Chapter Text
The camera shook as it came into focus, fixating on a boy with a microphone after it panned across the auditorium. In the background, Jack, Mr. Scott, and a couple of other people could be seen on the stage, setting up the last of the props needed for tonight and sweeping any remaining beads off the floor.
“Are we rolling?” The boy whispered. The person holding the camera moved their hand into view and gave a thumbs up. Nodding, the boy with the microphone straightened his posture and fixed his hair for a second before grinning at the camera. “Hello Riverside Central High School and welcome to our 7th annual Battle of the Bands! Or, well, the recording of it, at least, with special behind the scenes footage and exclusive interviews with the contestants.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “I’m Jim, better known by you all as RJ, here with my twin brother Jim, better known as CJ, and we’re here to give you the deepest insights into our school’s greatest phenomenon. Will this year’s Battle go up in flames like last year’s did, quite literally? Or will it be the greatest thing California's ever known?” RJ grinned, borderline maniacally, as he started to creep excitedly towards the door to the backstage area. “Maybe even both! Are you ready, Jim?”
The camera shook as CJ nodded, and RJ grinned again. “Grea—” His words were cut off as the camera’s footage ended.
“Mark, seriously, I’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure, though? The doctor said that you shouldn’t put any weight on it—”
“And that’s why I have the crutches.” Ethan sighed, using his good leg to nudge his friend (boyfriend now, actually, and he couldn’t help but smile as he remembered that) away from where he was anxiously inspecting the younger boy’s twisted ankle. It was wrapped in compression bandages, which Ethan had gotten after Mark insisted that they actually go to a doctor or something once they finally made it to Mark’s car the day before. He really wasn’t in that much pain, especially now, but he did appreciate Mark’s insistence on comforting him. Even if it was getting a little annoying at this point. “I’m only going to be without them for like, twenty minutes max. You can calm down.”
“I— Ok, sure, I’ll sit down.” Mark got up, taking a seat next to Ethan. They were in a small backstage room to themselves; Mr. Scott said that they could use it for practice and to get ready. It was filled to the brim with boxes (many of which Ethan already went through, they seemed to just have unused programs for old shows), though a small area was cleared in the middle of the room, and a short bench was set up on the wall opposite the door. Mark’s guitar and Ethan’s keyboard were waiting by the door; they were already tuned and simply waiting for Jack to pick them up and take them to the main backstage area.
They had already changed into what their outfits were going to be for the night — Mark in an all-white suit and Ethan in an all-black one, with matching t-shirts that read “Unus Annus” underneath the jackets instead of dress shirts. When Ethan first saw the the shirts, he honestly couldn’t believe Mark, saying things like “Mark, what the fuck” and “These are tacky as hell” and “Did you actually spend money to get our logo custom-printed onto two, and only two, shirts?”, to which Mark just scoffed and tossed the shirt at him anyways.
Ethan leaned on Mark’s shoulder, basking in the soft warmth that seemed to radiate from his body. He reached out and grabbed his hand, resting them between them. They had about an hour until the show was set to start, and since the girls were going to go first, they still had a good amount of time before they were going to perform. It was nice to be able to relax a bit, in this calm before the storm.
“You excited?” asked Mark, looking down at the younger boy.
Ethan hummed, closing his eyes. “Fuck yeah, man.” He giggled, squeezing Mark’s hand. “We’re gonna do amazing.”
“I sure hope so, we’ve been practicing non-stop for like a month now.”
“I mean, we did stop for about a week.”
“We don’t talk about that.”
Ethan laughed, sitting up and turning towards Mark. “Can I kiss you?”
“Someone could walk in.” Despite his words, Mark was beginning to smile.
Ethan pouted. “But it’s fun.”
Mark laughed this time, already leaning in. “Yeah, sure. Not like I care or anything.”
“Sure you don’t.”
“… And here is the first of the two bands, Unus Annus.” RJ stopped in front of a door, on which a piece of paper with the letters “UA” sharpied on is taped. The camera slowly zooms in on the paper, stopping only when the camera couldn’t zoom any more. “Who are they, Jim? What are their motivations? Are they really going to die in one year, like many people have been speculating? Why is their name in Latin? Why are there only two of them? That can’t be a good set up for a band.” He grinned. “All the answers are behind this door, surely. Let’s go, Jim.”
