"The light inside you faded,

And left you in the cold,

The world left you jaded,

Left you all alone." - Bach's Revenge debut album, track 8

Seb returned from the back of the bus, shoving his phone into his pocket, raising an eyebrow, "What's going on?"

Charlie wanted to ask who he was talking to but thought better of it.

Lane didn't even look up from the table, "they're going on about the fans multiplying like rabbits."

Much to Charlie's relief, Sebastian pulled back the curtain and hardly peeked before saying, "cool." He turned on his heel to head back to the room but the door to the bus flew open and Bennett marched on.

"Guys, you have ten minutes."

Robbie looked at his watch. "We have an hour and a half before the show."

Bennett's careful expression changed, Charlie guessed he didn't like to be undermined. "No. You have ten minutes.

Sawyer sat up from his slouched position. "What's happening in ten minutes, boss man?"

"Your first official meet and greet. Rox 99 FM is the radio station sponsoring your show. Because they are sponsoring your show, they get the right to ask the band for this sort of thing. As the band, you honor the commitment."

"They didn't ask," Sawyer shook his head in disagreement.

"They didn't ask you," Bennett extended a pointer finger to Sawyer. "They asked me."

"I feel violated!" Robbie shouted.

Charlie giggled at his outburst, but Bennett's eyes burned into hers disapprovingly. Perhaps looking at her shoes would be better.

Bennett glanced at his cell phone and shuffled to the door, whipping his head back around with a final warning. "You now have nine minutes."

"You heard the man. I gotta finish getting ready," Sebastian nodded toward the group. "You should all be doing something too."

"Yeah," Robbie scoffed. "Cause your girlfriend really wants a front row view of my tighty whities."

Lane visibly cringed. "I'd rather remove my eyes with spoons."

"I brought bleach," Sawyer offered. "We can do a group eye wash."

Robbie stood and gyrated his hips, badly. "You all want me and you know it."

Charlie laughed.

When Sebastian headed to the back of the bus, she quietly followed. When she slipped through the large curtain, he had changed into dark jeans and was pulling his shirt over his head. Fumbling his duffel bag, he removed another white t-shirt. She used the opportunity to look at him, his jeans hanging just so she could get an impressive view of the curved muscle that snaked its way down the sides of his abdomen toward his pelvis.

"Seb?" she asked, sitting on the bed.

"What?"

"Did I do something wrong?" She knew full well the answer. She'd slipped into the possessive, jealous girlfriend role in the blink of an eye. She took his first genuine enjoyment as a celebrity and crushed it with her childlike behavior.

Sebastian pulled the shirt over his head and retrieved his watch, which was attached to a thick leather band. He fumbled for a moment, trying to secure the clasp through his fingers but Charlie moved forward and meekly took the two sides in her hand, buckling it for him. "I thought we were over this," he whispered.

"Over what?" she asked stupidly, trying to dismiss everything as nothing.

"Over your doubts that I belong to you, completely."

"McKenzie is out there," she tried to reason, "I've been feeling a little off. I'm sorry." There, she'd apologized. That had to make things better.

"So what? You know something, you're starting to give me a real complex, it's like you don't trust me to do anything at all. Why? We were friends long before anything changed and you were never this way. You don't seem to trust me. If you don't even trust me, how can we do this? What exactly do we have then?"

He looked at her, his gray eyes darkened, waiting for a response. For her to justify her suspicion or her envy, or both. She was unable to give him one. Instead, she sat there mouth agape, like a fish, wondering what the hell she was doing.

He stepped forward, cupping her face in his hands and running his fingers across her lips. "Think about it, and let me know your answer, because as much as I can't even imagine life without you, as much as I don't want to-I can't offer you anymore than I have. Me. All of me. So Charlie, please, really, really think about what you want. When and if you decide it's me, and all the baggage I bring to the table, McKenzie included, let me know."

He kissed her on the nose, moved the curtain aside and shouted. "Okay. This is the first real show of our careers. Let's make sure we never forget it."

Charlie stood frozen in place, peering around the curtain just in time to see Robbie twirling his drumsticks through his fingers before sticking them in his back pocket. "Ready man. Let's do this."

Their voices rang behind them as the filed off the bus, leaving her to wonder what the hell just happened. How was she supposed to answer Sebastian? What kind of response was he looking for? Charlie walked up to the mirror to inspect herself. She looked the same, so why didn't she feel the same? She left the bus, fully expecting to stay hidden in the shadows.

Hanging her head, she shuffled toward the door she'd seen the boys head for. She almost went to the front door out of shame, but decided against it for fear that she'd get mauled or worse, jumped.

An enormous man, like a bouncer stood at the door, clipboard in hand. His grip on the thing so tight, his knuckles were white. Bach's Revenge was clearly visible through the glass, standing surrounded by a group of girls on the other side.

"Are you a contest winner?" The man asked stepping directly in front of the door.

She looked up at him and bit her lip, "Er- not exactly. I-uh- I'm kind of with the band."

