Crossroads
You're Welcome To The City Where Your Future Is Set Forever
And Synyster Gates I became.
Ten years later, my 28 year old self had gotten everything his heart had ever desired. I had written, recorded, and toured with Matt's band; Avenged Sevenfold, which had gone on to become incredibly successful. I'd seen the world, had my own line of guitars, millions of women would lose their minds watching me onstage, and I was now a household name. I no longer lived with my parents, but in my own house, with a tiny little shit of a Maltese named Pinkly, and the girl of my dreams, Michelle...
***
2009.
Knebworth, England
In the grounds surrounding Knebworth House, thousands had gathered for Sonisphere, an annual rock music festival that traveled across Europe. An hour before the sun was due to set, our time had come to take the stage, before Metallica, whom we'd had the incredible honor of touring with a few times now, would close off the night.
"I wanna hear you all now, I need you to repeat after me; HEY!" Matt yelled to the audience.
"HEY!" they yelled back.
"HEY HEY!" Matt yelled.
"HEY! HEY!" they yelled back.
This time, Matt yelled. "I'M NOT INSANE!"
"I'M NOT INSANE!" the crowd repeated back to him.
"I'M NOT INSANE!" he yelled once more.
"I'M NOT INSANE!" they repeated.
"I'M NOT IN-FUCKIN-SANEEEE!" Matt screamed.
I stepped up onto one of the stage risers as we launched into the intro of Almost Easy. The novelty of being a Guitar God had worn off several years ago, but the magic of the deal still remained as I breezed through the song's intro. I had told no-one. To this day, they believed that talent had been all my own. And I planned to keep it that way.
"I feel insane every single time, I'm asked to compromise. Cause I'm afraid and stuck in my ways and that's the way it stays. So how long did I expect love to outweigh ignorance? By that look on your face, I may have forced the scale to tip..." Matt sang.
I glanced behind me, where Jimmy was shrouded almost completely from view by his drum set. What had gone from a simple kit in Matt's garage had gradually built over the years into an incredibly extensive setup. Jimmy peeked over his cymbals and shot me a grin, which I mirrored with my own.
"I'm not insane, I'm not insane." Matt sang, as Jimmy pounded away at his drums. "I'm not insane, I'm not, not insane."
I stepped up to my microphone. "Mother..."
"Come back to me, it's almost easy." Matt sang.
Zacky helped me back him up. "Said it all..."
"Come back again it's almost easy"
I leaned forward, one foot up on the riser, making eye contact with a couple of girls in the front row. Their faces lit up when they registered that I was looking right at them, and I could see the lust in their eyes. I was faithful to Michelle; but being in my position definitely had its perks. Licking my lips, I shot them a little flirtatious wink, smirking at their reaction.
Sure, I'd had my fair share of fun back in the day when we'd toured around to promote our third album, City Of Evil, which had been the high point of our career so far. It'd been a phase, and seemed like the thing to do at the time, but I'd settled down since then. Now, there was only one woman I wanted for the rest of my life, the one who had always stuck by me all these years, and I couldn't wait to get back home to her.
"Gates..." Matt hissed as he finished singing the chorus the second time around.
I stepped up to the riser in the center of the stage, the crowd roaring my name as my fingers darted across the fretboard playing my solo. They all called me a Guitar God now; Crowley had made true on that part of our deal. As I looked out over the crowd, my heart swelled, a lump forming in my throat as I relished in the wave of overwhelming joy that hit me every time I played a show.
This was my life, my dream, all that I had ever wanted, and it was real...
***
Sweating, my white V-neck sticking to my chest, I jogged offstage, pulling my inner-ear monitors out. I made a beeline for the water bottles backstage, chugging a whole bottle in one go. As I was disposing of my bottle, the other members of the band all filed into the backstage area. Matt and Jimmy immediately tugged off their shirts and threw them in a damp heap on one of the plastic chairs nearby.
"Dude, you gotta shave, you're lookin' a lil scruffy there." I chuckled, watching the sweat drip from Jimmy's beard.
"A Viking Lord does not shave, my friend." he grinned, going straight for the cooler that held our beers.
"I'll remember that when you pass out onstage, you stubborn fuck." I snorted, grabbing a beer of my own.
"We're headed home tomorrow, so that won't be an issue." he said, clinking his beer with mine. "Cheers."
I nodded, and took a deep swig. "Man, I can't wait to get home..." I sighed, unable to contain the grin on my face.
"Any particular reason for that?" Jimmy enquired.
"I've been thinking a lot lately... about my life... about what's most important to me..." I licked my lips. "And I'm gonna ask Michelle to marry me."
Jimmy spat out his beer. "What?!"
"It's time, man." I smiled, biting my lip. "She's always been there, through the good shit, and the bad, even when I didn't deserve it."
A small smile crept across Jimmy's face.
"And I honestly can't imagine my life without her." I played with the silver chain around my wrist. "She's the one, man..."
Jimmy grasped my shoulder. "Good for you, honestly, and I hope I'll be invited to the wedding."
"Are you fucking kidding me?" I exclaimed, my attention snapping back to him. "Who the fuck else is gonna be my best man? I want you up there with me!"
"It would be an absolute honor." he smiled, holding out his bottle for another toast. "Here's to you, may marriage bring you eternal happiness."
"I'll toast to that!" I grinned, clinking my bottle with his...
