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mingispelvis · 1 year

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Chilli Pepper Vibe

Genre: mingi x afab!reader, smut w a little fluff but a LOT of plot

Length: 5.5k

Summary: You go abroad with your friends and are blessed to run into Ateez at your hotel.

NSFW warnings under cut

Warnings: oral sex female receiving, oral sex male receiving, fingering, alcohol consumption, unprotected sex (WRAP IT UP), not pulling out, use of slut, use of baby girl, there's a LOT of plot sorry this is kinda fluffy also at the end

Idk how NDAs work and idk how to end it sorry!!!!!

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Girls trips hit different when you’re all gainfully employed. Seulgi had just made partner at Bae & Kang law firm. Joy was recently promoted to Zone Manager of her company, with a hefty bonus to boot. And you? You finally finished residency and were officially able to practice medicine on your own. Despite the three of you being in your mid 20s, you had all continued to push each other and you all achieved great things.

Thusly, girls trip.

Seulgi, being type A, organized the entire trip from start to finish. To her, vacation starts the moment you step out of your front door. She arranged an Uber Black to take the three of you to the airport, got you all first class tickets, and arranged a very expensive penthouse for the three of you to stay in. She wouldn’t even tell you where exactly you’d be going, just to “bring your sexiest party clothes, a few swimsuits, and your passports”.

“Our final plane before we land at our destination will be at gate, ummm,” Seulgi paused to check her airline app to see where the three of you would be waiting for the next hour. “Ah, gate A57”. You and Joy eyed the terminal signs as you walked towards A57, passing “Los Angeles, California”, “Seattle, Washington” “Atlanta, Georgia” and then “Moscow, Russia”, “Beijing, China”, and “Seoul, South Korea.” A57 came into view and underneath, in bright orange pixels, read “Tokyo, Japan”. Your jaw dropped open and Joy began to squeal. “No way, no way, no way. Seulgi. You did NOT get us tickets to Waterbomb.” Joy jumped up and down, neck pillow flopping against her back. Seulgi shrugged her shoulders and attempted to fight a smile, but Joy squealed again and grabbed her into a huge bear hug, causing a grin to explode onto Seulgi’s face. “I LOVE YOU SO MUCH RIGHT NOW YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW!” Joy’s scream was muffled as her tight hug squashed her mouth into Seulgi’s shoulder.

“Umm..hold on…what’s Waterbomb?” You asked, giggling slightly at your friend’s antics. At this, Joy and Seulgi stopped hugging to stare at you like you’d grown an extra head out of your shoulders. “Ew I forgot she’s only a casual KPOP girl.” Joy rolled her eyes as she plopped down in one of the chairs at the gate and kicked her feet up onto her suitcase. Seulgi took the time to explain the massive festival, the amazing kpop acts, and the water guns to you and by the time your boarding zone was called, you were stoked about getting to go.

The flight to Tokyo was long and uneventful, the ride to the hotel was short and sweet, and the check in process was smooth. The three of you were staying at a 5 star hotel famous for waiting on their guests hand and foot. The elevator up to the penthouse was smooth and when you stepped into the hall, you were shocked to find only two massive open areas on either side of the elevator. “The other side is the other penthouse. We have this entire half of the floor to ourselves. That’s how big this place is.” Seulgi explained. As if your jaws couldn’t drop enough, Seulgi scanned her thumb print and the door to your vacation palace unlocked with a quiet click. “They don’t have my thumb print, right? I didn’t authorize them to have that information!” Joy joked. You couldn’t even think of the logistics as you stepped into what could only be described as luxury beyond your wildest dreams. Marble floors, brilliant chandeliers, gold plated silverware (goldware?) 200 inch large screen TV with surround sound speakers, full bar, and floor to ceiling windows overlooking the city of Tokyo. The balcony was a walk around that you could access from the living area or any of the bedrooms and had a hot tub, a small infinity pool, and another outdoor bar. Each of the three bedrooms had a king sized bed that you actually had to walk up two steps to get into and a full bathroom attached. The bathrooms had clawfoot tubs made of more gold, massive showers, and a towel warmer. Despite having handed over your credit cards to Seulgi so she could split the price of everything equally between the three of you, you had no idea the measly 4 digit price you paid could amount to such elegance.

The long travels and time change hit the three of you hard, so after gawking at the amenities the penthouse provided a little longer, the three of you washed up and hit the sack, hard. So hard, you didn’t wake up until almost 3pm the next day. Luckily, traveling queen Seulgi had accounted for this and had allotted two rest days into the rigorous itinerary, delivering every meal up to the room by room service to be had on the balcony or on the edge of the pool.

“I wonder who’s on the opposite side of the hall from us in the other penthouse” Joy questioned between massive bites of her meal. She was standing in the pool with her upper half lounging on the poolside.

“Probably some big shot oil tycoon and his 3 wives,” you joked, nursing an afternoon mimosa. Joy giggled and downed another bite of her meal. For being so thin, she had one hell of an appetite.

“Actually,” Seulgi started with a smile. “I booked this hotel because it’s usually one of the ones idols stay at since it’s super close to the festival area and the hotel is known for its discretion. I bet it's a kpop group.” Joy dropped a grape into the pool, mouth agape, body frozen as she stared at Seulgi. You watched the grape bob away towards the other side of the pool. Joy still hadn’t moved or spoken when you turned back.

“Joy? Babe? You alright?” You gave her shoulder a light shake.

Joy took a deep breath before shouting, “A KPOP GROUP!? YOU’RE TELLING ME STRAY KIDS COULD BE RIGHT NEXT DOOR? OR EXO? OR-” Joy jumped out of the pool at this point. “We gotta go over there and find out who it is!”

“No! What are we gonna do just knock on the door and see who answers? It could be a girl group too, you know.” Seulgi stated.

Joy jumped again, “TWICE!?” Joy feigned fainting, “catch me Nayeon!” You all three laughed and Joy jumped back into the pool. “We should get some drinks and just have a party tonight. A light party, so we can go explore tomorrow, but a party nonetheless.” Joy suggested.

“Hell yeah we’ve relaxed enough. It’s time to get fucked up.” You agreed.

“I know a place we can get some good stuff for cheap. We spent an arm and a leg on this trip. I'm not paying the big bucks for alcohol.” Seulgi stated, cleaning up the plates (as is her duty as the resident mom of the trip). “Let’s head there now so we can be back before dinner and get some food in our system before we get trashed.”

You and Joy did as you were told and obediently threw on a swim suit cover-up to travel to the store. 2 bottles of champagne and a box of soju later, the three of you returned and got dressed for dinner. After your bellies were full, the three of you put on your “party pajamas" (short shorts, crop tops, and fuzzy socks) and got the snacks and drinks ready on the living room table.

