St. James

CHAPTER 40

      We finally arrived at the arena right around the time they were opening the gates and while the lines were horribly long we didn't rush about trying to get further ahead into the line. We had our backstage passes firmly hooked around our neck and as soon as we handed off our tickets we were slapped with special bracelets that would give us access to the pits right in front of the stage. We wound our way through the massive throngs of people, Brian keeping a firm, tight grip on my hand the whole time till we made our way over to the merchandise booth where we both started to decide what shirt we wanted...then laughed when we picked the exact same one, only mine was in the ladies version of his. "Man babe this is so fucking awesome! These guys are fucking legends! I hope to god this can be us someday...having people going crazy over buying our merchandise and seeing us live!" Brian's excitement grew the more he talked about his hopes and dreams for their own band and I couldn't help but smile and swell with love as he became animated like a little kid on Christmas morning. "Don't worry baby, this will be you guys someday...and people will go crazy to see you guys perform live...and to buy your merchandise. And the girls will go insane over the band's incredibly sexy lead guitar player too" I crooned up to him in a sexy, sultry voice as he held me close to his side. Brian shot a smirk down at me and kissed my forehead "You're insane woman" he laughed as we began shuffling towards the entrance where the actual concert was. "I'm just speaking the truth Brian...you mark my words. Women will be throwing themselves at you when you guys make it big...I'll have a fight on my hands" I stated with a fake pout and my southern belle drawl. Brian laughed at that and shook his head "Not even close baby girl...they can look but they can't touch" he laughed as he guided me into the main arena ahead of him, his hand going into a protective stance against my back.

     It was slow going but we finally made it to the front where the stage loomed up in front of us. A big burly security guard saw our backstage passes around our necks and came over to slap a backstage bracelet on our wrists to go along with the front pit ones. "THAT'S IN CASE SOME ASSHOLES TRY TO STEAL THOSE ONES BECAUSE BELIEVE ME THEY WILL TRY!" he yelled out loudly as the opening act began playing. Brian gave the guy a thumbs up indicating he heard and understood what he said before we got lost in the beginnings of the concert. An hour and a half seemed to fly by in no time at all and when Metallica finally hit the stage the crowd went even crazier than I ever thought they could. For two solid hours Metallica brought the house down around us and I rocked out just as hard as I could with Brian standing guard over me. Finally when the guys wrapped up with "Enter Sandman" and thanked the crowd for coming I could feel the real excitement start to pick up...soon we were going to go backstage and meet Metallica! Well I was going to for the second time and for Brian, the first time...I think I was more excited for him than for the actual chance of meeting them again! I teased Brian mercilessly when James Hetfield tossed his guitar pick to me and I caught it with both hands but then batted my eyes cutely as I handed over the pick. "I just wanted to catch it and give you shit baby...it's all yours" I stated cutely then squealed loudly when Brian roared with laughter and smacked my ass hard. "You're a little tease ya know that?!" he yelled loudly over the loud excitement of the crowd as we wormed our way over to the designated spot for backstage passes. "Yea but you like it!" I yelled back happily before grabbing his arm and pulling it around my waist so my body was pressed up against his and wiggled my butt against him in a suggestive manner. Even through the noise of the crowd I could hear Brian groan behind me and lean down to nip my neck lightly "Quit teasing my dick baby, it's already loaded and wanting to explode" he groaned deeply in my ear, brushing his demanding erection into my backside. I giggled softly and shook my head "Baby you better talk that thing down! You don't want to shake Hetfield's hand with a hard on do you?!" I teased back at him making him laugh instantly.

      Forty minutes later we finally made our way backstage to an open, airy room with about 2 dozen other people and stood around nervously waiting for the guys to show up. Luckily we didn't have to wait long; ten minutes later they all came walking through the door with James leading the way. Although Brian was trying to put on his tough guy, macho bravo I could feel the little kid excitement coming off him in waves as we stood in line and waited to greet each member of the band, get an autograph and a picture before they moved on to the next person, making sure to talk and interact as they always did with each individual person. Finally James reached us and held his hand out to me "Nice to meet you gorgeous! Thanks for coming to our show!" he exclaimed with that big, shit eating grin on his face as he pulled me in for a one armed hug. I could tell Brian was just itching to get a turn to meet one of his idols so I told James he rocked the stage like always before turning towards Brian and introducing him. "He's the real reason we're back here...my boyfriend is the next big thing so watch out!" I teased James before turning and greeting the rest of the band, stopping only to take pictures of Brian with the guys. I couldn't hear all of what they were saying but I knew Brian was talking about the band and how they were trying to make it big when Hetfield I think made his damn day. "You and your buddies make it big and you can open for us. How's that sound?" Hetfield stated with sincerity. I think if Brian's jaw wasn't hooked to his face right then and there it would have dropped to the floor but he kept his cool and thanked him for the vote of confidence and promised that he would hold him to his word when they made the big time.

