Such a Typical Thing

But I'm getting older and I know that nothing's changed;

If you were to ask a random person what they thought what the most beautiful thing on the planet was, they'd probably give a cliche answer of the sunset, or the Mona Lisa, or something. But not me.

Ask me what the most beautiful thing on the planet is, I'll tell you flat out. It's Zack Merrick. Shirtless. Lifting weights.

I'd been in LA for three hours and was already bored. Well, I had until Zack showed up.

We were parked at the amphitheater. Warped technically didn't start until tomorrow, but everyone was meeting up today. Bands were arriving left and right, in vans and buses, with trailers galore. And rather than sit on bus while Matt looked over paperwork and seemed to be at his wit's end, I was outside "reading" in a lawn chair, in the perfect spot to watch Zack lift.

I kept sneaking peaks at him over the top of my magazine, enjoying the view.

"Whatcha doing?" someone asked, plopping down in the grass beside me.

"Hey, Oaks. Just watching-" I stopped midsentence. "OAKLEIGH!" I cried, diving over the side of the lawn chair to hug/tackle her.

Oakleigh O'Callaghan was a sight for sore eyes. In the sea of testosterone I'd been drowning in for the last several hours, she was my life-saver. Her hair was so much longer than the last time I'd seen her and her blue eyes were as bright as ever.

"I didn't think you were coming! My brother heard you had school stuff going on," she explained as we sat side by side in the grass.

"Change of plans. I'm soo glad you're here!" I exclaimed, hugging her again.

"What are you doing out here?" she giggled, knowing good and well why I was outside.

"Trying to even out my tan and catch up on some reading," I told her with a wink.

"I'm sure," she nodded knowingly.

Oakleigh was one of my few female friends. We'd met during the Sell Out Tour a while back when she'd taken two weeks off of school to tour with her brother's band, and at the same time, I'd been with Matt.

She knew what it was like, having her older brother gone most of the time.

"Where are the boys?" she asked, looking around.

"I know Matt's working on business stuff, I think Jack's on the bus too. Merrick's out here, Alex is probably hitting on someone, and Rian's probably brushing his teeth. I think the crew is doing a little bit of inventory," I said with a shrug.

"Hey Oakleigh," Zack said, just then noticing her arrival.

"Hi Zack," she replied with a smile. She fished her phone out of her pocket and rolled her eyes at it. "Pat's asking for you," she told me.

I smiled, folding my chair quickly and shoving my magazine into my bag.

"I'll be back later," I told Zack, who probably wasn't even listening.

To my relief, The Maine's bus wasn't parked far from ours. It was nearing the end of June but the heat was comparable to any given day in August.

When I opened the door of the bus, a tangle of arms and legs pounced on me, sending my backwards and nearly flattening me out.

"Remy!" Pat Kirch yelled excitedly, directly in my ear. He was hanging on me, his legs wrapped around my hips

"Pat, heel!" Jared said, stepping off the bus, trying to peel him off of me.

"I just missed my Remy-kins so much!" Pat said, dropping his feet to the ground, his arms still around me though.

"I missed you too, Pat, but let me go, it's too hot," I groaned, pushing my hair off my forehead. Pat frowned, but released me nonetheless.

"Come on!" he said, grabbing my hand and nearly dragging me onto the bus.

I was hit by a wave of cool air, followed by a stench.

"Ugh, what is that smell?" I asked, curling my nose up.

"Your guess is as good as ours," Garrett said, standing up from the couch when he saw me.

During the last tour, it had been common knowledge that Garrett had had a nice sized crush on me, even though we'd been pretty good friends. Even now, I could feel his eyes going over my body, taking me in.

"Hey, Gare!" I said, approaching him, arms open for a hug. He slid his arms around my waist and hugged me tightly. His fingers lingered on my waist as we pulled away.

"How've you been?" he asked, smiling widely.

"Good, I guess." I shrugged nonchalantly. I ran a hand through my hair, wishing I'd tied it up.

"Remsicle!" JohnOh said, coming into the lounge.

"John!" I exclaimed, holding my hand up for a high five. He slapped his hand against mine, lacing his fingers through mine, pulling me to him in a hug.

The rest of my day was spent in the lounge of the Maine's bus, catching up with the guys. I ignored the texts from Matt, first asking "Where are you?" then hours later, "WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU?!"

