My Fucking Nightmare

I sat at my desk by the open window in our living area with the television on, volume low, so I could work on my article I’d started that my boss assigned me only an hour before. The topic was some press coverage for an interview he had with, in his words, a rising bimbo star, complete with the fake personality and all the neediness for paparazzi attention. I was thrilled to have an assignment nonetheless, but this kind of crap wasn’t what I came to Hollywood for. I hoped that when I started talking more with the guys about their careers that I’d have something a little more solid to go by. Right now I was just going by his digital recorder, what little audible descriptiveness I could find I put into some flashy words. It would get me paid, so it didn’t matter.
Just as I finished going over the digital recording the first time, my phone began loudly buzzing on my nightstand in my room where I left it in hopes that I wouldn’t be distracted by Brian’s endless stream of flirty texts. He was calling me. I sighed, collecting my composure. “Hey.”
“Hey, what are you up to?”
I twirled my hair around my index finger and wandered back over to the table. “Well, I was just getting started on an assignment that just came in, but not exactly feeling it right now. What’s up?”
“I’m picking you up in about fifteen minutes. Barbecue at Matt’s, you’re invited.”
My heart fluttered. “Oh.” I wasn’t exactly sure what to say, as I was slightly overwhelmed. “What should I wear?”
He laughed. “Maybe a little more than last night.” I could feel his smirk stretched across his goofy face, and I blushed. “Something comfortable. You don’t have to act like someone you’re not with the guys. They’re just as accepting as I am. Feeling like having helmet hair?”
“Oh, sure. Had my hair up all morning anyway. Okay, so about fifteen minutes. Right, I’ll just gather some beers or something.”
“Don’t worry about it. Matt’s got lots. Anyways, I’m on my way. See you shortly.” He hung up just before I could say goodbye. I tossed my phone down onto the table and went to knock on Harry’s door. I suspected she was home, but felt it was a better idea to check first before leaving. She didn’t answer so I proceeded to the doorway where I threw a light jacket over my shoulders for the wind on the bike, and grabbed my sunglasses.
In a few moments I heard the roar of his bike tearing down the road and coming to a halt at the curb. The engine shut off just as I slammed the door behind me. I met him in the doorway with a kiss. He grabbed my hand and pulled me out the door excitedly and we rushed back to the bike. “I’ve been waiting too long to bring you to meet them. We were all talking about it at the studio yesterday, you know, joking around. I think I gave our secret away.”
“Oh well, Harriet beat it out of me anyway. I’m not ashamed of sleeping with you. I really enjoyed every minute of it all.”
“I did too.” He handed me his helmet and tucked all the strands of wild black hair beneath the bandana he usually wore on his bike. I climbed on with his help, since it was still an intimidatingly big bike to face by myself, and he climbed on after, squishing me against the back rest. “Alright, you good?” he asked, as he kicked up the kickstand and shifted gears. I gave a thumbs up and we took off.
Matt’s place was on the opposite side of town in a part of the city I’d never been to, like Brian’s neighbourhood. Only it was a little more populated. Dozens more houses to say the least, except they were spaced further apart. Lots of open land, plenty of opportunity for good house parties.
When we arrived a huge dog met us in the driveway, barking and howling at me rather than Brian. “Hey, Bishop! She’s part of our group now, you big old doof. Come on, see where your dad’s at. You’re not afraid of dogs, are you, Liss? He’s totally harmless. Fucking cuddly bear.”
I hesitantly pet the beast on the back of his head, watching as a big ball of drool fell from his maw. “No, not at all. He just surprised me. Quite the houses you guys have, huh.”
“You should see Zack’s new place.” Brian smirked and wrapped his bulky arm around my waist to guide me up to Matt’s front door. Didn’t bother knocking. My heart was fluttering. Okay, no, it was pounding. We found everyone in the kitchen with a beer in hand, or a tall glass of what appeared to be whiskey. I tried to remain a little bit inconspicuous but Brian prodded me into the kitchen to meet everyone. There were a few more people than the members of the band, faces I didn’t recognize, some not immediately anyway. “Well, you know my brothers, or you should. The twins are Matt and Jason Berry, our groupies. Fucking nerds. And you might know Benji and Joel Madden.”
