In My Dreams It's Me And You

Nathalie’s POV

Before the door even opened I knew exactly who it was going to be, the keys to the car I had given Chloe on her 22nd birthday swinging merrily in the hand of her boyfriend. I was surprised she had actually let him drive it however, since not even I could. So much for it being her shiny new car; looks like the novelty wore off quickly.

I curled up underneath the blanket I had thrown on myself to the point where only a small tuft of hair could be seen, peeking out through the holes in the fabric so I could keep watching the television, despite it really just being there for effect. Someone sat at the end of the couch as I felt it dip in, while the other sat on the recliner in the corner.

No one spoke until the programme ended, the credits rolling as the person beside me said, “Good ol’ SpongeBob. Never get the time to watch it any more though.”

Drawing the blanket closer to myself I tried to shut him out completely, only to be prodded unkindly in the side, with the addition of, “You can’t ignore me Nathalie.”

“I can sure as hell try,” I growled, swiping at his hand from underneath the blanket before settling back down. “Go piss off to your show. We can’t have the fantastic-” I purposely drew out this word, just to make sure I got the point across that I did not want him here. “-Synyster Gates missing his home town show now can we? Oh, think of all the girls who want to get in your pants; can you really miss that?”

He grew silent so I assumed the job was done and he was going to leave, but I only got it half right. “Zack, do you want to start up the car? I’ll be there in a minute.” When the sound of his footsteps disappeared I felt Brian get up and crouch down in front of me, peering through the small gap I had made myself so I could still watch the television. “Nat…” I turned away from him, staring at the back of the couch instead. His hand rested on my back, nudging me gently. “Nat, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean what I said.”

“You meant everything you said Brian, don’t you dare try to take it back.”

“No I didn’t…”

“Yes you did!” I replied, my voice growing louder. “You know damn well that you meant it then, when you thought I had cheated on you! Don’t try and take that back because you can’t.”

Brian sighed, retracting back his hand. “That was before. Perhaps then I meant it, but I don’t now. I was an idiot, I’m sorry. I know you didn’t cheat on me.”

I snorted. “How do you know? For all you know I did, you were certainly sure of it when you overheard my conversation with Chloe. For all I know I might be fucking your best friend behind your back, and enjoying it at that…”

“Nat!” Brian interrupted sharply, the pain in his voice even surprising me. “I know it was him. The guy in your nightmares. Ja-”

“Don't say his name.”

“What, Ja-”

“Don't fucking say his name!”

Brian was set off-balance backwards as I suddenly threw off the blanket and pushed myself to my feet, marching from the room and crossing to the bathroom upstairs and locking myself in. I knew fully well he could have stopped me at any point since he was at most two steps behind me all the way, even letting me slam the door in his face despite the fact he could have easily stopped it with his foot.

I don't know how long he waited there for me in terms of time, but when I opened the door again he wasn't there, only a small plastic card attached to a piece of string left in his place. He must not have planned it since when I picked it up I realised he had left his own pass for me, if his name printed at the bottom of it was anything to go by. There really wasn’t any reason for him to leave it since I still had my own as part of the BFMV crew, but I guess it was just his way of saying he wanted me to come back.

For us to come back.

By this time there was only around fifteen minutes before they should appear on stage, so the decision whether to go or not was made quite quickly. I ran around my house picking up things I needed and stuffed them in a bag before leaving my house with keys in hand, still unchanged from Brian's chequered hoodie.

All this time he had been the one to try and fix things- perhaps this time, it was my turn.

--

Brian's POV

“Dude, where's your pass?” Johnny asked as we were just getting our guitars ready before going out. His of course, along with everyone else in the band, was safely secured on a loop in his pants, which just made it weirder that mine was gone. Our passes were the one thing we always kept with us.

I looked down at my jeans where it should have been, despite knowing exactly where it was. “Must have lost it.” Zack turned to me and frowned when I said this, obviously knowing where it was, but just before he opened his mouth to say anything I added, “You haven't seen Nat around anywhere have you?”

“I thought Chloe dropped her home earlier?”

