Counting the Stars

We got to Dallas at 7:30am on Friday morning. When we left California, the weather was cool and perfect, and Dallas weather was the complete opposite. It was extremely hot and the slight humidity wasn’t helping in the slightest. It was like walking into a state sized sauna, absolutely horrendous.

Until the concert tonight, we had almost nothing to do. The guys in One Direction had a day full or promotion and press while the band and I had absolutely nothing to do. To top things off, we wouldn’t be staying in a hotel tonight, so we were stuck in the bus most of the day. The few hours we had off to do nothing was spent sleeping.

Fans had started to arrive at the venue at about 10 in the morning. This was absolutely crazy in my mind, seeing as it wasn't a general admission show. Each time a new group of fans came, it progressively became louder and much more difficult to sleep in. At noon I decided to finally get out of bed and get ready for the day. The backstage of the venue fortunately had a full sized shower, because the one in the bus was tiny.

I had been in the shower for a good 20 minutes, just standing there and soaking everything in. Not many people got the opportunity to travel the world doing what they loved. We hadn't even performed a show yet and I was completely in awe of what was going on.

After staying the shower for so long, I got out quickly and dressed myself faster than ever before. I wasn’t going to risk any of the guys seeing me. There was no way I was going to let my plan fall through this early into the tour. I wasn’t going to allow myself to leave yet, or any time for that matter.

“Kyle mate! Come on out, we’ve got to do sound check!” Sandy shouted.

I had become close with all of the guys from the backing band. Each one had their own different accent, so I was able to tell them apart easily. They took me under their wings from the very first day, making sure I knew what I was doing. Whenever we went out with the other guys, they made sure I was included in the conversation and felt apart of the group. I was truly surrounded by wonderful people.

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” I grumbled as I walked out of the bathroom.

“We take the stage in 5 minutes for VIP soundcheck. We’re only doing three songs, What Makes You Beautiful, One Thing, and Gotta Be You. Figures, right? Then after we play those songs we just walk off stage and continue on with our days until the show starts. If we did anything wrong, the sound tech will come back and tell us,” Sandy gave me the run down, speaking quickly.

I nodded along to everything he said, making sure I knew what I was doing. To say I was nervous was an understatement. Even though we were only playing for the hundred or so girls who had VIP, it was my first show of the tour. These girls had high expectations and if I happened to be the reason the experience was bad, I’d never live it down. I would have to change my name and enroll in the Witness Protection Program, they’d be out to kill me. It was my goal to not only live up to their expectations and not let them down, but to not let myself down as well. I had the mental mindset to prove to everyone I was worthy of being here.

The backing band and I walked out onto the stage first, the fans all cheering. As soon as the guys came out, the cheers were even louder. You would have thought the arena was halfway full by the way the girls were cheering. I shoved the ear plugs we were given to make sure we could hear the rest of the instruments and the guys singing had been life savers. They blocked out most of the noise coming from the fans.

We performed the three songs almost perfectly, a few mistakes here and there. The people in the sound booth mixed it up to the point where you could barely hear the mistake, though. I'd have to make sure I thanked them for their sound engineering skills, since they practically saved my life. Once we finished our songs the backing band and I ran off the stage to let the guys answer the fan questions.

“Kyle, we knew you could play drums, but we didn’t know you were THAT good,” Dan praised me, slapping me on the back the way guys do when they greet each other.

“Thanks. I’m excited for tonight,” I replied, trying to stay as humble as possible. I knew I was good, but cockiness didn’t get you anywhere.

Sandy, Dan, Jon, and I messed around backstage for the rest of the Q and A session and throughout the meet and greets. The backstage in this venue was huge. There had to be at least four green rooms for us to sit in and at least another 20 rooms of random things. Sandy and I ran around and talked with a bunch of the venue workers, each of them complimenting us on our “charming” personalities.

The show started promptly at 7 o’clock, the first of the two openers taking the stage. I didn’t know who they were, but they were both really good. After both of the openers sets were done, it was 9:13 and we were set to take the stage at 9:30. Throughout the opening acts sets, I had been looking at the crowd and there had to be at least 15,000 girls there. That’s about 14,800 more people that I have ever played in front of.

