Baseline [n.h]

05

"Rise and shine little drummer boy!"

A hyper voice summons me from my beautifully idyllic daydream,leaving my senses tingling from the abrupt action.

"I wasn't sleeping,"I sluggishly rise from the sleek leather seat,arching my back in order to stretch its stiff muscles "and seriously? Little drummer boy was the best you could come up with."

The scene I had found myself immersed in was one that was very familiar to me,for I would revisit it most evenings when trying to lull myself to sleep.Images of my family and I laughing around a crackling campfire in Wyoming were woven with the threads of my memories;it was undoubtedly the best summer I had experienced.On this particular night the sky was painted an inky blue and the soft humming of my moms singing flowed through the open air.A warm tranquil feeling engulfed my heart and everything around me seemed to glisten in the glow of dusk.
However as this moment withdrew further into the past,becoming hazier as time stretched on,my own family members began to resemble mere fictitious characters.Their faces became blurrier and their voices sounded muffled,leaving me terrified of losing them all together.This version of them,where they were completely at peace.So in pure desperation and fear,I clung to this very scene.Using every free moment to preserve it, repeating every frame over and over in my mind,reminding myself of its value.

But of course,these loud British musicians did not seem to care for 'alone time'.As I'm pulled back to reality, a stubborn voice attacks my eardrums and a firm finger jabs at my rib cage.The individuals words are lathered in a thick Yokshire accent,with each syllable having a certain ring to it.This was a feeling I was still having to adjust to,hearing those around me speaking in different tongues.The unfamiliar dialect making it almost impossible to decipher certain phrases.

Which I'm sure frustrated the band just as much as it did me.

Louis' piercing blue iris' glisten with hilarity,his face conveying nothing but pure excitement.
Despite only meeting him thirteen hours ago,I had already come to the conclusion that this cheeky brunette was a natural comedian.Throughout our time on the tour bus he had managed to make countless sarcastic remarks and dirty jokes,whilst somehow tricking Liam into attempting to lick his own elbow.Not surprisingly this ended in disaster,with the pair of them wrestling on the carpeted floor and tumbling into a pile of sound equipment.

"Calm your arse down, I'm working on a tight schedule here.Give it time and I'll come up with the perfect nickname"Louis winks knowingly,ruffling his loose brown locks.

He seemed to have this light glow radiating from his being,constantly exuding a sense of warmth and excitement.I admired this quality in a person,mostly because it was a trait that I wish I possessed myself.No matter how hard I tried,my natural pessimism couldn't seem to dissolve.So for now,Louis' optimism would have to account for the both of us.

"I'm both intrigued and terrified, but I suppose it can't be worse than the one you gave Warren."

"You're suggesting his nickname is bad?!"Louis objects,his jaw falling open in shock.

I would be lying if I said that this conversation wasn't an entertaining way to pass the time.

"The guy is a sound tech and you call him 'Data', was that really the most original thing you could think of?"I question,picking at my chipped red nail polish.

"It's fucking genius! He's named after 'Data' from the goonies,you know the kid with the traps and stuff?" The mischievous brunette leans closer to me,a smile of amusement tugging at the corners of his lips.

With his body being so close to mine,I'm able to inspect his features much more closely.A faded black tattoo is spread across his chest,inscribing words I can't make out because of the material of his t shirt.The fragrance of freshly cut grass clings to his tanned skin,which was an unexpected surprise, and a faint splash of sprite stains his grey t shirt.This is courtesy of Liam who tried to snatch the can from his friends grasp,causing it to erupt and spill over the both of them.