oh, you're the apple of my eye. open

[ATTICUS DERAUX!]

It couldn't have been any easier to get up that morning, what with the sun shining through the windows, the bird chirping outside and his four year old daughter jumping on his bed in the hotel room. The young father of twenty four groaned and rolled over, pretending that he was going to go back to sleep when, really, he was just playing around with the young girl. Hearing her pleads for him to wake up and get ready to go, he finally caved and quickly rolled over, wrapping his arms around her and pinning her to the bed. The tickling commenced soon after and didn't stop for a good four or five minutes, the whole time Ophelia's laughter echoing throughout the hotel room. He had promised the young girl that he would take her to the beach today, seeing as he had the day off for once. In fact, he had promised her many a time that he would, but never could because he got called in to work the booth or something along those lines. One of these days he was just going to tell them that he couldn't and, if that meant he was fired, then he'd get fired. He knew he couldn't keep making empty promises to his daughter throughout her life, what kind of father would he be? It was also obvious to him that it wasn't fair that he kept dragging her onto tours, but he knew that, when she was older, she'd appreciate the fact that she was bale to grow up in such a different environment.

Once he had finally crawled out of bed, he quickly dressed Ophelia and then himself, prepared to head out into the warm, spring air. Sure, it wasn't nearly as warm as summer, but he didn't plan on letting Ophelia go into the water. He knew that she would start to ask him for it, maybe even have a bit of a fit, but that never really worked - now that the young girl was about five, she knew that she couldn't always get what she wanted. Holding onto his daughter's hand, Atticus started to lead the two of them towards the beach, listening to Ophelia's excited chirps along the way. After about ten minutes of walker, he knew Ophelia wanted a shoulder ride, so he gave her just that. Finding a surface for her to stand on, he stood in front of her and helped her up onto his shoulders. Then they were off again, in search of the beach.

When they finally reached it, Atticus put Ophelia down, groaning as he did so, "Oh my god, you're getting big." he explained before he placed teh girl on her feet, "I don't know how much longer I can give you those shoulder rides for." he added before he took the girl's hand once more and started to walk along the beach. He could see the excitement in her deep brown eyes as she looked out to the ocean, "Daddy, do you think we'll see a whale?!" she asked in her usual curious tone. Atticus wanted to say yes, he wanted to so badly, but he couldn't - he didn't want her to grow up getting her hopes up and then getting crushed, "Oh, I don't think so, pipsqueek." he explained, having called her that ever since she was born. He kind of liked being at the beach, he liked that there was no one else around; as confident as he was with his appearence, it was sometimes nice not have people stop to look at him, especially when he was with his daughter. Looking down at Ophelia, he could see the pout in her lips, "Awe, don't do that, we can probably find some starfish!" he exclaimed before he started to lead her to a shallow pool, the excitement on his daughter's face returning swiftly.

"words" six six three "tags" open "notes" hurray for atticus!

THANK YOU, DUCK @ CAUTION!

[zachary stone!]

