Second Place
Live Stream: Q&A
Disclaimer: Check out chapter one – it explains everything :P
Pairing: Ross/Laura/Riker
Author's Note: This is like a filler chapter, but it kind of sums up some things that have been previously mentioned in the plot. Enjoy!
SP*SP*SP
It was almost two weeks since the Vegas concert, and since then the band was back on the tour bus and heading to their last destination – California. Of course, they would be hitting a few of the major cities before having a home concert in LA. Everyone was excited to see their family and friends, despite keeping their promise to call home every day; it just wasn't the same.
As for Laura… While happy to be almost home, she couldn't get her mind off that night she was with Ross in his hotel room. The mental images of what they'd done still played over and over, and, every time she closed her eyes, she could still taste him on her tongue. Could still smell his masculine scent; his cologne on her skin. The burn of his passion as he kissed her. His hands caressing her body.
What disturbed her, however, was the lack of repulsion she felt.
Don't get her wrong, it was still present, but this was different. At the beginning of their 'relationship' she'd been rightfully horrified by the prospect of cheating on Riker with his younger brother; of having her best friend blackmail her. But now?
Now, she didn't know how to feel. Everything was all jumbled, and Laura didn't see a way of untangling the web she was trapped within.
And it was all Ross Shor Lynch's fault.
SP*SP*SP
They were stopped in a small town of California to restock on food and gas when Rydel had the brilliant idea of doing a live stream. It would be their first one since the West Coast Tour started, and everyone jumped at the opportunity to say hello to fans across the world.
And, as soon as Twitter got involved, they were met with demands of when said live stream would be taking place. Did they ever mention how much they loved the R5 Family? Well, they did. A lot. A live stream was also more personal than posting videos on their YouTube accounts, R5 TV, but everyone loved those too, regardless.
The bubbly blonde set her laptop up, grinning as she clicked keys and checked the audio. The rest of R5 was seated behind her, either lounging on the black leather couch or seated in front, on the floor, all eager to get the show started. However, there was one member missing from their group of six: Laura.
"Are you guys ready?" Rydel asked, shoving her way to sit between Rocky and Ratliff. It left Riker and Ross front-and-center, but she didn't care. Sometimes Ross could be such a camera-whore, anyway, but it didn't really matter to anyone else.
As one, the guys chorused, "Yep!"
Hitting the key that would bring them up onto the screen, she waved into the camera. "Hey, everyone!" she greeted brightly. "If you can hear and see us let us know through the comment section!"
It wasn't long before their first responses came in and, from their positions on the floor, Riker and Ross read through them.
"Alright, cool, we're officially online," Riker stated, grinning. "What's up, we're R5 but you guys already know that… I hope." At the end, he chuckled sheepishly.
Ratliff waved his drum sticks, like a magic wand, at the camera. "And if you don't, I have no idea how you found us," he said. "But that's awesome, and you should stick around!"
"We should introduce ourselves," Rydel suggested. "I'm Rydel!"
"Ratliff," the drummer announced, striking a pose.
Rocky gave a two-finger salute. "Hey, I'm Rocky." Then, he smiled charmingly. "And I'm single, in case anyone was wondering."
"They weren't," everyone else dryly intoned, rolling their eyes.
Ross changed his expression into his cool-guy persona. "What's up," he greeted in a suave voice, "I'm Ross."
"And I'm Riker," the oldest Lynch sibling introduced, grinning boyishly. "With that out of the way, we'd like to welcome and thank everyone who logged into our live stream. It's been crazy being on the road for the West Coast Tour, and I hope the people watching were at one of our concerts or are going to be."
"Because, really, this whole thing is for you guys," Ratliff added.
"Exactly," Rydel chimed in perkily. "So, to start off, we're gonna answer some questions I've written down that people have been sending in through Twitter."
Rocky and Ross held up their iPhones. "And we'll be checking out our Mentions during the stream, so feel free to send in questions now," the former said.
The only female member opened her spiral notebook. "Okay, first question: What's your favorite color?"
"Mine is blue," Riker answered.
"Yellow," Ross said, smiling as he gestured to the yellow T-shirt he wore.
Rocky lifted his foot, showing off his green converse. "Green – I love green."
Twirling his drum sticks, Ratliff chuckled. "I like dark green, so yeah, I agree with Rocky. Gotta love green! What about you, Rydel?"
