new angel (first-time reader (FTR)) check-in!!

returning angel (rereader (RR)) check-in!!

STAR NEWS: 5KINGS CONTINUE WITHOUT CARTER

STAR NEWS: HINTS LEADING UP TO CARTER LEAVING

STAR NEWS: WHERE HAS CARTER BEEN HIDING?

STAR NEWS: 5KINGS FINALLY SPEAK OUT

Without hesitation, my finger clicked the article title.

Carter Young, 24, has officially left 5KINGS.

After an official statement was posted by the boyband regarding Carter Young's departure, the boys sat down for their first in-person interview since the news broke. "We are truly heartbroken over how it happened," Roman, 22, "We wish him the best of luck, but of course we would have wanted to end on better terms."

My eyes quickly skimmed past all their bullshit comments. It was clear, at least to me, that these so-called responses were orchestrated by the management team.

Recent speculation has led many to believe a feud between band members is the reason for Young's abrupt departure. The remaining members, Roman, Will, Ethan and Alex, did not provide any comment to the rumours, and instead, focused on the future as a foursome.

It is safe to say, however, that fans are furious over Carter's sudden disappearance. One fan tweeting-

"You going to come inside or what?"

I quickly shoved my phone into my pocket, hearing Ryan's voice. The tall man moved out from the doorframe and strolled towards my side.

"If I had known you'd be spending all your entire night out reading the tabloids, I would've left you at home."

Clearly, I wasn't as sly as I had thought.

"I'm having a smoke just like I said I was." I brought the cigarette up to my lips, taking a long drag as I leaned against the cold brick wall.

Even in the dimly lit alley, I could still see Ryan rolling his eyes to my response. "Come on, man," he sighed, "I finally got you out of the house. No one here will know who you are. Trust me." Ryan chuckled, nodding towards the baseball cap I sported.

While he said it was ridiculous, I said it was necessary. The last thing I wanted was to be spotted by photographers, especially on the day my ex-bandmates had just done an interview. I would do anything to avoid the morning headline to be "Carter partying while his bandmates mourn" or some shit along those lines.

I brought the cigarette up to my lips for a final drag, pinching the almost non-existent butt between my fingers before flicking it onto the pavement. I slowly exhaled the smoke from my lungs in an attempt to stall for as long as possible.

As the phone in my pocket began to buzz, my hand itched to quickly pull it out and be consumed by an endless cycle of reading lies. Before I could allow myself to do such a thing, I found myself heading past Ryan and towards the door, and back inside.

"Let's get you a drink." Ryan wrapped his arm over my shoulder as he led us towards the bar.

As Ryan caught the bartenders' attention, I allowed my eyes to scan the room. The space inside was dimly lit, with nothing to consume the area but the long wooden bar placed near the front. On the opposite end was a raised platform, access guarded by a long black curtain that draped from the ceiling. The environment of this place was something I had missed. There was no loud pop music blasting through the speakers, no spotlights flashing violently on a dancing crowd packed together. Instead, the faint tune of a song by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers played while patrons stood chatting amongst one another. The uniform of everyone inside seemed to be a mix of leather, t-shirts, and plaid.

Ryan was right. Not a single person glanced in my direction. And I was more than thankful for that. It had been just over a month since the news had officially been released. To everyone else, I had only been hiding away for the past few months. But in reality, it had been much longer. I had almost forgotten what the feeling of being out in public truly felt like.

"Here we are," Ryan's voice pulled me from my thoughts, as I turned back around to see a line of shot glasses.

"This is more than a drink, Ry."

"Oh come on, man," Ryan handed me a shot and took one for himself, "We are celebrating."

"Celebrating what?"

"You finally being free of that hell hole."

I couldn't help but let a genuine laugh escape. It was odd to think something as simple as laughter had become a foreign sound.

I raised the glass in my hand, "Here's to finally being free," I grinned, clinking the shots together.

In one swift motion, I knocked the liquid back, feeling the burn instantly hit the back of my throat. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand as Ryan handed me another glass. If I wanted to keep myself out tonight, the only way to do it would be by getting drunk. And very drunk.

"There's my old Carter!" Ryan slammed his empty glass against the bar. "What does a guy have to do to get my friend another round?"

I followed Ryan's gaze, realizing the question was not for me. Instead, it was for the girl who stood behind the bar with pink hair that appeared vibrant against her dark black attire. The moment my eyes laid upon her, I felt as if the wind had been knocked out from under me. Her full lips pressed together and her green eyes, which somehow sparkled under the dim lighting, narrowed at Ryan.

"Order it." Her voice snapped.

Even with the cold expression across her face, I found a desire for her to twist in my stomach.

Or maybe it was in my crotch.

With the rush of alcohol flowing through my body, I had trouble deciding which was correct.

I felt the need to save my best friend from suffering further with the pink-haired beauty. "Just two more shots of vodka," I said to her.

Her eyes flickered to mine, but only for a second before she reached for two clean glasses and quickly filled them. I watched as her eyes moved back to mine as she extended her hand out as if to ask for payment. Reaching for my wallet, I pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and handed it to her.

"Hey! Five minutes!" A male voice called from behind where Ryan and I stood, apparently to Pink Hair, who only responded with a nod.

It seemed as if she was a woman of very few words. Within a split second, the twenty-dollar bill was snatched from my hand tucked into the pocket of her jeans. Lifting the glasses, instead of placing them on the bar in front of Ryan and me, she knocked both shots back, one after the other.

