The Band

Caitlin’s P.O.V

I got off the bike, which I had parked parallel to the sidewalk in front of a ‘convenience store’ as those whacky Americans call it. I looked up at the weathered sign above the shop front. ‘Mick's’, it stated. Pulling Eloise’s jacket tighter around me, I stepped into the store. The place only had a couple of people in it, and I sadly realised that I wouldn’t recognize people as I would in the local store. I had been stupid and decided to go further away from home than necessary. All because motorcycles are fun. Walking up and down the short aisles, I realised how ridonkulously cold it was. I looked over to the store-clerk-person and saw a grumpy old man muttering something Russian into an overly outdated phone. He clearly wasn’t named ‘Mick’. He also clearly didn’t feel the cold like us non-Russians do. I looked around desperately for a source of warmth, but alas there was only the other customers, and I wasn’t about to cuddle up to some random guy in a convenience store. Now, if it was in a department store it would be a different matter…
I finally decided that the lil’ buggers would just have to deal with plain ol’ cereal. And that meant that I would need chocolate-themed cereal, sherry and vodka. I didn’t need to get beer, ‘cause Obi had brought a new carton to the apartment the day before. It was only half finished, ‘cause Sam isn’t really a fan of beer >Yayyz for me!!<
I figured that I would need to get milk, ‘cause I can’t rely on the others to take the initiative to get off their arses and buy milk when we run out (or it goes bad. :] ) Putting all my groceries into a basket, I walked over to the refrigerators to join a whole bunch of confused-looking people. There was at least 25 different kinds of milk. I felt overwhelmed.
I just want freaking milk!!
Bianca might not go out to get milk without being told to 5 times in the space of a minute, but she wasn’t stupid – she knows her milk. :)
“Caitlin!!!”
“Ack!” I covered my ears as I felt them pop with pain.
“Caitlin!” Eloise ran over to me and glomped me, and it occurred to me that Eloise is extremely skilled at maintaining ridiculous levels of happiness and love. I had seen her only five minutes before and she still managed to find the energy to dish out a major glomp. Either it was my happiness theory, or she actually ate healthily… nah the theory. Definitely.
“Okay, what’re you doin’ here?” I spluttered as I inhaled Eloise’s hair.
“They were being mean to me… they wanted me to get them vodka, but I said it was too early… and…the big meanies…”
I scratched my neck awkwardly, “Hmmm… too early? Really? Hm, well, of course…” I tried to subtly hide the contests of my basket out of sight, but to no avail.
“Lewis!” Elo stared at me, aghast, “Vodka and cereal?! Oh my gosh I thought at least you would make us a proper breakfast. You actually like cooking. And we get this milk!!” She thrust her arm into some random fridge, pulling out a bottle.
“Ah, well, yes. About that… thanks for your help?” I smiled sheepishly, and Eloise stalked angrily up to the counter. I followed her reluctantly, but took a minute to glare at the people staring at me from the milk refrigerators.
“I’d tell you to take a picture, ‘cause it lasts longer and all, but I am above such cliché notions,” I informed them haughtily, barely managing to keep a straight face. Eloise just stood at the checkout with the angry bald guy, tapping her foot impatiently.
“I’m not happy with you, Caitlin Ellen.”
“I know…” It was rare that she was upset with me enough to use both my names, but I took consolation in the fact that she didn’t use my surname as well – I was one step away from an arse kicking.
“I was gonna pitch in with this,” she told me sternly, “But now you’re gonna pay for this yourself – and your wallet deserves it.”
“I know.”
“You guys need to be sober for longer periods of time. I have the most unhealthy roommates on the planet!”
“I know.”
“Argh!!” Eloise screeched, “stop agreeing with me. And, look!” She pointed to my basket, “You forgot to get juice! Stay here while I get some.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You’re dead to me.
“I know.”
“Go die.
“Yes, Elo.”

