you've got a way of making wrong seem right

[I figured the tour would be after the release of the self-titled album ]

When Candace entered her fiancé's band Divided by Zero in a competition to open for Avenged Sevenfold on their latest tour, she really hadn't been expecting them to win. It wasn't that she didn't think they were good; in fact, they were amazing and very well-known in their local area. It was just that she was assuming that hundreds of thousands of bands would be entering. And honestly, they were crazy if they didn't. Avenged Sevenfold was quickly becoming one of the most well-known bands in the world of rock music and it was no secret that their fan base was absolutely huge. Opening for them would likely essentially kick-start the career of whoever won and despite the odds, that winner just happened to be Divided by Zero.

Candace was in the grocery store when she got the phone call from Warner Bros. Records. At first she'd thought it was a prank call but they assured her that it wasn't and at that point she was so excited she almost completely abandoned her shopping to run home and tell Corey and call the others. Of course, with that news came a lot of work. Divided by Zero was a small band. They had a few roadies and crew members, but most of the work was done by Candance. She was the tour manager, the photographer, and the one in charge of the social media account for the band. So it was up to her to be in nearly constant contact with Avenged Sevenfold's tour manager, making sure she booked and did everything exactly like she was supposed to. They also had to find a way to travel; luckily the drummer Blake's cousin sold them a decent RV for a good price. They slapped a logo on it and they were good to go.

"Can you believe you guys are less than an hour away from opening your first show for Avenged Sevenfold?" Candace asked, walking alongside Corey as they made their way to the venue. They hadn't even met the guys from Avenged Sevenfold yet, but they would do that backstage in just a few minutes. Corey and the others were silent now and Candance knew they were nervous. She was nervous too, but she knew they would do amazing. "Alright, let me get a shot of you guys walking." Of all of her jobs, photography was Candace's favorite. She carried her equipment everywhere, ready to capture anything she could. At this, the boys voiced their complaints, but Candance waved them off. "Hush. This could be the last picture of you guys before you become famous."

Sometimes it was hard for Zacky to remember what it was like when Avenged Sevenfold wasn't a household name in the rock industry. Just like every other teenage boy across America, he had dreamed about making it big and getting the girls that came along with such a title. When he had started Avenged with the other boys, he had thought his goals were unrealistic. He thought, at best, that he may do it for a few years before having to settle on a career that he would end up ultimately hating. Some dead end 9 to 5 job where he answered to some douchebag that didn't really give a shit about what went on around him.

Zacky still remembered the night after they had signed their record deal with Hopeless Records. They had all seemingly known in that moment that life was going to get crazy from then on. It was going to take awhile, sure, but they were a band with a different sound. They were never going to get boring because from the start, they had established that each record would sound different from the last. They had never partied that hard before and even since, they hadn't. There was nothing that had happened since that night that could compare to the euphoria. Even so, Zacky liked to take a few minutes to meet the opening band for each of their tours and with the competition that had taken place for the role this time around, Zacky was particularly excited. He hadn't listened to their music but he was sure they were good, they wouldn't have been given the opportunity if they weren't.

Heading out of the dressing room, Zacky headed for the side of the stage. It was guaranteed that he would run into them here because they would be around in a matter of moments, prepping for the first night of the tour. The rest of the night would be a blur, he wanted to get introductions out of the way while they still could be remembered. Shoving his cell phone into his pocket, Zacky glanced up when he heard footsteps approaching. He shoved off of the wall he had been leaning against, approaching the band with a small grin.

"Hey guys, feeling nervous?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. Zacky kind of felt like an asshole because he doubted that he needed to introduce himself but still, it was a common courtesy. "Zacky, rhythm guitarist for Avenged."

The group hasn't even made it backstage when Candace heard footsteps approaching and when she looked up, she saw the rhythm guitarist for Avenged Sevenfold walking up to them. As Corey was thd one closest to her, she gave him a nudge in the elbow and he muttered a shocked obscenity underneath his breath when he caught sight of Zacky. Candace couldn't help but laugh when Zacky introduced himself. "Trust me, they know who you are," she told him. She looked over at the guys, who were all staring at Zacky a little like star-struck teenagers. Avenged Sevenfold had always been one of Divided by Zero's biggest influences and Corey even liked to say Johnny was the entire reason he'd picked up a bass. Of course, hanging out with the guys for so long made Candace a pretty big fan as well, but she was a little better at hiding it than them. "Anyway, I'm Candace," she continued. "I'm pretty much responsible for keeping these guys alive."

