Sad_Girl
Blue Crack Supplier
**The following is a work of pure fiction. None of the events represented are meant to be mistaken for reality in any way. I do not ‘know’ U2 or any of the other people represented in the story, and I am writing this without permission from … well, anyone. No offense to anyone. It’s all meant in good fun. At this point in their career, most of the guys were already in committed relationships to real women. In this story, however, they are all completely single and unattached. Some employees have also been replaced with fictional characters; purely for the sake of entertainment. No offense intended to the people who filled those job positions in reality. Consider it a ‘What if..?’
Chapter One
October 1st, 1981
Holly hurried across the campus, weaving around the students and hoping she was heading in the right direction. This was the opportunity of a lifetime and she was not about to blow it on her first day. She shoulder checked a boy about her age, sending the books in his arms scattering across the sidewalk.
“I’m sorry!” She called over her shoulder as she hurried away. She didn’t have the time to stop and help.
“Bloody American.” She heard him mutter, none too softly. She knew she should be offended, but his British accent made her want to smile. She’d never been out of the United States before, and everything about England was new and exciting to her.
She somehow reached the auditorium where the band was scheduled to perform that night without assaulting or injuring anyone. She stopped and took a deep breath to steady her nerves and then took hold of the door handle. She tugged on it, but the door didn’t budge. She was locked out.
“No!” She yelled, running along the entrance and trying each of the doors without success. “No!” She yelled again, even louder this time. She felt like a toddler, about to throw a temper tantrum. Her uncle had pulled a lot of strings with the studio to get her hired on, and she couldn’t even get to the auditorium on time.
Just when she was about to give in to her urge to cry, she saw two young men inside, just down the hallway. Her heart jumped and she slammed the palm of her hand against the glass door over and over again.
“Hey!” She called out. “Hey! You guys!” She called, straining her voice. The young men stopped talking and looked straight at her, obviously curious about the racket she was causing. She smiled her most flirtatious smile and waved them over, hoping they would either let her in or go get someone who would.
The boy with the blonde afro smiled at her and moved toward the door immediately. The younger boy scowled at her before catching his friends arm and saying something which made him stop and look back. They were engaged in a conversation, apparently arguing over whether or not to open the door for her. She chewed on her lower lip and bounced up and down on the balls of her feet anxiously.
Finally, the taller boy turned and approached again, the younger of the two tossing his hands up in a gesture of frustration and turning away.
“Hello.” The blonde boy greeted her, swinging the door open but blocking the entrance with his body. He pulled a lighter out of his pocket and a cigarette from the pack in his hand, lighting one and then offering one to her.
“No, thank you.” She told him politely. “I was supposed to be here more than an hour ago…” She started to explain, noticing the other boy appear over his friends shoulder, peeking out at her suspiciously.
“Well, actually, I was supposed to meet up with Natalie Robins before that, even…” She said. She had the tendency to ramble on and on when she was nervous.
“Wait, wait!” The boy said with a chuckle. “Slow down.” He told her, holding out his unusually large hand. “I’m Adam. And you are?” Holly felt the blood rush to her face in embarrassment, and she reached out and shook the boys hand politely.
“I’m Holly.” She replied, brushing her feathered blonde hair out of her face with her free hand.
“Holly.” Adam repeated, smacking his lips slightly, almost as if tasting her name. “Now, what can I do for you?” He asked, taking a long drag off his cigarette, his deep blue eyes narrowing as he did.
“I’m late.” She told him, speaking considerably more clearly now. “I’m supposed to start work today, with the band who are playing here tonight. Their road manager’s name is Natalie Robins, do you know her?”
“Uh…” Adam chuckled and looked back over his shoulder at the other boy, who rolled his eyes in response. “Yeah. I know here.” He finally told Holly, stepping out of the building and opening the door for her. “Come on in, I’ll take you to her.”
“Thank you so much!” Holly replied, nearly squealing with relief.
“No problem.” He told her, his accent sweeter and more alluring than any she’d heard since she arrived in Norwich earlier that day. “This is Larry, by the way.” He told her, gesturing to his friend.
