FicWad

I watched the crowd with a huge smile plastered on my face as I finished my chords for the song. Paul brushed his shoulder against mine and smiled at me from under his mask. I pushed back, long fingers moving easily. Paul laughed, barely heard over the music and roar of the crowd. With a snort I walked away, jumping up on a riser and waving at the fans. I heard their laughter and smiled, dancing horribly. Feeling someone jumping up next to me, I smiled when I saw Sid standing beside me.

He grins up at me, eyes blazing in the stage lights. I glance behind us, seeing Chris and Clown creeping closer to us. I lean down, letting him run his fingers over the neck of my guitar. With a smile, I lean closer to his ear. "Pinocchio and Clown are coming for you. I would run!" I shout loudly. Sid looks over his shoulder, shaking his head. Chris jerks his head and drags a finger over his throat jokingly.

Sid looks back at me, jumping down from the riser. He walks slightly towards the guys, stopping about five feet from them. I watch, seeing Paul and Mick doing the same thing. Clown steps towards the laughing teen. Sid shakes his head tauntingly and stepping back. This time, Chris darts forward, arms outstretched. Sid hollered, turning around and jumping off the stage. Chris skidded to a stop next to, teetering dangerously on the edge. I yanked him back with a laugh, watching Sid crowd surf the massive crowd.

Chris stood next to me, eyeing Sid with a slow shake of his head. Sid bounced around on the crowd's hands, fist pumping in the ear. I heard the last notes of our encore song and turned to the rest of the stage, letting my shoulders relax. Joey was slowly climbing from his kit, sticks hanging limply in his gloved hands. Craig was trying to dislodge Paul from around his neck. Mick stood next to me, arms crossed and eyes following Sid over the crowd. Corey shouted a farewell and tossed his sweat sodden hair from his face.

Slowly the crowd started to thin out. Sid continued to surf the remaining fans. Corey came to stand next to me and Mick, leaning an elbow on Micks upper arm. Silently we watched our DJ make his rounds. Shaking my head, I turned and handed my guitar to a techie. Sighing deeply, Corey rolled his shoulders. "Alrighty, I want to go to the hotel. We need to get the monkey in."

"Have fun with that. He's been wired up since Paulie and him did the Monster shooters. He's not coming in anytime soon." Mick mumbled, yawning deeply in his mask. Corey shot the yawning man a tired look and groaned. Mick laughed, pulling the guitar from his side and heading off stage. "We'll find him later, once the crowd is gone."

"I'm not waiting that long. I want to go to go home, now." Flicking his mic back on, Corey jumped up on the riser I had vacated. I wondered for a second what he was doing. "SID! Get back on stage! It's time to go!" he shouted, voice echoing through the speakers.

It took a moment before we heard Sid's reply. It was almost comical. He looked over at us, eyes dangerously brightening. I knew we were in for a difficult time. "No!"

I looked over at Corey, smiling deeply. Corey rolled his eyes, probably thinking whether or not to go in after him. Corey caught me looking, blue eyes darkening. "Sid, I swear to God. Get back on the stage!" Corey ordered once more. The rest of the guys slowly returned to the stage, watching the battle between band mates.

"No! I'm crowd surfing." Sid shouted back, bouncing higher in the remaining crowd. Clown chuckled behind us, towel slung around his neck. Corey glowered at him. Clown raised his hands, shaking his head. From Sid's closer distance, I could hear him laughing. He was having fun.

Corey pinched the bridge of his nose under his mask. I knew why he was getting frustrated. We were all tired and wanted to rest. The tour had taken its toll on all of us and we just wanted to go home. Joey stood beside me, hair soggy with a mix of sweat and water. We all watched the bouncing teen, mixed emotions coursing through us. "I'm giving you to the count of five, Sid…"

Sid acted as if he didn't hear Corey. I tried to hold in my laughter. I felt a body leaning into mine and looked down, smiling when I saw Joey resting into me. He smiled, jerking his eyes over at Corey. Corey glanced at both of us and frowned. "One..."

Our bouncing DJ waved, egging Corey further. Corey swore loudly. "Two…" Sid ducked down under the crowd, emerging a moment later with a ripped shirt in his hands. "I mean it, Sid. Three."