Candace gave Corey another nudge. "Go on, introduce yourselves," she said.

"Oh uh, yeah. I'm Corey. I'm the bass player for Divided by Zero."

One by one, each of the others introduced themselves. Besides Corey, there was Blake on the drums, Sam on lead guitar, Nate on rhythm, and their frontman Aiden. "Alright so do we get to...I mean, should we meet the rest of the band?" Candace asked. "Or is there not enough time before the show starts? Shit, I guess I should know that, shouldn't I?"

"Your girl's already slacking, Corey," Nate joked.

"Shut the hell up," Candace grumbled. She looked up to Zacky with an apologetic smile. "Sorry. I'm realizing a little late that I probably should've tried to find somebody to help me manage the tour."

Zacky laughed when Candance said she was the one responsible for keeping the guys alive. He gave a nod of his head, having no doubt in his mind that she was telling the truth. If it wasn't for Val, he was sure that the band would have died a time or two while on the road. At the very least. Whether it was because they had no money to eat and Val borrowed money from her parents or it was because one of them had gotten too drunk to be able to take care of themselves. Smirking at the thought, Zacky shook each of the guy's hands before he turned back to Candace as she started to speak again.

"You guys can. Brian's probably still sleeping. He needs his beauty rest or he gets pissy," Zacky commented with a roll of his eyes. He shoved his hands into his pockets, tilting his head to the side when Nate made a comment about Candance. He drew in a deep breathe, reminding himself not to even get involved. It wasn't worth it and besides, if he noticed Nate being particularly awful, Zacky would speak up then.

"Larry should be around somewhere," Zacky paused long enough to look around before giving a shrug of his shoulders. "He can help you out. I mean, if you're on tour with us, you should have no problem shadowing him around. He's got a good head on his shoulders, he'll be able to help you get your shit together. Trust me, without him there's no way in hell we would be able to do what we do." Zacky stared pointedly at Nate, huffing before he turned away from the guitarist.

Zacky turned, starting to lead the way back toward the dressing room. "Come on. They're just going to be fucking around, minus well drop in on them." It was only a few minutes before they came to the dressing room in the large arena and Zacky didn't bother to knock or otherwise announce their arrival before he burst into the room, starting to laugh already when he noticed Johnny holding a fake gun to Matt's head. He grinned as he glanced back to Divided by Zero. "And these dumbasses," he hesitated, waving his arm around the room. "Are Avenged Sevenfold."

Candace almost missed the way Zacky reacted to Nate's playful comment. She and the other guys knew Nate's sense of humor and that he was only joking, but Zacky didn't. But he would figure it out eventually. Everyone did. Candace smiled as Zacky started to talk about Larry. Of course the man who was responsible for keeping Avenged Sevenfold straight on tour would be able to help her. And if she shadowed him and learned from him, she would be able to help build up Divided by Zero and that excited her. Adjusting her camera bag on her shoulder, Candace fell in step next to Corey as they followed Zacky back to Avenged Sevenfold's dressing room. He reached for her hand and she gave his a squeeze, knowing he was probably a little nervous about meeting the rest of the men that had been his idols since he was a young teenager.

Candace was a little confused when Zacky opened the dressing room door to reveal Johnny pointing what looked like a paintball gun with no paintballs in it at Matt's head. Judging by the camera near the door, they were making some sort of video. And it seemed like Candace wasn't the only one who noticed, since Aiden immediately asked if they were making another one of their intro videos. "Intro videos?" Candace asked. She snapped her fingers, remembering the videos she'd seen Corey watching on more than one occasion. "Wait, is he talking about those weird little videos you guys do before each show and then upload to YouTube?"

"Weird?" Corey repeated. "They're hilarious."

"You guys have weird senses of humor though, so..." Candace said, earning a frown from Corey. She laughed. "Anyway, I guess I'll start the introductions. Again. I'm Candace. I'm the tour manager slash photographer slash babysitter."

