LIKE A MILLION LIGHTS. /david

[JONATHAN NATHANIEL CLARK]

Now, granted, every member of a band shares an equal amount of worth to the whole. Jonathan understood David had needs which most human beings could agree on, and it was his personal right to see to them. Jon, however, had a ravenous desire at that very frame in time to sleep, because, unlike his tattooed counter-part, he could not function on two or three hours of rest. If ever fatigue threatened a performance for David, he simply self-medicated with uppers. Jon did not allow himself such a luxury.

He'd been enjoying his first REM cycle in days when the sounds began; shifting out in the main gut of the bus, voices, movement. It was impossible to return to sleep once his eyes were open.

The bassist sat up in the bed, realizing he'd left his shoes and day-clothing on. He shucked his sneakers, socks and jeans, remaining in boxers and the War of Ages shirt he'd started his day in. He could hear David's interactions with a woman friend, now. It was a bit of a piss-off. David only thought with one head. He stood, scratching absently at the back of his neck. Eventually the guitarist was going to contract some sort of sexual disease.

Jon wasn't a prude; he was just quiet. David's reputation as a manwhore didn't sit well with him. He pushed back the curtain, stepping out into the small hallway that made up the bunk area and trudging down into the common area. Smirking, he slipped past the two bodies on the couch, going to the refrigerator and riffling through the cooling unit for a can of soda. Straightening, he cracked the thing open, walking back past the two. "If you two are going to do that out here, I'm borrowing your iPod, Dave."

[AMANDA JANE STEVENS]

Her head fell back gently as he kissed near the base of her neck, how far was this going to go? She doubted that she held the ability to stop if it went further. She was innocent in this field, and he seemed so experienced. Her mind was completely fuddled, while her judgment was seriously clouded with what felt like drugs. Amanda knew that it was probably in her best interests to leave right now and go to bed in her own bed; however, her body had other ideas. Her body wanted nothing more than to accept the proposal that David had laid out on the table. Should she go back to his bed for something that she would likely regret in the morning? Or find the willpower within herself to pull away from this right now? She needed to decide soon before her mind was really gone with pure hormonal instinct. She swallowed, her breathing slightly labored. "I... I don't know." she said after some trouble of getting her words out. Amanda was being honest, she still hadn't decided whether she should leave or stay, leave, sleep, and wonder what would have happened, or stay and feel terrible in the morning.

It was a that very moment where she was about to nod her head and agree to David that another voice rang through her ears. A voice that was also masculine, her mind was well on its way to clearing up now. Amanda untangled her hands from around David's very naked upper body, her eyes were exceptionally wide and her face extraordinarily red. To say she was completely and utterly mortified would have been the understatement of the century. She pressed her hands against his chest and pushed away from him gently. There was absolutely no way this was going any farther under the current circumstances. Amanda moved her body back into a sitting position on the couch, her fingers ran through her dark hair nervously as she glanced at the floor.

She was intent to keep her eyes away from the new arrival who'd seen her in such an indecent embrace, her eyes moved across the floor and then up David's body, it seemed to be the safest bed. "I'm sorry. I should probably go, I need to call my brother and I need to look at something and upload photos and then uh... uh jump under a bus and then I need to do other important stuff that needs to be done. Like uh... reading. I need to read something. It's something... yeah that needs to be read and stuff before... uh. tomorrow, I think? Yeah tomorrow, that sounds right."

[/b] Amanda began rambling, just throwing out anything that sounded remotely convincing in a way that was anything but. Her fingers played with the bottom of her shirt, a piece that had almost been introduced to the floor of David's band's bus. She had been so close to losing her innocence, it was so weird to think about. Amanda stood up, keeping her eyes locked on something that wouldn't end in misery.
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[DAVID ANTHONY HARLEM]

<sub>David made a noise that sounded something like a curse as she pulled away from him, his pulse racing in her absence. He looked up at Jon with an expression of irritated resignation, his mouth a thin line. Such a fucking prude. Jon had a nasty habit of destroying any and all sexual energy he encountered. As if Anya hazing any woman David brought to the bus wasn't enough.

