Being expelled…it can change everything

Five months after we started out band Hush Hush.

Sophia, Lauren and I tagged the wall at our school after they suspended us for flipping off and being rude to our teacher after she, not us, said how we were nothing but useless troublemakers. Then of course, the school found out about us tagging the wall and expelled us. Our parents were very angry with us because, in my case, they thought I was a good little teenager who did all her homework and got straight A's. I was grounded for six months but one day, Sophia text me (the 'rents hadn't taken my phone) and said that she and Lauren were leaving home. Obliging, I packed all my stuff into a suitcase, grabbed my bass and at midnight, I snuck out. We met up at a park and took a cab into the city where our favourite band, Short Stack, were playing. After the show, we snuck around the back of the building where they left the venue. As they exited, they saw us; three seventeen year old girls, lugging around suitcases and guitars.

"What are you guys doing?" Shaun asked, surprised, taking in our ragged figures.

"We came to find you," I whispered, shrugging.

"Guys, we know you're big fans and stuff but, we don't exactly know who you are," Bradie said calmly for their hired bodyguard/security guy had appeared behind us.

"I'm sorry ladies," the guard said. "This is a restricted area."

"Please," Lauren whispered, "even if we have to go home. Just let us have one minute with them." I could see the fake tears in her eyes as she glanced from one band-member to the other. "Please?" Sophia repeated. The guard rose his eyebrows at the band and they all sighed.

"I guess we can give you a minute." Andy locked eyes with me and I could see a small smile pulling at his mouth.

"Thankyou!" I gasped. They led us back into the building and into their dressing room. Sitting down on one of the two, we'd gazed at eachother before Shaun spoke.

"What're you here for?" He asked softly, but not rudely. I explained reluctantly and once I'd finished, they stared at us with new interest.

"Just one second," Shaun said and gathered Andy and Bradie together to talk. Lauren, Sophia and I looked at eachother. We were in the same room as Short Stack. It was like our wildest dreams.

"They've been through a lot…It's not like we can let them…" I heard Bradie mutter. A second later, they returned to their seats. Andy cleared his throat and explained.

"We would like you three to come on our tour with us. We'll be doing a few concerts around Australia. If it's okay with you guys, we want you to come with us." We stared, wide eyed at our heroes.

"You're kidding, right? Someone pinch me," I whispered. Lauren reached out absentmindedly and pinched my upper arm. "Ouch! I didn't mean literally!" She ignored my protest and pulled Sophia and I into a circle.

"This is totally a dream!" Sophia exclaimed, shaking her head.

"Definitely. There's no way we can do it!" Lauren commented.

"C'mon guys. We're Hush, Hush! We can do anything together," I motivated, looking between my friends. Lauren started to say something in response to my input when I looked over my shoulder to see if any of Short Stack were listening in. Shaun and Bradie were talking in hushed voices and as my eyes passes over Andy, my heart started to beat faster. He was gazing at me, a smile on his lips. I rose an eyebrow and grinned impishly. Andy had always been my favourite.

"We should do it," I said impulsively, turning back to the others. "It's not like we're ever gonna get chance like this again." Sophia and Lauren bit their lips and nodded.

"Okay," Sophia said. "Let's do it." As we sat back into the couch, I spoke up.

"Okay, well we've thought about what you have said and we want to come on tour with you." There was a small part of me that doubted this was real and they were being serious about asking us on tour. Anything had to be better than going home to my parents.

"You can stay the night with us then," Bradie said. "We leave for the studio tomorrow morning so there's no point in you going home."

"Not that we want to," I muttered quietly. My two friends nodded at my comment whereas Short Stack looked confused.

"Hey, we don't know your names," Andy said as we stood up.

"Well, I'm Ashli, or Andy," I started.

"I'm Sophia, or Bradie."

"And I'm Lauren, or Shaun."

"I guess you're fans, huh?" Shaun laughed as they led us out of the room.

"Kind of," Lauren replied, sidling up beside him and starting to talk. Bradie and Sophia were in an animated conversation, leaving Andy and I practically alone.
"So, I guess you liked me the best?" he asked after a second, falling into step beside me. I was thankful when we stepped outside into the darkness, lit only by street-lights. The dark was like a safety blanket to me.

"Well…I guess so. I always related to you more."

"How?"