Other than Zack and Chloe no one knew of our short trip to see her. “Oh… yeah.”

Zack moved beside me, lowering his voice so that only I could hear as he pulled his guitar over his head. “Don't worry about her for now man. We've got a show to do. After that, I'll take you back to hers so you can sort this all out.”

“Thanks Zack,” I replied with a grin, clapping him on the back. With the prospect of getting my girlfriend back and fixing everything I couldn’t help but start to feel motivated to put on a fucking good show, and from the grins I got in reply, my mood was infectious. “Come on bitches, we've got a show to put on!”

--

Nathalie's POV

Everyone was already in the venue listening to the support bands or filing around the merch booths so it was easy for me to slip in, just having to flash my pass here and there every once in a while. Oddly enough no one seemed to notice the fact it had Brian’s name on it instead of my own, but I guess when they were just having a hard enough time managing the crowds of fans moving about the venue they didn’t care as much about the VIP guests.

It was here in the merch side of the venue that I needed to be, hoping to find one of the Berry brothers that ran the stall for Avenged Sevenfold. Luckily they had posters and shirts showing off the merch on the back of the stall otherwise I never would've found it, thanking my smaller frame as it allowed me to wiggle through the crowds milling around it and to the booth. This time both of them were working the stall, usually it was just Matt as Jason did the technical stuff for the band. Then again considering the amount of people here, Matt certainly needed the extra help. I almost felt bad taking it away from him.

“Hey! Jason!” At first he didn't notice me calling him, but he did the second time. Or rather the hand yanking him over to me did.

“Nat?” Jason said, bewildered. “I thought Chloe dropped you home.”

“She did. But I have a couple of things to do, and you are going to help me.”

“Why me?” He whined, looking back to his brother and the fans overwhelming him. “I've got to help out here; I said I would.”

“I'll make it up to Matt later,” I replied. “Are you going to help me out or not?”

He turned to me with a sigh, just as I was pulling him out from behind the booth. “I don't really have a choice, do I?”

I grinned. “No, you don't.”

--

“Scream is next, you'll have around half a minute to get into position before the lights go back up,” Jason explained, standing at the side of the stage with me and a few other girls. They were all dressed in clothes fitting for a strip club; the same as me. The guys always hired local girls to dance on this song during the set, so I thought I would have a go at it myself. “Just do whatever you girls do and it'll be fine.”

The last few bars of Afterlife played out and the video introducing Scream began, and all of us hurried out onto the stage under the darkness so none of the crowds could see. During the song I just used various moves from my sets at Deviate to the music, swaying to each beat as I flicked my hair out. The fact that I was doing this in front of thousands of people didn't really bother me; not after I kept seeing Brian glancing in my direction. I had purposely chose the spot on the left side of the stage as it was where he normally was, unless he moved to the front to play with Zacky or just to walk about.

When the lights went down after the song ended I just caught him beginning to walk over to me just when I was leaving with the girls, his expression of pure shock priceless as I gave him a cheeky wave on my way off.

“Thanks Jason,” I said as he was helping all the girls off, pecking him gratefully on the cheek as I hugged him. “I owe you one.”

He grinned as I let go, replying, “No, you owe me more than just one thing. And you'll definitely owe Matt a lot more for making him run the merch booth on his own.”

“I'll buy your drinks next time we're out,” I chuckled, knowing neither of the Berry brothers could turn down free alcohol. “Fair?”

He grinned. “I'll hold you to that.”

--

After my set on stage I made my way to the band's dressing room to change, since I didn't really feel up to walking about the venue in my 'barely-there' outfit. Luckily I didn't have to go out into the main part so I went pretty much unnoticed back to their room, pulling out my bag of stuff and taking out a low cut black top which had silver swirls creeping from the bottom left corner across my chest and my pair of denim shorts.

I had just about fixed my make-up and ran my fingers through my hair when the door opened, a surprised Brian stood frozen in the doorway. He didn't say anything but another voice behind him did, pushing past him into the room and sharply turning to face him, their back towards me.