"I can't hear you." Sid shouted, spinning the shirt around. Growling deeply, Corey jumped off his riser and climbed down the stage to the floor. The security guards moved closer to the railing, making sure Corey didn't get jumped by the fans. Most of guards wore smiles, laughing at the battle between Corey and Sid. They had seen this encounter many times before, except with Sid battling against the other guys.

I watched as Corey climbed the railing, tossing his mic back to his roadie. He leaned out over the crowd, laughing slightly as the fans reached to shake hands. Sid bounced closer to Corey, not really seeing him. Corey smirked, holding up four fingers. Joey moved out from besides me and sank down on the riser. I crossed my arms and moved my feet around.

Hopefully Corey got a hold of Sid soon, I was beyond tired. Corey threw his hand in the air, all his fingers outstretched. The crowd surged forward, Sid moving with them.
Corey leaned forward, grabbing Sid by the back of his jumpsuit and yanked him off the crowd. Sid started struggling the minute he felt Corey's hands on him. Corey shook his head, wrapping an arm around Sid's upper torso. With a sharp jerk, they both tumbled of the rail and crashed down on the floor. My laughter ripped through me, the noise louder now that the fans were further away. I saw Corey craning his neck to look up at me and I waved back. I received a middle finger in return.

"Asshole that hurt." Sid whined loudly. He pushed himself from Corey's hold and sat up slowly. One hand rubbed the back of his head and the other rubbed his ass. Joey snorted, shaking his head in amusement. Sid heard the noise and glared at us, copying Corey's gesture and flipping us off.

"I warned you." Corey stated, getting to his feet with a shake of his head. Sid pouted, visible through the huge gap in his mask. He crossed his arms tightly over his chest and stamped his foot. Corey snorted, whipping his hair from his eyes. Dropping down quickly, he grabbed Sid around the thighs and hoisted the pouty teen over his shoulder. Sid shouted his displeasure loudly. Corey ignored him completely, walking towards the back stage and disappearing quickly.

I shook my head, glancing down at Joey with a smirk. He was half asleep, chin cradle in hands as he leaned on his knees. I poked him gently back into the world of the living. He blinked, shaking his head and yawning. I smirked, nudging him again. "C'mon Jo. Let's get back stage and washed up. Then we can finally get to the hotel."

"Can you carry me?" Joey asked softly, yawning deeply again. I rolled my eyes, slightly shaking my head. Without a word, I crouched down besides my nodding off drummer and carefully scooped him up. He mumbled incoherently about being dropped and rested his head on my shoulder. Chris was right: we were a bunch of pussies sometimes. But I guess that was bound to happen when your band mates were closer than some families. It was just natural.

A few of the roadies teased Joey as I walked towards the green room. He feebly fought back, hair falling limply into his face. He looked exhausted, his mask resting on his chest and arms tucked up near his head. I kicked the door opened and laughed as Craig jumped in surprise. He swore loudly, yanking his shirt on with a glare directed at me. "Always breaking down the damn door." he mumbled, stuffing his suit into the dirty laundry bin.

I chuckled, walking into the room and depositing Joey down in front of his station. He swayed slightly, reaching out to grab the table quickly. I steadied him with a light hand, hoping he didn't fall over. Laughing softly, Joey waved me off. He sank into his chair and pulled his back pack closer to his body. "I'm alright, Jim. You can leave me be."

I rolled my eyes again. He snorted, pushing long hair from his face. I turned away, eyes scanning the room. Craig was nose deep in his book now, mumbling as he read to himself. Mick was towel drying his hair as he argued with Chris over yet another video game. Clown was talking to his wife on the phone, weakly trying to keep Paul away from his phone. I smirked, knowing Paul would eventually get a hold of the phone and start talking to Clown's wife. Paul saw me looking and he grinned, reaching for the phone once more.

Clown held his hand up, fending off the bassist. He shot me a tired look and I shrugged. He glared, flipping me off and taking his attention of Paul. In one quick motion, Paul snatched the phone from Clown and darted across the room. Clown groaned loudly, running his hands through his hair quickly. I chuckled, unzipping my suit and kicking off my sneakers. "Have fun getting that back." I teased. Clown flipped me off, walking towards Paul and demanding his phone.

