Rock Me (Candira and AtomSmasher)

It had been a few months since the news. It had come as a surprise to everyone--including the other band members. The lead singer of a local band rising in popularity had died. Andrea had been a vibrant, sexy front woman and losing her had stopped the band cold, not to mention, left them all reeling. She'd had an aneurism and died in her sleep, only discovered the next day by her friend and roommate. The news had been all over the web and local news for weeks, and rumors of the band coming back for a tour were circulating. By now, the gossip had reached other towns in the region.

So as Natalie dialed up a member of the band she'd stayed in contact with, she wondered if he was alright. She hadn't heard from him in a few weeks beyond a handful of short texts, and was starting to get worried about him. In fact, she'd been planning a trip into his area to check on him. Still, a phone call now and then never hurt. She'd been a fan since her first show and had hit it off with a few band members, especially the one she was calling now. She wondered if everything was alright. Andrea had been like family, and losing her would have been terrible. But if the rumors of singer auditions were true, she wondered how well they were all holding up. Maybe things were better than she'd thought?

Meanwhile, the band was meeting up for auditions in their home town. It was an emotional day, but they needed to move on, both emotionally and professionally. They were holding auditions in their practice space, a warehouse they leased and had refurbished to fit their needs. The keyboardist was the first to arrive and had set out some refreshments from her family's restaurant. Wontons, fried rice, sweet and sour chicken, and various other Chinese dishes filled a table, along with a few rows of bottled water and some two liters of Siera Mist, paper plates, and plastic cutlery. Roxy had just finished setting it all up when the others arrived. She smiled at them, heading over to meet them by the door.

"Hey guys. Mom and dad decided we needed a buffet today, and I'm not one to turn down free food. Grab a plate, kay? I don't wanna take it all home with me." She chuckled and gave her friends a hug each, glad that she had them.

With a single motion, Ike drew the blinds and sent light flooding into the once dimly lit room. On a bed, a man's eyes were clearly struggling to adjust to the light, covering his head with the comforter while Ike prodded him with his foot. Around the bed, two or three empty bottles of low-end scotch, as well as heaps of empty beer cans piled up next to the bed.

"Get up, we have to go." The man said as he prodded the sleeping man once more. The resulting groan signified that he was getting nowhere fast. Letting another sigh, he started throwing whatever clothes he could into a duffel bag and threw the bag next to the door. Turning back to the pile of blankets on the bed, Ike shook his head and kicked the pile as hard as he could. Ike stood at nearly 6'4 and had a fairly slim build. He almost always wore a beanie, no matter what the weather, some kind of a graphic tee with a leather jacket, skinny jeans, as well as a pair of classy white sneakers.

The resulting kick got the man up. Ryan growled at the man as he sat up in his bed. Ike was his best friend, and was really the only person who he had direct contact with since Andrea had passed away. "Look, let's call the others to reschedule the--" Yet before he could finish the sentence Ike snapped at him. "Ryan. For fuck's sake, quit moping and let's go. Everyone is sad not just you. Now grab your bass and let's go." He said, tossing some clothes Ryan's way. Ryan was taken a back a bit by Ike, but complied finally, standing and getting dressed. Normally, Ryan wore white tee shirts under different color polos. Simple was always best. Before they could set out the door, the man heard his phone ring.

"Hello? Oh hey Nat. How's it going?" Ryan asked into the phone still sounding a little tired and a little groggy. As Ryan spoke on the phone, Ike drug Ryan towards the car, and listened to Ryan babble to some fan that he had met on their first tour through California, yet Ike knew he had to pick his battles. He would let Ryan have this one, it was probably for the best anyhow. The man sped down the freeway towards the center of the town, Ike and Ryan lived on the outskirts.

FInally, Ike pulled his car into the parking lot and Ike grabbed his drum sticks and Ryan's bass. Ryan was still talking with Natalie on the phone but followed Ryan in. After a quick head count, Ike soon realized that they were missing two members. Now where could they be?