"I play bass in our band, I kind of have the same clothes as you, we have the same sense of humour. Just general stuff," I replied. We arrived at the tour van.

"We'll be meeting everyone tomorrow but for now, it's just us and Sam." Shaun pointed to the bodyguard while addressing all of us. He opened the back for us and we climbed in, piling our suitcases in the corner. In the back sat Shaun and Lauren. In the middle sat Andy and I and in the front – driving – was Bradie and Soph. Sam had his own car and drove along behind us. As we set off, I found that I wasn't as nervous as I always thought I would be when meeting my favourite band…and that Andy had moved over one seat to sit beside me. We were silent for what seemed like ages.

"What music do you listen to?" he asked, breaking the painful silence.

"Uh…Short Stack, My Chemical Romance, All Time Low, Nirvana, Green Day, 80s music, the old Silverchair, Boys Like Girls and Paramore. I think that's it." He smiled and laughed softly to himself. "What?" I asked defensively.

"Nothing," he answered. Yawning I stretched and closed my eyes for a second. In that second, my head tilted and rest on Andy's shoulder. I shot back up and glared at the headrest in front of me. Andy laughed again and moved one seat over. He unbuckled my seat belt and pulled me along so I was resting against him, legs curled up on the seat beside me. I was frozen with shock and could barely comprehend what was happening. He started to hum the tune to 'Back of My Head' and slowly, I found myself drifting into unconsciousness.

"Ashli? Ashli, wake up!" I could hear Sophia calling me softly. Groggily, I opened my heavy lids and sat up. I was in a hotel room, in a double bed, the sheets twisted round me. My two friends sat on the edge of the bed, watching on.

"Where the heck am I?" I whispered, gazing around.

"You, Ashli," Lauren said. "Are in Andrew Clemmensen's bed." Last night's memories started to come flooding back. I jumped off the bed and because I was caught in the sheets, I fell and landed on my butt on the floor. My friends cracked up laughing as I angrily flicked away the bedding.

"No shit," I muttered, standing up. Grabbing their hands, I towed them out of the room. We entered a dining room / living room where Shaun and Bradie were milling around. They looked up as we walked in and smiled.

"Hey. Nice sleep?" Bradie asked, spooning some Corn Flakes into his mouth. I nodded and looked down at myself. I realised that I was wearing the same clothes I had been yesterday. Seeing my look of confusion, Shaun explained.

"Andy carried you up last night and put you to bed," he said. My eyebrows shot up to my hairline.

"He slept with me?" I asked, incredulous.

"No, no! He slept on the couch," Shaun laughed, walking over and patting my shoulder. "Though I'm sure you'd rather have him sleep in the bed." Lauren slapped his arm and glared.

"Shaun," she hissed. "Stop it!" He grinned and went back to the couch where he had been watching MTV.

"Want some cereal?" Bradie asked, offering his bowl from the dining table. Shrugging I picked a spoon off the table and stole some of his breakfast. He looked over at his phone while I shrugged and dumped my spoon into the sink. I wasn't hungry. Lauren had gone to sit with Shaun and Soph was perched on the seat next to Bradie's. Smiling slightly, I went back to my (Andy's) bedroom and went into the bathroom. I looked scary. My black eyeliner was smudged around my eyes and my hair was almost sticking up on end. Running the shower and locking the door, I stripped off and entered the hot water. I savored the feel of it running over my skin for a second, then washed my hair. When I turned off the taps and wrapped myself in a fluffy white towel, I felt better. My suitcase was resting against the wall next to the door and I pulled it to lie on the ground. Unzipping it, I rummaged through until I found my purple skinny jeans and black t-shirt. I pulled them on and fixed my hair in the mirror. Tying it into a loose ponytail, I applied some black eyeliner, mascara and foundation. Once I looked okay, I went back into the bedroom to find Andy sitting on the bed, watching the free Foxtel. He looked up as I walked in.

"Hi," he greeted me, smiling. I waved awkwardly and sat on the opposite side of the bed to put on my socks.

"Hi. Look, I'm sorry about you sleeping on the couch. I would've slept there," I said, grimacing slightly when I thought about how my favourite person in the world had slept on a couch for me.

"That's alright. I didn't want to wake you up. Plus anyway, it wasn't that bad." I glanced at him, a skeptical look on my face.

"Why?"