“Jeez Syn, I know I said I'd take you back to see her but running back here won't do anything!” Zacky said. He was completely unaware that I was behind him. “I highly doubt she has gone anywhere anyway; you saw how she was.”

Brian's gaze flickered between me and Zacky, a hint of amusement playing with him from the irony of his friend's words. “How do you know she hasn't gone anywhere?”

He threw his hands up in annoyance. “It's only been like an hour! Where could she have gone?”

I thought I would put him out of his misery. “Hey Zacky.”

Initially he waved his hand backwards in a 'in a minute' fashion, until something must have twigged and he turned to me. “Nathalie?”

“No, sorry. I'm Bob.”

He rolled his eyes, leaning his guitar against the side before walking back out. I raised an eyebrow after he disappeared, thinking aloud, “Last time I saw anyone that pissy was when Chloe was on her time of the month, and was eating everything in the house.” Brian just seemed to shut down after Zacky left, just staring blankly at me. I turned to him, placing a hand on my hip. “What?”

“You're here.”

“Yes.”

“You're here,” he repeated.

I sighed, brushing a few strands of hair aside. “Are there any other words to this play, or are these the only ones?”

The words had just slipped out of my mouth before I was suddenly in Brian's arms, nearly crushing as he squeezed me to his chest. I pushed back at him, gasping, “Brian!”

He quickly let me go, looking guilty. “I've just been waiting so long to do that.” His arms were still wrapped loosely around my waist, our bodies still close. “I'm sorry.”

I smiled, reaching up and wrapping my arms around his neck, kissing him lightly. “You have nothing to be sorry for.”

“But what I said before-”

I brought my finger to his lips, stopping him in mid-sentence. “I don't want to hear about the past again. I've forgotten it, and so should you. All I care about is the future. A future with you.”

“Well thank fuck for that!”

Both our heads turned to the doorway where the rest of the band, including Chloe, Val and the Berries, were standing, and presumably for a long time. Zacky had returned as the one who had spoke, walking and taking up the nearest couch with Chloe sitting on the arm next to his head.

“You've been fucking about so much, I thought you would never hurry up,” he remarked, stretching himself out upon the couch. “I was getting annoyed of all your pathetic whining.”

“Pathetic?” Brian said incredulously, turning on his friend. “I am not pathetic.”

“Really? How many people in this room have got sick of this lame argument?”

Basically everyone but Jimmy put up their hands as they occupied their own part of the furniture lining the room. I turned to Jimmy, smiling. “Thanks for putting up with it Jimmy.”

He looked surprised. “What are you on about?”

He hadn't even been listening.

“Well it's over now, so no need to put up with whining any more,” I stated, planting myself on Brian's lap as he kicked Zacky's legs off the couch in order to make room.

“Does this mean you are going to keep me company for the rest of the tour?” Brian said hopefully, snaking his arms around my waist.

“I guess I'll have to,” I replied, feigning annoyance. “Can't have you whining again now can we?”

“Well this calls for a celebration!” Jimmy piped up, throwing aside the empty chips packet with enthusiasm.

“I’m glad you said that. We’re all going out for dinner tonight.”

All heads turned to me, sharing the same, shocked expressions. As I expected, Brian rose to be the voice of the people. “What? We can’t go out in the middle of a tour, there is no time!”

“Of course there is,” I replied airily. “I checked the dates; the next gig isn’t until the day after tomorrow. We’ll still have time.”

Chloe spoke next, and in her normal style, had to be about only one thing. “But I don’t have anything to wear!”

Zacky rolled his eyes in response. “Come on Clo, its only dinner. You don’t have to dress up or anything.”

I pouted. “Yes you do.”

“Nathalie...” Brian began, eyeing me wearily. “You do realise that none of us really own tuxes or anything like that right?”

“I know.”

“So you can’t really expect us to dress-”

“I didn’t only just bring myself today.” I remarked, smiling. “I’ve booked us into Cascade, they are expecting us soon.” He was ready to protest again, but I continued before letting him. “And we are all going, and that’s that.”