"Kind of with the band," he rolled his eyes. "I kind of have heard that one before. Listen, why don't you go to the back of the line and wait to get in like everyone else?"

"But," she protested, glancing behind his shoulder, hoping that one of them would look away from the girls long enough to just see her.

"But nothing," he said. "Listen Blondie, you and every other girl here would do anything to get through these doors. They never told me nothing about a girl being in the band, and it's my job not to let anyone in."

Charlie's lip began to shake. She wasn't sure she could take anymore of this tonight. "Sir, if you could just go and ask them, I assure you, I arrived with them."

He shook his head firmly at the same time she perched up on the tips of her toes, trying to get someone, anyone's, attention. Robbie finally noticed her standing out there, helpless to the clipboard holder\/security guard. She could see his lips moving, saying something to the group and pushed his way through. He pushed open the door, causing the gatekeeper to surge forward. "Hey man, s'okay, she's with us."

Charlie wanted to stick her tongue out at him but instead sought the security of Robbie's warm hand as it wrapped around hers, allowing him to pull her through the crowd. She could sense Sebastian was still angry with her and found the closest spot to sit, some cold looking stairs to watch while Bach's Revenge met their fans.

He saw Charlie come in and sit on the stairwell, folding her legs which were far too long for the stairs to actually accommodate. Since she wasn't overly tall, that was impressive. Fighting with her before the show was stupid because now his mind was totally consumed. He wanted to run to her and apologize, for what, he wasn't sure, but she looked so sad sitting over there by herself.

Before he could give it any more thought, a raven haired girl approached. She wore a Bach's Revenge t-shirt, skinny jeans paired with platinum heels that added a good four inches to her height, which was significant to begin with.

Every step toward them she took, a different part of her face lit up until she was glowing. Sebastian knew the moment he set his eyes on her that hers would be glued to Sawyer. He was right, as she passed him, she gave him a casual nod and a smile, but headed right for where Sawyer stood.

"Excuse me, Sebastian?" a voice he didn't recognize said.

He turned toward it and smiled. "Yep."

A short woman who was at least the same age as his mother extended her hand. "Lindy Buckham, from Rox 99 FM."

The radio station sponsoring the show. He took her hand in his. "Of course, pleased to meet you."

From the corner of his eye, he saw Charlie digging in her purse and pulling out a camera.

"I don't know if Bennett spoke with you," she said.

"Yeah he told us about the meet and greet."

"Right, well we have a very special fan for you to meet," she nodded her head to the darkest corner of the room where a small shadow stood. "Her name is Cassie, and she's with the dreams-come-true foundation."

The name immediately rang a bell. Lane's parents were always giving donating or fund-raising for some foundation. This one was one of her favorites. It was for sick children. Sometimes terminally ill children. Seb's stomach flipped. For the briefest of moments he wasn't sure he'd be able to find his voice.

Smile. Smile. Smile.

He inhaled sharply and flashed his teeth, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Just let me round up the guys and we'll be right there."

"It's you she wants to meet most," Lindy said. "You are her wish for the dreams-come-true."

"Oh," he said. "Okay. Maybe I'll meet her first, then she can meet the rest of the band?" he said it like a question and cursed himself. Why the hell was he nervous? He never got nervous. Ever. Okay, maybe Charlie could make him a wreck but up until this moment, she was the only one who was able to do that.

Lindy folded her arms in front of her, "right this way."

Sebastian shot Charlie a worried look before following, and although he couldn't look behind him to confirm, he was sure she was shadowing him at a safe distance. Somehow knowing she was there was reassuring.

Cassie's head was wrapped in a scarf which he noticed she'd painted with fabric paint, all their names, and "Bach's Revenge" on it. She was just a little girl, maybe the same age as Devin, maybe a little younger. A woman, her mother, he guessed, stood beside her. As he got closer, Cassie's mouth dropped and she brought her hand up to cover it.

Smile. Smile. Smile.

His heart broke, to think of her, of what she was going through. What if that was Devin? He couldn't even bear to think about it. He pushed the thought from his mind.

"Cassie," Lindy said. "I'd like you to meet Sebastian."

She blushed, bringing her hand up to offer a wave. "Hi," she said shyly.

He made his voice as warm as he could manage. "Hey Cassie, pleasure to meet you."

"She's your biggest fan," her mother interrupted.

Cassie looked at her mom, a stern glare on her face, obviously she hadn't counted on her mom embarrassing her.

He had no idea what he was expected to do, so he did the only thing he could think of and reached out for her, grabbing her hand with hers. "Would you like to go for a walk or something?" He looked at her mom, to make sure it was okay, but judging from the way she beamed, he didn't think it'd be a problem.

Something happened then. Her entire face changed, her energy filled the air with excitement, and he could almost feel how happy she was. "I'd love to," she said.

Sebastian began to walk away from the group, taking her up the stairs to the back of the stage and directly into the dressing room where he could talk to her privately.

He sat on the sofa that was there and patted the seat beside him. She sat, about as far away from him as she could. He slid closer. "You can come closer. I won't bite. I promise."

