I appreciate all of the reviews (◡‿◡✿)
Jack
"Avoir, Paris! You've been amazing tonight. See you soon!" I took one last look at the thousands of screaming fans. It was literally a sea of people – who were mostly girls – with flickering lights from cameras or one of those lighters that you sometimes see at concerts. The noise was deafening, but I was thankful for my sound-proof ear buds that prevented my eardrums from bursting. I waved to the crowd as I trekked to the backstage, with one hand securely holding onto my guitar.
"We love you, guys!" I heard Hiccup shout out, and then, "Merci beaucoup!" from Kristoff, before four of us finally rejoined behind the gigantic curtains.
"Oh yeah! Nice job, everyone." Flynn hooked his arm around me and Hiccup's necks and brought us into a friendly huddle, and Kristoff stood in front, smiling brightly. We could only spare a few seconds for a little rejoicing until Bunny, flanked by our manager, Nicholas (whom we like to call North), approached us hastily. We were immediately surrounded by at least two buff bodyguards as Bunny gestured for us to follow him.
"C'mon, mates," he said. "We gotta get you into the tour bus safely."
"Can we at least meet some of our fans?" Flynn asked.
"There's no time for that." Bunny guided us to the large, sleek bus that was all black, even the windows were tinted so that nobody could see in, but we could see out. As we made it outside into the cool night air, screams chorused exactly to my left. I looked over and saw a small group of teenage girls. I was very impressed; these girls managed to escape that immense crowd and make it here. They even found our tour bus. The girls called out all of our names, and I perked up as they desperately shouted for me.
"Hold on," I said and walked out of the group. I ignored Bunny's agitated calls for me to come back and advanced to the girls, putting on my best smile yet. Before I knew it, the other guys were following my footsteps, which made the fans squirm even more in excitement.
"Jack, I love you!" The nearest girl to me said in a thick French accent. I always loved my foreign fans. Not only were they incredible, but they went their way to learn some English, for Zero Hero. "Can I get a picture with you?"
"Of course." I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and smiled for the selfie that she was taking with her iPhone. When she was done, she said, "Thank you!" and moved away. Another girl quickly filled her spot and asked if I could sign her shirt. I happily obliged and, with the Sharpie pen that she handed me, signed the back shoulder of her Zero Hero shirt. It was probably bought at the merchandise booth. Damn, those things are really expensive. I heard it was about $40 for one shirt. Ridiculous.
After fulfilling the desires of either selfie photos or autographs for the other girls, a bodyguard gently took hold of me and accompanied me to the bus. I was aware of the complaints being given off by fans that had just arrived and didn't get the chance to meet me or the guys, and I wanted to go back, but I was already being shoved onboard. I shrugged it off and went to my seat; Hiccup sat next to me, directly beside the window, while Kristoff and Flynn settled down across from us.
Bunny and North were last to get on, and then the bus began rolling forward. Bunny stood in the aisle with a hand gripped onto a seat to keep balance. He stared us down, hard. I thought he was going to lose his cool for what happened back there.
"Don't ever do that again," he said, looking specifically at me.
"Do what?" I blurted out, but I knew that was a mistake.
"Don't play stupid," he retorted. "I told you not to go out and meet fans, but what did you do? Ah, yes, you went and disobeyed me."
"But we wanted to meet them," Flynn intercepted.
"Yeah, we didn't want them thinking that were we conceited jerks." Hiccup said, taking a sip from a random water bottle.
"We love our fans, Bunny." I piped up. "They're the foundation to our whole career. If it weren't for them, we would be nothing. Sure, the fame and fortune is nice,"
"Not the paparazzi." Kristoff said as he rolled his eyes.
I laughed. "Yeah, except that, but our fans deliberately took interest in us. Those people truly love us with their heart and soul. That's why I think you should at least have the decency to let us meet them, and maybe even make someone's day."
Bunny opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Instead, North said, "He's right, you know. Leave the lads be, Aster. They just finished a series of concerts all over – well, most of – Europe. They deserve congratulations, not chastising." We all looked at Bunny, waiting for his response.
