migraines :: ashton irwin

prologue

*Ashton*

Today's the first day we haven't had a show in a while. I love having a break, but I just get so bored sometimes. I decide to walk in Luke's room and check out what he’s doing. The other guys are already in there when I walk in and there's some kind of news show on the tv which they're all watching.

"Coming up we have one of today's most talented artists. She's eighteen years old and just recently formed the band, Pennyworth," The tv blares.

"That's a strange name for a band," I giggle as I throw my body on the bed beside Luke.

"Some of the best bands have weird names," Michael laughs. After watching about ten minutes of pointless commercials, the show returns. I can't think of anything else to do, so I just decide to watch it..

"We're back with the drummer of the new band, Pennyworth-" I lean forward a little, suddenly interested.

I didn't think this girl was gonna be a drummer. I actually sort of figured her band was just a singing group of sorts. Can you blame me? There aren't that many girl bands today.

"Look at that," Calum laughs, giving me a look. I roll my eyes, but continue to watch the screen.

"First, you gotta tell us, Elizabeth. How are things going?” The perky interviewer asks.

Elizabeth smiles the entire time, but I catch her twiddling her fingers in an anxious way. She's nervous and I don't blame her. It's hard being interviewed with the entire band, I couldn't imagine doing it by myself.

"Well, it's been awesome. The band and I are just doing a lot of promoting for our first album coming out. It does get a little crazy sometimes, but a good crazy," She laughs nervously.

"What kind of music do they sing?" I blurt. Calum shrugs, but Michael answers me.

"I’m pretty sure they’re sort of alternative rock," He mumbles.

"Teenage girl forms her own girl band, right out of high school, and writes all of the music? That's a lot to be proud of," The interviewer praises her, but Elizabeth just shakes her head.

"Damn, that's pretty sick," Luke breathes.

"There's really nothing special about me. I love music and...I'm just doing what I love. It's hard to make something of yourself today and it's even harder to be accepted by what you make of yourself," Elizabeth says quietly.

She immediately looks embarrassed and I wonder why. She sounded so well spoken, that's nothing to be embarrassed about.

I take a minute to observe her clothes and smile. She's sitting down, but I can tell she's pretty tall. She's wearing dark red skinny jeans with some black chucks. Her brunette hair's down but hidden underneath a black beanie. She's wearing a large black long-sleeved shirt that looks very plain. She has sort of a lanky figure, but it fits her personality.

I also noticed that she's wearing no makeup. She has dark eyes and eyelashes so she doesn't really need it. I can't help thinking how brave you'd have to be to do that. I don’t know many girls that would be able to do that. She just looks comfortable and something about that is refreshing.

"So, how'd you get the band name? Pennyworth is...unique," The interviewer raises her eyebrows. Elizabeth laughs loudly this time and brings a hand up to scratch her cheek.

She can't stop smiling and I notice that she only has one dimple, on her left cheek. She's trying to compose herself to answer the lady's question, but her giggling is making it difficult.

"She's cute," Luke laughs, moving to the foot of the bed and laying on his stomach to watch. I see Calum nod his head from the ground as he focusses on the tv.

"I'm so sorry. It's just the answer's super lame and geeky. Um, well you see, I really like Batman-" Elizabeth sighs. Michael suddenly sits up from his laying position on the bed.

"Holy shit, guys! I think I'm in love with this band. They're named after Alfred fucking Pennyworth!" He screams excitedly.

"Have you guys heard their music?" I ask curiously, but everyone shakes their head. I'm really interested in what their sound is like.

"No, but I'm going to," Luke kicks his legs in the air quickly.

"And yeah, we just think Alfred is a pretty awesome guy," Elizabeth shrugs.

"Who doesn't love Alfred?" The interviewer laughs.

"That's what I'm saying!" Elizabeth says excitedly, scooting forward in her seat. I smile at her interest in the old butler.

"Let's talk about your style of music," The interviewer starts and Elizabeth nods her head. "Who's your inspiration?"

"I think some of the biggest inspiration came from nineties rock bands. Our band really loves that kind of music. The whole scene would’ve just been epic to have experienced," Elizabeth says and I see her hand flick a little.

I notice the small movement, because I've done it countless times. I’ve found myself wanting to drum at the strangest times. Sometimes, there's just this craving to drum and you can't stop it.

"You mean your inspiration? You do write the music after all," The lady laughs.

"I write the music, but we're all inspired. We just get inspired in different ways. I'm nothing without the other girls," Elizabeth says seriously, a small bit of annoyance slipping into her voice.

"I like that shit," Michael says with a mouthful of pizza.

"Who are your top three bands?" The interviewer pushes. Elizabeth looks like she's in thought for a moment before listing the bands.

"Nirvana, Green Day, and Red Hot Chili Peppers,"

Calum sits up and turns around to look at us, "Oh my god."

"Why the hell haven't we listened to this band?" Michael screams, pulling his hair and groaning.