RJ took the handle and turned it, slowly pushing the door open. CJ zoomed the camera out, crouching down and shuffling so that he could angle the camera through the crack and into the room. Near the back, opposite from where the camera was, Mark and Ethan were sitting on a bench. They were facing each other, with Ethan close enough to be in Mark’s lap.
And they were making out.
“Oh my god.” RJ’s voice was laced with disbelief and laughter, and from behind the camera, CJ could be heard chuckling softly. Though the camera was starting to shake, it was obvious what they were doing. Mark pulled away quickly, whipping his head towards the door as soon as he heard the voices.
“Jims what— get out , what the fuck—” He got up, ignoring the way that Ethan was starting to laugh, too. “At least knock or something, Jesus christ.” He made his way over to the door, and the camera slowly panned up the closer he got. He was quickly towering over the twins, who were still crouching behind the door. “You look like rats.”
“We, uh…” RJ glanced back at the camera, which was quickly switching between RJ and Mark. “That’s because we are rats?”
Mark laughed, his blush of embarrassment still prominent on his face as he started inching the door closed. “Ok, well, go, uh, go interview the girls first. We’ll be ready then. And for fuck’s sake, knock next time?”
“Hey, we’re still on school property at a school-sanctioned event, you aren’t allowed to—” The door was closed. RJ sighed, rolling over until he was standing again. “Well, come on then, Jim, we need to go bleach our brains.” As he power walked down the hallway, CJ hot on his heels, he was muttering under his breath. “He’s our goddamn cousin, I can’t believe that he’d do such a thing on grounds as sacred as school property…”
The room for the girls’ band was actually just on the opposite side of the hall from the boys’, so the twins had to backtrack once RJ realized his mistake. They were quickly back in front of the door once more, and RJ huffed before dramatically wiping his shirt off.
“Anyways, Jim, we’re here now in front of the room for Amy, Mika, and Kathryn’s band… What’s their band name again?”
The camera shook as CJ shrugged.
“Ah well. Yet another great mystery to solve while we’re here. They’re nicer to me than our cousin, at least. Let’s go, Jim.” He reached for the door handle, then quickly pulled back at the last second and knocked.
“Come in!” a voice from inside called out. RJ opened the door, showing the camera the interior. The room was similar to the boys’ room with the way it was set up, in that it was most likely used for storage before tonight. Amy and Mika were sitting on a bench on the wall opposite the door, with Mika doing Amy’s hair, and Kathryn was in one of the corners, tuning her guitar.
Mika glanced up at them, confusion evident on her face. “I thought you guys were going to interview Mark and Ethan first.”
“They, uh…” RJ glanced at the camera, then back at the girls. “They were… otherwise occupied. Mark called us rats then slammed the door on us. He did say we could come back, but he did also call us rats, so. It’s debatable.”
The camera tilted and fell a bit, as if CJ was going to say something else, but he was interrupted by Amy.
“And by ‘otherwise occupied’ do you mean they were practically eating each other’s faces?”
“Um… yeah, pretty much.”
The girls laughed at that, not in a mean way, more in the way that you laugh at figuring out your friends did something embarrassing.
Amy calmed down enough to talk first. “I told you guys that I caught them in the parking lot yesterday!”
“It’s not that we didn’t believe you!” Kat said. “We just needed proof. Speaking of proof,” she turned to the twins, “Did you manage to catch that on tape at all?”
“Oh, yeah, we did!” CJ said. “Here—” The footage was a blur for a second as he put the camera down before cutting off.
Mark was pacing around the room now. Ethan watched as he laid back on the bench, letting his head droop down over the side. Everything was upside down and his head was starting to ache from the blood rushing to it, but watching the other boy go back and forth was at least mildly entertaining. They had sent the Jims away about half an hour ago and Mark had been pacing ever since, sometimes re-tuning his guitar, sometimes fiddling with one of the old programs he had taken out of a random box and folded up, sometimes texting people (usually those “people” was just Ethan, despite the fact that he was literally on the other side of the cramped room), most of the time just wringing his hands and looking anxious. This was one of those times.