      All in all we were backstage for another hour or so before the band said their goodbyes and we were ushered out a back door that gave us a short cut to the front of the arena where the crowds were still there but dwindling fast, leaving mostly drunken idiots stumbling around singing Metallica songs in off beat drunkenness. I laughed at their idiocy as we made the long trek back to the car, the cool California night air cooling my sweaty, feverish flesh almost instantly. "Brian I have to call daddy okay? He'll have a coronary if I don't" I laughed as I spotted a phone booth and took off towards it. Brian caught up to me in a few short strides and slid his arm around my lower back "Where do you think you're going all by your lonesome?! Crazy woman!" he laughed as he walked the rest of the way to the phone booth where I called daddy and assured him that we were well and in one piece. "Well princess I'm glad you had a good time but good god it's late!" he stated over the phone with the telltale sleepiness in his voice. "Oh crap daddy I didn't realize it was almost three! We'll be careful driving home I promise" I assured him but daddy just grumbled and huffed. "You make sure if Brian feels sleepy that he pulls over and takes a short nap or something. I would rather you guys nap in the car for a couple of hours than try to drive back home tired...but no funny business young lady! I'm trusting you!" he stated loudly as if in hopes that his voice would carry over to Brian who stood outside the booth smoking. "Yes daddy I know better...you can trust me, sheesh! Yes I love you too...I'll see you soon daddy" I stated tiredly and hung up with a small smile on my face as I left the booth and walked over to Brian to relay what daddy said to me.

      "Well we may end up pulling over if that's the case babe cause now that all the excitement has worn down I'm kinda deflated" he laughed tiredly as we slid into the car and got in the long line of cars to exit the venue parking lot. By the time we got back on the highway it had been another whole hour and with Brian yawning every few minutes I finally begged him to pull over as soon as the opportunity arose before we got into a car accident. "Okay okay baby I will...let me just find something that looks remotely safe okay?" he stated tiredly as we drove on for a few more miles before finally finding a nice quiet rest stop overlooking the ocean. Brian parked the car and killed the engine before nodding towards the back seat and shooting me a tired grin "Let's climb back there and get comfy okay?" I nodded my head in agreement as we rolled the windows down enough to let the breeze in but not too far that someone could reach in and unlock all the doors. Brian grabbed a sweater off the floor and balled it up behind his back before reclining on the seat as best he could while pulling me down on top of his lap simultaneously. "Are you comfy like this Brian?" I questioned quietly as we situated our bodies around each other as best we could and laid my head against his chest, my head tucking perfectly under his chin as he wrapped his arms around me. "Mhm...completely" he mumbled softly and we both promptly fell asleep for the next couple of hours.

      The soft brightening of the sunrise-kissed sky woke me up first and initially I freaked out thinking daddy would be in a uproar but I sighed with relief when I looked at my watch and realized only 2 hours had passed since we fell asleep. Brian immediately stirred awake when I sat up and smiled tiredly at me before we both climbed out and stretched our aching limbs. I guess I better haul ass to get you back home baby girl before your dad freaks out and sends the National Guard after us huh?" he chuckled as we slid back in the front seat and took off down the highway. We made one pit stop along the way so I could call dad and tell him that we did in fact pull over to catch a few hours of sleep but we would be home soon. "Well I'm glad you guys pulled over and slept a little...make sure to come straight home young lady, no fooling around" he warned. I knew that it took a lot for him to trust me out alone with Brian overnight like this and I didn't want to push his suspicious mind any further so I promised we would come straight home as soon as Brian got done paying for the gas. I hung up with dad and headed out towards Brian to tell him what daddy said, making us both chuckle as we got back in the car and headed south towards Huntington Beach.

      Even though Brian didn't want to I made him stop somewhere fast so I could grab something to eat for breakfast, my stomach was growling rather loudly at me and I easily put two blueberry muffins away before being a nice girlfriend and feeding Brian bites of his own muffin as he drove us home, chancing quick pecking kisses as he drove.

What seemed like in no time at all we were pulling into our subdivision and heading towards my parents' house. While I was looking forward to getting out of the car I wasn't however, looking forward to saying goodbye to Brian but I knew he had a full schedule of work coming up and squeezing in practice time with the guys so with a heavy sigh I gave him up to take care of his responsibilities.