“Hi.” Holly greeted him, smiling pleasantly at him and noticing that he was a very handsome young man. Larry nodded and made a guttural sound in greeting, shoving his hands deep into the pockets of his tight blue jeans.
“There she is.” Adam told Holly as they stepped out into the small auditorium where several people where hurriedly arranging the instruments onto a stage at the far end. He gestured to the woman standing beside a man with long hair tied back in a pony-tail, who was busy directing the set-up.
“Thank you.” She told him as she hurried up the stairs and toward the woman.
“Natalie Robins?” She asked, holding out her hand in what she hoped was a very professional greeting.
“Holly Black?” Natalie asked, shaking the girls hand.
“That’s me.” She replied. “I’m so sorry I’m late, my plane was delayed and then getting through customs and getting a cab…” She let her words drift off here as she sighed in exasperation.
“It can be overwhelming.” Natalie smiled. “I thought your uncle was going to come with you?”
“His mother-in-law got really sick. He had to go with his wife instead.” Holly explained.
“I’m sorry to hear that. At least you got here safely.” She said, and Holly’s entire body relaxed as she allowed herself to take a deep breath. “This is the band’s manager, Paul McGuinness.” Natalie told her, gesturing to the man next to her. Holly shook his hand and smiled at the man with the friendly face. She briefly had to wonder what she had been so nervous about.
“That’s Randy Miller, he’s in charge of the road crew. He’ll be your boss, and he can show you the ropes.” Natalie informed her.
“I thought you were the band’s manager?” Holly asked, her eyebrows drawing together in confusion. Natalie smiled at her and shook her head.
“I’m the road manager. I take care of the travel arrangements, make sure everyone is fed and has somewhere to rest. I also make sure the venues are ready for us, oversee the advertising, make sure people know about the show, that sort of thing. Basically, I make sure everything goes smoothly so everyone else can concentrate on putting together a good show.”
“Oh. Wow, that seems like a lot of stuff for one person.” Holly replied, making Natalie laugh.
“I delegate a lot.” She said with a wink. She called Randy over and introduced him to his newest crew member. The older man was short and stocky, with broad shoulders and an even broader waist. He eyed Holly up and down with a look of bemusement on his face.
“Are you sure you want to work with the road crew, lass?” The man asked, chewing on a toothpick, rolling it from one side of his mouth to the other between sentences. “I’d think you were better suited to management.” Holly bristled at his words, her back straightening and her jaw thrust out defiantly.
“I’m sure.” She told him through clenched teeth. If there was one thing Holly hated, it was being told that she couldn’t do something. Even just having it insinuated was enough to get her temper up. People tended to judge her by her appearance, and they almost always had the wrong impression about her.
“Alright, then. We’ve still got plenty of work to do.” He said, eyeing the slender young girl once more and shaking his head doubtfully. Much of her job would include heavy lifting, carrying instruments and speakers and supplies. He found it hard to believe she would be able to keep up with him. She, in turn, eyed the heavy, older man and wondered how he could possibly do a better job than she would.
Natalie suppressed a chuckle as he led the girl away, but when she looked up to see the grin on Paul’s face her laughter bubbled out of her throat. She covered her mouth with one hand to muffle the sound. She didn’t want Holly to think she was laughing at her. She had gone through plenty of similar moments in her time.
She left Paul on stage to supervise, though technically he didn’t need to do that as part of his job. He had a very strong attachment to this band, that much was obvious. He wasn’t much older than the boys themselves, having only just gotten his foot in the door with the studio when Adam had charmed him into managing them.
There was something particularly special about the four boys who comprised U2, she could not deny that. Their music was unique but timely. It was both pleasant to listen to and interesting. Complex and simple at the same time. That was the sort of balance most musicians only achieved after years and years. When the four of them got together, the y created a sort of magic.
