Wanna Live It Up Just Because

In the bathroom, Jazz's hums could be heard from the bathroom stall. Neon placed the bag of Arpeggio's diabetic supplies on a counter top, smiling to herself at the keyboardist's humming.

"Jazz, shut up. No one wants to hear you hum," Neon joked.

Jazz's hums ceased.

"Neon, shut yo' face; no one wants to hear you talk," she responded.

"On contraire, I can think of a crowd of screaming kids that want to hear me talk," Neon dug through the bag for a moment, extracting a palm sized device.

"They just scream to make you feel better about yourself."

"And it works."

Neon held the device out to Arpeggio, who took it, pricking her finger quickly and placing a bit of her blood on the test strip.

Arpeggio could have easily gone to the restroom by herself to check her blood sugar level. It's not like she didn't know how to prick herself with the tiny needle and place her blood on the testing strip. Glucose meters weren't difficult contraptions. She knew how to read them. Hell, she knew when her blood sugar was low without the meter. She had been diagnosed with diabetes years ago; she was used to the changes her body would go through.

But Neon was always worried about her, always trying to make sure she wouldn't have an attack. Ever since their parents passed away, she had taken it upon herself to look over Arpeggio's every move.

Every single move.

Arpeggio had grown accustomed to her sister's constant watching. She had nothing to hide from her. Her only friends were the band; she never had a boyfriend because no one was ever interested; she didn't drink or do drugs; all of her piercings and tattoos were signed for by her sister. She just didn't like being treated like a baby.

Arpeggio handed the meter to her sister, not taking a moment to glance at it. It didn't matter if she read it and told Neon it was at an okay level; Neon would want to see it anyway.

Neon read the meter quickly.

"Looks like you get your coffee," she smiled.

"Energy drinks are better," Jazz stated, from her spot at the sink.

Arpeggio hadn't even heard Jazz leave the stall. Normally, she could be heard from miles away.

"She can't have those," Neon said.

Of course Arpeggio couldn't have those. They would make her blood sugar spike and the caffeine would react badly with her system.

"Which sucks. She would be more talkative if she drank them."

"I'm not going to risk her having to go to the hospital to make her talkative."

"Well, if she did drink an energy drink, at least she would be able to leave capable of speech unlike the last time we had to take her there."

"That is true."

They were talking about her like she wasn't there again. Arpeggio could never understand why they did that. Sometimes she believed they actually didn't realize she was in the same room as them.

Arpeggio sighed and turned to walk out of the bathroom. Neon caught the young girl's wrist, halting her movements.

"Someone's anxious to get coffee," Neon stated.

She didn't turn to face her older sibling, instead staring at the bathroom door.

"I don't even know why you want that decaf stuff. Its not like it’s the same as real coffee," Jazz stated.

"It tastes good," Arpeggio defended, still looking at the door.

"You're an odd one," Jazz ruffled Arpeggio's hair as she walked past her and out the door.

Neon let go of Arpeggio's wrist.

"Let's go," Neon commanded, leading the way out of the restroom with the bag of supplies on her shoulder.

Arpeggio followed Neon much like a duckling follows its overbearing mother.

Sure, Arpeggio understood Neon's worries. And, though she wished her sister would ease up, she loved Neon nonetheless. They were sisters; they couldn't hate each other. She knew Neon couldn't handle loosing another person she cared for.

"We're late," said Grim as the two approached.

The band's luggage had been collected while the girl's were in the restroom and collected in a pile next to the group. The band members stood in a semi-circle with Grim in the center.

"How are we late?" asked Neon.

"The flight was delayed so we landed late."

"I didn't realize the flight was delayed."

"You guys don't notice anything before noon."

"This can't be helped," Neon shook her head in mock sadness.

"Maybe I can send you all to a psychiatric ward to get you fixed."

"Funny. So about being late," Neon trailed off.

"I'm going to call Hopeless Records and tell them the situation when we get in the car. We were supposed to have a meeting with our label head about the benefit concert for To Write Love On Her Arms," Grim explained.

Neon already knew what they were supposed to be doing. She had been informed well ahead of time. Two Hopeless Records bands were going to participate in a concert for To Write Love On Her Arms. Her band RxN was one of the two bands that had been hand-selected to perform. The other band that was chosen was still a mystery to her.

She honestly didn't care who else was performing as long as everything ran smooth.

"So are we going to stop for food?"

"They'll have food set up there."

"Will they have food Arpeggio can eat?"

"All I want is coffee," Arpeggio piped up.

"You need to eat," Neon said.

Arpeggio almost rolled her eyes at her sister. She knew she needed to eat but she didn't need to eat immediately. Her system could handle a slight fluctuation in her schedule as long as her insulin pump continued to work.

"I'll eat after."

"No, you need to eat at specific times each day. You're not passing out today."

Neon's statement wasn't malicious, she didn't grit her teeth in frustration. She was only worried. It was obvious the way her voice shook.

"Look," Grim cut in, "We need to hurry. Once we get there, I'll make a food run or have someone else make a food run for us. I just need you guys to get into that meeting room and avoid getting in trouble."

"Sounds good," Neon nodded.

"C'mon," Grim muttered, grabbing his bags and walking toward the exit.

The rest of the band did the same, each grabbing their respective bags and following after Grim.

"Do you need me to carry you're stuff?" Neon asked her sibling.

"I've got it," Arpeggio answered.

She was really getting tired of this babying thing.