He sighed, and I could see his muscles release of tension. "Alright, alright." And with that, he plopped down in a seat away from us and put the headphones to his phone over his ears. North stood up and traveled down the aisle to meet us.
"Okay, boys," he said. "Good job with the concert. I think it's safe to say that it was, yet another, success." We all whooped and high-fived or fist-bumped, and North chuckled to our childish mirth. "Well, as you know, we're currently driving to the airport for your flight to San Diego."
"Ah, yes!" Hiccup grinned. "Did they pick the winner yet?"
"They did, actually. I just got notified." North was scrolling through his phone.
"Who is it? Please tell me it's a hot girl." Flynn said, and I threw an empty water bottle at him. He ended up cracking a smile and flinging the bottle back at me.
"I have no idea," North said. "But just remember to be on your best behavior, which I know you are. For most of the time."
The drive was about twenty minutes since the airport was fairly close. We took one private jet that was enough to fit the four of us, plus Bunny and North. The airport grounds were unusually free of any fans, but then again, they were restricted from coming anywhere near. All of us hopped onto the plane and we took off into the sky like birds migrating. I sat in one of those comfy, first-class worthy chairs, right in front of Flynn (we switched off who we sit next to every time). Kristoff and Hiccup kept each other company to our right, across the aisle.
"How long's the flight?" Flynn asked.
"Ten hours, give or take." I responded, looking back at the flight attendant who was making her way to us. She was a young brunette; attractive, to say the least. Flynn groaned and slumped his head against the window. In a matter of seconds, he was knocked out, snoring softly to the rumble of the plane's engine. I sank lower into my seat for a comfortable position with my hands folded atop my stomach, and as the flight attendant came by, I asked for a small glass of champagne.
I took a sip of the bubbly liquid; it slithered over my taste buds in a bittersweet kind of way. After a while, I drained the entire glass, and I felt slightly light-headed. I decided a nap would be great, but here's the thing, I can only fall asleep to music. Now, that doesn't count at night because I'm usually tired enough to just drop down and sleep. But for a nap, it's different. I reached into the bag at my feet and pulled out my iPod and headphones. I slipped the thing on and shuffled through my playlist. I settled for the theme song of my favorite anime. What? Don't judge me. I happen to like anime. I allowed the sweet chords to soothe me into sleep.
I don't know when, but apparently we arrived in San Diego as I woke up. I looked out of the window and the sky was dark, glowing with the city lights from below. I had no idea if it was nighttime or early in the morning, so I glanced at my iPod's clock: 4:05 AM. Okay, it was close to dawn, then. The jet descended lower and lower, until I could make out the city of San Diego. Lights from buildings and street posts beamed while cars zipped to and fro on the busy highways.
The jet landed on the lightened-up pathway, jiggling the rest of the guys awake.
"What?" Flynn stretched and looked out, yawning. "Where are we?"
"San Diego." I said, giving him a small smile. We got out of the plan one at a time; our suitcases were to be distributed to our hotel since it was a lot to take in at once. To my horror, the paparazzi were right outside, awaiting our arrival. I lead the group with the others in a single file behind me. The paparazzi were almost like mosquitoes, except they didn't suck blood, but I would take that over the nuisance that they were any day.
We made a beeline for the airport; it was the only way to the front where our van was located. I entered the building with the others close behind, and the paparazzi were – as always – persistent. They followed us through and through, snapping their flashy cameras and obnoxiously yelling for our attention. One even tried to touch me, but luckily the bodyguard was there to smack him away before I did something risky.
Deeper into the airport, a horde of fans were waiting for us. They erupted into an excited frenzy, but were pushed back by a series of bodyguards and police officers. Just looking at the desperation and happiness on these girls' faces made me feel bad for not going up and meeting them, but I didn't want Bunny scolding me again. Plus, we were short on time.
"Jack, Jack!"
"I love you!"
"Marry me, Flynn!"
I looked up and shot a smile at all of the fans, waving as well. "You hear that, Jack?" Flynn came up close to my side. "That girl wanted to marry me."
