"Is that my jacket?" he asked approaching her
"No" she shrugged and looked up at the gray sky "It’s going to rain is all. This is mine"
Actually that wasn’t true. Gabrielle distinctly remembered borrowing the jacket from a fourteen-year-old George and never giving it back. The smell of fags and cheep cologne was still present in the musty leather. But of course it smelled like George as well.
He rolled his eyes "What’s this about a wedding?"
Gabrielle laughed "How could you not remember?"
"Pissed?" he suggested and took a packet of fags out from his jacket pocket. He lit one and took a drag off of it. "Well, anyway it sounds like they’re loading us all up into a van and shoveling us onto a ferry and then making us play"
"Well, for fifty quid you know." She nodded "That isn’t bad"
A fight broke out behind them. Between Paul and Pete. Basically screaming at each other over who was going to carry the bass drum.
George slung his arm over her shoulder and led her across the small alleyway towards the running car that held Mike, Shaz, Linda and Peter.
"Coming in?" Peter asked through the open window
"Yeah" George nodded "Shove over and let me drive"
Peter found this to be the funniest thing in the world. He laughed for nearly an hour. Maybe not so long. But still.
"Shut up Peter!" Mike instructed "Drive for Christsakes. And *don’t* let Georgie behind the wheel"
Hey" George looked at Mike through the back window "Shut up McCartney I’m a good driver"
"Yeah right" Peter giggled, leaning his head against the steering heel and sighing "That was funny"
Gabrielle slung her arm low around George’s hips and leaned against him. He tightened his grip on her shoulders "Just get in" she sighed
"I never get to drive" George muttered as he led her around to the other side of the car.
"Gabby has to sit on you" Peter informed him as George opened the car door
"She can sit on me" Mike grinned
"I’ll squash you" she told Mike blandly
"I’m bigger then George!"
They ignored him. George climbed into the car and turned his legs to the side a little bit and held his arms out to Gabby. She stepped in and settled into his lap. George’s arms wound around her and held her arms down like some sort of bondage. He dropped his head onto her shoulder and sighed tiredly.
"That is so disgusting" Shaz commented "I can literally see the sweat on you George. Why are you touching anyone like that"
George and Gabrielle giggled
"You don’t actually *mind* Gabrielle?" Shaz continued
"Neh" Gabrielle leaned back and smacked a kiss on George’s cheek. Shaz squealed and Peter rolled his eyes. "Oh, well it doesn’t taste or smell so good" she consented "May want to think about a shower Harri"
George shrugged and leaned his head against hers but faced his brother as they followed Neil out of the Alleyway. Gabrielle reckoned if you listened hard enough you could hear Paul and Pete still bickering while John did something annoying just to egg them on and Neil told them to (and I quote) "shut up, don’t make me pull this thing over"
Gabrielle sniggered.
"Are we having a party?" George asked Peter lazily, he threaded his hand through Gabrielle’s hair, half to detangled it and half just to feel how soft and velvety and nice it was. George was a touchy feely person. Even if he wouldn’t admit it he responded to sound first, and touch second. A very physical person.
It started to rain. There was a collective groan from everyone present. George pressed his face into the back of Gabrielle’s neck, hopping to not half to see the rain drops coming down in sheets and making everything in sight wet.
"Strap yourselves in" Peter announced.
The van suddenly swirled, producing small shrieks from Gabby and Shaz, the only females present. George turned his attention away from Gabby in time to see the window on Neil’s side open and a drumstick be hurled out into the road.
Everyone burst out laughing in surprise.
Finally they reached the Harrison house. John was laughing his arse off in the driveway. The arrival of the second car just propelled him to laugh harder.
"For fucks sake John, shut up" Pete shouted and stormed up to the front of the house, away from his bandmates.
John laughed harder. Paul was still inside the van as far as anyone could tell. George pushed the door open and Gabrielle slid off of him and landed on the pavement. John caught sight of her and grabbed her up into his arms with flourish.
"We’re gonna have some fun tonight!" he sang "Have some fun tonight! Ooh!"
Gabby laughed and pulled away "Where’s Paul?’
"Sulking" John sneered "Doesn’t matter, Oy! Harrison Senior! Toss us the keys!" Peter threw the keys in their direction. John caught them and made a cackling sound before pulling Gabby towards the house.
"Are we having a party?" she asked
"Don’t be daft" John shot her a look "We’re going to drink all of George’s father’s liquor and I’m gonna ring his mate Arthur Kelly. Have him pick some things up at the store on his way over"
"George’s dad doesn’t drink Vodka, could you ask him to get some of that?" Gabrielle asked politely, as if asking for candy
John grinned and ruffled her hair "D’you promise to be good and not run off with George and leave the rest of us without yer drunken antics"
"Er… maybe."
