#mike plays guitar because there is a guitar in his room and because i said so

[mybreakofdawn]

✨️Dirty Diana✨️

Paring: Michael Jackson x reader

About: Michaels concert in Wembley stadium changes a bit because of Princess Diana, and he needs you to play Dirty Diana with him because you are the only one who knows it by heart.

Request: Yes / No @heyitstial

Authors note: i dont know who reguested again because my app crashed, but here it is. I hope you guys like it!

Btw

(Y/f/n) is Your Full Name

(Y/b/s) is your birthstone

Enjoy!

*(Y/N's pov)*

It was the 6th of July 1988, London England. The big concert day was when Princess Diana and Prince Charles were attending, and it was already chaotic. Behind the stage, everyone was running to make everything perfect, what i can understand, but damn people were stressed. So i had a brilliant idea, i grabbed my acoustic guitar and began to play liberian girl while also singing softly with it.

After a few seconds, i saw them all calm down and smile at me they always appreciated me when i came with them on tour. I ended the song with a smile, and i heard clapping. I stood up and bowed.

"Thank you, thank you," i chuckled as the people started to get everything ready again, but now more calm. I lay my guitar in my bag as i heard someone scream my name.

"(Y/N)!! WHERE IS (Y/N)!!!" i turned around and saw Michael sprinting my way. "There you are!" He grabbed my shoulders tightly.

"Hey Mikey, what is it? You sound distressed, " i asked worried, he just gave a worried smile back at me. Oh no, this isn't good.

"Baby, i need you to do a favour for me, please!" He said seriously as i looked at him, waiting for him to continue. "Princess Diana, she is in the audience tonight, and her favourite song is Dirty Diana. i know Jennifer doesn't know it, and i know you know it by heart, please, please!!" He kept holding onto me with his eyes begging me. I smirked and crossed my arms.

"What's in it for me, my dear Michael?" i said while smirking even bigger. Michael looked at me with big eyes and got an idea and smirked also softly cupping my cheek, lowered his face next to mine.

"My love, i will make you feel out of this world after the concert..eventho it depends on how you play your part, of course," he whispered into my ear, making me have goosebumps I love his seductive voice. it's so different from his usual voice. He stood straight again, looking into my eyes. I smiled and played with one of his curls.

"Alright, I'll do it for you, my love," i said as he smiled happily and picked me up, turning me around.

"I can't live my life without you~" he said while stop turning me around and putting me down.

"I love you too, Mikey." i chuckled and gave him a kiss on those soft lips of his.

"Alright, uhm, i have an outfit for you. I need you to put that on, alright?" he grabbed my hand and dragged me to his dressing room. Finally, in his room, i saw this leather outfit, and i think this was the outfit he was talking about. "Tadaaaa, this is it~~" he smiled like a kid, so proud of what he had just shown me.

"Wow Mikey its amazing." i looked at it in awe damn this suit is amazing.

"Mike, whe have 30 minutes till the show begins!!" We heard yelling from the door.

"Yes, thank you!!" He screamed back and turned back at me. "Now, let's get you into this outfit~" i chuckled and rolled my eyes.

(Time skip)

"Alright, sweetie," Michael double looked at me and smiled, his curls luscious and his outfit on point with his jacket i love this outfit. "I need to get up on stage my love after Smooth Criminal you wil get picked up and just do what feels right alright" he hugged me and wanted to walk away but i grabbed hem by his collar and kissed him on his lips.

"Dont forget the good luck kiss Mikey go get them." i saw him smile after the kiss with a hint of blush and nodded. Michael disappeared into the curtain, and you could hear the people scream as the concert began. After 40 minutes of watching him dance and sing his soul out, it was time for me to go onto the stage. I walked through the backstage area. My thoughts were running everywhere, but as soon as i was on stage, my mind went calm. I got helped with plugging my guitar in, and they also told me what i could do with my cable range, i nodded and smiled. Jennifer, Michaels head guitarist, gave me thumbs up. I can do this. Michael stepped out of the tent, and as soon as the lights went on, i began playing. It felt so unreal but also so good. I looked into the crowd and smiled, thinking Michael really was something else. The solo was close, so i began to move closer to the stage where Michael was. Now it was my time to shine, the spotlight shining on me, and i gave it everything i got. Michael smiled and moved his fingers, knowing he liked it and wanted more, so i gave it to him, standing really close to him. The solo was about to end, and i took my distance a bit. He fell to the ground as i stopt my solo and the spotlight was on him. I walked behind him, seeing his hair was stuck on his forhead because of his sweat, and i reached out to unstuck it and walked back to my place and began playing normally again. After a few seconds, i saw Mikey looking at me and signed me to come back again, i walked back to him, and i took a deep breath and improvised a solo. The crowd was going wild as he started walking to the left side of the stage and of course i would follow him giving it more power making him bite his bottom lip and wave his hand in front of my guitar. I turned around and "shoot" with my guitar and ran up to where the other guys of the band were standing, still going on with my solo, Michael followed and i smirked and ran away again to the middle of the stage shredding the solo, i was feeling it. I looked at Michael with a smirk and saw him running towards me and then passing me to the right side of the stage. Fucking dick i thought and followed him giving even more then he would ever know from me. He looked at me with big eyes and a big smile. I smirked again and ran to the other side of the stage and going on the little platform on the front shredding the solo some more, i did notice Michael following me and standing behind me and singing his heart out. Standing there felt so fucking amazing i didnt care that all eyes were on me i wanted to make this song perfect what Mikey wanted. I knew the song came to an end when Michael went to the center of the stage, what was also kinda sad but i can understand. Everyone was involved of the end of the song the drums the keyboards and even me. I ran a bit on stage to both sides and dramatically pull om my string to get that perfect effect and as soon as i saw Michael turning i knew what i had to do, eventually Michael jumped and i jumped with him ending the song strong. But i knew Michael he moved his hand and we shredded with all of us still a few notes and stopt again really ending the song as the lights went out. Michael gave me a quick hug and walked to the tent again, sadly is my signal to go backstage again so he could finish the concert. As i stepped off from the stage the people cheered even more as i heard thriller being played. I smiled and sat on the couch. I was full of the adrenaline it was soooo cool and awesome.

"I can not believe i did that!" I squealed excited and watched the screen of Michael performing. I kept watching it mostly and ate some snacks till the concert ended. I saw him leaving the stage with the band still playing Man in the mirror. I suddenly saw him running towards me and grabbing my hands, dragging me back on stage. "Mike wha-" before i knew it, i was walking on stage with him, the crowd going wild again. He grabbed his microphone and brought it to his mouth.

"And i almost forgot my talented girlfriend (Y/F/N)," he said through the mic, and i widened my eyes, not noticing the crowd screaming even wilder than before. Michael was a bit nervous but smiled and showed me off by dancing with me to Man in the mirror and ending it with a soft kiss on my lips. The people screamed, loud even louder than before when we shared a kiss, making me blush a bit. He turned away from the kiss. "Dear fans and our royal quests, tonight i wanted to do something very special" he began and grabbed my hand tightly looking at me, still a bit nervous i really dont have an idea what he is going to do. Suddenly, he grabbed a box out of his pocket and went on one knee. I widen my eyes, not looking away at the sight in front of me. "My dear (y/n) you have been there for me since my younger days and so on went with me almost everywhere. I can not see myself without you in the future so~" he said into the microphone and opened the box, showing a very beautiful (y/b/s) ring. I couldn't believe it. "(Y/f/n) The lady in my life will you marry me?" He said almost out of breath because he was so nervous and i.. i felt extremely happy. I looked at the ring and then to him, the love of my life, i even forgot the crowd, that was going berserk, was still there. I smiled the biggest smile i could ever give and nodded.

"Yes!" I screamed a bit too enthusiastic and jumped onto Michael, hugging him. I felt his heartbeat fasten and hug me back. I broke the hug and let him put the ring on my finger. He smiled and looked at me, holding my hands both tightly. Eventually, our trance was broken by the crowd, who were, omg really going nuts at this point. Michael stood up and scratched the back of his neck. I just stood next to him, holding the mic when i suddenly got an idea. "How about one more song?" I asked into the microphone, the growd going nuts again meaning a yes. "Mikey? heartbreak hotel?" I said to Mikey, and he nodded and grabbed the microphone. "Yes hehe lets do it, but you'll need to do the guitar." he chuckled into the microphone, and i already stood ready. Michael gave the sign, and we began with a heartbreak hotel, my favourite song. Michael gave me a mic stand and a mic so i could sing with him. The bassist came forward, and Michael stood in front of him dancing and moving his arm on the beat. He walked away and walked to me for the guitar screaming whoohoo as he was with me.

(From now you will sing together)

"Live and sin~" i sang and saw Michael looking at me with a smile, singing the next line with me.

"Ten years ago on this day, my heart was yearning~" we sang in harmony as he danced next to me. "I promised i would never ever be returning~, where my baby broke my heart and left me yearning~" he turned and walked the other way, continuing to sing with me in harmony. We continued singing til the chorus came on me singing just a heartbreak hotel and Michael running to the left side of the stage.

"London, thank you!" he waved and bowed a bit, then came back singing again while dancing to the centre of the stage next to me.

"Hope is dead~" he danced around me and my guitar, enjoying me being on stage. "She thought that i had cheated for another lover." he walked a bit to the right side. "I turn my back to see that i am undercover." You could see he was extremely happy he couldn't stop dancing, making me sing his next line alone. "Now i can't convince this girl there ain't no other~" He walked back to me. "Someone's evil to hurt my soul~ every smile trail thought in Beguile." i already knew what he would do and sang it with the sounds of his hip dance. We sang further, going back to the chorus again. Michael ran to the right side, bowing again.

"Thank you, London!" And blew a kiss to the crowd before singing again together with me. I walked to the fire canon not too close and waited till my moment wil come. I have dreamed about this moment. Let me show Mikey how much i love this song. Mikey started the canon, making me appear and beginning the solo. He bites his lip a bit and enjoyed the moment of his soon to be wife, me heheh, playing one of her favourite solos. He danced in front of me, moving his hand on the beat i made.

The official solo of the song ends soon, but i am not done yet. When Mikey sang his adlibs i kept going on with the solo standing next to him losing myself into the solo that sounded amazing in Michaels ears, he was a bit taken a back by it as what i could see from his reaction. Eventually, the song did come to an end, and we stopped with me hitting the highest note i could make.

"London! Thank you so much!! I love you!!" Michael screamed into the microphone and grabbed my hand. "You were amazing!! My love," he said full of excitement as he guided me to the back of the stage, unplugging me from the speaker, towards backstage.