Natalie was relieved when she heard Ryan answer. It had been such a long time since she'd heard his voice, and there was no denying that it set her at ease now. "Hey stranger. You sound like you just got out of bed." She made sure he was alright before she asked how he'd been and what had been going on. The fan smiled when she heard him speaking, glad that he was alright. She filled him in about her job and how she was nearly finished with her last semester. It was always fun to talk to Ryan, and she figured the more he spent time talking to her, the more okay he was.

"Oh, hey, I heard you guys were auditioning new singers. Is that true?" she asked, curious to know whether the rumors were true. Maybe if they were, Ryan and the band would take another tour and come through her town again. It would be great to see him in person again--especially doing something that seemed to make him so happy.

---

It struck Roxy as odd that Ryan was on the phone, but who was she to judge. Maybe it was important, so she just patted his shoulder, giving Ike a full on hug. "Ready to audition some singers?" she asked, tugging them both toward the area she'd set up. In truth, she had mixed feelings about this audition. Though it was time they moved on--before their credibility and popularity dwindled down--imagining anyone but Andrea as their front woman was just weird. Still, it had to be done. So she sighed and took the cover off of her keyboard, turning it on and making sure everything was still good to go. She turned it off and then loaded up a plate of food for herself.

The little keyboardist stood at 5'3", dressed in a short white skirt and a bright red blouse. Her hair was pulled back into a chic and trendy up do. Her eyes were done in a smokey grey with red along the edges. Though she was a short little thing, she could certainly put away food. Once again, she gestured toward the table full of food and took a seat in one of her more comfortable chairs.

For the first time in a long time, Ryan was grinning ear to ear. Just the sound of Natalie's voice was something that made him happy. Andrea had hated when he talked with her, but for whatever reason, the bassist had become rapidly good friends with the fan of the band, a service that most anyone who was rabid about the band would kill for. Maybe it was because they had met at one of the band's first shows, even before Andrea and he had started dating. Maybe it was because she seemed to know so much about them, but he was the only one to have given her a chance, and he was the only one that stayed in fairly constant contact with her.

"Yeah, although I am unsure about some of the people auditioning. Most of them just saw a flyer. It's not like we have some strenuous process of auditioning. Besides, we are still missing a member." He said into the phone, watching Roxxi and Ike exchange hugs. "Well, what is some of the gossip surrounding the band now?" He asked her, figuring she kept up with what the band was doing. There would have to be tons of news after Andrea's death, and Ryan had been sort of a shut in, he had no idea what was going on with the other people in the band. Even Ike had been a little secretive about what he had been doing.

---------

The man gave her a hug and looked towards the dishes with large steaming piles of food on them. "Woah, you trying to find your next boyfriend here?" He asked her, giving her a peck on the lips. No one was really sure what Ike and Roxxi's relationship were, hell, not even they did. It seemed to just be something that was more on the flirty side. Making his way towards the table and grabbing one of the paper plates, Ike started piling food up on it before he made his way back towards the table. It was mostly finger food, and he did his best not to wipe any of the grease from the fried food on his pants. It was a task he didn't do well at all with.

They were still waiting for their last member, and Ryan couldn't seem to take the phone away from his ear. Ryan had migrated to the other side of the small space, and Ike took a seat next to Roxxi at the table. He knew that he should probably stop eating, but a few plates in, Ike was gripping his stomach, listening to it churn and moan about how full it was. He hoped things started soon, after all, they were here to audition a singer, not stuff their faces.

---------

The man known as Clint was finally ready. Wearing his usual jean and polo combo, he grabbed his guitar and shoved it into the back seat of his car. He wasn't running late or anything, Roxxi had wanted him to show up forty five minutes early. He was happy to oblige, the band was everything to him, though he was one of the first to move on after Andrea's death. It wasn't that he didn't care for her and the death was completely unexpected, but Clint was the type of guy that didn't really care for drama, and drama was sure to follow after Ryan and Andrea had started dating. Clint had told them it was a bad idea, but why listen to Clint?