"Pink," she replied, grinning. "Okay, let's try to find a harder question." Trailing a finger down the page, she perked up when she found the perfect one. "Next question: What can the fans expect from us in the future?"
"That's a good question," Rocky said. He looked straight into the camera as he continued, a serious look on his face, "We have no idea, but it's gonna rock."
"He's joking," Riker corrected, chuckling. "We're working on a few things, actually; trying new lyrics and sounds. It's gonna be awesome." To add emphasis, he nodded and held up a thumbs-up.
Ross added, "Yeah, totally what Riker said. Like, we have this song we're still tweaking, but it's gonna be so amazing when it's done." He grinned at the thought.
"But the best part," Ratliff whispered, like he was telling a deep, dark secret. His hand came up to cup around his mouth to add to the dramatics. "Laura's been helping us with it." In a normal voice, he continued speaking. "You guys know who Laura is, right? Laura Marano?"
"If you don't, you've been living under a rock," Rocky said.
Rydel broke into the conversation before the boys started going off-subject. "Speaking of Laura," she cheekily said, smiling at her older brother. "Riker, this question is specifically for you: How long have you and Laura been together?"
He blinked, his cheeks starting to flush in embarrassment. "You mean, like dating?"
"Yeah, like dating. What else would I talking about?"
Riker fiddled with his iPhone for a second before deciding to answer. "Well, Laura and I have known each other for years. Pretty much since Elementary, I think." A fond grin touched his handsome features. "But I didn't get the courage to ask her out until her sixteenth birthday. We've been together ever since."
"Aw," the other five cooed playfully.
Ratliff felt the need to add, "And they're both really happy. It's, like, almost insane how cute they are together; how well they balance each other out."
Riker grinned. "Thanks, man."
"I wanna pick the next question," Rocky stated, grabbing the notebook from his older sister. Flipping his bangs out of his eyes, he scanned the list. "Okay, here's a good one. Individually, what have we been doing?"
"You mean, outside of R5?" Ross asked, confused.
"Yeah, looks that way." Glancing up, he nodded once to Ratliff. "You first, bro."
The drummer tapped his drum sticks against his thighs as he hummed thoughtfully. "Well, I was on an episode of Victorious," he answered, sheepishly smiling. "But that was a while ago. Right now, I'm mostly concentrating on R5. Rydel, what about you?"
"I've just been dancing," the blonde stated, "You know, hitting the dance studio and stuff. Nothing major in the works, but I'm getting there." She smiled. "Riker?"
The bassist leaned forward. "I am on a popular musical sitcom," he answered, "If you didn't already know that – which I hope you did."
"And what is this 'popular musical sitcom' called?" Ross teased, knowing his brother wouldn't want to give away too much. But that didn't mean the others didn't like teasing Riker about it.
"Okay, okay. The show is called Glee, and I play one of the Warblers at Dalton Academy. Your turn, Ross."
The youngest member of the band easily answered, "I've been doing some small roles on Disney Channel. Nothing big – mostly supporting cast, but I like it." He smiled charmingly. "Everyone is so nice there. It's like one big, happy family, you know?"
Rocky waved two fingers to signal his turn. "And I've been working on new music, though that's not 'outside' of R5." At the end, he smiled sheepishly and shrugged in a what-can-you-do way.
"Awesome, now let's do some shout-outs," Rydel suggested giddily. "Ooh, look! We have people from Ireland. Hey, Ireland!"
Ross leaned forward to get a better look at the screen. "Sweet! What's up, Spain!"
As the five continued giving shout-outs, they also checked their iPhones for their fans who were logged onto Twitter. Soon, they weren't just naming countries or states, they were giving personal shout-outs to fans who put them in their Mentions section.
After another two minutes, Rocky called a halt. "I think we should get back to the questions." Using one finger, he scrolled through his Mentions. "I'm getting a crazy load of questions from people."
"Oh nice," Ross commented, not taking his eyes off the laptop's screen. "Check this out, guys. Everyone is asking where Laura is."
"Like I said, crazy load of questions," he chuckled.
Riker moved closer to stare at the camera. "Right now, Laura's in the back of the bus, video chatting with her manager," he explained. "She's been offered this awesome opportunity, but we're not gonna say what it is before we jinx it. But, trust me, it's gonna be amazing."
Rydel cut into the conversation, holding her phone in her hand. "Another great question was asked: What has R5 been doing, besides the West Coast Tour?"