"I dont know what overcame me. i was living the moment, but omg!!!" I squeeled again and looked at the ring around my finger, becoming speechless.

"Darling, what's wrong?" He asked, worried, looking at my face. "Is it not the right birthstone? I can buy a new one -" he began to rant before i stopped him.

"No, my love i.. i can't believe you asked me on stage with almost the world watching." I said softly, still in unbelieve.

"(Y/n) i want to whole world to know that i have the most amazing and lovable woman in the entire universe, i love you (Y/n)" he grabbed my hands and kissing them softly. I blushed at what he said.

"I love you too, my husband~" i giggled and guided him to his dressing room, pushing him inside. "Now fiancé~~" i looked at Michael, who was a bit confused but excited. "Now for my reward," i said with a smirk and a wink. I saw Michael Gulp when i walked to the door and locked it. "Dont say you forgot." i giggled and turned back around, looking at him. He was a blushing mess, but i could see he was excited. "Wel, let's get started, shall we~?" i said before walking to him. All i need to say is i made Michael feel out of this world heheh.

-the end-

>____________________<

>Authors note<

Well, i hope you guys love it hehehe it took a while, but here it isss hehehe. Tell me what you guys think i haven't written for a long time. I did enjoy writing this a lot, and i hope to do more in the future!!!

[motherofpirates]

“I’d like to welcome everyone to Casa Del Harrington’s Karaoke Club!”

There was a squeal from the kitchen and Robin came running in. “Steve! You didn’t!”

“Surprise!” Shouted everyone else.

“We couldn’t get you to a karaoke club, so we brought one to you.” He explained. “We’ve all brought records, so there will hopefully be something you want to sing. You’re up first!”

Robin began to look through her friend’s LPs and singles that they had brought, coming to Vickie’s single of Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. It wasn’t her favourite Cyndi Lauper track, but she felt that it was more than appropriate for this evening. Eddie had decided to be in charge of the music system and placed the LP on the turntable. The opening bars of Robin’s chosen track rang out in the living room, she took the mic from Steve and began to sing.

Robin’s voice was breathy, but she carried the tune well. She sang and danced in the centre of the livening room, being cheered by her summer fling and her friends. She pulled up Vickie, Nancy, El and Max to help her sing the chorus. Steve took a polaroid of them all clustered around the mic as they sang and danced together. He flapped it as it developed earning some side eye from Jonathon.

Nancy didn’t want to sing on her own, so she talked Argyle and Jonathon into doing Waterloo with her. To their surprise Argyle could sing well, and he knew the dance moves which kept sending Nancy and Jonathon into fits of laughter.

Max and Lucas took a stab at Wuthering Heights. Max singing, as Lucas wafted around her with a strip of fabric. Max could sing ok, thought she struggled with the high bits, and keeping a straight face at Lucas’ rendition of Kate Bush’s iconic dance. The others were in hysterics. There was a brief tussle between Steve and Lucas as he tried to wrestle the photo evidence from Steve. Steve won, but to was close.

El, Dustin and Will sang Don’t You Forget About Me together because none of them wanted to sing alone and Mike had flatly refused to take part in singing because he couldn’t sing to save his life. He had enthusiastically cheered them on as they gave an over-the-top bow at the end of their turn to the applause of their friends.

Steve handed a record to Eddie as Dustin and El gave him the mic, it was already out of its dust sleeve. “Side a, track seven please maestro.” He winked at Eddie with a cheeky grin.

“Whatever you say big boy.” Eddie said with conspiratorial smile as he placed the large black disk on the record player.

 

Simple guitar chords played from the speakers and Steve began to croon into the mic:

“Hold me close and hold me fast/

The magic spell you cast/

This is la vie en rose/

When you kiss me heaven sighs/

And though I close my eyes/

I see la vie en rose/”

To everyone’s astonishment Steve could sing well indeed, he turned and sang to Eddie, which resulted in whistles and whoops from the Party as he serenaded the metalhead. Eddie and Steve had discussed how to tell the group they were an item, and Steve had suggested during the karaoke night. Eddie, ever the performer, loved the flamboyance of the idea, it was like something from a musical. Steve as an incurable romantic, wanted to be able to make grand gestures behind closed doors alone or in front of their friends even though they couldn’t be seen in public as anything other than platonic or fraternal in Hawkins.  Steve wanted to keep the song he was going to use a surprise which was fair enough, because Steve didn’t know what Eddie had planned either.

“And when you speak angels sing from above/

Everyday words seem to turn into love songs/”

Steve held his hand out to Eddie whose smile lit up his whole face with delight as Steve pulled Eddie to his feet. Steve held Eddie in his arms and gently tilted him backwards. Eddie cupped Steve’s face with his hands, before Steve dramatically kissed him in front of all their friends.

____________________________________

If you enjoyed this snippet to my fic La Vie En Rose on AO3. Here's the link

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64280743

[taleyav]

I hate that

⚠️Trigger warning!⚠️

There’s use of the F slur in this shot! If you don’t like it, please don’t read it!

*Mike POV*

“Should I stay or should I go now? If I go there will be trouble, and if I stay it will be double.” I sing quietly to myself, trying not to wake up Nancy or Holly again. I gently play the chorus of the song on my guitar. Before shoving my hair behind my ear again. How the hell does Eddie do this? Right. He just puts his hair up in a messy bun. I wish I was as cool as Eddie is. I begin playing the cords again trying to play completely by memory. I really don’t want to get my Walkman out again.

I don’t know why I’m learning this song, maybe it’s because I feel closer to Will that way. As gay as it sounds, I miss Will. I tried calling him again today, but like always, no response. I hate it when this happens, I don’t even know why. I shouldn’t give less of a shit if he answers. But he- he’s still my best friend, he’s always been my best friend. But now, I don’t even know if he wants to talk to me anymore. I can’t write him a letter either because I always mess up and write more for him than I do for El.

I hate this. I hate that I sound like a fag. The dumb frog face fag, that Troy always said I was. I hate everything in my dumb life. I hate that I sound like a fag, I hate Joyce for taking Will away from me. I hate that Lucas joined the basketball team to look cool or whatever. I hate that I’m not as cool as Eddie is. I hate that I’m even thinking about this. But most of all, I hate myself because I can’t make myself feel anything for El.

Not anymore. I used to be able to mask the emotions easily. Or pretend I like the feeling of her lips on mine. Now I almost gag thinking about it. I put my guitar down on the stand, realizing that it’s not worth trying to play it if all I’m doing is just thinking. I turned my lights off finally and glanced down at the clock on my nightstand. 2:30 AM

Ok. Usually I can start sleeping now. I can never sleep at a normal time, not anymore at least. The nightmares came back around a month ago. So usually I have to tire myself out completely before I can even try to sleep. With that thought in mind, i started getting in bed and closing my eyes.

*Ring*

*Ring*

*Ring*

“Ughhh! You’re fucking with me right?!?!” I get back up sluggish and walk over to the desk on the other side of my room. I pick the phone up aggravated.

“Dustin. I swear to god this better be the end of the world, or I’m going to be so pissed.”

“Uh. It-It’s not Dustin.” Will. It-it’s Will.

“Will? Dude it’s like 3:00 o clock, what’s going on?”

“I- shit. I’m sorry man, it’s just nightmare again.”

“Oh. Shit. Listen I’m sorry man. What happened? Was it the upside down again?”

“Yeah.”

“I- fuck man I’m sorry. What happened like in the dream?” Will went silent for a while and I almost hung up thinking he fell back asleep until he answered me again.

“Well. Uh I was on the football field, but like here. Not back home, at first it was normal I guess. I was just painting on the field, then I um I heard something behind me. And at first I just ignored it, then um fuck. The- the ground like swallowed me up, and I was back in the upside down.” I hear sobbing on the other end of the line, and my heart just shattered. I feel so bad for blowing up at him at first, especially after a nightmare. I was just so tired.

“Hey. I’m so sorry man, just- just breathe ok? Just breathe for me. You’re ok, I’m right here. It’s ok.” I vaguely hear him take a deep breath, and the sound of him letting it out very shaky. It takes an hour, but I finally calm down Will’s panic attack. We’re just talking for a moment, and I can’t get over his voice. It’s so deep now, especially now that he still has his morning voice. I hate that, I can’t stop obsessing over it. I hate that I feel so much better now than I did before this call. And most of all, I hate that El can’t make me feel like this. Only Will.

[temptingfatetakingnames]

The weeks passed slowly for Eddie, and he was starting to lose it. He felt antsy, his natural chaotic energy having to be contained as much as possible so he didn’t tear out his stitches… Again. So, it was with great relief that the powers that be finally decided he was well enough to finish recovering at home. Or at least to whatever trailer the government had seen fit to replace his actual home with. Wayne said it was great, new and updated and bigger than the one Vecna had destroyed. He wouldn’t have most of his shit, but Wayne and the kids had done a good job of replacing a lot of what he had lost. He had a second-hand cassette player and a bunch of tapes, a thrifted copy of The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings, and clothes that Robin had snagged from the school. The most important thing – his sweetheart – had been salvaged. He couldn’t wait to start playing again. He had written some pretty sick lyrics that he was excited to put music to.

Wayne finishing packing his bag just as a nurse came in with a wheelchair. He settled himself in and she pushed him out into the hall, Wayne trailing behind. He had her stop as they passed Max’s room. Steve was visiting. Steve was always visiting, never leaving either of them alone for too long. He noticed they were holding hands, which was weird because usually Max freaked out if anyone tried to touch her. Eddie was still constantly surprised by how good Steve was with the kids. How different he was with each of them based off their personalities and needs. Playful with Dustin, sincere with El, firm with Mike, soft with Max, heartfelt with Will, mentoring to Lucas. He understood people, saw them and what they needed. Eddie could never have imagined how much Steve gave of himself to the people he loved. Eddie wondered what Steve would give him, if he ever reached the level of friendship Steve had with the kids. And the thought sent a wave of longing so intense through Eddie that he was glad he was sitting down because his legs went weak with it.

“Heading out, Munson?” Steve asked, getting up and walking over to them.

“Yup! This place has had enough of my charms and they’re kicking me out.” Eddie shrugged and tried to steady his racing heart.

“You were a terrible patient, I don’t blame them at all!”

“I was a model patient, Harrington! I thought we were friends, how dare you take their side?” Eddie asked with feigned disgruntlement.

“How many times did you pull out your stitches, Munson?” Steve asked and folded his arms across his chest.

