Sister, I'm Not Much a Poet but a Criminal

The week at Ariella's house was extremely uneventful. I hadn't even gotten a chance to make my room feel like home before I had to repack for the tour. As we threw our things into the trunk of Ariella's car, I noticed yet another difference between us. I had one suitcase and a shoulder bag, and she had brought along three giant suitcases.

"Where are they going to fit all your shit on the bus?"

She glared at me. "Excuse me for wanting to look good."

"What will you do when you can't shower for a week?"

Her eyes nearly bulged out of her head. "What? No shower?"

"Not on the bus. You've got to wait until you find a place with one."

"Please tell me this is your idea of a sick joke."

"If it was, the look on your face right now would have made it well worth it."

She looked as though she was regretting ever agreeing to go on tour. I laughed, finding this all really amusing. We made it to Ray's house quickly, and he eyed her bags in the same way I had.

"Is it true that there's no shower?" she demanded immediately.

"Yeah."

"How am I going to survive?"

"You'll be fine," I grumbled, sick of her prissy attitude. "Just a little smelly, that's all. And with all the perfume you wear, nobody will ever know."

We threw all of our things onto the bus, and it took me about three seconds to notice something very important.

"Even if the two of you share a bed, there's not enough bunks for all of us," I pointed out.

"You get the couch," Ariella smiled brightly.

We chatted mildly as the bus departed to pick up the other guys. Ray had been true to his word, and as of yet Ariella had no idea that I was a smoker. He had no idea how much I appreciated it.

Once everyone was on the bus, proper introductions were made. Everything else about my situation faded in my mind as I was greeted by all of my heroes. The conversation was enthusiastic, as everyone was excited for the tour to begin.

"What's it like?" I asked Gerard, who had sat beside me on the couch.

"You hear the crowd, and you just... change. Nothing else matters except the moment you're in and the people you're with. There's nothing else like it."

"We've heard a lot about you, Molly," Frank said from where he sat on a chair a few feet away.

"Is that so? Good or bad?"

He smiled, and it lit up his eyes. "A little of both."

"They know the graduation story," Ariella added, almost apologetically.

"What?" I couldn't believe that they'd heard one of my most embarassing moments before I'd even met them. "Why would you tell them that?"

"They asked about my high school. I had to tell them about my grad."

"But couldn't you have left me out of it?"

At Ariella's graduation, I had made a complete ass of myself in front of everyone. I had been fifteen at the time, and I hadn't been to many parties. Of course, this was one party that I just couldn't miss. I had gotten shitfaced drunk for the first time, and memories were definitely made. Not the kind of memories I wanted, though. I had made out with a random guy, simply because he got me liquor. I also had my first, and as far as Ariella knew my last, cigarette. I had danced to any music that sounded good at the time, which I found out the next day was mostly pop and techno, two types of music that I couldn't stand when I was sober. Unfortunately for me, some people had had their digital cameras with them and had gotten video footage of my drunken actions.

"Molly?" Frank asked quietly as I buried my face in my hands.

"Yeah?"

"If I get you a drink, will you make out with me?"

I stuck up my middle finger as I lifted my head. "Fuck you. I'm old enough to buy my own booze now."

Everyone laughed, and I couldn't help but join in. I knew that nearly everyone had had a drunk experience that they'd rather forget, but I still had people tell me about the crazy video they'd just seen that I'd starred in. It was hard, but I always managed to simply laugh it off.

Besides, it wasn't the worst thing I'd ever done, drunk or not.

I felt welcome on the bus, and we stayed up until one-thirty in the morning just talking. The entire band was extremely kind and they all offered to hang out with me if I got bored. Ariella didn't seem too happy about being the less noticed of us, but it was a nice change of pace for me. I realized then that this may not be such a bad way to spend my last summer of freedom after all.

I was a little shocked that Ariella and I were the only girls along. Didn't any of the other guys have a girlfriend? Or had I taken their place on the tour bus?

I was too tired to worry about things like that. Once everyone else had went to their bunks, I curled up on the couch under a heavy blanket. When my eyes finally closed, I felt that this whole experience was a dream, and when I reopened them I would be back home, staring at a My Chemical Romance poster on my wall instead of laying on a couch a few feet from them.

Lucky for me, that wasn't the case.