“Shit we need ice for the champagne don’t we. I’ll go grab some from the ice machine down the hall. We’re gonna need more than the refrigerator has at the moment.” You grabbed the empty champagne bucket and headed to the room where the ice machine was located. Well, where you thought it was located. The ice machine room was empty and you pouted while thinking about where you could get ice. You walked back to the room, but before you went back in and admitted defeat to your friends, you saw the doors to the staircase and thought you might as well try one floor down. Entering onto the floor below you headed back to the area where the ice machine could be, but stopped when you saw two figures standing in the open area after the penthouse suite door. Though the lighting was dim (a 5 star hotel can’t light their hallways?) you could see a third figure gesturing, and then backing up and pointing their phone towards the first two as if they were recording. You slowly walked closer when you heard “Ok, shi-jak* [A/N: begin].” T-Pain’s “Booty Wurk played and the two figures started dancing. The moves were executed flawlessly until one of the figures in a black cap made an imperceptible (to you) mistake. Groans from the other two were heard and the taller male in the front, in a gray cap, turned to playfully shake at the other. You took this as your chance to pass through. “You guys are really good at dancing,” you started as all three boys jumped, startled at your sudden appearance. You passed by them, but not before taking in just how beautiful they all three were. “Oh, thank you.” The one in the gray cap nodded to you. You headed to the ice machine, but subconsciously felt like someone was watching, so you took a quick peek over your shoulder to see all three men watching you. Dipping quickly into the ice room, you put your hand over your heart and felt it flutter.

Woah. Were they checking me out? You thought to yourself as you pressed the bucket under the ice machine. The clanking and crunching of the machine and the ice hitting the metal bucket was a mere whisper compared to the thumping of your heart and whooshing of blood in your ears.

Fuck it. It’s vacation. You convinced yourself as the ice toppled over the lip of the bucket and landed with a clack on the floor. When you came out, the boys were dancing again. You walked just close enough to let them know you were watching, and then leaned against the wall. The boys finished up their attempt of the dance and you stepped forward.

“Wow! You guys are really so good!” you fluttered your lashes even though you weren’t sure if they could see in the dim light. “You should be professionals. I wish you could teach me to dance!” You stepped a little closer to the three boys.

The boy holding his phone chuckled while the one in the gray cap thanked you again. You fluttered your lashes again and flashed a sweet smile. “I’m Y/N. And you are?” You turned to the shorter boy in black. “Oh, uh, I’m Wooyoung”. He smiled lightly.

“I’m Yunho.” The boy in the gray cap waved and then shoved his hands back in the pockets of his white cargo pants.

You turned to the final boy and your eyes widened and pulse quickened. You hadn’t gotten a good look at him when you first passed by, but even in the dim light you could see he was a ten out of ten. You strained your eyes and pleaded with your pupils to let you see this man in all his glory.

“I’m Mingi. Nice to meet you, Y/N. And, for the record, we are professionals.” He smiled.

“Oh? Are you in a dance group?” You questioned, never breaking eye contact with Mingi.

“Something like that”, Wooyoung answered. “More like a KPOP group.” He barely finished his sentence before he was lightly slapped in the chest by Yunho.

“Oh that’s really cool. Which group? Maybe I’ve heard of you.” You played it cool even though your heart was threatening to beat itself out of your rib cage.

“Ateez.” Mingi said proudly.

You did your best not to fangirl hard. You’d been listening to Bouncy continuously since Joy sent it in the group chat. Due to your rigorous doctor schedule, stanning wasn’t something you had time to do- thus, Joy’s “Ew, casual KPOP girl” comment in the airport.

“I think I’ve heard of you guys before.” you nodded and flashed another cute smile. “Well, I have to get this bucket of ice back to a few bottles of champagne,” you emphasized your sentence by holding up the bucket and patting it a few times. “But if you guys ever want a break from idol life, my friends and I are one floor up with drinks and snacks.” You passed through the three boys once again, turned around, and started walking backwards so you could express your final sentence to them, “and we’ll sign NDAs, no problem.” You whipped back around before the three boys had a chance to watch you sink deep into embarrassment, fear, and confusion.

Did I really just tell three international superstars I’d sign an NDA to party with them? I haven’t even started drinking and I’m already doing stupid shit. You chastised yourself as you quickly made your way back up the stairs and into your penthouse.

“Finally! We were gonna start without you!” Joy shouted, her back to you as she sat on the couch fiddling with something you couldn’t see.

“We did start without you.” Seulgi corrected, clicking something on her computer and watching the big screen TV at the same time. She seemed to be setting up her computer to cast to the TV to play music.

“You guys will never guess what happened to me and who I met.” You started, setting the bucket on the kitchen counter and tucking the two champagne bottles snuggly within the ice. When you turned back to your friends, they were both staring at you excitedly.

“WHO!?” they yelled in unison.

You went to go sit on the couch. You started off your story of the disappearing ice machine much to Joy and Seulgi’s dismay, and even kept an air of mystery by not revealing the names of the boys until the proper point in the story, after you’d gotten the ice.

“So I’m like, my name is Y/N what’s yours? And he goes ‘Wooyoung’ and the next dude goes ‘Yunho’ and the last dude goes ‘Mingi’.” you recount. At each name, Seulgi gasps and Joy squeals. You continued before they could interrupt you.

“Then Mingi’s like ‘Yeah we are professionals’ and I’m like ‘yeah are you in a dance group?’ and Wooyoung goes ‘We’re in ATEEZ’ and I lowkey pretended like I’m not obsessed with Bouncy so I can stay chill.” You were speeding through the story to make it to the most important part before Joy exploded with questions.

“So,” you continue “I say ‘yeah I’ve heard of you guys. Well if you wanna come up and party with us we’ll sign the NDA!” You bury your head in your hands and pull your knees to your chest while Joy and Seulgi, essentially, freak out.

“Are you telling me Ateez could come up here and party with us!?” Joy stands up on the couch in excitement. Seulgi quickly brings her down a peg to reality and says “They probably won’t but at least Y/N got to flirt with hot famous guys.” Seulgi pauses for a moment before a squeal escapes her mouth and she taps her feet on the floor in glee. “WE COULD PARTY WITH ATEEZ THOUGH!” Seulgi grins. With that, Joy jumps lightly off the couch and pops open a soju bottle. She grabs three shot glasses and pours the bottle evenly across all three. “Well,” she starts “we should be ready when they get here!”

You three take the shots like champs, open the snacks, and turn up the music. After some light mixed drinks and a few good songs, the three of you had almost forgotten about your supposed super star visitors. A knock at the door stops the three of you in your tipsy rendition of Kai’s Rover. You look at each other in confusion, and then turn towards the door. You head over and peek through the peephole. A young Asian woman, probably the same age as you, with an ipad is standing outside the door. You open the door just wide enough to be polite.

“Hi.” You say tentatively, confusion clearly showing on your face.

‘Hi! I’m one of the managers working for KQ and I think I have something you’ll want to sign.” The lady turns her iPad around and you see NON DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT in big bold letters across the top of a document. You feel hands on your shoulder and the door swings wider.

“YES. WE’LL SIGN. WHATEVER IT IS WE’LL SIGN!” Joy practically screams in the woman’s face.