***

“Best. Breakfast. Ever!” Cassie announced, scooping the remains of her vodka and cereal out of her bowl. I had gone for a slightly more sensible option: beer and cereal. Beer has less alcohol, and tastes better. Sam’s head snapped around. She gave me a scrutinizing glare, as if she knew what I was thinking. The whole room went quiet.
“Did you just think what I think you just thought?”
I stared at her blankly and took a moment to figure out what she had said. “Fuck you and your telepathic powers!!”
“I thought so,” Bill whispered menacingly, and ghosted past me to get seconds of cereal. “You bitch, Lewis…to utter such blasphemy…”
“Hey!” I called out after her in protest, “And to think, I just bought you that massive sherry pie and everything… Oh well, I’ll just give it to Paddy, Obi and the boys…”
“Lewis, I currently love you. Don’t ruin this.”
I laughed and saluted her. “So, what crazy shit did you guys get up to while Elo and I were gone?”
“Well,” Bianca began thoughtfully, “We were trying to figure out what to do. And since it’s Monday, we figured not as many people would be at the malls, so there’s an option. But we could always go to Obi’s. But, either way, we need to finish writing the Canary song before we go anywhere.”
“Fair enough, fair enough,”
“I think Obi’s would be best,” Cass suggested, “’cause Obi is throwin’ trivia night tonight. He’ll need help setting up.
I nearly fell onto my keyboard as realization set in.
“Caitlin? Are you alright? You look like you’re in pain.” Bianca reached over to feel my forehead. I smacked her away.
“Did you just say it was Monday?” I shot a look to Eloise.
“Aw shit.” Soon after, everyone else caught on and started flying around the shithole, trying to get Eloise ready for school. The rest of us had flunked out the previous year, but Eloise had insisted on having an education in case the band went bust and she needed to support us all, despite the fact that there was an incredibly successful bar owner who actually like us, and the stinking rich Jess to mooch off of. Incidentally, Jess’s flight was getting in at 10:15pm…
Remember that!!
Finally, Eloise was ready and standing at the door all lovely and presentable, she had actually bothered to brush her hair.
“Okay!” Cassie yelled over the noise. “Eloise says that someone has to give her a ride to school. Who’s the least drunk?”
“Ah, me?” I put my hand up reluctantly. I didn’t really want to go. That school smelt like school… ugh…
“No, It can’t be Lewis,” Elo interjected firmly, “My legal guardian has to sign a late slip before I can attend classes.”
“Yeash, so? I’m already pretty much the legal guardian,” I pointed out.
“But you’re six months younger than me!”
“That can’t be helped, hun,” Sam retorted in a level-headed manner, “You are the oldest.”
“Argh! I’ll do it!” Cassie cried with annoyance. “I’m second oldest. I’ll sign the friggen slip.
“Cass, you’re way too drunk to be on the road,” Bianca sniggered.
I giggled malevolently.
Sam’s face lit up. “You’ll have to take the subway!”
“No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. I refuse. No.”
“Gyahahaha!!” I then proceeded to laugh so hard that I slipped and whacked my head on Cassie’s stool. “Stupid karma,” I muttered.

***

“This is ridiculously funny,” Bianca announced, draping herself over both hers and Cassie’s chairs.
“Yep,” Sam agreed, sipping happily from a once-full bottle of sherry.
“Goddammit!” Bianca screamed.
“Wah?” I shot up into a sitting position, knocking a manga comic off my face – I had been trying to sleep.
“The happy buzz has gone, hasn’t it?” Bianca lamented.
I gaped at her. “Wah?”
“The happy buzz! You know, when something is funny you can laugh about it for a while, but soon everyone is all laughed out and it’s not as funny after that.”
Sam nodded sagely. “I get that, I totally get that.”
“You people are fucking insane!” I screeched, lying back down to read the latest volume of Bleach.
“Well, yeah,” Sam admitted, “Anything good happening?” She leaned down to try and see what I was reading.
“Just the usual. Ichigo sliced a guy and Orihime is running around like a little princess. Rukia is yelling at Ichigo.”
“The usual.”
Bianca stared at us strangely. “And I’m the insane one.”
“Meh. We’re all insane,” Bill pointed out, “You’d have to be to live in the squalor that we do.”
“True, true.”
“Dayamm. You’re right. The happy buzz is gone.” I conceded to Bianca’s inanity. *
“Hah! I fucking told you so!!”
“I’m back!” Cassie yelled from the door.
“Heyyzz…oh shit, what happened to you?!”
“Some dickface motherfucker threw mud at me ‘cause of my hair,” she hissed.
Sam scoffed indignantly. “Fuck that! It’s our job to be the inconsiderate bastards! I shall not stand for this.”
“Yes, and while you go out and get revenge for your damaged pride Lewis and I will look after Cass,” Bianca told her, giving her a disappointed stinkeye.
“M’kay.”
“Bill get the fuck back here!” I stared at her in disbelief, and chased after her to guard the door so she couldn’t leave. I pointed in Cassie’s direction. “Go run her a bath and grab her a fresh towel,” I turned to Bianca, “Get Cassie a beer and a piece of Bill’s sherry pie.” They both glared at me, but since ‘twas for FairyChild’s sake they did as they were told.
Cassie laughed. “It actually worked for once!”
“Yeah, I’m surprised too.”
I heard the sound of running water, and soon after Sam appeared. “Lewis, you’re dead to me,” she hissed, and handed Cassie a towel.
“I get that a lot,” I sighed. Bianca came in and set a plate of pie on Cassie’s stool, and chucked her a beer.
“You’re dead to me,” she told me.
“Goddammit! I’m dead to everyone!!”
“You’re still alive to me, if that counts for anything,” Cassie said. Her eyes shone with glee as she snapped off the lid and took a deep swig. I looked at her hair, her bright rainbow of colours were dulled by caked-up mud. I sighed.
“Cass go sit on a chair in front of the sink in the kitchen. I’ll wash your hair.”
“Huh? That’s a nice thing to do,” she mumbled in surprise, and did as I suggested. Cass settled in quite happily in front of the sink with her pie and beer.
“You say that with such an incredulous tone,” I muttered, “Who’s gonna help me?” Bill and Bianca just laughed.
“As if!”
“Aw, well fuck that! I’ve never washed another person’s hair in my life! I’ll probably end up poisoning her with conditioner! I was only gonna do it if you guys would help me. I actually like Cassie. I would like to keep her around.”
Cassie looked up at me worriedly. “On second thought: no touchy ma hair!!”
“See?!” I gestured frantically toward Cass. “I’m lethal with low-grade household cheimcals!!”
“Well, we already knew that,” Sam said matter-of-factly.
“Yeah,” Bianca added, “We were gonna step in before it got outta hand, though.”
Cassie and I stared at them, horrified. The beer almost slipped from Cassie’s hand, but she fumbled with it and caught it at the last second.
“I could’ve killed her!!”
“She could’ve killed me,” Cassie added in a disgusted tone.
“Caitlin’s not that much of an idiot… oh, no wait she is,” Bianca rambled thoughtfully.
“You’re so supportive,” I muttered.
“Yuh-uh!” She piped cheerily.
“Eeeeeveryone’s out to get me,” I muttered.
“That is more or less true,” Bill admitted.
“So, now that we’ve lost Elo, what do we do?” Asked Cassie, clattering around the kitchen, cleaning up after herself.
“Weelll,” Sam murmured thoughtfully, “We can’t go recruit the guy yet, ‘cause Elo will kill us if we leave her behind… Jess’s flight doesn’t get in ‘till 10.15 so we don’t have to worry about that… Cass, you still alright to pick her up?”
“Yupperz! I’m really excited ‘cause I miss her heaps.”
“We should go help Obi set up!” Bianca cried. “See, there’s a solution to our problem. Cassie hurry up and go clean yourself up.”
“Well, no one here is ridonkulously eager to go see their boyfriend, now are they?” I looked at Bianca pointedly, although not surprised that she was missing Paddy already.
“Don’t judge me just ‘cause you’ve never been in love,” Bianca warned me.
“Yuh-uh, Lewis, you shouldn’t judge her,” Bill added.
“Dayamm you’re Queen Hypocrite!”
“And proud of it!” Bill yelled proudly, earning us a thump on the wall from our neighbours. “Shut the fuck up!” She yelled in reply.
“Don’t provoke them, Sam, we don’t wanna get evicted again. We had all sorts of trouble getting this place after that.”
“I don’t see the problem. We could always live with Obi or Jess. And that way Bianca could room with Paddy and we don’t have to wake up in the morning and go ‘Aw shit we lost Bianca’ and then realise that she just spent the night with Paddy.”
“Wow, Bill, I don’t think that speech was ever gonna stay on-topic,” I told her amusedly.
“Of course not,” she scoffed.
“Go have a shower!” Bianca cried.
“Now, now, deary.”