Bono’s charisma was infectious, his enthusiasm swept away everyone caught in his wake. Edge’s quiet intensity turned into a unique and enchanting sound on the guitar. Larry and Adam’s attitudes lent the band the proper amount of ‘bad boy’ reputation. This was important, not just among other punk bands, but with the girls who came to concerts to see punk bands. Larry’s striking good looks didn’t hurt, either.
On her way out of the auditorium, she was nearly plowed over as Bono and Edge spilled into the room. Each of them was wielding a bulging water balloon, looking as if they might burst in their hands if not handled carefully.
“Hey!” She objected as she found herself being used as a human shield, Bono ducking down to hide behind her. Her body shook with the force of Bono’s laughter as with one hand he steered her, circling around as Edge tried to sneak to one side or another to get a shot at his friend.
“Don’t you have anything better to be doing?” She asked, trying to keep the amusement out of her voice.
“Not really, no.” Bono replied, his voice in her ear making her jump. She hadn’t expected to feel his lips brush against her skin when he spoke. Her skin buzzed, a million smaller tingles spreading outward from the point of contact.
She swallowed over the nervous lump that formed in her throat and did her best not to show any sign of her inappropriate reaction. Bono wouldn’t notice, she was certain. He had a one track mind, and at the moment, his mind was focused on getting Edge with his water balloon while remaining dry himself.
Edge, on the other hand, was incredibly sharp and tended to be aware of things which most people would not notice. She licked her lips, since her mouth had suddenly gone bone dry, and tried to think of something that would get her out of this situation. Anything.
When she had taken the job, she had no idea what had been in store for her. They were a bunch of twenty or twenty one year old boys with one album under their belt and a new one about to be released, the possibility that she would be attracted to one of them had not even crossed her mind.
Now she was just hoping that this ‘crush’ (as she had decided to think of it) would pass quickly without anyone noticing. She had worked hard to earn the respect of her peers in the recording industry. She wasn’t about to blow her reputation by falling for the lead singer of a band she was working with.
He was just a kid, anyway. She’d been at university when she was his age, nine years ago. She could hardly remember what it felt like to be twenty-one. Suddenly, Edge dove to the left, and before Bono could react, the balloon had been launched. She felt cold water splash against the back of her neck and run down along her spine, under her new silk shirt.
She squealed instinctively, her muscles jerking in reaction to the cold water. Bono was uttering a string of profanities which would have made a sailor blush, his shaggy brown hair drenched and clinging to his forehead and cheeks. Edge was smirking as he hurried forward and grabbed hold of Bono’s arm, causing him to tighten his grip on his own balloon and burst it in his hand, therefore disarming his friend.
This resulted in another string of profanity, though it was broken by laughter. Both young men were nearly incapacitated by their amusement. Natalie rolled her eyes and fought down the urge to grin at them, no matter how cute they really were. She exhaled upwards to move the soft brown hair which had come loose from the combs she had used to keep it back from her face.
“I didn’t get you, did I?” Edge asked, his laughter starting to subside.
“Just a little.” She said, trying to seem disapproving, though the corner of her mouth twitched up in a smile. “I blame him more than you.” She added, gesturing toward Bono with a playful wink. As she once again started out of the auditorium.
“Me?” She heard Bono object playfully, but decided it safest not to turn and look at the look of innocence he would be feigning. Her heart could only take so much.
******************************************************************
Alyx showed her press pass to the security guard who was taking tickets and was almost certain he was going to give her a hard time. He looked her up and down, from her Doc Martins, torn fishnet stockings and tartan skirt to the jean jacket adorned with patches, safety pins, and words or phrases she had scrawled herself with a magic marker. Her shaggy, bleached blonde hair was messily spiked.
In many peoples opinions, she was asking for trouble. There were plenty of people who were happy to give it to her. She just wanted to express herself. When he nodded for her to go on into the auditorium, she was so surprised that it took a moment before she moved.
She had just picked up the band’s first album, ‘Boy’ a month or so ago, though it had been on the racks for nearly a year. She liked to consider herself up on the latest developments in music, but somehow, U2 had managed to go unnoticed by her. So, when she heard about their new October LP and tour, she had been quick to volunteer for the assignment.