"Dude. If I could pay to watch Matt voluntarily let a midget hold a gun to his head every fuckin' day, I would," Brian called from the spot he sat on, on the couch. He smirked, turning his attention toward the newcomers before giving them a wave. He started to cackle when Matt threw an empty cup toward him. It brushed over his shoulder before falling off, over the back of the couch and onto the floor.

Zacky rolled his eyes, stepping over to sit beside Brian as Candace began her introductions again. He dropped down onto the couch, crossing his ankles and relaxing with a quiet groan. He was quiet, up until Larry waltzed into the door to let them know it was time to start heading down to the stage. It was tradition for Avenged to watch the entire show from start to finish, the first night of the tour. It was just something that had happened when they were a smaller band and none of them saw a reason to stop it now.

He pushed to his feet, moving over to Larry before he motioned toward Candace. "She's their manager, man. Show her the ropes, help her out a little bit. I mean, she's gotta learn from the best, right?" He asked, smirking when Larry snorted at the compliment. Larry agreed though and as soon as the show started, Zacky was glad to notice Larry leading Candace off in some direction. He was sure that it was so they could talk somewhere where it was a little quieter, somewhere where they didn't have to shout to have any hope of hearing each other.

Not surprisingly, introducing herself as the babysitter earned a round of outraged cries from Divided by Zero. Candace only shrugged her shoulders, laughing softly. "It's the truth and you idiots know it," she said. Corey settled against the wall as the guys made their round of introductions and Candace moved next to him, smiling as his arm slipped around her waist. She knew it wouldn't be long before the guys were called to the stage; she could tell by the way Corey tensed next to her and the way Sam bounced his leg up and down. Each of them had their own little nervous tick and this was probably the biggest show they'd played to date. This would expose a whole new group of people to their band and their sound and hopefully grow their fanbase and their careers.

When Larry popped in to let Avenged Sevenfold know it was time to head to the stage, Candace knew it was time for Divided by Zero to get ready to perform. She stuck close to Corey as they made their way to the stage, snapping a few pictures on her camera. She stood by as they all grabbed their instruments, waiting until just before they took the stage to approach Corey. "I know you're nervous, but you guys are going to do great, okay?" Candace whispered. She stood on her tiptoes to give him a kiss. "Go kill it." She was almost as nervous as they were, if not just as. She'd been watching them since the very beginning and she wanted to see them succeed.

Candace was so caught up in the start of the show that she didn't see Larry approaching her until he tapped her on the shoulder and she jumped slightly as she turned to him. He motioned with his head for her to follow him, probably somewhere a little quieter than the side of the stage. She was excited that Larry wanted to help her out and give her a few pointers. He was obviously good at what he did if he was managing Avenged Sevenfold and learning from him would help her to become a better manager and that in turn would help Divided by Zero thrive as a band. Some people might think of her part as minimal since she had absolutely zero musical talent, but in reality, if it weren't for her Divided by Zero might still be playing in their garage, since she was the one who scheduled most of their gigs.

Zacky glanced to the side, just barely catching it as Larry disappeared into the backstage area with Candace in tow. It made him happy to know that Larry was actually taking the situation seriously and offering to mentor her a bit. Of course, Zacky knew that Candace would never quite be able to fill Larry's shoes because Larry was just a completely amazing manager. Without him, Zacky wasn't so sure that Avenged Sevenfold would be quite as big as they were now. But he would rub off and in time, Zacky was confident that Divided by Zero would be the next big band that everyone was talking about.

Divided by Zero's show was a lot more exciting than the guys were expecting, they had all agreed by the end of the show. Zacky congratulated the other band as they left the stage, all wearing wide smiles that told Zacky just how proud and happy they all were. He couldn't blame them, he remembered the first time that they had done a big tour. And even now, the first time that they had opened for Metallica. It wasn't to say they were a small band by then but still, it had humbled them and reminded them of where they had all started.

With how anxious Avenged was to take the stage, Zacky was reluctant to leave the side of the stage. It would be a good twenty or so minutes before they took the stage, with the drum set having to be switched out and their set up finished. He sighed as he leaned back against the wall just outside of the side stage, his arms crossed as he listened to their set list on his phone. Zacky had his own little pre-show ritual and it usually meant listening to the beginning of their set list while trying his best to calm his nerves. Even with how experienced he was, there were nights when he was a bit more nervous than usual.

