FRIENDS

3

The SUV pulled up at the back entrance where the bands would enter and we managed to sneak into the venue without being noticed by any lingering fans who didn't have tickets to the gig.

We made our way over to a security guard with a clipboard who recognized the boys immediately. The man leaned towards Ashton, whispering in his ear. When they finished talking, Ashton relayed the information back to us.

"He said that there was a change of plans and we'll be standing on the floor, but there's a designated area for us and other people on the guest list, sort of. He also said the opening act is about to start, so we should make our way over." The boys mumbled something back, but we all followed Ashton over to where the security guard had explained for us to go. We were on the mezzanine with a bunch of other people, some of which I recognized, some of which I didn't. Michael leaned closer to me to whisper in my ear.

"Stay calm, Ivy. If you start getting excited, you'll draw attention towards us and we'll end up taking pictures all night." I nodded my head curtly, groaning internally. Sometimes, I felt as if he treated me and scolded me as if he would a child. He talked to me like my father did when I was six and we'd go to a shopping center; it drove me absolutely mad.

The boys chatted with the people around us that they knew and I stood silently beside Michael, watching the the band. Honestly, I was mad and a little bit offended. Michael automatically assumed I'd lose my shit because there were some 'famous' people around me. After about fifteen minutes, I decided I wanted a drink. I made my way over to Calum, who was totally entranced by the music.

"On a scale of one to ten, how hard will it be for me to get a beer?" I asked him. He laughed quietly.

"I don't mean to toot my own horn, but I think I'll be able to convince someone to let me buy a couple of beers." He wiggled his eyebrows at me. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

I took over Calum's spot and watched the band perform. They were good, but I'd never heard of them before. They were an upbeat pop punk band and I'd have to look them up later. It was easy to let myself get distracted by the music and before I knew it, Calum returned with a red plastic cup full of beer for each of us. He smiled happily when he handed me my cup.

"I just had to sign like, twelve autographs to get these." He told me before he took a sip of his beer. "I'm pretty sure she's going to sell all of them on Ebay, but oh well. Listen, we can drink a little bit now, but the guys will have tons to drink backstage after their set. We'll just drink there, yeah?" I nodded my head and took a big sip. When Calum ended up deep in conversation with a friend, I made my way back over to Michael.

When he saw me, he smiled happily and pulled me in for a hug. I could tell instantly that he'd been drinking and I was confused as to how he'd managed to drink enough to be tipsy in the time I'd been with Calum, but knowing Michael, he'd just done a couple of shots.

"There you are!" He cheered, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. "I was afraid that you wouldn't make your way back before All Time Low started, and I didn't want to miss the opportunity to see them with you again."

 

A few months before the boys started the band officially, All Time Low had a tour around Australia and New Zealand. The boys and I had been so excited; we all loved the band and had always talked about them coming to Sydney, but it hadn't happened yet. But now, here was our opportunity. We were all going to see our favourite band and it would be fucking awesome. For Michael, it would've been his first concert. I'd gone to a few different pop concerts before, but I'd never gone to see one of my favourite bands.
The day of the gig, Luke, Calum, and Ashton all met at my place. Michael had had a date that day, but he swore up and down that he'd make it to the show; he said he wouldn't miss it for the world.