Mad as a Hatter, Thin as a Dime

“Hey guys!”

Happy and spirited as always, Kyra bounced forward to engulf all four of the Panic! boys in separate hugs.

Spencer hugged her back tightly because that night a few weeks ago they had become friends.

Jon hugged her back tightly because he was just like her; infectious with affection for those around him.

Brendon hugged her back tightly because she was female.

Ryan hugged her back feebly because she made him so damn weak in the knees.

If she noticed anything, though, she didn’t let it show. She dived immediately into conversation, laughing lightly and making Ryan’s heart slam heavily against his ribcage. For a brief moment, he was worried that she’d hear it. That everyone would hear it.

After a minute or so, he realized that he wasn’t participating in the conversation because they were talking about something that they’d started talking about the other night, when he was too far away to be involved. He looked around, and saw Vesper standing over by Feign Eloquence’s tour bus. It wasn’t quite as luxurious as Panic!’s, but it was certainly better than the van they’d traveled in for previous tours. Vesper looked uncomfortable, biting her lip and tugging the sleeves of her black hoodie into her palms. She was looking over at him through her dark fringe.

He gave her a small half-smile as he walked over to her, awkwardness consuming them.

“Hey,” he started, quietly and shyly.

“Hey,” she replied nervously.

A silence as awkward as they get fell upon them, and when it became too unbearable they both broke it at the same time.

“I’m sorry…”

They both stopped and chuckled a bit at their unplanned synchronization.

“You first,” she mumbled, a small smile now shining through her discomfort.

“Okay. Uh, I just wanted to apologize for the way I acted the other night. You probably thought I was a real idiot, but it was the alcohol. It just got to me the other night…”

“No, that’s fine,” she sighed, relieved. “I was going to say the same thing. I’m really not usually like that.”

“Okay,” he smiled, the awkwardness lifting considerably. “Let’s start over. Friends?”

He held his hand out for her to shake and she accepted it with a smile.

“That was incredibly Hollywood but yeah, friends.”

He chuckled.

“Well just to make this more like a movie, let’s reintroduce ourselves. I’m Ryan Ross.”

“Vesper Ashelford.”

And, effortlessly, they both smiled.

***

Kyra was extremely happy and hyped up for the first show of the tour. It wasn’t like it was their first tour or anything, but it was still exciting, and they hadn’t been touring in a while. She showed the crowd the meaning of the word energy, singing as loudly as she could without stuffing up the song, and still injecting meaning into every word.

“A kiss,
Don’t be surprised that it’s not for you.
You changed your mind,
And I can move on too.
Well I, I’m not one to lie,
The obvious can’t be denied.
Sure it was fun, sure it was sweet,
But don’t flatter yourself; you never swept me off my feet.
Go taste as many other lips as you like,
If that’s what it takes to sweeten your night.
Am I the one who’s making it bitter?”

An infectious smile touched her tinted lips as she sang her heart out. She loved singing. The fact that she could make a living simply by playing music, doing what she loved best, was a high that would never wear off. Hearing the crowd singing along, knowing the lyrics to the songs that they had originally sung in her parent’s garage in Philly was amazing.

“A ring,
Don’t be surprised that it’s not from you.
You’ve got her,
Well I’ve got someone too.
And I, I’m not one to cry,
I already wept all my tears that night.
Sure it was sad, sure there was nothing I could say,
But don’t underestimate yourself; I drank my sorrows away.
Go break as many other hearts as you like,
If that’s what it takes to forget this night.
Is it really that bitter?”

Jake, Chris and Benji all slowed down their pace for a few moments, before launching back into the chorus. Kyra, personally, had always preferred the verses to the chorus of this song anyway. Mitch kept up the steady beat of the drums as if there were no distractions, something that Kyra had always been in awe of. She found distractions in almost anything. People like Mitch and her sister Vesper, however, could find any distraction as long as they were looking for it, otherwise could maintain focus relatively well. Mitch was probably better at the focus thing than Vesper, though.

She stopped singing the chorus as it ended and let Jake loose on his crazy guitar solo frenzy, laughing and shaking her head at the silly blonde boy. She turned to the side of the stage and saw Vesper there, smiling and clutching a Starbucks cup as per usual. Kyra loved her sister, she really did. She never had any need for another best friend. After they reached about the age of fourteen, their angry sibling duels ceased and a connection formed. They knew that the bond they had was rare and strong and special, and in their minds they prided themselves on it. They were always supportive of each other. Kyra always supported Vesper with her writing, and Vesper always supported Kyra with her singing and her music. Every time she sang, like right now, Kyra felt like she was doing Vesper proud.

Kyra saw her sister looking and sent her a quick wink before singing the last lines of the song.

“Fine.
You can tap your toes along to the beat.
Just don’t for a second think that this song is all because of you.”

She grinned.

“Thank you, Las Vegas! Wish us luck with our national tour! You’ve been fantastic, and now we’re gonna hand you over to Panic! At the Disco! Goodnight!”

It was a sight to see, all those people going crazy. The atmosphere was amazing. She jogged offstage and gave Benji a double hi-five

“Great show,” Vesper grinned.

“It was, wasn’t it? Everyone got really into it.”

Jake already had dibs on first shower, so Kyra was waiting in the dressing room, evening out her breath. Soon enough, the Panic! guys had to go onstage.

“Good luck,” she told them all as they made their way through the doors that would eventually lead them on stage. They all grinned at her, but Ryan also gave her a breathless ‘thanks’.

“Oh, we’ll meet you guys at that bar across the road when we’re done!” Brendon called back before disappearing.

Kyra smiled, already plotting away what she could bet against Jon in a shots race.