The manager laughs and begins to quickly scroll through the massive document, highlighting the major points (basically, keep it quiet or we’ll sue you for your entire life and the life of your future children) and then hands you a stylus.

“If you agree to the terms and conditions, sign, print, and date here. If you have any questions let me know and I’ll be happy to answer them before you sign. If you’re no longer interested-” before the manager can finish her sentence, Joy snatches the stylus out of your hand and signs off on the document. She hands the stylus to Seulgi and she does the same with speed.

“So, they’re coming up here? They’re all actually coming?” You ask, raising an eyebrow and begging the answer to be yes.

The manager chuckles and says “this non-disclosure agreement covers any potential meetings with the idols mentioned within it on the dates mentioned within it.” She punctuates her sentence with a smile and moves the iPad towards you. Joy nudges you in a manner that lets you know that you will not be ruining this for her. You sign with shaky hands.

“Perfect!” The manager turns the iPad back around and taps on it a bit. “And if you could all input your emails here, you’ll receive a copy of this for your own records.” You put in your emails, and the manager hits send. “Thank you! Have a good night!” The manager bows, and heads down the hall. You slowly close the door and turn to look at your friends. You stand staring at each other, excitement buzzing between the three of you as not one of your brains can form words. Seulgi was the first to break the silence.

“Well…this is happening.” She said as if she was trying to convince herself to keep calm. Joy walked off like a zombie in a trance to sit back on the couch and stare out into the distance. “This is happening.” She repeated in the same tone as Seulgi.

“This is happening!” Joy rocketed up from the couch. “I gotta go put on some makeup!” Joy rushed into her bedroom, and you heard a distinct zip of a makeup bag followed by the continuous clacking of makeup containers hitting each other while being dumped out. You and Seulgi finally had the wherewithal to leave the foyer and head back to the couch. You took a generous swig of strawberry soju when you heard another knock at the door. This time, all three of you ran to the door to answer it. You were closer, and, therefore, faster, and opened the door with a grin.

“(Y/N)!” Mingi raised his hands above his head as if he was greeting an old friend. “I brought drinks and friends.” You moved to the side to welcome Mingi in, Yunho, Wooyoung, and San following behind him.

“These are my friends Seulgi and Joy.” You introduced your friends but before you could give them the eyes that meant “please be cool”, they began to fangirl.

“Oh my gosh Wooyoung you’re my bias! It’s so cool to meet you guys!” Joy giggled and jumped Wooyoung with a hug. “Oh I’m so sorry!” Joy jumped back as quickly as she had hugged Wooyoung. “I should have asked first- can I hug you?”

Wooyoung laughed and nodded, coming in for another hug. Yunho, Mingi, and San greeted you all and you all headed to the couch.

Joy, the official party girl of the three of you, immediately began to pour shots while Seulgi turned the music back up. The party had commenced full swing, with all of you jumping, dancing, and shouting lyrics as loud as you could. After an hour and a few drinks, you were just buzzed enough to let your inhibitions out the window, so when Bouncy came on, you lost it.

“EVERYONE SHUT UP I LOVE THIS SONG” you yelled, arms out as wide as possible to clear the makeshift dance floor (aka the area where the coffee table used to be). The song got as far as Yunho’s “one, two..” before it stopped. You whipped your head around to Seulgi with a look on your face that clearly said what the fuck!? But before you could verbally protest, Seulgi pointed to the TV. She’d pulled up the music video.

“Since you’ve never seen it.” She stuck her tongue out, but you didn’t see her. Your eyes were glued to the screen. By the time the video ended, you had made a dangerous decision. Watching Mingi clear out a bar with a fake gun, belly roll, and dance had you trembling. You knew you had to have him. You devised a devious plan in the blink of an eye. “Play it again!” you whined. “I wanna dance AND,” you stood up to emphasize the second request “I want you all to sing your parts!”

The boys laughed and agreed as Seulgi re-started the music video. You began dancing as Mingi rapped “What you wanna do?”. Your plan was in motion and so were your hips. You spun around and swung your hand in the air like you were swinging a lasso. You slowly approached Mingi, who had sat down on the couch. When the chorus hit, you straddled him. Your heart was beating faster than it ever had before, but your mind was determined. You kept lightly moving your hips and swinging your imaginary lasso. Mingi looked at you with eyes wide and mouth slightly open, corners of his mouth turned up in disbelief. You pushed a little further- putting your hands on his shoulders and singing along:

“Slow it down, make it bouncy

지금부터 fly

좀 다른 spicy 청양고추 vibe”

You looked Mingi in the eyes when you felt his hands on your hips. “Don’t forget to rap your part.” You leaned close with a small smile and mouthed “fix on” in time with the song. Mingi began rapping, and you began the next part of your plan. You wrapped your arms around his neck and began to kiss at his neck. You heard his breath catch slightly, but he didn’t miss a beat of his rap. You moved up to his ear, bit lightly, and moaned “mmmm”. You applied a little more pressure in your grind and you moved to snake your fingers up the hair on the nape of his neck. You kept kissing his neck and, when his rap had completed, Mingi slowly slid his hands down to cup your ass. You could hear San and Wooyoung confidently slurring their way through Seonghwa’s lines. You’re surprised you’re not embarrassed about slutting yourself out in front of your friends, but the growing bulge pressing into your crotch is making it a little easier. Pulling back and placing your forehead on Mingi’s, you stare in each other’s eyes and reach a silent understanding. You slide off of Mingi and grab his hand, leading him to your bedroom.

You shut the door, but can’t turn around because Mingi has pressed his body against you. He wraps his arms around you and kisses your neck. He spins you around and crashes his mouth into you, tongues wrestling and arms wandering. You push him towards the massive bed and pull away from the intoxicating kiss just long enough to warn him to watch his step. You pull off your shorts and shirt and Mingi does the same. Mingi sits up against the headboard and drags you back into his lap. You both moan and grind into each other- Mingi clearly not able to choose between massaging your breasts or squeezing your ass, so he settles for one for each hand. You’ve had enough of the humping and pull away. You trail kisses down Mingi’s body, clearly heading to give him the best head of his life, but he leans forward and grabs you before you can make it to your prize. Mingi flips you over and tears your panties off like he’s unwrapping a christmas present.

“Shit.” Mingi mumbles as he pushes your legs out and back for a clear view of his meal. He looks up at you as he lightly runs his middle finger through your slick covered folds. Your breathing is heavy and your heart is pounding.

“You want it, baby girl?” Mingi raises an eyebrow at you. You nod fervently, but that’s clearly not enough. “Lemme hear you baby. What do you want?” Mingi teases in the sweetest, sultriest voice you’ve ever heard.

“I want you to eat me like it’s your last meal, Mingi.” You respond, grabbing a fistful of his hair. At this Mingi’s eyes flutter shut and he gasps.

“Don’t let go,” Mingi growls, then he dives in. He wraps his lips around your clit and sucks, and makes quick work of his tongue. He slowly pushes his middle finger inside you and hooks it right into your g-spot.

