The sun was descending through the sky, shadows moving quickly. We had been on the streets for a long time, pausing every once in a while to ask someone about Bon. After countless head shakes, shrugs, and thrown insults, we agreed Bon hadn't been within a hundred feet of the city and made our way home. I finished my water and threw the bottle away, having shared it with Angus after he lost his. "'M sorry, love," he said after asking for the fifth time.

"It's okay," I said. "I won't die."

Using the maps on bus stop booths to guide our way, we made it back to a familiar surroundings. Well, familiar to Phil and Angus who had been living here for years. By now the traffic was heavy with people coming from and going to Sunday dinner. My cracker tin had run out real quick and not only was I thirsty from all the salt, I was starving. "I'll take ya' out for dinner," Angus said. "Make up for drinkin' all your water." 

I didn't decline. 

We were trudging down the street by the time we reached the studio downtown where the interview was taking place. From a distance we could see two tiny figures pacing up and down the sidewalk. Upon closer inspection, those figures were Malcolm and Cliff. Cliff pointed us out and Malcolm headed our way. "So what are we doin' about this?" he asked, shielding his eyes from the lowering sun. "It's almost seven, we gotta do somethin' quick."

"Let's jus' do it," Angus said, running a hand through his hair. We were all sweaty and hungry and tired and just wanted to sit down. Malcolm and Cliff didn't look much better and they walked inside the air conditioned building with us. "Get this fuckin' thing over with."

"Are we callin' someone?" Cliff asked. "I don't think we ought to leave it an' see what happens."

"I don't either," Malcolm said. Our shoes echoed across the bare floors. "Call his parents, brothers, somethin'."

A woman in a skirt came up to us with a clipboard. "This it then?" she asked, pointing at us with her pencil. 

"Us four," Malcolm said. "Hannah's a friend an' we can't find Bon anywhere." I could hear a bit of worry in his voice. "We're real sorry about all this."

"You're not the first band to have someone not show up," the woman said, leading through the building. "Just last week someone from Skyhooks bailed last minute." I saw Malcolm nod his head. 

"We've done it, everyone," he said, addressing the room. "We've officially reached rock bottom."

"It's only up from here, Mal," Cliff said and Malcolm finally smiled. We stopped at a pair of black doors closed and locked together. The woman pulled out her keys and found the one she wanted. 

"Here's the room you'll all stay in," she said. The keys rattled in her hand. "This won't be televised, it will just be you and the interviewer. Your friend can stay on the side to watch. Now we only have time for a few questions so we're gonna get you in and out, okay?"

"Fine by us," Malcolm said. "An' again, we're sorry."

"It's fine," the woman sighed, opening the door. We all knew it really wasn't fine. Upon entering the room, the first thing I noticed was five chairs set out for the members of the band and one for the interviewer. There were television cameras but they were off and pointed downwards, pushed to the corner of the room. I couldn't believe how old they were. Boxy and beige, too. The second thing I noticed, and I had a difficult time registering exactly what it was, was someone standing by the five chairs. 

Bon looked up at us, wiping his hands off on his jeans. "Hi, all," he said, smiling widely. All of us froze in our tracks, including the woman who brought us here. "Jus' got here. Sorry I'm so late, I went up to see a friend of mine an' the rental car broke down. Guess I have some bad luck on the road, like." His smile faded as he took in each of our expressions. "Ya' look like I've done somethin' wrong..."

"You've gotta be kiddin' me..." Phil groaned, running his hands through his hair. "I'm quittin' the fuckin' band, Bon, you're fuckin' jokin'...."

"I know you must all be pretty sore at me..." Bon said. That wasn't the fucking half of it.

"You bastard!" I yelled, losing all sense of control. I stormed ahead of the group, staring Bon down with eyes of steel. His look of confusion turned to one of apprehension as I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him down to my level for a hug. Tears pooled in my eyes and I pursed my lips to keep them inside. 

"Now how the fuck did ya' get in here?" Malcolm asked, scanning the room for another door. There was one that was open revealing cleaning supplies inside. There were windows too but they looked way too small, even for Bon to fit through. Sure enough, one of them was as open as it could get, a hot breeze trickling in. "Ya' slither under the fuckin' door or what?"

"Bon, we've been worried sick!" Cliff said, coming to stand by us. I wasn't letting Bon get away from me so easily and tightened my hold. He hugged me back, slightly hunched over. "Hannah, Ang, an' Phil have been all over lookin' for ya', Mal an' I waited outside all day!"

"The rental's parked out back," Bon said. "Looks like the front, though. I looked all over for a fuckin' door to the place an' the only one ya' got was hidden an' locked from the outside."

"You need ID to get in," the woman clarified, still in shock.

"Figured that so I jus' cracked a window open an' climbed in," he said. "I seem to do that a lot, don't I?" he asked quietly, like a little boy about to get in trouble. If he was asking me I didn't answer. "Jus' like old times, ya' know?"

"Stelle would have had your arse on a plate," Angus said. The others filed in while the woman announced that she would alert the interviewer of the band's arrival. "You've gotta be fuckin' shittin' me. What's this, the second time within a month?"

"I know," Bon said. "The bushes around the sides of the building were too high to climb over an' some had stickers on 'em. So I stayed around the back." 

"For fuck's sake," Malcolm muttered, taking his seat. "First these two leave their fuckin' wallets lyin' around before they leave an' now Bon breaks into a joint again? Speakin' of which..." Malcolm reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out two leather wallets. He passed them to Angus and Phil who checked to see which was whose. "Can't take a minute for ourselves, can we?"

"They had us take 'em out, Mal, for the security checks," Angus said, making sure nothing was stolen. Over Bon's shoulder I could see the boys stuffing them back in their jean pockets. "Jus' forgot to get 'em back."

"I've spent all day sittin' in the shop while they tell me over an' over it'll be a few minutes," Bon said, smoothing my hair back. I hoped he hadn't heard me sniffling. "Anyone need a lift back?"

"About to call the fuckin' cops on ya'," Malcolm said, lowering his voice when we heard approaching footsteps. "Bakin' out in the hot fuckin' sun..."

"This is the last time, I promise," Bon said. "No more breakin' an' enterin' for me." I finally stepped away to look at him, happy to see his face. All that worrying for nothing. He was completely fine, I hadn't caused anything bad to happen through my time traveling. He hadn't gotten lost or hurt. He hadn't done anything shady nor had he been dumped in the gutter somewhere. It was just another one of his endless misadventures. Bon was alright.

And the bastard was going to pay for it.

"You alright then, hon?" Bon asked, looking into my watery eyes. I blinked away any angry tears and shook my head.

"You're the biggest, lousiest, god-damnedest..."

"I know I am," he said. "I promise nothin' like that will ever happen again, okay?" He smiled at me and I wanted to smile back but I knew he wouldn't be able to keep that promise. Nobody would. "Go on, ya' better get to your spot." I stepped away to the side of the room where the dismantled cameras were. Discreetly wiping my eyes, I watched the boys take their seats while a man in a suit and tie came in, taking the chair across from them.

"So you're it?" he asked. "Heard we had some trouble getting here?"

"Ya' really ought to trim those bushes outside," Bon said, showing the man his hands. There were a couple scratches and minor punctures. "Got me pretty good."

Phil and Angus both glanced at me from across the room. All of us tired, beat, and pissed off, we shared a smile. None of us would ever forget the day we had. 

And we'd never let Bon forget it either. Not in a million years.