I would start a riot

Outside Influences ~ May 2015

It was hard not to think they had stepped into some sort of wormhole overnight. Ant had stepped out of his front door that morning to be greeted by a collection of photographers and journalists hovering across the road. He'd joined Dec and Stephen in the car, fighting his heart to stop it from sinking when they both looked exhausted before the day had even started.

By the afternoon, as he followed Dec towards the green room, it was clear that the older man didn't want to deal with all the usual formalities that day. He didn't want to make small talk with the judges or even the contestants; his need to keep Stephen shielded from everything was palpable and the fact that he couldn't do that seemed to play heavily on his mind. He'd been quiet, even more stressed out before a show than normal.

As they rounded the corner, the green room door opened and Stephen stepped out, leaning against the wall just outside and rocking his head back against it. He didn't see them, letting out a sigh and screwing up his face with pent up frustration.

Dec kept walking, only faltering for a second but long enough for Ant to see it. There was somehow more tension across his shoulders now, a pain that was difficult to watch, rolling off of him in waves.

"Hey," he murmured, resting a hand on Stephen's arm as Ant hung back a little. When Stephen opened his eyes, he unbelievably tried to pull off a convincingly cheerful expression which Dec met with a determined stare. "What's happened?"

"Nothing," the younger man replied tiredly, shaking his head. "It's stupid."

"Stevie," Dec said firmly, "What's happened?"

"I talked to them," he said reluctantly, closing his eyes when Dec's eyes immediately flashed with anger. Ant frowned, not following the conversation. "They're being a bit – difficult about it."

"Difficult how?" Dec asked suspiciously, running a hand through his own hair. "If they're refusing to keep quiet tonight..."

"David thinks I should say something," Stephen interjected, quiet but enough to cut Dec off. "He says it's letting people like that win if I don't."

"Bullshit," Dec glowered, the force of his voice making Stephen wince. "He doesn't get to tell you how to act after something like this. None of them have any idea..."

Ant got the gist of it fairly quickly. He knew the judges sometimes steered Stephen's segment with them off-course, that he always had to be on his toes, keeping the conversation moving in the right direction. With everything else going on, it hadn't crossed Ant's mind that any of them might think to bring up what had happened the previous night to condemn it like they'd been unable to before.

"Dec." Stephen grabbed Dec's arm before he even made a move, pre-empting Dec's intentions. He half-heartedly steered them away from the room, only making it a couple of metres before Dec shook him off. "Don't."

"What did you say to him?" Dec asked challengingly. "Enough to stop him from derailing the show?"

Stephen shrugged, loosening his grip on Dec's arm and leaning back against the wall with a sigh. "I asked all of them not to bring it up – said I'd find it easier if we just moved on like nothing had happened."

"And are they going to pay attention to that?"

"I don't know," Stephen mumbled. "I'll just deal with it."

Dec threw his hands in the air, grumbling under his breath frustratedly. "What the hell, Stevie?! If you don't want them to bring it up - don't you think you've put up with enough this week to get that from them?"

"Dec," Stephen tried again, gaze following the older man's back as he headed towards the green room. "Declan!"

Dec disappeared through the door without another word, leaving him to rock his head back against the wall for the third time, looking endlessly fed up. Ant stopped hanging back, walking over to lean against the wall alongside him, not sure what to say.