"I gotta listen to them, holy shit," Luke rolls off the bed and grabs his laptop from the table. I hear him typing furiously, but I can't seem to stop watching the tv. Calum eventually moves next to Luke and starts squealing like a little girl.

Elizabeth seems to have become a little more comfortable now and she's constantly laughing. She literally laughs at the simplest things. There's something about her that makes me want to meet her. She just seems so funny and friendly.

"Jesus Christ, do you hear that bass?" Calum gapes as he stands to watch Luke's laptop. Luke nods and stares wide eyed at, what I assume is, a video of the band.

I start to stand up, but the tv stops me, "Is there any band you'd be interested in working with?"

"I want to see!" Michael laughs as he moves in between Luke and Calum to watch the video.

"Well, yeah, the girls are always talking about that one band from Australlia. What's the name?" Elizabeth's eyebrows furrow and she stares at the ground.

"Guys, I say quietly, not really believing what I'm hearing.

"Shut up, Ashton. We're busy," Calum snaps.

"You know, the one with four guys," Elizabeth shakes her head, not being able to think of the name. Our name, hopefully.

"No! Look!" I run to them and turn them all towards the tv. They huff, but are immediately quiet.

"Five Seconds of Summer!" The interviewer exclaims and Elizabeth snaps as she points at her.

"Yes! That's it! I swear I knew their name, I'm just kind of slow sometimes," Elizabeth jokes nervously.

"Is this happening right now?" Calum breathes.

"But yeah, the girls and I listen to them a lot. They're very talented," Elizabeth says quietly, starting to turn red.

"They like us!" Luke squeals, jumping up and down. I unashamedly start smiling too, but try my best to quiet the others.

"You guys are like them in a way. Two guitarists, a bassist, and a drummer!" The interviewer smiles, gesturing to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth crinkles her nose and shakes her head. "Their drummer has much more talent than me, he's amazing!" She breathes, staring at her hands.

I feel my face heat up and a large smile grow on my face. An arm is thrown over my shoulder and I turn to see Calum grinning.

"You hear that? She said you're amazing," He jokes in a high voice.

"Oh, Ashton Irwin? He's great and let's not forget his beautiful face," The interviewer says as she fans herself.

My breath stops as I watch Elizabeth. I know most people would've gone along with the statement, but she looks completely flustered.

"You know, they're all great. And yeah, umm, Ashton. He's just talented and, umm, can bang," Elizabeth's eyes widen and she throws her hands over her face.

The interviewer laughs at Elizabeth's discomfort and even the guys find it hilarious. I shake my head and study Elizabeth as she keeps her hands over her face.

"A commercial would be great right now," she mumbles as she slowly removes her hands. The color in her face is apparent and she lets out a long sigh.

"I'm just gonna pretend that never happened," She laughs.

The interviewer just smiles, "He could've been watching." Elizabeth's eyes widen even more and she lets out a nervous laugh.

"You're blushing almost as much as her, man," Luke teases me as he points to my burning face. "She seems so cool," He adds, staring at the screen.

"Does the band have any plans for this coming year?" The interviewer asks.

Elizabeth looks thankful to have a change of subject, "Our album comes out in a month which is crazy!"

"Any plans for a tour?"

"We're obviously not big enough to have our own yet, but our management has found a band for us to open for. It won't be for a few months, but we can't wait!" Elizabeth smiles with pure happiness.

"Who's our opening act on the tour, guys?" I say distractedly. I'm glad I watched this show today.

"I don't know, some girl-" Calum stops midsentence and we all turn to look at each other. Michael's mouth drops, but he soon starts grinning at all of us.

"No fucking way," He says loudly.

"Okay, we don't know that it's them," Luke spreads his hands, but I can see the excitement in his eyes.

Seriously, this can't just be a coincidence. They're going on tour as an opening act. We have a girl band as an opening act. This kind of thing doesn't just happen.

"Do you guys know how epic that would be?" I breathe as I watch Elizabeth thank the interviewer for having her on the show.

"Listen! I think that's their music," Luke grabs the remote and turns the volume up. Like, extremely loud.

The credits for the show have started and I listen to the song. The complicated instruments play expertly and the song has an amazing hook. I listen to the first verse before shaking my head in disbelief. Michael is lightly bobbing his head to the music, same as Calum.

Luke has laid on his back with his eyes closed, but I can tell he's listening because of the smile on his face.

"How can she write that?" I whisper. She's extremely gifted, yet she's so humble. That says a lot about someone.

"We write our music," Calum argues, but there's no anger behind it.

"Ashton's right, this is brilliant. Gosh, I'd love to meet her," Luke blushes, running his hand through his hair.

"I think," Michael stands up and lets out a low chuckle, "We need to find out who's opening for us and introduce ourselves."

The rest of the boys will get stories if people are interested! And don't worry if this sounds kind of cliche right now, I promise there will be things that make it pretty unique! ;)