Jace POV
"And may I present to you, the winners of the Semi-Annual Undiscovered Rockers Competition, The Fallen!" Luke's voice rings in my ears as I watch from the sidelines of the stage, waiting for Jordan and the rest of the guys to go on the stage before I make my 'entrance'. Clary is stood beside me loyally, her shoulder brushing my arm and a protective glare set on her face in the direction of the large band of teenage-girls behind us.
Shall I explain? I think that I shall.
We are presently at Pandemonium, waiting for Luke to finish 'announcing' us, or whatever the hell his job is, so that the guys and I can finally get on the stage and get this thing over with. We have been here all night; well, since 7:45pm. And it's almost 10:00pm right now! Clary is standing loyally by my side, one of her small hands wrapped around my wrist and a stubborn glare set on her face in the direction of the relatively large group of girls who are staring at me off to the side of where we're standing.
I know right? When aren't girls staring at me, but this is really too much…
Ever since we arrived at the club, girls from the other bands who are performing tonight have been swarming us like bees. They have been following us like hawks and prey- not that the other guys seem to mind, but you know… Usually I wouldn't give a shit if girls were fawning over me, since they seem to do so daily, but today feels different. I have been thinking this over the entire night, and I think that I have finally come to a conclusion of as to why I don't want girls flirting with me tonight.
Clary's here.
I just don't really want other people flirting with me in front of her, for some reason. I feel like I'm betraying her or something like that. I just really, truly don't know.
As I scan the small crowd of girls behind me, I spot a head of black hair that makes my skin crawl. Her brown eyes glint dangerously and she smirks over at me, waving her fingers at me mockingly. Her skirt has ridden up to her thighs and her long, glossy hair is pulled up into a tight bun, making her appear as a clone of none other than my ex-girlfriend; Kaelie. Y'know, if you subtract the color of her eyes and hair…
Shuddering, I blow out a breath and shake my head, taking a step forward as I notice the rest of the guys make as to move on stage. Luke comes barreling through the small gap that is between the large curtain and the stage and grins, slapping me on the back good-naturedly as he does.
"Break a leg, Kid." He tells me, before wandering over to his seat on the side of the stage. I nod slightly and start making my way fully out onto the large flat-lay, glancing back behind me at Clary as I do so. She gives me an encouraging smile and nods her head in my direction, her bottom-lip drawn in between her teeth as she does. I grin back at her before swinging around to face the audience, shaking myself of the odd feeling I got when I saw her lips. The hell-? Focus!
"How are you all doing tonight? Good? Great! Well, as our buddy Luke said, we're The Fallen and this is Crooked Smiles by Framing Hanley!" I exclaim, satisfied by the loud response I get from the crowd. I nod my head in Jon's direction and count down quietly, bringing my mic up to my lips in preparation for the oncoming song.
One hour earlier…
I look around me, taking note of the previous band finishing up their performance. Stage-lights and mediocrely sung song-lyrics blare around me, creating the aroma that only comes with being smack-dab in the middle of the mosh-pit. Yes, I am standing in the midst of the crowd in Pandemonium. Sue me.
The guys and Clary are all standing around me, most likely taking in the competition that we will have to compete with tonight. I should probably be doing the same thing, but I just can't keep my focus off of the ceiling. I'm extremely bored. There, I said it.
The competition/gig started about fifteen minutes ago, and I already want to kill myself. Yes, the music is that bad. Naturally, I'm a cocky bastard, but I seriously think that we could destroy the competition tonight. Without even trying, might I add. My ears are literally bleeding, the current band sounds so bad.
Clary's arm brushes mine and I glance down at her, catching a glimpse of her bright smile through the flashes of light coming from the stage. I grin down at her, all other thoughts forgotten because of her smile, and lace our fingers together. She gives my hand a squeeze, causing me to give one in return, before turning back to face the stage.