She worked for a relatively small but well respected music and culture magazine, and although she was fairly new to their employ her talent had earned her instant respect. Some of the more veteran photojournalists were openly hostile toward her, but she wasn’t about to let anyone intimidate her. When Alyx McKinny wanted something, she went for it.
Chapter One
October 1st, 1981
Holly hurried across the campus, weaving around the students and hoping she was heading in the right direction. This was the opportunity of a lifetime and she was not about to blow it on her first day. She shoulder checked a boy about her age, sending the books in his arms scattering across the sidewalk.
“I’m sorry!” She called over her shoulder as she hurried away. She didn’t have the time to stop and help.
“Bloody American.” She heard him mutter, none too softly. She knew she should be offended, but his British accent made her want to smile. She’d never been out of the United States before, and everything about England was new and exciting to her.
She somehow reached the auditorium where the band was scheduled to perform that night without assaulting or injuring anyone. She stopped and took a deep breath to steady her nerves and then took hold of the door handle. She tugged on it, but the door didn’t budge. She was locked out.
“No!” She yelled, running along the entrance and trying each of the doors without success. “No!” She yelled again, even louder this time. She felt like a toddler, about to throw a temper tantrum. Her uncle had pulled a lot of strings with the studio to get her hired on, and she couldn’t even get to the auditorium on time.
Just when she was about to give in to her urge to cry, she saw two young men inside, just down the hallway. Her heart jumped and she slammed the palm of her hand against the glass door over and over again.
“Hey!” She called out. “Hey! You guys!” She called, straining her voice. The young men stopped talking and looked straight at her, obviously curious about the racket she was causing. She smiled her most flirtatious smile and waved them over, hoping they would either let her in or go get someone who would.
The boy with the blonde afro smiled at her and moved toward the door immediately. The younger boy scowled at her before catching his friends arm and saying something which made him stop and look back. They were engaged in a conversation, apparently arguing over whether or not to open the door for her. She chewed on her lower lip and bounced up and down on the balls of her feet anxiously.
Finally, the taller boy turned and approached again, the younger of the two tossing his hands up in a gesture of frustration and turning away.
“Hello.” The blonde boy greeted her, swinging the door open but blocking the entrance with his body. He pulled a lighter out of his pocket and a cigarette from the pack in his hand, lighting one and then offering one to her.
“No, thank you.” She told him politely. “I was supposed to be here more than an hour ago…” She started to explain, noticing the other boy appear over his friends shoulder, peeking out at her suspiciously.
“Well, actually, I was supposed to meet up with Natalie Robins before that, even…” She said. She had the tendency to ramble on and on when she was nervous.
“Wait, wait!” The boy said with a chuckle. “Slow down.” He told her, holding out his unusually large hand. “I’m Adam. And you are?” Holly felt the blood rush to her face in embarrassment, and she reached out and shook the boys hand politely.
“I’m Holly.” She replied, brushing her feathered blonde hair out of her face with her free hand.
“Holly.” Adam repeated, smacking his lips slightly, almost as if tasting her name. “Now, what can I do for you?” He asked, taking a long drag off his cigarette, his deep blue eyes narrowing as he did.
“I’m late.” She told him, speaking considerably more clearly now. “I’m supposed to start work today, with the band who are playing here tonight. Their road manager’s name is Natalie Robins, do you know her?”
“Uh…” Adam chuckled and looked back over his shoulder at the other boy, who rolled his eyes in response. “Yeah. I know here.” He finally told Holly, stepping out of the building and opening the door for her. “Come on in, I’ll take you to her.”
“Thank you so much!” Holly replied, nearly squealing with relief.
“No problem.” He told her, his accent sweeter and more alluring than any she’d heard since she arrived in Norwich earlier that day. “This is Larry, by the way.” He told her, gesturing to his friend.
“Hi.” Holly greeted him, smiling pleasantly at him and noticing that he was a very handsome young man. Larry nodded and made a guttural sound in greeting, shoving his hands deep into the pockets of his tight blue jeans.
