Chapter 1: Lady Bites
"We're gonna be late" Joey whispered under his breath as he crammed the last of his clothes into his suitcase.
"Where's my….got it." Joey looked up as Darren passed the doorway, case in hand, hoodie half on.
A car horn sounded outside and Joey checked his watch, 5am.
"That'll be the cab!" He called into the hallway. No response. Of all nights to invite the guys round for a jam session, Darren had to do it right before an early morning flight. Joey shook his head,
"Never changes" he muttered, half smiling.
The chaos that greeted Joey as he stepped into Darren's room didn't faze him, he was used to it by now. Music sheets were sprawled over a desk by the window, empty water bottles lined the windowsill. Darren was sat on his bed, earphones in, completely oblivious to Joey in the doorway.
"We need to go." Darren looked up at him, iPhone connected to his laptop, hoodie still only half on.
"Just need to transfer these songs over, we finished them last night, I'll be two minutes."
Joey sighed in mock frustration and hauled Darren's suitcase off his bed.
"I'll go load the cases, see you out there." He stopped and turned back around, "two minutes."
"Yeah…" Joey knew Darren hadn't heard him, it was an automatic response. He could have said he had discovered a new breed of elephant that could hop on one leg and would still get the same reaction.
Eight minutes later Darren climbed into the backseat of the cab next to Joey.
"Sorry man, just couldn't leave those songs behind, the guys are gonna love them." He smiled at the thought of playing his new material to his friends for the first time.
"They better, I know them all by heart already, you've played them enough this weekend." Joey's comment earned him a playful punch in the arm from Darren as the cab pulled away and headed for the airport.
"So what's the plan when we get to the airport? Are we running or chancing it and being, umm, normal" For the last word Joey used air quotes.
"Dude, it's 5:15 in the morning, no one is going to be around at this time, and those who are won't care or even know who I am, we'll be fine." Darren was almost trying to convince himself, not just Joey. The last time they travelled it took them two hours just to get through check in after a group of high school girls on Summer break, and a couple of boys Joey noted, had recognized Darren and cornered them for autographs.
"How is it they ALWAYS have a camera and a sharpie?" Joey marvelled at the memory of thirty or so pens being thrust in his direction by mildly hysterical teenagers.
"You loved it, don't lie." Darren smirked.
"I didn't love the semi permanent half moustache I gained in the crossfire." He muttered.
Darren burst out laughing as the cab pulled up, he glanced out of the window, all clear.
Joey slept the whole of the 4 hour flight to Chicago, only waking when Darren almost kicked him in the shins trying to climb over him to get their hand luggage from the over- head compartment.
"Can you reach?" Joey quipped as he unfastened his seatbelt and leaned forward to miss the swipe Darren aimed at him.
"You're funny, although I think I prefer you when you're sleeping." He retorted as he grabbed their bags and joined the queue of passengers exiting the plane. Joey was a few people behind him as they made their way through arrivals and ran to catch up.
"For a short guy you're a fast walker."
"Joey, it was funny four years ago"
"It's still funny now."
Darren checked his phone, two voicemails from his agent and one from an unknown number. He checked the last one first.
"I know where you are, I'm waiting for you," A mysterious voice whispered through the earpiece, "look for the grey car near the exit, and don't be late." The message ended there. Darren turned to Joey who gave him a 'what is it?' look.
"Walker's outside." He grinned.
"Damn you guessed it was me? But I did, like, my BEST creepy voice EVER! You've never heard that one before!" Joe Walker looked deflated as he greeted his friends in the airport car park.
"I always know when it's you Joe, you're not THAT good an actor I guess." Joe shot Darren a glare as they loaded the cases into the trunk of Walker's car.
"Funny Darren, because that seems to be the only thing you DO know these days."
"Don't." Darren wagged a finger at both his friends as they started into a quiet chant.
"Darren doesn't know, Darren doesn't know, Darren doesn't know!"
"You'll never let that go will you?" Darren climbed into the back seat of the car, Joey had called shotgun before they'd even left the airport terminal.
Joey turned round in his seat, "Never, never ever! Hey, did you bring the controllers for the Xbox?"
"Yeah, in my bag." Darren murmured as he checked his other messages.
Walker glanced at Darren in his mirror, "Did you sleep on the plane?"
"Joey did."
Walker shook his head, "So, Dylan, Meredith and Lauren are all at Brian's. Jaime had a thing uptown so she'll be over later. Joey did you get my email? I need to go over the set pieces again, I'm not sure the order's right."