By the time Larry and Candace returned to the side of the stage, Divided by Zero's set was almost halfway over. Larry excused himself to get ready for Avenged Sevenfold's set, but Candace lingered by the stage to watch the show. She'd never seen the guys with so much energy. It was infectious and the crowd seemed to agree. When they finally left the stage, the entire band had huge grins on their faces and Candace couldn't help but grin as well as she went over to Corey, throwing her arms around his neck. "You guys were amazing!" she exclaimed. "I'm so proud of you."

"I'm still shaking a little," Corey said, chuckling softly. He held out his hands. "Well, maybe not. But I was. I almost dropped my pick."

"You couldn't even tell," Candace teased. "Come on, you need to load up your equipment before Avenged Sevenfold's show starts. That goes for the rest of you, too!" she called back to the other guys, who were congregated nearby. "We've got twenty minutes to get this shit out of the way. And I'm sure you guys don't want to miss Avenged Sevenfold's show?" That was enough to kick the guys into gear and they all got to work getting their equipment off stage. Just because they'd won this contest didn't mean they could afford a real crew, so the guys still hauled most of their equipment themselves as well as setting up and tearing down the stage. But their stage set-up was simple, thank God, so it didn't take very long.

"I'm so glad we have a fucking equipment trailer this time around," Nate said, closing the trailer door. It was really just a U-Haul, but it was better than what they usually did, which was store their equipment on the RV.

"You're telling me," Candace said. "It's bad enough being cramped on that RV with all of you without the equipment taking up half the room. Alright! Since everything's loaded, what do you say we head back to the stage to watch the show?"

Zacky wouldn't really admit it out loud to anyone but he hadn't actually listened to any of Divided by Zero's stuff so to say that he was pleasantly surprised by their performance would be a bit of an understatement. He stayed hidden within the shadows, a little grin on his features as he relived the early days of his career. Once upon a time, he had been in their shoes. Had been so nervous that he was shaking, unable to really remember what songs they had played. The adrenaline rush had been crazy and even now, nothing compared to the first real show that they had played. He didn't think anything would because once you did something once, you knew what to expect.

Watching as the band started to take down their own set, Zacky couldn't help but grin. Those days were the fuckin' worst. Setting up, then playing a show, only to have to take it down before ultimately partying every day for nights on end sort of killed him. By the end of the early tours, Zacky's body was so beat that he would get to his parents' house and sleep for a solid day before emerging from his boyhood room.

Pushing off of the container he was leaning against, Zacky smirked as he started to get ready for Avenged's show. He was ready to play, itching to do something. It had always sort of been his calling but now, it was his life. Too much time away from tour always ended up having Zacky in a sour mood. Breathing a small sigh, Zacky glanced up when he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. The guys seemed just as eager with Larry giving them a last minute pep talk.

Candace took Corey's hand as they walked back to the stage area, smiling when he rubbed her knuckles with his thumb. He was absolutely perfect for her and as much as she loved being on the road with the band, especially this tour, she couldn't wait until they were home so they could get married. By the time they all reached the stage, Avenged Sevenfold was just getting ready to go on stage, their intro music thumping in the background. The crowd was going absolutely crazy, chanting the band's name over and over.

Candace dropped Corey's hand as they approached Avenged Sevenfold, approaching Zacky with a grin on her face. "Nervous?" she teased. "Probably not, right? You guys have done this tons of times, I'm sure you're used to it by now." Personally, Candace couldn't imagine ever performing for a crowd this size. She was more of a behind-the-scenes type of person, which was why she was perfect for management. That and she'd known the boys of Divided by Zero for years and she knew how to get them to listen to her. "Anyway, good luck! We're super excited to see the show up close."

As Candace hurried away, she could hear Larry shouting over the music for the guys to get ready to go on stage. Candace had never been to an Avenged Sevenfold concert before and this was a hell of a way to see them for the first time. And they were absolutely mesmerizing to watch. Just like Divided by Zero, Candace could really tell that they all really loved what they did. After the show was over, Candace and the others stood by while Avenged Sevenfold filed off stage. "So what now?" Nate asked, grinning. "Don't you guys usually go out to drink after the show?"

