Clarity.

Vic’s POV:

I woke up to the sound of the pilot captain turning off the illuminated seatbelt signs, followed by the sounds of dying plane engines. Everyone rose to their feet, gathering themselves from the long ride along with their belongings. I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair a couple of times and put on my sunglasses. Jaime was still snoring away. I jokingly slapped his cheek, causing his head to turn to his left as he awoke abruptly.

“Wakey, wakey Jaime!” I said in a tiny baby voice.

“No.” He said bluntly as he hit me back on my arm and closed his eyes again.

“We’re here,” I said a little louder and a bit impatiently.

We were all exhausted from the tour, not to mention the incredibly long and uncomfortable plane flight. It was all worth it, though. We’d just wrapped up our European tour for the new album, which is having tons of success. Playing shows won’t ever get old to me. The energy and passion just can’t be matched. I couldn’t be more thankful for being given a life of doing what I love to do most.

Jaime yawned and rubbed his eyes followed by a tall stretch of his long arms. Mike and Tony were reaching in the overhead bins for their carry on bags and placed them in the center aisle as they stood behind the passengers in front of us waiting to get off the plane. I reached for my hat that I’d placed under my seat before I went to sleep. I ruffled my hair a bit and placed the cap on backwards while making sure I’d collected all of my belongings. I ran my tongue over my teeth and noticed my breath probably reeked after being asleep for a while. I fished a packet of gum out of my back pocket and opened a piece to chew on.

“Yo,” Mike called past Jaime with a head nod, beckoning to throw the packet to him so he could have a piece.

I tossed the packet to him and he took some, along with Tony and Jaime. I stuffed the packet back in my pocket just as the line began to move off of the plane. We all reached for our bags and drowsily shuffled off the plane. As we walked through the jet bridge to the gate, we all started to wake up a little. Jaime was leading the group up the bridge.

“Finally awake, Sleeping Beauty?” I said as I walked behind him.

“Ah ah ah, you know that I am a queen, Vic. So that’s Queen Sleeping Beauty to you.” He replied placing emphasis on ‘queen’ in a matter-of-factly tone.

“Forgive me, your majesty. How could I ever repay you?” I said mockingly.

“Carry my luggage, peasant.” He said practically throwing his duffle bag at me. Mike and Tony erupted in laughter as we finally made it off the jet bridge.

After making it into the arrival gate of the airport I looked around finding everyone minding their own business and a couple people rushing to their gates followed by a flight’s final call. The air conditioning instantly hit us along with the sunlight pouring through the airport’s large floor-to-ceiling windows. I’ve always loved the airport. It’s kind of cool to see everyone going about his or her own business. Each of these people have their own name, family, experiences, passions, everything. Knowing that they’re on their own path of their own life is a feeling unlike any other.

I was quickly knocked away from my thoughts with Tony brushing past my shoulder as he scurried over towards the food.

“I’m so fucking hungry.” He said in a relieved voice as he brushed past me.

Mike, Jaime and myself all looked at each other as our stomachs seemed to growl in unison.

“Fuck airplane pretzels!” Jaime said as he walked a bit faster to catch up with Tony.

Mike and I chuckled as we followed behind them. Tony’s face was already plastered on the glass above the ingredients at Subway. He was already pointing away at everything he wanted on his sandwich with Jaime right behind him.

“Get me a cookie!” I shouted to Tony who was already purchasing his meal as I neared him and Jaime.

“I think I want pizza. But I still want a cookie!” I said. Subway cookies were too damn good to pass up.

“Okay, okay. Calm down little Victoria!” Jaime said while patting my head.

“Stoooooooop!” I said in a little girl’s voice. The guys always tease me since I’m often mistaken for a girl. It doesn’t bother me though. I think my long, flowing hair is quite fabulous if I do say so myself.

I readjusted my cap and removed my sunglasses from my face, folding them into the pocket on my shirt. Mike and I joked around while waiting in line for our pizza. That’s one of the most rewarding parts of committing my life to this. No matter how old we got, we still acted like the little kids we are at heart. God forbid I had ever ended up sitting behind a desk in an uncomfortable shirt with some shitty job I don’t like. Like I said, I’m really thankful for all I have.

The four of us were stuffing our faces like we hadn’t eaten in what felt like days. We were reminiscing on some memorable moments from the tour and our favorite shows from the tour. As we were laughing with our mouths full of food, two girls approached the table. They didn’t look a day over sixteen.

“We’re really sorry to bother you, but we absolutely adore you all!” The shorter girl with dark hair said. Both of their bright eyes were wide with excitement, with pearly white smiles plastered on their faces.

The guys and I denied her thoughts of them bothering us and stood up from the table to hug them. They tightly wrapped their arms around us as we autographed one of the girl’s iphone and the other girl’s poster she happened to have with her. We posed for a silly picture with them as their mothers took the photo and then said our goodbyes. We love when fans come talk to us. They truly are our inspiration in this whole process. They’re what keep us going, and it’s so rewarding to know that our music is a part of their lives.

The guys and I cleared our mess from the table we were eating at and headed down the escalators to grab the rest of our bags. As much as we all love touring, I’m sure we were all excited for the long break we had ahead of ourselves. We love being home in good ol’ San Diego. Mike and I’s parents offered to pick us up from the airport. We were going to have dinner at my parents’ house tonight. I checked my phone for the time and it read 2:32pm. My parents should arrive outside any minute now.

We lugged our heavy bags and instruments outside to the pickup area. We sent all of our equipment in a taxi with some of our stage crew to be taken back to the studio. My mom greeted me first with a warm hug that I’ll never get tired of and a kiss on the cheek as she smiled because she was happy to see all of us. I gave my dad a tight hug and he pat my back as we pulled away.