The speed at which the pleasure overcomes you has you grabbing Mingi’s hair with your other hand and releasing a deep moan. Mingi slurps and moans as he fingers you deep. You pull him off of you and he looks up at you with confusion. You begin to crawl down towards his crotch, bulge straining painfully through his boxer briefs. Mingi gets it immediately and flips over onto his back to continue his work on your clit while you unearth his throbbing cock. Watching the thick, long member spring out of its cage has you clenching around Mingi’s finger. He moans and adds a second as you squeeze the base of his cock. He’s already leaking, so you squeeze a little more out to lubricate his dick. You lick a stripe from the base to the tip, and then take Mingi in his entirety. Mingi’s head falls back and he moans deeply.

“(Y/N), fuck, just like that.” Mingi pants and speeds up his fingers within you. You feel your orgasm approaching but you’re determined to make Mingi remember you. You move off of Mingi, which removes his fingers from you, and turn to face him. He looks down at you and you stare in his eyes as you deepthroat him. You hollow your cheeks and work your tongue up and down, cupping his balls with one hand and running the other up and down his thighs. Mingi lightly places his hands on your head and you can feel him throbbing in your mouth. You can tell he’s getting close and remove him from your mouth with a pop. The heat of the moment over takes you and you go to straddle him, line him up, and sink down on his cock. Mingi’s eyes fluttered shut and he shuddered out a moan. You began a slow pace, up and down, while simultaneously circling your hips. You threw your head back and dug your nails into Mingi’s toned abs. He gripped your hip with one hand and began mercilessly rubbing your clit with the other. Your legs went weak as your orgasm built up again, and you sat down on Mingi, fully taking his entire length. Mingi pulled you forward so you were laying on his chest. He hooked both of his arms around your waist, lifted his hips, and began fucking you senseless.

You came within seconds, gripping Mingi’s cock tight- he could feel your walls fluttering and your orgasm dripping down onto his thighs.

“Fuck Mingi, yes! Make me cum!” You moaned into his ear. Between your pussy death gripping his cock and you dirty talking in his ear, Mingi couldn’t handle it. His hips stuttered, his breath became ragged, and his moans became louder and louder. He pounded into you harder and harder until he finally stilled deep within you. You felt him throbbing and spilling his release as you were coming down from your own high.

Mingi rode out his orgasm still holding your body tightly to his. You pushed your torso up so you could see Mingi’s face clearly- hair sticking to his forehead by beads of sweat, eyelids low in bliss. Mingi took a deep breath and finally came to. His eyes got wide and he swore in korean.

“Oh God. I just…fuck…I didn’t pull out…I’m…are you…” Mingi’s mind was clearly racing and you put your pointer finger to his lips to shush him.

“Shh. It’s okay. I’m on birth control, I’m clean, and I’d never do that to you. I promise.” you comforted him.

Mingi’s eyebrows creased together and raised in a face that relayed “you promise?” then he nodded and released the breath he’d been holding. He then rolled over, still holding you tight to his body, so you could be flat on your back when he pulled out. “Stay there!” he requested as he ran off to the bathroom to get you a warm towel. He came back smiling, ready to provide you with excellent aftercare. He found your clothes that had been scattered over the floor, and handed them to you as he put on his own clothes. A pang of sadness hit your heart as you realized your night with Mingi was over, and you went into the bathroom to collect yourself (and to pee. You always pee after sex!). You looked in the mirror and saw how rosy your cheeks were, hair all over your head, and all you could do was smile. You were thankful that you had this experience. After quickly brushing your teeth and washing your face, you opened the bathroom door and peeked back in the bedroom. Mingi was nowhere to be found. You realized simultaneously that it was silent in the penthouse. You assumed the girls went to bed and Mingi left with the rest of his members. You crawled into bed, fluffed your pillows, and turned off the lights. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You woke up hot. Really hot. And paralyzed. Not sleep paralyzed, paralyzed like you were in a straitjacket. You slowly realized someone was in the bed with you. You could hear a soft snore from behind you. You twisted around to try and see if Joy had had another nightmare and wanted to cuddle with you for “safety”. The figure behind you aroused and you strained your eyes in the darkness to see who the hell caused you to be drenched in sweat.

“Hey, did my snoring wake you?” A soft, deep voice asked. Your eyes adjusted to the darkness and you saw Mingi’s sleepy face, eyes still shut tight. You were glad his eyes were closed because you were grinning like an idiot. “No, I just had a funny dream.” You lied as you cuddled up, face first into his chest. Mingi held you tight, kissed your forehead, and immediately fell back asleep.

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The smell of bacon wafted into your dreams and knocked on your brain until you regained consciousness. The sun was beaming into your room and you gave yourself a nice, full body stretch. While stretching, you realized how roomy your bed was. You turned over and noticed your empty bed. You sighed in content, happy for the night you had. A piece of cloth under the unused pillow caught your eye. You lifted the pillow and noticed Mingi’s shirt, and a note.

“Had a great time last night. See you at Waterbomb. Have you and your friends meet us backstage ;) -SMG”

You grabbed his shirt, stuffed it into your face, and took a big sniff. You didn’t care that it was creepy and delusional. You’re happy he left you a memento of the night you shared. The door to your room creaked slowly open, and you popped your head up as soon as you noticed it.

“SEULGI SHE’S UP OH MY GOD.” Joy screamed and sprinted full speed towards your bed. She flopped down next to you as Seulgi ran in behind her.

“TELL. US. EVERYTHING.” Joy enunciated her words by shaking your shoulders.

You relayed the night to your best friends. You concluded by showing them the note. Joy and Seulgi shrieked and their voices overlapped in excitement- fantasizing about how the day was going to go. You tuned them out and looked wistfully out the window as the sun continued to shine into your bedroom. You began to grin as you thought about all you were going to do with Mingi again.

#ateez #ateez smut #mingi smut #reader x mingi #song mingi smut #mingi x yn #yn x mingi #mingi x reader #wonderlandnet

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steveinscarlet · 5 months

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Another vintage Kerrang article for your delectation. This one is loooong. Text below the cut...

THEY'RE ALL concerned and they all want answers. Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee, hauling ass down Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, in a sparkling silver Corvette, certainly does. So does Blackfoot mainspring Ricky Medlocke, a recent unexpected apparition within the Marquee's glistening vaults. So does just about everyone I've met in the course of recent field-trips. They're all wearing that 'there but for the grace of God' look and they all want to know. So do I...

"Every time you speak to Rick on the phone you come away with a big grin on your face because he's in such good spirits. He's handling it better than I thought he would. He's matured 10 years overnight. He's totally accepted the fact that he's only got one arm and he's being very realistic about coming back into Def Leppard. He's mad to go for it, though, and we're mad to let him try."

