Author Notes: Hey! I hope you enjoy this band fic, based strongly around the characters of Wu. I've looked over this a hundred million times, but it hasn't been beta'd, so if you see any mistakes in spelling or grammar, pretend you didn't see them. If you do like this, or even if you don't, please do feel free to leave a review, and i'll get back to you as soon as the next chapter is posted! Enjoy.
Respite, the band
Lead Vocals - Sun Ce
Lead Guitar - Gan Ning
Rhythm Guitar - Shangxiang
Bass Guitar / Piano - Lu Xun
Drums - Ling Tong
The Management
Sun Jian – Flying Kick Records CEO
Zhou Yu – Band Manager
Lu Meng – Publicity
Lian Shi – Designer
Security & Tech
Taishi Ci – Head of Security
Zhou Tai – Security
Cheng Pu – Security
Huang Gai – Security
Ding Feng – Security
Zhu Ran – Lighting
Han Dang – Tech
Cheng Pu – Tech
December 19th, 2014 - Pensacola, FL.
"Have you ever like, wondered why the Sun is yellow? Rather than red?"
Sun Ce rolled his eyes at the question. It always seemed to be that him and Lu Xun were always placed together in the bunks, and they all seemed to be the last ones awake. Sun Ce usually because he was on his laptop or writing new pieces or arrangements, and Lu Xun just with the intent on bugging the living shit out of him. He gave it a second, before shaking his head slightly and answering.
"No." He replied, matter of factly. "I haven't."
"That's weird, y'know. Because I read an article online- well, not an article, more like, I dunno, a study. Well, yeah, it was definitely a study, by some guy from Pittsburgh State-"
"Get to the point, Xun"
"-University- sorry, and this man said that at least once in your child life, you question the colour of the Sun. Ain't that weird?"
"Yes. Most certainly weird" Ce replied, his face and voice completely deadpan.
It was 4:47 in the morning, and they were on their way to Pensacola, FL for their sixth sold out show of the tour. They hadn't even made a dent, in the grand scheme of things – the tour ran all the way from December until May, with stops on 5 out of 7 continents – North America first, South America second, Asia third, Oceania fourth, and finally Europe. It was going to be 6 months of pure hell.
"I'm going to bed. Good night, Xun" Ce said quietly. He was still majorly hungover and on a massive come down from the previous night in Shreveport, LA. It was a great gig.
"Okay, Ce. Sleep tight"
The lights flickered for a moment before plunging the bunks in to darkness.
"Wake up, you lazy piece of shit"
Slam. Straight in the face. Ce peaked out from under his eyelids with bleary eyes, making out the shape of a man bun that seemed to get bigger every time he saw it. Ling Tong. Bassist for Respite.
"Always the charmer" Ce muttered under his breath, his voice hoarse. What even was the time? He tapped the home button on his Iphone 6+… 8:30am. Ugh. Awful.
"Well, we've got a press call in ten, and you're still fucking asleep!" Ling Tong screeched, throwing another shoe at Sun Ce, missing his face by millimeters.
"Hey, enough of that" a calm voice spoke from the other side of the tour bus; Zhou Yu, band manager.
"Whatever." Tong replied, stalking off to the other side of the bus in an apparent sulk.
Ce hauled himself up and out of bed, his hair disheveled and his eyes still half stuck together. Lianshi was going to murder him when she saw what he looked like – he could imagine her now, peering at him over the top of her designer Chanel glasses with a scowl that would scare away the devil. He couldn't help but smile at the thought of winding her up a little. Throwing on an old black t-shirt with several holes in and a pair of ripped up black skinny jeans, he topped off his look with some ankle-length black Docs and his favourite pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses. At least they would hide the awful bags under his eyes. Pulling his hair up in to a rough ponytail, he followed a furious Ling Tong out of the bus and in to the radio station.