“Dude, what’s up? You haven’t talked in ages.”
Mark finally stopped, looking over at his boyfriend. “I’m getting nervous.”
“No shit.”
Mark chuckled, then walked back other to the bench and took a seat. Unfortunately, that seat was on Ethan’s stomach, due to the fact that he hadn’t sat up yet.
Ethan laughed, bringing up a hand and playfully shoving him. “Mark! What the fuck! Get off!”
Mark ignored him, instead dramatically looking away. “It just… what if they don’t love me? What if we don’t win? What if they boo me off the stage and yeet tomatoes at our faces, Ethan, what will we do then?”
“Is that seriously what you’re worried about?”
Mark sighed, finally lifting himself off of Ethan and sitting down on the small part of the bench that wasn’t taken up by him. “No. I mean, yeah, sure, some part of me is worried that something like that will happen, but I also know that’s literally the absolute worst-case scenario and it’ll probably never actually go down. But also… we’ve been working for this for a month. What if it doesn’t pay off?”
“Then some of our best friends win. It’s honestly a great situation all around.”
Mark sighed again, looking uncharacteristically sad. Ethan sat up, wincing a bit as he brought his legs around, then leaned up against Mark again. “Seriously, man,” he said. “We’re going to do amazing. Everyone at this school loves you. I love you.”
Mark glanced over at him. “It’s a bit early to say that, don’t you think?”
“I mean, yeah, sure, but I’ve loved you as one of my best friends for ages. That hasn’t changed just because I’m your boyfriend now and because we’ve made out twice and got caught both times.”
“Once with a camera.”
Ethan laughed. “Once with a camera, yeah. But that was pretty funny, you have to admit.”
“No it wasn’t—” Mark’s screech and Ethan’s responding laughter were cut off by a knock at the door.
Ethan moved to get up, but hissed in pain when he accidentally put his weight on his bad ankle.
“Woah, you ok?” Mark’s face went from annoyed to worried in a matter of seconds.
Ethan nodded, slowly bringing his leg up and clutching at the offending ankle. “Sucks that we don’t have ice right now.”
“I can probably go find you some.”
Shaking his head, Ethan used his free hand to gesture at the door. “Your cousins are back, you idiot.” He smiled up at Mark through the pain as the other boy went to the door. “I still love you, though.”
The door opened to reveal the Jims once again, with RJ posed in what appeared to be a fighting stance. When he saw Mark at the door, he relaxed, then turned back to CJ and the camera.
“Well, here we are,” he said, walking into the room and completely ignoring Mark in the process. “Finally with Mark and Ethan from the critically acclaimed band, Unus Annus.”
“I wouldn’t say ‘critically acclaimed’,” Ethan chimed in. “‘Incredibly hyped up’ band, sure, but I don’t think we have any professional critics here.”
Mark scoffed as he made his way back to the bench and sat down. “Doesn’t stop half the school from thinking they’re ones, though.”
RJ moved in front of the bench, holding his microphone surprisingly still between them all. “True, true. Well, are you willing to answer some questions for us? The answers to them are incredibly needed by the starving populace.”
Mark laughed. “And what exactly are they starving for?”
“Answers, Mark, what else?”
The interview was surprisingly easy. Most of the serious questions had already been asked in the interview from a couple weeks before, so this session was mostly just Ethan and Mark spinning the most ridiculous tales they could manage while trying to keep a straight face. Ethan could feel both himself and Mark relaxing as their antics went on. And before Ethan knew it, the last of their time was spent, and Jack was peeking his head through the door, signalling the end of the interview.
“Oh, that’s where you two went.” Jack nodded to the twins as he picked up the guitar and keyboard. CJ swung the camera towards him. “The show’s about to start. If you want to catch the beginning of it for your video thing or whatever, I’d go ahead and get out there now so you can set up and stuff.”
“Oh, shit!” RJ jumped up, fixing his shirt and sprinting out the door before Jack even finished his sentence. CJ was right on his heels, tripping a bit as he looked down to switch off the camera. Jack blinked in surprise as they bolted past him.