Ten years later, my 28 year old self had gotten everything his heart had ever desired. I had written, recorded, and toured with Matt's band; Avenged Sevenfold, which had gone on to become incredibly successful. I'd seen the world, had my own line of guitars, millions of women would lose their minds watching me onstage, and I was now a household name. I no longer lived with my parents, but in my own house, with a tiny little shit of a Maltese named Pinkly, and the girl of my dreams, Michelle...
***
2009.
Knebworth, England
In the grounds surrounding Knebworth House, thousands had gathered for Sonisphere, an annual rock music festival that traveled across Europe. An hour before the sun was due to set, our time had come to take the stage, before Metallica, whom we'd had the incredible honor of touring with a few times now, would close off the night.
"I wanna hear you all now, I need you to repeat after me; HEY!" Matt yelled to the audience.
"HEY!" they yelled back.
"HEY HEY!" Matt yelled.
"HEY! HEY!" they yelled back.
This time, Matt yelled. "I'M NOT INSANE!"
"I'M NOT INSANE!" the crowd repeated back to him.
"I'M NOT INSANE!" he yelled once more.
"I'M NOT INSANE!" they repeated.
"I'M NOT IN-FUCKIN-SANEEEE!" Matt screamed.
I stepped up onto one of the stage risers as we launched into the intro of Almost Easy. The novelty of being a Guitar God had worn off several years ago, but the magic of the deal still remained as I breezed through the song's intro. I had told no-one. To this day, they believed that talent had been all my own. And I planned to keep it that way.
"I feel insane every single time, I'm asked to compromise. Cause I'm afraid and stuck in my ways and that's the way it stays. So how long did I expect love to outweigh ignorance? By that look on your face, I may have forced the scale to tip..." Matt sang.
I glanced behind me, where Jimmy was shrouded almost completely from view by his drum set. What had gone from a simple kit in Matt's garage had gradually built over the years into an incredibly extensive setup. Jimmy peeked over his cymbals and shot me a grin, which I mirrored with my own.
"I'm not insane, I'm not insane." Matt sang, as Jimmy pounded away at his drums. "I'm not insane, I'm not, not insane."
I stepped up to my microphone. "Mother..."
"Come back to me, it's almost easy." Matt sang.
Zacky helped me back him up. "Said it all..."
"Come back again it's almost easy"
I leaned forward, one foot up on the riser, making eye contact with a couple of girls in the front row. Their faces lit up when they registered that I was looking right at them, and I could see the lust in their eyes. I was faithful to Michelle; but being in my position definitely had its perks. Licking my lips, I shot them a little flirtatious wink, smirking at their reaction.
Sure, I'd had my fair share of fun back in the day when we'd toured around to promote our third album, City Of Evil, which had been the high point of our career so far. It'd been a phase, and seemed like the thing to do at the time, but I'd settled down since then. Now, there was only one woman I wanted for the rest of my life, the one who had always stuck by me all these years, and I couldn't wait to get back home to her.
"Gates..." Matt hissed as he finished singing the chorus the second time around.
I stepped up to the riser in the center of the stage, the crowd roaring my name as my fingers darted across the fretboard playing my solo. They all called me a Guitar God now; Crowley had made true on that part of our deal. As I looked out over the crowd, my heart swelled, a lump forming in my throat as I relished in the wave of overwhelming joy that hit me every time I played a show.
This was my life, my dream, all that I had ever wanted, and it was real...
***
Sweating, my white V-neck sticking to my chest, I jogged offstage, pulling my inner-ear monitors out. I made a beeline for the water bottles backstage, chugging a whole bottle in one go. As I was disposing of my bottle, the other members of the band all filed into the backstage area. Matt and Jimmy immediately tugged off their shirts and threw them in a damp heap on one of the plastic chairs nearby.
"Dude, you gotta shave, you're lookin' a lil scruffy there." I chuckled, watching the sweat drip from Jimmy's beard.
"A Viking Lord does not shave, my friend." he grinned, going straight for the cooler that held our beers.
"I'll remember that when you pass out onstage, you stubborn fuck." I snorted, grabbing a beer of my own.
"We're headed home tomorrow, so that won't be an issue." he said, clinking his beer with mine. "Cheers."
I nodded, and took a deep swig. "Man, I can't wait to get home..." I sighed, unable to contain the grin on my face.
"Any particular reason for that?" Jimmy enquired.
"I've been thinking a lot lately... about my life... about what's most important to me..." I licked my lips. "And I'm gonna ask Michelle to marry me."
Jimmy spat out his beer. "What?!"
"It's time, man." I smiled, biting my lip. "She's always been there, through the good shit, and the bad, even when I didn't deserve it."
A small smile crept across Jimmy's face.
"And I honestly can't imagine my life without her." I played with the silver chain around my wrist. "She's the one, man..."
Jimmy grasped my shoulder. "Good for you, honestly, and I hope I'll be invited to the wedding."
"Are you fucking kidding me?" I exclaimed, my attention snapping back to him. "Who the fuck else is gonna be my best man? I want you up there with me!"
"It would be an absolute honor." he smiled, holding out his bottle for another toast. "Here's to you, may marriage bring you eternal happiness."
"I'll toast to that!" I grinned, clinking my bottle with his...
Notes
This chapter is based on this performance, which many of us know well, as it was Jimmy's final show:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eLfdCXoYEQ
I really don't like how short these chapters are, but I'm trying
I know some people prefer shorter chapters, but not me
But until I can really get into the nitty-gritty of this story, they're probably gonna be a tad short
Until next time xx
@shortygirl
I'm going to my 2nd one in June, gonna meet Misha, Richard Speight and Matt Cohen
And maybe get my Hunter's Journal signed by Jim Beaver ^_^
2/9/18