When the song’s over, I’m damn near sweating from my nerves being through the roof. I don’t want to argue with her. She should know how I feel about her by now. It’s not like I’m checking out the girls to pick which one I want for the night. They’re just something to watch.
“Anyone want to pick a song?” I ask.
“Play “Call Me” by Blondie,” Alissa says.
I laugh. “I don’t think I can do Blondie justice, babe.”
She rolls her eyes and laughs. “Not for you to sing. For me.” She takes a long drink of Jack and puts her glass down, standing up.
My eyebrows skyrocket. “You’re going to sing?”
She giggles and nods.
I shrug. “Okay, here we go.”
The band starts playing her song, and Alissa starts singing the lyrics. A chill goes through me as my mouth hangs open. I’ve never heard her sing before, but the girl can belt out some lyrics. She sashays about the room, making the other girls jealous and making my bandmates watch her every move. I strum along on my guitar, never taking my eyes off her. My own jealously rises from both the guys in the band damn near drooling over my girl.
She sings the song like it’s her theme song — knowing every word, drawing out every line that should be drawn out, and throwing out just a bit of flirtatious looks to all the guys, including me. She walks around the room, causing everyone’s eyes to follow her. But she’s not just walking, she’s teasing everyone with every single step. A part of me wonders if she’s giving me a taste of my own medicine. Then when she bends down to sing directly to Mark, I know she is. She may be giving the girls a taste of their own medicine too, because the girl that arrived on Mark’s arm is now staring daggers at Alissa.
I lean back, playing my guitar while watching Alissa seduce every person in the room all while making me jealous. I’ve got to hand it to her, she knows how to work a crowd.
When the song ends, the guys clap and cheer her on. She bows and bounces back to her seat giggling.
“That was fucking awesome, Lis. Sing another one,” Mark says.
“Really?” She looks at me.
I shrug before taking a drink of my beer.
“Okay. Well, do you guys know “I Love Rock and Roll”?”
The guys laugh. It’s a song we’ve played around with many times, trying to give it a more updated rock and roll feel. We never could pull it off though.
We start playing, and Alissa rocks out again. While I play along with the song, I watch everyone in the room. My bandmates watch their instruments, while still taking turns looking up at her. The girls are now sitting on the floor, looking completely bored. Someone knocks on the door, but we don’t stop playing. After a minute, the door opens and Sean walks in. I nod hello at him, and he takes a seat on the arm of the couch, getting sucked into Alissa’s show like everyone else.
When the song ends, everyone claps, and Alissa smiles proudly.
“Damn, she’s good. Why doesn’t she play at the bar with you guys?” Sean asks.
“Yeah, why doesn’t she?” Mark adds on.
I set my guitar down and reach for her, pulling her into my lap. “I saw the way you guys were checking her out. Do you really think I want a bar full of people daydreaming about taking my girl home?” I tease before moving in for a kiss.
We take a break and have a few drinks. Alissa sits with me and Sean while the band goes back to their girls.
“Alright, guys. Let’s get back to practice,” I say moving Alissa off my lap and grabbing my guitar.
I move to stand in the corner of the room, needing to stretch my legs. As I start playing, the guys join in. After every song, we stop and make note of the songs that need more practice and which songs sound best next to each other. Every time I look up, Sean and Alissa are talking and laughing. Believe it or not, this pisses me off more than the guys drooling all over her while she sings. I can only think about one thing.
Sean’s warning in the pool hall that night.
Is he trying to move in on my girl because he thinks I stole her away?
I push it to the back on my mind and concentrate on the music I’m playing, but I grow angrier and angrier every time I glance up.
Chapter Seven
Dane
“Alright, guys. Let’s call it a night,” I say as I unplug my guitar and place it in the stand by the door.
The guys pack up and say goodbye, but Sean stays on the couch next to Alissa. Both of them are heavily drunk, and their closeness makes me uneasy.
“Sean, you need to leave, man. We both have to work in the morning,” I say as I walk to the front door and hold it open for him.
He looks up at me with surprise written on his face. “Oh, okay. I guess I’ll talk to you guys tomorrow then.”
He walks out, and I close the door behind him without saying goodbye. I lock the door, and when I turn around, Alissa’s up and taking empty bottles and cans to the kitchen. I follow after her.
“What the fuck was that?” I say through clenched teeth.
She turns around to face me, confusion on her face. “What was what?”
“That little show you did tonight and then your little date with Sean.”
She laughs. “What are you talking about?” She turns off the kitchen light and goes to the bedroom, leaving me following behind her again.
“I know you were just trying to make me jealous,” I state flatly as I pull off my shirt and toss it onto the floor.
“I was not!” She pulls her shorts down nice and slow.
My eyes follow the material and for a moment, I’m distracted. I shake my head clear of the dirty images that flash before my eyes. “So, the singing and flirting with every guy in the band?”
“I was just having fun, Dane. I listen to you guys play music every night. I wanted in on it. And I wasn’t flirting with those guys. I have no interest in them. You know that.”
I kick my jeans off and sit on the edge of the bed. “And Sean?”