“There she is.” Adam told Holly as they stepped out into the small auditorium where several people where hurriedly arranging the instruments onto a stage at the far end. He gestured to the woman standing beside a man with long hair tied back in a pony-tail, who was busy directing the set-up.
“Thank you.” She told him as she hurried up the stairs and toward the woman.
“Natalie Robins?” She asked, holding out her hand in what she hoped was a very professional greeting.
“Holly Black?” Natalie asked, shaking the girls hand.
“That’s me.” She replied. “I’m so sorry I’m late, my plane was delayed and then getting through customs and getting a cab…” She let her words drift off here as she sighed in exasperation.
“It can be overwhelming.” Natalie smiled. “I thought your uncle was going to come with you?”
“His mother-in-law got really sick. He had to go with his wife instead.” Holly explained.
“I’m sorry to hear that. At least you got here safely.” She said, and Holly’s entire body relaxed as she allowed herself to take a deep breath. “This is the band’s manager, Paul McGuinness.” Natalie told her, gesturing to the man next to her. Holly shook his hand and smiled at the man with the friendly face. She briefly had to wonder what she had been so nervous about.
“That’s Randy Miller, he’s in charge of the road crew. He’ll be your boss, and he can show you the ropes.” Natalie informed her.
“I thought you were the band’s manager?” Holly asked, her eyebrows drawing together in confusion. Natalie smiled at her and shook her head.
“I’m the road manager. I take care of the travel arrangements, make sure everyone is fed and has somewhere to rest. I also make sure the venues are ready for us, oversee the advertising, make sure people know about the show, that sort of thing. Basically, I make sure everything goes smoothly so everyone else can concentrate on putting together a good show.”
“Oh. Wow, that seems like a lot of stuff for one person.” Holly replied, making Natalie laugh.
“I delegate a lot.” She said with a wink. She called Randy over and introduced him to his newest crew member. The older man was short and stocky, with broad shoulders and an even broader waist. He eyed Holly up and down with a look of bemusement on his face.
“Are you sure you want to work with the road crew, lass?” The man asked, chewing on a toothpick, rolling it from one side of his mouth to the other between sentences. “I’d think you were better suited to management.” Holly bristled at his words, her back straightening and her jaw thrust out defiantly.
“I’m sure.” She told him through clenched teeth. If there was one thing Holly hated, it was being told that she couldn’t do something. Even just having it insinuated was enough to get her temper up. People tended to judge her by her appearance, and they almost always had the wrong impression about her.
“Alright, then. We’ve still got plenty of work to do.” He said, eyeing the slender young girl once more and shaking his head doubtfully. Much of her job would include heavy lifting, carrying instruments and speakers and supplies. He found it hard to believe she would be able to keep up with him. She, in turn, eyed the heavy, older man and wondered how he could possibly do a better job than she would.
Natalie suppressed a chuckle as he led the girl away, but when she looked up to see the grin on Paul’s face her laughter bubbled out of her throat. She covered her mouth with one hand to muffle the sound. She didn’t want Holly to think she was laughing at her. She had gone through plenty of similar moments in her time.
She left Paul on stage to supervise, though technically he didn’t need to do that as part of his job. He had a very strong attachment to this band, that much was obvious. He wasn’t much older than the boys themselves, having only just gotten his foot in the door with the studio when Adam had charmed him into managing them.
There was something particularly special about the four boys who comprised U2, she could not deny that. Their music was unique but timely. It was both pleasant to listen to and interesting. Complex and simple at the same time. That was the sort of balance most musicians only achieved after years and years. When the four of them got together, the y created a sort of magic.
Bono’s charisma was infectious, his enthusiasm swept away everyone caught in his wake. Edge’s quiet intensity turned into a unique and enchanting sound on the guitar. Larry and Adam’s attitudes lent the band the proper amount of ‘bad boy’ reputation. This was important, not just among other punk bands, but with the girls who came to concerts to see punk bands. Larry’s striking good looks didn’t hurt, either.
