Keep Me On My Toes

11 Am. It was 11am and I was freaking the fuck out. My alarm had just DECIDED not to go off at 8, meaning I was now 3 hours late. I didn’t have time to soak in the shower, or condition my hair long enough, or spend forever going through outfits. Today of all days, this had to happen.

Chess knocked on my door, just as I stepped out of the shower at half 11, and my God was that the shortest shower I’ve ever had. How do people manage to shower in like 10 minutes? It took me minimum half an hour.

‘CHESS HELP ME PLEASE.’ I yelled as I threw open the door in my towel. We’d had many of these times before and she knew exactly what to do, pulling me up into my room and plugging in my hairdryer, tossing me my products and leaving me in front of the mirror while she went through my wardrobe.

I turned back to her after when it was all dry, and she pointed next to my head where she’d layed out all my straightening stuff and put on my straighteners; I hadn’t even notice her do it.

‘Thank you so much. What would I do without you?!’ I kind of sighed as I straightened my hair. This was the only relaxing bit of getting ready.

We talked a little as I did it, Francesca touching up her makeup from behind me, obviously happy with the clothes and shoes she’d layed out on my bed.

I finished up with straightening my hair and check them out, noticing she’d picked all my favourites without even knowing. I’d missed her the year we’d not been in touch.

I dropped my towel, not even caring she was there and pulled on my underwear along with some studded high waisted black shorts, a white tee with a cross, a flannel shirt and plain black creepers with frilly socks. I grabbed a ring and shoved it on, looking in the mirror. I looked pretty good, but I still had to finish my hair and do my makeup.

I quickly did my makeup in about 10 minutes, having practised time and time again doing the same thing every day. I grabbed my straighteners and made my hair wavy, as usual.

As I spritzed some perfume, I glanced down at the time- 12pm. Perfect.

Chess and I grinned and walked downstairs for the next part of our mission- tidying. Mom was out so she couldn’t help, so I put Saffy (my puppy) in her crate and went about making everywhere in the house as tidy as could be, sometimes yelling new orders at Chess. We finished up in about an hour and a half and just sat in comfortable silence, trying to think of other things we could be doing.

‘SHIT. I haven’t figured what I’m wearing tonight! We’re going out right?’ I asked in a slight panic again.

‘Err, yeah? Of course we are. I just brought that black lace dress I always wear and some plain black heels.’

‘You STILL wear that dress?’ I asked with a smile.

‘Of course I do. It’s hot!’ She laughed back.

I stood up and dragged her with me, going to my room to look through my wonderful selection of dresses, which consisted of some really hideous old ones that mom had made me keep, and a few nice ones.

‘Ok. So. Wine red velvet with the sheer sleeves, OR dark blue lace skater?’ I asked, holding the two up.

‘Definitely the red!’ She said and I grinned. It was my favourite.

‘Ok cool,’ I smiled and put it in a bag, along with some wedges and some makeup I’d need.

I went round my room just to check I had everything- money, keys, phone, charger, VIP passes.

‘Ok cool done.’

We walked out my room, and I shut it behind us, just so I wouldn’t be tempted to go back in and put something down then forget it later.

‘What’s the time, Chess?’ I asked after collapsing on the sofa for the second time.

‘Errrrrrrm… 2:15.’

‘Do you think Josh was joking about the puppy?’ I asked with a frown. If he was I looked like a total idiot.

‘I don’t know. Who cares, you get to spend all day with him now!’ She said with a smile, trying to make me feel better.

‘Yeah, and you get to spend all day with Maxxy,’ I laughed with a wink.

She turned bright red and turned away from me with a mumbled, ‘Go away.’

I laughed and went to get the door as it rang, hoping it was Josh. And oh, look who it was, the man himself!

‘And what time do you call this?’ I asked him with a raised eyebrow.

‘Erm I’m sorry Miss Punctual, but I'm only 20 minutes late!’

‘Fine, 20 minutes less time you get with me and my puppy.’

‘Don’t be like that!’ He said with a fake pout and when I smiled he burst into a grin.

I laughed and turned away to the house, taking Saffy out as Josh and Chess said hey and did all that polite stuff. I could tell Chess was stuff super excited about being in a casual situation with Josh. I mean, so was I but I could hide it about 1000 times better.

Chess excused herself to get a drink and stuff as she watched Josh and I play with Saffy. She wasn’t that keen on animals- never had been.

Before we knew it, the time to leave mine had come and I put Saffy back in bed, before getting in the car (I got in the back, just to make a dig at Josh because he said he felt like a chauffeur) along with Chess. I’d decided inside I’d get in the front when Dan got it, just to let Chess make a new friend, y’know? Nothing like me just wanting to stare at Josh the whole drive.

