Ahggggg…. I feel terrible… I haven't updated in SO LONG. I'M SORRY!!!! But, do not worry, I AM alive! … Sort of. Ish.
Disclaimer: Ha-haaaaa. I own nothing. Well, I own Sakura's attitude, and Ino's colour choices, and Temari's long list of felonies…. But that's about it.
Dedication: To Uchiha-Kirara, because her review made me smile, and made me get off my ass to type this. Also, to All Time Low, for inspiring me. Tee-hee.
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You've got me poppin' champagne…
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They were on stage again.
Tonight we lie awake
Remember how the coffee made us shake on those long drives?
One more long night
Another seven days
Heartbeat racing
The interstate, my home tonight
For one more long night
The light pounding from Hinata's drum, Tenten's fingers dancing gracefully over electric strings, the flashing lights… all of it, all of it made Sakura sing.
From coast to coast, I'll make the most
Of every second I've been giving with this crowd
Without a doubt, you're all I dream about
At night we lie awake
With stories taking us back to
The nights we felt alive
The nights we felt alive
I would've married you in Vegas
And you've given me the chance to say I do
Couldn't make it anymore obvious, could you
Be anymore obvious
I would've married you in Vegas
Had you given me the chance to say I do
Couldn't make it anymore obvious, could you
Be anymore obvious, could you?
"That was Vegas! Hey, Panda, I still like that song best."
Tenten glared at her before answering. "I still don't like that song best. You fail me, Saku. Close it up babe, we've got a single song left."
Temari rolled her eyes towards the ceiling as the audience screamed. It was always part of their performances. Sakura and Tenten were quick to insult each other; Ino was infamous for her colourful and, at points, slutty stage-dress (even more so then usual); Hinata took sides and loved to stand on her drum set, and she, Temari, was known for her love of throwing water bottles (among other things) at the audience.
Of course, in real life, things weren't like that. But they played their differences up, and it worked.
And on the concert went, the crowd screaming for old favourites, or that new single that everyone was talking about, Recovery.
In a box suit, looking down right at the singers, were six boys. They'd been watching the girls for so long, now. At school, when the girls were just goofing off, when they had the guts to sneak into the school and free the frogs, all of it. They were always watching, always watching the females.
"They're lovely." The voice that broke the silence was soft, deep, a ringing baritone. Sasuke Uchiha stared down at center stage, his eyes locked on Sakura.
"Of course they are. You just didn't pay attention to them the first time you met them. And Suigetsu, you weren't even there." Kakashi's voice shattered the silence for a second, and he let the teenage boys mull that over.
"So, now what?" Suigetsu asked, his voice bored. Apparently, none of the girls had caught his attention, despite the lead singer's pink hair, and all of the crazy stage clothes.
"Anko's going to bring them over again, and this time, you'll be pleasant, and try not to insult them, alright? I don't need another episode like last time, where Sasuke wasn't able to speak a single coherent word."
Sasuke glared fiercely. "Screw you, Kakashi. You just want to see the purple-haired chick again."
Kakashi's eyes crinkled and his mouth twitched under the ever-present mask. "Watch, idiots. These girls are pros, and they're known for they're closing songs."
Sakura swept her hair back with a loud laugh. "So guys, I guess this is it, huh? We had sure as hell had fun, and we hope you did too, but if you didn't… shove it up your ass. Anyways, this is gonna be our last song. I'm sure you all know it. Can you say 'tick-tick-tick-it-away' with me?!"
The crowd screamed along with her, and Tenten played the intro cords to 'Time Bomb'. The whole stadium was rolling with the well-known music, the flashing lights and the crowd's seething excitement.
And, as the song ended, Sakura screamed into the mic, and flipped her hair back for the hundred-thousandth time that night. "Goodnight Konoha, we are Konstantine, signing off."
Then the stage went black.
Karin came on, and dragged the nearly-dead Sakura off-stage, then came back for Temari and Tenten. Hinata was pulling Ino off-stage, and, as they got out of there, the lights started to come back stage.
Hinata peeked out, and looked at the quickly-emptying stage. She sighed in relief. "So girlies, shall we go home?"
"Yes ma'am. Let's get the fuck outta here before I fall over in exhaustion." Temari was unhappy with this situation. "Are we taking the sedan again?"
"Of course." Anko's voice issued from a corner. "Good work girls, that was one of your best concerts as of yet." She paused. "Although, there are some fans who have back-stage tickets, and you'll have to attend to them right away. They did pay, after all."
Ino, Tenten, and Temari all groaned at the same time. Hinata dropped her head into her hands and shuddered. Sakura and Karin both looked positively terrified. The entire group started speaking at once.
