It has come to my attention that I left some of the notes I made while writing the first chapter in the actual draft I submitted...So I've replaced the brackets that I so carelessly left in. Gomen... " lol
For this chapter: I think this is really visual, so do your best to picture what's happening. I'm not sure if I've accurately described the kind of natural high they're on, but you can imagine the fun they're having.
Read on!
Day One (cont.): Teenage Wasteland
Sakura opened her eyes and glanced at the clock on the dashboard: 2:15 PM. She turned to Sasuke, resting her head against the seat.
"How ya doin'?" she asked.
Sasuke blinked tiredly, sighing.
"Okay. Sleep well?"
She smiled. "Tyeah."
"Join the club." Sasuke nodded his head towards the back, and Sakura looked over her shoulder. Everyone was asleep. Tenten's head had tilted to rest on Neji's shoulder; Naruto had his arm around Hinata. Sakura couldn't see Shikamaru and Ino, but as she couldn't hear them either, she assumed their case was the same.
"They're gonna be up all night…" Sasuke said dreadfully. "We're almost there. We should probably wake them up."
Sakura nodded and plugged her iPod into the car speakers. Slowly bringing up the volume, she played The Who's "Baba O'Riley", and they started to open their eyes. Tenten was the last to come to, and as soon as her brown eyes began to flutter open, she jerked awake, sitting upright and looking out the opposite window to hide her red face.
Out here in the fields
I fight for my meals
I get my back into my livin'
I don't need to fight
To prove I'm right
I don't need to be forgiven
"Good morning," Sakura joked. Shikamaru and Ino sat up, stretching.
"What'd we miss?" Shikamaru yawned.
"We're here," Sasuke said, turning into the curving driveway of a Hilton. They got out of the car and started untying the luggage from the roof.
"Okay, I'm takin' a shot, people! Back up!" Naruto called, standing on top of the van and tossing his bag off, aiming for the luggage cart the valet had brought out. Sasuke moved the cart at the last minute, the bag narrowly missing one of the hotel staff.
"No fair!"
"Naruto, get off the car!" Sakura yelled, readying to climb up herself.
"It's not worth it," Neji sighed, grabbing her around the waist and setting her down.
"Yeah…" she replied reluctantly. She turned to put her own bag on the cart and noticed Sasuke gripping the metal bars tightly, glaring intently at Neji's back. Sakura covered his hand with hers, gingerly loosening his grip. "Easy, boy," she joked, flinching inwardly at his seriousness.
Don't cry
Don't raise your eye
It's only teenage wasteland…
Sasuke drew his eyes from the boy and gave her a warning look.
She smiled apologetically.
"Don't worry about him. He doesn't mean anything," Sakura assured.
Sasuke just nodded, not seeming convinced. Neji was heading their way with some more luggage, and Sakura quickly captured Sasuke's lips, holding herself tightly to him.
"Jesus, don't bother helping or anything," the older teen scoffed.
Sakura broke the kiss, smiling.
"Fine." She left Sasuke's side and went to help Tenten and Hinata with the keyboard. The Uchiha looked after her for a moment before pulling the loaded cart into the lobby. The others followed with yet another full cart and paused.
The lobby was enormous. Past the reception desk was a huge, open room with a glass ceiling four stories up. There was a gazebo with a stream running around it, finishing in a small fountain, and twenty or so dining tables. To the left was the bar and a billiards room, beside that, the restaurant. Behind the elevator at the far side of the room, they could see part of the indoor pool.
"Sweet!" Naruto called, voicing all their thoughts.
"What are we waiting for?" Tenten cried, grinning. She hopped on an extra cart, pulling Ino on with her. "C'mon, let's go to the room!"
The other girls followed suit, Shikamaru and Neji manning the cart with their bags on it, and the boys began running them down the hall and into the elevator – Sasuke pausing to grab the room key from a bewildered staff member. They came out on the fourth floor and froze for a moment. All the floors looked down on the lobby, like a balcony, only a handrail keeping them on track.
"Like you said," Naruto beamed. "What're we waiting for!" He ran the cart down the hall, crying out and jumping on with them after gaining enough momentum.
