“Shit.”
 
That was usually the first word out of Jane’s mouth in the morning, whether she woke up feeling like death or not. She usually beat the sun rising, but this morning, it was beginning to peak through her window in the small, third floor apartment, causing the insides of her eyelids to turn red. She groaned as she stretched and immediately became aware of the arm laying over her bare torso. After observing the two naked bodies in her bed, the events of last night began to flood her memory, and she gently lifted up the arm and shimmied her way out of the bed and eventually the room, grabbing a black tank top and a pair of light denim shorts before exiting. 
 
Her roommate, Lena, had moved in about a year back, and things were platonic until a few months ago after a drunk night led them to waking up together. Jane didn’t think much of it – she thought Lena was cool, and they had fun together – but she wasn’t ready for any sort of commitment. Especially when she was leaving for tour. She didn't want to worry about anyone's feelings or holding back at all, which to her, was completely reasonable. To Lena, not so much. Their "relationship" was not one that Jane told the guys about; she knew she would be subjected to relentless teasing, especially since they all thought Lena was lame. The morning would have been a normal one if not for the other figure in her bed. Mike. One of their mutual friends who was able to join in on the fun last night. [i]Lucky guy[/i]. They had been bar hopping downtown for hours before eventually deciding to all go back to Jane's place. She broke her own rules: The night before a big show or tour, don't party, and get a good night sleep. But in her opinion, it was worth it. 

Jane searched around her apartment for her keys as an unlit cigarette hung out of her mouth until she realized she traded the car for the van they'd be driving across the country. She didn't want to drive it to the store - the thing was a lunker - so she located her longboard among the mess near her front door and took off to the gas station down the street. 

The sun was warm, and the air was crisp, and through Jane's round sunglasses, she admired the palm trees waving at her in the breeze. The small California town was the only home she had ever known, but she was excited to leave and explore the country. She put in her ear buds that connected to the phone in her back pocket and hit "shuffle" as she enjoyed the vibration from the wooden board under her feet. [url=https://youtu.be/Uk-41X5c4lA]Vertigo Flowers by Nothing[/url] was blaring in her ears as she began to maneuver the board with her feet to sway slowly to the beat as she traveled down the side walk, singing audibly to the song, causing a few honks from the cars passing by. Jane let a middle finger rise with each horn without interrupting her fun. 

She got some water, two packs of Newports, and a pack of lighters and traveled back home on the long board. She owed Rob a pack of cigarettes from the other night; she must have bummed at least 10 off of him. There was sort of an unspoken rule between them that whenever one had cigarettes, the other would bum them without any record kept. It worked well for them, but Jane still liked to buy him some when she bought them for herself. After all, they would probably being going through their cigarettes pretty quickly while on the road. 

Once she reached her apartment, she woke up the two in her bed and shooed them out of her room so that she could gather the last few things before going to pick up the guys. She opened her phone and typed into the group chat: [b]Leaving in a minute. Austin, you’re the first stop. Then Sam. Then Rob. Be ready![/b] She threw the phone on the tie dye comforter and scurried around the room as she threw some items into a large bag on her shoulder. Jane stopped in front of dusty mirror in front on her desk and stared at herself for a moment. Her hair was sloppily flowing around her shoulders and down her back, her black tank top that hugged her braless, small chest and frame, and the bags that had formed under her eyes thanks to the night before. Most people would probably think she looked like a wreck, but such trivial things like this didn’t bother Jane. She was comfortable enough with how she looked to care about what people thought about her.

After brushing her teeth, she made her way downstairs to the large, black van. Her dufflebag was thrown haphazardly in the back, and she climbed her way up to the driver’s seat and ignited the engine. A few sputters and other odd noises later, she was on the road to pick up the rest of the band. The windows were open, [url=https://youtu.be/eDe7HoOzoZA]We’rewolf by Every Time I Die[/url] was playing loudly, and cigarette smoke poured out of the window like a chimney. At each stop, Jane honked the horn and each member would throw their stuff in the trunk and climb in the back of the van – the front seat was usually always reserved for Rob – and they would all sing along as she hit the steering wheel with the beat of the song.

They pulled up to Rob’s house, and she laid on the horn once again until she saw the door swing open. Jane slid the round frames down her freckled nose as she made eye contact with him and nodded her head towards the seat in the front to signal him in. She removed the AUX cord from her phone and tossed it into the passenger seat so he could be DJ for a while. 

Rob and Jane met in high school during lunch. He was a grade ahead of her, but they instantly connected through similar music taste and other hobbies (like sneaking off campus for a smoke). She would like to think that she knew [i]the real Rob[/i], the one he hides away from everyone, but sometimes she couldn’t be too sure. He was her best friend, and although their pride often made them bump heads, he kept her grounded. Leveled. He made sure her dreams weren’t too crazy and usually was the one to cut her off when she had drank too much and dragged her home. If she woke up fully clothed on top of her comforter, she knew that Rob had tossed her on her bed and locked the house up for her at some early hour of the morning. At the end of the day, no matter how angry they got at each other or what stupid thing one of them did, he was always there for her. In his own way.