First and Always: The Forever Duet

by Brooke, Rebecca

  “Then why stay? You could’ve gone home when you graduated.”

  “I like it here too. Plus, the rest of Violet Obsession is here. Without them, I’d have to start from scratch for a third time.”

  “A third time?”

  “Yeah. I was in a band in high school with my best friend Jackson. Besides Jackson and me, everyone else did it as a hobby. Jackson and I both knew we wanted to make music a career. But when we got accepted to different colleges, we realized we would probably have to do it without the other.”

  She reached over and put her hand on top of mine. “That sucks. I’m sorry you guys couldn’t stay together.”

  I shrugged. “I think it worked out in the end. We both play the guitar and sing. In high school it worked out for us taking turns, but on the big stage, I don’t think we’d have the same chance.” I took a sip of my drink. The sharp flavor hit my tongue, reminding why I loved their coffee so much.

  “Is he signing for a band now?”

  A chuckle left my lips. “Not exactly. He was but lost his voice one night and a friend of theirs stepped in. She’s been the lead singer ever since.”

  “And he’s okay with that?”

  “He’s more than okay with it. They’ve gotten much more attention since then. I’ve always said you need something unique.”

  She took a sip of her coffee. When she set it back down, she twirled the cup around in her hands. “Probably. What about you? Any siblings?”

  “Nope, just me and my parents. My mom is a photographer. Mostly weddings and other local events.”

  “Wow, that sounds like it must have been fun to grow up around.”

  “I guess, except when she’d make me test out her new backgrounds and set-ups. Not a lot of fun when you’re a teenager just trying to hang out with your friends.”

  She laughed and the light, easy tone hit me straight in the chest. There was something so carefree about the sound. Total addiction.

  We spent the next few hours talking about everything from our families to our pets growing up. It became very obvious that she was a huge animal lover. Growing up with at least two dogs and two cats at all times. It surprised me that she didn’t live off campus so she could have a pet.

  Christine was very easy to talk to; there never seemed to be a lull in conversation. She loved music and books. I couldn’t say I was an avid reader, but music was something I could talk about for hours.

  The last bits of coffee in my cup had grown cold, too invested in the conversation that I hadn’t bothered to finish it. Before I realized it almost two hours had passed while we sat at the same table.

  Even though I wasn’t ready to give up her company, I also knew she still had classes to attend and work to complete.

  “I hate to take you home, but I know you mentioned a paper to complete when I picked you up and I know it’s getting late.

  “I do. I’m a little surprised you remembered me saying it.”

  “Let’s just say I pay attention when I’m interested in something.”

  “And what about when you’re no longer interested in something?”

  I saw the way her eyes focused on me intently. Like she was trying to find any holes in my answer. But there were none. “Then I’d be honest about that and admit when I’m no longer interested in something. It doesn’t happen often. When I make up my mind, I usually stick with it.”

  “I guess we’ll see about that.” She smirked at me, before picking up the bag she hung on the back of the chair. “I do need to get home, but I’d love to finish this conversation another time.”

  “Any night. You tell me when and I’ll be there.”

  “Thursday night?”

  Shit. Of course she picked the one night this week we had a show. “I shouldn’t have said any night.” Her face fell and an idea hit me. “You want to watch us play from backstage and we can have dinner afterward? Unless you have class on Friday.”

  “No class and I’d love to watch you guys play from close up.”

  I held the door for Christine as we stepped out of the café. The night had grown even cooler. I noticed her shiver in the wind.

  “If I had a coat, I’d give it to you.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. “Hopefully this helps.”

  She glanced up at me through her lashes. “It does.”

  I drove back to her apartment with the heat blasting through the car. It didn’t skip my notice that I stayed exactly at the speed limit trying to extend our time, but eventually I pulled into her lot.

  She undid her seat belt and turned to me. “Thanks for dinner and coffee. The sunset was beautiful.”

  I didn’t know how far to push after our kiss on the beach and I waited for her to make the first move. She leaned over the center console and pressed a brief kiss to my cheek.

  It was simple, yet heat still burned through me. Then she was climbing out of the car.

  “See you Thursday.”

  “I can’t wait.”

  I waited to pull away until she made it inside. The whole night had been absolutely perfect. As I drove back to my place I thought back on the easy conversation we shared and how simple being with her had been. Even the silences didn’t have an uncomfortable air about them.

  Something told me there would be a whole lot more of that in the future.

  7

  “Don’t be late, lover boy,” Kylee called out the front window of the van with a smirk.

  I flipped her off, then climbed into my own car. With all of us and the equipment in the van it was a tight fit, and I didn’t want Christine to have to squish in between two strangers. Especially after her confessions about being shy around new people.

  She’d opened up even more once we got to the coffee shop. Hopefully, me picking her up would be enough to make her feel comfortable around the rest of the idiots I played music with.

  I pulled into the parking lot outside Christine’s apartment and took the stairs two at a time up to the door. Before I even had a chance to knock, it flew open and Christine was standing in front of me. Her long blond hair pulled up into a tight ponytail, still long enough to flow down her back. The tight jeans showed off her long legs and the sexy curve of her ass. I swallowed hard, trying to keep the desire to kiss her at bay.