[bg=black][atrb=width,400,true][atrb=border,0,true] Zach groaned as he rolled over in his bunk, the nights events a blur to him. Though as he moved he felt a warm body next to him, and grinned slightly. However when he forced his eyes open and saw who was next to him, he grunted before shoving the girl out of his bunk without a seconds thought. The small girl hit the ground with a thud, and then looked up in a very confused fashion. Zach just laughed before parting his lips to speak. "Perhaps that's a sign you need to get the fuck home, yea?" Z reached for his smokes. He pulled a cigarette out and placed it between his lips, grabbing his zippo carelessly. He lit his cigarette before letting his eyes fall onto the girl once more. "Are you dense, get the fuck off my bus." he cursed, before leaning back on his pillows and taking a drag. Though when he heard the girl start to ramble off what she thought, he simply chuckled. "Sweetheart, your the last thing I want at my side, nagging me. Now get going before I toss you out like a whore." he said making a motion to get up so that she had no doubt he would. The girl collected her things, cursed at him, and exited the bus with what dignity remained. Zach smirked before laying back against his pillow once more. His calloused hands began searching for his phone. He decided to text Atticus, after all he sounded like the perfect person to grab some grub with. 'Hey, where are you bro, wanna get some eats?' Zach texted quickly. He finished off the rest of his cig, before getting up and heading towards the bathroom. As he passed Gambit's bunk he couldn't resist the urge to kick the bottom of it just to be an ass. Zach always liked provoking Gambit, it was like taunting a bear. Dangerous, but the suspense of what the slumbering beast would do was to much to resist. However this morning it seemed the only response was a fuck you, and a grumble, Z left disappointed. Zach turned on the shower, and as he waited for the water to warm up, he took a piss. After he had finished pissing he checked his phone one more time, before hopping in the shower. Atticus was usually game for whatever, but for some reason Z didn't feel as comfortable with just showing up like he did with some other people. Z showered quickly, mostly because he was fucking starving, and wanted to get some chow. Zach pulled out a pair of black skinny jeans, his belt, and one of his numerous worn band shirts. He slipped everything on, placed his cigs and zippo in his back pocket. Z reached for his phone, immediately smiling when he saw the text. His smile only growing when Atticus said he was at the beach with his daughter. Zach never wanted any kids of his own, but he sure as hell didn't mind playing uncle to Atticus's little girl. Something about kids made him feel like he didn't have to keep up his guard as much, and even brought the inner child out of him a bit. Zach had never really had a childhood, he had spent most of it taking care of himself, and his drug addict mother. He never got to experience chucky cheese, snow cones, or an imaginary friend. No Z got stuck with a drunken mother, with junkie boyfriends, and several close calls. Grabbing the rest of his shit, including the keys to his car, he headed towards the city, and then to the beach. He parked in a lot close to the section of beach Atticus said they were walking, and hopped out. Zach leaned against the front of his car as his eyes attempted to spot his good friend, and adopted niece. When he spotted them he slowly made his way towards them. Z was taking his time mostly due to the fact he wanted to finish his cigarette before reaching them. Zach didn't respect or care for the rules people set, but in his own mind he thought it very unhealthy, and dangerous to smoke around the little ones. He tossed the remainder of his cigarette into the sand once he was a few feet away. "Damn dude, you stick out like a black guy at a KKK meeting out here." Z said with a laugh. Though his attention soon went to the little girl at his side. "Hows my favorite little princess today, you find any sea critters yet?" Zach said with a smile.

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[ATTICUS DERAUX!]

As his daughter and himself took a short stroll to the beach, he listened to her little ramblings and observant statement. Honestly, at times, when he looked at her and saw his face in her, he felt like he was hit with a brick wall. The reality of being a father was always something that amazed and, sometimes, terrified him. If there was one thing that Atticus didn't want to do, that would be a bad father or do anything to hurt his little girl or corrupt her in any way. Of course, having her tag along on a tour probably wasn't exactly the best place to start, what with the sex, drugs and violence, but he didn't want to leave her with her mother. Rubbing his bald head, he kept his hand gripped on his little girl's, making sure she stayed close to him as they neared the beach. That was when he felt a vibration in his pocket; pulling his phone out of his pocket, he furrowed his eyebrows at the sight of Zach's name. How was that fucker up this early? Shrugging softly, he pushed the thought aside and told his friend that himself and Ophelia were going to the beach to go collect shells. As much of a hard ass that Zach was, he was sucker for Ophelia, which was funny to watch, especially when Zach was supposedly the 'badass' of the tour.

With Ophelia by his side, Atticus walked along the length of the beach, trying to find some cool stuff for his four year old daughter to look at and explore. After a while, he let go of her hand and told her to go ahead a bit, but not too far. Being the well behaved girl that she was, Ophelia always stayed only a couple of feet ahead of him and never got too close to the water. She had learned her lesson the hard way what happens when she misbehaves. Atticus wasn't into beating his daughter at all, he did punish her by taking things away or going home when she was having a tantrum at some place she wanted to be at. He wasn't one of those parents who said one thing but then never followed through, he knew that she wouldn't learn that way. He needed to follow through with his threats and he always did, one hundred percent of the time.

That was when Ophelia was looking behind Atticus with a huge smile on her face before she started booking it back towards him, Raising an eyebrow at her, he was about to ask her what she was doing, when he heard Zach's familiar voice. Turning around, he chuckled and shook his head, "That never gets old for you, does it?" he asked, having Zach always say something like that whenever they met up. He knew Zach's words were true though, Atticus did stick out like a sore thumb, what with his very recognizable skull head tattoo. Ophelia ran up to her uncle and hugged his leg, "I'm good, uncle Zach." she exclaimed before she shook her head at his second question, "Weren't you about to inspect that little pool over there? I'm sure you'll find some crabs or something." he stated before he gestured towards the pool, "Why don't you go ahead and me and uncle Zach will meet you, okay?" he asked and Ophelia, nodding her head frantically, started to run towards the shallow pool, "She asked if she would see a whale today." he stated before he chuckled, "I think I would be as excited as she is right now, if I got see one." he added and chuckled, "By the way, why the fuck are you up to so early?"

"words" six four five "tags" open "notes" hurray for atticus!