Steve had him there. He had pulled his stitches a few times trying to do things he shouldn’t, like play his guitar or - heaven forbid - go to the bathroom by himself!

“I can’t believe you’re going to leave me all alone here,” Max said from the bed. They had hung out a lot over the last few weeks, bonding over terrible wounds and angry music.

“Don’t worry Red, I’ll be back to visit. I would never leave you to the not-so-gentle mercies of the sadistic needle wielding nurses of Hawkins Memorial.”

Max smiled a little at the description. Eddie was ecstatic he could elicit even a small bit of happiness out of her.

“Onward, mighty stead!” Eddie pointed down the hall as the nurse sighed behind him. The staff were truly over his shit.

“Before you go, I wanted to give you this,” Steve said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. He handed it to Eddie. It had his number written on it.

“Call if you need anything, any time. I mean it.”

“Oh, you’re making a huge mistake giving me this Big Boy, prepare yourself for a lot of prank calls.” Eddie grinned up at him.

Steve went to grab the paper out his hands, but Eddie shoved it in his mouth to keep it away from him and mumbled, “kidding, kidding!”

Steve laughed and shook his head.

“Get outta here, Munson!”

[t4tozier]

an extension of this post for @peachtozier aka losers band au <3

okay first off let’s start with who plays what

richie: drums. i said a lot of my thoughts in the original post but i think he really takes a shine to it and ends up being so so good at the drums. he’s the one that gets the most slow-mo edits made of him by fans because he’s got the long hair and the sweat and he dumps water on his face in the middle of songs because he doesn’t have time to drink it.

bill: lead singer and songwriter. he gets a lot of attention because of it which the others always tease him about until he turns red. his stutter goes away when he sings and new fans are always shocked when he talks for the first time at one of the concerts because they don’t expect to hear it. he writes most of the lyrics, but richie occasionally helps out if he has a specific idea.

mike: keys, backup vocals/instruments. he’s kind of a jack of all trades, knows how to play a little bit of everything, so he’s the one that will take over if someone else has to tap out for a show or if they just need a break on a song that doesn’t require piano. very good at taking cues from others when they deviate from the studio versions during concerts.

bev: bass guitar and backup vocals.

sorry i blacked out for a moment thinking about bev playing bass. anyway. she whips out these killer basslines like it’s nothing. she likes basing some of her work on famous riffs but she always puts her own spin on it to make it something new. thrives on improvisation.

eddie: lead guitar. i just think he deserves to shred. he can let his energy out on the heavier songs but also switch it up and play a lovely ballad on the acoustic guitar. he’s not great at improv but will provide a steady riff as a base while the others do their thing.

stan: band manager. he’s very professional and polished when communicating with venues and sponsors but when they all show up nobody can tell which one is him because he’s just as goofy as the rest of them. he’ll be dancing along to tiffany or whatever random song they put on as their warmup in the green room and lip syncing over a can of soda with richie and then some assistant comes in to knock on the door and he clears his throat and straightens up and is like thank you ten :)

ben: roadie/techie. he comes up with all the cool lighting cues, the set design, and is the one to go over the stage before a gig to make sure that it’s structurally sound and everything they want to do will be safe at the venue. he also carries some of their heavier equipment, helps richie load the drum kit onto the stage, etc.

okay this is gonna become a longer au bc this post is already too long <3

[cataclysmiceuphemism]

1 or 9 Dolenzmith for the kinks 😊

a list of 69 kinks– send a prompt and a ship–#9 phone sex

"Are you alone?"

"I suppose it depends who you ask," Mike teased, cradling the phone into the crook of his shoulder as he played a little, mindless tune on the guitar. "Some folks say you're never really alone."

"God can go watch a show at Pussycat Theater," Micky said dismissively. He'd never had the guts to watch a movie there himself, but God wouldn't have to pay a dollar for a ticket taker to know he was about to jack off to Playgirl Beauties in the balcony. "Are Pete and Davy there?"

"Pussycat Theater?" Mike repeated, startled so much by the implication that he and his guitar made the same squeaking noise. "Uh, n-no." He cleared his throat. "No, Mick, they're out of the house at the moment."

"That's good," Micky said, grinning at the flustered noises Mike was making. He wasn't actually sure how to start. The only time he'd started having a sexual type of conversation with a girl over the phone, Davy had sneaked up behind him, stretched up to moan in his ear, and laughed when his flailing had gotten him tangled up in the phone cord. "I got the house to myself, too. Mom decided to go shopping…."

"That's good," Mike echoed.

"I really am glad you're alone. I miss you," Micky carried on, "I've been thinking a lot, what we're going to do when I get back."

"A lot of unpacking, I imagine," Mike said, "You could stay gone for months, with how much you brought with you." He wasn't even sure how Micky would get it back on his own; it had taken two of them to heft it over the side of the car, and even then Micky had gotten knocked right into the backseat alongside it.

"Man, I can barely handle a couple'a weeks without you. Months would kill me," Micky said, laughing. He leaned against the wall, spoke into the phone quiet, like maybe he was saying it into Mike's ear, "You know what I'm thinking, Mike. Do you mind it?"

Mike cleared his throat again. "I don't mind it," he decided. He couldn't lie and say he didn't know what Micky was getting at. He still almost wanted to, just to have Micky say it outright. "I just don't much know how to go about it. You're more of a talker than me, Mick."

"Well," Micky said, so bolstered by that that he didn't feel the need to say he didn't know much how to start, either. "Do you like that? When I talk to you? Tell you how good you make me feel?"

Mike smiled soft as he set his guitar aside. "You know I do."

Micky grinned. "Yeah, I do. I do know. It makes you so proud of yourself when I beg for you. You should be proud, y'know, I'm really losing my mind over here, Mike. I can't wait to be home. Do you know what I like?" He didn't wait for an answer before continuing, "I like it when I wake up and you're playing guitar in bed, naked, because, you know, because you were too tired to get dressed, after. That really gets me."

"I'd hate that, if it wasn't you next to me."

"Because of Peter and Davy? They don't mind," Micky said. Mike did his damndest not to seem sexual in front of the guys at all. Did his best to let them know well in advance if he and Micky needed any privacy. Sent them out on errands to get the house to themselves. Made hints that weren't subtle to start and ended quite a bit more obviously on the occasions Peter still didn't get it. And when they finished, Mike always tried to make sure he and Micky put their clothes on—pajamas, if they were set to go to bed— and looked in all ways presentable, like nothing had happened at all. Micky hadn't ever understood that, and would have fucked Mike right in their living room, right in the way, for Peter and Davy to step over them, if he hadn't known Mike preferred the discretion.

"Well, because of them," Mike agreed, "And because of me. You know, it's a lot easier to not care so much, when you're already there next to me, not caring."

"Yeah? Just a second. Don't say anything, just listen." Micky slipped the phone from his ear, instead holding it at his waist. With his other hand, he slid his zipper down, slow, trying to drag the sound out, before he brought the phone back up to his ear. "Did you hear that?"

Mike paused. "I heard something," he agreed, stilted, because he was clearly meant to have both heard it and recognized the sound. "Sounds like you're breaking up, Mick."

Micky laughed. "Okay, no sound effects. Just talking. I was undoing my pants. I'm gonna tell you what I want to do, when I get home. And I'm going to jerk off—" he started to, then, gasped at his own hand in a way that was just a little bit of a put on, the exaggerated emotion of stage acting, so Mike could know what was happening all the way across the state. "You got to, too. Pull your cock out for me, touch yourself, okay, babe?"

"Yeah," Mike agreed.

And Micky could hear the rustle, maybe of Mike's clothes but maybe just the way the phone, clamped between Mike's cheek and his shoulder, was rubbing against the side of his face a bit. But he still asked, "Are you doing it? Tell me," purely as encouragement.

"I'm touching myself," Mike said, as he stroked himself to hardness.

"Thinking of me?"

"You're the only thing I ever think about, when I do it, so."

Mike sounded embarrassed in admitting it, in admitting anything of the sort; he had never felt entirely comfortable sharing his feelings, sharing the things he liked, in having preferences, whether it related to sex or not. Micky encouraged, "I wish I was watching you. You oughta jack off in front of me, when I get back."

Mike laughed a little. "Man, I'm never gonna hear the end of it that's all I'm doing, babe."

Micky's eyebrows furrowed, confused, then he laughed, too. "Well don't—don't finish without me. But let me watch you a little, before. I like it when you do that." Mike didn't often stroke himself in the foreplay of it— Micky rarely ever saw it at all. Which, he thought, was largely because of the fact he was so handsy, himself. Because he loved touching Mike's cock so much, himself. He loved to feel it as Mike grew hard for him, loved dropping his hand down Mike's pants when they were sitting around, watching TV maybe, just in moments of idle boredom. Mike rarely had the need or the opportunity to get there before he did. "What're you thinking of? What're you doing to me?"

Micky heard as Mike swallowed. "Fucking you."

"You dog! Right to it, like that?"

"You want me to—"

"No, nono, don't stop, I'm teasing, I need you. Imagine touching me, too. I'm touching myself like it's you, doing it."

"Is it different?" Mike asked, but he followed up with, "I'm touching you."

"Yeah, you…You do it slower. You don't use your wrist as much. You like to— you rub the head, with your thumb— you like to look at me, when you're doing that. You drive me crazy when you do it…"

"Do that now. I'm looking at you," Mike said, and he took those hints to inform his own touch; he rolled his wrist more often, sped up his stroke, as though it was Micky whose hand was on him.

Micky moaned low and it just about made Mike dizzy.

It took a moment before Micky could talk again, to ask, "How're you fucking me? Fast? Slow?"

"Slow," Mike decided. He'd had to shut his eyes, to really picture it in his head. "It's been too long. I want to savor it."

Micky felt his cheeks go pink, his entire face going hot with the idea. "You know how pent up I am."

"That's why."

"I'm gonna beg for you. Mike, go faster. Please, please…" Micky panted, then muffled himself then, sticking two fingers on his free hand into his mouth, sucking on them to get them wet. "Will you?" he asked, fingers still running along the sides of his tongue, making way for his speech while still getting ready.

"No," Mike said, "Slow, baby. Good and slow."

"Deep?"

"All the way, every time."

Micky bent his knees, dropping his hand between his legs and fucking his fingers into himself. He gasped, groaned, aching, and turned his head against the phone with eyes scrunched shut tight. Even with the wetness of his spit it was a little uncomfortable, a little dry for how fast he'd pushed in.

"Micky?"

"Yeah, Mike?"

"You all right?"