On her way out of the auditorium, she was nearly plowed over as Bono and Edge spilled into the room. Each of them was wielding a bulging water balloon, looking as if they might burst in their hands if not handled carefully.
“Hey!” She objected as she found herself being used as a human shield, Bono ducking down to hide behind her. Her body shook with the force of Bono’s laughter as with one hand he steered her, circling around as Edge tried to sneak to one side or another to get a shot at his friend.
“Don’t you have anything better to be doing?” She asked, trying to keep the amusement out of her voice.
“Not really, no.” Bono replied, his voice in her ear making her jump. She hadn’t expected to feel his lips brush against her skin when he spoke. Her skin buzzed, a million smaller tingles spreading outward from the point of contact.
She swallowed over the nervous lump that formed in her throat and did her best not to show any sign of her inappropriate reaction. Bono wouldn’t notice, she was certain. He had a one track mind, and at the moment, his mind was focused on getting Edge with his water balloon while remaining dry himself.
Edge, on the other hand, was incredibly sharp and tended to be aware of things which most people would not notice. She licked her lips, since her mouth had suddenly gone bone dry, and tried to think of something that would get her out of this situation. Anything.
When she had taken the job, she had no idea what had been in store for her. They were a bunch of twenty or twenty one year old boys with one album under their belt and a new one about to be released, the possibility that she would be attracted to one of them had not even crossed her mind.
Now she was just hoping that this ‘crush’ (as she had decided to think of it) would pass quickly without anyone noticing. She had worked hard to earn the respect of her peers in the recording industry. She wasn’t about to blow her reputation by falling for the lead singer of a band she was working with.
He was just a kid, anyway. She’d been at university when she was his age, nine years ago. She could hardly remember what it felt like to be twenty-one. Suddenly, Edge dove to the left, and before Bono could react, the balloon had been launched. She felt cold water splash against the back of her neck and run down along her spine, under her new silk shirt.
She squealed instinctively, her muscles jerking in reaction to the cold water. Bono was uttering a string of profanities which would have made a sailor blush, his shaggy brown hair drenched and clinging to his forehead and cheeks. Edge was smirking as he hurried forward and grabbed hold of Bono’s arm, causing him to tighten his grip on his own balloon and burst it in his hand, therefore disarming his friend.
This resulted in another string of profanity, though it was broken by laughter. Both young men were nearly incapacitated by their amusement. Natalie rolled her eyes and fought down the urge to grin at them, no matter how cute they really were. She exhaled upwards to move the soft brown hair which had come loose from the combs she had used to keep it back from her face.
“I didn’t get you, did I?” Edge asked, his laughter starting to subside.
“Just a little.” She said, trying to seem disapproving, though the corner of her mouth twitched up in a smile. “I blame him more than you.” She added, gesturing toward Bono with a playful wink. As she once again started out of the auditorium.
“Me?” She heard Bono object playfully, but decided it safest not to turn and look at the look of innocence he would be feigning. Her heart could only take so much.
******************************************************************
Alyx showed her press pass to the security guard who was taking tickets and was almost certain he was going to give her a hard time. He looked her up and down, from her Doc Martins, torn fishnet stockings and tartan skirt to the jean jacket adorned with patches, safety pins, and words or phrases she had scrawled herself with a magic marker. Her shaggy, bleached blonde hair was messily spiked.
In many peoples opinions, she was asking for trouble. There were plenty of people who were happy to give it to her. She just wanted to express herself. When he nodded for her to go on into the auditorium, she was so surprised that it took a moment before she moved.
She had just picked up the band’s first album, ‘Boy’ a month or so ago, though it had been on the racks for nearly a year. She liked to consider herself up on the latest developments in music, but somehow, U2 had managed to go unnoticed by her. So, when she heard about their new October LP and tour, she had been quick to volunteer for the assignment.
She worked for a relatively small but well respected music and culture magazine, and although she was fairly new to their employ her talent had earned her instant respect. Some of the more veteran photojournalists were openly hostile toward her, but she wasn’t about to let anyone intimidate her. When Alyx McKinny wanted something, she went for it.