The interview was going fabulously, as per usual. After four years in the business, things seem to just fall in to place over time. The band had learned when to smile, when to be boisterous, when to be endearing. It was all part of the trade. Ce sat on the left of the line, arching around several microphones to pick up their conversation with FloridaRocks radio station, with Lu Xun next to him. They were followed by Gan Ning, Ling Tong and Ce's younger sister, Shangxiang.
"You have managed to sell out almost every show of this tour so far. That is quite an achievement!"
"Yeah" Ce smiled lightly, before carefully inserting an endearing laugh. Lu Meng, who was their publicity manager and was sitting on the opposite side of the room on the edge of his seat, would love that. "We're very lucky to have the fans that we do"
"Most certainly. Do you feel like these fans were steadily building from your debut album, or do you think that there has been a sudden surge following the success of your last single "My Good Love"?"
Ce nodded over to Ning, who stuck up his middle finger in return. Meng had told them off in their last interview for Ce doing all of the talking, saying that all of the other members need to answer just one question. This apparently made their presence stronger as a band. Ce and the others thought it was bullshit.
"I don't really know, nor do I give much of a shit. Fans are fans. We just play the music and enjoy it." Ning replied, still with his middle finger up to Ce. He saw Lu Meng make a gargantuan facepalm from corner of his eye. Ning had never really gotten the hang of having a respectable public personality, although the fans seemed to love his "don't give a fucking shit" attitude most of the time… well, except when they were on the receiving end of it. He had cussed out the more quiet audiences and thrown his guitar around, smashing it to pieces on several occasions.
"What I think Ning means" Shangxiang to the rescue. "is that, whilst we are incredibly grateful to our fans for listening to our work and supporting us so much, we began this band not with the aims of making money or being famous, but just out of pure love for the art form of music" She stuck her middle finger up at Ning, who was silently chuckling at Lu Meng's angry face from across the room. "The only reason we are allowed to still make our music and continue with our art is because of the fans, for which we are so very grateful. We love them so much."
The interviewer smiled – good, he'd been won back over after Ning's little pipebomb.
"Tell us about "My Good Love"… it isn't like the rest of your music"
"No, it isn't" Ce gave another endearing smile, inviting the middle aged male interviewer (who had probably never even given their other songs a listen before) to continue with that topic.
"Why did you decide to go mainstream with the song?"
"It wasn't our choice" Ce said quietly, raising his eyebrow a little at the sudden excitement on the mans face – he was about to get the inside scoop on the record and how it came to be. Ce couldn't resist rolling his eyes a little at the man. "It was my fathers decision. As I'm sure you already know from your research page that was given to you, I assume ten minutes before our interview, that is sitting in your lap… you would already know that he is the CEO of Flying Kick Records, the label that we are signed to. He was unhappy with the amount of sales of our first two albums, and prompted us to release a song that was mainstream enough to reach chart success. As a way of us to kinda stick our middle fingers up at the rules that were laid down to us, we made the most generic piece of shit song that we could possibly make, and lo and behold, it was the Summer hit of last year."
"I get the impression that you dislike the song… although, the lyrics suggest that it's about someone that you love? Or maybe loved? Who was it about?"
Ce sighed silently. He hated this question.
"It was about someone who meant a lot to me, but that is in the past now... The song is not natural for us, and we hate performing it."
The rest of the band chimed in with either nods or silent 'mmm's. They had hated it throughout the process of writing it, they had hated it through the process of recording it, and they still hated to perform it now. But, it had become the song they were most known for, and so it had remained a staple in all of their live sets since. Ce hated it because it reminded him of the past. He so needed a spliff right now. Lu Meng looked furious – and no doubt, his father would be on the phone in several minutes, once the interview is over. Lu Meng motioned over to the interviewer to wrap things up – he looked pissed off, but nodded back. They probably wouldn't end up getting paid for this.
"So, just a couple more questions for Sun Ce" the interviewer raised a bit of an eyebrow, which Ce knew to mean that he was about to try and dig deep again. He braced himself with a plastic welcoming smile.
"With this new album, Dirt Cheap, you've gone for a much more darker vibe. What do you think has inspired this?"