"You get that all of the time," I scoffed. "Hell, we all get that." But honestly, I enjoyed it. Even though I won't be able to marry all of them, it was still a nice thought. We made it back outside where a large, dark-tinted van was parked. I always wondered why every vehicle we rode in was dark, with the exception of airplanes. It seemed very mysterious to me. The door slid open and after we all piled in, the chauffeur drove forward so quickly that I nearly fell over.
"Okay, our hotel should be just around the corner." North said. "Now be aware, there probably will be fans there. Feel free to meet them and whatnot."
"What if they try stealing my underwear?" Hiccup asked, frowning. We all snickered, even Bunny who was, once again, moping. That was definitely a funny time. A year or two ago, while on tour, Hiccup had his underwear stolen by some deranged fan. It was his only pain, believe it or not. So Kristoff allowed him to borrow one of his, which was a size too big.
"We'll make sure that won't happen again." North said with a grin. "Oh, and if they get too out of hand, the bodyguards will be there, no worries."
"Whoa wait, will they come into our hotel rooms?" I asked.
"Of course not. They're only there when you need them," he replied, stroking his white beard. We reached the hotel a few minutes later to the sound of muffled screaming outside. As the door opened, I realized that not only was there screaming, but also singing. The fans were chorusing together and singing one of our songs, which I think was Voodoo Doll. North lead the group this time, through the automatic doors and straight to the elevators. The fans followed us and I paused briefly to pose in a picture or sign an autograph.
"Hey, guys," I waved my hands for them to quiet down. "It's so nice to see you, but do you think you could wait later? We have to get settled into our rooms."
"Sure, Jack!" One girl said, and the rest agreed. I thanked them with a kind smile and wave, and bounded up to Kristoff who lingered behind to wait for me. We eventually caught up with the others in the elevator.
"Man, those girls acted like you were a king or something." Kristoff said, exhaling a large breath.
"Basically, I am. And so are you guys. We're all kings here." I smiled, but mostly to myself. We reached the seventh out of twenty-something floors. Yes, it was a huge hotel: one of those suites that came with an international breakfast buffet and a hot tub in almost every room. Well, we won't be able to eat in the dining hall where every guest goes because of 'risks', as North would say.
"Alright," Bunny said as we stopped at room 478. Not only was it at the end of the hallway, but it also was across from a couple vending machines. "This is where you guys will be staying for the next week. There are two beds, for your information, so you fight over who sleeps with who. And no, that's not what I meant." Flynn laughed and Hiccup ended up cuffing him on the arm.
"If you have any questions, by all means, ask them away." North said.
"Can we attend Comic-Con?" Hiccup asked.
"If you want to get stampeded by hordes of people who might recognize you, then sure, go ahead." Bunny spoke up.
"But what if we wear costumes?" Kristoff winged out the question.
"Look, you won't have time to attend. You can try, but I doubt it," said Bunny.
"How about the contestant, when do they arrive?" I said, changing the subject.
"In a few days, I do believe. Until they come, you guys will just enjoy yourselves," said North.
"For real? We can go out and do anything?" Flynn asked, a devilish spark gleaming in his eye.
"Well, not anything..." North looked unsure. "But if you do choose to go out, disguise yourself. You can wear a Spider-Man mask for all I care. We don't want the paparazzi or an army of fans after you, am I right?" We all nodded and he grinned. "Now, you guys should get settled in. Bunny and I will just be down the hall. Here's the key card." He grabbed my hand and placed the card within.
"And your luggage should be here momentarily." Bunny added before they both turned around and trudged down the hall. As they melted out of sight, I swiped the card along the doorknob and pushed it open. Almost immediately, the other three rushed in, with Flynn yelling, "I call this bed!"
I've slept in hotel rooms and on the tour bus with these three, but let me tell you, it's like rooming with animals. Flynn and Hiccup were usually the wild ones, while Kristoff was more like me: calm and rather stoic. But we all along really well and that's all that matters. Let's just hope I can make it through this week.