She pulls off her top, revealing her dark purple, lace bra and panty set. “What about Sean? I’ve never been interested in him. You’re the one I want. We were just talking and having a good time.” She comes to sit on my lap, straddling me.
My hands rest on her hips with my fingertips squeezing, holding her to me. “I don’t like them looking at you. And I don’t like you egging them on.”
She wraps her arms around my neck and leans her forehead against mine. “I’m sorry. I was just having a good time. I wasn’t trying to cause problems.” She brushes her lips against mine.
I kiss her passionately, realizing that I have something to lose. “Do me a favor?”
She brushes the hair from my eyes. “What?”
“Stay away from Sean.”
She laughs. “Sean? Really?”
“He called dibs.”
She leans back in my arms. “What do you mean he called dibs?”
I smile and lie back on the bed, placing my hands behind my head so I can look up at her still on my lap. “Before we’d even met, he called dibs. I ignored it and went after you anyway. He likes you, and I don’t know what he’s willing to do to get your attention, if you know what I mean.”
She places her hands against my chest and leans over me, causing her blonde hair to cascade over her shoulder. “And you don’t trust me?”
I remove my hands from behind my head and wrap them around her wrists, pulling her hands away from my chest so she falls closer. “I trust you. It’s him I don’t trust, and I’d rather not beat my best friend’s ass because he tried making a move for you.” I press my lips to hers and roll her over so I’m on top. I plan on taking my time with her, not caring about the night we’ve just been through or the fact we both have to get up for work in four and a half hours. She’s mine, and I want to show her that time and time again.
We both get to work at nine in the morning. We work for several hours before my dad comes in and goes straight to his office. I wait on multiple tables,
but the place is dead this early in the day. I’m relieved when my break rolls around. I head out back and sit at the picnic table, pulling a pack of cigarettes from my pocket. I don’t smoke much, but today sucks and being hungover isn’t helping. I place the cigarette between my lips and light it, taking a long drag.
Mason walks out of the shop door and looks over at the grill. He sees me sitting at the picnic table between the two buildings and walks over, taking a seat across from me.
“What have you been up to?” he asks.
This is the first time I’ve really seen my little brother and had a chance to talk to him since the day I moved out. “Working myself to death. How’s soccer?”
He grins. “Really good. Coach says if I keep up the good work, I could be the first sophomore to win MVP next year.”
I smile. “That’s good! I’m proud of you. Looks like that full ride to college is getting closer.”
He nods. “Why didn’t you tell me you were moving out?”
I take a drag off my cigarette and shrug. “I don’t know, Mase. It wasn’t exactly planned. I was offered an opportunity, and I took it. I needed out of that house and his rules.”
“It wasn’t that bad, Dane.”
I lock eyes on him. “No, it wasn’t. But you know me, I have to do everything the hard way and on my own.” He looks a little sad, so I add, “It’s nothing against you, Mase. I just need to be on my own.”
A long silence draws out while I smoke the rest of my cigarette. “So how are things going with that Lindsey girl?”
He smiles. “Home run,” he says with a big smile covering his face.
I shake my head. “You did it anyway?”
“No big brother to watch my every move, what do you think? You would’ve done the same thing.”
He’s right, I would have. But now that I’m a little older, I see what he’s gambling: his future.
“I don’t have shit going for me like you do.”
“Don’t worry about it, I used protection. I’m not stupid.”
Dad walks up to the table with his hands on his hips. “I think you have work to do, Mason.”
“Alright, see ya later, Dane.”
I nod goodbye and watch as my dad takes Mason’s seat. “I have some news.”
“What’s that?” I ask, flicking my cigarette into the gravel.
“I have another band set up to play this weekend. You’ll still get your turn, but your show will end at ten. Then the other band will play from ten until midnight.”
My eyebrows draw up. “I thought we were the Saturday night band?”
He nods. “You still are. This band, they’re on a small tour. They’re just passing through. They have followers and will bring in a lot of business. Next week, everything will go back to normal.”
“I can’t believe this. My band, we’re doing good. We draw in a crowd. Every week it’s getting bigger.”
“I know, Son. I’m not doing this to punish you. I’m just trying to keep things new and fresh for the customers. They like your band. They do. But how many times do you think they’ll continue to come out and watch the same band over and over?”
“Whatever. My break’s over. Better get back to work.” I stand and walk back inside, leaving him sitting alone.
It doesn’t piss me off that he hired another band. It pisses me off that he hired another band to play on my night. And instead of them opening for my band, my band’s opening for them. We’re the loser band that plays before the major headliner.
The moment I walk back into the bar, Alissa knows something’s wrong. She walks over to me, holding her empty tray at her side. “What’s going on, babe?”
“My dad hired another band for Saturday night,” I say, walking behind the bar to wash my hands before getting back to work.
Her brows scrunch together. “Really? So, you don’t have to play Saturday? Maybe we can go out and see a movie or something.”
“No, I still play. I’m opening for the new band.”
“Oh. Well, why don’t you and the guys start setting up other gigs in nearby towns?”
