“So I’m going to go check out the signing since someone told me I have a few people there looking for me too. But I’ll be at the tent to help out right afterwards,” you said into the walkie talkie to Cherise.

“No problem hun, we’ll see you when you get here,” Cherise answered before clicking off on her end on her walkie talkie.

A tech had come and found you about fifteen minutes after your brother and friends had started their signing before the show. Apparently there were a few kids and people there with signs with your name on it, posters and the like, looking for you and asking if you could make an appearance. You didn't mind going out and seeing people, fans of yours so to speak; it just surprised you that you had so many across the country. You had joined in on a few meet and greets with the rest of Avenged for just the same reason but you still never got passed the shocked stage. It was one thing in California you figured, but out here? Broaching the New England area? Fans this far from Cali really put you in your place so to speak. But you loved it and were glad to make an appearance any time you were asked.

Quickly so as not to hold up things too much you threw on clothes almost without thinking. You wiggled into some severe cut off high rise shorts and shoved your hands into the pockets to un-bunch them and get them sticking out at their proper place below the straggly frayed edges. You grabbed a large loose dark gray cotton tank top and tossed it on, tucking just the front in on the front of your shorts. Next came a super thin light weight checkered shirt rolled to the elbows before shoving your large floppy sun hat back onto your head. You slipped your feet into a pair of slouch ankle boots that just happened to be lying strewn next to your bed before sticking your hands into your bag of jewelry. You just stuck on whatever you grabbed out of the bag which happened to be a miss match of varying colors of plastic beads and thin chain necklaces. Hey, you figured you were known for clashing so today was not a day to start caring about how matching your apparel was. You popped on a random assortment of bracelets that you grabbed in the same manner as your necklaces before sticking your Wayfairers on your face and running out the bus.

“Hey Derek I’m on my way,” you called through your walkie talkie as you dashed towards the meet and greet tent area. It took you only a minute or three to make it there, miraculously without running anyone over. You felt a little bad about shirking on your merch duties with Cherise but as she had ever so plainly stated at your first meeting, they could do this without you. And besides, you had fans to please and that was more important than slinging another t-shirt for your brother!

Only slightly out of breath you skidded to a halt at the back of the tent and snuck in around the edges. Your brother and the guys looked up when a cheer consisting of your name went out over the crowd. You grinned and waved at everyone before sitting in the newly appeared folding chair and stole a sharpie from Syn’s pants pocket as he was the one sitting next to you. You smiled at him and rolled your eyes as he gave you a ridiculous wink before turning back to the fan in front of him who was literally melting where she stood.

“Oh my god Kales Mae!” a voice squeed in front of you capturing your attention away from the foolish lead guitarist beside you. You turned to smile at the voice and only smiled harder when you saw the fabulous looking teenage boy in front of you sporting your very own t-shirt. It was going to be a good signing.


-xXx-


“Can’t. Move. My. Fingers. Oh no it’s the CLAW! Arhh!” Jimmy yelled out as he jerkily stumbled at you, his hand raised and formed like a deformed claw. You laughed along with the few stragglers hanging around after the signing hoping for another picture or other some such thing.

“Jimmy!” you squealed as your best friend glomped you in some form of tackle hug strangle conglomeration.

“I love you Kales Mae,” Jimmy whispered into your ear as he held you to his thin frame.

“Forever and always,” you whispered back into his chest as you let him hold you for a moment.

“Alright I gotta go get myself for the waiting masses gremlin, I’ll see you afterwards or whatever,” Jimmy said before putting a rough kiss to the side of your head and letting you go so he could go get ready but not before slapping your ass really hard.

“Ow!” you exclaimed with a laugh as you rubbed the sore spot where he had smacked you before scowling playfully at his backwards running form. He simply saluted you before turning around and loping off as only someone with his long legs could. You swore sometimes he was part antelope somewhere in his genetic makeup.