"SID! Turn the hot water back on!" Corey shouted dangerously. Sid ran quickly out of the locker room, hair soggy and towel wrapped tightly around his waist. Mick sighed, bending slightly and catching him around the waist. Sid kicked slightly, making sure he kept his towel down. Corey padded out of the locker room, hair dripping with dark eyes and dressed in the same fashion as Sid. "I swear Sid; I am going to get you back for that!"

Sid grinned widely, teeth bared. Mick glanced over his head, looking at Corey. "So, should I let him go or do you want to beat the snot out of him?" he asked, juggling the still wiggling teen. Sid shouted his protest. Corey waved him off, stalking back into the bathroom. Sid laughed, slapping Mick's arm to be put down. Mick happily obliged and dropped the teen none too gently onto his ass. "Oops."

"Everyone is out to break my ass tonight." Sid whined, pushing himself to his feet. He walked to his station, digging around in his duffel bag with one hand. With a victorious shout, he yanked out cleaned clothes and dressed quickly. Not caring either when he flashed the room with his back side. The guys groaned and covered their eyes, making Sid laugh harder.

I hung my head, snatching up clean clothes and heading into the locker rooms. Corey was exiting as I entered. He half smiled at me, beanie pulled low over his eyes. I half nodded to him, grabbing a towel from the shelf and disappearing into the stalls. All I wanted was to be rid of the tour grim and I knew this shower wasn't really going to cut it but it had to do. Fifteen minutes later, I turned the water off and still felt slightly sticky. I hated locker room showers. They remind me of gym class.

"Hey, Peaches. You done yet?" Sid hollered loudly, banging on the wall next to my stall. I rolled my eyes, drying off quickly. I pulled on clean boxers and stepped out of stall. Sid was lying down on the wooden bench that ran along the showers and swinging his legs over the sides. I watched him for a second; enjoying the goofy, peaceful expression he had on his face. He seemed relaxed for the first time since the news of his brother's proposal surfaced. And I personally thought he deserved it.

"I'm done, Ratboy. The guys send you in here to get me?" I asked, sinking down near his head. His eyes opened, green eyes sparkling. He shook his head, mouth set in a grin. I arched my brows at him. When Sid didn't talk, it was never a good thing. Ever. I yanked my shirt on and slipped my jeans on, standing to button them up. "What's with you?"

"We're riding in a plane to Iowa." he said excitedly. He pushed himself up, face split in a huge smile. I chuckled, roughly towel drying my hair. Sid bounced on the side of me, chanting about riding the plane. Stuffing my feet inside sneakers, I jerked my head towards the others guys. Sid slid from the bench, jumping up and wrapping himself around my torso. I groaned playfully, shifting so he sat comfortably on my back.

Walking back into the main room, I heard the guy's laughter when they saw Sid on my back. Corey shook his head from his seat on the couch. I walked to the couch, sitting down and squashing Sid into the cushions. The teen protested, pushing against my back with a shout. Corey laughed, reaching in and pulling Sid out from behind me. Sid grunted, falling into Corey's arms with a laugh. Corey ruffled his hair and smiled. "How was getting crushed by the giant Peach?"

"Horrible. I told him about the plane!" Sid exclaimed, mind changing subject instantly. Corey's eyes rolled, lips twitching. We both knew how fast Sid could switch between topics. Spending time with the teen helped all of us developed that habit. Sid's eyes bounced between the two of us. "How come we're taking the plane?"

Corey sighed, wrapping an arm around Sid's shoulder. Sid looked up at the sighing man with worry slipping into his eyes. My stomach tightened slightly, I hated it when Sid's eyes weren't sparking. When they were filled with bad emotions, it was as if the sun ran away. Corey leveled his gaze with the teen. "We thought it would better if we took the plane to avoid any stops where Beau could be. If we traveled by bus, there are a lot of places where he could show up."

Sid was quiet, eyes dropping slightly. One look in them and I knew he was digesting the information. After a minute he nodded, face serious. "I guess that's true. He would try to get me back from you guys." He paused, a thoughtful expression crossing his face. "But how am I supposed to get on? I don't have my passport anymore."

I laughed, leaning forward and grabbing his back pack under the table. Sid watched intently as I unzipped the small front pocket and produced a small blue book. With a grin I handed it to him. "We had management get it. Figured if you would be touring with us, you would need valid papers. Free to fly, Ratboy."