"I think that we are naturally in our element when we mix in the more taboo subjects with those catchy grunge sounds. A bit more of a power-rock version of the late Nirvana, we love that type of music. Drugs, alcohol, and various other illegal things – they are the subject of much wonder and curiosity, but it is too taboo to talk about in every day life. In the new album, we confront that head on, and give people an insight in to that type of life, especially with our new single "Smokes"."
"And do you feel that your previous experiences have helped to illuminate this new style? We all know, of course, that you have had several stints in rehab due to excessive drug and alcohol abuse-"
"Thank you for your time, but I feel like this interview is over, no?" Ce replied sharply, cutting the man off.
"Sure. One more question… are you clean? Or do you still dabble in that stuff?"
"I am clean."
Lie.
Ce got off of the chair and walked out of the room, inhaling sharply as he readjusted his sunglasses. He wasn't best happy with the questions that got asked there, and would most certainly be having words with Lu Meng later. For now, he was going to go and get some booze.
"I thought I might find you here"
Ce didn't even bother turning around when he heard the familiar voice of his younger sister, instead focusing on the many different spirits lined up behind the bar. He was six drinks in; double whiskey and soda, spiced with a couple of shots of Tequila.
"So what." Ce murmured under his voice, casting his eyes down to his shoes that were resting on the bottom support of the barstool. He was pissed off, and upset, and just dwelling. Everything was shit. The pressure of the band, the pressure from the label, and that question… about being clean, and the other about who the song was about, it was all just a little bit too much for him.
"So what? That is all I get, then? We've been searching all over for you for the past two hours, Ce!" He could tell that she was trying to play it off nice and cool, but was worried. She sat beside him, as he took another mouthful of his drink. "Dad is real pissed. Zhou Yu is worried, too, that you wouldn't show up for the gig tonight. He thinks that you're dumb enough to-"
"I'm not." Ce cut in. "I don't want to play."
"Ce! Are you fucking stupid, or something? You Neanderthal! What do you mean? You can't let down all of those people!"
"They don't matter."
"No! As much as you might not want to fucking believe it, those kids who are lining up outside that venue, at this very second, matter so fucking much. For some of those kids, Respite are their entire world, their heroes, so don't you dare tell me that they don't matter. You're being fucking selfish, Ce. Stop acting like a jumped up fucking child and get your shit together, I'm not having a repeat of last year, with you jacked up on whatever the fuck you were sniffing and fucking this up for the rest of us."
"Selfish?" Ce repeated quietly.
"I didn't mean that… but please, stop acting like a prick." Her voice was still gentle, but remained stern, much like their father spoke. She was a wonderful businesswoman too, blessed with having the persuasion of words. Ce despised that. "We're going to leave and get dressed – which, by the way, Lianshi is so pissed off at what you wore earlier it is unreal, she said she's going to make you wear some new boots that aren't broken in as punishment, not that it matters much because you're probably drunk off your fucking nut and you can't feel the pain of it, and… fuck sake. I love you, okay? Please don't scare me like that again" She hugged him tightly, and Ce couldn't help but feel lonely.
After getting ready at lightning pace, and stumbling out of the tour bus after a short drive to the venue, the band slowly filtered in to the green room at the venue. The rest of the band were a bit pissed at first when Ce had arrived, but were now back to their usual selves, full of mischief. Truth was, they were all best friends through their high school years, and were still exactly the same. He loved them all dearly, even his annoying little sister that his father had lumped in with them all when he signed them. She was now just as much a part of Respite as their other original members. Well, except for the one that got dropped as a replacement when they got signed, but… he didn't want to think of that. Instead, Ce cast his concentration over to the others in the room. The tech team were rushing in and out of the room, preparing whatever it was that they had to prepare, and a couple of roadies were standing about talking. Shangxiang was inspecting the writing that was left on the wall by previous bands and artists that had performed at this venue, whilst Lu Xun was trying to balance an empty Pringles can on top of a napping Gan Ning's head. Ling Tong was sat in silence, eyes closes, listening to something on his iPhone. If Ce was expected to take this bullshit seriously, he really needed some hair of the dog right now – Zhou Yu had flushed him out totally with water, leaving Ce with just a minor spinning sensation as the effects of the Whiskey had slowly worn off.
