#but I have a neutral opinion on that Danny kid who kind of looks like him

[thatonedudeinthecorner]

Danny PHANTOM???? I hardly KNOW him?

[peterstanslizzie]

Re-watching Lizzie Mcguire: Episode 1.4 (Pool Party)

The Actual First Episode

A classic Lizzie Mcguire episode

- For some strange reason, this episode was considered episode #4 and the fourth episode to air even though the production code for this episode is '101′. Meaning that chronologically, this is episode #1 and probably the series pilot. It’s no wonder that all the kids look a lot younger here than in other episodes.

- That being said, let’s begin my episode recap. Lizzie is running through an obstacle course during P.E. class and she’s having a miserable time; I can definitely relate. Side note: Coach Kelly is played by Dot Marie Jones, who also played Coach Beiste on the hit Fox television series, Glee.

- Cartoon Lizzie, who is Lizzie’s conscience gives us a brief commentary on the different social circles in her gym class and she describes herself as someone who doesn’t fit in any category. I can also relate to her in that aspect just because during high school, I didn’t fit into any sort of clique. And that’s fine because having multiple interests and friends from different walks of life was beneficial to me.

Introducing Lizzie’s BFFs and Classmates

This is so pure, I love it

- Babies! They look so young here for real. Miranda is first introduced as Lizzie’s best friend and they basically confide in each others secrets. But more about Miranda later on.

Gordo is so cute but extremely wise for his age

- Lizzie knew Gordo since she was a day out of her mom’s womb. She describes him as “smart, funny, creative and right about everything”. That’s our Gordo for sure.

Kate looks quite different here and it’s not because of the face she’s pulling

- Kate Sanders, as you all know is Lizzie’s frenemy but former best friend because she hit puberty and became popular because of that. I kinda need more info on how that happened. Did the other girls suddenly look up to her? Or did Kate suddenly develop a lot of confidence and a mean attitude to pair?

Danny Kessler was more visible at the start of the series. I wonder what happened?

- I believe Danny was meant to play a larger part in the show; However, his character just kind of faded into the background later on only to be somewhat replaced by Ethan Craft, who is a far better character in my opinion. He serves the purpose of being the hottest boy in school who girls go gaga for and that’s about it really. Danny invites Lizzie and Miranda to a pool party on Saturday and they lose their minds from the invitation. 

The Mcguire Household

Lizzie vs Dad and Matt lol. Jo as referee.

- I found this scene, which introduces us to Lizzie’s parents and brother to be a little chaotic; Lizzie tells her family that she’s been invited by the ‘hunk-in-training’ of the school to a party. We also get mentions of spit-swapping and strip poker as well as her dad thinking she has been kissing Danny and having second thoughts on allowing her to go to this party.

- Well, Lizzie doesn’t have to worry about it because she can’t go either way because her Nana’s 80th birthday party falls on the same day. Lizzie gets mad and storms off. I’m guessing her Nana lives out of town and so, it isn’t possible to go to her birthday party and also come back for Danny’s party on the same day.

Miranda’s Betrayal

- Lizzie vents to Miranda and Gordo about not being able to make it to Danny Kessler’s pool party and because of that, being the best friend Miranda is supposed to be, she tells Lizzie that she too won’t be attending his party either in order to show her support for Lizzie.

Side note: Knowing that this episode was written by Terri Minsky, I made the connection that Gordo’s parents who are shrinks is similar to Andi Mack Cyrus’s parents and step-parents being therapists too.

- Kate approaches Miranda and asks her a favor to ask her mom to draw some fake, temporary tattoos on her and her friends for the upcoming party. Miranda accepts and agrees to hang out with Kate after school, which pretty much means she’s re-attending the party and hence, betraying Lizzie in the process.

Miranda is disliked by most fans because of instances like this

- I honestly cannot be too hard on Miranda because she’s only 13 and everyone at school keeps talking about the pool party. Plus, she has a crush on Danny. So, I can’t fault her for ditching Lizzie but she could have at least asked Kate if Lizzie could come along to her house.

- However, I didn’t like how Lizzie was sitting by herself in the same school bus as Miranda and Kate and Miranda did not bother to ask her to sit with them. Even if Kate isn’t willing to let her, she should definitely stand her ground. Poor Lizzie has to sit with this one kid who proudly picks his nose and flicks it.

“Eww! Ya Nasty!” *in Raven Baxter’s voice

Obligation vs Being Forced to do things

- Jo Mcguire is on the phone talking to someone about trying to get out of volunteering to write for a newsletter. Lizzie overhears this and confronts her mom for being hypocritical as she is forcing Lizzie to attend her Nana’s birthday party whilst she herself is trying to come up with an excuse to get out of doing something else.

- I get what Lizzie means; how is it okay for her mom to make excuses while she can’t? Well, Jo is an adult, so excuses are something that she is able to make and bear the responsibilities that come out of it. Lizzie is still a kid and I believe that her old grandma’s birthday is more important than some middle school party.

Heart to Heart

- After Lizzie confines herself in her room, Jo deploys her husband, Sam to try to get Lizzie to open up by asking him to use a simple yet complicated technique known as the ‘hairbrush routine’, which is making an excuse to look for something in the room and proceed to talk about a neutral topic and only engage with the questioning at hand when she makes eye contact and speaks in full sentences. Lol, that’s a mouthful.

- Luckily, we did get this beautiful moment in the end:

Give me some tissues :(

Gordo is the Man

This is some good acting imo

- Can we first talk about that long stare between Lizzie and Miranda in the hallway when Miranda, Kate and her crew were walking past Lizzie by her locker? Their expressions were so believable; I can almost read the dialog between their faces alone.

- Lizzie complains to Gordo and accuses Miranda for being a hypocrite but Gordo tells Lizzie that she shouldn’t be mad at her because the party was something Miranda really wanted to go to.

- Ughh, it’s hard. The position Miranda was put in is so difficult. It’s either she doesn’t go to the party to show her loyalty or she does go and have the best time of her life but risk having her friend hate her because of it. Either way, I think Lizzie shouldn’t be mad at Miranda regardless. There are plenty more episodes for that in the future.

- Gordo delivers the final blow when he says that he wasn’t even invited to the party and that pretty much cancels out all of Lizzie’s arguments.

Another cute Lizzie x Gordo moment

Lizzie makes up with her Mom and Miranda

- Jo enters Lizzie’s room and tells her that her Nana is going to Las Vegas to play poker and so, Lizzie is free to go to the pool party. What a grandma haha! I’m happy they hugged it out. I don’t like Lizzie being mad at her mom.