"Jon," he said, not even attempting to preserve the evening that might have been. "This is Amanda. Amanda, Jon plays bass and likes to screw me over. He possibly wants to just straight-up screw me, because anytime I happen to interact with the opposite sex, he sets me up with a cock-block. I'm beginning to think he's jealous of them." The boy bent over, snatching his shirt up off the floor in a huff.

Coming back up, he looked to Amanda, who seemed to have been painted red. He touched her elbow, well aware that there was no way he'd be tasting her lips again tonight. "Why don't I walk you to your bus?"</sub>

[JONATHAN NATHANIEL CLARK]

<sub>Jon gave Amanda what might have been an apologetic nod. He had no way of knowing the depth of what he'd ruined by lumbering through. It wasn't she that the bassist wanted to embarrass, though.

"He has fleas. I'd watch out for him." The bigger man retreated towards the back of the buss again, mussing David's hair peevishly on his way. David had no right to participate in the role of the victim. When he stopped getting high on tour and drinking on the bus, Jon would start giving him privacy.</sub>

[AMANDA JANE STEVENS]

So this was the Jon character that he'd been speaking of earlier, that made sense since he was in their bus. Oh god, why hadn't she thought about people being on the bus, people sleeping on the bus and all of that important stuff. It wasn't as if she wanted her first time to be broadcasted around the entire Weekend Warrior bus. Actually she had no idea what she wanted her first time to be like, she wasn't actually the type of girl who sat around thinking about all of that bullshit. She just sort of... expected it to happen someway somehow. The fog in her mind was beginning to clear up and she glanced at Jon silently.

Amanda looked up at David startled by his touch, her head nodded gently. "Uh... yeah, please." she said awkwardly as the events of the night came flooding back into her mind. Mason was out there and he was probably mad about what had happened, she had after-all kicked him a very very sensitive area. She swallowed quietly and looked at Jon and smiled awkwardly, unsure of how she was required to reply to that statement. Amanda leaned into David's body instinctively. She moved slowly towards where she'd discarded her coat earlier and pulled it over her heated flesh. Her eyes drifted back to David once again, "I mean if you don't mind." she finished softly, her face beginning to fall back into its impassive state. It was sad actually, she knew that when she arrived back to the bus she'd likely have a date with her beloved metal blade.

[DAVID ANTHONY HARLEM]

"Yeah. Yeah totally." David pulled his shirt back on over his tattooed frame. He cast a sour glance in Jon's direction as the bassist padded back down the hallway. David rarely let men touch him in any form, but Jon -- along with Kelly, the band's frontman occasionally -- was an exception. If another male had ruffled his hair the way that Jon had, David's reaction wouldn't have been pleasant. He shook his head, planning a nasty revenge on his band-mate when he got back to the bus, and then came to her side, again taking her elbow. "Come on." He pushed the door open, minus his sweat-shirt; he needed to cool off, at this point.

Outside the sky was perfectly, irresistibly clear, in a way that filled your chest with emotion. The air nipped at the tip of his nose, his cheeks and his eyelids as he cast a glance up into darkness, and all those stars, and then around, making a show of checking for intruders. "All clear."

[AMANDA JANE STEVENS]

At his touch on her elbow she began to move towards the door, stopping only once to note his lack of dress. "Aren't you going to be cold?"

[/b] she asked quietly finally coming right back to, almost, complete normality. She moved her arm away from his touch and searched for his hand silently, hoping that the contact with his flesh would help to keep her calm and whole on their walk to her mobile house. Apparently he didn't really care about keeping his body heat levels at maximum and walked outside completely exposed to the cold air. Her hand gripped tightly at his, praying to whatever God there was that she wasn't going to die a painful death, and that Mason wouldn't jump out. It was as if being in the bus with David was a little escape from her fears and the sad reality of the night.