Sally, take my hand
We'll travel south 'cross 'land
Put out the fire
Don't look past my shoulder
The exodus is here
The happy ones are near
Let's get together
Before we get much older
As they neared the end of the hall, Neji jumped off the lugage cart and ran ahead, taking out a camera.
"Okay, on a count of three," he began.
Teenage wasteland"One…"
Sasuke and Shikamaru pushed their carts up beside Naruto's, each slowing down.
It's only teenage wasteland"Two…"
"Okay, everyone, say 'ON TOUR'! Ready?" Tenten said.
Teenage wasteland
Oh, yeah
Teenage wasteland
"Three!"
"ON TOUR!"
Click.
…They're all wasted!
The boys pulled the carts to a stop, and everyone got off. Tenten let out a low sigh.
"Man, that was awesome! Now are we anywhere near our room?" she asked.
Sasuke took the key out of his pocket. "Room 415," he said and glanced at the directory on the wall. "It's down here."
They proceeded down a short corridor and stopped in front of the double doors at the end. Gold numbers read "415", but the plaque on the wall beside them read "Grande Suite".
Sakura and Ino glanced at each other, brows raised, and Sasuke stepped forward to unlock the doors.
"Oh...my...God," Ino breathed. They all stepped quietly inside, wary that any noise would break the illusion set before their eyes. The suite consisted of a vast, white room with a big-screen TV, multiple couches and chairs, and one long dining table behind which two glass doors opened onto a balcony. Four doors led off into the bedrooms, and beside the dining table was a small kitchen and a mini-bar.
"DIBS ON THE MASTER!" Naruto yelled, darting for a door on the right.
"All the bedrooms are the same, idiot!" Neji called after him. "I am not staying with him..." he muttered.
"The rooms are predecided," Sakura said. "Sasuke and Naruto, Shikamaru and Neji, Tenten and Hinata, and then Ino and me," she recited.
The boys groaned in reply and started moving their luggage into the assigned rooms. Sasuke paused mid-step.
"Wait – please tell me there are two beds per room?"
Sakura nodded. "Mhm." The girls covered their mouths to keep from laughing at the thought.
When they were all set up in their rooms, they returned to the main room and sat down on the couches.
"Okay, this is going to be our main base," Neji said. Naruto made the "baa-dum, chiiish" noise while beating the air with his drumsticks. "Very funny," the bassist continued. "This hotel is where we'll be staying for most of the tour, but we'll be traveling to other places within a radius of six hours from here to play. Some nights, we'll be staying in a hotel closer to where we're playing to avoid driving all night, but hopefully we won't have to do that often."
They nodded.
"So...Any questions?" Sasuke said.
"Where and when do we practice?" Shikamaru asked.
"Oh, right. We'll usually get to whatever stage we're using early to practice on scene. And on days when we're only playing one or two shows, we can bring our stuff up here and rehearse."
"Okay, cool."
"So we're set? Everyone knows what we're doing?" Sasuke asked. They all nodded. "'Kay, good," and he rose from the couch and started across the room.
"Where're you going?" Naruto asked offhandly, grabbing the remote and turning on the TV.
"To bed," Sasuke stated.
"Oohhhh, no you're not!" Ino said, she and Sakura running after him and dragging him back.
"You have to stay up till midnight, at the earliest," Tenten said, grinning.
"Since freakin' when?" Sasuke asked, irritated, as they forced him onto the couch.
"Since we're on a road trip, bitch!" Sakura joked. The boys gawked at her.
"Ooh, Pay-Per-View!" Naruto exclaimed.
Sasuke sighed. "Here we go..."
A/N: This song isn't meant to make the guys look bad. Just listen to the song (as if you haven't heard it already lol). It's positive, not negative. It's hopeful, aspiring, etc. as are the characters.
Haha! He said base! Hah! – Neji's the bassist, get it! Hahahahahahahaha! -sigh-
Yeah...Man, it's difficult writing in all these characters. It makes the "name said" punctuations sound really repetative and...well, unpoetic, lol.
I got a little songfic-ish in this chapter...Heheh. Fun stuff. Don't worry, that won't happen often...
If there's anything in particular you'd like to see happen between these characters, or any songs you'd like to hear from them, let me know.
Thanks again.
- 3- Morbid Original