- Lizzie decided to skip the party (good for her!) and she and Gordo played in the backyard and made art by dipping a huge piece of cloth in some color dye to create a really cool effect.

- Miranda unexpectedly shows up at Lizzie’s backyard after leaving the pool party and turns out, she had a bad time because Kate’s ankle swelled up from the tattoo and she had to sit with her in the locker room. She also admits being a bad friend to Lizzie for blowing her off.

- Lizzie doesn’t hold any grudge and she and Miranda are back to being besties!

Overall Thoughts

- There was a lot to talk about in this episode from Lizzie’s relationship woes with her best friend to her feeling like her opinions and thoughts are not seen as valid by her family. I do think that for how Lizzie was so upset at Miranda, she kinda forgave her too easily. But I don’t think I would want to see them continue to not be on speaking terms for more than 1 episode.

- I am glad that there was no unnecessary sub-plot involving Matt and Sam in this episode. His story-lines are really a hit or miss to me. I prefer the ones where his relationship with his friends and family are tested as well as when he faced situations that gave him character development. I don’t like the goofy, comic-relief ones like last episode’s cooking fiasco.

[imnotinclinedtomaturity]

Love Yourself (Chapter 25)

title: Love Yourself summary: A lot of things about Dan’s life are pretty great. He gets to make the music he wants, he’s got a great fanbase, and his manager is his best friend. A few things about his life suck a bit more. He’s currently lacking inspiration, he’s rather lonely, and he’s stuck in a rut. Dan’s been going to the same coffee shop for years. It’s quiet, it’s quaint, it’s near his home. Most importantly: none of the employees give a shit that’s he a world-famous singer. Things change when he meets the new barista. chapter words: 5.7k story words: 202.4k (so far) chapter: 25/? rating: m warnings: language, alcohol, sex mentions, some bi/homophobia, eventual explicit smut genre: singer!dan, coffee shop au, barista!phil, slow burn [[ao3]] [[first chapter]] [[previous chapter]]

a/n: @auroraphilealis kicked my ass into gear tonight because i got home and she was like... are you tired... because you could post tonight. and then patiently sat there with me while i edited.

a/n2: shorter than normal, but it’s been less than a week? i think? you better hope good things come in small(er) packages. also a bit more homophobia than normal this chapter, be safe kids. don’t let people talk to you like this if you can help it.

“Isabella,” Dan muttered, empty and shaken. It took him nearly a full second of staring at her to meet her eyes.

She was perched on the back of the lobby sofa, her long legs stretched out in front of her, hooked at the ankle. In her hands was a manila envelope — something that seemed incredibly out of place given the rest of her sultry, borderline inappropriate, appearance. Two months ago, Dan’s eyes would have traced over her curves in the tight dress, probably gotten turned on by the fact that it was so short that he would definitely be able to see her lacy underwear if he just bent down a little. Her hair was in immaculate loose curls, her makeup overstated and dark. She hadn’t changed a bit since Dan had seen her last.

“Well, aren’t you going to invite me up, Danny?” Isabella asked, one eyebrow raised, a sickeningly sweet smile on her lips. Pointed, blood red nails drummed against the yellow envelope as she waited impatiently.

The question was enough to finally shake Dan from his numb stupor. His eyes flickered to Todd, who was watching the scene carefully and looked ready to intervene if necessary. Their eyes met, and Todd quirked his head, silently questioning if Dan needed help. Not bothering to be subtle about it, Dan held up one finger and shook his head.

“Well, Danny?” Isabella asked — taunted more like.

Dan’s attention snapped back to her, his blood nearly boiling just from the thirty seconds of interaction. “Definitely not,” Dan spat harshly, spinning around without a second glance, storming off towards the lift. Isabella had always had the tendency to bring out the most… passionate side of him. Usually not in an attractive way.

He only got a few strides away before Isabella was calling after him again. “Oh, but I really think you should. I’ve got something that I think you’ll be very interested in.”

Dan slowly, warily turned around. Isabella had stood up, and was smugly fanning herself with the envelope. Dan’s mind sorted through possibilities, trying to figure out what it could possibly be — if there was anything that would be important enough that he’d willingly let her into his flat. He was coming up short, though. Whatever was in that envelope was a mystery to him.

“What is that?” Dan forced out through gritted teeth, eyes fixed on the envelope.

“Something special for you. See, I’ve got a meeting with Tatler on Friday, and I think we should talk about what I’m going to say,” Isabella explained. Her voice was dripping with forced honey; she was talking to him like he was a small child.

The small amount of blood that had still been in Dan’s face drained away.

Suddenly, it seemed like there could be a lot of things in the envelope: his sexuality, Phil, a distorted version of their break up…

All things Dan wasn’t keen on Isabella spilling to the public.

Unsubtly, Isabella shifted her gaze to Todd. “Away from prying ears.”

“Todd,” Dan said as he tore his eyes from Isabella to look at the doorman. “I’ll ring down if I need you. Be on alert, please.”

“Yes Mr. Howell,” Todd agreed. The familiar, polite smile that he usually sported had been replaced with a grim look of concern. His brows were furrowed together, his eyes alert, his chest puffed out. He looked ready for action.

The clack clack clack of Isabella’s stilettos echoed as she crossed the lobby, a wicked smile pulling her lips too tightly against her teeth. With a resigned sigh, Dan followed her, feeling like he was marching to his grave, not his own flat.

Dan wordlessly pushed the call button for the lift, worriedly spinning his key back and forth in his hands. When the lift doors opened, Dan stalked forward silently, Isabella following behind without any further invitation.

A flurry of emotions — anger, disappointment, fear — was making Dan’s hands tremble. Three times, he unsuccessfully tried to guide his key into the correct slot, his shaking hands missing every time. With every failed attempt, he felt the intensity of Isabella’s stare increasing, felt her disdain growing.

His fourth attempt was interrupted by a loud, derisive scoff. “Do you have nail polish on?”

Dan tugged the sleeves of his jumper over his hands, suddenly self conscious about his nails again. Using his clothed knuckle, Dan jabbed the button for his flat before protectively crossing his arms in front of his chest.

“I thought only fags did that,” she ridiculed, sounding repulsed. “Oh wait, I forgot. You’re a little queer boy aren’t you?”

Dan tried not to flinch, tried not to let her see how much the words had affected him. They sounded far too much like the playground taunts he’d endured in primary school, the jeers of the boys on the football team in sixth form.

Phil likes them, Dan’s mind supplied weakly as he tried to block her out. Her opinion of him didn’t matter anymore — and, really, never did. He just wanted to find out what she had in that fucking envelope and get her out of his life again.

