Demons

Almost as soon as the three of us reached the open space of grass surrounding the stages, Andy was ushered into soundcheck, and Tina and I decided to retreat to the stuffy bus once more until their opening concert. The barely air-conditioned bus left our skin damp and heads heavy, but it was a nice change to just relax in silence rather than be surrounded by a group of constantly energized boys. However, after only 10 minutes of lounging around, Tina proclaimed that she was tired from being up so early and left to take a nap in CC’s bunk, and I found myself flattened out on the leather couch in the main room alone. A clock above the sink ticked with every second passing, each tick setting me further on edge. With nothing else to do, I slipped on my sunglasses again and decided to go for a walk around the parking lot.

My worn-down vans scraped against the asphalt slowly as I took a quick glance around to drink in my surroundings - getting lost on our first day at Warped was not a very high priority of mine. As a quick means of reassurance, I checked my phone to make sure I had everyone’s phone number so I could contact them just in case I did get lost, and those few seconds were all it took for me to bump into a solid chest. Of course. Startled, I looked up with wide eyes, ready to apologize profusely to whatever stranger was looming above me, but the words quickly died in my throat as I took in the male’s appearance. Shaggy brown hair, skinny build, three dots tattooed below his right eye. “I’m so sorry ‘bout that. Didn’t see where I was goin’.” My mind barely registered his apology, his voice thick with a British accent, as I stared at him in awe. With a thorough shake of my head, I somehow regained my ability to speak. “Yeah, no, that was my fault. I’m sorry,” I replied, biting my bottom lip as I felt my cheeks burn with embarrassment. My eyes were glued onto the ground as I found myself unsure of what to do next, but luckily he broke the would-have-been awkward silence.

“I’m Oli,” he introduced, superfluous as it might have been, and with only a minor pause I managed to utter a meek ‘Amelia’. “Amelia. That’s a pretty name,” he complimented. “Well, I better be going to soundcheck. Be sure to keep your head up, yeah? Might save you from bumping into other strangers.” His immediate chuckle validated the joking nature of the advice, and I found myself chuckling along nervously. “Yeah, thanks. Might have to keep that in mind.” He offered a casual wave before continuing in the opposite direction of where I was going, and as I stood still, I spent the next few seconds contemplating whether I should ask him to show me where Andy’s band were warming up, since Tina wasn’t exactly the best company at the moment. My mind was quickly made up as I turned on my heel and broke into a light jog to catch up with him. “Hey, Oli!” At the sound of my voice, he turned his head and raised an inquisitive eyebrow as I finally fell into step with him and spoke again. “Could you maybe show me where Black Veil Brides are having their soundcheck? I’m kind of bored,” I admitted, but frowned when he shook his head. “No can do, love. Fans aren’t allowed backstage without passes.”

“Oh, I have one.” It only took me a split-second to reach below the neck of my dress and pull out the VIP-pass that rested on my chest. Oli eyed it suspiciously, his gaze flickering between my own and the small piece of plastic before sighing in defeat. “Alright then. But if you’re getting banned from this festival for having a fake pass, that ain’t my fault.” With a burst of confidence I found myself mock-saluting him as he began leading us on our way. He, of course, rolled his eyes, but I caught a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

We finally reached a stage tucked away in the back of the field, and Oli whistled to gain the attention of the boys on stage. “Hey! You know this girl?” Their heads turned to us and Andy, being the person weighed down by the least gear, effortlessly jumped off the stage with the grace of a feline and grabbed my hand in an almost possessive manner. “Yeah, we know her.” Oli kept quiet as the two boys stared each other down in silence, and I turned to the rest of the band on stage with a quizzical look my face, but they just shrugged and went back to fine-tuning their acoustics. Without a word of farewell, Oli turned on his heel and went back the same way we came, and with a mirroring silence Andy led me to a row of chairs on the side of the stage where I could chill until they were done. “It’ll only be a few more minutes, okay? I promise.” Before I could reply, his lips were on mine in a chaste kiss, and then he went back to the microphone.

The “few” minutes turned into half an hour where I was sat browsing through all of my social media and smoking the occasional cigarette. When the check-up was finally done, Andy grabbed me by the hand and led us all back to the bus so they could change their outfits. “So… What’s the deal with you and Oli?” I asked curiously to fill the empty air between us. His gaze remained forwards as he shrugged. “I just don’t like him. He’s a selfish douche. What were you even doing with him in the first place?” I ducked my head and gave a similar shrug. “I bumped into him somewhere on the parking lot, ‘cause Tina’s asleep. We introduced ourselves and I asked if he could show me where you guys were so I wouldn’t be so bored. Nothing exciting, really.” I looked up at him through my eyelashes, gauging his reaction, but his face remained impassive. A low hum was his final response, and then we were back at the bus.

Tina’s squeal resonated against the walls as CC threw his entire weight on her to wake her, and Ashley found the event the perfect opportunity to slide in a dirty comment, which led to them bickering the entire time it took for them to change clothes. Their black jeans either remained or were substituted by a shorter version, and they all banished their shirts in favor for a leather vest or jacket to throw over their bare chest. The war paint was minimal with scarce lines staining their skin here and there. “You wanna paint mine?” I looked up from the fluorescent screen of my phone to see Andy kneeling in front of me, a piece of black chalk in hand. The offer was flattering, and I grabbed the piece of chalk with a small ‘of course’. I sat cross-legged in front of him and started off with drawing two lines under each of his eyes and then used the paint to contour his collarbones. It wasn’t much, but it was insanely attractive. He didn’t even bother checking my work in the mirror as he stood and sneaked a studded belt through the hoops in his jeans. Their tour manager then stuck his bald head through the door and said: “You ready? You’re on in twenty.” A choir of cacophonous murmurs was all he got in response.

Once everyone was ready, the manager led us to the stage through a passage used only by band members to save them from the assault of fans. Halfway there I heard CC ask Tina: “So you wanna hear from backstage or the crowd? No one knows your face yet, so I think you’ll be safe out there.” But before Tina had the sliver of a chance to answer, Andy broke in. “They should be backstage. I wouldn’t really be comfortable with them out there.” I smiled at the thoughtfulness he showed, but CC scoffed. “Thousands of girls survive just fine in the crowds here. They don’t even have to go near the pit.” Andy’s arm tightened around my shoulders as he answered. “I know, it’s just… You know what? Never mind. You girls can decide what you want. We shouldn’t even be interfering.” My friend promptly nodded her head and turned to me. “I really want to be in the crowd, but I’ll just go wherever you go,” she winked. Being in the crowd sounded like the stepping stone to the best experience, so it didn’t take me long to agree with her, although Andy’s body language clearly showed that he wasn’t really comfortable with it.

We came to a stop behind the stage, and while the other boys continued onto the platform, Andy stayed behind with Tina and I. A look of indecisiveness crossed his features briefly, but as he swallowed forcefully, his lips turned upwards into a strained smile. “Just be careful out there, okay? You too, Tina.” The latter was already pulling my hand, urging me with her, but I stalled for a short moment. “We will,” I promised, and I leaned on the tip of my toes to press my lips firmly against his.

Notes