"Ok" John pushed the front door open. Pete sulked inside. John slapped him on the back and told him to cheer up.
The Harrison’s house was warm and dry and a nice relief from the rain outside. John instructed Pete and Gabby to run upstairs and get al of George’s records and bring them down stairs while he rang people.
Pete sneered at Gabby "Well let’s go" he said at last
She shrugged and trotted up the staircase and detoured at the top to George’s room.
Pete was acting strange. She could sense him leering and being generally a bit scary as she ran through George’s desk drawers and pulled out records. Buddy Holly, Elvis, Chuck Berry, A new Leadbelly one. Gabrielle plopped down on the bed and read the sleeve of this LP carefully wile Pete set about grabbing another stack out of George’s closet. He set them down heavily on the desk and watched Gabrielle for a few seconds.
She didn’t notice him. And ran her finger over the tittles of the songs. At Pete’s sharp intake of breath her eyes flittered up to him
"What?" she asked and began to stand up.
Pete stepped up close to her and grabbed both of her wrists tightly. He yanked her towards him. Her first instinct was to kick him a scream but that would just be daft and this was *Pete*. She may have disliked him but he wasn’t going to do anything.
Pete saw the fear dwindling out of her eyes and it turned into amusement.
"Yes Pete?" she asked cheekily, although his fingernails were digging into her wrist quite painfully "Something you wanted to talk about"
"Don’t fuck with me Gabby" he snarled
"Aw" Gabby grinned "Don’t worry I wouldn’t fuck you if-"
He shoved her down on George’s bed and leaned down close to her face "I’m serious you silly cunt" he shouted, Gabrielle closed her eyes and expelled a soft breath
"Don’t call me a cunt you fucking cunt" she retorted
He made a frustrated sound "I know what your doing!" he grabbed her shoulders and shook her "I *KNOW* you don’t like me. But this band isn’t any of your fucking business. I don’t care if you’re fucking all three of them, stay the fuck out of it!"
Gabrielle was taken aback. She had no idea what he was goin on about in all honesty. "What…" she started to say
"Just" he sputtered "Shut up and stay away from us!"
Gabrielle rolled her eyes "Oh fuck off it Pete. You honestly think they’d pick you over me? You’re just the fucking--" she let out a surprised shriek when he lifted her up again, presumably to get in her face and shout some more.
"Oh bloody Christ" Anger. Gabrielle wasn’t generally an angry person at all. But when she did infrequently get angry you wanted to get out of her path. Pete was still yelling something about how it was her fault no one liked her and that his mother wasn’t managing them and instead they were just playing the Cavern.
With sneer of disgust Gabrielle pulled her hand back and hit him as hard as she could.
It surprised him and he let go of her and stumbled backwards, clutching at his jaw. Well, now her hand felt like it might fall off. She sneered at him "Stupid cunt" and fled past him with the albums under her arm. Out George’s door and down the stairs.
At the bottom of the stairs Neil and Paul were standing when she came thundering down with Pete close behind her. She flew around Neil and grabbed Paul, holding him in front of her and threading her hands around his waist.
"What is going on!" Neil exploded
"Pete" Paul looked on in surprise at his drummer and his bed buddy. Gabrielle didn’t let go of his waist. She needed protection and this was where she was going to find it.
"She hit me!" Pete sputtered "She fucking hit me! I think you broke my nose you fucking little tart"
"He was being a cunt" she said simply, much softer then she had intended. Paul took her meaning. He gave Neil a look and then looked at Pete, rubbing his jaw and looking disgruntled
"You were being a cunt" Paul shrugged at last. He looked down at Gabby, who had her head poking out from under one of his arms "Are you all right, he didn’t hit you?"
"No!" Pete shouted, "I don’t hit birds, Paul…"
"No but you obviously have nothing against shoving me a round a bit" she spat out
Paul gave Pete a look "Why are you shoving her around?" he tried to make his tone light. Paul didn’t want to have one of those big, ‘choose between your drummer or you mate’ type ultimatums. He would undoubtedly have gotten rid of Pete. But now was not a good time, not with impending gigs at the Cavern and Pete’s popularity. Now was not a good time to go searching for a drummer.
"Look mate" Paul sighed "Don’t, Christ…. Just don’t do it. Go home or something"
Pete shook his head "I’m leaving"
Paul rolled his eyes "fine, leave. Have a nice walk home"
The door slammed shut only to be pushed open a few seconds later by a bewildered look Arthur Kelly.
"Wow" he whispered "who decked Petie Best"
Neil grinned looking proud "Our Gabby"