This wasn’t how tonight was supposed to end.

He was supposed to have been able to curl up in bed, maybe watch a cheesy rom-com while drinking a glass of wine, and fall asleep still high on his date with Phil. Instead, he was currently stuck in the most tense lift ride in history, with his ex-girlfriend, all while trying to push through the gnawing feeling in his stomach that something was very, very wrong.

Dan was so on edge that the ding of the lift doors startled him, causing him to jump and yelp quietly. Isabella laughed at him — a laugh full of contempt and judgement. Ashamed, Dan ducked his head and led the way off the lift.

He came to a halt in the foyer, not wanting to let her further into the flat if avoidable. The closer she was to the exit, the easier it would be to throw her out once Dan figured out what the bloody hell she was after.

Dan stared at her anxiously, his eyes pointedly flicking down to her hands.

He expected her to tell him what the fuck this was about, but she brushed straight passed him, deliberately ignoring Dan’s obvious attempts to keep her out of his flat. Frustrated, Dan trailed after her, following her closely down the hallway and, apparently to the lounge.

His path was cut short, though, when she abruptly stopped just inside the lounge entrance, and he ran smack into her.

“What the fuck, Izzy?” Dan bellowed, confused and annoyed. She was the one who’d wanted to go further into Dan’s flat. What the fuck had she stopped for? Dan pushed around her, taking the state of the lounge. Everything about it screamed date— and date with a man, at that. The white flowers looked lovely on the bar cart, situated between two untouched glasses of red wine. The rest of the lounge though… well, frankly, the rest of the lounge was kind of a hot mess.

The sofa pillows were all knocked the floor. The blanket was disheveled and had a very distinct white streak on it — and the towel on the sofa was covered in matching, obvious stains. There was an open bottle of lube on the coffee table, a few drops of which appeared to have leaked out now that Dan was looking more closely.

Dan wasn’t exactly sure what he expected from Isabella, but it was probably something along the lines of a screaming fit followed by having the flowers thrown mercilessly at his head. What he didn’t expect, was Isabella huffing dramatically but entering the room without comment, carefully skirting around all of the dubious objects to sit on the rarely used armchair.

She sat primly, on the very edge of the chair, her thin legs crossed in front of her. Dan wondered, briefly, if she was sitting so precariously because she was uncomfortable — he wondered if she thought maybe they’d fucked on that chair.

He almost wished they had. He almost wished he’d bent forward over the cushion and let Phil take him from behind. Almost wished that he’d come all over the cushion and not bothered to clean it up, wished that he’d stained the spot she was sitting.

From her perch, Isabella’s scornful eyes scanned the room, but she didn’t make any comment about the state of the lounge— even though it was painfully clear what had happened earlier. Somehow, the silent disapproving was almost more hurtful than a snide comment would have been.

Chucking the soiled towel to the side, Dan settled onto the sofa. He picked up one of the discarded pillows and hugged it close to his chest, relishing the small bit of comfort it provided, and waited.

“I’m not asking to get back together. It’s clear that…” Her eyes dropped down to the lube in front of Dan, “That you’re with the tarado from the coffeeshop,” Isabella finished, her voice alarmingly neutral despite the derogatory language.

Dan jerked his head once in an attempt at nodding. It was taking every single bit of Dan’s self control to be civil right now, and he knew if he opened his mouth, nothing but hate would come out.

“I’ve come to make you an offer. One that I think could be very beneficial for both of us.”

Ah hah! Dan thought bitterly, that was why she was being so calm, so un-Isabella. She wanted something from him. Of course she did. All Isabella had ever done was take take take. Why would it be any different now?

“Consider it a no,” Dan spat.

“You haven’t even heard what I have to say, Danny. That’s very rude.”

“Well, I think you’re a bitch, so. Forgive me.”

Isabella closed her eyes, long fake lashes fluttering against her cheeks, and took a few deep breaths — apparently Dan had managed to rattle her a bit. Good.

Her eyes opened again and she flashed Dan a forced smile. “Like I was saying. I’m making you an offer.” Dan opened his mouth to rebut again, but Isabella held up a hand to silence him. “As you may have seen, my appearance in the media has… gone down some since we stopped dating.”

Her voice was tense, and it looked like she was barely managing to retain her dignity during the admission. Dan bit back a hateful laugh, and merely nodded in acknowledgement.

Not that he was… completely certain what he was agreeing to. He’d hardly kept up with her media presence since he’d dumped her. In fact, he’d blacklisted her name wherever possible, so… yeah. He had no real idea.

It was a little satisfying to hear she’d fallen from grace, though.

Isabella continued, her tone carefully even. “And I’ve noticed that rumors have been flying around about you and that —” Isabella stopped abruptly, seeming to choose a nicer word at the last second. “Boy.”

Dan nodded again. His teeth dug into his lip so harshly that, if he was less worried about what Isabella was getting at, he’d be worried that he was drawing blood.

“I think we should get back together — publically,” she added hastily before Dan could react. “And if you want to keep dating the pen — Phil, that’s fine.”

Dan’s jaw dropped. For several seconds, all he was capable of doing was staring at her, trying to process, trying to figure out if she’d really just said that.

When the meaning of her words finally sunk in — that she apparently wanted to be his beard — indignant anger roared up again. “And what,” he cried, “You’ll keep fucking around with other guys?”

Isabella flinched at Dan’s harsh word choice, but clearly tried to remain pleasant. “It’s only fair that I’m allowed to see other people, if you are,” she replied haughtily. Her tone was blunt, terse.

“Really?” Dan finally let out the bitter laugh he’d been holding back. “As I recall, you took the liberty of seeing other people even when I wasn’t allowed to.”

“Suétalo,” Isabella said dismissively. She finally opened the envelope and pulled out two small stapled packets. “I had a contract made for us, and printed one out for each of us. Don’t worry, the lawyer is a very discreet man.” Isabella slid one of the packets across the table, narrowing missing the small puddle of lube. “The terms are listed on the second page.”

In a daze, Dan leaned forward and plucked the contract off the table, setting his phone down in exchange. He turned the page to see what Isabella was talking about. It was long — like, it appeared to carry onto the next page long.

“As you’ll see,” Isabella started, opening her packet to the same page. “We’ll go on two dates together each week, unless one of us is traveling. At least one date will be on a weekend night, and both dates will include drinks and dinner. I will attend all events with you, as your date. Charity events, publicity events, award shows, and other work events do not count as one of the two weekly dates.”

Dan’s eyes followed along on the paper, where each term was written in excruciating detail.