Still laughing you exited the tent on the opposite end that you had entered as roadies were busy doing, well roadie stuff you assumed, on the end you had originally entered. Pushing aside the plastic tarp of the meet and greet tent you stopped when you heard little laughter. Pausing still inside the tent you peered out and found the source of laughter. There was a gaggle of little kids again, couldn't be more than ten years old give or take a year or so, standing in a group in front of a crouched form you knew on sight. Staying partially hidden you watched as Zacky answered each and every question they shot at him, almost all at once in some cases. He signed CD’s for them, even signed a cast on the arm of kid who had a Death Bat temporary tattoo on his cheek. You couldn't help but smile a bit. Here was this huge rock star, all muscle and tattoos, crouched down to the height of these kids with a carefree smile on his face as he played role model. There wasn't a fake breasted bimbo mom anywhere insight with these kids, just regular moms and dads who happened to be cool enough to take their kids to see a rock concert. You watched as Zacky shifted in his crouched position so he could be closer to a little kid who looked to be completely bald before taking the hat he happened to be wearing off his head and place it on the kid. He put an arm around the kid and smiled as only he could at the dad who was taking the picture, the kid under his arm beside him beamed so bright as the picture was taken that a flash wasn't needed.

You shifted from one foot to the other and apparently misplaced enough gravel to make a sound because Zacky must have heard since he turned his head your direction. He was still smiling from the picture, his arm still draped over the kid’s shoulders, when he looked at you and for a moment he faltered. Like he didn't know if he should be smiling your direction or not, like he didn't know if he should go back to hating you or being with happy fans. Like he was waiting for you to explode right then and there, like some faultily wired bomb. You didn't want to spoil the moment the bald little boy was having with his idol so you sent Zacky a small soft smile, as if to reassure him it was okay at the moment, that he should go back to what he was doing and forget he ever saw you standing there. He seemed to get what you meant because he bent his head ever so slightly in recognition of your smile and its hidden meaning before turning back to the gaggle of excited kids.

You waited until his attention was completely absorbed back to the kids before silently stepping back into the tent you had been trying to leave. You figured enough of the tour roadies and techs were in your good graces that they wouldn't mind you interrupting whatever they were doing so you could discretely exit out the way you had originally come in. Were you really that bad that Zacky had been afraid that you were going to explode at him in front of smiling kids? A feeling of guilt all of a sudden settled itself around your shoulders and you didn't like the feeling of its weight. You weren't really that awful, you knew you weren't. Were you? Sure, things between the two of you were known to be pretty bad and you weren't above physically harming one another if given the chance. But Zacky was as much to blame as you were in that! And in front of children? What kind of monster did Zacky think you were? You were a lot of things, but a monster was not one of them!

Grumbling to yourself you went in search of the merch booth so you could get back to the job your brother had thrust upon you so you could avoid situations like these. Situations that involved Zacky’s presence in any form. Mainly because this was always the side effect, you always left feeling confused, angry and really wanting to punch something that wouldn't get you suspended from tour.


-xXx-


“I almost got it Cherise!” you huffed as you stretched as far as you possibly could and probably then some.

You were standing up on a rickety contraption that was standing in for the lack of a real and proper ladder. You were breaking down the merch booth after the show had ended and one of the cords hanging the giant banner that read Avenged Sevenfold merch in huge ridiculous letters was snagged on something. And so here you were standing on a folding chair on a only mostly stable folding table since no one had been able to get a hold of a tech or roadie to get a ladder. And as you were in an impatient mood to get the hell out of there and back to your bus you had offered to climb Everest here to get the banner untangled and down so it could be stored for tomorrow.

“I don’t think this is the greatest idea hun. It doesn't look all that sturdy and your brother might kill me if I damage his only sibling,” Cherise groaned way down below you as she did her best to steady the table.

“My brother wouldn't mind. And besides, this thing is perfectly...” you started to reply and as the case always goes in the worst situations your intended words came back to bite you in the ass.