I stared at Pink Hair with a look that mixed between being shocked and impressed. "Thanks for the drink," she said before leaving. I swore I had seen her lips twitch with a smile.

"She totally wants me."

I looked over at my friend in disbelief, shaking my head, "Sure she does," I muttered sarcastically, failing to hide an amused grin. "Why did you pick this place, anyway?"

"Well, since you've been hiding out, I had to go make some of my own friends." Ryan turned around and leaned his back against the bar. "I met this guy Brandon who said a popular local band was playing here tonight. I think he's their manager or something. I thought some live music could help get those creative juices flowing again."

I knew Ryan was doing his best to pull me from my funk, but it was hard to imagine how I could recover my career at this point. My name was currently being dragged through every gossip source and from what I read, the fans had given up on me.

"Guess the show's about to start," Ryan nodded towards the stage.

I turned around, joining his stance. Across the bar, a spotlight turned on and illuminated the black curtain. The heavy fabric slowly began to slide, allowing the stage to reveal a setup of instruments. The crowd stopped their chatter and instantly filled the room with a roar of applause. I noticed a large white banner hanging on the wall behind the drum set with the words The L.A. Devils in what appeared to be a deep shade of red spray paint.

"Are they any good?"

Ryan shrugged, "Who knows."

The crowd erupted once again as three guys and the pink-haired girl from earlier made their way onto the platform. The girl, who appeared to change from her black attire to a tied white shirt and loose high-waisted blue jeans, walked towards the microphone stand in the center. The scowl she wore earlier was replaced by a look of pure joy; her smile gleaming as her eyes looked over the crowd.

"How's everyone doing tonight?" Her voice rang through the speakers as the crowd cheered once again in response. "We are The LA Devils."

The drummer began the song with an aggressive pattern of the bass and snare drum before the two guitarists on either side of Pink Hair joined in.

"I dare you to say my name,

You can't tell me they sound the same,"

I felt my body straighten as I heard the sound that escaped her lips. Her tone was darker and more controlled than I imagined, yet still possessed a beautiful lightness to it. The husk behind her voice was an appealing sound, which I found myself quickly drawn to.

"... These friends, they just use you,

They just want the free hotel suites..."

Her body moved effortlessly around the small stage, captivating every single person in the crowd with her presence.

"... I don't care what you say,

As long as you're thinking of me,

The best of us can find happiness, drowning in misery..."

"Wow, she can sing," Ryan commented at the end of the set, as the band walked off the stage

All I could respond with was a mere nod as my mind was still fixated in its trance. By the time the performance had finished, I had become so mesmerized by her voice that I was wishing for it to never end.

"Hey, Ryan!" A man walked over to where we stood, "Glad you came out."

Ryan grinned as the two of them shook hands, "Carter, Brandon. Brandon, Carter." He gestured back and forth between us, giving a quick introduction.

"Ah, the pop star," Brandon smirked, "Nice to meet you, man." His act of a genuine introduction barely covered the condescending undertone in his voice.

I forced a pleasant smile in return, "You too. It was a good show."

"You guys should come and join us for the after-party," Brandon said, ignoring the compliment.

Ryan turned his head towards me with a curious expression as if to ask, should we?, to which I responded with a nod. The only reason why I was willing to spend more possible time with the ass-of-a-guy Brandon was for the chance to meet Pink Hair. There was something about her I was having difficulty with letting escape from my mind, and I was determined to find out why.

A brunette walked over to Brandon's side, putting her arm over his shoulder as she whispered into his ear. A devious smile crossed the guy's face, clearly finding whatever she had to say entertaining.

"Yeah, see you later, doll," he said to her, his eyes lingering on her as she walked off. "Damn," he mumbled, turning his attention back to Ryan and me, "You two in? Just need to wait for my girl then we can all head out."

Ryan and Brandon continued with their conversation as I became distracted in my thoughts. There was something about the way Brandon acted that led me to assume his 'girl' was not the brunette who had just left. More specifically, there was something that screamed sleaze about this guy. Maybe it was the fact that he took so much enjoyment in watching the girl walk off. Perhaps it was just the way he dressed; a red satin shirt with the first two buttons undone, exposing a tattoo under his collar bone, and a long gold chain around his neck which matched the gold watch and bracelets around his wrist. Sleaze wasn't enough. It was more of a try-hard sleaze.

"Hey, baby," Brandon's voice pulled me from my thoughts as I looked up to see his arm around none other than Pink Hair. It was clear that she was the girl, correction, his girl. "TJ, this is Ryan, and..." his voice trailed as he looked over at me, "I'm sorry, I forgot your name."

My jaw clenched at his patronizing tone. "Carter."

"They are joining us for the party," Brandon said to TJ, leaning in to kiss her lips.

At least one decent thing came from this interaction. One part of Pink Hair's puzzle was solved: her name.

I watched as TJ turned her head, her eyes fell onto mine and a smirk formed on her lips. "Awesome," her hand slipped into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out, what I assumed to be, the twenty-dollar bill I had given her earlier. "First round's on me then."

song lyrics reference: I don't care - fall out boy

(I suggest listening to the real version because my fake lyrics don't do the song justice!)

thank you so much for reading chapter 1!!! i am so excited to get this story out (again).

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CHQ: why do you think Carter left 5KINGS?