(After the last scene of Relationships and Red Carpets, when Austin and Ally first enter her tour bus)
"Wow… I guess this will be home for three months. That's weird to think about." Ally commented as she and Austin finished lugging their suitcases up the steps of her tour bus. It was a pleasant surprise to see it's luxurious interior after the stressful hassle of planning out the bus with Trish. Immediately as you walked in was a comfy living area with built-in leather seating and soft cushions, complete with a flat screen TV that faced the kitchenette and diner style table behind. Past that was a curtain that led to a miniature hallway with one wall having two small bunks and the other leading to a surprisingly large bathroom. The bus was a similar layout to Austin's previous bus, but with two less bunks and instead a larger bedroom in the back. At the end of that hall was the door that led into the bedroom.
"This is sick." Was Austin's initial reaction as they dragged their things towards the back.
"I thought my bus was nice, but dang. Is that a full bedroom back there? This is perfect for when Trish and Dez stay with us in LA. I guess this is just another reason to not like Jimmy Star right now." He marveled. His dislike for Jimmy was still fresh in his mind after the VMA's.
"Ooo yeah, let's check it out! I didn't know there would be legitimate beds instead of just bunks." Ally replied. They shuffled through the curtained hall excitedly and opened the bedroom door to reveal a small square room. Directly in the back were two small bedside tables with lamps, separated by a large dresser in the middle. Movable curtains hung in between each bedside table and the dresser, which gave the two twin beds privacy although they were just a few feet away. There was a small cabinet and TV at the foot of both beds, as well as storage underneath each bed. Ally planned ahead when choosing her bus to make sure it could accommodate four people instead of just one full bed for herself. She knew she wouldn't make it through the tour happily without her friends staying with her at least a few of the nights. Although Austin didn't intend to go on the tour with her, now this setup with a nicer bed for him would be great.
Ally pulled back the curtain and sat on the bed to her left, kicking her suitcase below her. She needed a moment to take this all in.
"This is incredible." She nearly gasped out; she'd been holding her breath.
"No kidding."
"It's all feeling real now."
Ally could tell Austin was hesitating to start unpacking anything; he wasn't sure if she was ok with him claiming the bed so close to her.
"Austin, just take that bed if that's ok with you. The bunks can't be comfy and I'd rather have you nearby." She admitted. He smiled with slight disbelief.
"It's definitely ok with me." He said as he set down his things under the bed. He hoped his response wasn't too enthusiastic. Why would he not be ok with sleeping a few feet away from his girlfriend? Ally sensed his tone and got butterflies, realizing she was also excited about this arrangement. She hadn't really had time to process the fact that they'd basically be living together for an entire summer. How would that go? Sleeping just a few feet away every night?
"I'd better go talk to the bus driver, but after that maybe we should talk? I think I'll get ready for bed first though, I'm exhausted." Ally announced, breaking free from her cycle of thoughts.
"Yeah, good idea." Austin said. He watched Ally with a smile as she left the room. He was deeply upset by what Jimmy Star had done to him, but even that couldn't dampen his excitement to spend every day with Ally. Music was not on his mind as he changed to pajama pants and a t-shirt.
About a half hour later Austin was on his phone in his bed with the curtains pulled away, and Ally entered from the bathroom in pajamas.
"Hey." She said softy, stopping under the door frame.
"Hey." He answered similarly, smiling widely and patting the mattress next to him, beckoning her to sit. She joined him and he put an arm around her as she leaned into him.
"I just know that we should talk about your life now. I feel terrible about what Jimmy is doing to you. It's completely unfair." Ally started, probably running their moment a little bit. She was sure Austin didn't want to talk about this but she felt like they couldn't just go to bed and not mention it. Austin just sighed, stroking her arm.
"I know. It makes no sense. I'd still have fans whether they knew you are my girlfriend or not. I think that it's less about our relationship and more about him having a big ego. He partly just wants to punish me for defying him." Austin explained, sounding more disappointed than annoyed. Ally was taken aback by his thoughtful analysis of Jimmy's methods.
"You're totally right, his punishment is unnecessarily hurtful. It will probably lose him more money than you supposedly 'losing fans' due to having a girlfriend. It has to be a personal thing."
"Which is what sucks. Why does he want me to be miserable? Not that I will be. He's probably trying to teach me a lesson, but it won't work. I'm so excited to do this with you Ally. I have the best feeling about this tour right now. I know I just said it, but I made the right choice." Austin proclaimed, and Ally was overflowing with every good emotion, as he often made her feel, only now she could say what she'd always wanted to say.
"I love you." She stated, turning her head to him better. They shared a light kiss.
"I love you too." He returned, and out of giddiness to say it he kissed her twice more, beaming.
