The Prince of Punk Rock

by Jenna Galicki

  “Was he mad?”

  “No. It was his idea.” Jessi leaned closer and lowered her voice to a whisper. “I can’t stop thinking about it. Sometimes, when we’re in bed together, visions of that night just pop into my head. It drives me crazy.”

  Surprise and disbelief were blatantly displayed on Alyssa’s face. “Do you and Angel fool around?”

  “No. We make out a little. But that’s it. I want to do more. I’m just afraid he’s not going to be into it. I’d be really embarrassed if he recoiled in disgust if I touched him.”

  “He’s not interested in girls. I’m stunned that he slept with you in the first place.”

  “I know. I was surprised, too. I gave him a blow job, too. Once. Awhile ago.”

  “Did he like it?”

  “Kind of. I think . . . well . . . not really. I don’t know.”

  “What did he say after you had sex? What was his reaction?”

  Jessi pursed her lips together. “He said it was OK, but it wasn’t his thing.”

  “I think there’s your answer, right there.”

  Jessi sighed and sat back. She was determined to figure out a way to make Angel want to sleep with her. She had to think of a way to make him attracted to her, short of cross-dressing and strapping on a dildo. She dug the heel of her boot into the grass-covered ground as she tried to think of something to make Angel interested in her sexually. Something that he liked to do. Maybe, if she let him—

  Someone was calling Jessi’s name. She turned toward the direction of the anonymous voice, but there were too many people to identify who it belonged to. “Who is that?”

  “Oh, it’s those two girls from The Quadrangle.” Alyssa pointed into the crowd. “Audra and Kira.”

  Jessi turned her head. “Where?”

  They ran to Jessi and both hugged her at the same time. “We’re so happy for Angel. I can’t wait to see him on the big stage. That’s where he belongs. He has such a beautiful voice.” Audra closed her eyes and smiled. “I can’t wait to hear him sing outdoors.”

  “He’s going to be so happy that you girls are here. I’ll tell him as soon as I see him, just as soon as we finish handing out these flyers.” She fanned the stack of papers.

  “What flyers?” Kira took one and read it.

  “We’re trying to get people to go to the main stage, so there’s a big crowd when Immortal Angel plays.”

  “Why didn’t you tell us? We’ll help.” Kira grabbed a large stack of flyers and handed half of them to Audra.

  “Really? You will? You don’t mind?”

  “Of course not. We’d do anything for Angel.”

  “Your two little girlfriends are here, Angel. And they came to our rescue.” Jessi sat on the couch in the band’s dressing room, took off her boots and rubbed her feet.

  “Who are you talking about?”

  “Audra and Kira, from The Quadrangle. They helped us hand out the last of the flyers.”

  Tommy sat next to Jessi, took her feet in his hands and started to massage them. It felt like paradise. She leaned her head back and mouthed a silent, “I love you”.

  “You really handed out all those flyers?” Tommy’s fingers were kneading deep into the arch of her foot.

  “Yeah, and we met a lot of people too. Some guys wanted to take pictures with us, so I made sure I posed so they could see Immortal Angel written on my butt. They won’t forget the name of the band.”

  “That’s my wife,” Tommy boasted, “always prostituting herself for the sake of the band.”

  Jessi admired their first real dressing room. It was small, but it had a bathroom and there was large supply of non-alcoholic drinks and finger foods. “This is nice. What’s been going on back here? What’d I miss?”

  “Nothing. We’re just waiting for our set. What’s going on outside?”

  “It’s packed. Did you check out the stage?”

  Tommy shook his head.

  “Don’t you want to see what it’s like?”

  “Not really. I want the excitement of surprise when I go out there for the first time.”

  “Well, I do!” Jessi shoved her feet back into her boots and zipped them up. “You really don’t want to come with me?”

  “I told you, I want to wait. Besides, we’re going on in 20 minutes.”

  Jessi passed a lot of people in the corridor that led to the stage. She thought she would run into some big name stars but, so far, everyone looked like they were involved in either the lighting, or sound, or some other behind the scenes task.

