The roar that rolled from the eagerly awaiting crowd flooded Spencer's ears as he waited in the wings. Brendon was hopping from foot to foot.
"I hope it goes okay," he prayed. Spencer pulled him into a tight hug, his soft beard brushing Brendon's cheek.
"It'll go fine!" he cooed, rubbing his friends back.
"But what if we disappoint? What if...what if they preferred Ryan and Jon to us?" Brendon's eyes were glistening. Spencer sighed.
"We've had this discussion far too much, Bren. I'm sorry, but it's just us now. They aren't coming back." Brendon took a deep breath in when the stage fell to black. "Good luck." Brendon nodded and darted to centre stage, behind the big black curtain. The beginning to Mona Lisa caused the audience to erupt even more than they previously were. Here he was...in an arena...with just Spencer. He suddenly felt...so alone. The curtain dropped and he pushed an ecstatic smile onto his face as he sang. So many kids were there, jumping and screaming. It made him smile for real. They seemed to be having fun. The show went exceedingly well, and one of the last songs was Memories. Lifting the mic to his lips, he opened his mouth. The crowd sang along, overjoyed. But he knew the real meaning behind his lyrics.

"Oh memories, where'd you go?
You're all I've ever known.
How I miss yesterday
And I let it fade away..."

Tears sprung into his eyes. Those lyrics...oh god... He belted out the next part of the song until he had the feeling he was being watched. Of course there were thousands of kids watching him, but this was a different feeling. He glanced offstage and nearly dropped the mic. His voice faltered and his tears finally broke free from his eyes. Ryan raised a nervous and sheepish hand to wave at Brendon. A small smile played on his lips. He gave him the thumbs up and mimed
"You're incredible tonight." Brendon's throat closed up and he couldn't be angry at Ryan any more. Without thinking, he let the mic fall to the floor, though his hand still held the cable. The rest of the band kept playing, though Spencer was the most confused at the sudden turn of events. Brendon dashed to the wings as Ryan dashed out of them, and the audience went ballistic when they clapped eyes on Ryan. Ryan's hands clasped around Brendon's neck as he pushed his lips against his, and everyone in the arena exploded. Brendon guessed - from the fans jokes and things - that this was exactly what they'd been waiting for. He pushed himself against Ryan, and their tongues collided clumsily. This wasn't their first kiss, but it was the best. Both men were smiling goofily into each others mouths as the music continued to play.
"I'm sorry," Ryan whimpered over the music. Brendon held his face in his shaky palms. "I'm sorry, Bren. I thought there was going to be more to my life than this band, but I was wrong. My life IS this band...Fuck it, my life is you." Their mouths met again and Brendon hugged him tightly, tears of happiness streaming down his face.
"I've missed you so, so, SO much," Brendon cried into Ryans shoulder, and the mic now in Brendon's hand blared the little confession out into the crowd accidentally. Everyone 'awwwed' at it and the two men giggled. They stood for a while, their foreheads and noses leaning on one anothers. Eventually, they rushed over to Spencer who rolled his eyes, chuckling. A giant smile smothered Spencer's face as Ryan hopped up beside him. The audience watched as the three men whispered with each other. After a short while, Ryan stepped down from the drum platform, down across to the right of the stage and tapped Ian's shoulder, whispering something into his ear. Ian rolled his eyes but pulled his guitar over his head and handed it to Ryan. The NOISE that ABSOLUTELY ERUPTED from the audience was deafening. Brendon couldn't express his joy, and neither could Spencer. Ryan's heart did a back flip - he couldn't believe he had been accepted back so easily.

Though Jon was still missing...they felt complete. Ryan and Brendon held onto each other for the last song which wasn't on the set list. Brendon smiled at Ryan. Ryan smiled at Brendon. And Spencer smiled at them both. Hands entwined, Brendon gave Ryan's palm a little squeeze. Ryan kissed Brendon's cheek.

"If all our life was but a dream..."