THANK YOU, DUCK @ CAUTION!

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[zachary stone!]

[bg=black][atrb=width,400,true][atrb=border,0,true] Zach was always amused by the blogs he read online about himself. The things people said were so blown out of proportion it wasn't even funny. Sure he had cussed out reporters but some of the quotes posted about what he had said couldn't be any further from the truth. Z never minded the exaggerated tails however, they boosted not only his popularity but his beloved bands. Now with his mom gone, all he really had was A Tasteful Death, and it seemed this new realization had caused a boost in his more recent performances. Z new if anything happened to the band, he would be truly alone. Thus he was willingly to put a bit more effort into every aspect of maintaining it. Hell Z, regardless of what management had told him in the past, had never attended signings. He hated being harassed by fans, and he hated being told what to do. Because of that he took every opportunity to tell management exactly where they could shove it. So needless to say it was a huge fiasco, in a good way, when Z made his first appearance at a signing. To add to the good vibe, Z even stayed the entire time. Zach chuckled at the thought, not sure who had been more surprised, management or Gambit himself. Z snapped from his thoughts when he heard Atticus reply to his comment. "Nope, I'll still be saying it when we are sixty, well if I'm still alive by then." he said with a grin. Zach had it in his head that he would be long dead before he was ever an old man. There was nothing good about getting old, your liver shut down, your looks faded, and god don't even think about what happens to your dick. Zach was so turned off by the idea of even getting a wrinkle, thus he had every intention of partying, and fucking himself to death before age ever go a chance to ruin his good time. Z smiled when he felt the little girls arms wrap around his leg. Z adored the girl, and treated her as if she truly was a part of his family. Zach would defend her ruthlessly from anything and anyone. That fact had been tested after his latest publicity stunt that had involved and underage girl. The girl was fucking seventeen for crying out loud, but of course the media had to make him out to be a perv. One person had even made the mistake of insinuating something about Ophelia and Z, which caused Zach to fly off the handle. Hence the two months off with a broken hand. Z may be a poor excuse of a human being, but when it came to Ophelia he was nothing but good around her. For those who had witnessed their interactions, well they were quite comical really. Badass Stone didn't look so hardcore when he was letting a little kid paint on his face, and he was making funny animal noises. Z didn't know what it was about the little girl that made him behave so much better, but he didn't hate it. "Your dad isn't being too tough on you today." he said with a smile, before smirking over at Atticus. Z was kind of disappointed when Atticus told her to go up ahead of them, but he made sure to hide it. " A whale?" Zach repeated with a laugh. "Yeah good luck finding one of those out here." he said with a smile. When Atticus asked why he was up so early, he grinned. "Honestly, I really dont know. I woke up to a person i didn't recognize, nothing shocking i know. I shoved her out of my bunk, threatened to throw her out on the lawn, and after that i was just like fuck it." he said looking over at his good friend. "No point trying to go back to sleep really, and I figured why not see what you two were up to." he spoke before letting his eyes find Ophelia to make sure she hadn't wondered off too far. "She staying with you the whole tour?" Zach asked curiously. Though Z wouldn't dare say it out loud, he wasn't much of a fan of Ophelia's mother. Z would much rather see Atticus have sole custody of her. Not to mention it tore him up as well when Atticus had to give her back to her crazy bitch of a woman. Zach had never spent a long time around the woman but the vibe he had gotten off her, and the few words she had spoken had just really turned him off. Whether it was because Ophelia had to leave, the tension he felt between his best friend and her, or the way she looked at him with those vulture eyes... he didn't know. But he wouldn't be troubled if anything ever happened to that horrid woman.

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[ATTICUS DERAUX!]

Ever since Atticus had become a father, he knew that he was going to need to make some life style changes; he didn't wear nearly as much as he used to, or smoke as much either. He cut out people he knew would cause trouble around his daughter and, luckily for Zach, he cleaned up his act whenever he was around Ophelia. He didn't care what the fuck Zach did on his own time, but when Ophelia was around, he needed to behave and he seemed to be doing a decent job of it. Honestly, this made Atticus smile, because he knew how much will power it took for his friend to act like a civilized person. For as long as he had known Zach, he seemed to be a stubborn fellow and hardly ever followed the rules, so when Atticus laid down some boundaries for him, he honestly didn't think himself and the bassist would be friends for much longer. Yet, here they were, still good friends and still close as they had been even before Ophelia. In fact, Ophelia had probably brought them closer together, because Atty got to see a side of his buddy that not many other people got to see, the side that actually gave a fuck.