Candace rolled her eyes. "Yes, because that's exactly what you need. Copious amounts of alcohol."

Zacky looked up when Candace approached with the boys in tow. He gave her a lopsided grin, letting out a soft laugh. "Would you believe me if I told you that I was nervous? Logically, I know that tonight will go well and the fans will respond just as good as they do every night but..." he trailed off, shrugging his shoulders. "Something could still go wrong though," he said with a sigh. He looked up, watching as the intro music began to play. Jimmy ran onto stage and seconds later, Johnny, then Zacky started to ran onto stage. He glanced behind him, smirking as his eyes found Candace's, he gave a quick wink before turning his attention forward.

An hour and a half later, Zacky headed off the stage with a smile that almost seemed painful with just how big it was. He handed off his guitar to Jason when the tech stepped up to take it from him, his chest heaving as the adrenaline slowly started to wear off. It always took a little while for it to, considering just how excited they all got when they played. The crowd's energy was infectious, there was no way around that.

Zacky couldn't help but laugh at Candace's reaction to Nate's question, smirking at her for a moment before he turned toward Nate. He gave a small nod of his head. "Yeah, first night of the tour. We gotta go out with a bang, don't we?" He asked with a chuckle. He started to lead them toward the back hallways of the arena. "Usually just end up partying on the bus because then we're close to our beds when we all start to crash," he said, glancing behind him. "Hope that's cool with you guys."

"You sure you want all of these idiots on your bus tonight?" Candace asked, falling into step next to Corey as they followed Zacky through the venue. It was obvious he was headed for the back exit because there was no way they could leave through the main exit without being swarmed by fans. When Zacky led the way onto Avenged Sevenfold's bus, it was pretty obvious that he was the last member of the band to arrive and that the others were well on their way to getting the party started. "Jesus Christ, is this your tour bus or a liquor store?" Candace asked, looking around at the various bottles they'd likely pulled from the cabinets. She knew her joke was sort of lame, but at least Jimmy seemed to appreciate it, raising his hand to give her a high five.

"Help yourselves, we definitely don't need to drink all of this," the drummer said, gesturing to the bottles. "Even though we could."

The guys needed no more convincing, each of them taking a seat somewhere on the bus. Candace just shrugged, plucking the half-empty bottle of fireball whiskey from the table before sitting down next to Corey. She probably wouldn't have much to drink. Well, not as much as the guys. She knew from experience that each of them could put back a good amount of liquor and she hated trying to take care of them when she was drunk, too. She always said she would only tend to Corey, but she just had this motherly instinct when she was drunk. She wanted to take of people, she couldn't help it. And the guys made up for it on the rare occasion that Candace had more to drink than any of them.

"So I think we should have a toast," Candace said, twisting the top off the whiskey bottle. She raised it into the air. "To uh, to the tour and to a fucking awesome first show."

"Hell yeah, I'll drink to that," Aiden said.

Double

@ castle.

{what the fuck. i am so sorry }

Zacky glanced back to the band that was following him, flashing a small grin in Candace's direction. "Listen, we've had a lot worse on the bus. If we can handle that, we can handle your crew," he said with a shrug of his shoulders. "Besides. Just gives us a better reason to get a new bus if we fuck things up too bad." The band was always trying to find reasons to get a brand new bus because each upgrade that they had successfully managed to get more square footage. With a group of so many guys, the more room they could have, the better.

Raising his bottle of whiskey, Zacky clinked it against the bottle that Candace held in her hand. It was nothing abnormal on the bus, there was either going to be a strong as hell drink mixed or shots taken with chasers following them. They were rockstars and roadies and crew that all seemed to have issues that needed to be tended to. They all had their vices, despite being surrounded by friends, a lot of them were lonely because when you lived the life they all did, it was hard to build a meaningful enough relationship. One that was worth keeping around.

Groaning, Zacky pushed to his feet. He'd downed most of the mickey he held in his hand, barely holding on as he swayed in his spot. "Alright. 'm goin' to bed. Night fuckers. And darlin'," Zacky murmured as his gaze dropped to Candace. He was drunk, his inhibitions were gone for the most part so he didn't think twice about calling Candace darling before he started the trek back to his bunk. He all but dropped into it, one leg sticking out into the walkway before he drifted off to sleep.

