Mixed Feelings of Elation

The party was in full swing. All of the guests showed up. Arpeggio was in the pool, talking animatedly with her three friends from school. She had taken her insulin pump out before going in, resorting to taking shots every couple of hours. Her friends seemed to be excited. When Neon opened the door to let them earlier, one of the screamed and the other two stood star struck. When All Time Low showed up, the group of teenagers managed to keep themselves composed.

The two bands and their managers were talking with one another, some in the pool and some outside. Neon was outside the pool clad in an oversized shirt and shorts that were barely visible from the hemline of the shirt, talking with Lestat and his girlfriend.

"The music video is going to be released soon," Lestat stated.

Alone now had a music video that they recorded less than a month ago. The special effects and final editing were almost finished.

"Should we have a release party? Maybe have a contest for some fans to join us?" Neon asked.

"We'd have to run it by Grim first but I think it would be a good idea."

"You two always talk about the band when you're together," the redhead next Lestat pointed out.

"Does pointing out that you will be the stripper for our party count as talking about the band, Annabelle?" Neon asked.

Annabelle grinned, green eyes sparkling with mischief, "I'll be your stripper tonight."

"Oh, baby. You should wear that little purple outfit you wore for me last night," Neon joked.

Neon and Annabelle joked around often like that. They met back when Neon started dating Armand. Annabelle was the Lonsdale's next door neighbor and Lestat's best friend. Back then, she was an awkward teenager with lanky body parts and an unhealthy crush on Lestat. As Annabelle grew up, she started grow into herself. She and Lestat had been together for two years now.

"Stop messing with my girlfriend," Lestat whined, clutching Annabelle's waist and rubbing his face into her neck.

Annabelle and Neon giggled. Neon's laughs were cut short by a weight on her shoulder. She turned her head to find the culprit. Her vision was met with the sight of Jazz leaning on her shoulder.

"Hey Neon," she said, bursting into a fit of laughter.

Neon could smell the alcohol on her best friend's breath as it hit her in the face.

"Have you been drinking?" Neon asked.

"Yes," Jazz answered, laughing again.

"Isn't that illegal?"

Jazz was twenty, after all. So it was only a year; she could technically get into some trouble if she left the house drunk.

Not that it was unlikely for the keyboardist to drink at parties. It was the only time she got drunk. Any other time, she was content sipping on an energy drink or cup of coffee.

"It's all Dante's fault," Jazz exclaimed, pointing towards the perpetrator.

Dante, who was in the pool with Alex and Jack drinking a bottle of Smirnoff, looked up at the sound of his name. He noticed Jazz's finger pointed at him and flashed a smile.

"See, he's evil," Jazz tried to whisper.

"Are you trying to get me arrested for serving alcohol to a minor, Dante?" Neon called.

She was joking; Dante knew that. Their friendship had lasted for a long time and he knew most, if not all, of her quirks. He had even been there through her anorexia stint. The only other members in RxN who were there through it all were Arpeggio and Jazz. And Jazz wasn't physically there through most of it, being updated by phone calls.

When he looked at her now, in the baggy tee-shirt and shorts, it looked like she was going through it again. He was pretty sure everyone could see it.

"Alex wanted to see you in handcuffs," Dante defended.

"I can't contain my hormones," Alex yelled.

"Man, I did not allude to the fact that you want to have sex with her."

"Well, what else would I want her handcuffed for?"

"You dislike her so much that you want her carted off to jail," Dante tried.

"I'm going to go talk to Zack now," Jazz slurred, "He has cute muscles."

"You do that," Neon replied.

Jazz walked away from Neon, not stumbling. One thing she could do when drunk was walk in a straight line. She wasn't very good at that when she was sober.

Neon felt a tug on her pant leg, drawing her attention from the conversation between Alex and Dante. She looked toward the ground. A husky puppy was playing happily at her feet, a little girl crouched down next to him.

"Claudia, what are you doing with Dorian's dog?" Lestat asked.

"I'm playing, big brother," Claudia answered.

Claudia looked up at her older brother, smiling widely. Her blonde hair blew around her in the wind. The bright blue of her eyes made them look like jewels.

"It probably has flees," Lestat said, loud enough for Dorian to hear.

"Rainbow does not have flees," Dorian retaliated.

Rainbow, hearing his name, wagged his tail and stared at his master. His tongue lolled from his mouth, as most dogs' tongues do in the heat.

"Calm down, babe," the male next to Dorian commanded.

Love filled the man's sap green eyes as he looked down at Dorian. His full lips were in their normal resting position: a slight pout. His skin held a tan and his hair was brown and caramel; a complete contrast from Dorian's pale body and outrageous red and black hair.

"But, Joseph, he's so mean to me," Dorian fake cried.

"Oh, yeah, go cry to your boyfriend. Like that's going to help," Lestat joked.

Neon crouched to get level with the puppy. Excited for a new partner, the dog jumped in a circle.

"Rainbow, I need you to do something for me," Neon whispered.

The puppy didn't seem to be picking up the words she was saying. Neon didn't need him to understand her fully. He knew a few tricks and she would use them to her advantage.

"What do you need Rainbow to do, Auntie Neon?" Claudia asked.

The young girl kept her voice to a whisper just as her role model had.

"You'll see," Neon whispered, "Rainbow, go swimming."

Without hesitation, Rainbow pranced toward the pool. Alex noticed the puppy approaching, eyes widening in fear. Rainbow scared Alex shitless.

Rainbow jumped into the pool, body only hovering in the air for a few seconds. The splash his body created was tiny. Alex let out a yelp when he saw the dog paddling in the water, rushing to the steps to get out of the pool. Thinking Alex was playing, Rainbow barked excitedly and swam after him. Rainbow followed Alex out of the pool and continued chasing him around the backyard.

"Get that dog away from me," Alex demanded.

Neon was the first to laugh at the sight of the singer running from a small puppy. She never did understand Alex's fear of Rainbow. He could handle other dogs, some much larger than the puppy. Something about Rainbow just struck fear in him.

Neon didn't really care why he was so afraid; it was fun picking on him.

"He's not going to kill you," Dorian said.

"Yes, he is," Alex retaliated, ducking behind Neon, "Hide me."

Rainbow crouched down, so excited that his butt was wagging with his tail. Alex's body pressed against Neon's back. A sensation raced through Neon's spin. Her cheeks began to heat up.

Where the hell was this reaction coming from?

Lestat saw the change in Neon's physical state. He didn't say anything, knowing that if he brought attention to it, she would simply deny it. Neon always had feelings for Alex deep down that she never recognized. Lestat could see it. Though she dated his brother and loved him even after death, the fact remained that she changed her entire appearance just for Alex. No one else could ever get Neon to change. Not even the school officials when she dyed her hair pink and purple, a clear violation of school rules. Neon cared what Alex thought of her and no one else.

Lestat knew she would never admit to it.