The Twilight Twenty-Five
thetwilight25 dot com
Prompt: 10. Curiousity killed the cat.
Pen Name: belovedbeauty
Pairing/Character(s): Edward/Bella
Rating: T
As the strings vibrated beneath his fingertips, Edward Cullen fell deeper into the rhythm and melody. He could hear the thrash as Emmett pounded on the drums, and the softer trickles of the bass as Jasper joined in. But his guitar, his song—it was a whirlpool pulling him into murky water and emptying his brain of any thoughts.
It was just his music, his band, and the stage he stood on.
Looking out into the empty seats of the venue, he imagined strangers as they allowed his music to wrap around them, pulling them into the whirlpool without a struggle. This was what Edward lived for. Everything he dealt with when it came to his celebrity status—his band, and their upcoming album release—dwindled when he saw the life breathing from the crowd.
Their concerts were sold out; every seat was filled. No matter the length of their tours, or how tired they were by the time they reach that final date—could ever take away from the surge of energy that rushed through him every single night as he graced that stage with his guitar in hand.
"Alright, I think we need to mess around with the speakers, boys." Cutting the song short, and wincing as the feedback echoed within his earpiece, Edward glanced down at the tall dark-haired man with ease. Sound check was always a little stressful, especially if they didn't get everything technically correct.
"We'll be backstage for a bit, then. Work your magic," Edward said, waving his hand and gripping his guitar. Gently pulling the strap over his head, he carefully placed it in his stand just behind him.
"That's cool; we'll just bring Bitten in. They'll need to make sure their sound is good as well."
Blanking, Edward looked over at Jasper, confused. His blonde-haired bandmate and best friend just chuckled and shook his head. "You don't remember them, do you? They'll be opening for us through most of the tour."
Pursing his lips as Jasper continued to chuckle, Edward jerked forward as Emmett came over and patted him on the back.
"Group of three girls, with kickass sound, man. They're signed to our label."
"How did I miss this?" Edward asked as they walked backstage and settled into the black leather couch just left of the doorway. Jasper fell into the sofa easily, draping a long arm over the back and shrugging.
"Dunno, man. But we can stay and listen so you can see for yourself. I've heard the lead singer is pretty hot." Reaching for a bottle of water, he removed his arm and twisted the cap off. Edward cocked his head to the side and sat at the opposite end of the couch, looking over at Emmett as he stalked the doorway.
"Em, what are you doing?"
"Lurking," was his mumbled response.
"You're a creeper."
"Maybe, but at least I know what I'm looking for," Emmett quipped, throwing a smirk over his shoulder.
For a few moments, it was nearly silent in the spacious pavilion. And then a cluster of voices could be heard, followed by the deep voice of the technician. Edward stared at the opening, looking for any presence of bodies.
It took a beat before Emmett looked over at Jasper and Edward with wide eyes and his mouth open in shock.
"What?" Edward asked, getting up from his position on the couch and heading over to Emmett. Looking over Emmett's shoulders, he noticed three attractive women moving about the stage. A long haired blonde, who was settling into Emmett's drumset and twirling a drumstick with her fingers, a short haired and even shorter girl who held Jasper's bass in her hands, tickling the strings with precision.
And then a brunette, who stared down at Edward's guitar with indecision, before walking to the left of the stage and supplying a black guitar case. She unlocked it and opened the lid to reveal a midnight blue Gibson guitar, with the words carpe dieminscribed on the bottom.
Edward breathed a sigh of relief when she plugged her guitar in and pulled the strap over her head, settling it on her shoulder.
"Bella, why are you using your guitar?" The short-haired girl asked, looking at her with a quirked brow. The brunette turned towards her and shrugged, supplying no answer as she played with the strings of her guitar.
The dark-haired man gave them the signal to go ahead, and the blonde started the song with three hits against of her drumsticks against each other..
The brunette strummed the cords, placing her mouth against the microphone and singing into the cold metal. "Rule number one, is that you gotta have fun. But baby, when your done, you've gotta be the first to run."
Edward was entranced by the way she interacted, flirting into the microphone with not only her body, but her instrument. Her body moved fluidly to the song, seducing the audience with her small shifts in movement.
As she broached the chorus, Edward wished he could see her face as she played. "This is how to be a heartbreaker! Boys they like a little danger! We'll get 'em falling for a stranger, a player, singing I la-la-la-love you. At least I think I do." She purred the last line into the microphone, turning to wink at the short-haired girl.
The blonde pounded into her drums, pulling the song along with the help of the bass.
The song slowed, easing off the instruments as the brunette plucked her guitars strings beautifully. Her voice mellowed, bringing in the audience. "Girls, we do, whatever it will take. Cause girls don't want, we don't want our hearts to break, in two. So it's better to be fake, can't risk losing in love again, babe."
She hit a harder cord, falling into the chorus with ease, twisting around the microphone with confidence. As the blonde and the short-haired girl tuned in with background vocals, she finished the song off without hesitance.
As each instrument fell silent, Edward's hands couldn't help clapping against each other in applause. He was so caught up in her essence that he didn't notice the sound of Emmett's and Jasper's applauding as well.
Three pairs of eyes snapped to them, before grins stretched across their faces and they bowed in appreciation.
The short-haired girl laughed—a tinkling sound—before she gently nestled Jasper's bass into its stand. The blond and brunette shared a look of quick apprehension, but easily slid away from their instruments and headed in the direction of three very curious men.
"You must be the main event," the blond started, holding her hand out for a quick shake before pointing towards the two other girls. "That's Alice, Bella, and I'm Rosalie." Placing her hand on her chest, she looked between all three men with muted curiosity.
Emmett happily jumped in, throwing a large arm over Edward's shoulders. "I'm Emmett, this here is Edward, and the blond on the end is Jazz."
"Jasper, if you will."
"Awh, but I like Jazz!" the short-haired girl—Alice—exclaimed, holding her hand out to the blond with wide gray eyes.
Jasper blushed, placing his hand in hers and cleared his throat. "Well then, darlin', call me Jazz."
Rosalie and Bella looked at one another, blinking in succession before shaking their heads and smiling.
Edward watched them interact curiously, shrugging off Emmett's arm and crossing his own over his chest.