"Yeah I read it last night, didn't get much sleep because princess sing-a-lot back there was jamming it up until 2am."
"I heard that."
"You were meant to. Anyway, aren't we supposed to be skyping AJ tonight?" Joey pulled out his phone and checked his calendar.
"At eight yeah, but I'm guessing it's nap time for you two before we do anything?" Walker checked his mirror but couldn't see Darren. He nudged Joey to turn around.
"Out like a baby." He whispered.
Walker glanced at Joey, "Is this a good idea? I know he wants to do it, but he's going to make himself sick if he doesn't slow down."
Joey sighed, "I know, but are YOU going to tell him he can't do it?" Walker shook his head in resignation.
"Do we wake him?" Joe asked as they pulled up outside Brian's. Joey looked back at his best friend, "Let's leave him, it'll be the first time he's slept for more than three hours for a while." Joe paused,
"Should I leave a window open?"
"He's not a dog Walker!" Joey hissed as he carefully reached over and took Darren's bag off the back seat.
"He's gonna kill us when he wakes up." Joe murmured.
"Probably, let's go."
A loud squeal erupted from the kitchen as they walked through the front door, Lauren emerged with a manic grin on her face and ran straight at Joey arms outstretched.
"I missed you!" She squeaked, hugging him tightly.
"Missed you too ferret!" Joey returned the hug and nodded a 'hello' to Dylan who had emerged from the kitchen behind Lauren. Brian and Meredith appeared at the top of the stairs.
"Where have you guys been?" Dylan asked.
"We were wrestling," Meredith explained in a matter of fact tone, "I won." She descended the stairs ahead of a slightly blushing Brian and hugged Joey.
"Wait, where's Darren?" Brian looked around doing a head count under his breath.
"Sleeping" Walker replied and raised an eyebrow.
"You got him to sleep? What did you do, drug him?" Brian laughed.
Joey smiled, "No but that's not a bad idea in future." He set the bags down in the hallway and wandered into the living room.
"Well we're not going to get much work done while he's asleep so I'm all for ordering pizza and getting the Xbox going." Brian suggested as he sat down next to Joey.
"Now THAT is a brilliant plan!" Beamed Joey who immediately reached for the nearest controller and slouched back onto the couch and was joined by Dylan who passed him a beer.
"I'll order the pizza then I guess?" Walker stuck his head round the door and waved his phone at the three of them.
"Anything with Pepperoni for me!" Brian called back, "and no olives!"
Lauren skipped into the room and sat cross legged on the floor in front of Dylan.
"I'm having chicken wings because I've recently discovered that cheese is evil and it fries my brain, true story."
Dylan chuckled, "It's not the cheese that causes the problem with your brain, trust me."
"Careful man, she bites." Warned Brian, avoiding Lauren's gaze for fear of a death glare.
A cushion flew through the air and hit him square in the face.
"Hey!" He looked up to find Lauren standing over him.
"Made you look!" She sang in a shrill voice as Meredith joined them.
"Oh, are we having 'boy time' right now? It took you guys all of about three minutes to get the Xbox out. " She laughed as she sat down next to Lauren on the floor and passed her a coke.
A few hours later the Xbox was forgotten as the group huddled in a circle on Brian's floor discussing arrangements for their upcoming show. Ideas were being passed back and forth as Jaime arrived, commenting on the 'homeless' guy in the back of Walker's car.
"How long has he been asleep?" She asked as she set her bag down and joined the circle of friends still chatting away.
"Almost four hours now." Brian replied, glancing at his watch.
"Is that a record? That's got to be a record!" Jaime gasped in mock surprise as she picked up one of the set lists lying in the centre of the circle.
"It's not a record."
The group looked up to see Darren stood in the doorway, hair tousled, eyes tired but with a glint of mischief.
"Walker, your car needs attention." He yawned as he perched on the arm of the couch and hugged his knees to his chest.
Walker hesitated, and then started for the door, shoving Darren off the arm and sending him crashing onto the couch in the process.
"What did you do?" Lauren whispered as she rose to peek through the window.
"He shouldn't have left me in his car, bad idea….really bad idea." Darren breezed as he reached for a beer and stretched out on the couch. By now the group could hear Walker cursing outside, he sounded enraged.
"I can't stand it anymore, let's go see." Joey headed for the door and the rest followed.
"Oh Darren, you didn't." Meredith gasped as Walker, and his car came into view.
"Oh I did." He smirked.
Walker's car was stationary in the middle of the road, all doors open and a security lock fitted to the steering wheel. Walker was stood by the bonnet, apologising to drivers and waving them past his stricken vehicle.
