Chapter 14
ELLIE
We managed to snatch a spot a few rows back, near the wall. We wanted to be close enough to see, but far enough that they won’t see us.
I hadn’t factored in all the moving we’d be doing once the crowd started thrashing, though, and as TripleKill rocks out, we’re getting shoved closer and closer to the center of the pit.
It’s like a swirling vortex of bodies, sucking us in.
Sweaty bodies bump against us, knocking us this way and that way.
Pacey is head-banging and having the time of her life, not fazed at all by the crowd. Olivia, on the other side of me, is another story. She’s got one hand on me, the other over her chest like a shield as we’re shoved around.
“I don’t love this!” Olivia yells in my ear.
I nod my agreement. The crowd is rowdy tonight, and this is just the opener. It’s only going to get worse when the guys come out.
After TripleKill exits the stage, the crew comes out and starts swapping equipment, giving us a second to breathe while everyone runs off to the bathroom or bar.
“This is awesome!” Pacey screams. Her hearing is obviously damaged from the loud noise because there is no need for her to scream at this moment.
I rub my ear that’s currently ringing and smile at her.
She’s made friends with the people beside her, and she talks to them while Olivia scans the entire area nervously, as if she’s afraid Penn is going to come out and bust her.
After several minutes, the lights kick low and the signature ding-dong of a bell echoes through the venue. The guys started using that at the beginning of this tour to signal their arrival. It was actually my idea, and I was surprised they agreed.
The crowd goes wild. Shrill screams surround us from girls losing their minds as the guys stroll on stage.
I press up on my toes to see better. A few feet away, near the barricade, is the group of girls we saw in line.
Their signs are up nice and high as they shake them wildly, trying to get their attention.
Travis is the only one who looks their way.
It appears he’s reading the sign, then he smiles and blows them a kiss.
I roll my eyes. Flirt.
As soon as Penn starts his guitar riff, the crowd starts moving again, bouncing back and forth in time with the quick beat.
The beat begins to pulse through me, and my body sways on its own.
God, I forgot how fun this was. Liam picks up on the drums, pounding hard.
Pacey hops up and down, hands thrown in the air, screaming lyrics.
I love this song. Penn wrote it a few months ago, and it was an immediate hit. It’s got several heavy guitar riffs and a thirty-second solo for just him.
Travis rips the mic from the stand, his sexy, raspy voice floating through the mic, only adding to his damn appeal.
His voice is so powerful and raw, fueled by Penn’s beautiful lyrics, giving me chills.
He walks over to his best friend as he sings.
Penn closes the distance and the two jump around the stage, heads bobbing in unison.
Tanner stays in his corner, strumming his bass as always.
He moves around some, but he’s mostly stiff.
I think he takes himself too seriously. Travis circles around to Liam and ruffles his curls before moving to smack Tanner on the ass.
He doesn’t even flinch. He’s used to Travis’s antics by now.
When the song switches, I recognize the first chord immediately. I’m familiar with the set by now, but they switch it up a little every night so they don’t get bored. I face Olivia, who is beaming proudly. She knows this song, too. Penn wrote it for her, after all.
Together we belt out a scream. Pacey joins us, and we all go insane, singing along with Travis as loudly as we can. “Barbie Girl” has become a fan favorite with the ladies. It’s been all over TikTok and Instagram as a background for reels.
My throat is raw by the time the song is over, but they go straight into another. The crowd starts moshing, knocking us sideways again. Pacey is right in it, running in a circle, barely able to stay on her feet as people are pushed in every direction.
I’m jolted forward by a girl twice my size as she thrashes wildly. The impact is enough to knock the breath out of me. My hand blindly reaches out until I’m able to snag Liv’s hand. We squeeze our way closer to the front and out of the circle pit.
We chose the right side of the stage because I knew Penn would easily spot Olivia if we were on his side. I don’t see Pacey anywhere; she got swallowed up by the mosh. It’s hard to say where she ended up.
We don’t have to wonder for too long, though. As the guys slip into their next song, we find her.
Surfing through the crowd.
“Oh my God!” Olivia shrieks.
I watch with a mix of awe and dread as the crowd moves Pacey forward, right in front of her brother and Travis.
My eyes flash to the stage. Travis is belting out his lyrics, gazing in no particular direction.
I look at Penn, his head is bent low, staring at his fingers as they fly across his strings.