“You will start coming to my work events,” Isabella read off the next point on the list. Chillingly, this was the most professional and direct Dan had ever heard her sound — a change that was definitely alarming. “You will attend all runway shows I am a part of, and bring at least one famous friend — Phil doesn’t count.” Phil’s name still sounded like a curse word on Isabella’s lips, but at least she was using his name. “You will also stop by any major photoshoots I have. I want the media to see you actively supporting my modeling career.”

Dan’s mind was reeling. Fleeting pictures of runway shows flashed through his mind. They’d be boring, unbelievably dull. Especially since she tended to do a lot of shoots for high end women’s lingerie — something he was never planning to buy again.

Well, maybe not never, Dan thought as his eyes caught on his own nails.

Isabella continued on, not noticing that Dan’s mind was drifting. “We will also maintain a constant social media presence. We will both post at least one picture or tweet about each date, in addition to at least two other posts per week.”

Out of habit, Dan’s eyes flickered to his phone at the mention of social media, and he saw that it was lighting up with what looked like a third message from Phil. Dan really wished he could lean forward and look at them right now.

“Every other month, we will go on a trip together, which will all be at least a long weekend. Vacations can be a part of international work events, but posting on twitter and instagram is expected to increase.”

Dan looked back at the page, his eyes falling on the last term just as she mentioned it.

“And of course, I’m sure I don’t need to tell you this, but you’ll obviously limit the amount of time that you’re seen in public with Phil. You won’t be seen out with him at nights, and if you get food together, you will always eat at predetermined unromantic restaurants.”

Everything about this was bullshit — there wasn’t a single term or idea that Isabella had presented that seemed rational or acceptable to Dan. He’d hardly even bothered to pay attention as she was reading off the contract, but this rule — the implication that he’d never get to have a night like tonight again —

That was the last straw.

Dan threw his contract onto the table, noticing that it definitely landed in the little puddle of lube. Good.

“Why the fuck would I agree to any of this?” Dan seethed.

“It’s the perfect solution. You’ll be in a relationship, so everyone will stop speculating about you and that boy. And at night, you can—” her eyes flicked down meaningfully to the bottle of lube on the coffee table, “— get fucked without anyone knowing you prefer it up the ass.”

“I don’t just bot—” Dan snapped his mouth shut before he could say any more of that sentence. That wasn’t a conversation worth having. “I’m not going to let Phil be my dirty little secret.”

“But isn’t that what’s already going to happen?” she asked simply, patronizingly. “You’re not coming out, so you’re going to have to limit your public interactions, anyway. This way, you have the added benefit of having a girlfriend.” Isabella smirked widely, looking like she well won the fight already. “People won’t pay as much attention to you and Phil.”

Fuck, Dan hated, hated the fact that there was a shred of sense in what she was saying. He was going to have to be subtle with Phil — not that he’d never had to do that in the past — and a fake relationship with Isabella really would do wonders about the rumors that were already circling, would be just enough for people’s heteronormative minds to make them stop questioning his sexuality.

“And what happens if I don’t say yes?” Dan demanded roughly.

“Well, see I already have a meeting set up with Tatler, and I did promise them an inside scoop…” Isabella trailed off suggestively, a look of mock concern on her face.

“Cancel, then,” Dan ordered through gritted teeth.

“Oh Danny, that would be so rude though!” She batted her eyes, her voice falsely sweet. “I’d have to give them a different story.”

A feeling of dread washed over Dan, rushing from his stomach all the way up his throat.

“What story?” he managed to ask.

“Turn to the next page, and read along under breaches of contract,” Isabella prompted, a note of triumph in her voice — a tone that made Dan very wary.

Dan did as she said, and found nearly an entire page of her loopy, cursive handwriting — presumably so the lawyer wouldn’t know the contents. Heart pounding, Dan tried to skim the paragraph, but his hands were shaking so much that the paper was illegible.

He didn’t really need to read, anyway, because Isabella was smiling a vicious grin, leaning forward and explaining herself. “I’d have to tell them about how during our whole relationship, you were interested in men and fantasized about them — and even how you made me wear a strap on when we had sex. About how you were determined to stay together because you wanted people to think you were straight, because you didn’t want to be gay.”

Dan’s heart wasn’t pounding anymore. In fact, it felt like it had completely stopped, and crash landed into his stomach. He wasn’t ashamed of liking men, had never wanted to not be attracted to them. It was just easier to explain to the media. But still, he’d never… strictly adhered to gender roles. He knew he had a fairly large LGBTQ+ fanbase — a fanbase that would be crushed to hear that he supposedly held such internally homophobic views.

Isabella didn’t stop speaking, still sounding smug and triumphant. Dan listened — painfully forced himself to listen — as he stared at the uncapped lube on the table.

“And then,” Isabella gasped in mock horror. “Imagine my horror when I came over one night and caught you in bed with Phil, getting fucked from behind…”

Fuck her, Dan cursed internally. He hadn’t even had the chance to do that with Phil yet, and here she was putting these false, horrible images in his head. Images of him and Phil not being as good as they’d been, images of Dan finally getting to feel Phil only to have Isabella burst in.

They’d been so fucking good for months. These weren’t the images of their first time that should be flooding Dan’s mind. Especially not tonight.

“I’m so scarred from it, it was so hurtful.” Isabella wiped away a fake tear, her long pointed nails smudging the black eyeliner under her eyes. “And then I’ll tell them how we tried to fix our relationship, how you told me to sleep with other men because you knew you weren’t man enough for me.”

The knife in Dan’s gut dug a little deeper, twisted a little further. On top of it all — the accusations about his confidence, his pride in his sexuality, his dignity… to add on the fact that Isabella cheating had been his suggestion.

Fuck. Dan’s eyes snapped shut, tears on the verge of spilling out. He felt one leak out, trickle down the side of his nose, and he willed it to disappear. Willed Isabella to not see it. Willed himself to not wipe it away and draw Isabella’s attention to how deeply she was affecting him.

“And,” Isabella sighed melodramatically, her dark-stained lips pulled into a nefarious grin. “In the end, I had to leave you because it was too much pressure and too much shame. You begged me to stay, but I had to do what was right for—”

“You fucking wouldn’t,” Dan seethed, cutting her off before she could finish her story. “Not a single fucking detail of that is true.”

Isabella cackled — literally cackled; her head fell back, a humourless laugh mocking Dan. “It’ll be my word against yours, though. And the media usually sides with the victim.” Isabella shook her head, and shot Dan a look filled with insincere pity. “But if you’re willing to risk it…”

“You bitch,” Dan roared, interrupting her again. He leapt to his feet — to do what, he wasn’t sure. “You signed a non-disclosure agreement! I could sue you for going public about my sexuality!”