"Oh, come on Anko, one skipped night won't hurt…"
"Please, please, please don't make us do this, not right now."
"No Anko, no, no, no I won't, I won't, I won't, won't, won't, deal with stupid people right now. We are exhausted. EXHAUSTED."
"Give 'em a break Anko, we all need sleep."
But it was Temari's voice, lower and gravely, that worked it's way through the cacophony to change Anko's mind. "Anko, darling, the next person who pisses me off will have a brass knuckle shoved into their face. It's not a good idea to antagonize a PSM-ing teenager."
Anko sighed. "Just for fifteen minutes, and I won't schedule a concert for the next month and a half. And if there's anyone who creeps you, or stares too openly, I'll let you out early."
The girls conferred quickly for a few moments, and then Hinata (the only one who wasn't steaming mad right at that moment) spoke.
"Two months, and you have yourself a deal. Let us be normal for two months, Anko, and we're up for it."
Anko didn't even think. "Deal. Come on, they're back here." Anko pushed them into the back room, big enough to hold twenty-five people comfortably. She addressed the people in the room, all of whom were staring avidly. "He-llo there, I'm Anko, and I'm Konstantine's manager. The girls are right behind me, but you all know the rules. No creeping, no awe-stricken stares, no touching them when they don't want it. It was all in the flyers you signed before the guards let you in."
The guards at the doors shifted imperceptibly at the mention of themselves. Their job that night was to make sure that Sakura and the girls never felt uncomfortable for a single second.
So, in the girls walked. Dressed as they usually were on stage, torn fishnets and all, they stood and glowered at the fans. Well, Temari and Sakura glowered. The other three plus Karin, who had become an unofficial member of the band very quickly, tried to put happy faces on.
It wasn't working so well.
And so Karin took charge. "Well. Hi people. I'm Karin Fukumoto, and I'm a… I dunno, Hina, what would you call me? A roadie?"
Hinata nodded.
Karin continued. "So I guess I'm the roadie then. That means I take care of everything except the singing and the playing of the music. Anko's just there to take the credit for all my hard work. I suppose I should do introductions, but I'm too lazy, and frankly, you're all obsessive-compulsive about my friends, so, you probably know who you want to talk to." She moved out of the way. "Go ahead and talk to them."
The people surged forward, and Ino squeaked in terror. She had always been terrified of being caught in crowds. Tenten gripped her wrist so hard it hurt, and then, of course, they were saved.
The bodyguards jumped in front of the wave of people, and warned them to back off, using hard plastic bats as a barrier. Sakura sighed in relief, but gulped in terror as the guards moved off.
The look in the fan's eyes could be described as 'hungry'. But Sakura decided that 'hungry' was over-rated. The fans looked like they were about to jump on the girls and chomp on them.
It was more then slightly scary.
Ten minutes passed, and the crowd had branched off into little lines, each person wanting to speak to a specific girl for a specific reason. The line for Sakura was longest, as she refused to speak to even one of them. She was in no mood for fake talking-shit.
Hinata quickly butted in when she saw how Sakura was faring. "Hi, I'm sorry, Sakura's up past her bedtime."
Sakura shot her a death glare and Hinata stared coolly back at her. A little group had formed around them, enthralled with the off-stage interaction. It wasn't often a non-band member saw Hinata angry. All that that meant was that they were going to be in for the shock of their lives.
Hinata's voice dropped to a whisper laced with well-placed annoyance. She was pleased that the temperature in the room felt like it dropped a thousand degrees. Her voice sounded dead and cold to her own ears, and Sakura gulped (it was fake; Hinata never scared her anymore, and while the band and Karin knew that, no one else needed to know it). "I will not tolerate this. Yes, we made Anko a deal, but-"
And then the timer Temari had quickly set on her phone went off, and she and Tenten and Karin whisked the girls out of the room.
As soon as they were free, Hinata sighed happily. "Sorry Saku, I didn't mean to take out my bitchiness on you."
Sakura waved her off. "Sunny, you don't scare me anymore, how many times do I have to tell you? You don't scare me anymore. Ino scares me, when she's on one of her girly-trips. Then we need to neutralize her."
Hinata nodded, just as Anko came around with the sedan. "Get in girls, you have school tomorrow. They've lifted the ban on the school, and they finally managed to get all the frogs out. So, we'll be having a little talk when we get home."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"I'm glad you girls know whose boss. Would you hurry up and get in?! I hate it when you're exposed to the world at large." Anko muttered nervously. The limo was leaving in three… two… one….
And so they did, the six of them. Karin slid in last, and slammed the door shut, just as Anko was about to speed off towards their destination.
Home.