  I wanted to go at her pace, no faster, and the kiss on the beach still lingered in my memory.

  “Ready?”

  She smiled and shut the door behind her. “Very.”

  I led her down to my car and opened her door. She climbed inside and I walked around to get in the driver’s side. When I laid my hand on the gear shift she covered it with hers.

  “You are so different than any other guy I’ve dated.”

  I lifted a brow. “That’s a good thing, I hope.”

  “A very good thing.”

  She let go of my hand and I backed out of the space, turning us onto the highway to get to the venue where we were playing.

  “You don’t have too much work to do to come out tonight, right?”

  She laughed. “No, but you seem a little nervous.”

  I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye. “Let’s just say my friends are not shy and can be a lot to handle, especially Dylan. They’ve been busting my ass for weeks about you. Ever since I saw you that first night.”

  “Sounds like people I’m interested in meeting.”

  “I hope you feel the same way at the end of the night.”

  “I think you’re safe.”

  We continued down the highway and I half expected to pass Miles on the way there. He drove like an old man most of the time, but we pulled into the lot and they were already unloading the van.

  I winked at Christine. “Here goes nothing.”

  We climbed out of the car and walked over to where the van was parked. Only Kylee was in the back, getting stuff out and letting Miles and Dylan carry it in.

  “Hey, Kylee, this is Christine.”

  A smirk lifted the corner of Kylee
’s lips and I knew I was in trouble. “Nice to meet you. Aiden here was so sad when you ran away from him the first time, I wasn’t sure we’d ever get our lead singer back if you didn’t go out on a date with him.” She winked at me then turned back into the van, but I could see her shoulders shaking.

  Christine stood there, unmoving as she watched Kylee go back to work.

  “Don’t listen to anything she says.”

  A snort of laughter echoed from inside the van. I ignored it to walk over to Christine.

  Her brow lifted. “So you weren’t upset that I said no the first time?”

  “Now I wouldn’t say that, but I can guarantee I’d still be singing hoping you’d come to another show and give me another shot.”

  She wrapped her arms around my waist. “Good thing I did.”

  “So lots of mushy stuff tonight?”

  I glanced over Christine’s head to see that Miles and Dylan had come back to grab more stuff. Christine tried to pull out of my arms, but I held tighter. I didn’t want her to feel shy in front of them especially when I knew they were all full of shit, just busting my balls.

  “Yep, anything to bug the shit out of you.” I looked down at Christine as she twisted in my arms to face the guys. “Christine, this is Miles and Dylan.”

  “Hey, Christine, nice to finally meet you. You’re all Aiden can talk about lately.”

  Miles threw his thumb over his shoulder. “Ignore Dylan. He just likes to get a rise out of people any way he can.”

  She glanced up at me. “Funny, seems like a few of your band members are like that.”

  Kylee jumped down from the back of the van. “Not usually me. I just like giving Aiden a hard time when he’s so flustered. He’s normally the calm one. To see him worked up over the last few weeks reminds us all that he’s human.” Kylee patted me on the cheek.

  “Jesus, you guys make it sound like I was a fucking mad man the last two weeks.”

  Miles clasped me on the shoulder on the way to pick up the last two drum cases. “For you, it was a little fucking mad.”

  “Whatever.” I glanced down at Christine, her shoulders shaking lightly as her eyes ping-ponged back and forth between us. “I’m glad you think this is funny.”

  She leaned up on her toes and whispered in my ear, “It’s nice to know I wasn’t the only one flustered when we met.”

  She dropped down to her feet again. When she stepped back, I gave her a wink. “What else needs to go inside?”

  “Just these last two drums, the guitar and bass.”

  Between the four of us we got the rest of the equipment inside. Christine offered to help, but she shouldn’t have to carry our stuff. This was supposed to be a date. I wanted her to get to enjoy the show from backstage, not have to work.

  I grabbed a stool from the side of the stage and set it up front near the microphone. “Why don’t you sit here why we do our sound checks and warm up.”

  “When you said front row, I never imagined being this close.”

  “You can sit there through the whole show if you want.” I lifted the strap of my guitar over my shoulder.

  “I won’t be a distraction?”

  “A tiny one.” I ran my thumb along the strings. “But I wouldn’t mind.”

  “I’m sure everyone else would.”

  “Probably, but their opinions don’t matter to me. Only yours.”

  She glanced away for a moment, then back at me. “Warm up. I want to see Violet Obsession up close and personal.”

  “You got it.” I turned around to make sure everyone was in place. “Ready?”

  “Let’s do this,” Kylee called from behind her drum kit.

  I turned back to Christine. “Your wish is my command.”

  She giggled, the sound traveling through me.

  If only the warmup and sound check had gone as simple as planned. The bass needed a complete tune and the acoustics of the place were nothing we were used to. It took almost an hour longer than we expected, but eventually everything was set the way it needed to be.