That drummer Rick Allen will try, however, isn't in doubt. He's adamant about it and Leppard vocalist Joe Elliott is equally adamant that the band will give him their unrestrained support. As they've said all along, the decision is totally his "We aren't trying to show off or get sympathy," spells out Joe, "it's just the way we are. Def Leppard is simply five lads - we could have been a football team, we could have been international bank robbers. Rick's a mate, and just because he's had an accident doesn't mean he can't still be in the band. If he physically can't do it then obviously there's going to be problems, but with the technology available today I don't see why he can't play snare drum with his left foot, say. And if he can do that, and maybe have tom tom fills already recorded on a trigger, then the kit would look exactly the same. "Bill Ludwig, who builds Rick's kits, actually got in touch with him as soon as it happened, and it seems that there's a lot of one-arm drummers, guys who came back from Vietnam, y'know. The thing is, they tend to play Holiday Inns and places that like that; it's a different approach to drumming. Rick has a very John Bonhamish style - I mean, the quy doesn't need monitors, he's ridiculously loud! - and he'd never be able to do with one hand what he did with two for an hour and three quarters. It would kill him! So he's gonna need the technology. It's just down to whether he can accept the fact that there are gonna be people in the crowd trying to peer through the cymbals to see a plastic arm. He'll have to wear a shirt now, whereas before he'd always go bare-topped..."

THE DETAILS of the car crash that removed 21- year-old Rick (temporarily at least) from the Leppard ranks have been pretty well documented, grabbing column inches in the Nationals and beyond. The bare facts seem plain enough: at 12.50pm on New Year's Eve, while driving his Corvette along the A57 from Sheffield to his parents home in Dronfield (Derbyshire), Rick was involved in an incident which sent his car spinning out of control, turning over several times, injuring his female passenger and removing his left arm in the process. He remembers what happened vividly, and really can count himself fortunate to be alive. When the debris from the accident was examined it was found that the top half of the steering wheel had been bent back, Rick's particular power clearly preventing the steering column and dashboard from crushing against his chest. But why did it happen?

Picking through the events with Elliott it soon becomes obvious that the whole story is a little more complex than yer typical life-in-the-fast-lane pile up. Think about it...

When you're young and successful, with a streamlined US car and a female companion to match, it can sometimes sting the nasal membrane of the folks you've abandoned to a dole queue existence in your humdrum hometown rut. People have been known to glow green with jealousy, and on New Year's Eve people have been known to take a drink. Sometimes even a life...

"Yeah," says Joe quietly. "There was another car involved in the accident."

Mucking Rick around, you mean?

"That's right. But the people have denied it and there's nothing we can do. The coppers have interviewed them but it's no good I'd love to go round and kill 'em!"

Joe takes a moment to collect his thoughts, then continues... "The arm was placed in a bucket of ice gathered from all the houses nearby and Rick was in hospital (the Royal Hallamshire) within 19 minutes, which is unbelievable. He underwent an 11-hour operation; his arm was back on by ten to one the following morning, but infection set in and after three days they had to take it off.

"His nerves are still alive, though. They've got them wrapped up like spaghetti, and it's possible to have them connected up in a way that can give movement to a prosthetic arm. So the Steve Austin 'Six Million Dollar Man' thing is not beyond the realms of possibility one day. Rick still feels his arm because of the nerves."

When did you hear what had happened?

"I heard at about ten to four the same afternoon and I couldn't believe it. I cried like a baby for about three hours - my face was hurting. Peter (Mensch, manager) rang and said, 'Rick's had an accident, his arm's off, but they've sown it back on'. I've heard of that working before but unfortunately it was torn off, not cut off, so everything snapped and stretched in different places, which made it more difficult."

How soon after the accident did you visit Rick in hospital?

"I saw him two days after it happened... it was the worst experience I've ever had... but he was walking a week earlier than expected and telling the nurses to f**k off after three days because he was fed up having his bandages changed. He sounds in fine form now and wants to get back; drumming's all he's ever done, and he's done it very well."

"It's just up to him if he can stand the strain. I mean, he's going to go through some crap. He's not had it yet, but he's gonna suffer from depression; bad depression. He's being very realistic about it, though. He said to me, 'When it comes, it comes.' He wants to come out here to Holland but he knows he can't."

Presumably he won't be ready to play a part on the forthcoming tour?

"No, and he knows that. Somebody will guest with us until we know the result of Rick's convalescence." Would you consider using two drummers on any subsequent tours?

"Possibly, yeah, and Rick could do specific bits. We've definitely thought about that, but he's got a lot to learn first. I mean, there's certain things that are now a fact of life. If Rick wants to wear baseball boots, for example, he's gonna have to wear Velcro ones. And he's probably gonna need press-stud trousers. He's got to learn to bath himself even..."

"The thing is, at the moment his right arm doesn't work. The ball is smashed so they've had to pin it. He's got a six inch pin as big as a poker in there. Imagine if your elbow was sown to your hip; well that's all the movement he's got. I guess he's a bit of a mess, though mentally he's the best he's ever been."

What would happen if Rick returned to the band yet clearly wasn't cutting it? Would you have to tell him? "No, because he'd know himself. He's said that to me on the phone. He's being realistic- if he can't do it he can't, but he's definitely gonna try. There'll come a time when Rick will say, I'm ready, and we'll get together in a rehearsal room for a month and see what he does. He'll either turn round and go

'Yes!' and we'll go 'Yes!', or else he'll say 'Sorry, I'm not coping with it.'

"The important thing is that he tries, otherwise he'll never know, and that would be awful. I know he'd rather fail than not try at all. Besides, it's no big secret that we use drum machines on the records so, whatever happens, he could still be involved on that side. We would just take a session drummer out on the road."

"At the moment, we're trying not to get too depressed about the whole situation, but we were mega-depressed at first. I was in a real state, like a zombie for five hours, and for quite a time after I just didn't want to get into a car. I know it's daft, but it's true

A BONHAM of the biscuit tins, a Titan of the tupperware, since the age of 11 Rick Allen has thought of little outside of drums and drumming. At the moment he's at home, probably watching Cheech & Chong videos on the new system bought for him by Phonogram Records. But chances are that his thoughts are elsewhere, no doubt wafting with the music around the booths and corridors of Wisseloord Studios near Amsterdam, Holland, where Leppard are recording their fourth, as yet untitled, LP. As always, he's with his colleagues 110 per cent (for now it can be in spirit only), a continued commitment that should spur him on through the tough weeks and numerous hospital visits ahead.

Prior to the accident, he'd laid the groundwork for eight backing tracks, and the remaining two songs on the album were always destined to feature a less human touch, the band specifically wanting a more clinical punch, so there's no problem on that front. As for his work on backing vocals, well, Elliott can easily deputise in that department, leaving Rick free to concentrate on the speediest recovery possible and, as Elliott puts it, "Learn to live again. He's having all these drums built and a special car designed, all sorts of stuff..."