Taking her actions as a sign, I turn my attention towards the stage too. I see the current band finish up their 'song', thank god, and watch with slight interest as Luke waltzes back up onto the stage with a mic in hand. Chuckling sheepishly into said mic, he waves the band, which has just finished performing, off of the stage and looks out into the large crowd.
"Well… that was… interesting." He states, wincing slightly as he speaks. "So, give it up for," he pauses to read something off of a clipboard in his hand that isn't holding his mic, "um, The Apple Crutches." He finishes, blinking up at the crowd and biting his lip as a few claps sound through the relatively quiet club. Scratching the back of his neck and wincing again, he carries on with his announcement. "Anyways, let's continue with tonight's competition, shall we? Please welcome with me, The Hallowed Grounds!" and with that, the crowd erupts into applause as Luke makes his exit. Another band swarms onto the stage, taking their positions and plugging in their instruments.
I hear a soft gasp come from my elbow and divert my eyes to where the sound came from, seeing Clary's wide eyes and pale face when I do. She has her hand that isn't clasped in mine covering her mouth and is squeezing my hand in hers with a death-grip, causing me to look down at her with concern. I place my free hand on her cheek and turn her face towards me, so that her eyes meet mine.
"What's wrong, Clare?!" I ask urgently, not liking the dreadful look on her beautiful face. She shakes her head and flickers her eyes over to the stage once more, causing them to become even wider than they already are.
"Simon." She breathes quietly; almost too quiet for me to catch. Luckily though, I do and I furrow my brows in confusion immediately after.
"Rat-boy? What does he have to do with anything?" I inquire confusedly, raising an eyebrow down at her in question. She shakes her head more fiercely, causing my hand to fall from its place on her cheek, and removes her hand from her mouth to point in the direction of the stage.
"Simon! What is he doing up there? That's not his band!" she exclaims, causing me to look over at the stage in confusion. I open my mouth to ask what exactly she's talking about, but the words die on my lips as I look closer at the band who has just taken occupancy of the stage.
Standing there, right next to a girl with black hair and a skimpy outfit, is Rat-boy- I mean Simon. He has one of his normal nerdy T-shirts on, a black bass slung over his shoulders, and has his trademark glasses perched crookedly on the bridge of his nose, but there is something different about him. It's most likely the fact that there's a hot chick standing not even ten feet away from him and she doesn't look like she's about to throw up. What has the world come to? Rat resembling nerds standing by hot chicks? Ice-cream being served at a lukewarm temperature?
"Si- What the- Huh?" I stutter out, my eyes growing wide and my entire being slacking with confusion. Why the fuck is Lewis on the stage? Isn't there a law of some kind that prevents idiots like him to do that-?
"What is he doing up there? That's not even his band!" Clary says loudly, repeating her earlier statement, though her voice is drowned out by the volume of the crowd as they cheer for the band that is about to perform. I just shrug and stare dumbly at the stage, still not comprehending just what the hell Rat-boy is doing at one of our gigs.
He hasn't even come to any of our practices, and now he's performing at one of our gigs? Like, what the hell? This is bullshit!
"Hey, guys. We're The Hallowed Grounds and this is Lonely Girl by Tonight Alive." The girl with black hair says into her mic, winking at some random dude up at the front of the crowd. Clary and I quiet down and watch as the drummer starts to beat off and as the rest of the people on the stage start to play their individual instruments. Shit! They're actually good!
I look closer at the girl and notice that she looks familiar. I curse under my breath when the realization hits me like a semi-truck and spin around to find Seb, spotting him not even five-feet behind me. I make my way over to his gawking form and stand by his side, nudging him with my elbow when he fails to notice my presence.
"Wha- huh?" he mumbles distractedly, his eyes wandering back to the stage after a brief glance in my direction. I sigh in frustration and grab his shoulders, turning him forcefully to face me.