"You put a wheel lock on?" Jaime squealed in astonishment, "Oh that's just plain evil!"
"I know." Darren couldn't contain his giggles as Walker approached the group looking flustered.
"Joey I told you he wouldn't be happy we left him! I told you!" He whined as Darren quickly ducked behind Dylan and Brian.
"Don't come to me for protection, you do the crime, you do the time!" Dylan sidestepped out of Joe's way closely followed by Brian who tried to stifle his glee by faking a yawn.
"Give me the keys to the lock Darren." Walker tried to keep his voice level as Darren dissolved into a fit of laughter.
"I….I don't have them!" He replied, trying to regain his composure.
"Ok, it's very funny, I shouldn't have left you in the car, I deserved that, but come on, I'm gonna get a ticket if I don't move it!"
The group tried to hide their amusement as Walker chased Darren round the back of the house. Yells and screeches could be heard coming from the rear of the building.
"Those two, I give up." Meredith sighed just as Darren came flying round the corner almost crashing into Jaime and Dylan as he fled a now red and frustrated Walker.
"This will end in tears." Brian chimed as Walker tackled Darren to the ground and pinned him there.
"Where are the keys man? Come on!"
"Lady has them." Darren panted, a look of triumph on his face.
"Lady? You mean, oh no." Brain froze in astonishment. Lady was the pet Chihuahua of Mrs Kinburg three doors down. She was a snappy, vicious little thing that Brain and Walker had dubbed 'The Iron Lady', although Lauren preferred to refer to her as 'The Fanged Turd'. There was definitely no love lost between them and the hairy little beast.
Jaime shook her head in disbelief, "She bites! How did you get near her?"
"Well," Darren made to get up and was immediately pushed back down by Walkers foot on his chest, "maybe she figured out I had come bearing gifts. I have to say Joe, those keys make a lovely addition to her pink diamante studded collar, I'm not entirely sure she'll want to give them back." Darren winced as Walker pressed his foot down harder and shot him a glare.
"Ok, we go to Mrs Kinburg's, we ask for the keys back, and then, then I kill you." He warned as he finally let Darren up.
"How did you do all this? You were still asleep when I got here!" Jaime looked puzzled as the group made their way down the street.
Darren smiled, "I woke up about an hour before you arrived. When I realized they'd left me I was sat there thinking of a suitable revenge when Mrs Kinburg happened to pass by walking Lady. It didn't take much convincing to get her to take the keys. She thought it was quite a fun idea actually. Then all I had to do was wait for you to arrive, take the handbrake off, roll the car down the driveway and stick the wheel lock on." Dylan gave a nod of approval.
Walker stopped dead on the sidewalk and turned to Darren. "She knows? Mrs Kinburg's in on it? I thought she liked me!"
"She does, she just likes ME more." Darren laughed as they approached the Kinburg residence.
After half an hour of retelling the entire saga to a highly amused Mrs Kinburg over coffee with Walker narrowly escaping losing a finger as he retrieved the keys from a hostile and growling Lady, the friends made their way back.
"Am I forgiven?" Darren nudged Walker and gave his best puppy dog face.
"Yeah, but it's not forgotten. Sleep with one eye open tonight my friend." Joe murmured.
"I wouldn't want it any other way." Darren beamed as he dropped back to speak to Dylan.
As they arrived back at Brian's a group of familiar faces were waiting for them. Julia, Jim and the Lang brothers, Nick and Matt were sitting on Brian's drive deep in conversation. Nick rose as the group approached and waved a 'hello' to Joey and Darren. As hugs were exchanged, Walker went to move his car, this time putting the wheel lock in the trunk. He wasn't risking that happening again.
After a 2 hour skype conference with AJ going over the full set list and musical arrangements for the fast approaching show they called it a night. Darren and Joey took the guest room, with Darren propping a bag over the doorway just in case Walker, who was crashing on the couch, got any ideas in the night. As he sat on the edge of the bed holding his guitar, Joey climbed onto the top bunk.
"I can't believe Brian got bunkbeds, this is so cool." He mused, "don't stay up all night ok?"
"I won't," Darren replied,"just need to get these chords right."
"Uh huh." Joey didn't believe him for a second but he was too tired to argue. It was great to be back with the gang. He was excited for the next few days and the chance to perform with them all again.
As the lights went out around the house, the faint strumming of Darren's guitar echoed into the darkness. The world was beginning to dream,Darren smiled, but he was living his already.