  As soon as she saw a glimpse of the stage in the distance, she felt a rush of excitement. She thought someone would stop her, but they barely noticed her, and she proceeded until she was at the curtain on the side of the stage. People were setting up amplifiers, adjusting lights and checking the microphones. She looked at the equipment and instruments on the stage that silently waited for their owners to bring them to life. She broke out into a smile when she saw the rack that held two of Tommy’s guitars. He had his Les Paul with him. He always carried that on stage himself. Damien’s bass guitars were at the other end of the stage, and Jimmy’s drum set sat in the middle. The center bass drum proudly announced “Immortal Angel”, and its logo, to the audience. A stage hand picked up Tommy’s Fender and tuned it. No one ever tuned Tommy’s guitars before. It felt like a dream.

  “You must be with Immortal Angel,” one of the stage hands said, glancing at the name written across her chest.

  She nodded quietly, expecting to be sent on her way.

  “Go ahead,” he motioned his hand toward the stage. “Check it out.”

  She realized that he thought she was part of the band, not with the band. She was about to correct him, but her feet had other plans. They walked right out onto the stage in the middle of production. She shielded her eyes from the sun’s glare, and looked out into the crowd.

  There was already a large audience waiting for the show to start. One by one, they slowly started turning their heads toward the stage. She heard a bunch of whistles and howls coming from the audience. She suddenly realized that she was standing center stage, in her black leather miniskirt, studded bustier and fishnet stockings, wearing five inch heels. The catcalls were for her. Her face exploded into a huge grin as she absorbed the attention. Someone started shouting her name. It was a male voice, but she couldn’t pinpoint it, so she stepped closer to the front of the stage. She looked down and Audra and Kira were right in the front of her.

  The male voice called her name again. “Who is that?” She looked further back into the crowd. Audra pointed to the side and behind her, and Jessi scanned the faces in the distance. It was a group of guys she recognized from The Quadrangle. She didn’t know their names, but there were at every show. She waved and called to them, but she knew they couldn’t hear her.

  Someone handed her a microphone. “Here, use this.”

  She stared at it in her hand, and looked at it from all angles, as if it were the first time she saw a microphone. Then she screamed into it. “America Rocks!” She couldn’t believe she really just screamed into the microphone. She felt stupid for a second, but the crowd answered with a load roar. The adrenaline they projected ran through her veins like a drug, and she was comfortable and confident on stage.

  The microphone was now her best friend. “Are you ready for the show? Are you ready to see Immortal Angel? Are you ready to see the best fuckin’ kick ass punk rock band on the underground scene?” She wasn’t waiting for the audience to respond. Her heart was beating so fast, and she just kept throwing out questions, getting everyone riled up. “How many of you have seen Immortal Angel before? How many fans do we have here? I see a few. Who else?” Some people were clapping, but not many. “Come on.” She waved her hand in the air. “There’s got to be more of you here.” She scanned the crowd. Most of the people who were clapping were fans that she recognized from the bar scene. “That’s it? The rest of you never heard Immortal Angel before?” The majority of

people were shaking their heads. Most of them were people she met earlier in the day when she and Alyssa were handing out flyers. They were just random people, gathering to listen to new music, and Jessi wanted to make sure they all knew the name of the band. “Well, you newbies, who’ve never seen Immortal Angel before, are going to be blown away, because they are fuckin’ awesome!”

  The crowd was cheering and Jessi felt euphoric. It was a high that she never felt before, and she was stone cold sober. “What’s the name of the band that’s going to blow you away?” They shouted back “Immortal Angel”, but the response wasn’t as enthusiastic as she had hoped. “OK. I’m going to ask you again. She turned around, bent her knees a little and popped her butt out so everyone could read the name of the band on the back of her skirt. She pointed to it and looked at the audience over her shoulder. “What’s the name of the band?” It sounded like the whole crowd screamed back this time. “That’s more like it! And don’t forget to come meet the band and pick up a CD and a shirt at merch booth number four! Enjoy the show!”