“You could,” Isabella agreed, but the smirk on her face made Dan feel like he’d just lost another battle, not won one. “But it wouldn’t be a quiet trial, and when people found out you were suing me because I told the media that you weren’t straight, that would just confirm my story in their eyes.”

Dan’s heart was beating roughly against his chest, his mind speeding through a million different scenarios as he tried to make sense of what Isabella had said, tried to figure out if there was a different way to spin it.

Shit, fuck.

Dan sunk down back into the sofa, defeated. That was exactly how it would appear. And the media probably would side with her, the story she’d concocted would tarnish any good reputation he had.

And Phil.

Fuck. Phil.

Phil’s entire livelihood depended on his personality, his brand. Having an affair was about as off brand as it got for Phil. It would probably destroy him. Dan, at least, made music — music that some people would continue to listen to even after finding out he was a piece of shit. But Phil would probably lose everything. And, shit, it would break Phil’s heart if he viewers thought he was capable of such immoral behavior.

“I — I need to think about this,” Dan muttered. Against his will, he crumpled forward, his legs drawing up into his body. He was so fucking overwhelmed, so hurt. Tears pricked at his eyes again, and this time he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to hold them back.

To his surprise, Isabella dropped the other contract onto the table and stood up. “You have until five tomorrow evening to drop off both signed copies at my flat. If they aren’t there when I get home from work, I’m telling the other story.”

Dan didn’t have it in him to look up. The tears in his eyes were rapidly accumulating, and he was afraid that if he looked at her, if he met her eyes, he’d well and truly break down.

Her heels clacked loudly as she rounded the table, coming to a stop directly in front of Dan. Her long, manicured fingers reached under his chin and tipped his head up. A loud, wet kiss was pressed to his forehead, surely leaving behind a perfect dark red mark from her lipstick.

Her lips felt like fire against his forehead — and not in a good way. It took all of his strength to not recoil, to not give her the satisfaction of knowing that she’d intimidated him.

“I own you, Dan Howell,” she whispered in his ear.

For a split second, Dan was worried that the pretty cocktail, the expensive wine, the fancy dinner, would all come back up. The fear wracked his body so hard, so aggressively, that Dan was sure that he was about to throw up.

With a rough swallow, Dan forced himself to look up. His eyes followed her as she crossed the room, watching as she came to a halt by the bar cart and spun around again. A wicked smile painted her face, a devilish glint in her eyes. Her hip popped out, one hand dramatically resting on it.

“Remember Dan,” Isabella threatened, her voice dropping low and properly angry for the first time tonight. “If you don’t sign or if you, say, try to tell the media about this little arrangement tomorrow, I’ll just —” She looked at him with wide, innocent eyes, the mirth on her face ruining the illusion. Two fingers delicately pushed on the flower vase with just enough force to send it toppling to the floor. There was a loud crash as the vase shattered, water running everywhere, the flowers falling limply amongst the debris. “Spill. See you tomorrow, Danny.”

A loud screech hurt Dan’s ears as she turned abruptly, her stilettos scraping across the wood floors. Dan tore his eyes from her swinging hips, his gaze shifting to his feet. Looking up, looking at Isabella’s retreating form, the damage of the flowers, the contract on the table, it was all too much. His sleek, black shoes were a better place for his attention right now.

When the lift dinged, the unsigned contracts and destroyed vase were the only evidence that Isabella had been there at all. Well, that and Dan’s crushed soul.

Mechanically, Dan started to kick his shoes off. He got one foot half free before he realized that it would be better to leave them on because of the shards of glass.

“Jesus on a fucking tricycle,” Dan muttered under his breath, his brain not fully grasping on to everything just yet. He shakily pushed himself off the sofa, and shoved his phone into his back pocket. He’d deal with Phil’s messages later, when he could stand it better.

Dan made his way to the kitchen, trying his best to sidestep around the scattered flowers — it was a pretty crap attempted, admittedly, given the loud crunch of glass beneath his feet

The cabinets were barren, especially since he hadn’t replaced his mugs yet. He definitely didn’t own much by way of glassware. But still, he rummaged around his cabinets, desperately looking for something he could put the flowers in so that they wouldn’t die.

Everything he could find was far too short (like his drinking glasses) or far too fat (like his mixing bowls). In the sink, Dan spotted the drink pitcher, the one that he’d made gin and tonics for him and Phil in just two nights ago.

Good enough.

Dan dumped out the watery remnants of the drink, doing his best to rinse it out a little bit even though he barely had the emotional energy to even hold the heavy glass pitcher. Hot water swished through it once, twice, three times, and Dan hoped it would do, hoped that he’d gotten enough of the toxic liquor out that he wouldn’t kill his beautiful flowers instantly. Smacking the sink handle to the right, Dan waited for the water to get cold, and then shoved the pitcher under the stream of water, numbly watching the pitcher fill.

He must have zoned out, because all of a sudden the water was bubbling over and cascading down the sides. “Fuck, fuck, fuck fuck fuck,” Dan muttered, slamming the handle down to stop the water flow, and carelessly dumping a portion of the water out.

Realistically, he’d probably dumped too much of the water out — it was only just barely half full now. Fuck, was he capable of doing anything right tonight?

He couldn’t bring himself to care, though. The flowers would have to deal with half a pitcher of water, at least for tonight.

Without bothering to wipe down the mess of water, Dan turned on his heel and took the drink pitcher back into the lounge.

Now that he’d had a few minutes of distance, the mess of the flowers looked even more disastrous. Before, he hadn’t realized just how shattered the vase was, hadn’t noticed the way the piece of glass he’d stepped on had turned to crumbs. He certainly hadn’t noticed the massive puddle of water that was slowly inching its way across the room.

Fuck.

He should have brought a towel.

And a maybe a rubbish bin for the glass, too.

He was such a useless fucking bastard.

He sunk down anyway though, his bum landing right in the middle of the water, probably sitting on a few pieces of glass, too — not that he was capable of feeling that right now. Dan numbly gathered the flowers, one by one, shaking each stem off before placing it in the new pitcher. One rose had snapped in half during the fall, the stem too short to let it stand with the others. It wasn’t perfect anymore. It, too, had been tainted by Isabella.

Dan considered throwing the stem out — hell, for a brief moment he considered throwing all the roses out — but he didn’t have the heart to do it. He wanted them, they were important to him. He just didn’t want them to have been fucking touched by Isabella.

Resigned, Dan shoved the broken flower in with the others, letting it fall all the way down, and pushed the pitcher away so he didn’t have to look at it right this second.