"I wish we could just stay up, but I have got to sleep. We have a long journey ahead." Ally said regretfully, wishing she didn't have to as they smiled at one another snuggled together at the side of his bed. The large windows showed the dark mall parking lot behind them and Ally was reminded that they wouldn't be in Miami for a long time.
"I'll definitely miss home. But we are going to see so many places… I can't wait." She remarked as neither of them were eager to move.
"I know… it's going to be so fun. But you're right, I guess we should sleep."
She rose from his arms before they could stall any longer, walked the few steps to her own bed, and looked into his eyes one more time as they felt the bus rev up and air conditioning kick in.
"Goodnight Austin. See you in another state."
(Several weeks into Ally's tour- when Trish, Dez, Austin and Ally met up in LA)
The morning of Trish and Dez' visit with Austin and Ally when they reached LA was very stormy, which was unfortunate for Ally's concert that night. It didn't stop Trish and Dez from sneaking onto their bus to scare them, however. Scaring each other awake had been a regular custom for the four of them during Austin's tour, and he and Ally had no idea that Trish and Dez would show up so early, so they figured it would be the ultimate prank.
"Ok Dez, put in the code." Trish nearly yelled under her and Dez' shared umbrella. The rain was too loud for anyone to have woken up inside. It was 7 AM, three hours before they were supposed to meet Austin and Ally on their bus. Ally had given them a key code for the bus the day before, which was perfect for sneaking in.
"Which one?" Dez replied nervously.
"The only code we have you doof."
"Oooh, that one."
"Now be really quiet opening that door, I don't know where their bunks are. They could be right inside." Trish whispered, closing her cheetah print umbrella slowly as they crept inside the bus.
"I think they'll be right behind that curtain." She continued when they'd passed through the living and kitchen areas. The bus was dark and silent other than the AC unit.
"Let's get em'." Dez whispered. They slowly moved the curtain and were surprised to see both bunks on the wall empty.
"Huh, this is different than Austin's bus. Are they both in there?" Trish wondered aloud, noticing the door to the bedroom at the end of the hall.
"I bet they are. Let's get em'." Dez repeated, and he didn't hesitate to swing open the door, but Trish grabbed his arm.
"Wait Dez, I don't know if we should do this-" Trish started, but Dez was already inside the room. Luckily he hadn't screamed or tried to scare them, he just stood looking puzzled. Trish poked in her head and saw that Austin's bed was empty and the two of them were snuggled together in Ally's, fast asleep in two layers of blankets. It was a sweet scene, but Trish felt bad intruding of course, so she pulled Dez out of the room as quickly as she could.
"Well that was a lame scare." Dez whispered to Trish once the door was shut, annoyed.
"Dez, we shouldn't bother them. I forget that the days of just being four best friends are gone and we need to respect their relationship. It's getting more serious, they've been on this tour together for a while now." Trish explained, a little bit saddened that the dynamic of their friendships would probably never be quite the same, but happy for Ally to see her in such a good place. Austin too. They'd come a long way. She hadn't really had a chance to talk to Ally about how her and Austin were doing as a couple on the tour, they'd been too busy with Boynado and concerts to totally catch up on each other's lives. She should have thought about that harder before making this whole plan with Dez.
"Soo, we are just leaving? Booring." Dez replied. He was clearly bitter but Trish knew they should go. She looked forward to catching up with Ally later, but figured it would be best not to mention that she and Dez broke into their bus and creepily saw them sleeping.
"Yeah come on, let's just get some coffee. Since we didn't scare them it's totally creepy that we went in there. Jeez, we did not think too hard about this, let's go. We'll come back in a few hours when we are actually supposed to be here." Trish told him with a little bit of disgust. With every second that passed, a new reason why barging in there three hours early could have gone wrong popped into her head.
After they snuck out as quietly as they came they got coffee and returned at ten. This time Austin and Ally were awake, dressed, and at the door ready to hug them as they entered. Trish decided to forget the events of the morning and enjoy the day, resolving to catch up with Ally as soon as possible. She and Dez planned to stay with them overnight on the bus after the show for old times sake, so there would be plenty of time.
"I can't believe it's been so long you guys! Well, I know we call each other all the time, but still!" Ally exclaimed after squeezing Trish in the entry of the bus.
"I know! I'm so glad I'm finally here, I'm desperate for some time with normal people...Boynado constantly has me on edge. They are such drama queens!"
"Not as dramatic as some of my professors in film school. As you know I have an interest in giant man-eating creatures for my films, and they just do not ever see my vision. They're always whining about my ideas."
Trish and Dez' complaints made Austin and Ally cringe, partially because the two of them had zero complaints about their lives at the moment. Other than the obvious- Austin's music situation- Ally's tour had been amazing all around.