  The club had a backstage area where we could wait before going on for the night. As the crisp air of fall had taken over, we made sure to schedule our shows indoors. We may be hot under the lights, but the people coming to see us wouldn’t be.

  I dropped down onto the couch against the far wall, bringing Christine with me.

  Miles and Kylee took the two stools on the side of the room and leaned against a counter. The space held a dozen or so water bottles.

  “Toss me one of those.” Dylan pointed at the counter.

  Miles grabbed one and threw it across the room to him.

  “Thanks.”

  Christine looked at me. “Is this what you guys do every time before you play?”

  I chuckled. “Not always. Depends on the place. The better places have somewhere we can wait until we go on.”

  “What do you do when there isn’t a place to wait?”

  “Outdoors we usually wait backstage. Usually sit at the bar or one of the tables if it’s somewhere indoors.”

  “Don’t people bother you?”

  Miles shook his head. “Not really. Those were the places we played early after the band was formed.”

  “Ahh…” Christine’s eyes sparkled. “So the more popular you get the better places you get to play.”

  Dylan winked and snapped his fingers. “You got it.” He twisted the cap off the top and lifted the bottle to his lips.

  Miles stared at him for a minute before shaking his head and turning his attention to Christine. “Aiden says you’re going to school for therapy.”

  “Yeah. I have this year left. I have to say I wish it were over tomorrow. School is exhausting.”

  “Right?” Kylee agreed. “This is my last year.”

  Christine slid forward on the couch. “Wait, you manage to play all of these shows and still go to classes.”

  Kylee laughed. “Let’s just say I don’t sleep a whole lot.”

  “I’d guess not.”

  Someone knocked on the door before it swung open. A girl with long black hair peeked her head inside. “You guys about ready?”

  I pushed myself to stand. “We are.” I reached back and held a hand out to Christine. “Ready to watch the show?”

  She slipped her hand into mine. “Sounds good to me.”

  Electricity shot through my arm when she linked her fingers with mine. What was it about her? I didn’t know, but the connection was what I’d been searching for. I just didn’t expect to find it on a first or second date. My heart thundered in my chest as I led her down the hall, the rest of the band following behind.

  I pulled the stool from earlier right next to the edge of the side curtain. “Good here or do you want to sit in the audience?”

  “Here’s perfect.” She smiled. “I can feel like I’m on stage with you.”

  “You are.” I winked and stepped onto the stage, the room erupting into cheers.

  We took the stage as we normally did, the set list the same as it had been the last time we played. The only difference was Christine sitting on the side of the stage. I couldn’t keep my eyes from straying to her throughout each song. It felt like the most electric performance I’d ever given.

  Especially when I sang the song I wrote for her. I should’ve been watching the audience, but I had a hard time pulling my gaze away from her smiling face. At one point, I wandered over to that side of the stage and held my hand out to her. Anyone in the front row would think it was for them, but Christine knew exactly who I watched.

  Christine watching so close, knowing she was there because I asked her to be made me feel alive. Like I could conquer anything.

  The show flew by in the blink of an eye and before I knew it, I stood before a cheering crowd waving and dying to get off the stage and back to Christine. I wanted to know what she thought. It was really important to me that she had fun.

  When I stepped back, I found her standing and clapping along with everyon
e else. Eventually the lights went out, giving us the opportunity to head off stage. I walked over and stood directly in front of her.

  “How did you like the show?”

  She laid her hands on my chest. “It’s even better close up. Plus, I loved my little serenade.”

  “Anything for you.” I bent down to place the guitar into its case. “You know, I wrote that song when I was thinking about you.”

  “You what?” She breathed.

  I glanced up from my crouched position. Her eyes wide, gaze zeroed in on me like a laser.

  “I wrote that song after I met you the first time. I couldn’t get the melody out of my head.”

  She sucked in a deep breath and quickly let it out in a rush of air. “I can’t believe that all came from meeting me once and me blowing you off.”

  I stood and lifted my hand to run my thumb along her cheek. “Let’s just say you’re very memorable.”

  “That’s good to know.” She looked over my shoulder where I could hear everyone else packing up. “You guys don’t have to play again?”

  “No, just have to pack everything back into the van. Then we can do whatever you want.”

  “Grab a bite to eat on the way home? I’m starving.”

  My own stomach was moments away from making some very embarrassing noises. “Me too. We’ll find something good on the way back.”

  Anything to spend more time with her. I could’ve been starving and if she didn’t want to eat, I’d ignore my stomach until after I took her home.

  “Let’s get this stuff put away.” I picked up the guitar case.

  “Don’t tell me that’s all you think you’re going to bring out before you run off with your girlfriend,” Miles called from somewhere behind me.

  Christine’s cheeks flushed, her eyes darting to my hands.

  I turned and yelled over my shoulder. “No, asshole, but I figured since it was right next to me, I’d take it out first.”

  “Just checking.”

  “Dick,” I muttered under my breath.

  Christine held out her hand. “Why don’t you let me take that and you can get some of the other stuff?”

  “You don’t need to do that.”

  “I want to. And then we can get out of here sooner.”