"I'm anxious," she admitted.

"Nothing to be scared about," he told her.

"Are you kidding?"

Sebastian found himself smiling. "Nope. I'm just me and believe me when I tell you I am not worth all the fuss."

"Still," she said, "I can't believe I'm here."

"Why is that?"

"Well because, I've never met a famous person before."

He wouldn't exactly call himself famous, but whatever.

"So you're our biggest fan, huh?"

"Yep," her voice burst with pride as she spoke.

"See, I'm the one who should be nervous. What if I'm a horrible disappointment?"

"This is already the best night of my life," she said

Sebastian felt his throat get thick. Given what she'd obviously been through in her short time on earth, the fact that meeting him was the best night of her life, he wanted to make sure she'd never forget it.

"Can I tell you something? Like, you won't tell my mom."

"Swear it," Sebastian said.

"The thing is, the cancer sometimes, I didn't think I could take it anymore; the treatments make you sicker than the disease sometimes, I swear. I just wanted to give up. One day was my mom was trying to cheer me up and she brought home your CD. I listened to it and this is going to sound stupid, but I felt like it made me stronger somehow. After that day, I couldn't stop playing it and listening to it and I don't feel so alone. I know, it's dumb..."

He felt obligated to do something, so he wiped her tears and said, "It's not dumb. Not at all."

"When I'd be getting chemo, I'd put my headphones on, close my eyes and pretend you were singing to me."

Sebastian blinked and before he gave it anymore thought the words rushed out of his mouth. "I can sing for you now, if you'd like."

She giggled and looked surprised. "Here?"

His eyes darted to the corner, where an ancient looking acoustic guitar sat. He wondered who the owner was. "Why not? Can I sing for you?"

Cassie nodded.

He grabbed the guitar, surprised when he strummed it that it didn't need much tuning. Don't judge a guitar by its decrepit exterior.

He strummed the chords and began to sing and as he did, something inside him changed. Something snapped into place, rooting itself in the very depth of his heart. This moment was so intense, so unfathomably personal, he knew that part of him, the one Cassie had been able to reach out and touch was alive somehow. His problems didn't seem as important anymore.

When he walked her back to her mom, he grabbed her face and kissed her forehead before calling out to the rest of the band to come and meet their biggest fan.

When he left, he found Bennett and pointed his finger at Cassie. "She's a VIP," he said. "Give her anything she wants."

Charlie resumed her spot on the stairwell. She had debated following Sebastian, documenting the moment, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. It didn't take much to put the pieces together that the little girl Sebastian led away was sick and that it was her wish to meet him.

If she didn't feel horrible to begin with, she did now. She was petty and green-eyed and a disgusting human being in general. She'd kick herself if she could. That girl was one person, but really, how many others were out there just like her?

Robbie came and sat down next to her. "You look to be thinking pretty hard about something, beautiful."

"Just that I'm a jerk," she replied.

"Jerk no, chick yes," Robbie nodded, causing his long hair to fall in his eye.

"That was intense," she mumbled.

"I'll say," Robbie agreed. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. It's just, I never knew... I never thought that Sebastian, and you guys might be somebody's wish."

"You probably didn't realize because you've had Sebastian around forever. Maybe you took it for granted."

She thought about his statement, he was right. Sebastian had been singing to her for so many years, she didn't realize how important those songs might be to someone else. "I think I've been all wrong, this whole time," she said.

"All wrong about what?"

"All wrong about Seb, about you guys, about everything. I've been too busy worried about myself, about what I want to realize that other people maybe need you guys too."

Robbie twirled his drumstick. "She's not only beautiful folks, she's got brains too."

"He's mad at me."

"Trust me," Robbie whispered, "He's been mad at me plenty of times, he'll get over it."

"I didn't mean to-" she said.

Robbie silenced her by putting his pointer finger across her lips. "Shhh, Charlie, it will all be okay. I promise. I'll even talk to him after the show if you want, okay?"

She nodded.

"I gotta go, they're going crazy out there."

"Okay," she sniffled.

Sawyer came to the stairs just as Robbie headed up them and winked. "Don't worry darlin', Seabass is about as angry as a teddy bear. It'll be fine."

She rolled her eyes and stepped off the stairs, moving out of Sawyer's way and headed to Sebastian who was fumbling with the earpieces trying to secure them inside his ear. He didn't say anything just looked at her, his lips in a firm straight line.

"Seb?"

"Yeah?"

"About your question, I think I have an answer."

His face softened somehow. "Not now bella, I gotta go. Listen to them." He motioned to the stage where fans were screaming. Chanting over and over Bach's Revenge, Bach's Revenge.

"But-"

Sebastian held her gaze before pulling her into his arms for a hug. "I can't wait to hear your answer but right now I want you to kiss me, for good luck and all that."

Charlie swallowed hard, forcing the knot down her throat and stood on the tips of her toes. As she brought her lips closer to Sebastian's, he grabbed her and pulled her flush against him. The kiss he gave her was desperate and as he turned around and walked away, Charlie hoped he wasn't so mad after all.