The Encounter
The Encounter
I was packing my bag getting ready for tour with Motionless In White as their merch girl. To be honest, I was a little scared due to the fact that they’re a big time metalcore band and I’m just the merch girl. I’ve met these guys once, and they’re about to be my roommates for the next three months, until mid December. Once the bag was packed, I made some coffee to energize myself just a bit so I wouldn’t look like a zombie when the guys picked me up.
I soon heard screeching brakes outside of my house, so I grabbed my suitcase and walked out my front door, heart beating with anxiety. The cold morning air felt like needles on my skin and I wanted nothing more than to run back inside and hide myself under the safe covers on my bed and sleep for eternity.
“Jessica?” a tall, pale tattooed guy with black hair shaved on one side stepped off the quite large bus.
“That’s me, but please just call me Jess,” I smiled.
“Well, Jess, welcome to the tour life. I’m Chris,” he smiled causing me to notice his snakebites and labret lip piercings. He grabbed my wrist, leading me through the warm bus to a narrow closed off hallway with bunks covering the walls.
“Yours is the bottom one to the right,” he pointed to the bunk and I slid my bag into it.
“Thank you,” I smiled at him.
“Ready to meet the rest of the band?” I nodded.
After being introduced to all of the guys, Ryan, Ricky, Balz, Ghost, and Brandon, I awkwardly sat down on the couch and pulled out my phone to scroll through tumblr.
“Look at her ugly brown hair, thrown into a messy bun like that. What is she, a mop?” someone mumbled.
I looked up and attached Ghost to the voice. He doesn’t even know me and he’s already making comments about me?
“She’s so short, too. How could she possibly even serve us well?”
I bit my tongue so I couldn’t use the comeback I came up with.
“Ghost,” Chris warned.
“What?” the innocent role, really?
“Stop being a jerk.”
“I’m just speaking my mind.”
“Yeah, well maybe you shouldn’t.”
“Whatcha gonna do about it?”
The next thing I knew, Chris was charging at Ghost and punches were being thrown. Brandon jumped out of his seat and tried separating the two to no avail. Maybe I just shouldn’t have come on tour. I stood up and went to lie down in my bunk. I pulled out my headphones, put my phone’s music on shuffle, and began softly singing along to Vermillion pt. 2 by Slipknot.
Suddenly, the black privacy curtain attached to my bunk was ripped open and Chris’s slightly bruised face appeared.
“Time for merch,” he informed me.
I rolled out of the bunk, slowly stood up, and followed Chris to the merch table.
“Basically, you’re just going to set out some shirts, posters, and bracelets,” Chris began instructing me as we reached the table, “Then you’ll just take people’s money and hand them what they ordered. Don’t worry, it’s not too hard and you won’t be doing this much tonight,” he walked off.
What was that supposed to mean? “You won’t be doing this much tonight.” I shook my head and began fulfilling my duties as merch girl.
After Motionless In White played America, Chris began talking to the crowd.
“We have a beautiful new merch girl. Her name is Jess,” the crowd cheered, “You guys wanna meet her?” again with the cheering.
“Alright,” he chuckled, “Jess, come up here.”
I did as I was told and walked onto the stage, legs wobbling. Balz handed me his microphone from the stand and motioned for me to say something.
“Hi?”
“How about you sing us a song?” Chris suggested making the crowd go crazy.
I froze. Me? Sing? In front of this large crowd of screaming fangirls? Yeah, no. Chris smiled a reassuring smile and I breathed in deeply before starting to cover Motionless In White’s Sinematic.
“Looks like I have a little competition,” Chris winked at me before I walked off the stage.
After the show, he found me sitting in the cool night air.
“You know, you really are talented,” he sat down next to me.
“I’m okay. I’m no Chris Motionless,” I joked.
“You’ll view yourself in a better way once you stop comparing yourself to others.”
“Tell that to Ghost. He compared me to a mop.”
