A/N: In no way am I glorifying vandalism... ;)
Sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss…
The sound of the spray paint can seemed to go on forever.
"How do you think it looks,honey?" Angel stepped back to view her artwork, grinning at her lover.
Collins peered over her shoulder. "Nice work,baby! It needs a little more red,though. Y'know…to make it look more urgent."
Angel nodded and,with a delicate shake of the can, proceeded to fill in the huge,bubble text with red. Collins watched her with a satisfied smile on his face. He was so proud of his Angel.
In spite of himself, Mark actually cracked a small smile. They were just so damn cute! He was nervous as hell and his hands were shaking so hard that he was afraid of dropping his camera…which wouldn't be a good thing. Especially from way up there. Having a fear of heights sucks when you and all seven of your friends are squeezed up onto a billboard in the middle of the night. Trying to vandalize it,no less. A guilty conscious makes one jumpy.
Only according to Collins, it was an important message wrapped up in art. Not vandalism. The filmmaker had to partially agree with his wise friend on that one. Even so, he made a mental note to keep the excess pot away from him…
Wanting to add more of her own artistic flare to the billboard, Maureen picked up a bright orange spray paint bottle and tried to spray. Unfortunately, it was so dark out that she didn't see that the little hole in the nozzle was aimed directly at her face.
"HOLY SHIT!!!" The drama queen shrieked as she got a face full of spray paint, causing everyone to jump. She dropped the can and flailed her arms, stumbling backwards. She would've toppled overboard if Angel and Joanne had not caught and steadied her.
"Maureen? Are you alright?" Joanne's eyebrow furrowed in concern. Her eyes hinted at a small smile, though.
"IT FUCKING BUUURNS!! WHAT IF I GO BLIND??" Maureen whined, blinking rapidly. She squeezed her eyes shut and both hands went to her face, rubbing her eyes roughly.
"Don't do that, honey. It'll only make things worse." Angel soothed gently, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Here…" She crouched down and scooped up her water bottle (how convenient!). She twisted the cap off and gently tilted Maureen's head back.
"Now… just open your eyes, sweetie …" Maureen did so and Angel began the cleansing process. The others watched in silence.
Roger caught Mark's eye as he filmed the drama unfolding and both boys burst out laughing.
By this time, Maureen had recovered and regarded them with a fiery glare,her eyes still red and stinging. "Just what do you find so amusing?? I could've went blind!" She caught sight of Benny, who was doubled over in hysterics. "Keep it up,Coffin…and I'll…I'll…" she sputtered,racking her brain for words. "I'll stick a spray paint bottle up your ass and let loose!"
This just made them laugh even harder.
"You're losing your touch,Maureen!" Benny smirked.
"That was just a very…Maureen-ish thing of you to do!" Mark bit his lip. Roger lost it. The rocker came to a quick halt when Mimi smacked him on the arm,however.
"That is not funny!" The dancer scolded,failing to keep a straight face.
"Yes is wa-" Mark was promptly cut off by being hit full force in the face with a blast of purple spray paint.
He stood still in shock. Then began screaming. "MAUREEN! WHAT THE HELL!? IF YOU GOT ANY ON MY CAMERA I'LL KILL YOU!!"
It was Maureen's turn to laugh now. "You look like an oompa loompa!" She cackled gleefully.
Mark set his camera down and angrily tore off his glasses. His face made Maureen ,and the rest of the group, crack up even harder. His entire face (save his eyes) was bathed in purple.
"Look on the bright side,Mark. At least you can say you know what spray paint tastes like. Now how many people can do that?" Benny pointed out.
Trigger happy now, Maureen sprayed a large purple "M" down the front of Roger's sweater. He jumped back in shock.
"M" for Maureen! Ole!" She smiled,very pleased with herself.
Benny hid behind Collins for fear of getting a full head of purple hair (even though he could really use some hair…)
Joanne kissed her girlfriend on the cheek,wrapping her arm around her waist. "I love you,honeybear."
"I love you too,pookie. And if we make it onto the news,this whole 'genius' plan will be worth it." The performance artist grinned,snuggling closer to the lawyer.
"I'm finished." Angel piped up suddenly. They all regarded her with surprise.
"Well, let's see it then!" Mimi smirked.
One by one, the bohemians scrambled down the billboard's ladder and hopped off onto the ground. They turned to face the billboard,backing away somewhat to get the full view.
The exotic dancer gasped and squealed in delight, wrapping her arms around her best friend,who returned the embrace. "Chica! This is beautiful! Mark..are you..?"
"Yes,yes…I got it." Mark was way ahead of her,already filming the scene. Grinning widely.
The billboard was about as colorful,artistic and psychedelic as any tye dye shirt from the 70's. It held traces of everyone's artistic input. Mostly Angel's though, seeing as she did majority of the work. You could see this billboard from a mile away.
In the middle of the colorful canvas were the blood red words "ACTUAL REALITY. ACT UP: FIGHT AIDS"
This was a collaboration and a labor of love between the 8 friends. They stood quietly,admiring their accomplishment before Roger finally broke the silence,yawning sleepily.
"Let's get the hell out of here before someone calls the police. Besides, I'm tired."
"And I have to take a shower." Mark muttered under his breath,not quite as bitter as he had been before.
As the friends turned to head home, Collins cast one last backward glance at their masterpiece. He could not sustain his joy. Beautiful. He thought. Simply fuckin' beautiful.
THE END