·ramble on, now's the time, the time is now·

[❀ Melíssa]

      Natalia and Chelsea crowded around the computer screen in the office, deliberating over the details for the next tour.
      “So it looks like Mom & Dad are still more popular in the States than we are, so I say we open for them here, and just take our cut from their ticket sales. And hope we move enough merchandise,” Natalia chewed the end of a pen, wishing it was a joint.
      “Damn kids these days, don’t know good music when they hear it,” Chelsea grunted. “Good thing they still have their wits about them in Europe. Gotta go straight to the birthplace of punk to get any respect.”
      Natalia smirked. “So I’m thinking we start Stateside, open for Mom & Dad, use that to boost future sales, then take it worldwide with slightly higher ticket prices.”
      “Are you really ready for a world tour?”
      “Not at all, but if we keep doing these little regional tours, we never hit a city again until years down the road. I mean, when’s the last time we did the Asian tour? It takes us the same amount of time to cover one continent as it does to hit all the world venues, so we might as well cover more ground at a time.”
      “Plus, Mom said that Blake and Taryn have grabbed some more crash pads,” Chelsea mentioned, referring to their parents’ bandmates, “so we won’t have to stay in hotels all the time. We can plan the dates around those cities, and stay a little longer in each one, just hiding out in the house.”
      “Oh yeah,” Natalia remembered, pulling up a program on the computer and typing a few things into it. “Where are they again?”
      “Well, Blake’s got Toronto and Rio, and Taryn’s got Porto and Ankara. We’ve got Manila and LA, then there’s your little place in Amsterdam and mine in Milan.”
      “So if we do this right, looks like we can go pretty steady for about three weeks at a time, then crash for almost a week at each house,” Natalia leaned back in her seat, intertwining her hands behind her head. “It would be really great if we could hit the final stretch at Amsterdam. Then I could really relax, and stock up.”
      Chelsea shook her head. “Are you sure you’re my sister and not really my cousin? Aunt Tatum would be so proud of you. She’s probably the only parent I know that’s disappointed that her kids don’t smoke. Rain and Stormy are as straightedge as they come. Oh, and we forgot their place in Barcelona.”
      “We should give Aunt Tat a call. I think she opened up a few more clubs in the Mediterranean. We should see what opening they have.”
      “You call her, I’ll call Rafael, see what drivers are available. They’ll have to get the bus ready.”
      “Good. Then we need to head into the city and finish recording. Gavin wants to finish mixing. Oliver got the report out to Jolene this morning, we’re right on budget with everything, and if we want, we can even record the stuff that we weren’t sure about. Maybe the next album can have a ‘secret song’, even though you know I feel about that,” Natalia rolled her eyes.
      “I’ll have Dad call the factory so he can pre-approve the order before their tour starts.”
      “Mom and Dad are going on tour again?” Parker overheard the tail end of the conversation as he stood in the kitchen, rummaging for food. “They just got back,” he pouted.
      “Sorry kiddo,” Chelsea kissed the top of his head. “The old folks gotta tour all the time to stay on top. Us young folk can just go out and party.”
      “Aunt Tatum parties,” Parker pointed out, “and her and Mom are the same age; they’re twins.”
      “Ah, but she’s ageless,” Natalia replied, “And Mom parties too. More than you know. One day you should take a good look at their website, and go read the archived articles. Lots of good stories.”
      Chelsea snickered. “And ask Dad why you’ve been banned from a certain bar in Stockholm since before you were even born.”
      “Good times,” Natalia sighed. “Can’t wait till we have our own stories to tell. Anyway,” she stood up, “Off to have a little herbal refreshment, then I’ll sit down at the drums, I think. See you guys later,” she slipped out of the room, headed up to the apartment.
      “So it’ll be just the guys here for awhile, huh?” Parker asked, referring to himself, TJ, Nate, and Oliver. “When you go on tour?”
      “Yeah. We leave about a month after Mom & Dad.”
      Parker sighed. “I wish I could go with you.”
      “Maybe over the summer, we can plan, like, a family tour. Aunt Tatum and her band, Uncle George, Mom & Dad, me and Nati… we’ll talk Mom into having everyone go. Something small, just the States.”
      “Yeah! I want to go back to Chicago.”
      “How can you even remember Chicago?” Chelsea laughed, pushing her baby brother ahead of her. “That was years ago.”
      “Because it was fun!”
      They were interrupted by the oldest in the family, Oliver, thundering down the stairs from the apartment. “Nati’s got the skunk this time. It reeks up there,” he complained.
      “There’s a skunk upstairs?” Parked asked, looking from Oliver, who looked annoyed, to Chelsea, who was trying to hide a smirk. “What?”
      “Nothing,” Oliver spoke first. “Nati’s stinking up the joint, that’s all.”
      “Haha,” Chelsea giggled. “Stinking up the joint,” she pulled her cell phone from her pocket, remembering the business calls she had to make.
      “What am I missing?” Parker balled a fist.
      Oliver shook his head, “Nothing,” he repeated, throwing an arm across Parker’s shoulders as he opened the refrigerator door. “And ask me again in five years.”