"Man, i'm sorry guys. I would not have pictured Boynado to act like that and I dunno what your professors are thinking Dez, your films are epic!" Austin reassured them, and Ally nodded.
"Yeah, me too, but it's whatever. It's still been a good experience with management." Trish conceded, not sounding totally sincere, but Ally thought it best not to further prod her about it. She had been hearing the boy band fighting in the background of her and Trish's calls a lot lately.
"Dez, what's going on with Carrie? I thought you might bring her to hang with us today." Austin asked, and Dez seemed to hesitate for a second before answering.
"She um, wasn't feeling so great today. She said she's sorry but she shouldn't be around us today or tomorrow." Dez answered, and the other three exchanged skeptical looks subtly, but didn't question him.
"That's ok, I hope she feels better. I'm so excited to hang with you guys tomorrow before we leave! I'll be so busy with the show today." Ally remarked, breaking the slightly awkward moment.
"Yeah for sure! How has tour life been for you guys so far?" Trish asked excitedly, and Austin and Ally looked at each other.
"It's been amazing." Ally answered, and Austin gave her a side hug to show his agreement.
"Aww, good. I may have downgraded from a summer of travelling with my best friends to a summer of travelling with an idiot boy band, but hey, we're here now. It's my first time seeing Ally perform on tour! Let's do this!" Trish answered enthusiastically, and the others cheered in agreement, even Dez. He could put aside his favoritism for Austin momentarily due to his excitement for Ally performing "Finally Me". They continued to unpack and chat before heading to Ally's venue, reminiscing and feeling like they were back in Miami. It was a great feeling to be together again instead of just texting or squeezing in short phone calls.
That night after the concert was a super fun, slap happy mess as they all lounged in the bus after the exhausting day, and Trish found herself wishing they were having a normal night back home where they didn't have to all leave again. She shoved that aside, however, and focused on Boynado's role in supporting her management career- no matter how annoying they got, it was worth it for her success. She left on that note the next day as she braced herself to head back to the boy band. They'd spent the day sightseeing around LA, checking out Dez' school, and eating. Trish had never gotten the chance to catch up with Ally alone in the short visit, but she figured they could just talk after the tour. It was bittersweet to say goodbye to her best friends so soon, even Dez, but she had seeing them again at the end of the summer to look forward to. They hugged goodbye in LA, and by nightfall the four of them were in 3 separate states.
(1 week later)
It was the middle of the night, in the middle of June, in the middle of Ally's first tour, and she and Austin were so completely exhausted that they were sleeping like babies in their beds on the bus. They'd been this worn out nearly every night recently. At the start of the tour Austin had gotten into a phase where he wanted him and Ally to go out in the city and have a night adventure at all of their destinations, but after a couple weeks of shows they were so tired by the time that they stepped into the bus most nights that they both just agreed it would be better to sleep. It made her a little bit sad and relieved at the same time, because she had seriously loved going out in the different cities with Austin all the time, especially when they could have a nice date in a local restaurant or share a romantic moment somewhere with a magical view. However, she did need her sleep to be able to handle the energy required for back to back shows.
Magical. That was the word she'd use to describe how the tour was going. Not only was it incredible to experience her first ever tour- the cheering crowds, the huge stage lights dancing across the stage along with her choreography, the power of singing her carefully written lyrics that came from from her heart to the world- it was also incredible to have hours of uninterrupted quality time with Austin. She was getting to know him better every day and was amazed by the depth of his character that she'd never been able to fully uncover in their busy lives, even when they were dating the first and second times back home. Every new thing she discovered about him she loved. She also realized that he seemed to be discovering some things about himself too- he'd had plenty of time to just relax with her, talk, and reflect- the first time since his music career first kicked off that he'd not been constantly consumed with deadlines and work to do. His new maturity was extremely attractive to her- even his appearance had become more mature. He would never lose his childish spirit and adorable nature of course, which was something she loved. The two of them were just opposite enough to adore the things that made them different. But, he was also gaining a strong side that showed the adult developing in him, and that comforted her a lot. The only problem she had with him during the tour was her sadness for him that he couldn't be excited about his own music now.
He'd seemed to be taking it really well, which Ally attributed to the fact that he hadn't really gone very long yet without performing. However, she could still see the glint in his eye fading at times as he had to stop himself from daydreaming about touring again. He hadn't gone cold turkey on playing music, because sometimes he would hold his own mini-concert just for Ally in whatever venue she'd be performing at that night. It was sweet and it made him happy to perform for her still, but nothing could beat the gratification of an overwhelming crowd of fans that enjoyed his music as much as he enjoyed making it and performing. Austin just chose to focus his attention on Ally any time he began to miss his career too much. He loved her, and every day of the tour that passed proved it.
