Urgeing the pedals faster with her legs she raced through the congestred roads. She could not be late, not for this. Music blasted into her ears from her headphones as a new song had just started up:
"Into the night, desperate and broken".
Her legs subconsciously fell into the rythem of the song as she began to mouth the lyrics. She laughed joyously, quickly glancing down to the weird yet so familiar symbols she had drawn on her arm barely an hour ago.
'I can't belive I'll be hearing that voice for real soon'
As she breaked at a traffic light, an elderly women looked at the girl on the bike, she stared at the teenager's black jumper with confusion "30 seconds to Mars?", she said as she read the red writting, "What on earth is that?"
"Cheer up would you for Gods sake!"
"No I will not! How on earth could you two be playing cards? We're late, don't you know what that means?"
"Yes", replied the eldest man with short, brown hair as he threw his hand of cards down onto the table and stared at his younger brother, "Yes, I do know what it means! Look, sit down and relax! stop getting your Mohawk in a twist", His brother gave a small smile as he ran his fingers through his pink hair, gelled into a firce upright position, and sat down.
"I know, Shannon, I know... I just don't want to let them down.", Jared Leto sighed "Nah, we won't, I think that we'd only let them down if we died... or worse broke up", Smiled the third member of the group. The atmoshpere relaxed as the three friends laughed. Nerves were common before a show, mingled of course with excitment as the large black tour bus edged across busy streets,
"Ah! See Jared we're moving again, the traffic must be letting up, besides half of them are probably going to the same place we are."
"Tomo, you have such faith in the band that you reckon half of Cardiff will turn up" Shannon grinned. "Jared! your still worried aren't you?", He finnished with an exasperated glance at his brother who sat in the chair as stiff as a corpse.
However, Jared didn't have time to reply or defend himself as the bus lurched suddenly causing the three occupants to fall forwards as the screech of brakes rent the air.
"What the?", Jared gasped a few seconds later as he raised his head.
"Ouch, Jared, get off of me!", Tomo said as he heaved him off his torso and stood up. Shannon, too was untangling himself from the heap in which his body had landed. The three watched as the door to the driver compartment slid open. Jared was about to fire questions at the driver who cut him short.
"- You boys may want to come and see this...", He said grimly
They exchanged glances. With the air filled with trepadation the four spilled out of the monsterous bus. Jared's feet were the first to hit the ground, quickly followed by Tomo, shannon and the navy-blue clad driver. They seemed to briefly scan their suroundings before the driver indicated to a huddled mass lying at the front of the bus. Jared felt his breath catch in his throat and his heart stop as he looked closer. The bike's wheel was still spinning ominously - giving off a rapid clicking. Its rider was lying spread-eagle on the hard tarmark just feet from the handle bars.
It was Shannan who raced forward to inspect the casualty and he let out a small gasp. Tomo and Jared followed suit and knelt beside Shannon. The figure was female, she had long, flaming artifcial-red hair that had sprawled like thin branches over her pale face. She was dressed in a black hoodie and the wrist that was exposed had been covered in red ink. Jared let out a small cry of suprise as he looked at the symbols on her wrist. They were unmistakable and unique. four seperate shapes; an entwined 'M' and 'W', a hollow Cricle with two branches coming off of the opposite sides, three Identical lines evenly spaced apart and lastley another hollow circle with two dots orbiting it.
"Oh...", whisperd Jared. Along her back the symbols were repeated under a large red triangle with a horizontal line running through the middle and underneath that were the words '30 seconds to mars'
Tomo leant forward and placed his ear against the girls large over-head headphones.
"Wow", he said, "...er, you may want to listen...", The two brothers obeyed and one after the other placed their heads against the large disks still emmiting music. Jared felt a constriction in his stomach as an oh-so familiar voice blared words from the headphones.
"We were the kings and Queens of promise..."
"I wonder where she could have been going? But hey, Jay, at least we aren't the only ones late!", Shannon gave a small smile to his sibling who reterned a fierce look
"She's breathing", Tomo yelled before Jared could reprimand his older sibling
"Oh, thank god.", Jared breathed. It was Shannon's tap on the shoulder that made him turn to the young girls face in time to see her eye's flicker open. She groaned slightly and looked as though she was about to move, "Shhhh, it's all right, just stay down" Jared said softly as he stroked her forhead.
"Wha- What happend...? Who are you...? What?", She looked completely disorianted, her eye's misty and unfocused
"It's okay", He soothed. Something seemed to register suddenly in the girl's eyes as they widened, something inate and powerful as though seeing her mother clearly for the first time. She could not speak and meerly resorted to having her mouth wide open and jabbering incomprehensible words until finaly:
"J-Jared!", She spluttered, "Jared Leto!", The man she was refering to's lips twitched before nodding, Shannon rolled his eyes as the girl continued to look as though she was in the presence of God himself. "Shannon, Tomo!" She continued, following the band and giving an excited grin to each member. "What the - did I die? I am in heaven?", Tomo chuckled at her comment.
