Working in Concert

Chapter 3

                Kota opens the door to the Ghost Bird dressing room and tugs on my hand to pull me inside. I hardly enter before freezing as I stare and try to take it all in. The room is big, with three brown leather couches sitting in a U-shape in the middle and still plenty of room to walk around the edges. One wall is lined with racks of clothes in all colors and sizes. Another has a long countertop with a wall length mirror above it and bright lights at the top. There's a table set up behind one of the couches that's covered in a variety of snacks, some healthy and some definitely not.

In the corner, there are two guys that I don't recognize sitting on beanbags and staring at a large television screen as they manically press buttons on the video game controllers they're holding. One has curly blonde hair and bright intelligent looking green eyes. He's similarly built to Kota and wearing a purple polo shirt with khaki pants. The other guy is slim and has wavy brown locks that fall to his ears and eyes that are almost amber in color. He's got a sharply pressed pair of black pants on and an equally pristine white button down shirt, although he doesn't seem too concerned about keeping them that way as he lounges on the beanbag chair. He's smaller than the curly haired one, however it's hard to tell how tall they are while they're sitting down.

The other three people in the room are all familiar to me, although I certainly haven't met them before. North Taylor is standing in front of the snack table and seems to be shaking his head as he looks at a couple bowls that seem to be filled with candy and other types of junk food. He grunts in disapproval with his hands on his hips. The black t-shirt he has on strains over his back muscles, his black jeans fit his lower half in a way that leaves me staring for a minute.

Luke Taylor is sitting on one of the couches, although he's bouncing up and down with energy. His long blonde hair brushes against his bare, shirtless shoulders, and I know my mouth drops open as my eyes glide over the defined lines of his chest and ab muscles. A pair of light blue jeans hang low on his hips. The glazed look on his face has me thinking that he's caught in a day dream.

The thing that shocks me the most, aside from the fact that this room is full of the most attractive men I've ever seen, including the two I don't know, is the absolute panic that Gabriel Coleman seems to be in. He's pacing back and forth in front of the makeup counter, his hand tousling his multicolored hair. The shirt he's wearing is an orange and yellow tie dye that billows behind him, his frantic motions and the bright color of his shirt making it seem as if he's on fire. His mouth, as usual, is spewing curses.

"Fuck, shit, fucking shit. I can't fucking believe it. Fuck."

"Calm the fuck down, Gabe. It's not that big of a deal," North says as he dumps a bowl of M&M's into a garbage can. This seems to break Luke out of his stupor and he looks like he's about to cry as he watches the waterfall of candy as it disappears.

"Shut the fuck up, North. It IS a big fucking deal," Gabriel continues. "I can't believe I fucking forgot it at the house. She's supposed to be here TODAY and I wanted to give it to her. First impressions fucking matter, not that you care about making a shitty fucking impression."

North's face whips towards Gabriel. "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, just look at you! You're a fucking mess!"

I follow Gabriel's line of sight and also stare at North, although I can honestly say I can't see a thing wrong with him. In fact, he looks exceptionally good to me.

"Your fingernails are still full of that grease shit from working on the cars last night, and did you even bother to brush your hair today?" Gabriel stops pacing, hands on his slim hips as he stares down North. "Is that really how you want to look to meet the hottest fucking girl on the planet?"