"Yeah. Yeah. I'm fucking myself." Micky laughed a little. "I got impatient. You could tell?" He wasn't so sure he would have been able to, himself. Pain and pleasure didn't always sound so different, removed from the full context of it all.

"I think I know all the sounds you make," Mike said, proud of himself, and a little amused with himself, "Any case, I know the ones I'm going for, and that wasn't one of them."

"Oh, Mike," Micky said. It was a placeholder of sorts, just something fond because he couldn't quite work out how to say all it was that he was thinking. How much he loved Mike, and loved how Mike loved him, how Mike knew him inside and out. How he couldn't ask of anything better, couldn't even think of it. So he moved his fingers instead; moved his hand instead, fucking himself as best he could, and stroking himself firm and steady. It took no time at all to move past the discomfort, back to the pleasure of thinking of being with Mike, moaning low, whimpering for him.

"There we are," Mike praised him, his voice deep and low.

It was Mike's voice, hungry for Micky's own pleasure, that pushed him to coming. He thought to say so for Mike for only a half-a-second, but the fact of it was Mike knew what he sounded like when he came just as well as he did the moans that led up to it, and he knew he didn't need to tell him so.

"Fuck me," Micky begged, sinking, leaning his weight heavy against the wall next to him, "Fill me up, c'mon, babe." Mike wasn't nearly so vocal as he was. About anything, ever, really. But Micky smiled, satisfied, when he heard Mike's breath catch, followed by a short groan that came from somewhere deep. He imagined the flood of heat filling him. He loved it when Mike came inside of him, and fingered himself just a moment longer, as though he could feel it inside of himself, before he withdrew. "Good boy," he said, maybe just to return the praise that Mike gave him.

It took a couple moments before they said anything more than that, just enjoying each other in the afterglow of it like they often did when they were in reach of one another and not hours apart. Eventually Mike said, "I gotta go clean up, now. But I love you."

"Yeah, yeah me too. I love you, too."

"And I miss you."

"I miss you, too. Y'know, I dunno if that helped." Micky laughed. "Now I know exactly what I'm missing."

"Well," Mike said, clearly shifting back to that slight embarrassment, "You know my number. If you can't wait."

Micky snickered, but agreed that he'd be calling Mike soon, before he hung up the phone.

[emma23]

Not even a little brotherly :

Llewyn davis x reader

If you want to support me, take a look 💕

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The air in the dingy Greenwich Village apartment smelled faintly of old records, burnt coffee, and Llewyn Davis. Y/N didn’t mind, though—she had gotten used to the musician’s cluttered space and his peculiar charm over the years. The soft strumming of his guitar hummed from the living room, where Llewyn sat on the battered sofa, lost in the melody he was trying to perfect.

"Are you going to feed me, or am I supposed to starve while you chase the same two chords for hours?" Y/N teased as she leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed.

Without looking up, Llewyn smirked. "Why cook for you when you always steal my food anyway?"

She rolled her eyes and sauntered into the kitchen, pulling open his nearly empty fridge. "It’s not stealing if you’re too busy brooding to notice."

Llewyn’s chuckle echoed from the other room. "Touché. Check the cabinet; I think there’s still some peanut butter."

Y/N groaned. "This is why you need me, Davis. Left to your own devices, you’d die of malnutrition and bad taste in food."

"Good thing I’ve got great taste in music," he shot back, grinning as she appeared with a jar of peanut butter and a spoon.

She plopped down beside him, legs tucked under her, and handed him the jar. "Sure, keep telling yourself that while you starve."

He took the jar with a mock glare. "This is why I never let you stay here for free. Too many insults."

"And yet, here I am," she quipped, stealing the spoon to take a bite of peanut butter before he could.

The banter was easy, the kind that only came with years of knowing someone—too many years, perhaps. Llewyn’s sharp wit and her equally cutting comebacks had always been their dynamic. It was comfortable, familiar, and safe.

Except it wasn’t. Not anymore.

They had met as kids, two awkward neighbors thrown together because of proximity and shared afternoons at the park. Y/N was bossy, always telling Llewyn how to play house or forcing him to sing while she danced. He was stubborn, refusing to take direction and constantly mocking her lack of rhythm. By the time they were teenagers, their bond had shifted into an unspoken camaraderie, one where they could exchange glances across a crowded room and know exactly what the other was thinking.

Y/N had been there through everything—Mike’s death, the failed gigs, the couch-surfing. She was the closest thing to stability in his chaotic life, and he knew it. But she wasn’t just a crutch for him. She had her own way of complicating things, always showing up with her bad decisions and tangled emotions, forcing him to be the voice of reason when she couldn’t be.

The tension had been building for months, ever since she had started dating some guy named Eric. He was decent, polite, and boring as hell. Llewyn hated him instantly.

"You’re jealous," she accused one night after he’d made yet another sarcastic comment about Eric’s boring wardrobe.

"Of Eric?" Llewyn scoffed. "Please. The guy looks like he irons his socks for fun."

"Well, maybe I like a little stability in my life for once," she shot back.

"Stability?" Llewyn’s laugh was bitter. "That’s what you’re calling it now? Settling for mediocrity?"

Her eyes narrowed. "You don’t get to criticize my choices when you can’t even figure out how to keep a roof over your head, Llewyn."

He winced, and she immediately regretted the words. But he didn’t respond. Instead, he went back to his guitar, strumming aimlessly, a sure sign he was trying to avoid the argument.

A week later, they were back to normal—or as normal as they could be. Y/N was sitting on the floor, sorting through Llewyn’s record collection, when she found an old, scratched album of his and Mike’s music.

"You don’t talk about him much," she said softly, holding up the record.

Llewyn looked up, his expression guarded. "What’s there to say?"

"You miss him," she pressed gently.

"Of course, I miss him." His voice was quiet but firm. "But missing him doesn’t change anything."

Y/N nodded, setting the record down carefully. She hesitated before speaking again. "Llewyn, I—"

He interrupted her, his gaze intense. "Don’t say it."

"Say what?"

"That you’re basically my sister," he muttered, his lips twitching into a half-smile.

Y/N froze, heat rising to her cheeks. "I wasn’t going to say that."

"Good," he said, leaning forward slightly. "Because there is absolutely nothing brotherly about the way I feel right now or have ever felt in your presence, ever."

Her mouth opened, but no words came out.

"I wanted to marry you when I was six," Llewyn continued, his voice low. "And I wanted to do very, very rude things to you at eighteen."

Her laugh was half-nervous, half-disbelieving. "You’re kidding."

"Do I look like I’m kidding?" Llewyn’s expression was serious, his dark eyes locked onto hers.

She swallowed hard. "You’re such an idiot," she whispered before grabbing his shirt and pulling him into a kiss.

Y/N woke up to the sound of Llewyn humming in the kitchen. She pulled on his oversized shirt and padded out to find him making coffee, his guitar leaning against the counter.

"Good morning, Mrs. Davis," he greeted with a smirk.

She groaned. "Don’t call me that."

"What? You wanted to marry me when you were six, remember?"

"Pretty sure that was your delusion, not mine."

He grinned, handing her a cup of coffee. "Admit it. You’re just as hopeless as I am."

Y/N took a sip, hiding her smile behind the mug. "Maybe. But at least I don’t iron my socks."

Llewyn laughed, pulling her into his arms. "You’re lucky you’re cute."

"And you’re lucky I have terrible taste," she shot back, kissing him again.

"Do you think Eric would give me his iron? I could really use it for my socks."

[sagereeid]

betty (byler's version)

"Okay, okay, everyone settle down!" Mike laughed into his mic as everyone was still cheering at the last song they played. "We have a new one for you and guess what?" Mike asked as he quietly strummed his guitar. "It's a new one!" Mike dragged out the last "e" in his sing-songy voice.

As everyone cheered, he looked over to very far left of the stage to see his boyfriend, Will, in the very front row, as close as he could get to the stage. Just like he promised he would be.

Mike waved and looked back to the center of the crowd where a bright stage light was waiting to blind him.

"This one is called betty." Mike smiled and looked back to Will who smiled up at his boyfriend and started cheering again.

Mike looked behind him to make sure everyone was ready to play before he started singing.

"Honey, I won't make assumptions about why you switched your homeroom. But I think it's 'cause of me." Mike began then stepped away from for the mic to shoot another glace at Will, who was already staring at Mike in awe. He smiled and stepped back up to the mic, singing.

"Honey, one time I was riding on my skateboard when I passed your old house. It's like I couldn't breathe." Mike looked back, this time holding his eyes on Will like he was the only one there.

"You heard the rumors for El and you can't believe a word she says most time, but this time it was true." El? Will thought.

"The worst thing that I ever said, was what I said to you." As soon as Will heard this line sung in Mike's sweet voice, he somehow was back in Mike's driveway and somehow, it's summer of '85 and it's pouring down raining and Mike just said, "it's not my fault you don't like girls" right to Will's face. But wait, this song is about him.

"But if I just showed up at your party, would you have me? Would you want me? Would you tell me to go fuck myself? Or lead me to the garden?" Mike sang looking back to the center of the crowd, deciding that he was staring at Will for too long.

"in the garden, would you trust me if I told you, it was just a summer thing? I'm only seventeen. I don't know anything, but I know I miss you."

Oh, Mike and Will's first fight as an actual couple. It wasn't a "real" fight. They weren't mad at each other it was just a lot of miscommunication and angst. There might've been some yelling but there were definitely a lot of tears. Mike didn't know what to do he threw himself on his bed and Will's following him.

"I feel like I don't know anything anymore." Mike cries as he can feel Will's weight sink in the bed next to him. "We're only fifteen, we both don't know anything." Will says sweetly as he reaches out to touch Mike. "I know that I love you." Mike whispers, quiet and crushing. "I love you too. And that's all we need to know right now." Will scoops up Mike as he starts to cry into Will's chest.

Will was so deep into that though he feels like he gets thrown back to the place he been in all along as Mike sings. "Honey, I know where it all went wrong, your favorite song was playing from the far side of the gym." Mike looks back at Will and jokingly rolls his eyes.

Will knows why. He laughs because he knows how insufferable he was when they were both little, listening to "Should I Stay, or Should I go? By The Clash on repeat until he couldn't anymore.

"I was nowhere to be found, you hate the crowds, you know that, plus I saw you dance with him." Will laughed again, remembering all those times Lucas would pull him off the couch at the parties he would throw after winning his basketball game. "Wow, Lucas, lookin' good." Mike said in his sarcastic tone and acts like his jealous.

Mike sang the chorus again, sounding sweeter and sweeter to Will the more he sung. but everything in the room went quiet as Mike began the bridge and the music started to get faster.