The chair you were standing on had decided to take this moment to give out under you, from folding in on its ancient self or from sliding down the folding table, either way you were all of a sudden standing on air. You let out a sudden scream when your brain figured all of this out, a split second or two, even though it felt like you hung helplessly in the air for a lifetime before the decent began. You knew you should turn or do something to try and control the fall but your brain was completely in “Oh fuck, oh fuck!” mode that all other thought was impossibly. Instead of going limp you felt your body tensing and bracing for impact, either with the table or with the floor. Or both. But the impact never came.

“Oomph,” someone grunted as you thudded against something yielding yet hard. You took a moment to get your breath back as it had been knocked out of you once you landed wherever you had landed before opening your eyes. Looking up you looked directly into a very familiar pair of hazel green and gold eyes you knew oh so well. Wonderful, maybe hitting the floor and breaking bones would have been better.

“Zacky what the fuck!” you growled as you realized you were in his arms completely. Seemed he had appeared out of nowhere just in time to catch you as you fell as you were now cradled in his arms against his chest. You knew you probably shouldn't have snapped at him but it was a knee jerk reaction by this point, add that to be startled from the fall and it didn't put you in the best of humors where he was concerned.

“What do you mean what the fuck? Don’t get fucking snippy at me! I was helping out!” Zacky snapped back, shifting his weight so he could hold you in a more comfortable position instead of just putting you down. A fact that you had still not quite grasped onto.

“You never just help out! Jesus! I would have been fine without your little theater dramatics! What the fuck were you doing?” you snarled at him as you crossed your arms in front of your chest, accidentally on purpose elbowing him in the sternum.

“I was being nice for fuck’s sake! Remind me not to bother next time!” Zacky snapped before quickly releasing his hold on you. You recognized the falling feeling again and only mostly controlled your much shorter fall before you collided with the floor. It was cold and hard and sent a jarring shock through your whole body and out your teeth. You gasped in air and tried to talk but all you managed was a few flustered sputters at his retreating form. Your ears were ringing and you felt like you were going to explode. The fucking nerve! Sucking in air to yell at him you caught yourself mid thought process and just let the air out as you watched Zacky bend over and retrieve his fallen hat, he must have lost it coming to catch you. It was the same hat he had worn earlier, the one he had put on the kids head after the meet and greet signing. Everything inside you suddenly deflated all at once, leaving you feeling hollow.

“I’m sorry!” you called out after his retreating form. He was far enough away that you had to yell it but not far enough away that he missed it. You watched him stop in his tracks and pause. And then ever so slowly you watched him turn on his heel, taking what felt like an agonizing forever, to turn and face you. He took a few steps back towards you, almost covering the entire distance between the two of you in those few steps.

“Did you just apologize to me?” Zacky asked you, a tease to his tone and grin as he looked at you with a raised eyebrow. You felt a small smile take your face, just ever so slightly.

“Yeah maybe. Don’t get used to it, or let it go to your head,” you mumbled with a roll of your eyes.

“Perish the thought!” Zacky offered dramatically with a hand thrust across his heart as if struck. You rolled your eyes again but took the hand he offered to help you up off the floor.

“I think there is a trash can party somewhere,” Zacky offered after you had stood and quickly checked yourself over for any damage before brushing dust off your clothes.

“Isn't there always?” you offered with a small knowing smile and a lifted eyebrow before you started to make your way there. You figured the few remaining steps of breakdown could be handled by everyone else without you around, and besides it was always best to walk it out anyways.

“There is,” Zacky offered before stepping after you, his longer strides bringing him to your side in no time before he matched his pace with your own. A calm if unsure and shaky truce seemed to settle around the two of you and for the first time in god knows how long you felt like you could breathe just a little bit easier.

Notes

Woo hoo for filler I guess
Next set of chapter updates is going to be FUUUUUUUN indeed!
Mwuaahahahaha!!!