  She must have been on stage for ten minutes talking to the crowd, and the reality of it just hit her. Angel was going to be furious. Record label executive were here. But the crowd loved her, she reasoned, and their reaction was amazing. She was still reeling from the exhilaration of it all.

  Jessi didn’t get ten feet off the stage when she ran smack into Angel, Tommy, Damien and Jimmy, ready to go on. Their faces were a mixture of disbelief and shock. They stared at her with wide eyes and mouths agape. They obviously heard the whole thing.

  “Oh my God.” Jessi covered her mouth with her hand. “Angel, I’m so sorry. I have no idea how that started, and then I couldn’t stop. One minute I was peeking out onto the stage, and the next I was screaming at the crowd. Please don’t be mad. I’m so sorry.”

  “Mad?” He was smiling. “Are you kidding? That was the best fuckin’ introduction we could have asked for. You got that crowd crazy!” He kissed her on the mouth.

  “You sure you’re not mad?” She covered her lips with her fingers again. “I think I said fuck.”

  Angel laughed. “It’s a rock and roll show.”

  “OK. Good luck.” She kissed him, and then she kissed Tommy. “Knock ‘em dead, baby.”

  Tommy smacked her bottom and winked. “I liked the part where you stuck your ass out to the audience.”

  Jessi was giddy with anticipation. She grabbed Alyssa by the hand, and they both watched the band head onto the stage to make their debut.

  Tommy led the way onto the stage with his signature guitar riff. The crowd thundered with applause, thanks to Jessi. Without You was as their opening song. No talking. No introductions. They jumped right into the music. As Angel sang, he looked into the crowd. There were probably 500 people gathered around the stage to see Immortal Angel. He had to “wow” them. He put everything he had into his performance. He reached down, deep into his gut, and pulled out notes that could shatter glass. His voice was pristine, and it echoed into the open air.

  Tommy was right beside him, playing the hell out of that guitar. His guitar solo was superb, and the crowd went wild, but Angel wanted more. Tommy could do better.

  “Wait a minute.” Angel held his hand up to the audience. “Hold on, now.”

  They stopped cheering to listen to what Angel had to say.

  “Did you like that? Did you think that was a good guitar solo?”

  The audience hollered with praise.

  Angel frowned and shook his head. “Maybe for an average guitar player that was good. But, ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Tommy Blade is anything but average. Tommy Blade is the Prince of Punk Rock.” He shook his head again. “That wasn’t a Tommy Blade guitar solo. People, that only tapped into the talent that Tommy Blade possesses on the guitar.”

  Tommy was laughing, but he had a look of fear in his eyes that said, what the hell are you doing to me? But Angel knew the depth of Tommy’s talent. He knew that Tommy could floor this audience, and he wanted them to remember Tommy’s name.

  “Do you want to hear a Tommy Blade guitar solo, people? Do you? Do you want to hear the musical genius of the Prince of Punk Rock?”

  They answered each question by screaming louder and pumping their fists in the air.

  “Tommy, give these people what they want to fuckin’ hear!”

  He saw Tommy take a deep breath. For one second, there was dead silence, and then Tommy’s fingers curled around the neck of the guitar, his pick kissed the strings and notes danced in the air. The chord progression was unique and improvised, but it blended together like a well-rehearsed arrangement. Bits of heavy metal infused with punk rock, creating a genre of its own. It was a compilation of hardcore whammy bar abuse and fast-paced edgy riffs that transcended logic. Veteran roadies and music professionals gathered at the side of the stage to witness rock and roll history.

  Tommy ran to the front of the stage and slid down on his knees. The twang of the guitar strings reverberated into the crowd and they howled back. When Tommy played the last dramatic note of the extensive guitar solo, the crowd went ballistic.

  Angel bowed to Tommy. The man was a god. That was the way to “wow” a crowd. That was the way to make a first impression.

  The forty-five minute set flew by. The reaction the band received from the crowd, a crowd made up of mostly newcomers who never heard Immoral Angel’s music before, was astounding. Angel was overwhelmed. He could barely talk after it was all over. He hugged Tommy in the dressing room. “You fuckin’ killed it tonight. I was hoping you would play a crazy guitar solo like that. I knew you wouldn’t let me down.”

