Hand of Blood

The first person to drop his instrument and walk across to us was the guitarist who had been on the sofa. He approached Matt, before really paying much attention to me, and they exchanged some form of handshake.

"Matt, man, wondered what was taking you so long!" He said, his voice strangely both quiet and strong at the same time, his accent thicker than Matt's. His gaze then turned onto me with interest as the bass player also walked over, now instrument free. He stood leaning against the other side of the sofa to the one I was sitting on, his eyes watching Matt rather than me. I just focused on avoiding eye contact with anyone.

"Moose!" Matt called over to the drummer. "Bloody rude, you are," he said in a harsh tone, scowling across at the last band mate. The drummer frowned over before he grunted in irritation and dragged himself from the drum kit, dropping the drumsticks defeatedly to the floor, and finally walking over. He folded his arms across his chest as he stopped a little way back compared to the other two, making a strange out of shape semi circle.

"Alright," Matt started, turning to me with a light smile, "So this here is Padge, that's Jay, and the lazy fuck over there is Moose," he stated, pointing to each of them in turn and his voice lowering slightly when he mentioned the drummer once more, although his smile grew in contrast. Moose simply scowled back at him, leaving me the impression they went through this often. They were probably the closest of the friends, then.

The first to respond to me directly was Padge, as he sent a friendly smile my way. "Nice to meet you," he said softly, as I nodded and returned his smile. I had already identified him as the softer one; the member of the group who was probably calmer and more reserved than the rest. Perhaps also the most sensitive, though I couldn't be sure yet. He just kind of had that 'I wouldn't hurt a fly' feeling about him.

The bass player stood up from against the sofa and walked a little closer to me. He held out a hand to me and I timidly placed mine in his. "Pleasure to meet you," Jay said in a smart tone, with his accent clearly the strongest of the band, as he bowed and ever so lightly kissed the back of my hand. I laughed softly as he dropped my hand and stood back again. So this one, Jay, he was probably the joker of the group. The one who would probably do the most stupid things, and also the most random. I could imagine that.

Jay grinned back at me as I turned my attention back to the rest of the group. My eyes settled on Matt to see him shifting on his feet, his gaze falling away from Jay and to the floor. There was some intimidation there, though which way it went I wasn't sure. Maybe it was vise versa, and they were always in competition. That could make sense.

"So, you alright?" Moose chimed in in a dull tone, his gaze lazily hovering over me. He hadn't gone for a normal greeting, and seemed to have skipped that stage of normal conversation. So he was a bit different; probably didn't like being told what to do, probably out of it most of the time, probably, at times, the most interesting one. He didn't let a lot on from first impressions for me to confirm anything. It would take a while before Id really get him, I think.

I smiled faintly, finding my analysing annoying and somewhat useful at the same time. None of these individuals seemed to set off any alarm bells. A nice, average bunch of guys, all with their different qualities. Nothing wrong at all. "Yeah, I'm fine thank you," I commented lightly, "You didn't have to get up by the way, Mattie Bro's just being weird," I added in a slight apologetic tone, causing Moose to grin and nod at me with what seemed to be approval.

I noticed Jay and Padge's attention suddenly turn to me, their eyes curious as they examined me more critically. I frowned slightly, noticing easily. "What?" I asked bluntly, glancing between them and then over to Moose who hadn't made the same action.

Jay turned away from me and glanced over at Matt. "I never knew you had another sister, Matt," he said, his eyebrows furrowing together. It was then I realised that it was my comment that made them look at me that way. I turned to Matt as he frowned.

"I don't," he said with a slightly lost tone, causing all of the guys to exchange confused glances, even Moose now he had caught onto what Padge and Jay were talking about. I must have got the 'out of it most of the time' bit right about him, then.

"We're not," I piped up, gaining four curious looks my way and causing me to pause. "Uhm, we kind of just call each other that," I added, smiling lightly. "Its a long story," I finished as the guys expressions cleared just slightly.

"Oh, right," Matt said in realisation, smiling at me. "Yeah, long story," he added with a chuckle.

"That means you have to tell us," Padge said with a small grin, suddenly sitting down on the floor and looking up at the rest of the group. Moose quickly followed suit, and a moment later Jay moved the wires and sheets of paper from the sofa and sat down at the other end to me. Matt rolled his eyes as he still stood above his band mates, causing me to chuckle.

"Its not that long a story," I said with a smile, causing Matt to turn to me.

"Oh alright," Matt sighed, also sitting down on the floor before he started to explain what happened at the gig.

+

The guys all laughed at Matt's final comments on the bouncer, me included as his furious expression seeped into mind from my lost memories. It would probably be a while before we headed back to that venue, that was for sure.

"So... How old are you then?" Jay asked with curiosity, glancing over at me.

"I'm 18," I said lightly, a weak smile on my face as I waited for a reaction from the guys. There wasn't really a big one, they just all sort of nodded in unison, with the exception of Moose who apparently wasn't paying attention again. I think it took that moment for me to feel extremely young again. If my mother knew I was hanging out with people so much older than me, shed probably go crazy. I hated to think what Spencer might say.