The drive was about an hour, and it started out pretty quiet with just chatter between the 3 of us, but after we picked up Dan, Chess and he were full of conversation. Josh and I listened in for a while, but I got bored and started rifling through his car. After a few seconds I found what I
wanted- CD’s.

‘OH MY GOD JOSH YOU HAVE TO BE JOKING?!’ I pretty much yelled while falling about laughing my seat, holding up a Nicki Minaj CD.

‘What?! I like her!’ He yelled back defensively and the whole car cracked up at his expense.

‘Aww baby, I’m sure you do,’ I said back teasingly.

‘Whatever. You probably like Justin Bieber or some shit,’

‘Actually no, you’re totally wrong there.’

And from there went the music argument between the 4 of us. It was pretty amusing to be honest. How we’d never talked about this beforehand I DO not know.

‘Ok whatever guys, I’m choosing the music today,’ I said with a grin, before slipping in an All Time Low CD that just so happened to be in my overnight bag.

‘YEAH BOIZ!’ yelled Chess, and we began singing along. Hell yeah we still knew every word!

Josh and Dan laughed and just watched us dance like crazy people and before we knew it, it was the last song and we were at the venue.

As we parked up, the rest of the band and their manager walked out the back door to greet up.

‘Hey guys!’ Nearly everyone said at the same time and we all laughed.

‘Ok so here are your hotel room keys- we had to pick them up for some stupid reason but ok,’ said the manager, whose name I hadn’t managed to catch.

‘Oh okay! Thank you!’

‘There are 4 rooms, because the boys are staying there tonight so just room up however you want,’ she said with a warm smile and walked off.

After a little idle chatter, the boys had to go to sound check so Chess and I decided to check the rooms out. We went into each one, getting more and more dumb struck as we went. They were HUGE and must have cost a fortune.

‘I’M TAKING THIS ONE!’ I yelled as we got to the last one. It was absolutely enormous, practically a whole apartment.

‘Ok fine, I prefer smaller hotel rooms anyway,’ said Chess. She was used to living the glamorous life a little more than me, having come from money, so she knew what she liked. She decided to have the second smallest room, but even then it was bigger and nicer than any room I’d ever stayed in before.

After settling into our rooms, we went back to Hard Rock and gave back the 2 key cards we didn’t need to the bands manager to give to the boys, then just settled down next to the bar, watching the boys finish setting up and getting ready.

Josh walked over a little after 5pm, letting us know that the public would start coming in at 6, the first support band would be on at 7, the second on at 8, and then they would be on at 9:30. He also gave me a piece of paper and said, ‘This is part of your prize. You get to pick 4 songs for us to do, and then we choose the rest.’

I knew exactly what I wanted. I was going to make this special. ‘Can they be off any album?’

‘Yeah, any song you want from our whole history ok,’

‘Even one you don’t like?’

‘You want me to sing Gossip, don’t you?’

‘Maaaaybe,’ I said with a sly grin.

‘Just for you I’ll go back on my promise and perform it for the last time ever. You’re so lucky I like you,’ he said with a laugh.

‘Aw. I’m sorry. Well after tonight you can let me know if you WOULD rather be hit in the balls with a sledge hammer for the rest of your life,’ I said, referencing an old ustream.

He just shook his head in a jokey way and walked off. I turned to say something to Chess, to get her help picking the songs but she wasn’t there.

I walked off backstage to find her and true to form there she was- kissing Max. I quickly returned to my seat at the bar, where I was nursing my Redbull with Orange and Mango juice (best drink ever, by the way), thinking through all the songs I loved.

I knew they would perform their newer songs by their choice, so that made it easier for me.

I quickly scribbled down ‘Gossip’, ‘Tigers And Sharks’, ‘If You Run’ and ‘This Turbulence Is Beautiful’. They were a few of my favourites, all the older songs and I wanted to write more but Josh said 4, so here were my 4.

I walked over to the stage, where Max and Chess had appeared (with his arm slung over her shoulders and a bit smile on her face), and handed Josh the sheet. He looked at me, as if asking if I was serious about these choices so I just grinned straight back at him. He laughed and told the guys, who were surprised but agreed to play them- if they could remember them.

Me and Chess were ushered to our table (right at the front, in the middle) while the guys checked they could play those songs, then disappeared out the back. The crowds started flooding in soon after that, and I could feel the atmosphere building.

‘Hey Siana?’ asked the manager whose name I STILL didn’t know.

‘Yeah?’ I asked, confused why she needed me.

‘Kerrang! Are here and they want to do a mini interview on you, and winning the prize,’

‘Oh. Okay.’ I said in total surprise. ‘I’ll be back in a few, Chess. I’m needed elsewhere,’

‘Okay then. Just don’t abandon me for long!’ She said, with that grin that had been stuck on her face all day.