"No, you are most certainly alive, quite luckily though... I mean you were hit by a gigantic tour bus."
"Hang on!", Jared sudden exclamined and every one turned to look at him, "Stop the small talk, someone phone an Ambulance!" as he reached for his beloved blackberry, stroking it lovingly before typeing 911 into the keypad. His expression changed to confussion as he held the device to his ears for a few seconds, "what -?"
"We're in the U.K genius, it's 999!", Shannon grinned
"oh...", Jared replied sheepishly
"No! I'm fine, really... I am, I don't need an Ambulance.", The girl said, sitting upright, "Besides, don't you guys have somewhere to be?" She gave a grin, after all she wanted to be there too and how was she suppose to do that sitting in a hospital ward? After all she really did feel ok, only a slight pain in her abdomen and grazed skin.
"Whats you name?", Tomo asked her, suddenly realsing that this vital piece of information was missing
"Sarah, Sarah James"
"I tell you what Sarah, why don't you come into the tour bus and let John patch you up", suggested Jared, inclining his head to the driver of the vehicle, "I'll phone Emma and explian what happened, I'm sure the guys in the arena will understand and that they'll wait for us...", His voice sounded pleading, hoping that they would.
"Oh, yeah", Said Shannon sarcastically as he helped Sarah to her feet "'Cause they were just about to replace us with cardboard cut-out's and a backing CD"
"Well, actually, as long as Jared's one drastically changes it's hairstyle half-way through the show, then I don't think that the Echelon would notice", Grinned Tomo, giving Jared a playful clap on the back and ruffled his hair. Sarah tried, but failed, to conceal a laugh, "So what IS his natural hair colour, Shann?" Tomo finnished with a mock expression of trying to concentrate really hard
"Ah, Tomo my boy, that is one of the great mysteries of the universe... I don't even think our dear mother knows"
"Ha ha ha, hillarious", Jared mocked, "My slightly inconsistant hair-styles aside-" Jared 's last quote was too much for Shannon who gave out a bark of laughter
"'Slightly inconsistant hair-styles'! Jared Your like that flaming person off Harry Potter who can change appearances just by thinking about it, mate! I'm sure that you have your hair salon on speed dail" The three laughed and even Jared smirked seeing as it was fruitless to defend himself.
"Yeah, I saw him googling all the hair salons around the U.K before we left, just in case he got the urge..." Tomo said, none too quitely into sarah's ear, with a hand over his mouth purely for effect as Jared could obviously hear him. "Seriously, come on, into the tour bus Sarah" Jared sighed when the hyena's had finally shut up as he aided her with Shannon's help up the steep steps which lead into the suptuously furninshed bus.
"Welcome to home!" Tomo exclaimed dramatically with his arms wide open as he sank into a squashy settee. Shannon and Jared helped Sarah onto one of the chairs where John was waiting with a first aid kit.
Luckily she didn't have many injuries and John just cleaned a few wounds and applied some dressings, she could walk and was just a little shaky on her feet.
"Are you sure your ok?", Jared asked, raking her face with concerned eyes
"I'm Fine Jared, really I am", Jared nodded to John who went to the driver's compartment and after a few seconds the bus roared into life.
The journey wasn't too long, or at least it didn't seem it as it was filled with so many laughs. Of course they disscused the band, Sarah was eager to hear it. This was to be her first concert, the first music concert she had ever been to in her life, but she had heard so much about Thrity Seconds To Mar's live shows. Every one she had spoken to on the internet or otherwise always raved about how unique their concerts were: Jared's unfaliable energy and the emotion which he pours into his songs and speeches, Shannon's infamous passion and how he seem's to lose himself in the moment and go crazy with his drums - even breaking sticks, Tomo's infectious performances his endearing laugh and glint in his eye and who could forget the time he dressed as a bush?
The boys had offered Sarah to be their special guest for the concert, they had nearly killed her so felt obliged to do so. She had pounced in them thanking them greatly. She could not belive it, here she was in Thirty Seconds To Mar's tour bus with the band and now she would be able to go backstage and watch the concert from backstage. She was the luckiestgirl alive at that moment in time, or atleast she felt it.
