Front Row
Page 18
Taj got up from his seat, and I focused on my beverage and laughed at something Alexandra said as he walked by behind us. I hadn't worked up the guts to say anything to him quite yet. I was determined to catch him on his way back to his seat. I reapplied my lip gloss and sat up straighter, ready to pounce. When I saw him walk by, I spun around in my bar stool to intercept him.
"Hey Taj, remember me?"
He searched my face for a second. "You look familiar. I was just going over to ask Will who you were."
Don't freak out, I told myself. You knew the guy for less than a month 10 years ago. Plus, they were drunk for most of that tour, from what I remembered. Without letting any disappointment show on my face, I stuck out my hand to shake his. "Well, I'm Rachel. I was a Face Rake fan back in the day when you guys toured with The Out of Towners."
"Oh yeah, I remember that."
"Can I get a picture with you for old time's sake?"
"Sure."
I dug my camera out of my purse and handed it to Alex. At first, she couldn't figure out how to work my camera, which loosened up both Taj and me. I reached over to show her which button to push just as the flash went off while we were mid-laugh. That's the goofy Taj I remembered.
"Thanks, Taj. I'll let you get back to your beer and catch up with you later."
I sat down next to Alex and tried to contain my giddiness. No, he hadn't quite remembered me, but it was still exciting being that close to him.
"Hey!" boomed a voice. Malcolm came up behind us with outstretched arms. Alex embraced him first, and then I received his bear hug.
"You remembered us!" I said. "Taj and Will almost didn't."
"Of course I remembered you girls. You both look great. These last whatever years have really agreed with you."
"You haven't changed at all," said Alex. It was true. Although his hair was grown out from his buzz cut, Malcolm didn't look a day older than he did ten years earlier. I guess Italians aged well.
Will approached us next while Malcolm left to greet someone else, and I pursed my lips and nodded at him as he walked by me to say hi to Alex. I concentrated on draining my drink while I enjoyed the fact that they were reconnecting. While trying to occupy myself and even eavesdrop a little, I took out my phone and busied myself with some social networking. I wanted to tell someone about seeing Taj again, but no one would care. I texted Shelly anyway. Although I was aware that he was still sitting across the bar, I resisted the urge to look up at him again. Play it cool, I chided myself. It was never something I was very good at doing.
When Will finished talking to Alex, he collected Taj to start getting ready to play. On his way past me, Taj poked me in the back. I turned to look at him in time to catch a playful smirk on his face. Maybe he was starting to remember me. Alexandra and I migrated over to the stage, and I convinced her to stand right in the front as opposed to sitting at one of the small round tables pushed against the walls. With my second drink in one hand and my camera in the other, I was ready for the show to begin. Besides us, there were about a dozen other people watching the show. I felt bad for them that this reunion tour hadn't been more of a big deal in Milwaukee, but I enjoyed the fact that it was more of an intimate setting.
Jesse greeted the small crowd, and they began by playing some newer music that I didn't know, but I still nodded my head and swayed a little to the beat while beaming and taking occasional sips of my beverage. I snapped a few pictures of the guys on stage and ignored the fact that we were the only ones that were standing in the middle while most of the crowd sat or stood at the back.
A few songs in, Jesse said, "This next one is an oldie but a goody. This one goes out to the front row—Alex and Rachel."
I squealed in spite of myself, mortifying Alex in the process, and set down my then-empty glass on a table so that I could dedicate more of my attention to the show. Setting my camera to video, I documented the moment while I bopped and sang along with a classic Face Rake tune, dedicated to us. It just never got old.
When the last song ended, we applauded until the palms of my hands hurt, and I let out another embarrassing hoot of appreciation. Alex and I went to the bar to close out our tabs and headed outside to enjoy the cooler night air while we waited for the guys to pack up the equipment. They came around the corner, and Jesse was the first one to say something.
"Hey, thanks for coming! It was cool to see you guys dancing and singing along out there."
"Of course, we wouldn't miss it," I said.
Will let his eyes settle on Alexandra. "It's great to see you guys again."
"It's good to see you guys. This guy didn't remember me," I pointed my thumb at Taj. "I don't know what that's all about."
"I remember you now. It just took a minute."
Another fan from back in the day started reminiscing with Malcolm, and we broke into three different conversations. While Will and Alexandra continued to catch up, I pivoted to face Taj. "So what have you been up to these last 10 years?"
We told each other about our current jobs and living situations, and I told him how great I thought my hometown was and suggested he check it out sometime. I joked that he could stop by anytime.
"Really?"
"Sure, why not," I deadpanned, not sure how serious either of us were about the idea. Our small talk didn't last long, and we soon incorporated ourselves back into the group for some more reminiscing about the good ole days. I retrieved my camera again to take a couple pictures of Will and Alexandra. In the first, they were making each other laugh; and in the second, Will leaned his head on Alexandra's shoulder. In that moment, I thought back to that night when we stayed in the tour bus in New York.
The guys needed to get going, and I needed to do the same since the concert was on a work night, and I had a bit of a drive to get back home. I hugged Jesse, Will, Malcolm, and then Taj for maybe the last time ever. "It was really good seeing you again. One picture for old time's sake?"
"Absolutely," said Will. I handed my camera to a guy in one of the other bands, who happened to be outside smoking.
Will leaned up against the van and raised his left arm for Alex to snuggle under. Taj and Jesse lined up to Will's right and Malcolm to the left of Alex. I lingered near Malcolm for a moment. Taj leaned the top half of his body forward to peek around Will. He caught my eye, and I gave him what I imagined to be a demure Mona Lisa smile. I shuffled past Alex and Will and wedged myself between Jesse and Taj. A sense of déjà vu washed over me. I forgot to breathe for a few moments when the band guy pointed the camera at the six of us.
The band guy lowered my camera. "OK, now a funny one."
I considered my options and just went for it. I swung my left leg around Taj and balanced on my right leg. He grabbed hold of my elevated leg as I stuck out my tongue for the camera. This time, my chest heaved in double time as if I had just run a 100-meter dash.
And that was it. I'm not sure if I would call it closure, but it was good. And fun. And easy. Just like going to a concert should be. A release from reality. A ride on a roller coaster.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
REBEKAH N. BRYAN was born in Columbus, Wisconsin, and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. She currently works as a technical editor and lives near
Milwaukee with her husband and two children.
Her other novel is the middle-grade children’s fantasy book
Flowerantha, published under Bek Castro.
If you enjoyed Front Row, stay tuned for the next book in The Fandom Collection, which will follow the story of a group of fans setting sail on a boyband cruise. To be the first to hear about the new book, you can sign up for my mailing list.
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