Amanda heaved a sigh of relief and smiled ever so slightly, "I'm sorry about all of that. I... shouldn't have let it happen." she said softly, her slight smile turning into a frown, "I... uh..." she began awkwardly, unsure of how she would end the sentence. "Do you want to hang out again?" she heard her voice ring out, it wasn't the question she'd hoped for, but it would definitely work. Her eyes were fixed on the ground as she walked, hoping that it would lessen the humiliation if he refused.
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[DAVID ANTHONY HARLEM]

David squeezed her hand as she joined him on the outside, giving her a smile that she likely couldn't see. In answer to her concerns for the temperature, he just shook his head, shrugging it off. "I need to cool off before I get back on that bus, or I might lace Jon's Wheaties with ex-lax tomorrow morning." It was true. There would be warfare. "--Actually, I might do that, regardless."

He let her stumble over her words, feeling a warmth in his chest at her timid nature. Again, he had temper himself as the anger rose, imagining that someone might have hurt her. David began to walk with, though he didn't know the layout of the grounds, or where she lived. They'd get to that destination, eventually. "Don't worry about it. Jon won't think any less of you. He's just busting my balls. --And yeah, we should do this again."

What ever 'this' was.

[AMANDA JANE STEVENS]

A small smile broke through Amanda's apathetic mask. She swung their entwined hands gently back and forth. "That's mean." she said slightly amused at his antics. "I mean he may have... uh... yeah in the bus but I guess it's fair right?" she added quietly, sort of glad that he had broken up the party. She still wasn't sure whether or not she was really ready to go on with that sort of physical relationship. It was really beginning to bother her because David was a really nice guy, he was quick to protect her it seemed. She bit her lip gently as she thought about it.

"I'm not. I mean it was... sort of embarrassing." she shrugged gently. Amanda hadn't really thought about that bit before he'd mentioned it, which was okay. People usually thought badly of her, or they had in the past, why would this time be any different? "But It's okay." she smiled and glanced up at him. "I'd... I'd like that." She replied to him quietly.

[DAVID ANTHONY HARLEM]

<sub>"Sweet," David said, smirking into the night air. "We've got a set tomorrow, around four o' clock. You wanna do something after that?" Almost without fail, David could be trusted to be in a perfect mood after a show. It meant adrenaline and endorphins from the performance, and chemicals in his system. He always took a hit of something before going on the stage. It made a performance sweeter.

Jonathan was guaranteed not to care what girl it was David had brought onto the bus. To be certain, if David or Amanda had let on that the girl had been assaulted, Jon would have been more reactionary than David had been. He'd been raised with manners and morals and all those things that David had learned to do without.

And anyway, it didn't matter. David liked Amanda, sincerely. He liked women in general, but she was soft-spoken and sweet-natured, and reserved in a way that made every little smile or twinkling of her eyes even sweeter. Kissing her had been the perfect privilege, and as good as a high. It would have been worth it to take a punch for her, had she let him do something about her offender. It would have been right to split his knuckles on the bastard's teeth.

"Where is it that you live right now?"</sub>

[AMANDA JANE STEVENS]

Amanda's smile grew larger, even though the air cut through her thin coat like a knife. The cold didn't really bother her right now, perhaps because her skin was still hot from David's lips upon hers and his touch. Tomorrow, tomorrow, what did she have tomorrow. Nothing really, perhaps take a few pictures of Rise Over Me, upload them, stuff like that, nothing really important. Her head nodded for the a millionth time that night, "Okay, yeah, that sounds great." she said happily, "Maybe I'll even come and watch you play."

[/b] she added quietly, she always enjoyed watching people play shows. Her absolute favorite type of show was when the members of a particular band were really into their shows. "If you don't mind." Her mouth curled into a smirk, "Actually, I don't really care if you mind."

"Oh! I uh... Rise Over Me bus. It's over here." she said waving her free hand in the direction of the bus that she currently called home. "It's uh... over there." she added dumbly, as if he didn't see her motion. Her teeth once again tugged gently on her bottom lip, she pulled on his hand and started towards the direction that she'd motioned to, "I don't think it's that far away." she stated sadly to herself, their time for the night was almost up and she was beginning to get a little sad. Her mind thought back to where she'd left her razor. Amanda wondered if she even needed to tonight, she'd probably end up doing it just because it was a habit.[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size][/justify]

[DAVID ANTHONY HARLEM]

<sub>"Do it," David said. He raised her hand level with his stomach, taking it between his two hands and rubbing heat into it. This gesture was extended without thought; David needed to do things with his hands. It was a common habit of musicians. "I'm nuts on stage. We all are. We get some flack from the critics because our audience doesn't end up knocking out eyeballs and shit like Halfway Sober, but our screamer, Anya, is like, five times better than their screamer, and our drummer's a chick, so that gets us points."