Finally, around seven, Jack texted me, saying, "Your bro's flippin a shit. I'd suggest you get back here." I rolled my eyes and stood up from my seat.

"Well, boys, I'll see you tomorrow sometime. Matt's freaking out because I've been gone so long," I explained, stretching widely.

"Do you have to leave?" Pat asked, giving me puppy eyes.

"Yeah," I said sadly. "I'll see you guys tomorrow though, I promise."

When I got back to the bus, I stepped in and Matt was waiting for me.

"Where the fuck have you been?" he demanded.

"I was with Oakleigh and the guys from the Maine," I told him with a shrug.

"Nearly everyone's at dinner now," he sighed, flopping down on the sofa.

"Nearly everyone?"

"I think us, Danny, and Grieco are the only ones left here. You guys still back there?" yelled to the quiet bus. Two quiet "yeah"s came from the farther regions bus.

"What now then?" I asked, grabbing my duffel and unzipping it quickly. I located my Wheatables and began to munch.

"Give," Matt ordered, trying to grab the box from my hand.

"If you wanted some, you should have fucking brought some of your own," I snapped at him. I yawned. "Matty, where's my bunk?"

"You sitting on it."

"What?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"There were no open bunks. That's why you get to sleep on the couch."

"Do you know how many butts have been on this thing? Do you ever wonder how many girls Jack has fucked on this thing?" I questioned, flabbergasted. "It's disgusting and I'm not fucking sleeping on it!"

"Well, you either sleep on the floor or the couch. Pick one."

"Give me your bunk," I pleaded, batting my eyelashes.

"Now why would I do that?"

"Because I'm your little sister. With back problems. And hip problems."

"Since when do you have back and hip problems?" he asked, frowning at me.

"Okay, so maybe I don't, but I'm still your baby sister."

"And that's supposed to make me give up my bunk to you?" I nodded enthusiastically.

"Fuck this shit," he scoffed, standing up and walking to the stairs and leaving the bus.

I ended up sleeping on the floor. I woke up every hour or so, twice because Jack tripped over me, the first time when he came in from the bar at three in the morning.

"Well, this is convenient," he said, well slurred, before kissing me while I was half awake.

"Uhm, no," I scoffed, pushing him away from me.

"Come on, Rems," he said, kissing my jawline.

I'd hooked up with Jack a few times in the past and their hadn't been a single occasion when both of us had been completely sober. It usually started with him drunk dialing me and giving him a ride and him inviting me in. Yeah, I'm such a slut. Actually, I'm kidding; I'm not a total slut.

"Jack, I'm trying to sleep," I whined, trying to push him off of me.

"Humph," he pouted, rolling off of me.

The second time, I'd heard him before he tripped over me. He kept repeating "Gotta piss, gotta piss." He tripped over me, not even acknowledging me as a human being, dismissing me as a suitcase or something. "Gotta piss, gotta piss," he continued, pushing himself back onto his feet and leaving the bus to relieve himself outside, for some odd reason.

Finally, I fell into an uneasy sleep, finally waking around eight when the sun was peaking through the blinds that covered the bus windows.

I pulled my phone off the charger and checked my messages. A few Twitter updates that I scrolled through quickly. I also had a message from Garrett. A small smile formed on my lips when I saw it.

From: Gare-bear.
Hey, we're playing today at 3:15. You better be there. ;)

I sighed and read it over again, pushing my bangs off of my forehead. I clicked reply and began typing.

To: Gare-bear.
You can count on it, as long as you get me on side-stage. :D

A shiver ran down my spine and pulled my blanket up to my chin. At the same moment that I was comfy and about to drift back to sleep, my phone buzzed.

From: Gare-bear.
Done and done. Want to catch lunch before we go on?

To: Gare-bear.
May as well. See you at 1:30.

I pushed myself into a sitting position on the floor and groaned, stretching out. I struggled to get into a standing position, but somehow managed.

I stepped off the bus, sticking my phone in the elastic of my shorts. I squinted in the early morning sun, yawning loudly. As I stretched, Zack Merrick, sweaty and shirtless, in basketball shorts brushed past me to get on the bus.

I sure know how to make the guys stare. I didn't want to see the state of my hair, and I know for a fact that me eyeliner was smeared to no end. I sighed as I felt my phone vibrate against my hip.

From: Gare-bear.
It's a date. :)

Warped Tour was going to be interesting to say the least.