Pulling up to the space, he parked his car and grabbed guitar slinging it over his shoulder. As soon as he slid the door open, his senses were overloaded with the sound of great smelling food, most likely from Roxxi's parent's shop. Closing the door behind him, he made a beeline towards the food and made a slight wave towards the other band members. Taking his seat on the other side of Roxxi, he was fairly preoccupied with the food in front of him to say much more than little mumbles and grumbles inbetween bites.

Natalie was glad to hear that he seemed to be doing so well, and it was a relief to hear that they were moving on professionally too. "Well, there were some rumors that you guys were going to break up and retire the band for a little while. Now, though, the dig is that you're auditioning new singers in your home town. It's a big relief to the fans, that's for sure." She smiled and ran her fingers through her hair. "No one's really seen or heard from you guys in a long time, so for awhile, the rumors seemed true."

She filled him in on other gossip surrounding the band, and found herself wishing that she could just keep talking to him. She'd missed him a great deal, and she'd been worried about him, having known that Andrea and Ryan were dating before she'd died.

---

Roxy chuckled at Ike's joke, accepting the little peck in the spirit of friendship. It wasn't really meant as a romantic gesture--more as a kind of teasing affection. "Nah, you know the deal with musicians. Always breaking hearts," she teased as she twirled lo mein around her fork. "Mom and dad thought we should celebrate a new beginning, so they gave me all of this. Also, they say hello." She smiled and ate her food in affable silence, letting Ike get his fill of their free feast before she started to talk to him about how he was doing and Ryan. Auditions would be starting soon enough, but there was no reason to not enjoy this.

It wasn't long before Clint showed up. She smiled and waived at him, though she was beginning to feel a bit upstaged by the food she'd brought. "I guess it's true what they say--the way to a man's heart really is through his stomach." She chuckled and glanced over at Ryan. "Or through his phone, in some cases." Good for Natalie. Honestly, it was just good to see Ryan smiling again. She didn't need to guess who it had been. The minute she'd seen that smile and caught the tiniest bit of their conversation, she'd known it was Nat.

Returning her attention to Clint, she smiled. "Glad you came early, then?"

Once upon a time, Ike could see himself with Roxy, he really could. For whatever reason, either by her or by his own accord, he was shoved into the "friend zone" and he just accepted it. It was fairly interesting the dynamic of the group's relationships and what was going on with the people in the group. As told by the last band gossip newsletter:

"The individual members of the band are widely unknown and sought after, save for the developing relationship between bassist Ryan O'Neil and Andrew Thompson. As far as we can ascertain Drummer Ike Andrews and Keyboardist Roxy may have a relationship."

How wrong the stupid fan club newspaper was. It was gossip, always gossip, and it was Natalie that spearheaded the whole thing. It was the one reason Ike didn't care for her, but for whatever reason Ryan seemed to enjoy her company and enjoy talking with her.

Upon finishing his food, Clint threw the plate away. "Alright, let's get this show on the road!" He said beckoning Ryan off the phone to take his seat next to them. "Alright, we will see the first auditionee!" He yelled out the door. Realizing they probably couldn't hear them, Clint stood and made his way towards the large metal door, sliding it open to hear a roar from the crowd outside. It seemed there were more than a few people to try out. Pointing at the person with the large "1" on his chest, he called him in.

Roxy didn't have anything against Ike, but they seemed to work just fine as friends. And she'd wisely decided against entangling herself with one of her bandmates--or so she thought at the time. Complications, especially after Andrea's sudden death, were sooo not her thing. Then again, who knew? When she was alive, Andrea had made Ryan one of the happiest guys around. They'd worked out pretty damn well. Still, it would take quite a gesture to get Roxy to take a risk like that. Something she simply couldn't ignore would have to be done. Shaking those thoughts off, she smiled as Clint took charge.

Tossing her plate into the garbage as well, she grabbed a bottle of water and prepared herself to deal with the best and worst of what this town had to offer.

