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Red

July 21, 2012 - Uniondale, New York

“Want some?” Austin asked holding a Styrofoam bowl of watermelon as we walked towards the main stage from the buses. Smiling I reached in and grabbed a chunk, enjoying the cool, sweet melon on my tongue. Adam was walking with us on the other side of Austin, snapping pictures of us.

I was feeling much happier now that I had gotten everything off my chest. I had been worried Austin and the guys were going to hate me once they knew the truth; think I was dirty and unworthy. But instead they had embraced me with nothing but love and I knew that I had made lifelong friends with all of them. I could trust them and tell them things. I still had my worries, insecurities, and anxiety. I was still waking up in the middle of the night from nightmares of Nick taking me, but I knew I was in the first step of the recovery I had never fully gotten.

Austin and the guys prepared to take the stage and I took some time to chat with some of the fans who were backstage. One of the girls really caught my eye. She had bright purple hair and looked about fifteen. She was sitting by herself on an amp, stealing glances at Austin, a notebook rested in her lap.

I walked over to her and smiled down on her. “Hey, I’m Raegan.” I held out my hand. She looked uneasy about shaking it, but slowly she reached out.

“I’m Liz.”

“It’s nice to meet you. Mind if I take a seat?”

“Oh, um…no…” I sat next to her and glanced at her notebook.

“Woah…” I breathed looking up and finding her brown eyes. “That’s fucking amazing…” She had been working on a drawing of Austin. It was so detailed, it almost could have passed for an actual photograph.

“Oh! It’s nothing…” She mumbled trying to close the book.

“No! Liz, that’s an amazing drawing. Austin will love it.”

“You think so?”

“Let’s find out!” I smiled brightly and called his name. He looked up with a smile and walked over.

“What’s up Rae?” He asked stopping in front of us.

“This is Liz.” I said gesturing to her.

“Hey, Liz!” He smiled brightly and leaned down pulling her in for a hug. “It’s great to meet you.”

As he pulled away I could see the tears in her eyes as she looked between him and me.

“Thanks for coming out today!” Austin smiled taking a sip of his tour water.

“You’re welcome.” Liz muttered.

“Liz, drew something and it’s brilliant.” I said to Austin.

“Can I see?” He asked.

“Two minutes!” One of the crew members called.

“It’s not finished yet, but…” Liz slowly opened her notebook back up and turned it around. I watched as Austin’s eyes lit up in wonder as he looked at the drawing and then to Liz.

“You have amazing talent!” He declared shaking his head. “Wow. How old are you?”

“Fourteen, do you like it?”

“I love it! Will you tweet me a picture of it when it’s finished?”

“Of course.”

“Austin!” Alan called from the ramp. “Let’s go!”

“I have to go, but thank you so much Liz.” He said hugging her again and running towards the ramp.

“Come on,” I said standing and taking her hand. “I’ll show you the best spot to watch the show.”

She smiled greatly as I led her up the ramp and to a spot on the stage where we could see everything. The intro music was playing and the guys came out hyping up the crowd. Austin ran out, shooting a smile in our direction and started the show. Liz looked amazed the whole set and kept yelling thank yous to me over the music. The look on her face was amazing. There was something about this young girl, I wanted to take her under my wing and help her.

“We have a signing and some press.” Austin explained to me as he came off the stage out of breath.
“I’ll text you though.”

“Okay! I’m going to show Liz around some more.”

“Really?” She asked with wide eyes.

“Yes!” I smiled.

Nodding Austin took off at a sprint to catch up with Alan.

Liz and I walked around the venue. We stopped at a couple of places and talked to people, got some food. Liz slowly opened up more as we walked. She told me about her family life, her friends, school. She told me about how Austin saved her life and how she used to want to die. She thanked me countless times for doing all this for her that day.

“Oh, you’re fine.” I said smiling and giving her a little hug. “Come on, let’s go watch All Time Low’s set.”

“Really?”

“Yes, Liz.” I said with a laugh. “Come on!”

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

“That was really nice, what you did today for that girl.” I looked up from my guitar and smiled at Austin through the darkness.

“There was something about her.” I shrugged. “She was so sweet. I saw her sitting alone and I just had to talk to her.”

We were outside in front of the bus under the tent. The guys were all sitting around talking and drinking. People were stopping by. I was sitting playing my guitar and minding my own business. Someone sat down beside me and Austin lit up.

“What’s up, man.”

“Hey!”

I turned to see Kellin Quinn sitting next to me.

“Kellin!” I said excitedly. “I’ve been meaning to tell you how much I love the new EP.”

He laughed, “Really?”

“Yes! It’s been on repeat!”

“Well thank you Raegan.” He smiled.

“She’s been playing the songs too.” Austin said with a laugh taking a sip of his beer.

“Let’s here,” Kellin said with a nod to my guitar.

“Right now?” I asked suddenly feeling shy.

“Yeah!” Kellin said happily.

Nervously, I placed my fingers on the strings and began to play James Dean & Audrey Hepburn. Kellin and I harmonized together, catching the attention of everyone around us. Adam set up his camera filming and taking pictures. As we got through the song, my nerves melted. We sang our way through the album, more people stopping by as the made their rounds around the buses.

Kellin hugged me as we finished singing and everyone around us drunkenly cheered. It was then that I realized how much of a family everyone on Warped had become to me. It was all ending in just a few short weeks. I was going to miss these people. I was going to miss the road, the fans. This tour had become such a turning point in my life. I didn’t want it to end, not ever. I didn’t want to go back to San Francisco where I knew Charlotte didn’t want me anymore. I wanted to stay here forever.

Comments

I loved this story, you write very well. (:
Julia Gate Julia Gate
9/17/13
CAN'T WAIT FOR MORE
eliseypoo eliseypoo
9/16/13
Just gimme more!
I honestly almost had a heart attack when i saw the epilogue
Love_Muzic Love_Muzic
9/16/13
I absolutely love this! I'm so glad Austin's dad likes her so much :)
eliseypoo eliseypoo
9/16/13