"Dude! Why the hell is your cousin up there? You never told us that she was even in a band!" I exclaim, shaking him slightly to get my point across. He yanks himself out of my grasp and shrugs, an incredulous scowl plastered onto his face as he runs a hand through his dark hair.
"I have no fucking clue, Dude! I didn't even know Aline was in a band! Let alone with Lewis!" he yells to me over the loud music coming from the stage. I turn my face up to the ceiling in despair and close my eyes tightly, continuing to do exactly that until I feel a soft, familiar hand on my forearm. Opening my eyes and turning my head down away from the light-littered ceiling, my eyes clash gold with green.
Clare, is my immediate thought.
"Do you guys know why Simon is playing the bass for Aline's band, who -might I mention- is your ex-girlfriend's 'BFF'?" she asks, throwing a thumb over her shoulder in the direction of the stage casually. Seb and I both shrug down at her, identical expressions of bewilderment crossing our features.
"No clue, Clary. Your guess is as good as any of ours." Seb tells her, biting his lip and flickering his eyes from the stage back down to hers. I nod, but don't get to add my response before someone else joins our group. Namely, that person is Jon.
"Why is your idiot of a best-friend up on the stage, Clary? He's not even up there with his own band! Explain. Now." He demands, an angry glare directed down at her. feeling slightly offended by his first implication and feeling the familiar urge to protect my Clare, I gently grab ahold of her shoulders and maneuver her body so that she's tucked into my side with my arms wrapped around her slight form protectively. That's right. She's my Clare. Mine! She sighs and leans into my chest, causing a warm feeling to ignite in the pit of my stomach and blossom up through all of my veins.
"Hey, Asshole! Her best-friend is standing right here. I can't believe that you would even think of comparing me to that weasel!" I tell him, going on defense for my title of 'Clare's Best-Friend'. I feel her body shake against mine as she laughs and I duck my head down so that my chin is rested on top of her head.
"Okay, so now we're going to do Come Home by Tonight Alive. Enjoy!" Aline says into the mic, causing all of our attentions to go back to the stage momentarily.
I may have forgotten to mention that we have to perform two-to-three songs at tonight's competition/gig. So, if I did forget, we do.
After The Hallowed Grounds, or whatever the hell they call themselves, have started to play again, our group goes back into a huddle and we continue to discuss the situation. I take note that Alec and Jordan have joined our little group sometime while we were watching Aline and Simon's band, meaning that everyone important is here.
"-well that means that you guys will just have to do your best tonight and out-perform them! I called Raphael and he said that he would bring some guys that he knows, who are apparently 'important' in the music business, so you guys have that going for you. Raphael is coming to see you guys; not Aline's band. It's an easy fix, don't stress over it. Okay?" Clary is saying, causing me to tune back into the conversation. All of the guys nod, and I do too just to keep up appearances that I was actually listening to what Clary just said instead of staring off into space, and smile down warmly at the small red-head who is currently still tucked into my arms.
"Alright, Clary. Thanks." The guys all mumble out things similar to this while I just pick up a stray curl from Clare's shoulders and twirl it around my fingers, crimson tendrils winding around smoothly. I lean down so that my lips brush the shell of her ear, causing her to shiver to my satisfaction.
"I don't know what you just said, but thanks also, Clare." I whisper lowly into her ear, taking note smugly of the slight hitch that she gets in her breath as I do. She inhales a shaky breath, causing me to grin wickedly and nuzzle my nose into her hair, and clears her throat before responding.
"Y-you're welcome?" she squeaks out shakily, her statement coming out as a question. I chuckle lowly in her ear and make sure to run my lips over it slightly as I straighten up and turn her around to face me.
"Oh, Clare." I mumble under my breath as I take in her flushed cheeks, a devilish grin stretching my features wider. She shakes her head and blinks, as if coming out of a trance, before blowing out a slow, unsteady breath and glaring at my smug face.
"Douche-canoe." She mutters to herself, her dark-green eyes seeming to turn black under the flashing lights of the stage. I shake my head down at her in amusement as he turns back towards the stage and breathe out another chuckle.