***

“’kay can you fill this box,” Obi gestured to a mid-size green box with a question mark on it, “with these pieces of paper,” he then gestured to a large pile of paper next to Sam on the bar.
She sighed. “Sure, Obi. As long as I get free drinks all night.”
“But, you get free drinks anyway,” he pointed out.
“Okay, but this time they need to have umbrellas.”
“I’ll tell the staff to get right on that, Sam.”
“Thank you.”
“You two are a bunch of fucktards, you know that?” I gave them the most incredulous look I could manage.
“Get over it, Lewis,” Sam demanded, and began shoving paper into the green box.
“Yeah, Lewis,” Obi added for emphasis.

I don’t remember much after that, ‘cause Paddy and Bianca brought out two large trays of vodka shots to get us started for the night. But, I do remember snippets. Would you like to read my snippets? Naw I don’t care what you want. Here are my snippets:

--

I was swaying drunkenly in time to the blaring music. Bianca was on Paddy’s shoulders.
Shouldn’t he be guarding the door?
“What….*hiccup*…is the square-root of…. Piiiiii?” Obi called out of his P.A system.
“BILLY SLATER!!!” Bianca called, and Paddy looked displeased.

--

“Caitlin,” Sam slurred, “I have no problem with you being on the table, but if you continue to spill your… wait what? Oh, right, if you keep spilling your sissy little… what is that? Midori? If you keep…spillin’ that sissy shit on me… I’m gonna have to open up a can of ‘punch you in the face.’”
“Yesh Billa!!!”
“Lolz you called me Billa…”
“Hehe I knowzz!!”

--

“Oooh! My pocket is vibrating!” Cassie jumped up and down excitedly.
“Ohmigawsh who is it?!” Eloise asked in rapid Eloise-ish. She was barely drunk, on the same drink as she was an hour ago, but she was still dancing more retartedly than any of us.
I will not be out-danced!!!

***

“Thanks a fucking lot, you guys!!!” The door to my bedroom flung open wildly, slamming against the wall. A series of grumbles rang out, and I tried to roll over but fell against Cassie. We were on the floor, most likely fallen there after getting home last night…this morning… :)
“Who’s tha?” Cassie slurred, and I saw her grimace in pain. “Shut the fucking dooorrrr!!!”
“Yeah,” I grumbled, “Can’t you see we’re hungover?”
“No shit!” Came the annoying voice, “I couldn’t have possibly that you guys stayed out late last night, got drunk and forgot to pick a certain person up from the airport!!!”
We all shot up.
“Aw, shit,” I muttered.
“Soz, Jessie-kins…” Cassie mumbled forlornly.