---

Before Ryan could get away, Natalie wished him luck. "I hope you guys find who you're looking for. Don't be afraid to look me up if you're in town," she said with a smile. And then she heard a man yelling. "Well, I guess I better let you go. Don't be a stranger, Ryan. Bye bye."

---

And so it was that the first ten singers were auditioned and rejected or marked down for a call back. Roxy recorded a few of the singers on her phone that they wanted to hear again, and then sent them on their way. So far, they'd heard smooth singers with pitch problems, rough singers with too much volume and not enough control, and about three in the middle. Most were guys, but they'd had a few decent females as well.

Finally, number 11 walked in. A blonde with the badge pinned to her shoulder. She was no Andrea, but she was very pretty and had some decent curves. She smiled as she wandered in. "Hi there. I'm Cora." She shook everyone's hand, pleased to meet them. Turns out, she was familiar with every song the band played and had graduated with a degree in vocal performance at a nearby college. She'd been a fan of the band for awhile now, and when she heard there was a chance to audition, she thought she'd toss her hat into the ring--so to speak.

And so she took them through "Black Sheep" and managed to sound similar to Andrea, but add her own personality. Roxy recorded her, already taken with the strong contender.

The overall consensus was that Cora was probably going to be the new singer, however, they had to go through the rest of the process. There were about five hundred people standing outside of their practice space, and by the time the last person was done, most of the members in the band were exhausted. Cursing to himself, Ike looked at the list and realized he only had one name. Cora. Ryan and Clint had a few other names as well, but Cora was the only one to stand out to them, and by looking at Roxy's list, it appeared that she was thinking the exact same thing. No one was saying that she was better than Andrea, or even close, but the auditions felt more like an edition of the American Idol not an audition into a fairly successful band.

"Christ" Clint mumbled as he leaned back in his chair, looking at the what little list he had. It had been a long process and now it was time for them to make a decision. Pulling out a large whiteboard, he wrote several names on the board and turned to the rest of the group. He then invited the rest of the group to write their names on the board or put a mark next to the names they felt were particularly good. In the end, most of the people had a mark next to Cora's name, and the overall feeling had been the same. "Well, should we try her out, maybe run a practice with Cora then decide what we should do from there?" The man asked looking into the uninspired faces of his bandmates.

Ike had been staring off into space, and Ryan was just looking at his phone. Clint shook his head. "Alright, that's what we are going to do. Reconvene tomorrow, same time same place. Someone give Cora a call and let's get outta here." He said as he moved and grabbed his stuff, taking it out to the car.

((Timeskip to the next day?))

Roxy was a little glassy-eyed herself by the end of the day. So many singers had auditioned, and so few of them had been good. Not only that, but most of the good ones were forgettable at best. Rubbing her eyes, she glanced over at the table containing her buffet--most of which was completely gone. It pleased her to know that that, at least, had gone well and comforted people. Through the process of wheedling down the remaining finalists, they settled on Cora.

After agreeing with Clint's plan, she got up and pulled out the resume Cora had seen fit to leave with them and dialed the number on her cell. She waved at Clint as he left the building in a rather surly mood and then invited their new trial-run singer to their next practice. Cora seemed like the best of the bunch in her eyes, and frankly, she was already pretty sure that was the direction they were moving in. Still, the whole band was in pretty bad shape at the end of the night. The process in itself was a bit discouraging, but it was pretty clear that it was difficult for any of them to actually move on, despite the fact that they were ready to.

Cora, in the mean time, was ecstatic. She was fairly certain that she was in! Not only that, but into her favorite band as a professional singer. Ha! Take that world! Finally, her music major in performance wasn't such a silly idea. Vindicated, utterly pleased with herself, and very much excited, the singer picked out her outfit for the next day and called pretty much all of her friends and her parents and pretty much everyone she knew to tell them the good news.

The next day, the pretty blonde showed up at the practice place a little early, beating out even Roxy, who tended to be there the earliest of the crew. She took a deep breath and looked around her, warming up vocally as she waited. After a good five minutes, Roxy arrived on the scene, dressed in black jeans, a band t-shirt, and sneakers. She could afford to be more comfortable today than she had been yesterday. Her make up was more natural today, as well.