“Are… are they always like that?”
Mark chuckled. “Yeah, pretty much. Oh don’t give me that look, you’re just as bad as them!”
“Am not!”
“I have known you since your Irish ass moved here however many years ago, your energy levels are as bad if not worse than theirs.”
Ethan watched them argue with a bemused smile on his face before interrupting. “So, uh, do we need to do anything? It’s kinda boring just sitting in here, to be honest.”
Jack shook his head, adjusting his grip on the keyboard before stepping back out of the doorway. “Nah, not really. But like I said, the show starts in about five minutes, so you can go ahead and head backstage to watch and shit. Heck, sit in the audience if you want, you guys are only needed on stage after their show.”
“Sounds good to me, bro!” Mark grinned, reaching down to help Ethan stand. They watched as Jack left, presumably down the hallway to put the instruments backstage.
Ethan turned to the older boy. “You ready?”
“Babe, you have no fucking idea how ready I am."
Ethan laughed, leaning forward and kissing his cheek quickly. “Great. Me too.”
The camera quality was shaky at first, as well as being unfocused. Quickly, though, the blurry lights smoothed out to reveal a stage a good couple of feet above the camera, its wings colorfully lit along with a dim spotlight focused lazily on the center of it. The stage was empty besides a keyboard, a guitar, and a small set of drums. From behind the camera, dozens of voices could be heard in a low murmur, but they quieted as the room’s lights dimmed and the spotlight brightened. From one of the wings, Jack stepped out, arms up triumphantly, a microphone in one of his hands.
His entrance was met with resounding cheers, loud enough and sudden enough that CJ almost dropped the camera with a soft “oh shit”. He straightened it fast enough to watch Jack dramatically take a step back and pause before he made it to the center of the stage.
“Wow, there is a f… frick ton of you guys out tonight. I didn’t even know there were this many people at our school, jesus.” He looked genuinely surprised by the turnout, awe in his eyes as another cheer went through the crowd. “Seriously, there were like, maybe fifteen people here last year, and two of them ended up in the hospital. Hopefully that won’t happen this time though! No pyromechanics, so probably not. Hopefully not. Or well, who really knows, I guess. Anything can happen.” He did a little shrug with a smirk before continuing. “Anyways, hello RCHS, and welcome to our seventh annual Battle of the Bands!”
The lights on stage started spinning when he spoke those words, and the crowd behind the camera truly went crazy. The camera shook a bit, CJ whispering a faint “jesus christ” before focusing the camera on Jack again as the cheers calmed down.
“As you all probably know by now, my name is Sean Mcloughlin, though most people call me Jack for whatever reason, and I’ll be your host for tonight’s battle! And it really has been one hell of a battle in the making, hasn’t it?” He paused to let the crowd cheer again, softer this time. “On one side, we’ve got Veni Vidi Vici with Amy Nelson, Mika Midgett, and Kathryn Knutsen, all juniors, can you give it up for them?” The crowd yelled, a good half of them making significantly more noise than the others. “And on the other side we’ve got Unus Annus with Mark Fischbach, a junior, and Ethan Nestor, a sophmore. Can you give it up for the boys?” The crowd cheered again, the other half getting louder this time.
“Are you ready to get this show on the road?” The entire crowd enthused this time, causing CJ to curse again and actually turn towards the people behind him. Every seat in the small auditorium was taken, with plenty of people who couldn’t have seats standing in what could be seen of the back. Through the mass of students, CJ eventually focused on Mark and Ethan, who were leaning against a wall close to the stage. The camera was shaky as it zoomed in on the two of them, and it was hard to make out what they were doing through the blur and the darkness, but one could almost see as Mark whispered something into Ethan’s ear and as the younger boy swung his crutch at Mark’s shin and hit him softly. Mark just laughed, though the sound was lost across the auditorium.
“Dude, you’re gonna miss it.” RJ’s voice cut through the audio, and the camera quickly whipped back towards the stage and zoomed back out. Amy, Kathryn, and Mika were all already in their places, and the colored lights on the stage shifted as the girls nodded to each other.