Jays smile grew wider than the rest. "That's cool. I'm the baby of the group, too," he said, appearing to try and win some points from me. So not only was he competitive, but he craved approval. An interesting character.

"Wow, really?" I said, hoping that I might have someone I could click with even more. I had the feeling Id have something more in common with perhaps another teenager. I couldn't help the fact that teenagers and those older than them just thought differently, it was a simple fact of life. I still had a lot to learn, but I always tried to stay ahead of my times.

"He's not that much younger," Matt added in, with a dull tone, my hope deflating instantly as my gaze fell onto Matt. His attention was turned once again to the wooden floor, before he turned back to Jay. His gaze held just the slightest indication of hostility, though it was so tiny I doubt anyone else would have noticed apart from me. Especially Jay in his current oblivion.

"I'm 21," Jay said with a chuckle, ignoring Matt's comment or just simply brushing it off. "But that's a whole year younger than Matt, so it counts," he added with a grin, only to have me return it with a light smile. The competition was tense, then. However, instead of making me want to back away as it would usually, I felt drawn in with curiosity. It made me want to know more about these people who were still little more than strangers to me. It made me want to see more of their world, rather than just the snapshot I felt I had at the moment.

"Right," Matt said suddenly, a frown etched into his face. "I think that's enough stories. Are we playing today or what?" He said in a sharp tone. I turned to watch as he stood back up on his feet, towering over the rest of the group. He was annoyed, and that was him making a power stand; giving him the upper hand, as it were, over the rest of his band mates. To be honest, it really was intimidating. So he did have another side to him then, but who was I to judge? We all have more than one side to us, after all.

"Sorry," I murmered, though I wasn't sure why. I just suddenly felt like I was intruding way too much on this world separate from my own. "Don't let me stop you," I added, glancing up at Matt timidly.

His harsh expression softened immediately, as soon as his eyes met with mine. "You weren't," he said with weak smile. "You have no reason to apologise," he added lightly, his personality again shifting in seconds as I had seen happen before.

I smiled lightly in return, making a break to change the subject. "So who's the vocalist then?" I asked lightly, glancing around the group.

"I am," Matt and Jay said simultaneously, causing me to bite my lip, shocked by their rapid responses and the fact I hadn't really managed to achieve anything. So much for changing the subject.

"Oh, me too," Padge added with a light smile, his response not so instant as the other two. Of course, he wasn't involved in this battle of wills though.

I laughed softly, trying to make light of it. "Awesome," I said with a smile as Moose removed himself from the conversation, getting up and wandering back over to his drum kit. I watched after him, wondering if he was making a conscious move away, or if he was just bored. The one who would remain an enigma to me, for now.

"Well, I'm lead vocals," Matt explained suddenly, a light smile still on his face as he looked at me.

"Yeah. In other words, he cant scream as good as me," Jay added in, winking at me as he stood up too. I bit my lip as I glanced between the two of them, both of them with the same solid composure and arms crossed over their chests. I couldn't help but notice Jay was quite a bit shorter than Matt, making this stand off look a little awkward. A light sigh caught my ears as Padge glanced between the two of them and shook his head before also standing up. He walked away from them and back to his guitar, hanging it across his shoulder and moving some mic stands from the side of the room.

Matt scowled at Jay one last time before he was the first to move away of the two. He wandered over to a guitar rested against the right wall, also putting the strap across his shoulder and grabbing an already wired up mic stand. He set it down in line with the drum kit and turned his attention back over to me and Jay.

"Turn the amps down a bit," he said quietly. "Especially the bass, too. I don't think Brianne plans to lose her hearing," Matt added as he strummed his guitar a few times before moving back over to one of the larger amps.

Jay sighed from beside me, catching my attention. "Yes, master," he droned, causing me to bite my lip to stop myself from smiling at his comment. He seemed to notice as he grinned down on me before walking over to the rest of his band mates, and over to his own amp and bass guitar. I don't think I was doing much to ease the tension in the room.

The guys all eventually moved to stand behind their own mic stands, instruments in hand, and I noted the plectrum hanging lazily between Matt's teeth. Padge was still on the left as he had been before, and Jay on the right, while Matt again walked to his place in the center in front of the drums, where Moose was already playing a beat to himself.

"What we playing then?" Jay asked in a stubborn tone, glancing over at Matt and receiving a blank look back. They shared a mild glare before Matt took the plectrum from his mouth and flicked it in the air before catching it again, while his other hand found its position on the fretboard.

"No Control," he stated finally, his attention turned completely on the instrument in front of him. Moose's random drum beats came to an abrupt end, dropping the room into a momentary silence. He then done a few counts in, before guitars struck in hard, and Matt clearly took the lead.

I almost couldn't believe the energy that filled the room from the music. From the way Matt had talked shyly about his band in the bar, it was hard to link that reserved character to what I was seeing now. As far as I could see, the song seemed like nothing less than an all out screaming war between Matt and Jay, as they threw alternate lines between them, almost trying to prove themselves to the other vocally. No matter what the intentions were behind the music, and situation, the only thing I could think of was how amazing they sounded. It was the most I could do to watch in awe as they played.