I found my way to the dressing room that had You Me At Six written on, and knocked before entering, having been told this is where the interviewer was. He greeted me and I calmed down a lot, seeing he wasn’t much older than me.

His name was Alec, and just asked me a few questions about what we did on our shopping day, plus how I was feeling about the gig tonight. I managed to get the nerve to ask him if he knew who the supporting bands were because it’d been kept a big secret from me but he said he’d been told not to tell me. Why was everyone being so mean? Gah.

I went back out to my table a few minutes before the first act came out, and caught a glimpse of their name on the drum kit that was still covered.

‘CHESS. Oh my God Chess the first support! It’s We The Kings OH MY GOD,’ everyone knew I loved We The Kings. EVERYONE.

‘Haha no way?!’ Chess wasn’t a big fan but she knew I was.

‘Yes! I just saw their drums. I wonder who the second support is gonna be…’

And just then, the lights dimmed and Travis walked on. I sang along to every song, and he smiled at me every once in a while, obviously having been told who I was. Their best song was DEFFINATELY Check Yes Juliet! When they went off, I just fangirled to Chess for a whole 15 minutes, before the lights went down again.

We both went silent, knowing it was going to be someone amazing.

The opening notes to Time Bomb played, and Chess and I both froze up. This could not be happening.

Right as we were starting to think it was just a build up song, they walked on playing. All Time Low were stood about a foot infront of me on a stage. Oh my dear Lord. This was amazing. Chess and I both screamed and Alex stepped down from the stage, hugging both of us when the opening song was done.

Jack and him had a little bit of banter half way through their set, and mentioned seeing Francesca and Max kissing. Everyone thought it was a joke but she burned up bright red. Zack, Rian and Jack walked off stage, and Alex sat at a spare chair on my table, as a mic stand was set to the right height in front of him. I honestly could have passed out at this point.

‘This song goes out to everyone who’s had a broken heart. Who’s loved that someone but it’s not quite enough. This song is Remembering Sunday,’ he said strongly into the mic.

I nearly screamed again- this was my favourite song. As it ended, I had tears in my eyes. Alex saw that and hugged me so tight I couldn’t breathe. This was honestly a dream come true.

That ended their performance, and it was now only a little wait until the main act. I was excited, but only really because of the songs. I think the novelty was starting to ware off; they were becoming my friends, not some guys I obsessed over.

But, nonetheless, as soon as the lights dimmed I got excited all over again and all those thoughts went straight out the window. They did a few songs from Sinners, and a few from Hold Me Down, but then came my special requests.

‘Now, I know we’ve not performed these songs in years, but my special little prize winner over here chose them, so we’re doing them. Feel special, because I can pretty much this is the only time we’re ever going to perform them. Here’s Gossip,’ Josh said with a smile and wink at me.

As all 4 songs went, there were a few more from Sinners, and they finished with Bite My Tongue. The crowd went wild and mulled around for about half an hour after the show, hoping any of the bands would come back out, but they were finally ushered out of the venue.
All 3 bands came out front, where Chess and I had migrated back towards the bar, and joined us.

Chess and I were both fangirling over All Time Low, and didn’t have the guts to say anything to them, till Alex walked over and stood in front of us.

‘So you two enjoyed the show?’ he asked and all I could do was nod, like an idiot. He laughed and Francesca decided to start blurting horrendously embarrassing words out.

‘Alex we love you so much. I’m not even joking we’ve loved you since we were 13 years old and you’re such an inspiration and we’ve always wanted to meet you and wow okay I’m stopping now,’ she rambled and blushed the darkest I’ve ever seen.

‘Aww! That’s so cute!’ He said with a laugh.

‘Can we have a few pictures?’ I asked, timidly.

‘Of course you can! Come here okay, both of you kiss my cheek.’

We did as we were told, and You Me At Six’s manager, who’s name I’d finally found out was Caroline, took the pictures on my camera. We had a few more, where Alex kissed our cheeks in turn, then just one of us all smiling, then Jack joined for a few.

‘Any special requests?’ He asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

‘JALEX!’ Chess yelled before thinking, then clamped her mouth shout again.

‘Okay sure!’ they said, both smiling.

When the camera was pointed at them, they kissed and Francesca and I did shocked faces on either side of them. It was probably the best picture of the night.

Rian and Zack joined us for a picture, and then You Me At Six came in to it too, closely followed by We The Kings.

After taking pictures till about 11:30, we decided to head out. WTK had to leave because they had an early flight in a few hours, but ATL decided to party it up. We went back to the hotel where Chess and I threw on our dresses and were at the first club, with our drinks dancing by 12.

After that, it was pretty much a blur, but I do remember mainly hanging with Alex, then Josh took me away and after that yeah, I came up blank.

It was a fucking rad night though, I remember that much.