Sebastian tilted his head sloppily to the side, black hair sweaty sweet falling over his eyes like wet curtains. The brown bottle in his hand was a comfortable added weight, and even though it had been empty for a while now he couldn't seem to put it down. His makeup had hardened to dark tears, and his fingers were still tingling from the added sexual vibrations of his guitar. He groaned slightly, the bus hitting a pothole in the road and making his head bump up against the cold plate glass window. The streetlights zoomed past in a blur, the city lights fading to dark before replaced by rolling dark tree covered hills. The comforting view would never last long, before the buzzing of city nightlife found its way back. Mey-rin was sound asleep, eyes shut tight in a shy drunken stupor as she rested her head against Bard's shoulder. Finnian was curled up pathetically in the back, his head resting against a pillow, as the leather of his jacket became a blanket. Bard's cigarette had long since gone out, but it still hung limply from his sleeping lips. No one but Sebastian and their driver was awake, and the only noises were the engine and the taxi cars muffled voices against the wind.
"That was some show tonight." The driver's rough voice sounded, dripping with cheap plastic energy drinks and cigarettes. Sebastian sighed silently, nodding although he knew the driver couldn't see.
"Yeah." His voice was hoarse, sleep thick and slimy on his tongue. There was a moment of awkward silence, both males not really in the mood to talk, but wanting something to do until they were too tired to do anything at all.
"How long you been playin' gee-tar?"
"A while."
Sebastian turned his head slightly to the side, Ciel's relaxed form pressed shyly against his bicep. He smiled slightly as he watched the man's chest rise and fall, deep in the blanket of sleep. He blocked the driver's voice out, now solely concentrating on the small body beside him. Slowly, so he wouldn't wake him, Sebastian removed his arm from between the two of them to hook it gingerly around Ciel's slender shoulders. The other male stirred slightly but soon softened into the modest embrace, head swooping down to gently rest on Sebastian's black clothed shoulder. It was only at this moment that Sebastian's eyes softened considerably, displaying such an intense weakness and loving care that no one would be able to recognize the suave, tough, lead guitarist. With a content sigh Sebastian rested his head against the top of Ciel's, whose hair was as soft as white feather down. The bus jostled slightly again, and Sebastian instinctively tightened his hold on Ciel. How long has it been since he had felt so content? So at peace? With a darkening tint of his eyes, and the smile fading from his lips, he tried to desperately force himself to not remember. He already knew the answer for himself. This moment, right here, right now, was the first time in his whole twenty-four years of living that he had felt this content. So why ruin the moment with remembering, anyway?
The man was tall, maybe a bit taller than Sebastian, but not by much. He was always dressed well, clothes ironed, shoes polished, glasses perfectly entered on his nose. Most would call him a "dignified cutie", though Sebastian himself could never stop chuckling whenever he saw how anal this man always was. It was safe to say, in the very least, that Sebastian and this man hated each other. Although, what could Sebastian really do anyway? He defiantly couldn't chase away their best manager after all…
"I think we need to change the name." The conversation stopped mid-rant, and the band members all turned their heads unbelieving toward the tall spectacle wearing man who stood near the recording room door. He turned his eyes away from rolling up his white collared shirt's crisp sleeves to meet the band's gaze. The silence that followed was as thick as the cigarette smoke that floundered through the air. Finnian wiped the back of his palm over his damp forehead, his short hair being pushed back messily due to the effort.
"Change our name?" He echoed, voice confused and tired.
"Why?" Mey-rin questioned, leaning over to better see their manager. "Our name is fine, yes! Why don't you like it, Claude?" The dark haired man clicked his tongue warningly like a snake, and turned his gaze to where Sebastian and Ciel were lounging near the beige tattered wall. The raven-haired man didn't even seem to be listening, just re-tuning his guitar by plucking out a few random cords, his boots laces unraveled and looping tired around the cords on the floor. Ciel was in the same sleepy trance, eyes bored and unfocused as he stared unseeing forward.
"It just sounds childish to me." Claude murmured, making his way slowly over to where the two men sat. Bard followed his walk wearily, dreading what would happen if another fight broke out. They were being charged by the hour after all.
"Sebastian." Their manager stated calmly, and the black clothed man's fingers hovered interrupted over his instrument's steel strings. Ciel seemed to snap out of his funk as well, blue gaze peeking annoyed under ebony dark lashes.
"Claude." Sebastian nodded, smirk tugging mockingly angry with the corners of his lips. "What do you want?" Claude's glasses glistened as his head tilted slightly, the florescent lights above giving the gelled locks a violet sheen.
"I want to change the name." Sebastian cocked an eyebrow, grin turning dangerously at the unannounced challenge mixed in with his manager's words. Mey-rin shifted uncomfortable in the plastic lounge chair, already scared about what was inevitably going to come.
"Why do you want to change the name, Claude?" Sebastian was speaking slowly, like how a teacher would talk to pre-schooler. Slow… mocking… demeaning.
"'Faustian Contract'? Doesn't that sound…" Claude locked his cool amber eyes with Sebastian's playful magenta ones, "Juvenile?" Sebastian's eyes flashed and he let out a slow chuckle.
"I'm not sure, Claude. I never thought of playing with devils to be juvenile. But," Sebastian's nails scraped against the strings of the guitar, a strange ringing noise filling the studio. "It's your call isn't it? I couldn't give a shit about what you want to call us. Just make sure that the name doesn't sound like we've got a stick up our ass's." The only sound was Sebastian's nails against his instrument, eerie and dismissive as Claude's cold gaze burned into the side of his head. Ciel's eyes followed Sebastian's fingers, his mind spinning into its earlier trance. Sebastian and Claude's conversation's always amused him; he was always half expecting Sebastian to smash his guitar into the neat man's head shattering glasses and all.
Claude turned then, signaling for the sound mixer to turn of the mic for a short minute while he listened over the previous played track. As the manager swirled to leave though, he sent Ciel a provocative smirk, one that everyone missed but Sebastian. His instrument soon popped a string.
WOAH! I really have taken my time with uploading this...