Having paparazzi following them everywhere they went in the cities she toured in was admittedly getting frustrating, but they'd learned to have fun with it by posing together or making faces at them. The most viral paparazzi photos of them from the tour was one morning in Arkansas when they were utterly exhausted in a diner, both in pajamas. They held up pancakes in front of their faces as their pose for the cameras invading their breakfast. They were able to laugh about a lot of it like that, but sometimes they were tempted to wear wigs just to be able to have a date out on the town. One of her favorite dates was when they ate at a beautiful French Quarter restaurant in New Orleans and then explored Bourbon street with zero cameras pointed at them all night.
Other than being with Ally all the time, Austin had also been enjoying the tour because of all the cool people he was meeting in his free time. When they stayed a couple nights in Las Vegas he met some guys his age around Ally's concert venue that invited him to go hiking in the desert mountains for a day while she rehearsed, and he had an amazing time. So much that he planned to go up and visit them again sometime when the tour ended. There were plenty of other cool people he'd been able to get to know from the concert environment, and that was something that kept him hyped up instead of music. They also made a point to video chat with Trish, Dez & Carrie when they could, enjoying hearing about all of their unique experiences as they were all in different parts of the world. Ally was happy for him as she saw him flourishing socially and was able to befriend a few new people herself. The tour was going as good as either of them could have ever dreamed, and Austin frequently talked about his satisfaction of the press rubbing his happiness in Jimmy Star's face as Austin's fans and the media still adored him- and his relationship with Ally.
On this night in particular, it was 2 AM and Ally had just performed in Salt Lake City, Utah. They were headed to Denver for her next show in two days, so they'd have a little time to just get out and explore the next day, which Ally was glad for. She had just woken up shivering- they could never quite manage to correctly gauge what the temperature should be in the bus as they entered states with a different climate overnight, and the bus driver had a tendency to keep things too cool anyway. Without thinking twice she grabbed up her blankets lazily, rose from her bed, and slumped onto Austin's, 3 feet away.
Austin moved over for her subconsciously and within seconds they were cuddled together. He only woke up long enough to smile slightly, half-aware that she was now in his arms. They both fell asleep feeling much warmer in an instant.
They didn't typically sleep in the same bed; sometimes one of them would just join the other in the night for whatever reason, and the other would willingly accept them. They'd had many nights of snuggling together as the bus rumbled along the highway all night, feeling euphoric, but a lot of the time they were just so exhausted that sleeping alone was just the best idea. Some nights there was a lot of passion between them and they'd run on it for a while, but Austin understood and respected the fact that Ally didn't want them to go too far. She wanted to wait for a very long time and knew that they needed to take things slowly while they had time- they were only 17 after all. She instead channeled passion into her songwriting. "Play My Song" was completely charged by Austin and she knew it. He probably could sense that too if she was honest.
After a couple more hours of sleep Ally found herself awake again, still shivering even with Austin wrapped around her. That's when she shifted her leg and felt something odd near his feet under the covers. Curious, she carefully slid it towards her with her foot. It felt like a book. Now she was really curious; Austin was not a reader whatsoever. She reached her arm up slowly, moving the window curtains just enough for her to have moonlight to see, and watched his face to make sure he was still sleeping as she lifted the book out of the covers to examine it.
It was just a plain black journal, and she was astounded. Why was he hiding from her that he had a book of his own? Although she felt guilty, she couldn't help but open it to read a page. Austin's arm was draped over her stomach so she had to be careful to keep her breathing steady.
Today was amazing. Ally's in the shower, so now's my time to write. We had so much fun in Texas, I didn't want to leave, but I have to admit that I was happy when her rehearsal and concert stuff was over. I'm feeling down about music again. Her concert was so great but I kept starting to daydream as she performed. I miss being on stage so much. I just don't get how Jimmy could do this to me. But it's still worth it. Every moment with Ally reminds me. I miss my music but I wouldn't trade it for her in a million years.
Austin's scrawls made her heart feel warm but heavy at the same time. She noticed some song lyrics he'd been writing on the preceding pages. She hadn't realized just how much he was thinking about his career. She knew she should shut the journal, especially considering her protectiveness over her book, so she closed it and slid it back to his feet, trying to make it seem like she was just readjusting the blankets.
"I should have known." She thought. Of course he would be deeply upset that what he is most passionate about was no longer an option. She decided that night that she needed to focus on him and his mental health more. They'd been so caught up in her tour that he probably felt bad about bothering her with his struggles. He was resorting to a journal, which was totally unlike him, instead of talking to her. She knew she couldn't bring this up to him and expose what she'd read, but she vowed that she would pay better attention to him and his emotional needs from then on. After that she fell asleep soundly in his arms, glad to have become aware that he was struggling more than she realized, and determined to sense his pain without reading his journal the next time.