When I called Kiera later and told her Justin’s plan to come up and spend some time with us, she was just as mystified as me. But whatever, Justin could do what he wanted, and showing him and the guys Pete’s actually sounded like a lot of fun. I was ready for the tour to be over with.

The last show, however, was surprisingly emotional for me. We were in Miami, and as I stared out over the screaming crowd, I felt my throat getting tight. This tour had been emotionally and physically exhausting, but in a weird way, I was going to miss it.

“Hey, Miami! How’s it going?” I paused to let the screaming die down. Smiling, I met eyes with some of the fans in front. A couple of girls started fanning themselves, making me laugh a little. “Since this is our last stop, I just wanted to say…this has been the greatest experience of our lives.” I indicated the guys behind me. Glancing back, I saw them smiling and nodding. Even Matt was grinning as he scanned the massive crowd. He looked so much calmer now than he had in the beginning; it was great to see.

Turning back to the fans, I said, “I want to thank you all for being a part of it, for supporting all these great bands tonight. On behalf of everyone, we all really appreciate it.” With a laugh, I pointed at the audience and added, “And I fully expect to see all of you at our next show.” Whenever the hell that might be.

The crowd started screaming again, like every single one of them was on board for that idea. My grin was huge as I motioned for Evan to start the song. Who knows, maybe some of the people here might actually take me up on that and start following us around. That would be a win-win. There was something really satisfying about how symbiotic the relationship was between the fans and the bands. It appealed to every part of me.

We nailed the show, and I left the stage on an exquisite high. Not even the fact that the tour was over could get me down. After the concert was completely finished, we all helped tear down the show, then congregated outside by the buses. It was weird to not have another concert to travel to, and for a moment, I felt a little lost as I looked over the group of guys I’d bonded with over the last several months.