*This story is probably one of the weirdest things I have ever written. And yet, I’m still very proud of it! Its not like the other story, well after the first few chapters anyway. Its supposed to be laughed at, so don’t worry. Its not exactly a horror story but it is supernatural. Its really hard to put this story in a genre so I just put action/adventure. Anyway, enough of my disclaimer thingie here, enjoy the prologue, more will be up later tonight, I hope. Bye!

Chester was sleeping. After the past few weeks of sleepless nights with his new son, he was looking forward to getting some much needed rest on the road. However he forgot whom he was sharing a bus with. Suddenly the curtains to his bunk flew open and a very large, very heavy, very moving object was launched into the tight space with him. He shot awake hitting his head on the wall over his head. He blinked for a moment trying to clear his vision and found himself staring into the brown orbs of a very terrified, Mr. Hahn.

“Chester, you gotta hide me,” Joe squeaked out quietly. Chester could only blink in more confusion as the DJ burrowed underneath the sheets with him. The vocalist was shoved to the side in a rather uncomfortable position. He was plastered against the side of the bunk. The only thing he could do was to move his head towards the sounds of the footsteps outside the curtained bunk.

“Oh Joe, where are you?” Chester poked his head out the bunk to see Rob and Phoenix walking down the aisles, checking the empty bunks. He ducked back into his bunk before they could see him. Turning the best he could, the vocalist glared at Joe.

“What did you do this time?” Chester hissed.

“Shhh. They’ll hear you!” Joe whispered back sticking his head out from underneath the safety of Chester’s sheets.

“Who you talking to Chester?” Rob asked suddenly pulling the curtains apart. The DJ who hadn’t managed to stick his head back underneath the sheets scrambled out of the bunk in a rush. Chester landed with a thud on his butt in the center of the aisle. Rob glanced down at him sympathetically for a split second. “I would say I am sorry. But you hid him!”

“Its not like I had a choice!” Chester protested. But his complaints fell on deaf ears as Phoenix and Rob were already on the move following the DJ. Brad helped him off the floor and into the kitchen area. Chester stretched out on one of the arm chairs . “So what did he do this time?”Brad grinned and shook his head.

“We need to get Rob new drumsticks and Phe new guitar strings before the next show.”

“Dare I ask why?” Chester raised an eyebrow as rubbed the sore part of his back.

“Well it all started when Joe drank coffee and downed a few packs of M & Ms. Yeah I know, but it was early. None of us even noticed it! Anyway decided that he wanted to be a drummer too, so he stole Rob’s drumsticks.”

“Well that explains the drumsticks. Why the strings?”

“He wanted to get the sticks back,” Brad managed to finish the story without laughing hysterically. However he couldn’t hide the smile that graced his lips as he thought about the horrified looks on his two friends’ faces as their beloved items were sucked out the moving bus window. That would teach them for not watching Joe a little more carefully and for leaving their stuff out in the open so easily accessible.

Chester chuckled quietly before sitting down at the table across from Brad. “So where has Mike been while all this is going on?”

“He has been on the phone like practically the whole morning with Anna. I can’t believe she wasn’t there for him throughout that whole crisis.”

“I am sure she had her reasons. Who are we to judge? It was hard. There were a lot of days when I just wanted to walk away. But I didn’t. I couldn’t.”

Brad sighed and settled into his seat. “But she never came forward to walk away at all. She visited him in the hospital once! Chaz, once! She is the love of his life and she couldn’t even come see and make sure that he was still alive!”

Chester swallowed. There was no arguing with the man. It was true. Anna was nowhere to be found when Mike was going through and dealing with his eating disorder. Even now, almost a year later, he wasn’t still completely back to one hundred percent. But he had survived and never once did he blame Anna for not showing up, but evidentially Brad did. As a matter of fact, Mike had just slipped back into life with his girlfriend as if nothing had happened at all.

“Brad, we just have to trust that Mike knows what he is doing. I am sure that he and Anna will be just.…” his words trailed off as one half of their conversation entered the dining area. He was frowning and his dark eyes clearly showed his misery. Mike slumped into the booth next to Chester and put his head in his hands. Chester put a hand on his shoulders. “What’s wrong?”

Mike sighed. It was a deep shuddering breath. The kind one takes when they were about to.... Both of his friends exchanged quick, panicked looks. The twin looks said very clearly one thing: he was making such progress too. Mike lifted his head slightly allowing them to see the tears shining in his brown eyes. “Its over.”

“What’s over?”

“Me and Anna. We’re over. She dumped me,” Mike’s voice cracked and he buried his face in the crook of his arm. Chester pulled the sobbing emcee to his chest and held him there. “She broke up with me and she didn’t even say why!”

“Hey, its alright,” Chester rocked him and back and forth, much like he had done with Draven so many times in the past few months. Mike clung to him searching for comfort. He pulled away after a minute and Chester climbed over him to get the box of tissues. When he came back, Mike had curled into the seat by the window. Chester plopped down next to Brad with a slight frown on his face.

A few minutes later, the three remaining members came skidding into the room. “We heard crying what happened?”

“We just had a setback on the road to recovery, gentleman,” Brad said, solemnly. He looked at Mike, who was staring out the bus window now. He didn’t appear to be staring at any one thing, he was just staring. He reminded them of the time before he had admitted his problem when he was depressed and pulling away. The others sat down heavily and watched him. each hoping that their sheer presence and comfort would be enough to pull him from the darkness before he had fully fallen in.

Unbeknownst to him something was listening to his pain. Something that wanted him to join her in the darkness and the shadows for all of eternity.

*Cue eeire music.