"I was walking home on broken cobblestones, just thinking of you when she pulled up like a figment of my worst intentions. She said "James, get it in. Let's drive." Those days turned into night. Sat and talked to her but, I dreamt of you all summer long."

Will knew he was talking about everyone's favorite, Max. never calling Mike by his middle name because "James just fits him better" as she put it.

Mike ripped the mic off his stand and walked downstage to the very front of the stage all the way to the right.

He sings as he looks down at the people that were in the very front row, almost pushed up against the stage. "Baby, I'm here on your doorstep and I planned it out for weeks now but, it's finally sinking in."

He slowly makes his way back to the right center of the stage. Will's laughs because he walks around the stage singing like he's performing standup comedy.

"Baby, right now is the last time I can dream about what happens when you see my face again." Mike sings and looks up again, locking eyes with Will and inching closer to stage left.

Mike keeps his eyes on Will, not caring that anyone else in the room with them. "The only thing I wanna do is make it up to you."

"So, I showed up at your party." Mike stopped as he reached stage left, stopping in front of Will. She sat down on the end of the stage, right in front of Will.

"Yeah, I showed up at your party." Mike reached a hand out and took Will's. He looked away from Will and back to the crowd.

Mike gave Will a look that basically said, "can I pull you on stage?" Will nodded aggressively, excited.

As the tempo of the song changed again, Mike dragged Will up on stage and started singing again and both of them reached center stage, right where Mike left his mic stand.

"Yeah, I showed up at your party, will you have me? will you love me? Will you kiss me on the porch, in front of all our stupid friends?" Mike laughed as Will smiled at him, beaming.

"If you kiss me, will it be just like I dreamed it? Will it patch your broken wings? I'm only seventeen, I don't know anything, but I know I miss you." Mike continued dragging Will around. This time, down center stage.

“Standin’ in your cardigan. Kissin’ in my car again.” Mike continued as he sat in the middle of center stage, pulling Will down with him.

Will sat down next to Mike, he decided to lay in Will’s lap. “Stopped at a street light, you know I missed you.” Mike finally finished.

Only looking at Will, who smiled down at Mike as he heard everyone cheer for his boyfriend.

“Well, everyone, this is my boyfriend, Will.” Mike said, holding the mic up to Will’s mouth. “Hi!” He spoke into it. 

DAY ONE OF 100 FOLLOWER SPEICAL!!

tags!

@hollarious2

@artsyna

@wallywise

@lebylershipper

@ash-the-wise

@tender-emotional-music

@willbyerswatch

@hearteyes-wheeler

@paloma-ascends-into-hellfire

@willbyerslove

@drowninginideas

@sunflowerbyler

[eppysboys]

Sam Leach and Joan McEvoy's Engagement Party, 17th March 1962 🕺💃

Earlier in the evening, The Beatles performed at the Village Hall in Knotty Ash, Liverpool. The evening was billed as a "St. Patrick's Night Rock Gala". Sam Leach, (Liverpool concert booker) booked The Beatles and Rory Storm and The Hurricanes to draw a big crowd so that he could make enough profits to pay for his engagement party, scheduled to follow the night's show. Both bands attended Leach's party, which didn't end until the following afternoon. Also present at the party was Mike McCartney, Paul's girlfriend Dorothy 'Dot' Rhone, Brian Epstein, Bob Wooler and Ted 'Kingsize' Taylor.

In his book Sam Leach has a distinct memory of 'a gang of us' (presumably including Beatles and Hurricanes) travelling to the party from Knotty Ash in a van. Their driver (not Neil Aspinall) pulled out from the Village Hall into the path of a speeding articulated lorry which seemed to have appeared from nowhere. Everyone braced themselves for the inevitable impact but miraculously the lorry, its brakes screeching hysterically, managed to stop less than a foot from the side of the van. Shocked, stunned, shaken and stirred, everyone in the van travelled the 1.5 miles to the party in complete silence. 

Hurricane Johnny 'Guitar' Byrne diary entry for 1962 mentions the party:

"Bought Zodiac. Knotty Ash, Orrell, then Sam Leach's engagement party. Had row with Eileen. Got home 6."

The party was at the family house in Huyton, thrown by Dolly, mother of Vera and Joan McEvoy.

"I can vouch for the fact that Brian fell in love with Vera and pursued her all night. In fact after the party he wrote more than one letter to Dolly asking her could she help him fix a date with Vera. Unfortunately for Brian she wasn't interested." Sam Leach (She seemed a little interested, as displayed below)

"Brown, who was married (but separated) at the time of her liaison with Epstein in 1962, describes him as "...very emotional. He always gave the impression of being cold and icy, but he was very softhearted, very tender, very gentle, and he had a lot of feelings. And he was all man, I don't care what they say." (Ray Coleman, The Man Who Made The Beatles)

"We’d been to the Knotty Ash Club for my sister’s engagement. The Beatles had played there, as did Rory [Storm] and a few other groups. Afterwards, as usual, we all went back to the house and Brian came along.

If you saw the Beatles in my mother’s they were just a scruffy bunch of boys. And who’d look at them? I wouldn’t bother with them but then Brian stood out and Brian looked like the real thing. He was handsome. He was tall. He was immaculate. That’s why I let Brian get behind the bar with me and help me serve the drinks. He was the best of the bunch.

So we were just behind the bar when Elvis came on, 'Heartbreak Hotel’. He loved it, I loved it, and we started dancing. There wasn’t much room. You know, you could go two steps forward, three steps back and that was it. So we sort of got a bit close and everyone was laughing at us, saying, like, 'What’s going on?’ But if you moved sideways you fell over the crates. There were crates of beer in there and everybody’s coats. We ended up on top of the coats or on top of the crates if we just moved the wrong way. And we got pretty close but I wasn’t surprised by the way he was acting towards me.

We were dancing and kissing at the same time. He was probably one of the sexiest fellas I had ever met. People say, 'Oh well, Brian was gay.’ but he wasn’t very gay with me. He was just like any other man and more. He was very easy-going and casual and funny. He’d make you laugh and he could dance. You know he could move. He said to me, 'I’ve seen you in different places and I thought you were stuck up.’ And I said, 'Well, I thought you were stuck up because I remember being in your shop and you were like the big boss.’

I think he was pretty fresh. In a house where people are looking at you it’s not like a club with all the lights out and people tend to be aware of others but Brian wasn’t that bothered. He was interested and he showed it. Maybe he’d had a bit too much to drink. I don’t know. But I can’t say that because I met Brian afterwards and he was still interested.

The next day he called round to the house. I wasn’t there so he talked to my mother about poetry. I don’t know how they got talking about poems but Brian came the following day with a book of poems for my mother with a little letter. He also gave her a letter thanking her for having the party because everyone had made such a terrible mess of the house. It was full of eggs and rubbish and bottles everywhere and he apologized for the actions of everybody else at the party.

Well, my mother just thought he was the most wonderful person in the world. At last a gentleman has come through this door and not Teddy boys and hooligans and all the rest of it. In the first letter he said he’d enjoyed meeting her, loved coming to the house, felt so welcome and would she mind if he came around again to see me. I said to my mum, 'Well, that’s impossible. How can I see him? You know I can’t go out with Brian.’ She said, 'You will have to’.

My mother was in love with Brian: 'He’s beautiful. He’s wonderful.’ So she sort of arranged it. I didn’t want him to come and pick me up at the house because I didn’t want people to see us going out. I arranged to meet him in a little cafe in Bold Street. We had a coffee and a chat and then I can’t really remember where we went. We went somewhere for a drink around Bold Street where there were all these little dives at the time. But I had to be back for nine o'clock. Another time I met him in the Tower and we had a little chat. We met in the back office and had a talk.

I liked Brian as a man and I think Brian liked me. But then he suggested if we were to go out we’d have to go to Southport or Manchester - anywhere out of Liverpool because he didn’t want to walk into my husband in Liverpool. We were separated at the time but it was a little bit awkward, you know.

It’s hard for me to believe Brian was gay. I think if I had been free and if I’d seen more of Brian I think we could have got serious. I think he was all man. I just can’t accept that he was gay.

In the shop Brian seemed like a man, like your dad shouting at you and superior. He had an attitude of superiority. But later on I discovered he was just like any other man. I thought he was a very passionate, loving person. He was like two different people. So if there’s a third person involved - this gay person - I just say he’s one hell of a man to be able to please everybody. You know, he was just unique. That’s all I can say." Vera Brown, In His Life, The Brian Epstein Story.

"George always fancied Joan and when I began dating her, he asked her to let him know when she finished seeing me. 'But don't tell Sam', he added. 'He’d batter me!' Today she probably feels like battering me for spoiling her chances." Sam Leach, The Rocking City

"Later in the evening, Joan had a headache and said she was going upstairs for a lie down. I went to fetch a couple of aspirins from the kitchen and said I'd follow her. Bob Wooler then made a typically cheap remark about pre-marital sex. Before I had a chance to sort him out, Paul and George grabbed him and made him personally apologise to Joan." Sam Leach, The Rocking City

"Rory Storm was lying on the floor hopelessly drunk. He shouted up to Paul, 'I wanna be in the picture'. So, as you can see, Paul bent down and lifted his foot into the shot." Sam Leach

"The night rolled on and I found Lennon, completely sloshed, sitting in the kitchen rolling raw eggs down Ann Barton's birds-nest hairstyle. Each time one broke, he gave a gasp of astonishment at the gooey yellow mess spreading across the tiled floor. Dolly found out and gave him a severe rollicking, which sobered him up enough to utter a sincere, 'Sorry, Mrs Mac'. Everyone liked and respected Dolly McEvoy and that was the only time I ever saw Lennon genuinely humbled. He disappeared for a while after that and was found later fast asleep in the bath.