"Hey, Cheng Pu, my buddy-" Cheng Pu was one of the security men who he never really spoke to much, but always seemed to be around.
"No. Zhou Yu said that you were to be seen doing only one of two things in this room, which is either drinking water, or having a small power nap."
"But, you didn't even know what it was that I was going to ask y-"
"Water, and a power nap"
"Bullshit." Ce narrowed his eyes slightly, sticking out his tongue at the burley security guard. "You all suck. Huang Gai would go and get one for me…"
"Well, I'm not Huang Gai, am I?"
"I wanted to celebrate Arizona with a-"
"We're not in Arizona, Ce, we're in Florida"
"Well, that's good to know, since it is your job, Mr Cheng Pu, sir…"
"Zhou Yu wants you to be sober enough to know where we are. The last thing we want is you getting the name of the state wrong that you're playing in, again."
"Hey! Everywhere looks the same!"
"Maybe after a few drinks, yes, but not tonight. Water only."
Ce sighed, scowling a little bit at the older man, who had his arms firmly crossed over his giant, muscular chest. There was no chance of winning if Zhou Yu and the security team had teamed up, though, so he settled with defeat.
"Water, then?" Ce grinned, a hint of mischief on his features, to which Cheng Pu simply pointed at the catering table before walking out. Ce sighed, heaving himself up and grabbing himself a bottle of Evian.
"Wow, did you know that The Cure played this very venue? All the way back in 1986!" Shangxiang remarked from the other side of the room, before busting in to her own rendition of 'Boys Don't Cry'. Ce winced a little before turning to face her.
"I definitely agree with Gan Ning. You must never be given a microphone to sing."
"True that" Ning groaned from the sofa, making Lu Xun jump and causing the Pringle can to collapse to the floor. He then proceeded to grab the scrawny Lu Xun by the neck with a giant, muscled arm and pull him in to a noogie.
"Hey, no need for that!" Shangxiang chuckled, whilst Ce took a mouthful of water. "Mother used to tell me that I was a charming singer"
"Yes, when you were five, and were singing nursery rhymes. I'm afraid your vocal talent completely ends at nursery rhymes, though. The Cure would most likely vomit if they ever heard you singing their songs"
"Hey, shut up." Shangxiang frowned with a slight grin, throwing her own bottle at Ce's head and hitting him square in the forehead.
"Oooh, Lian Shi is gonna be so pissed at you if I bruise"
"Pft, let her be. She can't tame me. I'm an Aries, bitches!"
"As much as I love your undeniably blind spirit, Miss Shangxiang, I must admit, you do seem to talk a bit too much" Lian Shi breathed as she strutted in to the room, her stiletto's pounding her authority in to the hardwood floor. "And Ce is right, if he bruises, I'll have your guts for garters. Ning, let go of Lu Xun. Ling Tong, come here and try this shirt on, it's something I found a little while back but these shirts are coming back in to fashion. I just don't know if it'll suit you or not"
Shang Xiang stuck her tongue out at Lianshi, before turning around to look at more of the messages on the wall. Lianshi threw a pair of black jeans embroidered with a bit of glitter at Ce, who looked down at them with a bit of feigned disgust and wonder.
"My god, these won't help the rumours at all, will they? I will look so gay in these it is unreal!" Ce smirked, pulling his old jeans off and quickly putting the new ones on.
"Well, you could say they are simply a statement of something you are hiding from everyone, Ce" Lianshi stated, matter-of-factly, before turning on her heel and walking back out of the room again, leaving Gan Ning sniggering and Shangxiang howling with laughter. Ce just scowled.
"Now, let's get these formalities out of the way, shall we Florida?" Thunderous cheering. "I can't hear you, Florida! Let me hear you!" Louder and louder. "How about you guys over there at the back?!" Deafening. "I dunno if that's good enough… what do you think, Ning?"