All things considered, '84 certainly wasn't an easy year for Def Leppard, a rude awakening for an almost unbroken streak of good fortune. First longstanding associate 'Mutt' Lange proved unable to produce the new LP, likewise his replacement Jim Steinman (though for different reasons - read on!), and then came The Accident, which instantly eclipsed all previous hassles, reducing apparent mountains of doom and dismay to easily skirted molehills. But, if anything, adversity has caused the four active members of the Leppard clan to virtually graft respective beaks to the grindstone in a collective consummate effort to make their next album their best.

The band's first LP, 'On Through The Night', produced by (Colonel) Tom Allom, took a mere 18 days to record and remains something of an embarrassment in Elliott's eyes (someday he'd like to remix it and touch up a few of the vocal parts), while the second, 'High 'N' Dry', with Lange now at the helm, was laid down in three and a half months, including a month's pre-production, bang, bang, bang, 'Mutt' clearly wanting to capture the excitement generated by these 21-year-old 'let's go for its'. But 'Pyromania' now that was a different story, with band and producer (Lange again) making a conscious decision at the outset to pin back the ears of a generation with something of genuine lasting quality; an attempt to update the glories of Queen's 'Sheer Heart Attack' and 'Night At The Opera' LPs...

They went for it in a big way and 10 months later came up trumps, creating a slice of history that many have doubted they'll be able to top; an album that left the whole of the music industry wide-eyed and open-mouthed, and caused bands both big and small to almost instantly re-assess their directions and aims. A (hard) labour of love still selling around a thousand a week, it broke taboos and set fresh standards right down the line.

"Hopefully, it'll be an Heavy Metal 'Sergeant Pepper...'," says Elliott, "who knows, but we've got to do more. It'd be tragic if our best album was our third and we end up doing 17 LPs."

Whatever the next album sounds like, however, Joe's convinced that it's gonna be slated by the press. He's resigned himself to the fact (not having heard the record beyond a few notes ricocheting out of the studio doors, I really can't comment), but, along with bassist Rick Savage and guitarists Steve Clark/Phil Collen, he's ploughing on regardless, helping to create something different to 'Pyromania' in content yet as good, if not better, overall.

"Since 'Pyromania' we're two years on technically," he explains. "The Fairlights are better, the keyboards are better and the microphones are better. And we're two years more experienced, of course. Actually, we keep putting on 'Pyromania' and listening to it back-to-back with what we've done; you have to imagine it without the mix, but it's definitely up there to my ears."

JOE ELLIOTT leans forward in the chair, tucks a fold of his rather battered dressing gown tight against private parts and pours himself another glass of one cal Coke. This for the moment is home, and has been since the middle of August: a simple hotel room in Holland ten minutes drive from the studio complex. Originally, the band were due to play the 'Mick Wall Festival' in Rio, but they eventually decided against it on grounds of not wanting to interrupt recording. So while certain jammy so-and-so's were sunning themselves on the Copacabana sands (maaaan!!), Elliott and co, tax exiles all, were trudging across frozen lakes, wrapped up tight against temperatures of 25° below! Still, there's always next year And if nothing else, in their present position the four are conveniently cut off from all domestic distractions. Through the hotel room window I can see Dirk, Elliott's treasured Renault 12 (and centrespread star of Kerrang! 79), basking quietly in the hazy sunlight, the central motif on an idyllic pastel canvas shaded only by the distant foghorn fuming of an adrenalised Peter Mensch. Somewhere, behind closed doors, he's informing an unfortunate Halfin that a five-piece outfit close to the latter's wallet have been 'stiffing' horribly in the South, and he doesn't mean Torquay! Let's just say he's on form...

Later, on the flight back to London, having persuaded Mensch to fund my purchase of a duty free Sony Walkman in tasteful pink, I tentatively suggest that the forthcoming Leppard biography should be titled 'Me & My Whine'...

"OH, YEAH, DAAAN-TAY!!" he snaps, blood vessels popping like balloons, "AND HOW LONG DID IT TAKE YOU TO THINK THAT ONE UP???"

Back to business...

"We've always upheld the theory," theorises Joe as things quieten down, "that we don't want to put out a record every nine months. We'd much rather put out a record every two to three years that's of real good quality

"When we started this album 'Mutt' was involved; we did pre-production with him in Dublin, Ireland, which is why we've put him down again on the songwriting credits. It's an honesty thing with us. He doesn't write anything as such; the six of us just sit round a table with a piece of paper in front of us and guitars turned down really low, then whoever chucks in an idea - be it Rick or 'Sav' or me or 'Mutt' - we play with it."

"Steve, for example, will come up with an idea and 'Mutt' will say, 'Change that round', 'Use this', 'Do it in another key', ' or whatever. It just creases me up to think that there are some people out there who look at us and say, 'Ha! They can't write their own songs', which isn't true at all. And even if it was, I'd much rather be involved with an album that sold six million copies co-written with a producer than one that sold 200,000 copies that wasn't."

Surely helping with the arrangements and so on is part of a producer's job, though "Yeah, right, but it's almost as if it's some kind of crime to let your producer be involved. That's what a producer's there for - to kick you up the arse and bring out the best that you can do. We encourage 'Mutt' to be involved and we repay him by sticking his name on the songwriting credits. Who cares! It's only a bloody song anyway..."

Isn't it true, though, that a lot of producers are really just glorified engineers and can't make the extra step up to that level of involvement?

"Yes, that is true, but 'Mutt's an exception anway because the guy's a musician, he's been an engineer since he left school - he's been doing it for 17 years and he's only in his early thirties now and he's also a brilliant singer and great songwriter, so you've got everything going for you! Whereas an engineer will be able to tell you if something's out of tune, 'Mutt' can go further than that and say, 'It doesn't feel right' or 'Sing it this way, shape your mouth like this, let's alter the phrasing'. "With most engineers, if it's in tune and it's what you want then it's a take, and that's all their job is, because if it's that way round it's normally the band who are producing, the way we are with this album. I noticed in Kerrang! it implied that Nigel Green is now producing – he's not, we are. Nigel's assisting." "Actually, he's worked with us on our last two albums, though not as main engineer. Mike Shipley was always our main engineer. Nigel's as good as Mike, it's just that at the time he was involved in other projects; so when Mike took a holiday or went to the dentist Nigel would come in. We've never worked with him on a long term basis before but we do know him."

What happened with 'Mutt' Lange, though? As I understand it, he originally agreed to produce the album as well as help out on pre-production...

"Yeah. In fact, he was still going to do it last February. We started with pre-production, as you've mentioned, but it soon became obvious that 'Mutt' was in no state to see the whole thing through. The Cars' album ('Heartbeat City') nearly killed him; our last album nearly killed him, and the Foreigner record ('IV') the same. I think he's just reached the stage now where to attain certain standards you're talking about grafting for a long time."

"The way we worked on 'Pyromania', for example, we were doing 20 hour days and the guy was sleeping on the couch in the control room. You just can't do that forever, so for the sake of his health he made a wise decision not to do our album. At the time, we were panicking; we thought, 'Oh, Christ!', cos things had all been planned. It wasn't a case of us being afraid of what the album would sound like if 'Mutt' wasn't there, it was simply the availability of other producers that we were concerned about. With top people like Ted Templeman, Mike Stone or Trevor Horn, you've got to book 'em years in advance, you can't just get in touch two weeks before you want to start..."