A soft chuckle resonated from Atticus' mouth before he shook his head nad patted his friend on the shoulder, "I wouldn't push it." he teased, knowing that Zach really didn't take care of himself and it would be a miracle if he lived past his 40s. Honestly, Atticus had given up trying to help him because he knew that there was no way that he was going to be taken seriously by the guy he was standing next to. Atticus used to be like Zach, reckless, a womanizer and somewhat of a drug addict. But then he had met his ex wife and had Ophelia and now he realized there was much more to life than just getting wasted and fucking random women every night. Honestly, Atticus was kind of scared that he would get back into that when he came onto the tour, but bringing Ophelia with him had probably been the best decision he had ever made. The subconscious knowing that his daughter was around and could easily see him in a fucked up state had made it so that he hadn't walked out of line once since he started the tour.

Watching Ophelia run ahead, he turned his attention to Zach, knowing that there was probably a damned good reason that he had woken up early. He assumed it was probably something like a sound check or a meeting; but then Atticus thought about it and he knew that Zach hardly ever went to those anyways. His answer then made him smack himself in the head, because it was so god damned obvious, "Classy, Zach." he replied with a coy smirk before he scratched the back of his neck, "Does Selene know about this nameless... event?" he asked, having to pause for a moment to think of the right word, he didn't exactly want Ophelia hearing over the waves of the ocean, "I mean, you two are...together aren't you?" he asked before he raised an eyebrow at him. It was obvious enough that, even if they were 'together', Zach would probably go off and sleep with other girls anyways, and Selene vice verasa.

"Not the whole tour." he replied, shaking his head softly before he put his hands in his pockets, "Her mom is taking her for about a month next week." he explained and shrugged, "Ophelia misses her and, surprisingly, her mom misses her, so who am I to deny her of that?" he asked before they finally reached the little girl. Squatting down beside her, he looked at her, "Find anything, pipsqueak?" he asked, smirking softly before she held up a starfish, "Woah!" he exclaimed before he smiled brightly, loving the excited look on her face when she showed him, "Look, Uncle Zach! I found a starfish!" she exclaimed, holding up the starfish higher so that Zach could see.

"words" six eight three "tags" open "notes" hurray for atticus!

THANK YOU, DUCK @ CAUTION!

[zachary stone!]

[bg=black][atrb=width,400,true][atrb=border,0,true] Zach remembered the day Atticus set down the ground rules, and to be honest Z had found it rather amusing. But he heard his buddy out, and seeing how much it meant to him to keep their friendship but still be a positive role model inspired Zach in a sense. To be honest Z wasn't sure who was more excited when Ophelia finally entered this world. Sure Atticus probably was, but Zach had practically jumped up and down when he received the text from Atticus. What had started out as being there just support Atty turned into a whole new animal. Zach was attached to Ophelia like no ones business. He would drop things on a whim if Atticus needed him to pick up Ophelia from somewhere, take her to the airport, or just watch her while Atticus had to work. A lot of the personal days he took were to be there for Ophelia. He cared for that girl in a way he had never felt before. He felt the need to protect her from the bad things of this world, teach her, entertain her, and give her unconditional attention. No one other than Atticus really saw this side of him. The side that would sit on the floor and let Ophelia do god knows what to his hair, and decorate his face. The side of him that put sunglasses on her when she was an infant and place her hands in gang signs and take pictures. Although Z swore he would never have a kid of his own, he would make a damn good father their was no doubt of that. He felt comfortable being himself around the young girl mostly because she was the one person that he trusted entirely without fear. That little girl would never judge him for his past misdoings, would never rat him out to a gossip blog for being a goof. Ophelia allowed him to be himself without having to give up his reputation. Although his reputation was a terrible one, it wasn't who he truly was anymore. But bad boy images sold cds, made girls buy ticket they couldn't afford, and did we mention, sold more cds. Zach just laughed when Atticus told him he wouldn't push it. "No your right, I've got to stick around for her." he said with a smile. He meant those words too, he wanted to be there for Ophelia for the rest of her life. After all there would come a time when she would make mistakes, possibly need rescuing and wouldn't want to have to call her dad out of fear of him embarrassing her. Z wanted to be there for those times. To make sure she got home safely, and then her dad could yell at her like she might deserve. "Class is my middle name." he said with a chuckle. "She wouldn't leave Atticus. I'm not kidding that is the closest I've ever come to tossing someone out of my bus. Why can't they just leave with some dignity. They had a fun night, they can tell all their friends about it. But Jesus don't sit on my floor like a deer in the headlights shocked that I'm not making you breakfast. I don't have a rep for being a gentleman... " he said with a grin. When he asked about Selene, he rubbed the back of his head nervously. Selene was a tough topic for Zach. She had known that minx for years, protected her like he did Ophelia, but when it came down to it, he hid his true feelings for her. Zach loved her whether he realized that at the moment or not. She was the one constant in his life, and he needed her. "No, I don't go around telling her about everything I've stuck my shit in lately." he said with a shrug. Sure he tried not to swear around Ophelia, but there really wasn't a better word for that. After all dick, cock, and penis we rent exactly something that little girl need to be asking about right now. Zach laughed at his next statement, a very nervous and fake laugh. Most wouldn't pick up on the emotions behind the laugh, but knowing Atticus he probably did. Ophelia's father had known Z incredibly too long not to know when he was nervous or hiding something. "Nah, I cant be tamed, you know that." he said his arrogant, asshole nature taking over. A nature that wasn't who he truly was, but a sure sign that he didn't want to talk abut the matter any further. Z didn't like to admit to being attached to a certain woman mostly because he knew if he did it would hurt ten more time to be rejected by them. "What about you? Whose keeping you warm at night these days?" he asked curiously.

