and the sudden temperature change from stifling Atlanta to cool SF had us confused as well. It was about two hours before the concert started and I had wandered to a place in the wings that was empty to get some piece and quiet outside of the jostling dressing room. I juggled my microphone in my hand, just coming off of sound check, and held my phone in the other, twitter open.

"Annalise don't touch that!"

There was a crash, and then a little girl's voice giggled, "Oops."

"Daddy!! Jackson's pulling my hair!"

"Jackson let go of your sister's hair."

A little girl ran past me giggling with glee. I spun around as she disappeared into the rest of backstage and then a police officer chased after her.

"Francesca this is not the place to play hide and go seek!" He yelled as he ran.

What the hell is going on?

Just as I was about to go get Paul and ask why there were children being chased by police backstage, a tall man with dirty blonde hair and pale blue eyes walked up to me. He wore an obviously worn green plaid shirt open over a black tank top and jeans. My eyes traveled down as I heard giggling and couldn't help but stare with confusion as two little kids clung to his legs.

"Excuse me do you know where I could find Jacelyn Rock?" he asked. He looked exhausted, but was an obvious kids man. Two more older men followed him along with two women, two more little kids, and a sweet looking old women.

A grin stretched across my face. "Yeah, follow me. I'm Liam by the way."

"Hunter," he shook my hand and I noticed the seemingly permanent grease stains on his hands and arms. "I'm Jace's brother."

"She talks a lot about you." Hunter was quite tall and muscular but he walked funny with the two kids weighing down his legs.

"These are my brothers Sean," a man in a plain navy blue tee shirt and jeans with hair the color of Jacelyn's held hands with a curly brunette and in between them stood a little blonde girl with an open mouth. "Aaron," a man in jeans and a suit jacket with a white button up shirt that had a blue tooth in. His hair was darker blonde until it looked almost brown and slightly behind him was a red head with a ginger boy on her hip.

"Got 'er!" The police officer came jogging up to us with the little girl tucked under his arm in a sea of giggles.

"And Parker."

Parker handed off the child to Aaron and smiled at me. "How ya doin?" he nodded politely. He seemed very friendly and resembled the most to Jacelyn. "Sorry about the uniform, I just got off work."

Hunter continued introducing me to everyone and pointed to the women. "That's Alex, Aaron's wife," the red head smiled and gave a faint wave. "The little boy she's holding is Jasper and their daughter Francesca." Next the curly haired brunette took over introductions.

"I'm Sara, Sean's girlfriend," she smiled at him and I could just see the love they shared. Her left hand rested on the head of the little blonde girl that stood between them. "This is Byron."

"These are my two little rascals," Hunter shook his legs causing the chocolate haired twins to laugh profusely. "Jackson and Annalise."

"I'm RoseMarie," the old women stepped forward and took my outstretched hands in both of her own. "Their grandmother. Thank you for taking care of Jacelyn. I trust she's caused you no problems?"

RoseMarie's grayish-white hair was cut short and curled tightly into little ringlets atop her head. Paired with her softly winkled face and circular

coke-bottle glasses, she seemed like the picture perfect grandmum.

"She's been perfect," I grinned. The brothers burst into laughter and RoseMarie chuckled.

"Yeah oh-kay," Parker said sarcastically. "Jace...perfect..thats a good one."

Their giddiness made me smile as well. "Well c'mom then, let's go get her."

*

Our dressing room was crowded enough already and buzzing with life and preshow jitters. We had all gotten reduced to one dressing room, dancers and band members alike.

"I swear to God Louis get out of that bathroom!!" Madison pounded on the door. "I need to change into my costume!"

"I'm changing!!" He called through the door.

"You've been changing for like an hour!" She slammed her fist on it. "Hurry up!"

"With how tight these pants are, I deserve two hours!"

Harry was hurriedly talking to Lou about something as she styled his hair, Niall laughed with 5SOS's Ashton and he used his drumsticks to create a beat on the table. Katherine was smushed between Luke and Calum as she fought for the mirror to do her stage makeup. Their pushing caused her liquid eyeliner line to bounce up and into her eyebrow.

"Aw fuck!"

Luckily her swear was overrun by the noise of everyone else. The makeup artist crowded Zayn as he sat on the couch across from Jace, trying to hold a conversation with her. He held a small mirror, probably ripped off of the wall, up for her to do her stage makeup in.

"What is in your bra?" He asked, raising his eyebrows. She put down the makeup sponge and looked down.

"Oh." She pulled the object out and set it on the table, quickly returning to her previous task. "My phone."

"...And why was your phone in your bra? Ow." He winced as the makeup artist tried to apply some powder and stepped on his foot in the process.

"I had to go to the bathroom."

"That doesn't make any sense as to why your phone was in your bra."

"So what do you do when you're going to the bathroom and you have your phone in your back pocket?"

Zayn had a look on his face calling her dumb. "Go to the bathroom..."

She waved him off. "Yeah yeah but pretend you have to sit down to go to the bathroom and your phone is in your back pocket."

"Put it in my front pocket."

"But pretend you're wearing tight jeans. Like Harry tight jeans."

Zayn wore a completely straight face. "I don't have Harry tight jeans because I have a set of balls."

"Heard that!" a voice yelled from across the room. Zayn chuckled.

"Well judging by your high notes I wouldn't of guessed it so just pretend."

"Hey!" Zayn laughed.

"You put your phone in your bra so it doesn't fall out of your pocket onto the nasty bathroom floor!"

I took this as my time to interject seeing that the pack behind me was pretty overwhelmed with all the activity going on. "Hey Jace," she turned to look at me and smiled wide once she noticed the extra party behind me. "Your family's here."