Then the music started.
Holy shit the girls were good.
Like, incredibly so. To say Ethan was daunted was an understatement.
"Huh," Mark said from beside him. "You know, I wasn't exactly expecting this from them."
"What, did you think they were going to be shit?" Ethan giggled as he tried to gasp dramatically. "I can't believe you, Mark, doubting our friends like that."
"I never said I doubt them! I just thought that they would be a bit closer to our level."
"So… shitty?"
"Yeah."
Ethan laughed, then turned his attention back to the band on stage. They were mesmerizing-- Amy's presence on stage as the lead singer captivated the audience, Mika was an absolute god on the drums, and Kathryn's grin as she played her guitar pulled it all together. The songs were unfamiliar, though. Possibly originals? But that didn't mean they were bad, not by any degree.
The band was on their last song. Ethan glanced over at the audience behind him, their cheers stirring a sick feeling in his gut. He shifted on his crutches, chewing on his lip.
"Hey, hey." Mark nudged the crutch closest to him, bringing the younger boy's attention to him. "Don't tell me you're nervous now."
"And what if I am?"
"Well…" Mark clicked his tongue, thinking. "I'd tell you there's nothing to worry about. That even I, the great Mark Fischbach, was feeling nervous earlier but I have since realized that showing weakness is stupid."
Ethan scoffed, a smile coming back to his face. Mark smiled back.
"And then I'd take your hand--" the older boy did just that-- "and I'd tell you to look forward to the good luck kiss I'm going to give you once we're backstage."
Ethan blushed. "Can't wait."
Backstage, as it were, came sooner than they thought. The girls wrapped up with a band and the curtains closed to resounding cheers, and Mark started guiding Ethan up the stairs to the wings of the stage right as the girls were getting off.
"Good luck." Kathryn bumped into Ethan's shoulder as she walked by.
Mark scoffed as he shoulderied his guitar and tucked Ethan's keyboard under his arm. "Not that we'll need it."
Once the girls were gone though, Mark turned and quickly snuck a peck to Ethan's forehead. The younger boy blushed dramatically as Mark tried and failed to hide his smile.
"I thought you said we didn't need good luck," Ethan whispered.
"Well I don't," Mark whispered back. "You might though."
"Uh huh."
Jack walked up behind them, making Ethan jump when he cleared his throat. "Am I interrupting something?"
"Uhh no!" Mark grinned as innocently as he possibly could. "Nothing at all! Please lead the way, oh great and mighty Mr Mcloughlin!"
Jack rolled his eyes but ushered the two of them on stage nonetheless. He hastily pointed out the tape on the ground where they were to stand since they weren't able to make most of the practice the day before and weren't able to see them beforehand. Ethan hobbled over to his spot, reluctantly handing over his crutches when his keyboard and microphone were placed in front of him.
Smiling, Mark glanced over at him. This was their last moments before the curtains raised again, before the spotlight shone on them and they would be stars, immortalized in the school's history forever. "You ready?"
"I sure fuckin' hope I am, dude."
To be honest, Ethan was shaking. Whatever nerves Mark had been feeling before the show must have been nothing compared to what Ethan was feeling as he traced his fingers over the keys. He swallowed down the twisting feeling in his stomach and smiled.
The curtains rose.
Mark nodded at him, and Ethan began the first chords of the song.
Ethan would like to say he didn't remember much of the performance. That the adrenaline carried him through the show, the high energy of the crowds giving him enough to ride through each song with ease.
That was very much not the case.
His hands shook at the drop of each cord. He wobbled often; the lack of crutches made it hard for him to keep his balance. He knew his voice wavered with every lyric that dropped from his mouth.
But he didn't mess up, and that's what mattered. And Mark was grinning at him, adoration in his eyes as he moved around the stage, as he walked up close for the ballad, as he jumped for the later songs, and that? That's what really mattered. Ethan grinned, and pushed through.
He just hoped it was enough.