When he finally came downstairs, he once again started to apologise. Dolly had forgotten all about it, but he was still apologising as he left at nine the next morning. As we stood outside, he shook my hand gravely. 'That was the very best party I've ever been to . . . honest,' he croaked. I was pleased everyone had enjoyed themselves, but when John started thanking me for a third time, I put him in a taxi and packed him off home. As he left, I slipped an egg into his pocket. He never did tell me how that hatched out." Sam Leach, The Rocking City

[hilarychuff]

It’s late by the time she finally sneaks into her mother’s sewing room, sticking to the far wall just in case some wrong step manages to trigger the sewing machine to turn on. Logically, she knows it doesn’t have a life of its own, knows it won’t start whirring and jabbing without her mother pushing the pedals. Chrissy can’t help but keep her distance anyway. Her gaze stays on it even as she reaches the phone, looking away only long enough to dial the number Eddie made her write on a scrap of paper she tucked into her sock earlier. “Yeah,” he answers on the second ring, and finally Chrissy can close her eyes. She can picture him standing in his kitchen, the phone cradled between his ear and his shoulder as he moves around the trailer. She wonders if he was up watching something on TV, or maybe practicing his guitar for tomorrow, or maybe just eating a snack over the sink. “Eddie?” she asks, and then feels silly for it. She knows it’s him. Knows Wayne is at work. It’d be impossible to confuse their voices even if Wayne wasn’t. But Eddie doesn’t seem annoyed by the question. “Cunningham,” he breathes back, that same sigh of relief in his voice that had been there this morning. “I wanted to call, but I wasn’t sure if I should since you said — but, uh, OK, so it turns out Mike is out of town or some shit, but I can —” “Eddie, did you mean it when you said you’d come get me whenever?” she interrupts. She doesn’t want to be rude, but she needs to be fast, just in case someone wakes up, just in case someone hears. “Because I really want to come to your show, and my mom is supposed to play bridge at the club at 2 tomorrow, and I think maybe that’s my one shot to sneak out,” she explains. “Will you come get me? I mean, if you’re free? Is that OK?” “Is that OK?” Eddie repeats. “Ozzy, it would be my pleasure. No way we could even go on without Corroded Coffin’s biggest fan out there in the crowd. You really are a bad girl now, Cunningham. Hell yeah, I’ll come get you.”

all the best people see you (all the best people know), chapter 12, a season 4 buckingham au

[joons]

Have Brian Wilson and Elvis every been connected in any way? Like, did they ever meet, listen to each other's music, etc.? If not, what do you think would have happened if they had?

Brian adored Elvis, as most teenagers did in the early '50s and '60s. Brian covered "Blue Christmas" in 1964 and often cited Elvis as one of his musical inspirations. Brian loved him for his vocal abilities, not just his status as a rock-n-roller: "I liked Elvis Presley’s songs," he said. "... I thought Elvis was a very underrated singer, he was a very good singer. He was more of a star. He was known more for his fame than his voice. I think he deserved more credit for his voice."

Brian's affinity for Elvis is evident in his stage setup for his Smile concerts in 2004, which was the first time his incomplete masterpiece (originally set for release in 1967) was performed in its entirety for the public. Brian, like Elvis, has dealt with extreme stage fright for most of his career, so for inspiration, he includes notes from his band and an image of Elvis on his keyboard.

According to band members Mike, Al, and Bruce, Elvis did know the Beach Boys and got to meet some of them in 1968 when he was preparing to resume live appearances and recording tracks for the Comeback Special.

AL JARDINE: Bruce (Johnston) and I met Elvis in the late '60s. He was working in the studio across the hall from us at Western. Bruce and I went over and introduced ourselves and he was very delighted to see us. He was trim and great looking, just like his album covers. He hadn’t gone back out on the road yet. We encouraged him to get back to work and he took us up on it. MIKE LOVE: He was in the big room at Western and had his cape on at the time (laughs). He was preparing to go back out on tour and he was asking us, “Well, what’s it like?” He was a really kind gentleman. He couldn’t have been nicer. He definitely knew who The Beach Boys were. You couldn’t not be aware of who The Beach Boys were in the '60s.

Brian was not with them at the time and never got to see Elvis perform live, but their careers continued to connect in interesting ways. Jerry Schilling, a member of the Memphis Mafia and good friend of Elvis, departed Elvis' group in 1976 to begin managing the Beach Boys full time. He became good friends with the band, especially Carl Wilson, the youngest Wilson brother. "After Elvis, Carl was my closest friend," Jerry said. After Elvis' death in 1977, Carl offered to visit with Vernon Presley, Elvis' dad, to spend time with him and get his mind off his grief.

Jerry Schilling was also married to Myrna Smith, a member of the Sweet Inspirations, a gospel group that provided backing vocals for all of Elvis' stage shows. Myrna wrote the lyrics for many of Carl's solo projects, including a tribute song for Elvis that was being considered as the theme song for the 1981 documentary This Is Elvis. Carl wrote the music, played guitar and sang backing vocals, and Myrna wrote the lyrics and sang. The song was abandoned, but the demo tapes were recovered not too long ago.

JERRY SCHILLING: The song ... tells who Elvis was … the lyrics and the music. It’s simple, it’s sweet, and it’s deep. It’s emotional to talk about it, because all three of these people – who were so close to me in my life – are all gone. But boy, this is a great piece of all of their music left behind honoring Elvis, and done by Carl and Myrna.

Elvis and Brian also both got to work closely with guitarist James Burton. Burton was much more of a long-term staple for Elvis, but he played in sessions for Smile and remembered how Brian would invite musicians to his home and make them spend the night so they could play at all hours.

Now, we get to the best part: Brian and Elvis did meet once, and it's one of my favorite stories of all time. Here is Brian telling the story on The Tonight Show.

It's been told a few different ways (Brian, bless him, is sort of an unreliable narrator, so bear this in mind), but every version is just incredible.

JAMES BURTON: I walked into the big studio, and Brian Wilson was in there mixing a record that I played on. And he said, "Whatcha doing here, man?" [I said,] "I’m in the next room with Elvis rehearsing." He said, "Oh! Please, please take me to meet Elvis." I took him in and he walked up to Elvis and was just looking at him. And Elvis stuck his hand out to shake hands and he couldn’t move. Daily Express/Elvis Birthday Celebration at Graceland, 2020

•••

JERRY SCHILLING: We were at a rehearsal session at RCA Studios in Hollywood, and Elvis always prided himself on our security. There was security at the studio as well. This big, overweight, bearded guy came into the studio and went right up to Elvis and went, "Hi Elvis, I'm Brian." And Elvis was very upset with us thinking, "How did this guy get in here and who is he?" So Brian said, "I'm recording next door. Would you come over and listen?" And Elvis looked at us; it's almost in spite of us since this guy had gotten through. He said, "Yeah, I'll go over."  So we went over, and Terry Melcher, Doris Day's son, was producing. Terry played a track for Elvis, and Brian said, "Do you think we have anything?" And Elvis said, "No." And we went back to our studio. Later, the security guys told us it was Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys. elvis.com.au

•••

BRIAN WILSON: I was recording with Terry Melcher at RCA Victor Records in 1975. We were working on the song “Why Do Fools Fall in Love?” Terry said, “Hey, Elvis is in the next studio recording.” That was a big surprise to hear he was in the studio next to me. So I walked into the studio and said, “Hi, I’m Brian Wilson,” and he goes, “Hello, Duke.” I don’t know why he called me Duke. I said, “Would you like to hear what I’m doing in the studio?” and he said yes. So we walked over to my studio and listened to what I was doing and then said he had to leave. It was a thrill to meet him and he was real happy to meet me. Rock Cellar, 2013

•••

BRIAN WILSON: Yeah, around 1969 we were recording in the same place as Elvis, and I asked him if he’d come across the way to our studio. He shook my hand and goes, “I’ve heard a lot about you. How you doin’, Duke?” He called me “Duke,” don’t ask me why. (laughs) So I figured okay, Elvis is like me, a joker, so I’m going to play a little joke on him. I knew he was a black belt, so I faked a karate chop and a kick at him. He blocked them both easily, and I started cracking up, to show him I was kidding, but he didn’t think it was funny and said, “Hey, Duke, don’t do that.” I said, “Hey man, I’m just kidding around.” So we talked about music for a few minutes, about “Good Vibrations,” and then the conversation sort of died down, so, to liven things up, I threw another karate chop at him. He backed up in his chair, says, “I’m a little worried about you, Duke,” and then signaled to his boys that they were leaving. I never saw him again. I regret that. He was quite an artist. Interview with Alex Simon, 2012

•••

What has been your most embarrassing moment? BRIAN WILSON: When I karate chopped Elvis Presley. He called me "Duke" - I was so nervous I acted stupid. It was in 1975 at RCA Victor Studios. After I did that, he said, "I gotta get outta here." The Guardian, 2004

BLESS HIS HEART.

This was definitely in 1975, not 1969, while Elvis was working on "Pieces of My Life" from the Today album. Around this time, Brian was mostly just fussing around in the studio, trying to come up with the Beach Boys' next album and attempting to produce small songs for other acts. Brian says he met Elvis while recording "Why Do Fools Fall in Love," which most likely means not his 1964 version but the version he was producing for California Music, a supergroup involving Terry Melcher, Bruce Johnston, Dean Torrence, and others.

This is the song he played for Elvis, most likely.

BRIAN: Do you think we have anything? ELVIS: No.

I agree with E, I think; you had to have the biggest brain imaginable to understand Brian's sound in the mid-'70s. The songs he'd come up with over the next two years are awesome, but weird, and you can tell this is an early effort in a period where he wasn't really trying very hard to complete anything. Actually laughing so hard at Elvis listening to this and just 😬

I don't think Elvis was actually mad or anything, there are a thousand stories of him and his bodyguards reacting quickly to any sudden movement and then relaxing once they realized it was just an overeager fan, and Brian is the biggest wild card, lmao. I'm sure if Elvis had no idea who he was at the time or how he got in, he was probably a bit unsettled but didn't want to be rude. Also very likely that Elvis was bored out of his mind recording in this time period and just wanted an excuse to procrastinate.

Getting back to the other ways they're connected, I love what Brian said, "Elvis is like me, a joker." That's so true. They are both always the Weirdest Person in the Room, which you can SEE in this brief meeting. It kind of makes me think they wouldn't get each other unless circumstances were ideal to really let loose. They both had bonkers, deadpan humor that would go over most people's heads, and they both loved playing pranks on people. I think they would enjoy talking about music and spirituality as well, though Brian would have to keep it to non-drug-related revelations. They are also both girl dads, and it makes me happy just to imagine Lisa, Carnie, and Wendy all playing together. Carnie and Lisa were almost the exact same age, born just two months apart. 🥺

And, to wrap up this incredibly pointless deep dive, what I would wish most is that them knowing each other would have sped up their mutual healing. Brian to me represents the impossible, one-in-a-million shot where the cycle of exploitation that befalls sensitive, genius people in the industry breaks, and someone who was taken advantage of regains control of their life and makes their art on their own terms. Like Elvis, Brian also dealt with enormous creative pressure at a young age, crippling stage fright, a sense of alienation from his peers, a longing to go beyond formulaic music and tap into deeper emotions, binge eating and general disregard for his own health, problems with overmedication, and eventually an abusive manager who controlled all aspects of his personal life. And just ... somehow, he got out of all that and got another chance. I dearly wish Elvis had had more time. Both their stories show how precious life is and how important it is that our loved ones advocate for us, even when we're unable or unready to advocate for ourselves. And to keep responding to the joy and humor and heart in ordinary experiences and people, even when life feels hard.