Pacey gets up to the barricade a few feet away, and the crowd dumps her out on the other side.
Security guards rush to catch her, just barely grabbing her before her ass hits the floor.
Penn’s head snaps up at the same time, and I watch the realization hit him.
His eyes narrow, then flare as he searches the crowd frantically.
“Shit,” Olivia says.
Travis notices Penn’s wild eyes, and his land on Pacey a second later as she bounds in front of them and makes her way back into the crowd, practically skipping.
Both their heads whip backstage where we’re not standing.
Neither of them misses a beat as they continue to search for us, the fans oblivious to their stress.
They scan the crowd, but come up short. It’s like finding Waldo. That is, until I accidentally make eye contact with Tanner. He stares back at me, annoyed, and then slides to Travis and Penn, tilting his head in our direction.
That mother…
Travis grins as he sings, but Penn might as well have smoke coming from his ears. “Told you,” Olivia says.
“Show him you’re his biggest fan. He can’t stay mad at you.”
We go back to dancing, giving up on finding Pacey. She’s in this crowd somewhere, having the time of her life. Penn barely takes his eyes off Olivia as he continues to play, only occasionally to search for Pacey, I’m sure.
They flow into another song, and the crowd amps up even more, all the alcohol kicking in, probably. Olivia has her phone out, recording, when we’re suddenly hit from behind, the force like a boulder as it slams us into the barricade, sending her phone flying over the railing and onto the floor.
“Ah, fuck!” I shout, latching onto the metal fence in front of me to steady myself. My attention darts to Olivia, she’s leaning against the railing, clutching her chest, pain pinching her face. “Are you ok?”
Her eyes are squeezed shut, but she nods.
A large man barrels forward with his hands up, shouting lyrics, and hits both of us, pinning us tightly against the barricade.
My eyes lift to the stage and find Penn.
He’s staring at her, pure rage filtering his features.
He moves over to Travis; he doesn’t even need to talk, they can communicate with just a look.
Travis turns our way, then stops singing.
Soon, the instruments follow and the crowd stalls.
Although the meaty man behind us doesn’t back off an inch.
Sweat seeps off his body onto my arm, and I cringe.
“Guys, back the fuck up!” Travis says into the mic. He’s playful, trying not to rile the crowd up any more than they already are. “You’re killing the people on the barrier.” His eyes meet mine with a look I can’t quite decipher. Annoyance maybe.
Security steps up and starts yelling at people to get back. But the crowd fights, shoving forward harder. “This is a punk rock show!” someone screams, and cheers follow.
Olivia lifts her head. I can tell she’s trying to assure Penn she’s fine, even though it’s clear she’s struggling. He slips his guitar over his head and hops off stage.
People go feral. Girls try to rush forward to get closer to him as he walks in front of the barricade right for us.
“Oh no.” Olivia’s face turns red as Penn steps up, pulls her right out of the crowd, and ushers her backstage.
“What a lucky whore,” some girl says from behind me, and I laugh. I’d be tempted to defend her, but I know they’re just jealous.
“You too.” The familiar voice echoing through the venue snaps my head up. Travis is staring at me impatiently. I feel my cheeks heat against my will. My body stiffens, and I arch a brow at him. Ex-fucking-cuse me?
He snaps his fingers in the mic. “Come on, move it.”
The girls behind me snicker, making rage build beneath my skin.
I shoot him a glare. This asshole must have a death wish.
He’s not even being cutesy or worried like Penn was.
He’s being demanding, scolding me like I’m a teenager misbehaving.
Why the hell aren’t they digging Pacey out?
I’m just their employee! But they probably can’t even see Pacey at this point.
“Let’s go,” the security guard says, ushering me over the gate and helping me on stage.
My heart hammers angrily against my ribs and I keep my evil stare trained on Travis as I slink backstage, feeling every single pair of eyes in this place on my back. Instead of going back to the greenroom or watching the rest of the set, I opt to stand by the bar with my drink, stewing.
As soon as it’s over and starts to clear out, I search for Pacey, not ready to face Travis right now. When I find her, my hand flies to my mouth. “Oh God, what happened?”
“The pit!” She’s still yelling. We might need to get her earbuds next time. She’s smiling even though her lip is cut, bleeding, and doubled in size.
“Are you ok?”
“I’m fine.” She points to her mouth. “This is a souvenir.”
