Strength Of The World

Today was the day of the holiday concert, and Peyton was ecstatic. She hadn’t seen the boys play live in a while, and she was more than ready. She spent the day with Val and the rest of the girls, having lunch and talking about both her and Michelle’s upcoming weddings. She went home and took a 2 hour nap so she would be ready for the show tonight. Once she woke up she showered and made sure her hair was pin straight, and dressed in a pair of destroyed skinnies with a black short sleeved shirt and gray jacket on top. She put her black combat boots on her feet, grabbed a small purse, and headed out the door to Val’s house. They were all riding together in a limo to the venue, where the guys were already there and waiting for them. Once they got there they were all in the dressing room, the guys getting ready to go on. “You guys ready for this?” Peyton asked them excitedly. “We’re always ready, munchkin.” Johnny said, rubbing her head. “Okay okay but can we PLEASE go listen to some of the opening bands? Mama needs some music!” She begged. “Come on, tiny girl. I’ll take you!” Jimmy said, hopping off the couch. “It’ll be just like old times!” Peyton grinned at her tall friend linked her arm through his. “Lead the way, Jimbo!” They took off out the door and as they were headed toward the stage they heard Zack’s voice behind them. “You guys be careful with my baby in there!” “Love you too, Vengeance!” Peyton yelled back, grinning the entire way to the stage.
The two were watching Breaking Benjamin play, and Peyton was moving to the music and singing along, until the baby kicked hard and she gasped. “Holy shit. Jimmy give me your hand!” She said, reaching for the drummer’s hand and placing it on the last place she felt a kick. When the baby kicked again, Jimmy jerked his hand away and yelled “WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?!” Which made Peyton burst into laughter. “He loves music just like his mama!” She grinned up at her friend. “Let me feel again!” He said excitedly, placing his hand back on her bump. The baby continued kicking, and Jimmy looked up at her in awe. “There’s a tiny knife master in there.” He whispered to her. “Just like his uncle Jim Jam.” She smiled back. They stood there together for a while longer, singing along to the music until Jason Berry came to get them for warm ups. Once they got back to the dressing room Jimmy opened the door and shouted, “THE BABY KICKED THE SHIT OUT OF ME JUST NOW!” Everyone’s heads snapped to the door, where Jimmy was grinning brightly and Peyton was laughing. “What?! He kicked for you and not for me?” Brian whined, “I’ve been trying to get him to kick me for the longest time!” “He kicks me all the time, it’s pretty awesome huh Jim?” Zack grinned at his friend. “Yes! He’s like my tiny good luck charm in there!” Just then Matt Berry came in and told the guys they had 5 minutes until showtime, so everyone walked toward the stage. Peyton gave Zack a kiss for good luck and Zack rubbed her belly. “Enjoy the show, little dude. Rock out in there.” She went around and gave the rest of the guys fist bumps for good luck, and walked with Dan and Tal toward the stage. “Take care of our girl, Dan.” Zack said to him. “Don’t worry, ZV.” Dan said, wrapping his arm around Peyton’s shoulders, “I got this.” He led her to the barrier, where he made fans back up so he could climb over, and then a few security guards helped her over the barrier. The two men stood behind her, and she was right at the front of the barrier, standing in front of the left side of the stage, where Zack would be most of the time. “He’ll probably want to keep an eye on you.” Tal laughed. Peyton agreed, and when the lights went out at the venue, the crowd went nuts and so did she.
The guys opened with Critical Acclaim, and Peyton was singing along to the song. She loved watching Zack interact with the guys on stage. She loved watching him perform. The way his fingers moved across the strings and the faces he made. He caught her staring at him a few times and blew her a kiss, to which she grinned. They played quite a few of her songs, and she loved them all so she really couldn’t say that any one of them was her favorite, except for Unholy Confessions. It was her absolute favorite song to watch Zack play. In the middle of Afterlife, she felt a push against her back, and turned around just in time to see Dan punch this dude, who stumbled backwards into the circle pit. When the guys weren’t paying attention she pushed a few people in, but quickly turned around so no one knew what she was up to. She was having a blast, and the baby was kicking like crazy. They had just finished up Almost Easy when Matt started talking. “So, you guys having a good time tonight?” The crowd went crazy, of course. “We’ve got just a few more songs for you guys tonight, but this next one goes out to someone very special to us that’s out in the crowd somewhere. We love you, P!” Peyton’s face light up as Brian started playing. She turned around and looked at the two men and squealed, “They played one for me!” as Zack started singing a rock version of I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause. She was singing as loud as she could, and could feel the baby moving like crazy. She put her hand on her belly and gave Zack the biggest smile. As soon as that song ended they went straight into Unholy Confessions, which made Peyton even more excited. She needed this night out to watch the guys. Once they finished Unholy Confessions, Peyton and the guys decided to head backstage before they finished their encore, which was A Little Piece of Heaven. Once they reached the girl backstage, Val walked over to her. “How was your view?” “Amazing!” Peyton squealed. “Did you know they were going to play a Christmas song?” “Yup.” The blonde grinned. “Brian and Johnny wanted to play one for you. And Zack volunteered to sing it.” The guys ended their song and headed backstage, where Peyton practically leapt into Zack’s arms. “Babe you did so good!” She said, kissing him soundly. “I loved my special song.” She said to the others. “Yeah, we could tell. You were practically raping Zack with your eyes. It made me a little uncomfortable.” Johnny teased, rubbing her head. “Shut up, gremlin. You’re just jealous cause I wasn’t looking at you like that.” She retorted, causing the guys to laugh. “I needed this night out. Thanks so much guys.” “Don’t mention it, Peanut.” Matt said. “Don’t think we didn’t see you out there pushing people into the pit.” Brian stated. “Who, me?” she asked with an innocent smile on her face. “Yes, you.” Zack laughed. “You just couldn’t help yourself, could you?” “Nope!” She laughed.
Once the guys showered and got all their things packed up, they headed to a bar for some drinks. Peyton felt a little awkward being pregnant and in a bar, but she made the most of it. She and Zack said their goodbyes a little earlier than usual, and once they got home and Zack locked the door, she had him pushed against the door and her mouth was on his, while her hands were pulling off whatever clothes she could grab. “Man, just like the old days.” Zack chuckled before pulling her shirt over her head and leading her upstairs for the night.

Notes