And they're both so funny, pleeeeeease.

[justrambles]

(Beauty and the beast steddie)

No.7 — Time

Mike is interested in Eddie's guitar. Eddie catches him sneaking glances at his Sweetheart, and decides to ask.

"You play?" he asks, gesturing towards the guitar.

"Do you?" Mike reflexively talks back, but realizes it's a pointless question and just shakes his head.

"I don't know how to play. I never learned. I wanted to, though."

The kid seems a bit sad and Eddie hates seeing him like that, so he decides there's no harm in offering.

"I could teach you if you want?"

And obviously it's a wrong move, because suddenly Mike tenses up and spits out,

"Yeah, as if I could pick strings with these hooves. It's not gonna work. Nothing ever works here. Thanks, Eddie, but no thanks."

"Whoa man- Mike, calm down. You can still learn, you know. There's no 'one' way to learn playing. I could show you the chords first and then you'll be able to practice it yourself later."

"Yeah, except there's not going to be a later."

Mike's still pissed, but he's gotten calmer. He now just seems a little annoyed at himself as he grumbles. It's a crisis averted and Eddie is relieved, as he secretly tries to come up with other ways to get Mike into playing guitar. It's just a hunch, but he thinks learning to play's gonna be good for Mike.

But then, (because he's got the worst timing ever) Dustin bursts in and shouts,

"Eddie! I need your help, quick!"

***

It's really remarkable, Eddie has to admit.

He stands before a wall in the boys' room, filled with jagged tally marks. Dustin looks proud of the abstract artwork, Mike's gotten tense again, and Lucas just seems tired of it all.

"Well, Dustin, it looks great. Didn't know you had a thing for art." Eddie has no idea what it means.

"What? No, this is not just some art, dude. This is my calendar. You know, I've been counting the days since we got cursed—"

"You mean Max has been counting," Lucas chips in and Dustin rolls his eyes.

"Yes, Lucas, Max has been marking since she has the most fitting claw for the task. But it's my idea, so I've been counting."

Ah, Max. Eddie knows who Max is now. Turns out the panther he met wasn't Steve. Turns out she wasn't even a panther, after all. He's embarrassed himself in front of the puma thinking that she was Steve, and he'd really like to not think about it now. So he asks,

"And about the calendar...?"

This stops Dustin from bantering with Lucas, and he turns to Eddie to give an explanation.

"Yeah, so, I've been counting the days with Max's help. And although I probably missed some dates on the days when we pissed Max off and she didn't want to help and I had to count in my head, I'm pretty sure I've got it close enough, so I wanted to crosscheck."

Eddie is now fully amused. Dustin put a lot of effort into this, he can tell. So he nods, indicating him to go on.

"So... is this May 17th, 1985?"

And wow, he's really close considering everything, so Eddie tries to answer but is cut off by Mike's voice.

"What does it even matter?"

"Huh?" comes Dustin's confused voice.

"What's the point of counting? It does nothing."

Now Dustin seems a bit tense too, and Eddie hopes this doesn't end bad. It seems unlikely.

"Well, Mike-, we need to know when we are in the time. We need to be prepared for when we get back—"

"Yeah, you keep saying 'when we get back' but we won't! That's the thing! We're not getting back, there's no 'later', we're stuck here, stuck in this body because of the stupid curse, while everything goes on without us!"

With that Mike stomps out, and Eddie can't do anything but stare into the now empty spot. Dustin doesn't look so well either, he mutters out a little "fuck," and walks out, too. Eddie hears Lucas sigh.

"So when is it?" Lucas asks a bit after, "Is it May-whatever-Dustin-said?"

"Uh, close enough. June 23rd, 1986. Should-, should we go after them?"

"No, they'll get over it. Usually they're not the ones fighting — it's either Max and Mike or Steve and Robin — but I guess Dustin has too much hope."

And the way he says it makes it feel like Lucas doesn't have much hope either. Eddie wonders what happened all those years before.

"Does he?"

Lucas glances up at his question.

"Do you think Dustin has too much hope, too?"

"Well, we've been like this for almost three decades and the curse is still not close to breaking, is it?"

The curse.

"Why do you think that you can't break the curse? What is it exactly?"

[alxanderturners]

 | 𝓀𝑒𝑒𝓅𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑜𝓃 𝓂𝓎 𝒸𝑜𝓈𝓉𝓊𝓂𝑒, 𝒸𝒶𝓁𝓁𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒾𝓉 𝒶 𝓌𝓇𝒾𝓉𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝑜𝑜𝓁  |

Something had shifted in Alex recently. He found himself staying out later, going to parties that he'd lost interest in long ago, essentially anything to avoid going back to increasingly suffocating hotel rooms. He wasn't entirely sure if it was the lifestyle of life on the road that he was growing weary of - or the person he was sharing it with. The more he pulled away, the harder Louise tried. If it wasn't coming to all of his shows, it was arranging 'girl dates' with his band mates wives, calling his mother for catch ups that consisted of a lot of vapid small talk, or even posting him on social media more and more - that she knew he hated - as if she had something to prove. It all would've been endearing, if it didn't feel so claustrophobic.

Just the other night, he'd been out in Glasgow after the show, which was rare enough in itself, when he'd caught a man smiling over the bar at him. But that wasn't unusual. He'd grown used to the all knowing smile that said "I know who you are" - what was more unusual was his bodies response to it. For the first time in a long time, instead of dreading the common request for a selfie, he had sort of wanted the man to come over. But he never did. That alone was enough to make him pull the "not tonight, darling, I've got a bangin' headache" excuse out the bag when in bed with his girlfriend later that night.

Once again, he found himself back on home soil, doing anything to keep himself occupied. He wasn't sure whether it was his prior conversation with Mike that had brought him to see Brokeback Mountain, or the sheer coincidence that he had walked past a large poster announcing the show on the side of it's theatre. Whatever the case, it was a decision that had left him in near-tears. Whether it was the intimacy of the performance, or how true some of the moments had rang, Alex knew he had to commend the man who had brought him here.

Throughout the entirety of the show, his eyes gravitated towards Mike - whom was playing the bolder character, who was evidently more in touch with himself than the other - and he was reminded of Miles. He remembered precisely the moment his best friend had burst into his life, in the very early days of The Little Flames. Every body harboured a crush on the band's female vocalist, but Alex had gravitated naturally towards the man who would have a massive impact on his life. He was a much better guitar player than him at the time, and once Miles had begun to help him improve with lessons down at the local park, they fancied themselves as the next Lennon and McCartney. Even went as far as donning matching Beatle-esque hair styles. It wasn't until years later that Miles had put their friendship on the line on some random Tuesday night. Alex could remember it vividly. He'd told Miles about his plans to move an ocean away with Alexa - things had started to get more serious than he'd ever anticipated - and Miles' response had been to lay a kiss on him. A kiss that he could never quite put his finger on. Had it stirred up so many emotions within him because it had tested his very real love for Alexa? Or because that love would always be shared with his best friend?

Over the coming years, a lot of casual kisses followed - each one more daring and exciting than the last. They'd pose it as just dicking around on stage, though what they followed it with some nights was far from playing up just for the sake of the crowd. Once it had moved into private quarters, Alex was no longer certain if he was straight, bi, or only had feelings for one man. And he would never speak on it. Even now, he hadn't told anyone about his history with Miles - though he had a feeling those closest to him had always known. After all, how could they not?

"One heck of a show, that". After the last of the remaining stragglers at stage door had dispersed, Alex had waited until Mike was within ear shot to catch him before he made his way home for the night. "You fancy a beer?" @mikeefaist

[seehowyourgardengrows]

Carson and I just saw Dawes play at The Majestic in Madison last week and I completely had forgotten about a little music roundup I had started working on. we had made a huge push to get out to live music as much as we could last year. we did great at this goal so let me share!

january 2024:

i took a little get away to spend time with my pal Ruth in Minneapolis and to swing to First Ave (one of my all time fav venues) to see Lucius. forever in love with this band. another music moment for me is anytime I'm in the Minneapolis airport and I see the Prince store I cry.

March 2024:

Carson and I road tripped down to Tennesee to meet up with Anda and Mike to see Lucius and Dawes as a super group at the Caverns. That was wild and so much fun. They covered "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" and the four of them singing together with just an acoustic was just as powerful.

John Mcauley (of Deer Tick) at Cactus Club is in my top shows ever. I usually say Deer Tick is my favorite band, I find having a favorite anything too stressful, but they have been such a standard for me since my 20's and I haven't found anything as trusted. John solo with just an electric guitar still packed a punch and sounded so full.

april 2024:

one friday afternoon I was killing time thrifting before picking up Carson from work. i was waiting to get in the dressing room and these two women with British accents were walking around, arms full of clothes. one of them looked so familiar. then I remembered, Instagram always tries to get me to this woman's account, as they think I like her haircut (I do). turns out she is in a band, The Last Dinner Party and I had heard their single and thought it was fun.

I say hi and welcome them to the states, we start talking and the next thing I know is they put Carson and I on the guest list and our chill night at home has now been upgraded to having to wear pants. good thing Carson is a trooper.

damn was it a blast, they are so fun and put on a great show. worth it! it helped they played at Turner Hall, which is Carson's fav spot to see shows.

Bendigo Fletcher at High Noon was next and so important to me. I found their song "No Smoke" the year before and played it over and over. i became so inspired with their song writing and lyrics as I learned more. getting to see them in one of our fav spots was also special.

may 2024:

you know we're gonna find our way to see Shakey Graves, another favorite musician of both me and Carson. you could give him a stone and a string and he'd make it cool and alive. missed seeing him live, it had been too long!

june 2024:

i have to laugh because seeing the Gin Blossoms at Summerfest is a highlight of my year and Carson probably forgets we did it.

july 2024:

this month was special for many reasons, but mostly because we played a lot of our own music with lots of people we loved and with our friends Owen and Abby getting married, we got to hear that friend group play again after so many years. Homegrown Fest with the Cobras was a blast, a Milwaukee musician, Ben Mulwana and his band played before us and I became an instant fan.

august 2024:

Carson found his new favorite band, the Linda Linda's, opening for his all time favorite band, Green Day. My Smashing Pumpkins played in between so we were very happy this night. I'd never been to a show like this before or with so many people, maybe Lollapalooza? regardless, it was overwhelming at times but super fun.

september 2024:

deer tick came back to Milwaukee and brought with them our new favorite, SugaDaisy. i wish i could have seen my own face as they performed, it was an incredible set. i wasn't sure where to look and what i was hearing, it was like Ween, the Kinks, Spoon, the Dead... just Youtube them and you'll see what I mean. it's a good idea to see openers.

october 2024:

John Craigie! oh we were so excited. Tre Brut opened and we've loved his stuff for a while too. so fun. we made shirts that said John Gravy and folks got a good kick out of that.

november 2024:

houndmouth! wow they were fun. "mckenzie" is one of my favorite songs, I've played the hell out of that. we got to see SugaDaisy open for Bendigo and they both were incredible for round two. how lucky are we?

okay that's it!

some other thoughts though:

the dead tongues were coming through Milwaukee and Madison, but unfortunately their home town of Asheville went through the horrors of the hurricanes, leaving them no choice but to cancel. I can't wait to get the chance to see him, his last double album was a work of art.