It was a hectic rush as the tour bus stopped outside the back entrance of the Cardiff International Arena. Emma, Jared's PA rushed into the tourbus a worried expression on her face demanding to know whether they were all okay. A paramedic gave Sarah a quick check-over and gave her the all clear. Finally, they stepped out. Jared threw his arms open and breathed deeply, looking more alive than he ever had on the tour bus. Sarah could hear the buzz and shouts of the Echelon even from outside it made her inners consrict with excitment. Shannon obtained a pass from a security gaurd and placed it around Sarah's neck as they head to the dressing room. There was not much time for the boys to change or relax, they had five minutes.
"Ah, well little bro, looks like it's the 'au narural' look for you tonight... or at least as natural as you can look with a bloody pink mowhawk."
"Pomegrante, Shann, it's Pomegrante!", Jared shook his head. Sarah giggled and wondered whether the brothers ever stopped teasing each other
"Well, it depends how 'au natural", Tomo observed, "I doubt we'd have any complaints if Jared went on stage bollack naked... in fact we'd probably get an oncore", Sarah was now in a fit of uncontrollable laughter
"That is if you could keep the fangirls off of him... you never know Jay, you wanna be careful, you may end up in some random girls basement made to do all kinds of weird stuff, I told you that you should have tonned down Hurricane you've given them ideas! I mean, you don't want to end up being tied to a bed do you?", It was probably Shannon's serious brotherly-like protective manner in which he said these words which made the situation all the more hillarious
"Ah, Shann, you've given me images!", Tommo breathed through laughter. Jared just sat there shaking his head, quite used to these sorts of conversations.
Five minutes of rushed make up applying and costume changes later, a young attractive woman walked into the room and announced
"It's time,"
"Yeah, I think they have waited long enough", Jared replied as he grabbed his guitar and slyly shoved his blackberry into an inside pocket - he did not want it to be alone in the dressing room alone, and cold.
The three Mar's boys walked down a long white corridor, the insane screaming grew louder with each step
"We Want Mars!" The Crowd chanted un unison. Jared turned his head to face Sarah, who was behind them, and winked. He was filled with that pre-show buzz which he loved so much. He told her that she could watch from the side of the stage with Emma, Sarah nodded and took her place while the boys continued to walk behind a large white screen which covered the front of the stage and blocked the ever excited audience from view. The background mucic which had been playing changed to one which Sarah instanty recongnised as escape. The crowd seemed to explode as they heard Jared sing from behind the screen:
'Time to escape The clutches of a name No this is not a game It's just a new beginning I don't believe in fate But the bottom line It's time to pay You know you've got it coming'
At once Jared, the audience and Sarah screamed
'THIS IS WAR'
The large screen fell down while strobe lighting pulsated and shone. The audience screamed, cried and cheered even louder as Jared, Shannon and Tomo were eventually revealed.
They began to play three songs to which Sarah sang and jumped along to. After the final few bars of 'Kings and Queens'
had died away Jared began to speak to his Echelon. Sarah still felt buzzed as lyrics from the most recent song realed in her head
"Is every one having a good time?" Jared asked
"YES!" Screamed the crowd in unison. Jared smiled and decided to tease the crowd a little
"Your Gonna have to be louder than that! I said, Is every one having a good time?"
"YES!" This reply was, if possible, twice as loud as the first. One girl screamed her love to Jared. He gave an endearing smile and laughed before replying
"I love you too! I'm glad your all having a great time cause we are too" Tomo and Shannon whooped at this point, gaining another cheer from the crowd. "Well, guys I'd like to introduce you to someone, she's the reason we're late... even though it was kindda our fault, please give a cheer for Sarah!"
Sarah felt numb, she couldn't believe that Jared was now beckoning her to the stage. Emma smiled and encouraged her to go on. She did so with a mingled feeling of nerves and excitment. The Echelon cheered as she appeared on the stage and walked towards Jared, who placed a perspiring and warm arm around her.
"This is Sarah everyone, and well... we kind of... bumped into her on the way here" Jared gave a nod to Tomo and Shannon who started up the first few bars of 'closer to the edge' "Feel free to sing along" Jared said in her ear over the tumulus roar of the crowd.
"I don't remember one moment I tried to forget,
Lost myself, is it better not said Closer to the Edge"
Soon the music was booming, the crowd were jumping and Jared had leapt into the heart of the crowd leaving Sarag on stage next to Tomo who was dancing with her. Sarah sang along with Jared
"No! No! NO! I will never regret!"
Sarah felt more alive than prehaps she had ever felt in her life. Never had she when she was on her bike all that time ago ridding to this very concert that her night would have ended up like this.
She couldn't help thinking as Jared Screemed "I WILL LIVE MY LIFE!" In to the crowd and as Tomo and Shannon beamed next to her that the most amazing night of her life had only just begun...
There will most likey be a sequel to this. It depends on how much free time I get