The camera turned on and shakily focused on the darkened stage. RJ could be heard in the background, a soft "Good, we're on, you can hit lights now," said before the stage suddenly brightened to show what was on it. Jack was in the middle, and the two bands were standing behind him on opposite sides of the stage, fidgeting nervously. The Irish teen smiled, walking forward, mic and a small envelope in hand.
"Welcome back, everybody! Ready for the results?"
A few stray claps and whoops were heard in the audience. Jack chuckled, shaking his head. "Alright then.
"As you all know, these results come directly from the vote we held just now, during that short break. If you didn't vote, then ah well! Too bad, it's too late now." He chuckled. "But hoo baby a lot of you did. Which is a good thing! A very good thing indeed."
He paused as he put the microphone back in its stand. Then, he slowly brought up the envelope, holding it high above his head. "In this!" He shook it a little. "Is the name of the winning band. I'm gonna open it now. Are ya ready?"
The crowd really yelled at that, making everyone on stage grin (some more maniacally than others).
"Alright, let's go! Three…"
He brought the envelope down, holding it in both hands.
"Two…"
He opened it. The bands held their breath.
"One…"
He took the piece of paper out. He read it. He blinked, then smiled up at the audience.
"The winner of Riverside Central High School's 7th annual Battle of the Bands is…" He glanced down at the paper one last time, just to be sure.
"Unus Annus!"
Mark and Ethan looked visibly shocked. The crowd screamed as they took a few steps forward and Jack handed Mark the mic.
"Oh, me?"
Jack laughed, his words lost in the auditorium as Mark finally took the mic. He stepped forward, Ethan and the girls following after him.
"Wow." Mark smiled, bathing in the spotlight. And to believe he was nervous about this before. He caught the eye of the camera and winked. CJ could be heard in the background, gagging.
"This is quite an honor, I must say," Mark continued. "Ethan and I- wait where's Ethan? Eth, babe, come over here." He reached out and grabbed the other boy's hand, not caring about the problem the crutches produced. Soon, they were right back beside each other, in the spotlight, hand in hand.
Mark spoke again. "As I was saying, this is an honor. Ethan and I truly cannot believe that we won. Right, Eth?"
The younger boy nodded. "You know, my question is, why on Earth did y'all vote for us?" He asked incredulously. "I didn't even know how to read music, let alone play a piano, like, a month ago. We can't be that good."
"Was it because of my devilish good looks?" Mark raised his eyebrows, and a few claps and cheers went up through the audience. A singular, very deep, "FUCK YEAH IT WAS!" was heard from the back of the auditorium. The camera whipped around in the responding laughter to try and spot the shouter, but whoever it was had already sat down again. What a shame.
Mark pointed out the the audience with a smile. "Hey, you know, a vote's a vote! Uh, sorry to whoever voted for us because of that though, because I am already taken." The camera zoomed in on him as he put his arm around Ethan, forcing the boy to adjust his crutches. Ethan's blush was just barely caught on film. Mark smirked, also blushing.
"But yeah, I-" He suddenly paused his speech, looking over at the girls with wide eyes. "Wait!" He exclaimed. "You guys owe us a hundred bucks!"
The girls all groaned, their arguments overlapping each other's as Ethan grabbed the mic. He awkwardly pointed one of his crutches at them as he spoke. "And the eggs! Don't forget the eggs, we get to egg you."
"Yeah!" Mark nodded aggressively. "That was part of the agreement. You can't forget the eggs."
The two groups' arguing rose into a clamor, shouted yet halfhearted insults mixed in with laughs. The camera ignored them, however, instead zooming in on Jack slowly managing to take back the microphone. He stepped forward, towards the edge of the stage, then smiled one last time.
"Thank you all for coming out tonight! That does it for this year's Battle of the Bands! Can we hear it one last time for this year's winner, Unus Annus?"
The crowd went crazy yet again. Mark looked up at the mention of the band, waving with a breathtaking grin when he realized that the applause was for him. Ethan laughed beside him, shuffling over to take his free hand in his once again, having lost it in the scuffle. The camera zoomed in on the duo as they smiled at each other.
Jack continued over the cheers. "Again, thank you and goodnight! I hope to see you next year!"
The crowd cheered again, and the camera turned off right as the lights dimmed.