No. 1 Party Anthem// Alex Turner

16 Jimmy Page's Pants

Arabella's pov
The show ended, as we heard Alex saying goodbye to the audience , that cheered louder. I was drinking a cold beer with Jess, Chase and Evie in the backstage.
«Did Mark tell you anything?» Evie asked me.
«No, but I think he knows that he can't fire me, but I can fire him,» I answered. «he'll say how stupid I am and that's it.»
A tall man, very well-built, wearing the staff's black t-shirt, walked in the room, along with a group of ten people, that exited looked around like they were at the end of the rainbow. Evie frowned as she saw them. «Who are those?» she asked to the group.
«Fans I guess,» Chase said. «I think there was some contest and the winners would have won a pass for the backstage.»
Evie nodded staring at the noisy strangers that were chatting with each other and laughing loudly.
The bald man from the staff came back and told something to the group of people, that suddenly walked towards us.
A girl with golden-blonde hair approached me, with a big smile on her lips. «Hi Arabella,» she said. «I'm exited to meet you, you're so talented, I love your music, you're beautiful-» she said at lightening speed.
«Thank you.» I said smiling.
«Sorry, when I'm exited I tend to speak a lot.» she said chuckling.
«Oh don't be sorry,» I said. «It's alright.»
She then asked me to sign her shirt, take a picture and record a video to her friend. After her, the other people of the group started asking for pictures and autographs.
When the Arctic Monkeys showed up, after cleaning themselves from the sweat of the show, the people that already asked for pictures and autographs went straight to them.
Once we were free from fans, since they stormed to the Arctic Monkeys, I left for a smoke. I pushed the heavy door, that closed behind me with a thud. I took the packet of cigarettes from my back pocket and sticked a cigarette between my lips. Whilst looking for my lighter I noticed I wasn't alone. Alex's silhouette was colored by the the pale moonlight, he was crushing the cigarette he smoked under his boot. I sighed and took my cigarette between my fingers, ready to put it back in the packet and go back inside. «You can stay, I'm leaving anyway.» he said like bothered by my behavior.
I looked at him passing in front of me and go back inside and deep down I almost felt bad.

Alex's pov
After the show in Adelaide, we flew to Sydney, the day before the gig. The weather was pretty humid and during the day, the sun shone in the clear sky.
«Last two shows, mate.» Matt said, wriggling his arm on my shoulders.
«What?» I asked, I heard what he said, but I realised what he said only after speaking.
He smiled amused. «I said that these are gonna be our last two shows in Australia.»
«Fucking finally.» I said.
He softly chuckled. «I knew you would say that.»
The hotel was as breathtaking as always, almost not longer breathtaking, I was tired of being tossed around the world, I just wanted to go back home and stay with myself.

Arabella's pov
«I got you a surprise.» Evie said exited, with a smile that covered her face. She made her way in my room, leaving me at the door, that I closed, following her. She was holding a rectangular white box, tied with a red ribbon. «I know you're gonna love this.» she said, carefully laying the box on the couch.
«Why a gift?» I asked.
She shrugged. «'Cause I love you» she said. «and you really wanted this.»
I tilted my head to my right in confusion. «Should I be scared?» I asked.
She smiled. «Open it.»
I sat on the couch and untied the bow on the box. I lifted the cover made of paper, to reveal a pair of black pants, carefully folded and ironed. I picked them and stood up to see them better. «No way,» I said looking at the fabric in my hands. «no you didn't,» I said shocked. «these are the pants Jimmy Page wore in "The Song Remains the Same"?» She nodded with a smile. «How did you- When-» I tried to ask, but I was too happy to even formulate a sentence.
«I asked a tailor to make them,» she said. «it was one of the first things you talked me about when we first met.» she said.
Just by those words she made me remember the whole conversation: we were sitting on her bed, the lower one. «I like your shirt.» she said.
I was wearing the commemorative shirt of the premiere for the movie "The Song Remains the Same". «Thank you,» I said. «did you see the film?» I asked.
She shook her head no. And that was when I then forced her to see it and every time Jimmy Page appeared on the screen, I told her how much I loved his pants.

«I love you so much.» I said hugging her.
«Try them.» she encouraged me.
Quickly I took off the jeans I was wearing and put on my new pants. They fitted perfectly: it gently wrapped around my waist like a band; fell on my tights without crush them, flaring in the end. «I'll never take them off.» I said looking at the patches on my legs.
«Your ass look amazing with those pants.» she said when I turned around.
«How did you get them to fit so good?» I asked.
«Remember when I asked your measurements?» she asked me.
I frowned. «But that was in... July.»
«Exactly.»

After lunch, we had an interview, so we all showed up. With big headphones on our heads, on the other side of the table, from the interviewer. We were respectively sat as: Chase, me, Evie and then Jess.
The interview was a man in his thirties, with a short beard around his mouth; his eyes, as well as his hair and beard were brown and his name was Jason. «Welcome Major Mess, thank you so much for being here today.» he said. His voice was energetic and youthful.
«Thank you for having us.» Jess said. We all had a big microphone in front of us and he approached to it.
«Finally you've come to Australia,» he said. «Jess you're from Australia, right?»
Jess smiled and nodded. «Yep.»
«Where most specifically?»
«West,» Jess said. «Perth.»
«Oh and you played in Perth, right?» Jason asked.
«Like a week ago.» Evie said.
«Wonderful,» Jason nodded. «now that you became bigger, you can consider this no longer as a hobby, but as your job, was this your dream all along, or did you want to do something else?»
Jess spoke first. «Nah yeah, I always wanted to be in band, since I was like... seven, when I started playing the guitar.»
«I kinda wanted too,» Evie said. «my dad forced me to play the violin, but then I saw in Gilmore Girls Lane playing the drums and I thought it was very cool, so I started playing it too.»
«I bet your father wasn't happy, wasn't he?» Jason asked smiling, presuming already the answer.
«Not even a bit.» Evie smiled back.
Jason then looked at me, to hear my answer.
«I started playing the classical guitar when I was nine, I was in choir,» I started explaining. «but I actually wanted to play the electric guitar. After five years of classical guitar, I sold it and bought a second hand acoustic guitar, then I started working as a dogsitter and I used the money to buy an electric guitar, that's when I started to think that I wanted to play with someone else, and The Strokes helped a lot too, I don't know what happened, but after I listened to Room On Fire I really wanted to have a band, you know?»
Jason nodded and looked at Chase.
«I actually wanted to do something with technology, I always had an interest for it.» Chase said. «My dad played the piano and acoustic guitar, so he taught me how to play them and I then started playing the bass, 'cause I thought it was cool, but I never really dreamt to be in a band.»
«And what was the biggest change you've faced, from your old life?»
«After college we used to live in a small apartment, that had like... three rooms in total, we all slept in the same room, with bunk beds. Now we have a big apartment still in Seattle and we're planning to move to Los Angeles.» Chase said.
«All together?» Jason asked.
«Maybe.» Evie nodded.
The interview was one of the best we have ever had: the questions weren't excessive or boring, the interviewer wasn't noisy or a slacker, he was funny and made us feel comfortable. We enjoyed every second of that interview and we thanked Jason.