He turned his attention to the glass. The flat, heavy bottom of the vase was still intact, so Dan laid it out as a temporary place where he could pile the broken pieces. Shard by shard, Dan picked up the bits of glass, dropping them into a small mound. His hands were shaking far too much to be doing this. Each time he picked up a sliver of glass, he nearly cut himself. Objectively, he knew he should stop. He should just leave the mess, maybe text the maid and ask if she could come tomorrow instead of Friday, and go to bed.

But for some reason, Dan knew that the knowledge that the glass was sitting here, scattered around his lounge, would eat away at his soul. He knew he’d never be able to sleep if he didn’t at least try to fix it now.

He couldn’t fix Isabella tonight. He didn’t have any magic solutions, didn’t know how to make the whole situation go away. The one tiny fucking thing that he could do was to get rid of the damn glass.

So god fucking damn it, he was going to clean up this fucking mess.

And so Dan sat, methodically finding chunk after chunk, sliver after sliver, and adding them to the growing mountain of glass. Under the bar cart, there was a particularly jagged piece — it was all sharp angles and rough edges. Dan could tell it looked more dangerous than the rest. Nonetheless, he reached out for the shard anyway, his fingers slipping as he fumbled for the piece. The top of his finger scraped against it harshly, and Dan recoiled, his hand flying to his chest.

He looked down, expecting blood, but instead saw a small red scratch leading up to his nail — his previously perfect silver nail that now had a wobbly line drawn through it, the polish scraped away.

A sob caught in his throat, and Dan drew his knees up to his chest, letting the pain and anger finally wash over him. He was furious and hurt and scared and he had no fucking clue what to do.

So he pushed the mountain of glass away, let his head fall forward, and cried.

Sob after sob wracked his body, and soon he was gasping for air, his vision blurred with tears. His body was trembling, and tears were running down his face. The fancy Versace sweater was probably ruined by now, given how many times Dan had messily wiped his nose on it.

How long he cried for, he wasn’t sure, but eventually the insistent buzzing of his phone in his pocket drew him out of his stupor. Shifting as little as possible, Dan dug his phone out of his back pocket, sighing deeply when he saw the hairline crack that was now running across the screen.

Phil :) was calling, and Dan didn’t have the heart to pick up. If he answered it, Phil would be able to tell how upset he was, would wonder what had happened, if he’d done something…

Dan couldn’t enjoy the high from tonight any longer, but that didn’t mean Phil couldn’t. He’d call Phil tomorrow, explain to him the two shitty options — a fake relationship or a reputation wrecking story — in the morning. Dan pressed the side button, making the buzzing stop, and waited for the screen to go back to normal.

His eyes stared at the fracture in the screen, and drifted up to the pile of glass. He needed to not be alone, though. Not right now, not tonight. He needed help.

Dan unlocked his phone, and tapped call on the top contact in his favorites list.

The phone only rang twice.

“Dan? How was your date?”

“C-can y-ou,” Dan’s voice was wretched, his breaths too uneven for him to speak properly. He took a deep, shaky breath, trying to collect himself. “I n-need you t-to come over h-here n-now.” A broken sob escaped Dan’s throat. “P-please,” he added.

“Of course, love.” A warm, concerned voice tried to console him. “I’ll be there in fifteen.”

a/n: don’t kill me. 

[shinygoku]

spiderman? :3c

Forgive me if I seem to be talking about different versions of him lol, I have broad but shaky knowledge of comic happenings from things like TV Tropes so this is largely based in the MCU and other Definitive Spidey Moments across media (also I watched the 90′s cartoon in my youth)

Favourite thing about him

Naaah, there’s more to it than that! He’s the first Solo Teen Superhero and is very easy to Connect to. His design is super striking and rad. His stories are grounded and even with the nonsense science can be a really fun ride.

But as for the (Spider-)Man himself! He’s a sweetheart dork who never, ever gives up no matter what life throws at him [a character type I’m already very weak to, though Spidey may’ve been my first from the 90′s cartoon...!] and the way he eventually prevails from a bad situation or how he deals when things don’t work out make him irresistably Root-able.

Least favourite thing about him

Not his fault lol, but there’s a lot of stupid clowns writing his stories. They take the downtrodden stuff too far and put him through really dumb shit for no reason. Clones? Selling your marriage to the devil? Being Ginyu’d?? what the fuck

Favourite Line

He’s had a metric ton of sweet one-liners and big speeches. None of which I can properly recall lmao, but then, picking out just one?? Whaaaa

So instead I will cop out and say:

“HOLY SHIT!!”

Because 1) That line kind of took me by surprize when I first saw that part of Civil War lol and 2) Big Mood

But seriously, one of his appeals is his quick wit and noble stance, so again, going for one of his more Proper Quotes is like picking out a needle from a stack of needles.

brOTP

Thanks entirely to the MCU, Tony Stark: The Invincible Iron Dad

Good gravy man, the Iron Dad and Spider-Son relationship is so geniune and charming and a real highlight to already brilliant films. My main fear with it is that it might mean Tony gets the Peter Parker Mentor Curse, in which Peter’s father figures end up dead or similar, but the way the story arc in the MCU is curving, Tony may retire from the Superheroics without having to perish. Please, he’s already been through so much, let him retire and hang out with his Protegé Peter Parker as Spidey handles the superheroics for the new generation.

Also pretty much all the other heroes of the MCU would have great chemistry with our Excitable Spider-Boy and I long for him to get to interact with them, too! He and Cap have a lot in common and I know they’re fairly close in the comics, so if A4 could hurry up and have some of them on the same side I’d be very grateful.

Aaaand of course, Aunt May and Ned “Guy in the Chair” Leeds are fantastic and feel very Real B)

OTP

Hmmm, in the MCU I’m mostly thinking of platonic relationships lmao. I’m open to what the films may do with him and Michelle and I see that Peter and Ned have a following, but I’m neutral atm

As for the other media, the 90′s cartoon bred strong Peter and Mary Jane affection in me~ 

NOTP

Uhh, see all the brOTP section with the possible exception of Ned lmao

The Sam Raimi Trilogy did uhhh, not do good with the Peter / MJ angle lol

Also the weird comic writers who put in versions of their own daughters and/or introduce a Female Spider-Person with Female Spider-Pheromones (????), iiiick

Headcanon

He regularly pets cats when on patrol. Also when not on patrol!

