Josh and Tyler dripped with sweat as they filed off the stage, the crowd still roaring behind them.
"That was awesome." Josh smiled. It was a good show, they had sold out the venue and the crowd was great. Tyler agreed and rushed down to the sound engineer to check on some things. Josh strolled back stage and managed to change his shirt before being urged by his crew to pack up and head out. "We got a show tomorrow. 7 hour drive from here. We gotta get moving." Their tour manager ushered Josh out of the dressing room and ordered him to help pack up the gear. Josh lifted a heavy speaker onto his shoulder and took off with it but half way to the van he felt the weight shift and himself fall back. "Whoa there, Buddy." Tyler supported the back of the speaker and helped Josh gain his grip. "This is why we shouldn't let the talent pack up." Tyler grinned at Josh and took off in the other direction,
Finally, Josh collapsed on the couch in the bus. The air conditioning pumped through the vents and cooled Josh's aching muscles. "Hey Tyler," Josh commented once the smaller man sat right next to him. "Hey, yeah." Tyler sarcastically responded.
"How come Jenna doesn't come on tour with us?" Josh asked, she had joined them a couple times but they were married and it seemed only fair. "Well, i guess because tour is our time. I get to spend everyday with Jishwa and only Jishwa," Tyler giggled, "No Homo." Josh couldn't help but blush at the genuine truth behind the joke. "I'm gonna hit the sack. See you in the morning?" Tyler said after a while of chit chat with the crew.
Tyler strut down the narrow hall and climbed into his bunk.
Soon it was just Josh awake, staring at his phone, unable to sleep. He was tired but his mind wasn't. He checked the time 2:45 am.
"Damn." Josh cursed. He crawled to the back of the bus till he reached the bunks, carefully in an attempt not to wake anyone he popped his head up to Tyler's bunk. "Ty...wake up." He nudged Tyler's shoulder and rustled him awake.
"What's wrong?" Tyler yawned.
"I can't sleep. Can i, um." Josh asked nervously.
"Of course." Tyler shuffled over and allowed room for Josh to climb in. The bunks were far to small for two men but if they squished together enough they could fit. Back when they had a van, they were always squished up and Josh had gotten so comfortable with it that a bus felt weird. He liked being close to people. Especially Tyler. In no time, Josh was drifting off to sleep, pressed against Tyler.
"You guys are weird." Mark commented when he opened Tyler's bunk to reveal the two men entwined. "For two straight guys, you're pretty gay."
"Shut up," Josh groaned and climbed down, "It's platonic cuddling and it's perfectly normal. Plus Tyler's married and i, i just get so many ladies." Mark scoffed and threw Josh a shirt.
"Still weird."
Josh paced back and forth in the dressing room. He could hear the audience getting riled up, his nerves were going crazy. "Josh, breathe. Stay calm, okay." Tyler grabbed Josh and sat him down, placed his cold hands on Josh's face and steadied him. "Breathe."
Josh got so lost in the moment he didn't notice when Mark called for them to get their asses on stage. Tyler pulled Josh up and grabbed his hand. "Breathe." Josh repeated.
Straight after the show, Josh started to freak. "I messed up, Tyler, I messed up the song. Jesus i'm terrible. Freakin hell."
"You did not mess up, you were fine. You were fantastic." Tyler assured him but it wasn't enough. Josh fell pale and struggled to breathe. "Josh," Tyler grasped Josh's face with one hand and his shoulder with the other, "We've been over this, breathe, okay?"
They balanced their foreheads together in a desperate attempt to calm Josh down, they whispered "breathe" over an over until Josh's heart steadied. "Josh," Tyler smirked, "Our lips are really close and i'm not gonna kiss you again cause last time was weird but i will give you a very platonic hug."