"Ehh. Pretty fucking quiet, if you ask me"
"And what about you, Tong?"
"I've certainly heard much better."
"Shangxiang?"
"I'm disappointed. I heard that East coast audiences were much louder, but I still stand by the West Coast after hearing these guys!"
"True! What about you, Lu Xun?"
"I think that they might have a little bit of potential. I see a glimmer of hope on their beautiful faces, Ce!"
"Okay, well let's give them the benefit of the doubt for now. Maybe we should do a new song, just to warm them up a little bit?"
By now, the cheering in the venue had reached a deafening level, as Ling Tong began to hit the snares, signaling the beginning of their new song "So Called Love". Ce purred a little in to the microphone, stroking his hand over Ning's muscular bare arm, causing the fangirls to go wild. "Hey, Ning… we're on a ship, apparently!" The crowd screamed at Ce's acknowledgement of the fan ship of himself and Gan Ning, the lead guitarist of Respite. So many fics had been written… so many…
"Sing along with us, everyone!" Ce screamed in to the mic, before beginning the song. "Hey you, hold your chin up, you got me feeling lonely so I go for a smoke outside…"
Ning began to work up his usual shtick on his guitar, warping through different chords and improvised solo's with ease, teasing the audience with his ruffled hair and unbuttoned shirt, as Lu Xun integrated the bass notes throughout, singing along at the top of his lungs to the song. Shangxiang was jumping up and down, going fucking crazy, and Ling Tong seemed to bang his drumkit so hard that there was a high possibility, any second, they might fly off the stage. A good show was beginning to form.
Florida ended up being a pretty fucking decent show, in the end. The crowd had loved the twelve song set, and cheered enough to merit a two-song encore of the bands two favourite songs from their first album, "Gut-springs" and "Voodoo", songs they never got the chance to perform any more. They weren't green-lit by the label, but the band had thought "fuck it", and in his usual gentlemanly manner, Ning had stated that Ce's father, Sun Jian, could "suck my massive dick and choke on it" if he had something bad to say. The band had laughed.
Now, they were sat on the tour bus, around the table. Beers and bottles of wine were being passed around, but Ce sat there, basking in the glorious atmosphere that only came after playing a good show. He barely even noticed Zhou Yu sit next to him until an ice-cold beer was placed gently in to his open hand.
"You guys played well." Zhou Yu smiled, patting his best friend on the back. "You really outdid yourselves, this time"
"Ya think?" Ce grinned, cracking the bottle lid off with a bottle-opener that he kept in his back pocket.
"Yeah, I do." Zhou Yu replied, looking around the room with steady eyes. The band were bantering and laughing, along with several of the tech guys and a couple of the security team. Ce took a swig of Corona. "I'm so happy to be here with you guys, y'know… I'm proud of you all"
"Why's that, Yu?" Ce asked quietly.
"You've all come a long way."
Ce just smiled crookedly, letting the words sink in. They had definitely come a long way, considering this point last year, Zhou Yu was screaming at them all and pulling his own hair out at the stress they had put him under on their previous tour. Ce had gone off the rails completely, and in all honesty, didn't remember much of it, except for the poisonous atmosphere that seemed to pervade the tour bus. Fittingly, Ce had fought for a different bus this time around, not wanting to be associated at all with those ill feelings. His mind had blotted out all of that bullshit.
"Thanks, Yu." Ce tapped his best friend gently on the leg, before hoisting himself up. "I think I'm going to head off to bed now. I'll see ya tomorrow… in Washington, baby!"
Zhou Yu waved his friend off, as Ce finished off his beer before jumping in to Lu Xun's empty bunk for the night – it was the most comfortable, and after today, he thought he certainly deserved a little bit of comfort. Washington was exciting, as they were staying in a hotel for their two-day stint there. Which of course meant that he could have sex un-interrupted. Brilliant! He fell asleep, smiling about this fact. Uninterrupted sex, baby.
End of Chapter 1