“Yeah, well not everyone is going to like you and that’s something all of us have to accept. I like you and I won’t let Ghost hurt you,” his arm snaked around my shoulders.
“Chris Motionless, philosopher,” I teased causing him to chuckle.
I soon heard screeching brakes outside of my house, so I grabbed my suitcase and walked out my front door, heart beating with anxiety. The cold morning air felt like needles on my skin and I wanted nothing more than to run back inside and hide myself under the safe covers on my bed and sleep for eternity.
“Jessica?” a tall, pale tattooed guy with black hair shaved on one side stepped off the quite large bus.
“That’s me, but please just call me Jess,” I smiled.
“Well, Jess, welcome to the tour life. I’m Chris,” he smiled causing me to notice his snakebites and labret lip piercings. He grabbed my wrist, leading me through the warm bus to a narrow closed off hallway with bunks covering the walls.
“Yours is the bottom one to the right,” he pointed to the bunk and I slid my bag into it.
“Thank you,” I smiled at him.
“Ready to meet the rest of the band?” I nodded.
After being introduced to all of the guys, Ryan, Ricky, Balz, Ghost, and Brandon, I awkwardly sat down on the couch and pulled out my phone to scroll through tumblr.
“Look at her ugly brown hair, thrown into a messy bun like that. What is she, a mop?” someone mumbled.
I looked up and attached Ghost to the voice. He doesn’t even know me and he’s already making comments about me?
“She’s so short, too. How could she possibly even serve us well?”
I bit my tongue so I couldn’t use the comeback I came up with.
“Ghost,” Chris warned.
“What?” the innocent role, really?
“Stop being a jerk.”
“I’m just speaking my mind.”
“Yeah, well maybe you shouldn’t.”
“Whatcha gonna do about it?”
The next thing I knew, Chris was charging at Ghost and punches were being thrown. Brandon jumped out of his seat and tried separating the two to no avail. Maybe I just shouldn’t have come on tour. I stood up and went to lie down in my bunk. I pulled out my headphones, put my phone’s music on shuffle, and began softly singing along to Vermillion pt. 2 by Slipknot.
Suddenly, the black privacy curtain attached to my bunk was ripped open and Chris’s slightly bruised face appeared.
“Time for merch,” he informed me.
I rolled out of the bunk, slowly stood up, and followed Chris to the merch table.
“Basically, you’re just going to set out some shirts, posters, and bracelets,” Chris began instructing me as we reached the table, “Then you’ll just take people’s money and hand them what they ordered. Don’t worry, it’s not too hard and you won’t be doing this much tonight,” he walked off.
What was that supposed to mean? “You won’t be doing this much tonight.” I shook my head and began fulfilling my duties as merch girl.
After Motionless In White played America, Chris began talking to the crowd.
“We have a beautiful new merch girl. Her name is Jess,” the crowd cheered, “You guys wanna meet her?” again with the cheering.
“Alright,” he chuckled, “Jess, come up here.”
I did as I was told and walked onto the stage, legs wobbling. Balz handed me his microphone from the stand and motioned for me to say something.
“Hi?”
“How about you sing us a song?” Chris suggested making the crowd go crazy.
I froze. Me? Sing? In front of this large crowd of screaming fangirls? Yeah, no. Chris smiled a reassuring smile and I breathed in deeply before starting to cover Motionless In White’s Sinematic.
“Looks like I have a little competition,” Chris winked at me before I walked off the stage.
After the show, he found me sitting in the cool night air.
“You know, you really are talented,” he sat down next to me.
“I’m okay. I’m no Chris Motionless,” I joked.
“You’ll view yourself in a better way once you stop comparing yourself to others.”
“Tell that to Ghost. He compared me to a mop.”
“Yeah, well not everyone is going to like you and that’s something all of us have to accept. I like you and I won’t let Ghost hurt you,” his arm snaked around my shoulders.
“Chris Motionless, philosopher,” I teased causing him to chuckle.