"Hi there, Cora. Nice enthusiasm," she said with a smile, attempting to welcome the girl. After all, female solidarity was important, and it was important to try to make a connection with someone she'd be working with--possibly--for a long time--possibly. "How long have you been waiting here?" she asked, getting out her keys.

"Oh, not long. I just got here a little bit ago. I guess I was kinda early though. I'm just excited to be here, is all." She smiled, and hoped to God that that was a good thing.

"I get it. Well, we're excited to have you, too. Come on in." With that, she smiled and brought the new singer in with her and showed her around, showed her the equipment she'd be using and how to use it. Now all that was left was to wait for the others and warm up herself.

They were actually going to play today. It was something that most of the men were looking forward do and something that most of the men could get behind. After all, they just needed to rest after the bone dry day of sitting around a table listening to wave after wave of potential singers. Most of them were just willing to pick someone and get it over with. The band would lose their vibe, mainly because no one could bring the same level of enthusiasm or the same attitude as Andrea.

Still, they had to be motivated. Ike and Ryan, who promptly went to a party after the show had split up at said party. Ike had found cute girl, fucked her, then passed out in her bed, while Ryan just went home and slept in his own and probably spent a few hours on the phone with Natalie before he ended up passing out. Just awake, Ike leaned over and planted a passionate kiss on the girl's lips before getting his jeans and shoes on and departing, firing a text Ryan's way urging to him to get out of bed. Once to his car, Ike popped the trunk, found a fresh new shirt, then got in and sped towards Ryan's apartment.

As Ike arrived, Ryan was ready abnormally quickly. Jumping into the car, the two sped towards the practice space, nearly fifteen minutes late. It was something that they tried to avoid but it was something that could not be avoided. Upon arriving, they would see that Roxy, Cora, and Clint was already sitting and waiting. Upon giving their condolences for being so late, they were quick to set up their instruments and jump right into playing.

They would have liked to have a few minutes to warmup, but they played fine nonetheless. They played through one entire set non stop, and to be honest, Clint was surprised that she had done her research. She new every word, she was on key for most of the harder parts, and she seemed to be clicking well with the rest of the band. When they were done, Clint smiled at the new girl and moved towards his bag. Pulling out a few packets of paper and handing out them out to the rest of the band. It was a tour schedule.

"Well, I hope you are ready to go Cora, we leave tomorrow on our comeback tour. We have already sold out a few venues earlier on, and should be gone for a few months." Clint said as he looked over the group.

"Say, Cora. If you want, you can head over to my place and we can work on some of the more difficult parts in some of the songs." He said with a smile.

Ike watched Clint and smiled, looking down at Roxy. He mouthed, "You think they are going to fuck?" to Roxy before practice was adjourned and the rest of the band dispersed.

Natalie had spoken to Ryan the night of the party, happy to hear from him again. It was good to know that he was back on track again. It was good to hear that he was going out and having fun, even if he spent a good chunk of his time on his phone with her. Actually, she felt a little special because of it.

Cora and Roxy had arrived a bit before the others, chatted and gotten to know each other. Once Clint arrived, they included him in the chatter which quickly turned to the absence of Ike and Ryan. The two were easily forgiven, and practice went on without a hitch.

Cora got through the sets without much trouble at all. The pretty blond finished up impressively, drinking deeply from a very large bottle of water. Clint's proposal piqued her interest however. "Uh, sure. I guess it never hurts to practice," she said with a raised eyebrow. "Did you wanna go now?" she asked, curious as to what had brought that on.

Roxy was intrigued herself, shrugging and smiling at Ryan's question. It was an entertaining aspect to their new dynamic however. She kept an eye out until the band packed up and left. Then, she was off to open mic night, happy to provide some of her vocal talents, though she wasn't as talented as Cora.

The new singer, on the other hand, had headed off with Clint.