"Actually, we did approach Templeman just to see how much he wanted, and I don't think he was too keen to do it; he put in such a ridiculous money offer that no band in the world would have accepted it! But then we really wanted somebody a bit different, anyhow. We were interested in the people I've already mentioned initially because we thought, well, these are the names that we've listened to, Bob Ezrin, y'know. But then we started to think about people like Alex Sadkin, who we found was doing the new Foreigner album ('Agent Provocateur'). Trevor Horn would have worked with us in England, but Chris Thomas (Roxy Music, Procol Harum) turned us down flat - he obviously doesn't like us. We actually tried to get Phil Collins, who was interested but tied up with the latest Clapton LP ('Behind The Sun')."

So you were looking at people outside the world of heavy rock...

"Yeah, we were looking at up and coming producers like Terry Manning, who's engineered for ZZ Top, and Steve Lillywhite, who's yet to do a hard rock album but possibly could do a good one. Some of us were interested in him, some of us weren't. I like the fullness of Simple Minds' 'Sparkle In The Rain' LP, it's brill, but sounds are really no problem for us now, we can get good sounds; the thing we always like to have is musical input, and that's where we thought Steinman would come into his own. I mean, the guy's a good songwriter and he's had a hell of a lot of success with what he does."

He worked on the last Billy Squier album, 'Signs Of Life', with Tony Platt, didn't he?

"Yeah, well, he 'navigated' it is what Squier says. We thought, OK, we'll get the sounds and let him do the producing, but it turned out that Jim wasn't really what any of us thought he would be. In fact, I wonder how he's ever got a production credit on anything - especially with Squier, the kind of ego he's got. I can't understand why he even let Steinman's name appear on his album cos we're not putting it on ours."

What was the problem with Steinman then?

"Ahh... I wouldn't be lying if I said that you could have done it as well. I mean that. The guy just sat there reading 'Country Life' all day and going, 'Yeah, yeah, that sounds good', when it plainly wasn't. He's simply not used to recording the way we record. When we said, 'Listen, this is the way we work, you'd better get used to it', he tried and he couldn't. He just could not hear if something was wrong."

Were your standards too exacting for him, do you think?

"Possibly, yeah. It sounds strange to say that, though, cos to me those standards are normal. Doing 'Pyromania' was like going to college; I've grown up listening to things a certain way. As far as I'm concerned, getting the timing, the tuning and the feel spot on is the usual way to work, but Jim Steinman for all his reputation - could not hear it."

"After a while, we just thought, well, this is silly, we're wasting our time and money and wasting his time, though we weren't too bothered about that cos he wasn't too bothered about the project. I honestly don't think he was doing it for any reason other than credibility in the States. "We'd say, 'Right, we start at 12', and he'd wander in at 3.30. We'd stay till 12 or one in the morning, then he'd go back to his hotel and start writing songs for his own future projects, and he'd be up till nine o'clock doing that. So when he finally got round to us, he'd only had five hours sleep. he wasn't there half the time. I mean, he was there in body but not in mind. We found more and more that we were doing the work, which was fine, we didn't mind doing it, we just thought, why the hell should we be giving this guy so many points and so many dollars to sit there reading 'Country Life'!"

So how much did you manage to accomplish with Steinman?

"We did about eight backing tracks and scrapped them; almost everything has been done again. And even the things that went down were our decision Steinman never overruled us on anything. If he said a certain take was good and we said it was bad, we'd do it again."

Who was actually getting the sounds at this stage?

"Us and Neil Dorfsman, Steinman's engineer. He was good, actually, cos he was doing all the work. Jim was the ears of the partnership, but the ears were plugged up, I think..."

"Y'know, it annoys me intensely when a producer walks into a control room and says, "This carpet has got to go!' Sod the desk, that's not important. An SSL desk, 150,000 quid's worth of equipment, and the carpet's got to go! He even had the carpet changed in his hotel room. The guy was living in a suite while we were happy in rooms with a fridge and a cooker. Obviously, we paid for it all..."

"And the food! He went out to the North of Holland and had a 12 course meal! Which is fine, that's his personality, but when somebody walks into a studio and says the carpet has got to go... if I'd been there I'd have decked him. Seriously. Who gives a flying s**t what the carpet looks like!"

How long did Steinman last, then?

"Oh, we dumped Jim about November, we gave him a fair chance. We thought, well, alright, we're doing the spadework, what he might consider the boring side of the album, let's see what he's like on vocals, maybe that's his strongpoint. He did tell us that he spent something like five weeks trying to get Meat Loaf to sing one line, so we thought, OK, the guy's definitely got stamina."

"But when it came to doing vocals with me, it was exactly the same situation as with the backing tracks - everything was my decision. He'd say, 'Yeah, that's good', and I'd go, 'Jim, it's f**king useless!' I'd run out of breath at the end of a line cos I wasn't quite familiar with what I was singing, and he'd say, 'It's got a bit of feel'. Isn't that pathetic?!"

"I mean, Steve and Phil wanted to get rid of him two weeks after he was here. But I just kept saying, 'Give the guy a chance, blah, blah, blah' made meself look a right arsehole. But it was only fair to let him get to the vocal stage of things."

"Anyway, when Steinman went we all sat down and asked Mensch to sort out which other producers were available. We put down everybody we thought might be good. Mike Shipley couldn't do it cos he was off co-producing the new Loverboy album, so we just suggested Nigel. We were doing a better job than Steinman, so we thought, well, what's the point getting in another producer? We send 'Mutt' the odd tape now and then and he sends it back saying, 'It sounds brilliant to me', which shows that we can do it, so we are."

Has having Phil Collen involved from the start of this album (he became a Leppard member during the recording of 'Pyromania', replacing guitarist Pete Willis) made things different in any way?

"Yeah, it means that the songwriting's changed a little; Phil's input is better than Pete's ever was. Steve will always be the major songwriter, I think, but he's really encouraged Phil a lot. He doesn't just sit down and say, 'I want to write all the songs', stuff like that. In fact, everything that Steve's written, he's written with Phil in the same room... Phil's probably involved in eight of the 10 songs on the album."

And what about 'Sav'? He writes too, doesn't he?

"Yeah, but 'Sav's weird; I can't get to grips with him sometimes. More than anyone else in this band he likes your Journeys and your Bryan Adams, occasionally even the odd Duran Duran song, yet he was the one who came up with 'Stagefright' and 'No No No'. And on this new album he's got a number called 'Ring Of Fire' - not a cover of the famous Johnny Cash song! which is an uptempo, thrash, crash, Metal job. He just never writes like the people he listens to."

Will Steve and Phil be sharing the guitar breaks on the new LP?