Unpopular Opinion

Uhhh going by looking in Tubgler Tags, that he and Tony are a splendid fit for each other? lol

Song Associated with him

The 60′s, 90′s and Spectacular cartoon openings, all solid bops too. Let’s not forget the Toei Supaidaaman OP and ED! The Danny Elfman theme for the Trilogy Movie sounds really rad and Magestic, but I also adore the Homecoming score :>

As for a song that’s not actually written with him in mind, uhhh... here’s 2 for 2 different Spidey Moods

(Yeah, I know the ELO one got claimed by GotG2, but I had heard it way before the movie was made lmao. It’s fitting for how long we had to wait for MCU Spidey and what a bundle of sunshine he is!)

Favourite Picture

Like with favourite quote, that’s a jolly hard pick to make!

I kid, but also have a very intense and sincere love for the Homemade Suit

Also the suit Tony gave him! Bonus: I sit like this often

The lighting ain’t the best but I’m also all about the Iron Spider suit as seen in the MCU. The colours, metalic sheen and those waldoes are so damn cool

Anyway this section was for pictures, rather than suits so here we are~ So colourful! So dynamic! So thicc...! This is one Spidey who’s Ready for Action!!

[ceosato]

1-59 xoxoxoxo

HolY SHIT there’s a lot and i didn’t think i’d get asked but fuCK it im always in the mood for over sharing 1. selfieim on mobile sooo idk how sorry:P2. what would you name your future kids?i’m a big fan of the name Riley and it’s gender neutral too so win win 3. do you miss anyone?too many fuckin people and one who doesn’t deserve it🙃���4. what are you looking forward to?nothing momentous i guess...Tonight Alive’s next album tho5. is there anyone who can always make you smile?6. is it hard for you to get over someone?at the time it always feels like it’s hard but in hindsight i know i can manage so both yes and no7. what was your life like last year?one hECk of a roller coaster, it was my last year of school so super stressy and depressy but i have a lot of great memories too :)8. have you ever cried because you were so annoyed?not recently but ye9. who did you last see in person?my brother??10. are you good at hiding your feelings?lol probably not11. are you listening to music right now?no but i just was12. what is something you want right now?some cooler weather😓 (...and a gf or whatever)13. how do you feel right now?that kind of gross tingly feeling in your lower stomach and finger tips when u over think14. when was the last time someone of the opposite sex hugged you?HA i honestly have no idea 15. personality descriptionfuck i don’t know, but i’m usually pidgeon holed as the funny one so let’s say that 16. have you ever wanted to tell someone something but you didn't?unfortunately i usually tell people things and i hate it17. opinion on insecuritiesthey exist and they suck, i know i have a lot but fuck it who cares (even tho i care)18. do you miss how thing were a year ago?i don’t think so 19. have you ever been to New York?nuP20. what is your favourite song at the moment?Temple by Tonight Alive21. age and birthday?i’m 19 and my birthday is the 14th of May ♉️22. description of crush.idk if it’s fair to say i still have a crush on her but...she has short black hair which she usually always styles forward and it’s a bit shaved in the side, one nose piercing and a lot of ear ones which she’s said she regrets a little. she’s shorter than me by quite a bit. possibly one of the best smiles i’ve ever seen. AND THATS OT CAUSE NOW IM THINKING ABOUT IT TOO MUCH thanks for coming to my Ted talk23. fear(s)everything just a little 24. heightnofucking clue! i’m not short tho25. role modelJenna McDougall (bit of a theme in this huh)26. idol(s)pass cause what’s the difference 27. things i hatewhen people eat with their mouths open, i mean it’s alright if they physically can’t help it but i’m not a fan. Horror movies, but i low key would watch them for a girl. when people interrupt others like get some respect.28. i'll love you if...you like me back lol it don’t take much29. favourite film(s)Summer Wars, Wonder Woman and Pokémon Hero’s 30. favourite tv show(s)if u follow this blog i think you know 😌31. 3 random factsi put stickers on my guitar case, i like collecting hard copy albums and when i can’t sleep i look thru all my old shit (mostly sketch books)32. are your friends mainly girls or guys?i think mostly girls but some of my guy friends are my best ones 33. something you want to learnproper photography 34. most embarrassing moment1998-201735. favourite subjectin school it was probably Drama but idk what counts for now36. 3 dreams you want to fulfill?creating an animated showdoing a proper cover of something and putting out therei’d like to enter in the Archibald prize one day (it’s an australian portrait comp)37. favourite actor/actressKatie fkn McGrath obvs and so many more38. favourite comedian(s)Hanna Gastby, Danny Bhoy and Chelsea Peretti39. favourite sport(s)football(soccer)40. favourite memorylast year when it was the final night of our school production (and my last production ever for highschool) i got awarded school prefect and that felt pretty special41. relationship statusSingle and a gay mess42. favourite book(s)i don’t rlly read but i guess Stasiland43. favourite song eversomething always brings me back to Say You’re Sorry by Sara Bareilles44. age you get mistaken foridk but usually a bit older than i actually am45. how you found out about your idoloh shit i didn’t think there’d be a follow up46. what my last text message says“night :)”47. turn onslove and support👌👌and maybe a bit of dominance 48. turn offsbeing rude i guess 49. where i want to be right nowNorway50. favourite picture of your idoloh FOR FUCKS SAKE51. starsignTaurus52. something i'm talented atdrawing i guess53. 5 things that make me happytbh im not in the mood to answer this one but i will say my dog54. something thats worrying me at the momentmoney? kind of55. tumblr friends@i-am-mercurial @beccascantbechoosers @sickkid @officialrocketjumper (sorry if there’s more this is all i can remember rn!!)56. favourite food(s)gyoza, pavlova and milk(even tho it’s a drink)57. favourite animal(s)Owls are the shit👌58. description of my best friendan idiot who i love 59. why i joined tumblrone of my friends just joined my up and i had no idea THANKS FOR THE ASK AND HERES UR ESSAY

[thejustinmarshall]

Collective Soul Drummer Johnny Rabb Excited About Current Tour

Interview by Danny Coleman 

“We co-headline with 3 Doors Down and it’s a lot of fun. You get up there and you look at the set lists of the bands and you go, man it’s like a dang radio hit show, it’s exciting and I love watching the audience line up and say, wow I remember that song and our true followers; we still do pack’em in and we pack a lot into each set per show and it’s a lot of fun. We try to do the best every night and we never take it for granted that we’re getting to play live in front of fans as well.” 

Collective Soul drummer Johnny Rabb makes no attempt to hide his excitement over the current tour they share with the aforementioned 3 Doors Down and Soul Asylum. Thus far, Rabb is very pleased with the early results and seems very optimistic going forward.