“I don’t think your brother is going to find that funny.” I sigh, knowing I’m in for a shitstorm. Both of his girls took a beating tonight. I’m screwed.
I lead Pacey to the greenroom. Olivia is on the plush couch, an ice pack resting on her chest, her head on Penn’s shoulder. Tanner is texting furiously on his phone in the corner, while Liam and Travis are nowhere to be found.
“What the fuck?” Penn jumps up when he spots his sister’s fat lip.
“I’m fine! I took an elbow to the mouth,” she says, side-stepping him when he tries to approach her.
“Christ,” Tanner says, looking up from his phone at Pacey. His nostrils flare—maybe even harder than Penn’s did. Interesting…Calvin steps into the room just for Tanner to order him right back out to get an ice pack for her.
“You had one job tonight,” Penn starts, voice low, his icy eyes pointed right at me.
I don’t shrink back, I knew this was coming. Travis and Liam enter the room, beer in their hands.
“Whoa. What did we miss?” Liam chuckles nervously, sensing the tension.
“You were supposed to stay backstage,” Penn continues. “Why would you take them into the pit knowing what it’s like? Look what happened.” He’s not yelling, but that’s not really his style either.
“Penn, stop,” Liv wheezes, and I wince. She sounds awful.
“It was my idea!” Pacey interjects. “I wanted to be in the pit. I begged them.”
Penn runs a hand through his hair. “Why, Pace? I specifically said you all needed to stay backstage, where it was safe. Look at your face. Olivia probably needs a damn chest X-ray.”
I walk over to Liv. “Are you ok?”
“I’m ok, just sore. I do not need an X-ray.” She glares at Penn who retakes his seat next to her, stroking her hair. Goddammit even fighting their cute.
“I just wanted to experience it all. My big brother is a freaking rock star!” Pacey cries, throwing her hands up.
Penn rolls his eyes, but we all see the little smile he’s fighting.
“Everyone is fine,” Olivia croaks, running a hand across Penn’s tense jaw, and he visibly relaxes.
Calvin comes back through the door, handing Pacey a small ice pack. She stares at it before snatching it with a huff and placing it on her lip.
“Ok.” Liam slaps his hands together. The poor soul was probably worried a fight was about to break out. He’s such a nervous Nellie.
“Anyone want to hit a bar?” Travis asks.
I ignore him. I kind of want to give him a fat lip myself for calling me out like that. As if I’m a dog that obeys its master. I’m willing to role-play, but not like that. I didn’t even get a treat.
Before anyone responds, Tanner’s phone rings.
“Where the hell are you?” he answers. Everyone tries to look away, pretending we’re not eavesdropping.
“What the fuck, Katie? Whatever,” he snaps, hanging the phone up and shoving it into his back pocket rather aggressively.
“I’ll go,” he says to Travis, and my head turns so quickly, I might have given myself whiplash.
Tanner never goes out after shows, not even when Calvin tries to sell him on the whole ‘it’s good for morale’ speech. He stays on the bus, probably checking things off his clipboard. I think he takes it to bed with him.
“Fuck yeah! Who else?” His eyes roam around the room. When they land on me briefly, I scratch my nose pointedly with my middle finger. He only grins, which pisses me off more.
Penn shakes his head. “I think these girls have had enough fun for one night.”
Liv nods in agreement, but Pacey whines. “What? No way!”
“Oh, come on, man, let baby sis live a little,” Travis quips.
“Yes! I’m an adult, you literally cannot stop me,” Pacey sasses, earning a scary look from Penn.
“Dude, I won’t let anything happen to her,” Travis assures, but Penn’s eyes dart to Tanner.
“Hey!” Travis whines. “You don’t trust me?”
“I trust you. Just not when you’re on the prowl. A hot girl could walk by and distract you,” Penn replies flatly.
Travis scoffs. “I am not that easy. I won’t even look at another girl. I only have eyes for Pacey tonight.”
“Nope. Don’t fucking like that either.”
I glance at Liv, and her shoulders shake with a laugh, just like mine, as we listen to them bicker back and forth.
Eventually, Penn relents, and he and Liv go back to the room while the rest of us head out on the town.
I wasn’t going to go. I was considering kicking Travis in his perfect dick, but then I’d have major FOMO.
Plus, that’s one part of him that doesn’t piss me off.