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[ATTICUS DERAUX!]

[style=font-family: times; font-size: 10px; padding-top: 10px;]S O M E T H I N G H A S T O C H A N G E, U N D E N I A B L E D I L E M M A

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[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,450,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=style, background-color: #6d6d6d;] [style=padding: 10px; text-align: justify; font-family: arial; font-size: 10px; height: 475px; overflow: auto; color: #1e1e1e;]The driving force behind Atticus' success has always been and always will be Ophelia. When she was born, he wanted to become a better person, someone that people looked up to and thought of in higher respect than most. He knew it would be difficult with the choices he made, like the tattoos, though he doesn't regret them in the slightest. Before he never really had any aspirations in life expect for getting most of his body tattooed, when he found out that he would need to support a child - his child - he knew that he had to get a decent job that would be able to give her anything she asked for. Before Ophelia was born, he had actually hoped for a boy so that he could dress the kid in punk rock clothes, give him a moehawk and show off to everyone just how bad ass his kid was. However, when he found out that they were having a girl, he was probably even more excited, knowing that she would probably be cute as a button but just as bad ass as the boy would have been. It was still the same when Ophelia was born, he dressed her in little rockabilly dresses and put her hair in bows and even tried a pompadour once. Well, they didn't exactly work because he her hair was too fine, but now that she was older, he was able to do little ones. Now that him and Zach were on the beach, watching his daughter frolic in the sand and little sea puddles, Atticus felt completely at peace. There was nothing like sharing the company of his daughter and one of his best friends, even though he was sick fuck. Atticus had learned early to tolerate Zach's antics, which was easy seeing as Atty had the patience of an ox when he wanted to. He knew that Zach took patience when it came to any sort of friendship or relationship, which a lot of people just didn't have now a days. That was why Harvey had left him. God he remembered how devastated Zach was after that and how hard it was to just get him back into the swing of things. Sure, Zach could have had any girl he wanted, but Harvey seemed to be the one that got away. At least, in Atticus' eyes. Running a hand over his bald head, he looked over at Ophelia as she rummaged around for something that looked mildly interesting. He was also half listening to Zach bitch about the girl that wouldn't leave his bed, "'Well, you gotta think of it in their eyes. They want to be the one that 'tames' you, that 'fixes' you. Girls are all about that shit. So, when they realize that they aren't that person, they freak out and get confused." he explained, shrugging softly. In no way did he mean his words to be offensive, but it was true. A lot of the fans on this tour seemed to want to be the fan that made the artist fall in love. He had seen it mostly when it came down to any of the guys from 'Disturb the Peace'; it was hopeless for most of them. Bronx seemed to bat for the other team, Thaddeus seemed to be in love with his current girlfriend, Jimi seemed too shy to even sleep with a fan and Danny was just way too out there. "Oh, so a, don't ask, don't tell' situation because neither of you really give a fuck who the other sleeps with?" he asked, "Or is this you just too chicken shit to actually be committed to her?" Atticus always called Zach out on his shit, which he could tell was shit right now because of the nervous laugh he gave off when he had asked whether or not him and Selene were together. When he had asked who was keeping Atticus' bed warm, he smirked softly, "Not really any of your business now, is it?" he replied before he looked at his daughter, "Let's just say my bed has been pretty cold lately." he explained before he noticed that Zach ignored his daughter's exclamation in showing him a starfish, "Yeah, Uncle Zach, look at the starfish she found." [/style]

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SEVEN ONE SEVEN WORDS FOR ZACH/ ALICE .

WHOOP WHOOP! NEW LAYOUT.