"Because I got to raid the fridge." Grinning, I shook my head. "By the way, we've got to get going in about five minutes if we want to make it to the studio in time."

"Okay, well I'm ready anyway," I replied, gesturing down at myself. He nodded and stood up, stretching. "I'll go get them if you want?" He grinned appreciatively.
"Thanks." Smiling back, I disappeared into the other room.

"Guys, we have to go in about four minutes. So, get moving," I announced, jumping onto the edge of the kitchen bench. They all looked up at me with curiosity.

"Did Andy tell you to say that? What did he give you? A kiss?" Shaun quipped, grinning stupidly.

"What the hell? I would never, ever, stoop that low, Shaun! What in heck are you taking?" Angrily, I slipped off the counter and stormed into my bedroom.

"What's up?" Andy asked, sensing my rage.

"Shaun, is what's up." As I sat on the bed, he moved across to sit next to me.

"What did he do THIS time?"

"He's just…assuming things. Many things."

"Like what?" My eyebrows pulled together.

"He said that…I told them that we had to leave and he said 'Did Andy tell you to say that? What did he give you? A…kiss?' " The boy's brow creased with anger and annoyance. Then after a second, it smoothed out to normal.

"Do you want me to kiss you?" his voice was soft as he looked into my eyes.

"Uh…well…I don't exactly…know you. I mean, I know who you are and all that but I don't know you. I'm sorry." He pulled back a little, slightly hurt.

"That's fine," he said nonchalantly.

"I think we have to go," I whispered after a few seconds. He got up and disappeared out the door. I heard his voice ringing through the hotel rooms.

"We're leaving now so if you're not ready, then too bad!" My fingers reached up to touch my thumping heart. Did that really just happen? I wondered, taking a deep breath. "Are you coming?" Andy asked from the door. Nodding quickly, I ducked into the bathroom, packed all of my stuff and came back out, suitcase in tow. Andy did something then, that I would never forget. He took my hand and pulled me into the other room. Everyone, as usual, looked up as we walked in. Their eyes almost popped out of their heads when they saw my hand clasped in Andy's. Sophia dropped her glass of water and as it his the floor, shattered into a million pieces. Hurrying forward, I helped her pick up the pieces of glass that littered the tiles.

"What the heck are you doing?" she hissed.

"What do you mean?" I asked, following her into the kitchen.

"What are you doing with Andy?"

"Oh. Well…uh…I don't know. He just…took my hand," I replied, throwing glass into the bin.

"Ash, you know he's four years older than you!" Growing annoyed, I huffed.

"Yes, I know that! And why would you care?"

"Because it's not going to end well! I don't want to see you get hurt. You and Lauren are the only two I have left. I can't lose any one of you." Her words were true and bit me harshly.

"If you haven't noticed, I'm in the exact same situation here! None of this is my fault!" I pointed through the one-way glass at Andy. "If you and Bradie want to be a little more than friends I'm not going to say anything about it! You only think me and Andy is a bad idea because he's older than me! Or you're just jealous!" Malice suddenly glittered in her eyes. So quickly, I didn't see it happening, her hand came up and slapped me sharply on my left cheek. I stumbled back, shocked. The slap brought tears to my eyes and they slowly trickled out onto my cheeks. My hand was plastered to my face, my mouth gaping.

"Ash, I'm sorry I – " Not caring what she had to say, I spun around and ran out of the kitchen, wiping tears from my eyes. As I entered the living room, I saw Lauren trembling, Shaun, Bradie and Andy staring at me. Walking over to Andy, I saw his eyes shift to my cheek. When I reached up to wipe a stray tear, I saw my hand come away with bright red blood. Staring dumbly at it, I realised that her blow had given me a nose bleed. Coming back to reality with a snap, I ran into my bathroom and locked the door.

"Ashli!" I heard Lauren call from outside. My eyes lingered on the door handle for a moment then slowly, moved up to the mirror, over my stomach, chest, neck and finally, my head. I gasped as my eyes settled on my face. My mascara had run and was smeared over my cheeks. What startled me more was the bright red trail running from my nose to my mouth. Some of the blood had snaked around my lips and trickled into the corner of my mouth, making me endure the coppery taste. Pulling a line of toilet paper from the roll, I plastered it to my nose and watched as a blossom of red appeared on the paper.