"Interviews," Ratliff immediately answered, "Interviews, interviews, and more interviews. But it's been great, and we've been having lots of fun."
"That, and concerts, of course," Riker added. "We've been doing whole weekends' worth of concerts in every city and place we've visited. It's just been so amazing and great, like we've been saying this whole live stream."
Ross chimed in, "And the food is awesome!"
"Yeah, can't forget about all the food we've eaten," Rocky chuckled.
"And the sights we've seen," Rydel stated, grinning at the memories.
Ratliff suddenly laughed, his gaze locked onto the computer screen. "Hey, guys, someone named shipper-of-LOVE commented: Riaura&Raura."
In response, Riker and Ross laughed, while Rydel commented, "Wow, looks like Laura is really popular!"
"But we already knew that," Rocky pointed out in a duh-tone. "In more ways than one, obviously." Playfully, he waggled his eyebrows to add emphasis.
Ratliff placed his chin on one fisted hand, smiling slyly at the two blonde boys of the band. "What do you guys think of Riaura and Raura?" he asked.
"I think," Ross said, "that it's kind of expected. I mean, you see it all the time for other people, like the whole Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie-thing." Shrugging, he added, "But guys, Laura and I are just friends. Like, best friends, actually, so there's nothing going on there. Sorry."
Riker nodded in agreement. "Yeah, exactly what Ross said. It's expected and, I mean, it makes sense, considering we're actually dating, so…" He trailed off, smiling boyishly. "Laura and I love the fans who 'ship' our pairing and support us, and we've been asked all the time if we're still together and all that other stuff. It's great."
"Ooh, I just saw an awesome question," Rydel squealed, "Are any of us working on anything with Laura, currently?"
"There are a lot of questions about Laura," Riker said in amusement. "Hopefully, she'll be done with her meeting before we finish with the live stream, so keep your guys' fingers crossed."
"But, back to the question before we get side-tracked," Ross said. "Right now, Laura is helping all of us on that song I mentioned earlier; the one we're still tweaking. And, if her meeting goes well and everything gets put into order, she and I will be working on some stuff, too, on the side."
Rydel raised her hand to indicate she was going next. "We've also been working on new cover songs to sing, whether on tour or we'll post something on YouTube for everyone to check out," she announced, smiling.
"Just chilling and writing new lyrics," Rocky casually answered, shrugging. "Ratliff? Riker?"
The drummer said, "Ah, nothing much, unfortunately."
"Yeah, same here," the oldest Lynch sibling replied. "I mean, we've talked about working on stuff together, like guest starring on a TV series, but I've been focusing on the band and she's been doing modeling gigs, so maybe in the future."
Suddenly, Ross snapped his attention to something off-screen. Grinning, he waved to whoever caught his attention.
"Hey, look! We'll be having a special guest: Laura Marano, everyone!" he exclaimed excitedly.
Laura's voice could be heard but the young woman was unseen. "Uh, hey guys," she greeted happily, "What's going on?"
"We're doing a live stream," Ratliff supplied, grinning. From the floor, Riker stood and exited the camera's view, clearly going over to greet his girlfriend while everyone else stayed in their seats. "Are you done with your meeting?"
"Yep," she answered. Then, as quickly as her voice appeared, she was sitting next to Ross, with Riker on her other side. She waved at the camera, grinning cutely. "Hey, everyone! It's Laura Marano."
Ross turned to look at the newly arrived brunette, smirking. "You know, it's like you heard us, because a lot of people have been asking questions about you."
"Wh~at?" she drew out, smiling a little wider. "It's like I'm psychic or something, right? No, I'm just kidding – you guys are just amazing."
"This is awesome," Rydel stated, "Now that you're here, you can answer some questions, too. How about it?"
"I'd love to!"
Rocky, still in possession of the notebook, glanced through the list of questions. "So far, we answered quite a bit, but I'm sure the fans would be okay with backtracking a little, right?" He gave the camera a charming smile.
Excitedly, Laura wiggled in her spot on the floor, grinning. "That would be so amazing. Okay, what's the first question?"
"It's an easy one – favorite color?"
"Red," she answered instantly, "Next one."
"This will be a fun one: What can the fans expect from you in the future?"
She gave the viewing fans a secretive smile. "That's such an awesome question, I don't know where to begin answering it," she chuckled. "Well, I can't actually give too much away right now, but I can tell you guys about my meeting with my manager – assuming everyone knows about that?" The last came out as an inquiry as she glanced at R5 for confirmation.