Why didn’t I think of that? This is the first real business we’ve ever played. It’s better than the house parties we usually play, so I never considered trying to find different venues.
“That’s a good idea, baby.” A small smile starts to form as I lean in and press a kiss to her lips.
“We’ll talk about it with the rest of the guys tonight,” I say, pulling away to put my apron back on.
Alissa and I both finish our shifts and have dinner at the grill before heading home. When we pull into the driveway, the guys are already there, unloading the amps.
I let everyone into the house, Alissa, Mark, and Zach. No girls this time. As they start setting up, I take a seat on the couch and pull my guitar into my lap.
“So, I have some news, guys.”
Mark stops setting up his drums, and Zach quiets his amp.
“My dad has another band lined up for Saturday night. We’ll still play, but we’re opening for them instead of the other way around. They go on at ten and play until midnight.”
“Dude, what was your dad thinking? Doesn’t he know anything about line ups?” Zach asks.
I laugh. “No, he doesn’t. Right now, he’s only thinking about getting more and more people into his bar. And this band is on a small tour with its own following.”
“They’re on tour? Who is it?” Mark asks from behind his drums.
“I was so pissed off when he told me that I didn’t even bother to ask. But before I left, Doug, the bartender, said it was Busted Lip.”
“Busted Lip? We’re opening for Busted Lip?” Mark asks.
I nod my head. Busted Lip is a band that started in a small town just like us. They’re known up and down the east coast, from New York to Florida. And the best part is they’re an indie band. No managers or company in their pocket. They set up their own gigs, write their own music, and pick when and if they play. Total freedom is rare when you’re in a band, especially if you want to make it big. I’m sure one of these days they’ll sell out to make millions, but right now, they’re the coolest band around simply because nobody tells them what to do.
“That’s fucking awesome!” Zach says.
“I know. I was pissed at first, but knowing that it’s Busted Lip, this could be a great opportunity for us. Every record company on the east coast has been trying to sign them. There could be labels there. We could actually get noticed.”
The guys are bouncing off the walls with excitement.
“Alright, calm down,” I say, laughing as they jump around and bang on the drums. “Listen, I think we need to showcase some of our original songs. Nobody’s going to sign a band who plays nothing but covers. We need to show them what we can do.”
“We could play “Lost Without You”,” Mark says as he takes his seat behind the drums.
I grab some paper and write the song down. “That’s a good one, but we don’t want to start with a slow song.” I stick the end of the pen in my mouth and chew on the cap while thinking. “How about we open with a cover song, get the crowd really feeling the music, then we can lead in with an original?”
“We could do Alissa’s song.” Zach says while strumming his bass.
I laugh. “No Blondie.”
Zach joins in on my laughter. “No, I mean “I Love Rock and Roll”.”
I think it over. “You think we can pull off Joan Jett?”
Alissa crashes on the couch beside me. “It was originally done by a British group in the seventies called The Arrows. I think it could work.”
I look over at her. “How do you even know that?”
She grins and winks at me. “You’re not the only one that knows music.”
I laugh with a shake of my head. “I’ll write it down, and we can try it out tonight.”
We make a list of songs to try out. After the list is made, we play each song and decide whether or not we want to add it to the s
et list. Then we put them in order depending on what we can bridge over and how they sound next to each other.
We’re finally done around one in the morning, and we call it a night. We have one more day before the show on Saturday, so we all agree to meet up tomorrow night to play the set list we put together to make sure we’re all feeling it.
Saturday night quickly approaches and with it comes the show. Alissa doesn’t have to waitress tonight, but she’s coming to watch the band and help out if needed. Dad has all hands on deck with Busted Lip coming in.
We head into the grill early and get everything set up. We still have a couple hours to burn before the show, so the band and Alissa hang out at the picnic table behind the building. Mark, Zach, and Alissa are excited about the show. I’m sitting next to them, but I don’t hear a word they say. I’m in the zone, ready to play. My nerves are high from thinking about what could come out of tonight. If my dad is right, Busted Lip will draw in their own crowd and hopefully a few record labels.
I’ve become so used to telling myself this could never happen, that my music wouldn’t get me anything more than the thrill of playing and a good time. But now, it could actually pay off. We could be discovered. We could be signed. We could end up on tour looking back on this exact moment years from now.
Zach pulls out a joint and lights it. He brings it to his lips for a hit, then passes it around. I take a quick puff, trying to ease my nerves, but I’m not trying to get stoned before the show. I need to be sharp.
When the sun goes down, we head inside. The place is already filling with people. I grab us a couple bottles of water and take a seat. Dad goes up on stage, and the place gets quiet.
“We have a good show put together for you guys tonight.” Everyone claps and cheers. “We have your favorite band that’s here every weekend, Empire of None!” The place cheers even louder and I can’t help but smile. “And, we have a great band that’s currently on tour, Busted Lip!” People pound on the tables, scream, and clap. My jealously goes up just a bit because the crowd got louder for them, but I quickly push it down, remembering my jealously won’t get me anything. This could be a big step for the band.
Giving Up My Chance at Forever_Prequel Page 9