PROVEHITO IN ALTUM

Chapter Three

The concert was, sadly over and everyone was already leaving. I stayed behind looking at some of the band's merchandise. As I was trying to decide between two shirts, a security guard approached me.

"Miss, uh... Raena," he said after looking down at a piece of paper he was holding. "I've been told to ask you if you would like to come backstage and meet the band. The Q&A session is almost over, so you won't have to wait very long."

The guard was eying me expectantly, waiting for my answer. "Uh, yeah, sure. I would love to." I said, trying to contain my enthusiasm.

"Follow me, please." He said as he started to walk towards the backstage area.

WOW. Had I just been asked to go backstage to meet the band? Was this really happening? Somebody pinch me! And here I thought this night couldn't get any better.

I sat on a couch as I waited for the band to come in. It had been 15 minutes since the guard brought me here and there was still no sign of them. I took out my phone and saw that I had a text from Dhalia. I opened it.

"Hey, how was the concert?"

"It was amazing, Dhal. U won't believe me when I tell u what happened. It was crazyyyyy!!!!"

I clicked send and locked my phone. As soon as I did, there was a loud bang and the door swung open. Three men walked through the door and into the room laughing loudly.

"-like you even know what you're doing."

"Oh shut up Tomo! You talk too much nonsense."

"Ooh I think someone's got their panties in a twist. You want me to fix them for you, Shannon?" Jared said playfully. Shannon punched his brother in the shoulder, as Tomo burst out laughing.

I giggled quietly, watching the whole scene unravel. This drew their attention and they all turned towards me.

"Hey there, you're the girl that was on stage earlier, right? Yeah, you're a really awful singer!" Tomo greeted me. He must have noticed my smile fading because he immediately started laughing and apologizing, all at the same time.

Shannon took off his sunglasses and sat down on the couch, next to me. "Don't even bother paying attention to what he says; it's mostly jokes that aren't funny."

"Of course not! My jokes are funny." Tomo snapped back at Shannon. "Well, most of them, anyway." He smiled sheepishly.

Jared snorted, "I wouldn't goes as far to say most, maybe some would be a better fit." We all burst out laughing.

"No, but seriously, you were amazing out there." Tomo said, looking at you.

"Yeah, absolutely. You killed it!" said Shannon.

Jared smirked at me and said, "I simply couldn't agree more."

I was smiling so much that I must have looked ridiculous, but I didn't care at that moment. "Thank you! And thanks for picking me. I had the most amazing night of my life."

"No problem, kiddo. We enjoyed ourselves too. Hey, why don't we go out for a few drinks, huh? Come on, what do you say?" Tomo asked.

"I think that's a great idea. Come on, Rae. You're in for a treat." Jared said grinning.

We went to The Viper Room. The music was great and the atmosphere was perfect. Shannon went home early, saying he was really tired and wanted to rest. Tomo's wife, Vicki, came over. After chatting for a while, she and Tomo had gone to hit the dance floor. Jared and I kept talking, but trying to maintain a normal conversation while having to scream to be heard over the thumping sound of the music was a real pain in the ass. Jared shouted something to me, but I couldn't understand a word of what he was saying.

"WHAT?!" I asked with an apologetic smile.

He leaned in closer and talked into my ear "I said, do you want to come over to my house?" I nodded in response and we left, making our way into the parking lot.

As I got in the car, Jared put me in charge of the music which, quite honestly, made me feel a little nervous.

"What would you like to listen to, Mr. Leto?" I asked in a sophisticated, but mocking tone.

"Surprise me." He said flashing a cocky smile.

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"So is that why you moved to LA, to become an actress?" Jared asked, handing me a drink.

It was pretty late already. Jared and I had stayed up all night talking incessantly. I was getting a little bit sleepy, but I didn't want to go home just yet. I didn't want to say goodbye to Jared just yet.

"Yeah, mostly because of that. I wanted to follow my dreams, I guess. Although I did think about going to New York City instead of Los Angeles, but I don't know. I think I felt drawn to this city." I replied thoughtfully.

"I know what you're saying. This city has something about it that makes it seem magical, in a way. For me it always felt like home." I understood what he meant, and the way this place had seen him grow. The way the city had opened a new opportunity for him to find and build a new life, not only for himself, but for his family too. The way it drove him away from everything he didn't want to be and closer to the person he wanted to become. This place watched him turn into the man he was today. Jared had been through a lot, and for him, there was no place like the City of Angels. "Anyway," he asked, stopping my train of thought, "have you had any luck, at all, with the acting thing?"

I took a sip from my drink before answering. "Not really, no. Well, it's not like I've been here for a long time, but I haven't gotten any big chances."

"Well, if you're up for it, I think I can help you with that. You see, I got a role in a movie, but they are still missing their leading lady. I seem to think you might just be the perfect fit." He winked at me. "What do you think about going blond? He asked me with a mischievous smile appearing on his handsome face.

"Are you serious?" I asked in shock.

"Dead serious. If you want a chance, I'll get you one. All I need to do is make a phone call." He replied.

"Well... what are you waiting for!"

He took out his phone and searched for the number in his contacts.

"Hello, it's- yeah... no everything is fine, it's just that I think I've got something you might like... yeah, no, I know... uh huh... anyway, I've got you a Harley... absolutely... she's great, fresh face, not much experience, but you'll love her... yes... I think so, yeah... okay I'll let her know... perfect, see you then... thanks David, bye." He clicked off the call. I looked at him expectantly.

"Well, you're pretty much a shoe-in. All you have to do is practice your Brooklyn accent a little bit and your psychotic clown mannerisms and you'll be ready to join the Suicide Squad." Jared said, so sure of himself.