This Is A Story About A Girl

I was up early the next day. The unusual part about that was that I wasn't obsessing over how I was going to make my move with Liz. I was more worried about trying my hardest not to throttle Cameron's neck when I caught a glimpse of him. Jess knew that this was my plan too, because she was brewing up some chamomile tea when I got up.

By the time Liz emerged from her bunk, I had already sucked back three cups of it, whiskey snuck into the second and third. Jess shook her head, and sighed deeply, realizing that it was what I needed to get through the day.

"Okay Johnny boy, I think I'm re-ready to go," Liz stuttered, throwing her hair up into a bun, and wrapping herself into a comfortable sweatshirt. Slurping back what I had left of my tea, I grabbed her hand and squeezed it. I nodded at Jess, and pushed open the door. As if Liz wasn't squeezing my hand hard enough, the second we walked out, she pushed her finger tips into my hand. For a tiny girl, she's pretty strong.

"Don't pay attention to them Lizzy."

Her head was held low in shame, and I could feel the eyes on us. I knew she hated attention, so this must have been pretty difficult for her. By the time we got to the couch, she was pretty much shaking. I sat her down, and just let her unwind. She stayed silent, and kept whatever she was feeling to herself. Which I'm sure was for the best, because if she started to vent, I would end up getting more angry than I already am.

When Courtney called, I felt her tense up. I sat up slowly, and looked down at her.

"Are you gonna be okay alone?" I asked, knowing that regardless of her answer, she wouldn't be.

"Yeah. After you go on I'm going to go into the bus and have a nap. And if worst comes to worst I will go to Dyl."

I smiled a bit at that. I told her I'd come for her directly after the show, and stood up. Her hand was still in mine, so I took advantage of it, and pulled her into an embrace. Her chin dug into my shoulder, and I felt myself worry heavily.

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I could hardly pay attention to the show I was so worried. Each chord was like a distant memory, but my fingers somehow knew what they were doing. I forgot to sing parts during Young, and I stumbled a bit during an in between moment. I could feel every fan's eyes piercing into me. I just wanted this to be over. For this song, this show, this day, to be over. I wanted to hold Liz and tell her how much I loved her. I want to so bad, but I'm just a stupid boy that can never get out his feelings.

"She rolls the windows down when it's starting to rain," Brian sang.

"Yeah, no one sees you like I do," I mouthed. I choked. Liz loves this song. She was probably sleeping right now.. But what if she wasn't. I could feel myself sweating more with each thought. What if Cameron said something to her?

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"Thanks for everything guys, you've been wonderful!" Brian yelled out with pride.

He waved and that was my cue. Time to get the fuck out of here.

After I dropped my guitar on the couch, my body flew across the park but I stopped myself before I got to the bus. I had pretty much already figured out what was going to happen.

I was going to crawl up into Liz's bunk without waking her up, and lay myself beside her. Then, I would hum softly until she woke up. When she woke up, I would firmly plant a kiss on her lips, and tell her how I felt.

But this isn't a perfect world, and we don't all ride off into the sunset at the end.

Because when I looked into Liz's bunk, I saw the exact thing I was horrified about.

She had been crying, and for a long time. Her mascara was streaked down her face, eyes puffed, and pillow stained. I choked at the sight of her. The blankets were firmly wrapped around her, and she shook with each deep breath. Even though the tears were recent, she was out cold.

Rage bubbled inside of me. I knew exactly who did this. Luckily, I stopped myself from slamming the bus door, but I was storming out into the park. Cameron was not going to get away with this. He was by the merch table, talking to one of his bandmates, when I saw him.

"Hey cameron, can we talk?" I said, holding in everything.

"Sure," he replied, starting off toward the back of the venue, "I thought you wouldn't want to talk to me after last night."

I nodded, and kept quiet until we were out of anyone's sight. Just as soon as we were clear, I snarled and grabbed his shirt collar, lifting him slightly off of the ground.

"What did you say to her?"

"Whoa man, what's your deal!?" He snapped.

"Let me ask you again, what did you say to her?"

"I just told her the truth!"

My eyes narrowed. Who the fuck does he think he is?

"Oh yeah? What's the truth to you?"

"Look, I just got mad and said some shit.." His voice trailed off.

"What. Did. You. Say?" I almost growled at him.

"I told her that she is a frigid bitch that gets her band to fight for her."

At first, I thought that I should just punch his lights out. But that probably wouldn't have made things any better. I definitely didn't release his shirt quite yet though.

"Here's the deal, Leahy," I said with a certain distaste, "Leave Liz alone. Don't try to apologize, just don't talk to her. She's way too amazing for you, so be glad you even breathed the same air as her."

I dropped him, and he nodded. Hopefully he was more shaken up than he seemed, because I wanted to make sure he left her alone.

I was calming down by the time I started walking. That had definitely helped me get out my anger. I was heading to check on Liz, when her voice rang out to me.

"Johnnnny! Let's go on some rides!"