"Yes. They wanted to know where you were," Rydel giggled out, eager to hear everything her best friend had to share.
"Awesome," the other girl replied, grinning. "Okay, so my meeting with my manager was about this opportunity I've been offered with – wait for it – Disney!" She wiggled excitedly. "When I get back to LA, I have an appointment with one of their executives. If that goes well, I could end up writing a song and recording for one of their upcoming soundtracks. Isn't that so amazing?"
Ross pointed at the camera, smiling. "It also means Disney will most likely sign her to their label, which means more singing gigs and more publicity with their name attached." Turning to look at Laura, he added, "It could also mean acting jobs on their various sets. Heck, we could end up working together!"
"Uh, how cool would that be?" she rhetorically responded, smiling at the blonde teen. "Okay, what's the next question, Rocky? This is getting so exciting."
"Individually – meaning outside of R5 – what have you been doing?"
She hummed in approval. "These are such great questions," she commented, then continued, "Well, before we left on tour, I just finished up a photo shoot in New York. It was so pretty there, and it was so crazy because I'm holding these shopping bags – and they're empty!" Laughing, she made appropriate hand gestures to indicate her illustrations. "Anyway, every time there was even the slightest bit of wind, the bags would fly all over the place. It was so crazy, but I had a lot of fun."
"What about your international photo shoots?" Rydel piped up.
Laura's smile widened, her doe-like orbs gleaming. "We~ll," she drew out teasingly, "I accepted a job in Italy, but those take longer to organize and set-up, so it won't be happening until probably after my gig with Disney. But I'm really excited and pumped to go!"
From the couch, Ratliff waved his drum sticks as he exclaimed, "Oh! Oh! I have a good question: What's your opinion on Riaura and Raura?" Sure, it might have been an old question that got brought up multiple times, especially since Laura was dating Riker and best friends with Ross, but it was one Ratliff never tired of. He simply loved how devoted some fans were, for either or both real-life pairings.
"Riaura and Raura…" the brunette trailed off, unsure, "Well, I mean – it's expected, right? I mean, I am dating Riker, and fans have seen me hanging out with Ross, so…" Releasing a small laugh, she continued, "You know, before I figured out the 'ship' name, I actually had no idea what 'Raura' meant. So, I looked it up, and came up with Raura Mountains. Doesn't that sound so pretty?"
Ross cut in, amusement shining in his chocolate orbs. "Yeah, then she showed it to me," he said, "We had a good laugh."
"We did. We really, really did."
Rydel leaned forward, smiling. "Hey, since Laura is here now, I say we do some more shout-outs," she suggested perkily. "Then we'll get back to answering everyone's questions."
Riker checked the time on his iPhone. "We have less than half an hour left, you guys," he announced in a regretful tone. "So, we're gonna make the remaining time we have really count."
With that said, the group of six gave shout-outs to people across the United States, foreign countries, and individuals through Twitter alike. Some were made specifically by a fan's favorite idol; others were made by all six. All in all, they tried not to miss anyone and, if they did, they apologized but promised they'd hopefully catch them next time.
"Okay, let's check out the notebook," the blonde keyboardist said, taking said item from her younger brother. Her eyes scanned down the page until she found one she liked. "This one is directed at Ross: Since your birthday was only a few months ago, what did you do to celebrate?"
Everyone, excluding Ross (who tried and failed to hide his smile), snickered under their breaths, as they waited for the youngest band member to answer.
"For my seventeenth birthday," he began, "it was more like a two-part kind of thing. The first part was that the band and I performed for our friends and family. You know, just a get-together to celebrate the Christmas holiday and my birthday since they're so close to each other.
"Anyway, while I was on-stage, the song came to an end and, as soon as it did, I was suddenly shot with silly string!" He chuckled at the memory, as did the rest of R5 and Laura. "And it wasn't just two or three people – We had a little make-shift stage set up, so the entire first and second row of people had a can of silly string, and, of course, so did Ryland and the others on-stage with me. By the end of it, I was a walking mass of silly string!"
Laura piped up, "We had a lot of fun putting that little prank together, just FYI."
"It was worth it," Ross added, grinning. "After they 'unearthed' me, as a combined gift, my brothers and sister, Ratliff, and Laura got me a new guitar. It was a pretty awesome one, too."