Sid grabbed the passport from my hands, running his fingers over his picture. I remember Clown taking the picture. "Clown said it was for his collection. He lied!" he pouted, craning his neck to glare at the older man. Clown smirked, waving back innocently. Sid pushed against Corey, struggling to get up. Corey rolled his eyes, wrapping an arm around his waist and keeping him in place. "So he knew the picture was for my passport?"

"It was basically Clown's idea. None of us thought about it. You're lucky he did or we would be shipping you home in a dog crate." Chris pointed out. He was busy tugging his hair into a pony tail and searching the room for his baseball hat. Craig held it silently between two fingers, waving it slightly. Chris mumbled thanks and grabbed the hat. Stuffing it on his head, he smirked. "Though Clown and I did kick around the idea of actually shipping you a dog crate. Sounded like a fun plan."

This time it took both me and Corey to contain Sid. The teen laughed slightly, fighting against our hold to get at the laughing percussionist. With a grunt, Corey jerked Sid down into his lap and locked his arms around him. Sid wiggled slightly, look of concentration on his face. "Knock it off! Before I let him ship you in a crate." Corey warned. Sid huffed, crossing his arms over Corey's and glaring down at the floor. Corey sighed, glaring over at Chris. "You two need to stop acting like children. He's going to get wound up and you'll be bitching when he doesn't leave you alone."

Chris's mouth opened to argue. Mick stepped next to him and crossed his arms. Chris sighed, holding up his hands in surrender. Mick nodded, grabbing his bag from the floor and shouldering it. With a small smile, he looked around the room. "Well I don't know about you guys but I am ready to go home. Whose coming?" he asked voice humorous.

I pushed myself to my feet, stretching slightly and yawning. I grabbed my coat and slipped into it without a word. Sid struggled out of Corey's arm, bouncing excitedly on his feet once again. Slowly the guys all pulled themselves to their feet. The prospect of going home was a great motivator to get anyone moving. Together we herded out the door and into the waiting tour bus, most of going to the bunk rooms to find things we wanted for the plan ride. I had already packed my bag earlier in the day and laughed at my band mates scurrying around the bus. With a smirk, I sank into the couch and pulled my guitar magazine to me. Sometimes it paid off to be ready.

"Root, what are you sitting around for? Don't you have shit to get together?" Paul called, stuffing his traveling blanket into his duffel bag. I shook my head, eyes scanning the article on guitar strings. He shot me a confused look then grinned. Tossing his bag to the couch he sat neck to me, resting his head on my shoulder. "Let me guess. You packed earlier before the show, when T.M told us we would be flying home by plane."

"Yep. Know me all too well, Paulie." I smirked, glancing at him from the corners of my eyes. Paul snorted, nodding his head. I settled back and continued reading my article. When I finished, I tossed the book back onto the table and looked down at my bassist. He was staring out the opposite window with a small smirk on his face. "What are you grinning about, Paul?"

"Just thinking about how great it will be to be home. I missed it. Especially my bed." he explained, his voice tired and soft. I nodded in agreement, eyes slipping close again. I rested my head against his and yawned, hoping we reached the airport quickly. I wanted to sleep. "Hey James."

"Yeah, Paul?"

"You think we'll be able to keep Sid safe?"

I half opened my eyes to look at him. He seemed half asleep himself, eyes closed. I wondered briefly if he was sleep talking but I heard the seriousness in his words. Nodding my head, I smiled despite the fact that he couldn't see it. "The safest place Sid could be is with us. He has eight guys making sure nothing bad happens to him. He has more protection and love than any other kid I know. We'll keep him safe."

-------------

The feeling of the plane landing jolted me from my peaceful slumber. I carefully opened my eyes, grateful that I had my sunglasses on. The lights above my head glared down around me and I felt bad for James as he startled awake and blinded himself. Chuckling slightly, I looked over at him and grinned. "Matter, Jim? Lights to bright?"

"Shut up, Mick." he grumbled, reaching up to rub his eyes roughly. I smirked, shaking my head. I glanced around the cabin, watching my band mates move from their prone positions. Craig was attempting to dislodge Joey from his arm, a small smile on his face. Corey was mumbling something about getting coffee. Paul and Chris were fighting over the pack of peanuts between them. Clown was closing his book and removing his headphones, a relaxed look on his face.