"Ash!" Lauren called again. "Please let me in." She madly jiggled the handle. Giving in, I cautiously walked over and flicked off the lock. She burst through the door and behind her shoulder, I could see Andy lingering in the doorway. Quickly, she shut the door and regarded me with sympathetic eyes. "Oh, Ash." She sat me down on the edge of the bath and grabbed a new line of toilet paper. She ran it under the tap and wrung it out, then came at me. She wiped away all traces of blood and makeup, making sure my nose did not bleed anymore.

"Thankyou," I whispered once she had finished. She just smiled and led me back into where everyone else was standing around. Sophia was leaning against the back of the couch, arms crossed and glaring at the floor. Shaun, Bradie and Andy were conversing in the corner of the dining room.

"We can go now," Lauren announced, walking forward. I practically hid behind my friend out of embarrassment. When we got into the van, we had the same seating arrangements as the night before, except that I sat as far away from Andy as possible. He looked a little confused, his brow scrunched. I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket and I fished it out with an impending sense of dread. Unwillingly, I peered at the screen. 'Home' it read. My heart beat ten times faster in my chest. Of course they would find out I was missing. Bringing the phone up to my ear, I pressed the green button and listened.

"Where the hell are you?" Came my mother's harsh voice. "Where are you!?" she asked again.

"I'm with friends," I replied quietly, aware of the people listening to me.

"You better come home now, young lady. Or we're enrolling you in a boarding school. You've caused us too much trouble lately."

"And what about me?!" I exploded. "You couldn't care less about what happened to me! You're the reason I'm causing trouble! You don't understand me like everyone else does! Don't expect me to come home any time soon. I'd hate to disappoint you." With that, I hung up and glared at the flashing screen until my rage subsided.

"Are you okay?" Lauren asked cautiously, leaning over the back of my seat.

"Yes," I growled through gritted teeth. "I'm fine." She bit her lip and disappeared into the back again. From then on, I was silent for the car ride, listening to conversation and the radio between short bursts of sleep. When we arrived at the studio, I was the first one out of the car, and onto the pavement, followed by Andy, Bradie, Sophia, Shaun then Lauren. They collected their instruments from the back then we took ours to practice. As we walked up to the front door of the studio, there were a few cries of 'Oh my God, it's Short Stack!' and a few fangirls running up to us and posing with the boys for photos. The rest of us stood on the sidelines, watching as our new friends graciously signed various items and posters. Finally, after around ten minutes, we made it inside the studio. As we climbed a set of stairs and turned down a corridor, we made it into the spacious practice area.

"Hey, guys!" someone called from the corner. We looked up to see a forty-year-old man striding towards us.

"Hey, Marty!" Shaun exclaimed, shaking the man's hand.

"My favourite band! Who are these young ladies?" he gestured towards us.

"These are some of our fans, Hush Hush. They're Ashli, Sophia and Lauren." Bradie pointed to us in turn. "This is our tour manager and producer, Marty." We waved tentatively and shook his hand.

"Well, boys, it's time to practice. So get set up." He disappeared into another room and left them to set up their instruments. I started to strum the notes to Sway Sway Baby and murmur the lyrics. Sophia got to the drums first, banging out the rhythm in time with my playing. Lauren began to rip through the chords and before we knew it, we were moving with the music. I belted out the words in perfect key and with the perfect emotion. Short Stack were staring, dumbfounded.

"…We'll never let GO!" As I finished, I noticed Marty standing in the doorway, clearly shocked.

"Boys," he announced, "these ladies just executed your own song better than you have ever performed it." We all grinned impishly at the boys, teasing them.

"Believe me, we can do more." I mouthed the next song title to Soph and Lauren, counted them in and started to sing Ladies and Gentlemen. Shaun, an incredulous look on his face, took a breath and closed his eyes. As we finished that song also, Marty's surprised expression turned skeptical.

"Boys, I need to confer with you for a moment," he said, beckoning with a finger. They ambled over to their producer and conferred with eachother. Occasionally, they glanced back at us, an inquiring look in their eyes. Although they spoke for only a few minutes, we began to feel a certain buzzing in the air. It was like an electric current running through the atmosphere. When they returned, I could instantly tell they had good news.

"Well, ladies, we've decided something." Marty rubbed his hands together as he spoke. "You three are a band, am I right?" We nodded. "Good, you're going to be the support band at Short Stack's concert."