Of course, Clint would be the first to tell the rest of the band and defend his actions, but at this point he just didn't have time. The band left on tour the day after tomorrow, and Clint wasn't sure that they were ready. It was a long and arduous process to acclimated and up to speed. Clint would argue that two days simply wasn't enough time, but he had to make do with what he could, and he had to make sure that his band was ready for the lime light.

"Let's go in my car. I'll bring you back here when we are done." He said, opening the door for her, and climbed in himself. Speeding down the road, stopping at a gas station and picking up some supplies including: cigarettes, beer, soda, chips, condoms, and some wine. The entire purchase cost him a little over thirty dollars, and he figured that he would buckle down for a long night.

Upon reaching his apartment, he offered Cora a glass of wine or a beer, and set out the chips. Grabbing his guitar, he put a song set on the table and smiled. Making sure she was ready, he started strumming his guitar to the tune, and while she sang he emphasised where she needed to alter the tone of her voice, and pointed out where she could add a little bit of her own personal flare. He had enough faith on the other members, but because Cora was new, he was willing to spend some extra time with her in order to get her more than ready. After a few beers, the man leaned back.

"Let's take a break"

((I didn't write the others because it seemed just like filler))

Cora, for her part, thought it was a bit suspicious that Clint had invited her back with him. Still, he seemed very dedicated to his art, so she probably shouldn't read too much into it. "Sure, I'll just grab my stuff." And so she got her purse, her cell phone, and her keys and they were on their way. She didn't mind a run to the gas station and grabbed a water bottle while they were there. Once they got to his apartment, she looked around a little, curious to see what he lived like. It proved to be a pretty laid back session despite the fact that they were working fairly hard.

She'd refused the alcohol, knowing that it would affect her voice. Instead, she sang with him, rehearsing the songs to their satisfaction and arguing here and there about which way she should sing the song before they settled. After awhile, he suggested they take a break, so she sank down into the sofa and drank the rest of her water. "Sounds like a plan. So, how am I doing?" she asked with a smirk.

((That's fine. Also, can you get beer/wine at a gas station?))

Sitting back against the couch next to her, he smiled warmly at her. "You are doing fine." He said as he mulled over their upcoming tour. "Tell me about yourself." He said, taking a sip of the wine he had gotten from the gas station. "Also, what are you planning on wearing while we are on tour?" He asked, not that it really mattered. The band didn't really have an overarching theme, it was just a collection of people who happened to play instruments well, as well as looked pretty damn fine.

"Also, what do you think of your fellow bandmates?" He asked her, just trying to gauge who Cora was. He was a little discouraged that she wouldn't accept his wine, but maybe she was just waiting until after they were done practicing.

(Here in Washington State you can.)

((Huh. I didn't know that.))

"Good. I'm glad," she said, watching him. Clint had a nice smile, and he was a pretty good guy in her book. No weird moves, no ulterior motives. Well, at least not yet. He certainly was a curious fellow, though. She leaned back into the sofa and closed her eyes. "Well, I don't really know what to tell you about clothes. I have a lot of different stuff to wear, so I'll just dress like everyone else on that night unless I think of something else." With a shrug she stretched out a bit. "And I like my bandmates so far. They're all nice and very talented. I'm a bit biased, but I think I like Roxy the most."

She chuckled and opened her eyes, turning to Clint once more. Cora flipped some hair over her shoulder, wondering what she should say about herself. "Well, if you read my resume, which I realize is a little overkill, at this point, you'd know my background with music and my various accomplishments. But I think you probably want something a little more in-depth than that, right? What would you like to know?"

The man let out a laugh as he sat back down on the couch next to her. Slinging his arm over her shoulder, he let out a sigh. "That's only because you are both women." He said as he poured himself a drink. Offering her another one, he decided that his fingers needed a fair amount of rest. Especially with an upcoming show and everything coming up. This was really no reason for him to make his fingers so sore.

