For The Love Of You

Ryan was drumming against her legs ten seconds before Madden went on. She always went first. When she walked on stage, the crowd screamed following Tyler, Chris and Jake. Madden played a solid set. Wasn't their best, in Ryan's opinion. But, it was only day one. Day one was always bad.

"Girl!" Kellin and Justin sang together waiting backstage.

"Well, well. My baby and my boy." Ryan smiled.

"Your boy's gotta go. Just wanted to tell you that you killed it." Kellin told her.

"Bye, Boy. Ruhh you." She smiled.

"Ruhh you, too." He told her before he walked away.

"You ruhh me?" Justin smirked.

"I do ruhh you." Ryan smiled.

Ryan had a speech impediment when she was little and it only when away when she started repeating her lyrics to herself. When she was little she had a hard time saying the word 'love', among many other words, and said 'Ruhh'.

Ryan had never ever considered herself a flirt. Every other person who ever met her had, but she had never thought about it. She harmlessly flirted with everyone she met. Lately, she'd been needing to clear up 'everyone'. She's always flirted with guys, harmlessly.

"When do you play?" Ryan asked Justin.

"In an hour. Wanna hang out?" He asked.

"Hell yeah, man." She said.

Ryan had always said that she'd make lifelong friends by doing what she loved, and she had. She'd made many. If it wasn't for her music, she would be just like her parents and that was the last thing she ever wanted on Earth.

Ryan and Justin walked around until they decided to climb up on top of Sleeping With Sirens' bus. They sat there passing a cigarette and eating tic tacs for a while until her phone rang. It was Molly. She put it on speaker, telling Justin to be quiet.

"Mama Molly."

[Ryan.] She was crying.

"What's wrong?"

[What if Jake finds a girl?]

"A girl? Like, what?"

[A girl!]

"Oh. Oh, I get it. I was just baffled by that because he's so in love with you he won't shut the hell up about you. Always has been."

[He's a hot singer in a band! That's how we met!]

"Who had his kid, huh?"

[Ryan. Help me.]

"I am helping you. He loves you, he loves Sienna. Jake's not a cheater. I've known him since high school. He's never cheated on anyone. He's got like, morals." Justin smiled.

[I met him at Warped, Ryan.]

"And you're bringing his kid to see him at Warped."

[Ryan, he's gonna find some hot piece of ass and replace me.]

"No, he won't. And I swear to you, even if he tries, I'll cut his dick off and mail it to you."

[You are such a good friend, you know that?]

"I do. See, you used to be paranoid about me and look how that's turned out. Jake is icky. Blah, no." Justin bit back his laugh.

[I get what you're saying.]

"Calm the hell down, Molly. Go look at Sienna and tell me she doesn't look just like Jake. She's adorable and he loves her. He loves you."

[What if he doesn't want to anymore?]

"Look, I'm no expert in the love department, but Jake is and he loves you to death."

[Okay.]

"I gotta go, Molly."

[Okay. Love you. Don't tell Jake about this.]

"Love you, too. Tell Sienna I love her."

[I will.]

When Ryan hung up the phone, she popped a tic tac and shook her head smiling. Molly knew Jake loved her and Jake couldn't go ten minutes without saying how much he loved her. What was she so worried about?

"That was interesting." Justin said slowly.

"You've had girlfriends while you tour. You do now. That's what they all think. Is he gonna meet someone better, hotter, prettier?" Ryan said.

"I've known you what, three years? I've never seen you with a boyfriend." He said.

"I fear I'll turn into my mother so I just have sex with guys. I don't have relationships." She said.

"No guy in their right mind would like, ever cheat on you, though. For real, look in a mirror." He said.

"Eww. Shh." She shook her head.

"What?" He asked watching her take a drag of the cigarette and handed it back to him.

"Don't say stuff like that." She said.

"Why not?" He asked.

"I just don't like when people tell me stuff like that. You know when you're a kid and people are like, 'You're so cute'. I got 'You're so pretty' or 'She's so beautiful'. I don't like it." She told him.

"Why not?" He asked.

"Because then I think about my genetics and my parents piss me off." She said.

"I mean this in the best way, Ryan. You are very pretty and if you only ever let me say that once, believe it. You are and I can guarantee you that a lot of guys think that. Every guy you've ever met, I bet." He told her.

"You got to say that once and only once." She said.

"I'm your baby, would I lie to you?" He asked.

"No, but-" She started.

"Right. I wouldn't. We're gonna go walk around and we're gonna count the guys that look at you." He told her.

"Justin!" She whined.

"Yep. Come on." He said.

"You're walking on thin ice, baby." She told him.

When they got off of the bus, they walked slowly through some crowds and Justin so kindly counted fourteen before she made him stop. What girl couldn't accept a compliment? Ryan rolled her eyes and smiled when he made her get on his back.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and told him that she'd bite his gauge if he didn't put her down. She knew that her shirt was riding up and that her mock tramp stamp, which was a pumpkin throwing up pumpkin seeds on a skeleton, was showing.

"Bite me. I'll drop you." Justin told her.

"So?" Ryan said.

"Ryan." He laughed.

"Imma bite you! Imma bite you!" She told him making him laugh.

"You're insane." He told her.

"Yes, baby, I am." She told him before she bit his gauge making him squirm laughing.

"That was so weird." He said slowly.

"I wanna do that to everyone with gauges." She told him.

"Do what?" Tyler asked falling into step with them.

"Oh, oh! You have gauges! Come here." Ryan told him.

"What's happening?" Tyler asked walking closer to them. Just close enough.

"I'm gonna bite you." Ryan told him before she bit his gauge making him laugh and rub his ear.

"That was weird." He said shaking his head.

"It's gonna be so fun doing that." Ryan told Justin.

"Like you've never bitten me before?" Tyler asked her.

"You regularly bite people, Ryan?" Justin asked.

"No, no. She likes lip biting." Tyler said and Ryan tried to kick him.

"This is getting disturbing." Justin said slowly.

"Oh, and your tramp stamp's showing." Tyler told Ryan.

"I knew it. Put me down." Ryan told Justin.

"Nope. This is your punishment now. You bit me." He said.

"Good luck." Tyler smirked and walked away.

"Please put me down." Ryan asked Justin.

"Nope. Oh! Wanna go find people?" He asked her.

"No. I wanna cover my tramp stamp." She told him.

"What did we just talk about? Didn't I tell you-" He started.

"No, no. I'm gonna bite your neck. Oh, yeah. I'll give you a hickey. I'm gonna give you a hickey if you don't put me down." She said.

"The only person who would really care would be my girlfriend and I'm sure she'd appreciate this humor, so go on." He said.

"You're killing me, man." She shook her head smiling.