ɴᴏʙᴏᴅʏ's ʟɪsᴛᴇɴɪɴɢ (ᴀ ᴍɪᴋᴇ sʜɪɴᴏᴅᴀ ғᴀɴғɪᴄᴛɪᴏɴ)

Chapter 9

Mike hated having to wake Jade up the morning after they'd returned from a tour. It was a hazard to him, really. She liked to sleep. But the reality was, they had to get started on her sophomore album. Jade had been touring with Fort Minor and Chiodos for the last year. It seems like an odd combination for touring mates, yes, but Jade was the bridge between Chiodos and Fort Minor. That, and they'd needed a third wheel, and after the incident with Linkin Park's Brad Delson and Mike Shinoda, no one but Chiodos had truly agreed to tour with them. It had been painful for Mike to watch Brad be laid to rest 6 feet under ground, even if he HAD nearly killed he and Jade. He'd loved his high school friend...but the reality of it was...he loved Jade more.

He rubbed the small of Jade's back, waking her slightly from her slumber.

"Hey," he whispered in her ear. She groaned and he backed away. The swinging would start is he didn't let her be. So, he just waited. Soon after, she rolled her in the giant fluff of pillows and blankets. He watched her. She smiled tiredly and messy-haired at him. He sighed. God, she was beautiful. He fell to his stomach beside her, hugged a pillow under his head.

"I hate to tell you," he muttered into the feather pillow. She cut him off, quietly.

"h-I know," she sighed. He smiled at her. She groaned, stretched, and stood up from the bed. He chuckled, watching her search around the brim of the bed for her pants. They'd had one Hell of a night the night before. After having a "few" drinks with Ryu and Tak at the local bar, they'd come back to Mike's house, and had, for lack of a better word, fucked. Mike laughed, remembering as he watched Jade slip on her bottoms. She went into the bathroom for a shower. Mike sighed. He sat up on the bed. The room was a mess. He hadn't really picked up since the last time that they'd been there. He looked over, hearing Jade open the bathroom door. He watched her dig through a pile of her clothes that he'd washed. She looked up at him, wrapped in a towel.

"You okay?" she asked, "You look sort of pale." He smiled and stood up.

"I'm perfect," he said, wrapping his arms around her and burying his face into her dripping hair. She smiled and nuzzled his hairy cheek with her lips before going back into the bathroom. He walked around the room, throwing the blankets half-heartedly back onto the bed.

"I have a show with Fort Minor tonight," he called to her. She opened the door and peeked her head out with a toothbrush hanging out of her mouth.

"I know," she mumbled, buttoning her pants. She grabbed the toothbrush and rubbed her teeth clean with it, still looking at him. He nodded.

"Well, I just wanted you to know," he smiled. She pulled herself back into the bathroom. He heard the water in the sink running and then she appeared back at the door again, grinning.

"Well, it's not like I'm going to be out on the town," she chuckled, "I'm going to be backstage." He laughed.

"You know, you should try to watch from the crowd sometime," he muttered. She looked at him, wide-eyed.

"HA!" she laughed sarcastically, "I'm the size of a 13-year-old, dear. They'd trample me." Mike laughed.

"That's what body guards are for," he smiled at her, looking into a mirror atop his dresser, messing with his hair. She snorted, detangling her own hair with a comb.

"Concerts aren't any fun if I have to be guarded the whole time," she told him. He sighed, leaving his hair its normal dark brown mess, and looked at her.

"Well, then I guess I'll just have to take you to a concert myself, then, won't I?" he beamed. She laughed before stepping back into the bathroom. He heard the buss of her hair dryer and smiled. He could get used to waking up like that.