"Now, tell everyone about the second part of your birthday," Ratliff said, giddy. Just remembering the small prank they pulled on the blonde had everyone shifting where they sat as they recalled how much fun that night had been.
"Right. The second part was actually put together by this amazing girl right here–" Ross wrapped an arm around Laura's waist and tugged her a little closer to his leanly muscled frame, "–and it's also the first time anyone has thrown me a surprise party before, so I thought it was cool and pretty exciting."
"We held the party in a cosmic bowling alley," Laura stated, smiling. "So, it was really neat, because of the neon lights, the glowing bowling balls, and all the other amazing stuff."
Rydel added, "It was so much fun, too, because they also had a roller skating rink inside. We had them play disco music with flashing lights and everything!"
"Okay, we have time for a couple more questions," Riker cut in, wanting to get as many questions answered as possible. "Read us another question, Rydel."
"This is a good one: Tell the fans one thing they don't know about us. Who wants to go first?"
Rocky raised his hand. "I like playing Fall Out Boy on my guitar," he said, smiling.
The drummer of the band decided to go next. "I'm a pretty well-known SAG actor," he commented, shrugging bashfully. "I actually have a pretty long resume of TV appearances and movies, like on Victorious as Ian, like I said before."
"I'm known as the giggly one of the band," Rydel said, giggling as if to prove her point. "Laura, why don't you go next?"
The brunette smiled. "Uh, well, I know how to tap dance. I bet no one saw that coming," she chuckled. "Riker or Ross?"
"I started learning to sing and act when I was three," Riker said, smiling boyishly. "Of course, that was back in Colorado, for Colorado Productions. After that, I started taking dance lessons, too."
As the last to answer, Ross tapped his fingers on the laptop before his expression brightened. "My middle name is Shor, after my uncle, because we have the same birthday," he said. "I always thought that was pretty awesome."
Rocky rubbed his hands together excitedly. "Okay, last question, everyone," he commented. "It sucks we have to end this so soon, but we promise to have more videos and live streams in the future."
"Definitely," Ratliff added, grinning. "Rydel, how about we let Laura choose the last question?"
The bubbly blonde eagerly nodded, handing the notebook to the petite brunette. Laura took it easily and scanned down the list, looking for the perfect one to end the live stream with.
"Oh, this one is amazing," she chirped happily. "What's your favorite song, artist, or band?"
"R5," everyone responded. A second later all six burst out laughing, they were so in-sync.
Ross grinned into the camera, eyes sparkling with amusement. "Well, there you have it, everyone – R5 and Laura love R5's music!"
"Although," Riker added, "for me, right now, Flyleaf is a close second."
"The Beatles are always amazing, too," Laura stated, smiling, "And Queen, of course."
Rydel added, "Oh, and Maroon 5!"
"Don't forget The Script and The Wanted," Ross exclaimed, grinning. "Bruno Mars is great, too."
Ratliff laughed. "Well, you heard it, folks! We like a lot of singers, artists, and bands. Thanks for watching, and we hope to hear from you guys again!"
Everyone waved and bid their viewers farewell before Rydel reached over to shut off the camera and close the live stream. Closing her laptop, she leaned back to glance at her brothers and two friends. "That was awesome, wasn't it?"
"Oh, definitely," Laura replied, beaming. "We have to do another one soon."
Riker wrapped an arm around her waist, bringing her body snug against his. "First, we have to edit and upload the videos we've been filming this whole tour for R5 TV," he stated, amused. Then, lowering his voice so that only she could hear, he whispered, "And we have to plan our little vacation."
Her eyes softened with love, heart melting. "Definitely that, too," she whispered back. Then, in the next second, she turned to face Rydel. "Hey, Delly, I have an amazing idea for our next song. Want to hear it?"
"Of course," the blonde keyboardist replied, grinning. "Is it another cover?"
"Nope." A cheeky, mysterious smile appeared on her delicate facial features. "But I think it'll be perfect for our home concert."
The same type of smile twitched onto Rydel's face. "Oh, this is gonna be so good."
Until*Next*Time
Hey, can anyone guess what song Laura has in mind? ;) a special shout-out will go to anyone who can guess it! Hint: it's an actual duet sung by two girls (obviously haha) and was featured/sung on a TV show.
Please review! It would be much appreciated (: Thank you for reading!
~babydoll92