“How are ya, son?” He said to me with a smile.

“I’m doin’ good, Dad. We’ve missed you all.” I replied

“Your mom and I have missed you all too.” He said turning his head to the other guys.

Everyone hugged and got their kiss on the cheek from my mom before we loaded into the truck on our way home. I’ve really missed breathing the San Diego air with the sun on my face. I’m sure we’ve all missed home. Mom told us all that she was making her amazing tamales for dinner and we all seemed to grow hungry again after just hearing that, even though we just ate. We all said “Thanks, Moooom” in unison as my dad pulled the truck into the driveway of their home.

“You all should go out to the beach or something while I make everything! We can catch up at dinner. I’m sure you guys are itching to do something while you wait.” My mom said while closing the door of the truck.

The guys and I agreed that the beach sounded like a good idea. We messily fished for swimming trunks out of our suitcases that remained in the truck so we could take them back to our place after dinner. The beach was only about a 15-minute walk from here, so we decided to walk. It was a really nice day out.

“Hey guys, who am I?” Jaime said pushing his way in front of us. He then ran a short ways sideways and purposely tripped while playing on an imaginary guitar.

The guys immediately erupted into laughter at the realization that Jaime was making fun of me. In one of our shows I’d managed to slip and fall.

“Ha ha, so funny!” I exclaimed in a sarcastic voice.

That shit hurt. Like, I had the wind knocked out of me and everything. I knew they were only joking though.

We finally made it to the beach with our towels draped over our shoulders. We laid them out close to the water and Tony and Mike started tossing a football about waist-deep in the water. Jaime and I lounged on our towels, joking with each other and taking in the sun. I looked to my right and saw a dark-haired girl toting her surfboard towards the water. I took my sunglasses from my face.

She had a gorgeous figure. Her body was toned, perfectly complimented with a sun-kissed, olive skin tone. She looked to be about 5’6” or so which didn’t leave her much shorter than myself. She had really long, dark, wavy hair that flowed back as she made her way towards the water. With her surfboard tucked under her right arm, she ran her left hand through the roots of her hair and entered the water. She paddled on her stomach further and further from the shore.

Rose’s POV:

The adrenaline was pumping behind my ears, the wind blowing through my dark hair, the speed increasing with each second. I love the free feeling I get in the pit of my stomach: the on the brink of fear feeling, widening my eyes with each moment. I breathe out as my legs agilely guide me along the wave with precision and ease, my left hand leaving a trail in the wall of the wave as I balanced myself on the board. The moist air and warm water were hitting my face, warming my slightly rouge cheeks. I could see a massive wave coming into view. The danger that accompanied massive waves gives you the best feelings ever: the dropping feeling you feel in your stomach as you descend along the wave, the feeling of fighting the urge to helplessly flail in the air. It’s addicting. Surfing is my drug. It makes me forget reality and escape its tight grip for just a few anxious moments. I wouldn’t be anything without it.

The wave grew closer and closer, the salty aroma of the sea seemingly grew stronger as it filled my nostrils. I waited for the perfect moment, then paddled forward full speed toward the wave. The wave curled, and I rose to my feet as the soothing feeling the waves brought to me settled in. The wave gave in quickly, leaving a good height of the wave above me. The wave came crashing down on me, knocking me of my board. I barrel rolled forward and became entirely submerged. The current tugged at my body as I battled to reach the surface.

I could feel another wave coming, and fought to hold my breath a bit longer to let the wave pass over the top of me. The wave jerked my submerged body as it passed. I then shot up above the surface, inhaling a large, salty gasp. I raised my left leg and tugged my board’s leash, pulling it closer to me. It’s bright red, orange, and yellow colors came into view, and I straddled myself on top of it. I momentarily caught my breath and wiped the salt from my eyes. I looked back out over the sea, and saw the waves were getting more vicious. I decided against surfing any of them. The tide was getting a lot higher.

I surfed one more wave closer to shore to bring me back to shore. I paddled back until I was about waist-deep, and tucked my board in its usual position under my right arm. I sighed deeply as I made my way out of the water. I place my board next to me as I lounged on the shore’s edge, letting the water hit my feet each time the waves collided with the shores. I leaned my head back, closed my eyes, and inhaled the salty air with the sun beaming on my face. This place was the best place in the world. I let a few minutes pass, and my stomach growled angrily.

I stood up brushing the sand from my thighs and grabbed my board. I started back up the beach, walking to my left. I looked over my left shoulder to a group of four guys. Two were tossing around a football in the water, the other two on towels not too far from them. One of boys on the towels had his eyes fixated on me. Our eyes locked, and it felt like the longest few seconds of my life.

Vic’s POV:

Our eyes locked. Why was I staring for so long? She probably thought I was a creep.

Her eyes were incredible. They were unlike any others I’d seen before. They were a gorgeous emerald color that seemed to burst at her pupils with a beautiful combination of brown, yellow, and red. Her eyes held mine in a way I couldn’t describe. They were a pair of eyes I could never forget. She was the girl with the sun in her eyes. She was so beautiful, from head to toe. I almost jumped off my towel amidst my trance to meet her, but Jaime rudely interrupted me.

“Uh, helloooooooooo? Earth to Vic!” He said very closely to my face, pushing my chin upward to close my open mouth. I tore my eyes away from the girl, shutting my eyes and shaking my head. My eyes reopened and met Jaime’s.

“She’s hot, huh?” Jaime said, realizing I’d been staring at her the entire time.

I nodded my head in agreement and looked past him to find her again. She was gone.

But that couldn’t be it.
I had to know more.
I had to find her again.