Sid mumbled slightly in his sleep, head burying deeper into my chest. I swung my gaze around and looked down at him. He had somehow managed to convince Craig to switch seat with him before we took off. So I had gotten stuck with him as we flew home. It hadn't been as bad as I had expected. He bounced around for about fifteen and then crashed during the inflight movie. The only part I wasn't fond of was waking him up. He got extremely cranky when he woke up before he was ready. Chris had found that one out the hard way.

With a sigh I glanced over at Corey. He smiled back at me as he pulled down our bags from overhead. Slinging his over his shoulder, he peeked at Sid. "So you waking him up or just carrying him off?" he asked, voice slightly teasing. I glared at him and he just smirked. "Personally, I would just carry him off. That way we don't have to deal with cranky Sid."

"I had a feeling you would say that." I mumbled, I unclicked my seatbelt and carefully stood, laying Sid out in my seat. I stretched my back, grunting as my muscles all protested and all my joints cracked loudly. Corey made a face of dislike and I bumped him gently with my shoulder. He laughed, shaking his head as he headed for the exit. I sighed once again, looking down at the sleeping teen. With a small smile, I lifted him carefully into my arms and made sure his head was against my shoulder.

I heard someone snickering behind me and I flipped them off over my shoulder. The laughing stopped instantly. I smirked, maneuvering out the plane with ease. Carrying Sid was almost second nature to me and it showed. Clown stepped up from behind me, brows arched at the sleeping teen. I cast him a warning expression. "You wake him up and I will end you, Clown." I muttered, stepping off the platform into the bright airport.

I stopped next to the pillar advertising some chick flick comedy and rested against it slightly. Sid mumbled slightly, fingers gripping the fabric of my coat. I smiled as I watched him, wondering for a moment what he was seeing. The guys slowly shambled off the platform, blinking in the light. The place was pretty much empty except for us. Which was kind of nice, it meant no fans trying to get autographs. I wouldn't mind doing them if I wasn't juggling Sid in my arms and I wasn't wishing deeply for my bed.

Joey headed over in my direction, hat pulled low over his eyes. He didn't say a word and just leaned against my side, head bumping Sid's back. I arched my eye brows at him, but didn't say anything. Apparently I was the leaning post today. The rest of the guys grouped around us, leaning into each other tiredly. Clown glanced at all of us and smiled. "There should be cars outside to take us all home. I called ahead to have them ready."

That set everyone off. We headed for the exits, collecting our carry-on luggage and bolting for the door. Most of our stuff would reach home later in the week. I adjusted Sid in my arms and kept pace with Chris, talking about some new video game he had read about. At the doors we separated into three cars, each car taking it contents to their homes. I climbed into the back, Corey and Paul with me. We waved goodbye to the others and pulled away from the airport. I watched the others fade away and rested my head on the headrest.

The car was silent much of the ride home. I was grateful for it. I was too tired to talk. Paul was silently jamming to the music playing from the speakers. Corey was staring intently out the window, blue eyes following the landmarks we passed. When we pulled up outside Paul's house, he turned to us and grinned like usual. "Well, this is where I leave you. I'll talk to you guys tomorrow." He disappeared from the car before anyone of us could say anything.

Corey laughed softly, shaking his head. I looked over at him, blinking at his humor. He waved me off. I shrugged, letting my head fall forward to rest in Sid's hair. It had already started to shag out and I knew he wanted his Mohawk back. I liked the longer hair; it gave me something soft to rest my head in. Corey glanced at me in the rearview mirror, turning slowly onto my street. He pulled into my driveway and killed the engine. "Might as well help get you two inside. There's no way you can hold Sid and handled your shit."

I smiled, conveying my thanks silently. I slid from the car and fished my keys from my pocket skillfully. Corey whistled, grabbing our bags and shouldering them with ease. I rolled my eyes, walking up the path to the front door. Corey followed close behind. I opened the door and stepped inside the darkened room. Almost instantly, I felt my muscles starting to unwind. Just knowing I was home made me relax. I slapped the lights on and blinked in the brightness of the living room. God, home never looked so welcoming.