MJ Lenderman had my favorite lyric of 2024: "you once was a baby, and now a jerk."

him and Waxahatchee had my fav jam "Right Back to It".

my favorite song of my own that I finished last year was "Punk Ass Kids".

thanks for tuning in, 2025 is already on pace with 24.

[cataclysmiceuphemism]

#30 Showverse Mike/Peter, please 😁✌️🌻

Send me a Ship and a Number and I will Write a Kiss number…as comfort.

Peter wasn't, exactly, what Mike would call broken-hearted over the fact that Valerie had gone back to Ronnie at the end of the day. He was maybe what Mike would call 'resigned', but even that seemed too dour of a word. 'Understanding', was the closest. And that much was to be expected; Peter was rarely not understanding of things, even though he often didn't understand them. But it was a surprise that that's all he seemed to be: He didn't seem upset at all, despite the fact Mike knew that Peter had really been into her. Really had something going for her. And despite the fact that Peter was deeply emotional, and very easy to upset, all things considered.

Mike had let that go on without a comment for a while. Micky and Davy had both shrugged their shoulders after their initial 'I'm sorry Peter's about the whole thing. In their estimation, if it wasn't upsetting him, well, then that was a good thing.

But after a few days of everything being perfectly normal, Mike couldn't quite shake it. Peter seemed a little too quiet about the whole thing, even if nothing else had changed.

"Peter," he said, when they were alone in their room. Peter stopped playing his guitar and sat up in bed, immediately curious.

"Yes, Michael?"

"I'd like to talk to you," Mike said. He walked sideways to shimmy between the bed Peter was on and the one next to it. When he sat down in front of Peter, their knees were touching. It was a funny thing, how that always brought relief to Mike. He liked being within arms' reach of the guys any time that he could manage it. Everything always felt more right in the world when he could see them, hear them, touch them.

"Of course," Peter said, eyebrows pinching. He looked concerned. "What is it?"

"I don't know if you think you're not allowed," Mike said, because he felt very much like he was giving permission, "But it's all right, if you're upset Valerie didn't want to keep going with you."

Maybe Peter did need permission, the same way he needed to learn those gentlemanly things Mike and the other guys took for granted knowing, like hanging up a lady's coat.

"I'm not upset," Peter said. He tipped his head, shook it a little, then let out a tiny chuckle. "Really, I'm not."

"I know you really liked her," Mike pressed.

"I did," Peter agreed, "I do. But I wanted her to be happy with me. If she's happy with Ronnie instead—she's still happy. That's the important part of it. I still got most of what I wanted."

"That's very nice of you," Mike agreed, "But the part you didn't get. That's still a big part. It's okay to think that's a drag."

"I guess I do. It's just…." Peter trailed off, considering it. "I'm not surprised. She and Ronnie were living together. Are living together." Mike tipped his head in acknowledgment to that. They weren't married, but there were plenty of people who would take sharing a home just as seriously as marriage. "And Ronnie's rich. And knows how to play tennis and shoot skeet and use a bow and arrow. And he knows art. And he knows all those things about taking a lady out that you guys were teaching me. He doesn't need anybody showing him what to do. I had three of my friends helping me and he still knows better than I do."

"And he's got the personality of a dead fish," Mike finished for him. "You've got him beat. You're sweet, and kind. You got heart. That guy ain't better than you Peter, he ain't better'n any of us."

Peter smiled at him softly. "Thank you, Michael."

"Well, you're welcome," Mike said, "Anybody'd be lucky to go out with you."

Peter shook his head a little. "You really don't have to say that. "

"I mean it, you know," Mike carried on, firm, "I really do mean it. I'd consider myself lucky, so anyone in their right mind would, too."

Peter hesitated. "You would?"

And Mike hesitated, too, shared in the silence that had made Peter wonder what it was he was getting at. "I would," he agreed, and leaned forward. Peter met him halfway, joined him in that comforting empty space between the two beds to share a kiss. Peter was maybe the only person Mike had ever thought of melting, the way they talked about in books, or movies. The way he smiled against Mike's mouth with pure enthrallment before he parted his lips to deepen the kiss, the way his shoulders dropped a bit, fully relaxing into him. Peter really did melt, really formed to him, welcomed him, filled the space that Mike had left open for him.

"If we go out," Peter started, once they parted from one another, "Whose coat do we have to throw over the puddle?"

"We'll go around," Mike said, and kissed Peter again.

[briamichellewrites]

11

2004. Inglewood, CA. Chester was given strict orders not to perform after being diagnosed with bronchitis and acute laryngitis. Instead of cancelling the show, Bria volunteered to take his place. They had cancellation insurance, but they only wanted to use it as an absolute last resort. It was costly to refund tickets, and they did not want to disappoint their fans. Bria had a good understanding of their show because she had seen it night after night for a while.

They practiced their songs at the venue for several hours before their fans arrived. Their social media manager issued a statement on their website regarding the change. The concert was significant because it was the first time her parents and George would attend. They were extremely excited to see her perform. They met with her backstage before the show began.

After receiving confirmation that they were allowed to be there, a security guard let them in. He then led them to the dressing room. The caterer brought in food and beverages for them to eat before they took the stage. It was a mix of vegan and non-vegan snacks. They also brought bottled water. After Thanksgiving, she and Chester practiced her scream. He taught her how to use her diaphragm instead of her lungs. It would take some practice before she could sound like him.

They exchanged pleasantries with her and Mike. Michelle enquired about her text message. Was she unable to perform, or was there another explanation?

"My band and I were going to be the opening act. Chester has bronchitis and laryngitis, so I am taking over for him. I was hurrying when I sent you the message. That explains why it was brief. I was not sure if I would have time to explain everything until you guys arrived. I did not want you to think the show had been cancelled."

They understood the situation better after she explained it to them. Where was everybody? They were getting ready. She enthusiastically stated that she had learnt how to scream. Michelle mentioned that she learnt how to do that as a baby. Mike laughed. What type of scream was it? It was more like a fry scream. It made it easier to hold the note for longer. She was not going to demonstrate it because she did not want the police to come. Chester showed her how to do it after the Thanksgiving holiday.

They would have to wait until the performance. After they finished getting ready, the other guys approached and introduced themselves. Rob reminded her that she should not forget her water bottle. Oh, yeah. She thanked him when he handed her one. He pulled out his drumsticks from his pocket and began drumming on the table. George enquired about their respective roles.

Chester sang, Mike rapped, Dave and Brad played guitar, Rob drummed, and Joe was the DJ. He and Mike also created the artwork and produced their albums. Brad and Mike kept everyone from killing one another. They laughed. No, they had their disagreements and irritated each other. They got along great the other times. They would not be a band if they fought or had other disagreements.

Henry had something special for her.He took out his Army jacket from his bag and handed it to her. She put it on. It was a bit big. She felt honoured to be wearing it. It still displayed his name and badges. He had another one with the word VETERAN written on the back. She would take excellent care of it. He hugged her. They snapped pictures of her wearing it.

Michelle commented on how well it complemented her outfit. She looked down and realised it did! They laughed at her joy and excitement.

"Are you going to climb on the speakers and jump off?" Dave asked her.

"Dude! I should! I will also try to do some headbanging. "I will go full Chester... while keeping my clothes on."

They laughed.

"Does Chester have a problem keeping his clothes on?" George asked.

"He enjoys taking his shirt off when we are on stage. He is wearing it one minute and then not. The next thing I know, he is taken it off and thrown it somewhere," Dave said.

They begged her to leave her shirt on. She promised she would. They laughed.

During the concert, they remained in the back, away from the audience.They were given earplugs because it was going to be loud. It was quite a show! Bria took control of the stage. She used her energy to move around the stage. For the first time during the concert, she showed off her screaming abilities. Mike laughed as the audience cheered.

Mike addressed the audience following the first couple of songs. He thanked everyone for coming and assured them that Chester was doing well and that he hoped to return to the stage shortly. They asked a friend, Bria, to cover for him for the night. He asked fans to show her some love. They did. George noticed how comfortable she was in front of a crowd. She was meant to be there. It was not his style of music because it was too loud.

She did climb up onto the speakers and jump off. Fuck yes! Mike laughed. Despite the fact that she was sweating, she wore the jacket the entire time.

Following the show, they returned to their dressing room.She removed the jacket and placed it over the chair. Her parents and George walked in. Dave enquired about their opinions. The music was too loud, but they still enjoyed watching them. Yeah, their music was not for everybody.

"Is that what you meant by screaming?" Henry enquired.

“Yeah. It was my first time doing it," she responded.

"To save your voice, stay hydrated and get enough rest."

"I will. Oh, my God. That was so fucking cool! I was not even considering what I was doing."

"That is called being impulsive, Bria," Michelle explained.

"My ADHD has ADHD," she quipped.

They laughed.Where were they heading next? They were scheduled to perform in West Valley City, Utah, on the tenth. It was part of their worldwide tour. Michelle assigned them the responsibility of caring for her. They would do that. Rob joked about how many times she had mentioned her ADHD. Dave assumed it was at least one hundred, if not more. George enquired whether they were keeping track. Yes, they were.

“Es ist ein Insider-Witz. Ich werde es euch erklären, wenn wir mehr Zeit haben.”

"And when she is tired, she starts speaking German," Rob joked.

They laughed. George was amazed at how well they knew her. They knew who she was after spending some time on the road with her. They discovered she could not talk until she ate her breakfast, she could fall asleep almost anywhere, and she liked to threaten to kill them. Of course, this is all a joke. Henry said he hoped so. They laughed again.

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