Morning, Wednesday, Christmas Eve, 1997

"Not so fast, looney tune," David Gillies put his son into a head-lock and then rubbed his knuckles into the top of his head. Ben was about to leave the house for the second time that morning.

Ben wriggled about in his father's grasp, wincing because it actually kind of hurt. In the Gillies household, though, humor mixed with a dash of pain or embarrassment was not uncommon.

He still had his son in a rather tight head-lock. "So, how'd those newly-hired roadies do, eh? Did they pack youse drums and guitars up just right like we always did?" The 'we' he was referring to was himself and the other fathers, Greg Johns and David Joannou. Though the men acted as chaperones to their teen sons, they also assisted in packing up their sons' instruments and gear after every show.

Mr. Gillies did not think he'd miss breaking down his boy's drum kit night after night, but people often tend to miss things they least expected themselves to. He even had the strangest recurring dream in his son's absence for the past month: a real dummy of a roadie would pack up his son's drums all wrong and then Ben would burst into in a massive fit over it, breaking his drumsticks in half, his whole face turning beet red.

"Faarrk, Dad! Let go of me!" The teen tried to pry away from his father's hold but it was no use. Though he was a drummer, and a mighty awesome one, his dad had been using his hands and arms for a much longer time as a plumber. Ben really could not compete with his old man's strength.

"Uncle, Uncle," shouted Ben, thinking of anything to be rid of his dad's viper-like hold. Also, he was starting to get mildly annoyed. He had somewhere to go.

Miraculously, it worked. David's arms slunk to his sides, and his son straightened his stance and looked up at his father, blinking heavily.

"Uncle?" Mr. Gillies pointed a finger in his son's face. "You are mistaken. I'm your father, and you're stuck with me to infinity and beyond."

Ben rolled his eyes, putting his hand on the door knob as he muttered, "Just my luck."

"Don't you listen to a word I say, wise guy?"

"Huh?"

"I said, 'not so fast'."

Ben frowned and put his hand on his hip. "Well, what's the matter then?"

"You got a ring while you were in the shower. Female, by the name of Sangria Smith." Mr. Gilllies' eyes twinkled a bit as he said her name.

A chill went down the drummer's spine. "Uh-huh? What did she have to say?"

His father handed him a small shred of paper. "She asked what you were up to. I told her you had gone surfing earlier. Then you got in the shower--"

"What? Do you tell everyone ringing here about my morning routine? Is it really all that fascinating?"

"No," David looked at his son blankly, some of his dark brown hair falling in his eyes. "Not especially."

Ben rolled his eyes again, snatching the paper out of his Dad's fingers. "Well, did she say or ask anything else?"

His father scratched his temple as he swept his hair aside and shrugged, "Just to call that number as soon as possible."

The teen rock star was going to go over to Daniel's house, but now he thought he should swing around and pick up Chris and then head on over to Dan's house together. He did not want to ring her alone. Also, he was certain Sangria did not want to only speak to him.

"Right, Dad, thank you." He set his hand on his Dad's shoulder and gave him a pat. "What time do we need to be back here again?"

"Around 6 o' clock should do. Your mum wants us all to sit down for tea around then. Your sister should be here as well. She's got that new bloke of hers to show off."

The damp-haired teen was just about to leave when he saw his father's shoulders slump a tad. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and asked, "What's the matter? Out with it, old man."

David's eyes were cheery but his voice came out grumbly as he waved his hand between them. "It's nothing. I know ya wanna get out of here."

Ben squinted his eyes, waiting for his dad to spill, which he surely would, like a broken pipe. "You don't wanna meet this new bloke, do ya? Honestly, neither do--"

"No! That's the least of my troubles, Benny. Damn Joannou. That sneaky bastard. He really outdid me this year with that blow-up snow globe. It's so bloody gorgeous. I should've known. I should have known." He shook his head, pouting.

"You won the past three years, Dad." Ben softened his voice as his shoulders slumped down as well. "You were bound to lose your place at the top eventually."

David had already cracked open a cold one and took a long pull of the golden liquid before speaking again. "Eh. I know. It was nice being king while it lasted. Your mother is thrilled about hosting the Christmas party here for a change, though."

"Don't be too glum, Dad. We'll get him next year."

David let out a burp, tossing his empty beer can into the bin before giving his son a bear hug.

"Alright, see youse later," Ben gave his father another pat on his shoulder before exiting the house.

He got into his silver Skyline and fastened his seat belt. He set the paper with Sangria's number on his dashboard and just stared at it for a minute, his stomach tying itself into knots as he did so. The drummer closed his eyes and took a deep breath before opening his eyes and starting up his car.

♡ ♡ ♡

I'm in an odd mood. Unenthused. I'm not quite sure if it's an upcoming chapter that's gotten me all wonky or if it's just me. Prob a little touch of both. Dunno. (Mally, you know what that upcoming chapter concerns, mujer, so don't say anything. Sssshhhh.)

Anyways, my chapters were starting to get too longish for my liking so I did some clean-up.

I quite liked this lil look into the Gillies home, though--father-son scene, aww. This part was a lot shorter before I decided to turn it into its own chapter. Blah blah. Gotta write what ya love, right?

See y'all again on Friday. The boys will be together then--I assure you.

Your silverlove means the world to me.
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❤️ TYSM 4 READING ❤️

. . .

Please, join me for some
💙 💙 Ben Appreciation Time 💙 💙

sweet smile 😊

Rockin' out!! 🥁 🤘 🎶

Lastly, I have this pic saved as "ben_hello" ...yeah, no words, really, though y'all are welcome to share whatever this pic makes you think/feel/say...

Okay, here's what I thought: "Drumming does a body good."

😜 😜 😂 💕

Alright! That concludes our Ben Appreciation Time for this chapter--which I was trying to keep shorter.

Whatever.

💛 💚 💙