“It’s going great! I was talking with Chet (Roberts) the guitar player from 3 Doors Downand he goes, man the combination of hits and the songs between these bands and I don’t mean that we’re talking about ourselves as great writers even though Ed (Vocalist/front man Roland) is; he wasn’t being arrogant but the combo in a night of hits that have been on the radio is so great and the crowd is enjoying it and everyone is having a good time and listening to songs that everyone knows is kind of cool. You’ve got three bands with a lot of history and a lot of songs, it’s awesome.”

Collective Soul has been recording and touring for more than two decades and in today’s instant gratification society, many groups have taken to touring with their peers and performing high energy, “Greatest Hits” type sets. When asked if Collective Soul falls into that realm; Rabb readily elaborated,“That’s awesome that you asked that but again we’re coming up on 25 years and I’ve known about these guys even from back in my Nashville days and then more when they came about in the late 90’s. We are definitely including new songs in the set and of course each night we have limited time no matter what we’re doing so the crowd is getting to hear all of the hits plus at least three new songs that we’ve been in studio recording that nobody has heard. So it’s pretty exciting to play these new songs for people as well as the hits; it’s a well rounded set of music each night. We have 19 songs recorded and in the can right now ready to be released next year.”

A possible new album with 19 songs? Sounds like the band has been busy; so when can we expect this new work to be released and will it be more than one record?“I’ve heard rumors about the double album idea. We’re big fans of still releasing on vinyl and we literally have those songs ready and it’s funny going back and listening now because we did 10 of the songs in 2017 and nine songs this year. Ed will be the final word on that but yeah, a lot of new music ready to go.”

New music is relative to one’s perspective. New to the band or new musical sounds or styles can mean different things to different people and there’s neutrality in Rabb’s take on today’s, “New” music.

“I have two daughters so the radio when I’m driving them to school is pretty much on their station but I try to expose them to what we’re doing and what bands my wife and I grew up on in the 80’s with satellite radio in the car. I think there are some great new bands out there but personally nothing that I totally rally behind but I do give them credit as far as production and the new styles that people are doing. I’m a big electronic music fan myself so I’m not anti anything, I don’t think it’s the same but again I’m 46 and I’ve got my own opinions on how bands were bands back in the day. You get together, you rehearse, you play, you know like in our band; five guys playing together, real instruments playing rock. Ed writes the songs then we get our parts going and literally rock; if one of us stops playing then that’s it you can hear it. I think today is just different, a lot of it is done on full laptops and that’s about it; nothing wrong with that but I still love just rock and old pop rock music. It’s a whole new generation of stuff, I guess that’s just how it goes but hats off to anyone who is doing it now but it’s just a different vibe for sure.”

Rabb began playing drums at a very young age and gained experience as he discovered various genres and through this has become a well rounded player; a percussive chameleon of sorts.

“I started playing as a kid when I was eight years old, was self taught at first and then had lessons. Then some friend of my brothers played, “Exit Stage Left” when we were camping and I was like; what is this stuff? I grew up with Rush and Neil Peart was kind of the main reason that I got started and then I got into Yes. Then all of these little instructional videos started coming out and that’s a whole different sign of the times as well; Steve Smith’s, “Threshold” video came out and I didn’t even realize he was with Journey, I just knew him as Steve Smith the jazz, funk, fusion drummer and he and I have become really good friends and he’s such a great guy and probably my biggest influence but that whole era of late 70’s and early 80’s drummers were my inspiration. Luckily, I’ve gotten to meet all but a few of them at either drum clinics or festivals and that kind of blows my mind now; I didn’t think I’d ever be able to meet them let alone share a stage with them. All of my influences I’ve had the opportunity to meet, see or have dinners with and talk shop. So the whole drum hero journey has been a really cool thing for me.”

Another of Rabb’s favorite drummers comes from one of the greatest rock lineages of all time, “We got to tour with Jason Bonham and Sammy Hagar last summer and I think Jason is just slaying it with what he’s doing. I think it’s very genuine and not just only, hey look I’m Jason Bonham and I’m related; I think he’s got his own artistic value going on, he’s so good! Sometimes I’d be on side stage and I’d be jumping up and down because he’s so powerful and good.”

So with varied tastes and an education to boot; is there any period of adjustment to be made when he saddles up to perform with Collective Soul and how does he balance his predecessors styles with his own?

“I play the songs and nightly I pay tribute to the past drummers that have been with them. We’re all friends and there’s such respect and I think over the years, I’ve adapted to give them what they want whether it’s the way I’m hitting or what they want musically. My background is funk, pop, jazz, fusion and I went to Berklee and was schooled in that and I have all that background. So that just kind of comes through, I definitely try and bring to it the correct feel and approach to these gigs and I love it. This is a heavy hitting gig and I love the guys, they’re second family to me.”

Respect is key and Rabb is currently paying it to a classic drum manufacturer as well. Playing a set of drums which pre-date him, Rabb sees the value in experimentation and visiting the past as well as living in the present.

” I was doing the endorsement thing for years and I stopped and then I did it again and I just recently stopped again so I could play whatever I wanted to play whether it be new or vintage. Right now I’m playing a ’69 Rogers Holiday kit with a white acrylic gloss wrap that’s really fun. I had a sparkle kit on the 2012 tour but this one is white and our stage set up has a lot of white in it so it works. There’s so many great drum companies out there which is kind of one of the reasons why I stopped doing the endorsements because I wanted to be able to explore and go back to the reasons that I started playing.”

“The Rock ‘N’ Roll Express Tour” makes two stops in the Garden State; the first is August 11 in Holmdel at the PNC Bank Arts Center and the second is August 19 at The Borgata Event Center in Atlantic City. There are VIP packages and single tickets available for both shows and prices vary at each venue.

So what will Rabb do when this very busy tour comes to an end?“It sounds cliche but I love my family; we’ll hang out, we have a pet dog and he’s awesome. I’ll write music, I have a drum studio, I’ll teach, I do consulting for some drum companies and in the off times it’s rest. The tour will end but there will be some spot gigs like a club or a theater show; we’ll continue to do that. Also Ed never stops writing which is amazing so we may even be in the studio. There’s talk of more studio time in early 2019 and I love that he wants to keep writing. We keep in touch, we do things, so it doesn’t stop when the tours end.”

To discover more about Collective Soul, the tour or ticket information; please go to www.collectivesoul.com.

Danny Coleman (Danny Coleman is a veteran musician and writer from central New Jersey. He hosts a weekly radio program entitled “Rock On Radio” airing Sunday evenings at 10 p.m. EST on multiple internet radio outlets where he features indie/original bands and solo artists.)

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