"Oh yeah, 50/50, right down the middle. Actually, they argue about who's gonna do 'em; not in the sense of, 'I wanna do this', but Phil's telling Steve that he should do a certain solo and Steve's saying, 'No you do it, it's more up your street'. I remember hearing stories about KK (Downing) and Glenn (Tipton) from Priest not talking to each other for four months at a time, but it's the other way round with Steve and Phil. The only thing they argue about is who's gonna buy the drinks!"

What about you, though? You play a bit of guitar...

"Badly!"

...have you written anything on the new record?

"Er... I did come up with some stuff but I don't think it got used. I wrote little bits on the last album, but my main worry is obviously melodies, lyrics and vocals."

"Sometimes, though, we'll have a vocal line and work the backing around that. We've got this one new song, 'Armageddon It', which is Piltdown, just two chords all the way through; it's based around a tongue-in-cheek vocal thing."

Is it a 'Rock Of Ages' type number?

"I suppose it is a bit, yeah. The vocals come out from all over the place once it gets going. It's just a totally stupid lyric... like 'Rock Of Ages', just a piss-take of ourselves, though not mocking the fans in any way."

"And then there's 'Ring Of Fire', which I've already mentioned. It's actually about an Indian meal, the day after, but nobody would ever know that... well, they will now!"

When you're writing lyrics, do you ever think about how the song will work live?

"Not really, no. Obviously, a number like 'Rock Till You Drop' is a stage song, and the same with 'Stagefright', but I've never consciously sat down and thought, well, I'd better come up with two songs about 'Rock This Place To The Ground', or whatever, and one meaningful one about Vietnam, and another about a vigilante in New York. They just turn out that way. You do it in moods. I was probably watching something about Vietnam on TV and 'Die Hard The Hunter' (from the 'Pyromania' LP) came out, and I'd probably been to see 'Deathwish' when I wrote 'Billy's Got A Gun' (also on 'Pyromania'). I can't remember, I just do it."

"I actually wrote 'Photograph' (ditto) while I was sitting on the bog. I was stuck for a chorus and I had a picture of Marilyn Monroe staring me in the face... Bob's your uncle!"

When you made the decision to go for something extra with the 'Pyromania' album, were you confident that you could pull it off?

"We were confident, yeah, very confident, because 'Mutt' was producing. We just had so much faith in the guy and in return he had total confidence in what we were doing. We didn't see how we could go wrong, though Mensch was tearing his hair out when we were nearly a million pounds in debt and the record company were drumming their fingers waiting. I think we had to sell 1.2 million copies of 'Pyromania' to break even, we were in a real big mess..."

"I mean, I nearly had a nervous breakdown, I just couldn't handle it. I was going through so much crap towards the end - do it again, do it again... I got what a lot of singers get, 'Lastitis', which comes from the pressure of finishing. We went through a lot of hell on that record..."

Including, of course, the slightly wobbly exit of young Mr Willis...

"Yeah, but in all honesty I think that did us more good than anything. The thing is, you sometimes take situations for granted and then all of a sudden something like that happens and it's like, wow, it's different, there's only four of us, he's gone, really gone. I mean, Phil joined the day after, but then he almost joined back in '81."

"I tried to get him cos we were having trouble with Willis in America. I rang Phil up and said, 'Can you learn 16 songs in two days?' He said, 'I'll try', but that was just totally out of desperation, there's no way he could have done it. However, when Pete started to act in the studio like he did on tour, which was making Keith Moon look like a bloody vicar, it was time for him to go."

Why doesn't he get some help?

"Well, I think he's beyond help, to tell the truth. He doesn't even realise he needs it, he doesn't accept he's got a problem, though the guy's been in hospital twice as a result of drink and drugs. He had a collapsed liver or something, and epileptic fits, God knows what."

That hasn't happened to the rest of you, though, and you're all the same age, you've all worked your way up together...

"No, it's just him. Pete's always had something to prove, y'see, probably because he's a midget. The guy thought he was 10 feet tall when he was pissed and he'd be taking on people as big as you it didn't work. He was like a gigantic ball and chain around our ankles..."

THE LATEST whisper on Willis is that he's currently swanning around the environs of Sheffield, complete with Rolls Royce and minder, recounting tales of some hush-hush supergroup he might be throwing in his frets with. Elliott finds it hard to take the whole thing seriously, and I think it's fair to say that the recording of album number four is proceeding all the smoother for the wee man's absence.

Already, a number of lead vocals are complete, and the band (employing two studios simultaneously) are steadily piecing together their ten new songs, ready to convince a waiting world that Life After 'Pyromania' does exist.

So what's on the boil? Well, in no particular order, there's 'Armageddon It' and 'Ring Of Fire', already mentioned, 'Excitable', 'Gods Of War', 'Fractured Love', 'Don't Shoot The Shotgun' (Stonesy, I'm assured), 'Animal', 'Love Bites' (a ballad), 'Run Riot' and the enticingly handled 'Women', all proudly produced by the Leppard members themselves, who, without the invaluable 'Mutt' Marten to administer the prods, are taking great and serious pleasure in booting each other up the bum! "Actually, I never envisaged us producing ourselves," admits Joe, "I thought it might be the one thing that would lead to us falling out. It's always been dead important to us that Leppard is a friends situation; we want to keep the element of why we started. Five mates who can still go into the same bar and look each other in the face after seven years. Happily, that's the way it's remained, and producing ourselves is working really well..."

The new album, which now looks set to be mixed by Lange in the UK, an added bonus, should be available by August, after which the band plan to tear up the tarmac on a world tour of, well... y'know. The idea, it seems, is to blow away the studio cobwebs with about eight shows in Ireland, some in smaller places, then steer a course for the UK, perhaps for a September stint (the British dates have already been put back four times!) of 20 or so gigs. A headline appearance at Wembley Arena isn't too far off for the boys, according to Queen's Brian May, a staunch Leppard supporter, but this time around I reckon they'll settle for something a little more cosy.

Next tour, though Europe too seems odds on to cop a visit, particularly as 'Pyromania' has now shifted over 100,000 copies in France and is making a late burst for the tape in Scandinavia as well. Business in Germany, however, remains a little slow, and as for Holland... well, now we're talking about a massive 639 units shifted. Still, at least it means the band don't have to worry about being recognised. Def what?!

By December Leppard should be into America, after which it's likely they'll travel to Japan, though probably not Australia, that stage of the tour having lost them around 60 grand last Feb. Indeed, all in all, their schedule will be less arduous than last time, including more days off to recover and recharge. The band should certainly feel healthier as a result, but then with the Rick Allen episode having shocked the Leppard camp into a highly body-conscious state, that's the way things are heading anyway "I don't want to waste away and vegetate," explains Joe. "I'm 25, I'm supposed to be at the peak of my fitness; I'm supposed to be Glenn Hoddle but I wasn't. I'd run a mile and be out of breath. Now I can run a six minute mile, no trouble, and I do half an hour's worth of exercises every day. 'Sav', Phil and myself all go jogging too - we take less for granted now than we did before..."

#the bit about Steve and Phil writing together 🥹#def leppard #magazine scan #my scans

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