Teasing Clare's just too easy… and fun…
Present time…
"And now we're going to do Everything is Alright by Motion City Soundtrack." I shout into my mic, pumped up by the amount of cheering coming from the crowd. Another wave of screaming the guys' and I's name comes from a relatively large group of girls who are gathered up at the front of the stage rings in my ears as the guys start playing again, and I can't help but laugh out loud at the amount of enthusiasm that we're getting from the crowd.
As I move around the stage, the mic glued to my lips as I blare out lyrics like an expert, I catch sight of Clary standing off to the side of the stage. A wide smile is spread across her features and she is bobbing her head along to the rhythm of the song. I wink at her and give a little nod in her direction as I continue to work the stage, pleased when I see the slight widening of her smile and a small nod towards me from her in response. I let my eyes linger on her for a moment longer as I sing and I detect something in her expression that makes my heartbeat speed up a mile.
Pride. That's pride in her expression. She's proud of us? Of me?
I smile at the thought, before I shake myself out of my trance and force myself to face the crowd again.
"Thank you and goodnight, New York!" I call out into the mic, bowing dramatically before following the rest of the guys off of the stage. Luke smiles at us as he passes us on his way to the stage and I offer him a grin in response. "Always wanted to say that." I mumble to myself as we near the area where we set our stuff down earlier. I look around for Clary, furrowing my brows when I don't spot her res hair.
"Hey, Jon? Have you seen Clare?" I ask him, causing him to raise an eyebrow up at me.
"What do you mean? She's right there-" he starts, but I don't hear the rest of his reply as I am tackled to the ground. I land flat on my back and groan as I feel a small form on top of me.
"The hell-?" I cut myself off as Clary's face comes into my view, all other thoughts disappearing from my head as I take in her overjoyed smile.
"Gotcha! That's what you get for teasing me earlier, Jackass." She whispers, leaning over my face so that her hair creates a curtain around us. I chuckle and shake my head, reaching a hand up to brush some of her hair behind her ear.
"Oh, Clare." I murmur to myself in wonder, still staring up into her beautiful eyes as she leans over me. She bites her lip to hide a smile and opens her mouth as to speak, but never gets the chance as someone else speaks before she can.
"What are you guys doing?" an amused, familiar voice inquires, causing Clary to snap her head up and her eyes to narrow. Recognizing the voice, I sit up and maneuver Clary so that she is off of me as I stand up again, pulling her up along with me.
"Rat-boy. What are you doing here?" I drawl lazily, plastering a condescending smirk on my face and forcing the memory of Clary on top of me out of my head. For the moment, anyway… I pull Clary to me protectively, just because I feel like it, and glare over at the three forms before me.
Simon, Aline, and –to my absolute horror- Kaelie. Holy shit…
Hi… yup.
So, I'm really sorry for the delay, guys. I was really sick, and I still kind of am, so I couldn't really do anything except for focus on finals and that took almost all of my energy, so… yeah. I feel like a say 'sorry' a lot. Huh. :}
Tomorrow's my birthday. Yay! Happy birthday Me! You're awesome if you know what that's from. :D
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT! I may not be updating on this particular story until the beginning of 2015… I just don't know yet. We'll see. Sorry if I don't.
Stuff from the story:
Crooked Smiles- Framing Hanley
Lonely Girl- Tonight Alive
Come Home- Tonight Alive
Everything is Alright- Motion City Soundtrack
(Listen to the songs if you want to. I promise that they're awesome. :D)
The Semi-Annual Undiscovered Rockers Competition is not a real thing. (I don't think…) I just made it up for this story.
I just want to thank all of you who have continually supported me and I love you guys! You're awesome! :D
If you feel like it, leave a review and tell me your thoughts on my story. Do you like it? Can I fix anything to make it better?
M'kay. Bye. :D
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