  Tommy let out a deep breath and laughed. “I can’t believe you did that to me! I didn’t know what the hell I was going—”

  “Shut up.” An emotional lump settled in Angel’s throat, and he smiled at Tommy. “Don’t you know how talented you are? No one can do what you do out there. No one inspires me the way you do.” He kissed Tommy, and held him in his arms. The best thing that ever happened to him, the best day of his life, was the day he met Tommy.

  Jimmy and Damien didn’t care that they were sharing an intimate moment. They wrapped their arms around the both of them, slapped them on the back and joined in their embrace.

  “How the fuck did you figure out how to fuse old school metal with punk rock?” Damien asked. “I would have never thought of it.”

  “It’s my hard rock roots, man. They never leave. Randy Rhoads is always at the heart of everything I play. It’s my go-to place when I need inspiration, and it always welcomes me home.”

  Jimmy slapped him on the back. “That was fresh. You, Tommy, are the master.”

  “Hey,” Jessi started hustling them out the door. “You guys gotta go out to the merch booth. Come on, let’s go. We can celebrate later.”

  Jessi was as serious-minded about the band’s future as Angel was. She was integral to their success. Just look at the impromptu introduction she gave them. She got the audience psyched about the band’s performance. She made sure they knew the band’s name and, without her, most of those people probably wouldn’t have been at the stage to begin with. And if it weren’t for Tommy, Angel would have never met Jessi. He loved them both so much.

  When they got to the merch booth, fans were already lined up. Jessi went right into action, apologizing for making them wait and taking orders with lightning speed.

  Almost everyone wanted autographs and photos with the band. Jessi brought a silver sharpie so their signatures would show up on the black shirts. Then Angel realized her motive – it gave people another reason to buy a shirt. Her ingenuity constantly amazed him. He watched her out of the corner of his eye, surrounded by her own little fan club, made up mostly of adoring male fans who wanted photos with her.

  Angel felt the vibration of his phone in his back pocket again as he signed an autograph. It had been buzzing since he left the dressing room. Whoever kept calling would have to wait. He wanted to finish signing autographs and taking photos with the fans. He shut his phone off without looking at it, and put it back in his pocket.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Life slowly started to creep back into Angel’s body. His arms and legs felt like dead weight, and a sledge hammer pounded inside his skull. He tried to open his eyes, but the light of day scorched them. He squeezed his eyes shut and reached for the covers. He wanted to pull them over his head, but the only thing he felt as he blindly searched for them, was Tommy’s naked butt. Something was wrong. Tommy was supposed to be on his right, not his left. That meant he was on the wrong side of the bed, Jessi’s side. Jessi hated the left side of the bed, and she always threw a tantrum if he tried to lie down on her side.

  Angel slowly squinted one eye open and shielded it from the burning light with his hand. Tommy was still in the middle, curled into a fetal position, but sometime during the night, Angel and Jessi had switched sides. He didn’t remember much once they started drinking at the bar after the show, but it must have been some night. Jessi was face down with her head at the foot of the bed, and all three of them were naked.

  He wanted to go back to sleep, but his need to urinate was almost as bad as his thirst. He stumbled over the pile of sheets on the floor as he made his way to the bathroom. His erection fought him, and he ended up peeing over the side of the bowl and onto the floor. He would clean it up later. Right now he needed to drink a gallon of water.

  The water extinguished his thirst, but did nothing for his headache. He needed coffee and aspirin. He wanted to go back to bed, but it was almost noon. He took his coffee into the living room and leaned his head back on the couch. His hand landed on a pile of clothes next to him. It was his jeans, and Tommy’s, and the leather bustier Jessi wore last night. He tossed them on the floor so he could lie down, and his cell phone fell in his lap and hit him in the nuts.

  He looked at the dark screen. As soon as he turned the phone on, it chimed in his hand and he cringed. It sounded like a buzz saw inside his head. The quickest way to silence it was to answer it.

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