[it's alright ]

"Don't let them hear you say that, they might fuck it up on purpose just so they can get your old one," Candace said, laughing. "Although I wouldn't mind. The RV is nice but a bus would be nicer." Once everyone had raised their glasses or bottles of liquor to the center and toasted, Candace took a shot, making a slight face as the whiskey went down her throat. "Shit, that first shot is always a little harsh," she said. She only had a few more shots before she decided she was finished drinking. This was enough to get her pretty tipsy and she really didn't need any more than that, not when they had to walk back to their RV. Maybe the first time they partied in a hotel room and she only had to make it down the hall.

Candace was sober enough that she definitely noticed when Zacky called her darling. But she didn't really think anything of it, especially considering how drunk he was. And it didn't really seem like anyone else heard him, so what was the big deal? He was probably just an affectionate drunk. Although he did call the other guys fuckers, so who knew. And she didn't really see a problem with being friendly with Zacky. If they didn't get along, the tour would be miserable.

"Alright, you big lug, I think it's time to get you to bed," Candace said, patting Corey's thigh. She pushed to her feet, holding out her hand to Corey. Once she had him on his feet, his arm wrapped around her waist, she turned to lead him off the bus. "Thanks for letting us crash your party," she said to Avenged Sevenfold. "And the rest of you, don't stay out too late. And don't wake me up when you come back to the RV."

"Yes, Mom," Nate drawled sarcastically.

Zacky's eyes had lingered on Candace for a few moments longer than maybe they should have after he had called her 'darling', just to gauge her reaction. He knew that she was dating Corey, knew that she was spoken for, but he couldn't shake just how much Candace intrigued him. He couldn't be too sure but Candace had brushed off the little nickname as nothing more than Zacky being wasted. Maybe that was for the best right now though.

Zacky was a member of one of rock's most successful bands in the past ten years and he damn well knew it. But that didn't make him an asshole either, he wasn't about to make an actual move on a girl who was in a relationship but if ever the opportunity arose, Zacky wouldn't sit around. He would sweep her off her feet and show her what a real woman was all about.

The next morning rolled around and just like clockwork, the convoy started for a gas station to gas up before they headed out on the road. It was right around ten in the morning so not too early or too late though if you asked anyone that had been partying the night before, it was likely way too damn early. Zacky groaned as he started to wake, the first thing popping into his mind was thought of greasy McDonalds' breakfast. It was the only true cure to a hang over, after all.

Zacky shoved to his feet, trudging toward the front of the bus to let the driver know to stop at the nearest McDonalds. The rest of the buses were sure to follow suit. After all, there were plenty of hungry mouths to feed.

It was certainly a task getting Corey back to the RV and into their bed. He was so drunk he was practically deadweight and she was little. But eventually, she managed to shove him inside and pull off his shoes. She was quick to climb in after him, falling asleep not long after Corey. Not surprisingly, she was the first one up the next morning, going out into the main area of the RV to find the other boys sprawled out in various places around the living room. She knew they needed to get gas and get on the road soon so she shook Blake awake. It was his uncle who'd sold them the RV so he knew how to drive and besides that, he was the only one who had the necessary license.

They'd just gotten moving when Corey finally trudged into the living room. He dropped down next to Candace on the couch with a groan and she grinned. "Headache?" she teased. He shot her side-eyed glance, nodding silently. She reached out to pat his knee. "I'm sure we'll stop for food soon." Sure enough, it wasn't long before Blake announced that they were going to stop at McDonald's, mostly because the Sevenfold bus seemed to be drifting in that direction. When the RV finally came to a stop, Candace was the first one on her feet.

"Come on, let's go get something to eat, I'm sure that'll make you guys feel better," she said. After all, there as nothing better for a hangover than greasy, artery-clogging fast food. Candace spotted Zacky up ahead as she left the RV and she sped up a little to catch up. "Feeling better, little drunkie?" she asked, falling into step. She decided it was probably best not to say anything about last night. Zacky was drunk, she wasn't even sure if he even remembered what he'd said. "So whose genius idea was this? The McDonald's, I mean."