Actually, David knew from recent conversations that Anya liked Halfway Sober, and so did Jon, but he was a naturally jealous person, and Half Way sober got a lot of attention because of their intensity. It was a sore spot with him.

He resigned himself from discussing it further; he'd been enjoying himself tonight. Talking about other bands that he didn't care for would change that quickly. Instead, the boy lifted the hand he'd been warming to his lips and blew on her knuckles. The kiss he planted there, before lowering her hand again, was deliberate in his mind.</sub>

[AMANDA JANE STEVENS]

There was something so serene and beautiful about the nighttime, lights just seemed so beautiful against the black dismal black color of the sky. A small happy sigh escaped her pale lips that just minutes ago had been claimed by David's. She was completely content right now, even through the evil that happened in the beginning of it. It was truly amazing how her night had turned around in such a small amount of time. Amanda hadn't even been worried that Mason had been lurking out in the darkness for her to reappear so that he could continue where he'd left off. No she honestly hadn't thought about something like that with David by her side. It didn't even occur to her that the only thing she really knew about him was the location of his tattoos and the band and instrument that he played. For all she knew he could be in the same boat as Mason, though she'd found out he wasn't since he didn't take advantage of her.

She smiled as she looked over at their hands. It was safe to say she legitimately enjoyed him holding her hand. The whole idea of it had been something that really hadn't crossed her mind for a very long time. Boys were something that usually didn't cross her mind, well not since middle school. "Less intense sounds better for me. I don't want to die in a crowd while on tour." She said shrugging slightly, "For some reason I don't see that blowing over well with my parents." she added quietly. It was a fact that everyone in Halfway Sober was a drunk or a douche bag. They had a reputation for being a bunch of ill-tempered assholes that had issues being nice to anyone ever. Her face flushed in the darkness as his lips touched her knuckles, that was yet another place those magical lips had touched.

Her heart fell a little as she spotted the familiar bus come up in her line of vision. It wasn't far away and she was already feeling a little sad that she would soon be alone, sort of, with her thoughts. She knew already tonights sleep probably wouldn't come easy.

[DAVID ANTHONY HARLEM]

"Yeah, I'd be a little pissed, too." David said of the 'death-by-moshing' scenario. He watched the different buses as they passed them, each with different lives and stories, sleeping inside. He kept on glancing to the skies, idly allowing thoughts of his brother, and whether or not he could see stars where he was. The question but a small pang in his gut, and he hushed it away, promising himself a visit to the tiny white pills hidden under his mattress when he got back to his bus.

"Listen..." He said. "I'm not gonna make you tell me who... You know... Went after you... But if he bugs you again, you can come to our bus, or come find me. "

[AMANDA JANE STEVENS]

A small sheepish grin was featured on Amanda's facial features as David spoke. "If I died? Or if your kid died in a crowd?" she asked cocking her head to the side ever so slightly. There was a small hope deep inside her heart that he might have actually meant the first and didn't have a child for the second to apply. Perhaps it was a little selfish of her to hope the he didn't have offspring, perhaps it wasn't. Kids were a weird subject for her. They were cute and shit, but still.

Amanda came to a halt at her bus. She pressed her body against the door lightly and looked up at his face. "Yeah, definitely." she answered quickly, there was no other place she'd rather go if someone decided to feel her up again.

She stood up on her very tippiest of toes and kissed him gently on the lips "Thank you." she said softly, wrapping her arms around his body for a quick hug. In her mind this was just like one of her fairy tales, he had saved her from the evil monster, she could have roughly been considered a princess, and she did kiss him. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" she added, pulling away from him. Her hand fiddled with the handle and opened the door. "Bye David." Amanda said quietly, offering him a small wave as she disappeared into the bus. It was time to search for a certain bit of metal to make her skin crawl.