“Kyle, you alright there mate?” Liam asked, walking up beside me.

I looked over at him, eyebrows raised in confusion, “Of course I’m alright. Why?”

He shrugged, “You just look kinda nervous. First show jitters and all that.”

“Oh, I’m definitely nervous. I haven’t played in front of a crowd larger than 200 people, and they were all stoners. Not judgmental teenagers who will slit my throat if I ruin their show.”

Liam looked at me with wide eyes and began to laugh, “They won’t slit your throat…. Maybe mob you after the show is over, but no throat slitting. We really do have the best fans in the whole world. But don’t be nervous. You can play drums better than anyone I’ve ever known and deserve to be doing this. You’ll do great.”

“Thanks Liam, that really means a lot,” I smiled up at him. Height was not in my favor, seeing as I was only about 5’6”.

“LET’S GO KICK SOME AMERICAN ASS!!!” Louis screamed, running up to the side of the stage we were all standing on.

“WOOOH!” Harry and Niall shouted, following behind Louis. Zayn and the rest of the backing band trailed behind them, not as enthusiastically.

“Backing band on stage in 30 seconds!” The stage manager shouted, then began counting down.

Once she hit one, we all ran on stage and took our places by our instruments. I tapped my drum sticks together three times and started the beat to the opening song we played during the intro video. It was an easy beat to hold. The crowd was going insane, screaming each time something new happened on the video, which was every second.

The boys ran out on stage and the show had officially begun. Even with the ear buds in, the screams were loud and obnoxious. You would have thought the guys were dying instead of performing in the concert alive and standing on both two feet.

---

The show went quite smoothly. There wasn’t any noticeable mess-ups and after the fans screamed when they first saw them, you became more used to the screaming and you realized how into the crowd really was. It was a really cool feeling playing in front of so many people. Even if they weren’t there for you specifically, there was a gratifying feeling to performing in front of a sold out crowd.

The management and everyone apart of the crew kept coming into the green room to congratulate the guys on a great show. The guys would reply with a few thanks and then the management and crew would walk out, not even acknowledging the backing band. The first few times it stung, but as it began to happen more often we’d laugh it off. According to Prissy Bitch the Monster, who was the first one to congratulate the guys, the backing band was irrelevant in her eyes. We were then warned if we ever messed up a show so badly, she’d fire us faster than she’s ever done anything before and then use karaoke tracks for the remaining shows.

We were all loaded onto the bus a little bit before midnight, none of us tired from all being on a concert high.

“I say a concert well done deserves celebratory drinks, yeah?” Harry asked us as we sat around the couch in the back of the bus.

The guys chorused their agreements, all eager for their dose of alcohol that they claimed they so desperately needed. I sat there uncomfortably, not saying anything. I had only gotten drunk once before and it was an absolute disaster. I had run around the neighborhood, streaking, and screaming that I had lost my clothes. I also had walked up to my crush and kissed him then admitted my feelings to him. To say it had been a messy night was not just the beginning, and the hangover that had followed the next day was not something I wanted to repeat.

“What’s wrong Kyle? Do you not drink?” Harry asked once he noticed I hadn’t said anything.

I nodded my head in agreement, “I’m a lightweight when it comes to alcohol.”

“Blimey! Who cares! You have to celebrate your first show with us ever! We can handle someone tipsy! If Liam can babysit us all when we’re drunk, he can babysit one more person!” Niall insisted, taking my glass from Harry and handing it to me.

Liam rolled his eyes, ignoring Niall, "If you get drunk, you're on your own. I'm not going to be responsible for anything stupid you do."

I sighed and reluctantly took a drink, the strong liquid causing a burning and tingly feeling in my throat as I swallowed. I opted to not let out an obvious gag, figuring that most guys can handle a sip of beer.

One drink lead to another and then another. By the end of the night I had probably consumed four bottles of beer. I could barely think straight and form coherent sentences.

“NIALL! CARRY ME TO MY BUNK!” I slurred, throwing myself onto Niall’s lap.

“Why did we decide it would be a good idea to give him alcohol?” Niall questioned, his words not as slurred together as mine had been. That was the last thing I had remembered before passing out, falling into a deep slumber.