Alright, two sets of twins. I shook hands with the Berry twins while blushing, but I sort of straightened up before shaking with Benji and Joel. Billy and I grew up and went to high school together, so I was sort of mixed up with them. “And then Matt, Jimmy, Johnny, and Zack.” I said, pointing to their persons respectively. They all cheered and popped their hands up for a high five or fist bump. Matt passed me a beer and raised his bottle before taking a long swish.
So many dudes. I didn’t know where to begin. Then from another room came a female, who seemed like I’d seen her before, but it might have been her personality that was so welcoming that she gave off that sort of illusion. “Hi, I’m Jamie. Jimmy’s old lady.” That made perfect sense. Jimmy had that same personality. “You must be Brian’s new gal. It’s so nice to finally meet you. Gina and I needed another girl in our group so it didn’t seem so overbearing on us. Can I get you anything?”
I wasn’t exactly sure what to say. “Oh, no thank you. Nice to meet you too, Jamie. I’ll admit that it’s a little intimidating being brought here…with such a big crowd.”
She chuckled and cracked a beer of her own. “Yeah, I’ll give you my word that you’ll get used to the crowds.” God, I hoped she was right. “So how’d you two meet?”
“Uh, actually we kind of ran into each other at the supermarket. I asked him for a quarter, not recognizing him at first. Guess in a city like this you’d confuse the famous folks with the regular folks. Everyone wants to be famous.”
“These boys stay pretty humble, too. For the most part anyway. Brian seems so much happier in the last week or so, Jimmy says. Welcome to our family. Make yourself at home, too. Feel hungry, grab a snack. Feel tired, take one of the beds. Matt would say the same thing.”
I beamed and clanked my beer bottle with her glass of rye and coke. “Thank you, this seems like a really great group of people. How about you and Jimmy, how’d you meet?”
She sipped her drink and set it down on the counter behind her, where she then leaned over. “Well, I actually used to help them with merch and stuff. I’ve been on a few tours. Fronted some cash when they needed it. Jimmy and I hit it off from day one, decided to get married one day. Happened just about a year ago, just after he turned twenty three. We were young, stupid, but it worked.”
“If I were to have walked in without you telling me all that, I definitely would have thought it in the first place. Hopefully Brian and I will be just as happy. He’s in it for the long haul. Could imagine how hard it would have to be, you know, going on tour. Would have thought it was easier to have a different girl almost every night. But it would probably get old.”
“I’d bring that up with Johnny.” She said with a huff of laughter. “He’s living large in the bars and strip clubs all the time.”
The noise level changed in the kitchen where we were just as Jimmy, drunk off his rocker already, and Brian, stumbled through the doorway in each other’s arms. “What the fuck you talking about?” Jimmy stammered through the consumption of enough liquor that I could imagine his blood became syrup. “Brian, you got a nice lady.” They began going off about girls and love and romance as they stumbled on throughout the house, probably heading for the bathroom. Brian glanced back at me over his shoulder and winked, causing me to melt.
“Oh, you two are definitely going to last.”
“You think so?” I chirped, sipping more of my beer. Jamie nodded and brought me back out to the main group again to mingle with the others.
The whole time I could only think about a few things: the different fads the boys were going through with all the hairdos and chains, the imagery of stardom or whatever it was called. Eventually the house began heating up with all the muscled bodies standing around, or wrestling. How such a group of people so different and yet so similar all the same could come together and form something so big that it would attract the lives and the friendships of so many others? It was the reason why I aspired so long to get my name out there. Be a renowned published author or journalist. Get the word out to the good people that there was another side of the parties, of the rambunctious group of adult men in their early twenties.
Of course, this lifestyle wasn’t particularly something I grew up in. I wasn’t used to big parties with copious amounts of alcohol. It was fun, don’t get me wrong. But I hoped that the party phase of their careers would end as fast as it began. It would be fun for a short while, although I feared that the scene would eventually cease to amuse me.

Notes

Another slight filler. Promise it'll start picking up, guys.