He did want to fuck her sure, but Clint was always a man that was moving from girl to girl. He wasn't a player by any means, at least in his own head he wasn't, it was just more of the fact that he hadn't really found a girl that could hold him down.

"Whatever you think is important for me and the rest of your bandmates to know."

Cora tilted her head and wondered about him as he slid his arm over her shoulder. "I dunno. She seems the most friendly so far. You seem the most dedicated to the music, though your grasp of what is good for a voice and what isn't seems a bit loose," she teased. "I shouldn't wear myself out practicing though. I'm reaching my limits for what I can do today." She'd been singing for hours--first at practice, then with him, and not to mention all the singing she'd done earlier in her car and shower and while she was cooking...yeah.

The blonde thought over his question for awhile and then answered, "I'm not sure what's important because I'm not all that sure what's important to you. I will tell you that I'm dedicated, and that I want things in this to work for all of us. I'm willing to put in extra work if I have to, but I expect the same out of everyone else if they need it too. I don't take kindly to accusations of not pulling my own weight. And I really hate people who can't just say what they mean or hide what they want from me." She took another drink of water here and watched Clint.

"Also, I'm not a picky eater, have a stomach of steel, and can play the water glasses," she said. With a curt nod she smiled. "What about you? I told you about me. Time to share."

"Well, what would you like to know?"

The man said as he scooted himself closer to her just a tad. "I mean, you know my name is Clint. I play the guitar for the group, but for the most part I don't talk much with the other band members." Looking around for just a moment, Clint finished off his beer and set it down, grabbing himself another one. They were within arm's reach and it was something that he liked to do when he wound down.

"What about you? Brothers, sisters, nasty vices, boyfriend?" He asked her, all in one fluid motion. He realized they were playing 20 questions, but he wanted to know all he could about his new bandmate. The boyfriend question was good for two reasons. For one, he could know if she was single and for two, it might make things weird for everyone and for her if she had a boyfriend while on tour. He had seen videos and other people break down over the whole thing, and he had seen their play quickly diminish not far after that.

She raised her eyebrow at the idea that he didn't usually talk to the other band members outside of practice. It seemed odd that he'd compartmentalize like that. He was at least friends with them, right? But that brought up another point--why was she even here if he didn't like being with other members of the band? It was stupid to rule out sex, but somehow, she got the feeling that he would have made his move by now. Suspicious, she watched him slip closer to her, taking another beer.

"I'm have a little brother. He's about three years younger and we're pretty close. He's pretty protective of me," she mentioned, sipping at her water. "I tend to sing a lot during the day, in the shower, and when I can't sleep. It's not really a nasty vice, but I know it can get annoying. Hmmm...can't think of another one, but I'm sure you'll see them as you get to know me. No boyfriend at the moment. I'm a little tired of looking for guys though. Figured I'd take a break from relationships for a bit."

She watched him now, curious to how he'd react. "Same questions."

The man shook his head for a second. "Well, I'm an only child, and my only real nasty vice is drinking too much at times." He said with another shake of his head. Glancing over at the clock, he realized that it was 3 in the morning. Getting up and moving towards the closet, he fetched a sleeping back for her and placed in on the couch where he was sitting.

"Well, we depart tomorrow, better get some shut eye."

With that, he shut the lights off and retired to his room. It was true, he was going to make a move on her, but perhaps he didn't for a few reasons. Either he wasn't drunk enough, or he actually was waiting until they were on the bus. He didn't really know, he just figured this wasn't the time nor place logically to make a move on the new bandmate. He couldn't afford to ostracize their new bandmate before they even left. They were already booked for the tour and to leave without a singer would be just plain silly.

Cora smirked as she watched him and saw that he was grabbing a sleeping bag. She'd packed awhile back and left her bags with the rest of the stuff the group had. She raised an eyebrow as he left her there, but shrugged it off. "Hey, would you happen to have an extra pillow I could use?" She asked, standing up and unrolling the bag. When it was spread out to her satisfaction, she took a brush from her purse and ran it through her hair, thinking of what she needed to sleep.