"You going to stare all night or are you going to move so I can come in?" Corey asking, laughing slightly. I growled, stepping out of his way. He waltzed in, tossing the bags to the couch and heading into the kitchen. I arched my brows at him, following after him. When I entered, he was pulling a water bottle from the fridge with a smirk. "Hope you don't mind."

"None at all. Paul and Joey do the same thing." I mumbled. He smirked and then jerked his head at Sid. I looked down at the teen. He was still out cold, face pressed to my chest with a small smile. I felt my lips twitch at the sight. "I gotta get him into bed."

Corey nodded, capping his water. Together we headed upstairs to the master bedroom. Corey stood in the doorway, eyes moving around the room. I laid Sid out on the bed and carefully pulled his sneakers off. I tossed them near the dresser and worked on getting him out of his jacket. Corey snorted, walking in and helping me out. I smiled in gratitude. Working together, we made short work of getting Sid undressed to just his boxers and shirt.

I folded the clothes and laid them out on the chest at the end of the bed. Corey shook his head, looking down at Sid with a tired look. I pulled off my coat and yanked my shirt over my head. Corey sighed, leaning down and pressing a kiss to the sleeping teen's forehead. Smirking I sank down on the chest, bending to untie my laces. "He's safe with us, ya know. Beau won't get his hands on him."

"I know. I just don't want to see him hurt. Shit like that can break a kid. Sid doesn't deserve that." Corey mumbled, voice soft. I looked over at him, eyes finding his. He looked haggard in the dim light, bags under his eyes and hair falling into his eyes. I stood, walking next to him and wrapping him up in a one armed hug.

"You didn't deserve it either, Taylor. No one deserves shit like that." I stated voice serious. Corey made a snort of disbelief. I pulled away and gave him a leveled look. Corey's eyes ducked away from mine. I rolled my eyes. "You can fight it all you want. You didn't deserve what you got. You know that but yet you still think you're this evil monster that did. You're fucked up in the head if you do."

"You have a way with words, Mick. Anyone ever tell you that?"

I smirked, ruffling his hair. "You tell me all the time, Mouth. If you were as fucked up as you think you are, you would never have climbed that fence. You would've left Sid in the alley way. You would have just walked away. But you didn't and that alone proves you're better than what you think you are."

Corey blinked, blushing slightly. I gave him a sharp nod, ending the discussion. I stepped away, kicking my boots towards Sid's. I looked back at my singer, catching the small smile on his face. He caught me looking and flipped me off. He glanced down at his watch and sighed. "Guess I should head home. It's pretty late."

"Take the guest room, dude. It's late, you're tired and I don't trust you to drive. Stay the night." I offered. Corey laughed, opening his mouth to argue with me. I shot him a deadly look. He threw his hands up in a defensive position. I laughed, walking out of the master room and across the hall into the spare room. I flicked on the lights and was surprised to see bedding on the bed. I must've set it up before I left. "It's not the Hilton but it's better than a couch."

Corey brushed past me, tossing his jacket on the bed. One look around and he grinned. "Hell, it's better than anything. Thanks Mick." I smiled, nodding slightly. Corey yawned, dropping down onto the bed. I rolled my eyes, walking back into my room. "Night, dude."

"Night Corey." I called. I heard the click of the light being turned off and the light reflecting into the hallway disappeared. I yawned, stripping out of my jeans and digging around for a clean shirt to sleep in. I found on and yanked it on as I walked towards the bed. It was beckoning to me and I wasn't ignoring it anymore.

I climbed under the covers, feeling the heat Sid was giving off. I stretched out, loving the feeling of space around me. Of all the things I miss during touring, my bed was at the top of my list. I was tall and sometimes the bunk made me feel closed in. At least in my bed, I knew there was room and big enough to share. Sid must have sensed me, because he rolled over and rested his head on my arm. I watched him sleep for a moment, body growing tired.

With a sigh of content, I rolled onto my side. Sid rolled back over but pressed his back to my chest. I draped an arm over his middle, pulling him close to me. I would never admit it aloud, but I enjoyed having the teen next to me. He was like the little brother I always wanted, someone I could protect. And ever since Corey told me about his nightmares, I was more than happy to share my bed with him. That way I could protect him even when I was asleep. I pressed a soft kiss to the back of his head and finally let sleep pull me under.