by J. L. Ostle
No, actually I could.
“I’m so sorry.” She is nodding her head, blankly looking around when suddenly she jerks her head towards me. That look makes me nervous. Why is she looking at me like that?
“You could fill in,” she states/begs. Wait what? She can’t be serious.
“What? You can’t be serious,” I speak out my thoughts. “I can’t go up on stage. You know how nervous I get. I’m not good enough anyway. I can’t, I’m sorry,” I ramble out, shaking my head vigorously.
“You are amazing! I wouldn’t ask you if I didn’t think you could do this. I’ve heard you sing the song they chose. Please.” She is now pleading to me.
I’m getting a major case of butterflies and I haven’t even agreed to anything yet. This is different from karaoke night. As soon as I stand up on this stage, everyone’s eyes will be on me. I look at the stage and back to my sister and she looks like the one who is going to pass out. She has done so much for me. She let me move in with her. Rent free. She hasn’t pushed me to do anything. I can do this for her. It’s just one song right? I can do this.
“Okay. I will do this for you, but if I’m not good enough, I’m sorry.” I need her to know if they don’t get their permanent spot that I warned her.
“If they don’t like us, it’s fine. At least we tried. You can do this.” I nod and she shrieks. “Okay, come with me.”.
I hope I’m good enough.
We walk through a door that leads us to the back of the bar and I see a few rooms but we keep walking till we see Leon pacing back and forth, pulling his hair. I can see that he is stressed out and once he sees us, he walks towards us in a panic.
“Baby, what are we going to do? I can’t believe this shit. We worked so hard to get here and she’s fucked it up for us. I could strangle her.” He pulls his hair again, staring at the ceiling.
“I’ve sorted something out. Go get the guys and get ready. Do what you’ve rehearsed. We got this.” She stands on her toes and kisses his lips softly.
“Is Sherry here? Did she show up?” I look at Lake; she looks calm while I feel ready to combust.
“Just go, you’re going to be brill.” He looks at her for a moment then nods and walks away. Wow, he must really trust her to not to ask anything more.
“Why didn’t you tell him I was going to sing?” I think I’m ready to start pulling my hair out. I don’t know if I can do this. I’m watching people walk around with instruments, preparing themselves for their slot, and I feel like I am so out of my element.
“I don’t want them to second guess my decision. I know you are going to be amazing. I wouldn’t ask you to do this if I didn’t think you could help them win. How many times over the years have I told you that you could sing? That your voice is going to take you places? You can do this.” She holds my hands looking intently into my eyes.
“I thought that was just you being a big sister. Supporting me, telling me what I wanted to hear.”
“I would never lie to you. I’ve always believed in you. You can dance, you can sing; you have so much passion inside you, you just need to let it out. You have talent and now it’s time to shine.”
“Okay. Okay,” I say over and over. “I can do this.” I think.
“I know you can. Now though, we need to sort out your clothes. You can’t show up on stage looking like a nun. Come with me.” She grabs my hand and pulls me into one of the rooms that is luckily empty. “Take off your top and cardigan and wear this.” She strips off her black top that has one sleeve and shows off her stomach. I look at her standing in her bra and quickly take off the top half of my clothes and pull her top on. I look down at my midriff and already feel too exposed. Why couldn’t she have worn something that covers me more?
“Now unclip your hair.” I do as she says and she comes in closer and pushes her hands in my hair, waving it out. “Right, I think you’re good. Proper rock and roll. Come on, we’re going on any minute,” she says as she pulls me back out of the room. We start walking in the direction I presume the stage is at and see two guys standing nearby; they wave when they see us.
“Where’s Sherry?” one of the guys asks.
“Don’t ask. This is my little sister Sky. Sky this is Reese and Joey; she is taking Sherry’s spot. Sky, they are professional dancers; they were supposed to be dancing with Sherry. Since we are going to wing this, I need you to just go with the flow. Sky, you’ll go up first and when the song comes to the middle, you two come and start trying to pull her away, but in a sexy dance type of thing.”
“Like an expressive dance? Contemporary dance?” I ask.
“If that’s what it is, then yeah. Just go with the music. You three have experience with this sort of thing so I believe you will do it justice. We need that something extra and I think this is it.” We all nod.
Just don’t fall, my head mocks me.
“So you can dance?” Joey asks me. He is very attractive with floppy blonde hair and big, brown eyes.
“Yeah. I’ve been dancing since I was four. My mom thought it would help me be more graceful.” I shrug. I hated dancing when I was a kid but, growing up, it was the chance to get away from my house, away from my parents. Lake went to every competition, play, show, you name it.
“That’s good. That Sherry may sing but she has two left feet. She wanted us to be all over her. Picking her up like a queen. It was ridiculous.” I can imagine.
“Right, come on let’s get to the stage.” Lake claps her hands. We walk a few more feet and I see Leon walking to his drums, Dominic and Chris waiting on stage. Oh God, this is it. “You can do this Sky.” Lake places a head piece on my head with a little microphone near my mouth.
Lake gives me a quick hug and pushes me a little closer towards the stage. I take in a deep breath and try and block out all the noise from the crowds. I notice Dominic looking at Leon, saying something to him. I remember they don’t know what’s going on. Well, I hope I do them proud.
Just please God, don’t let me make a fool of myself.
I take in another deep breath and let the first words fall from my lips, starting a slow walk across the stage. I keep my eyes on Dominic the whole time. I feel like I need something to focus on and I chose him. He looks at me with his eyes wide open in surprise. No one is playing yet but I continue singing, then after a moment, I hear the drums go, and soon Chris and Dominic follow. Playing along with my voice.
I walk closer to Dominic and his eyes stay on mine. I stop and sing to him, swaying my hips; at the moment in the song when the line says ‘black lace on sweat’ I pick my top up, showing a little flesh. When the song slows down, I start to walk closer to him again. I feel the music flow through me, the energy from the crowd. I let it sink into me. I let the music guide me. I stand close to Dominic, my chest rising up and down with adrenalin. I lean my mouth towards his but then I’m pulled away by Joey and Reese lifting me, gliding me backwards.
I continue singing as Reese twirls me out and then back in, but Joey stands in front of him, blocking the path, wrapping one of my legs around his waist as he spins me away. He lifts my arms up and I keep my own in the air as he slides his hands down my body before he comes back up. Reese places his hand in mine and spins me around so I’m facing him. I grab the back of his hair singing towards his mouth. Arms wrap around my waist, making me arch my back.
Joey and Reese are on either side of me so I slowly slide down them and come back up. Reese puts his arms around my waist holding the bottom of my back as he dips me. I kick my legs in the air and do a slow flip backwards landing back on my feet. Joey grabs my hand and spins me into him before spinning me back out for the final time. I let go of his hand and start to walk slowly towards Dominic again and his eyes are trained on me. I circle around and when I’m behind him, I lean my back against his. With the line ‘I want to hold you’, I glide down a little, quickly turning so my front is now to his back. I pull his hair so his neck is exposed and sing into his ear. I let go and he turns hi
s head so he is looking at me. I lean my mouth near his and I sing the last lines.
The music stops and my breathing is coming out fast. I don’t move and neither does Dominic. I’m still flush against him. His head is still turned. My mouth is so close to his. I still feel the adrenaline of doing what I just did flow through me. All I have to do is lean in closer and my lips would be on his.
My first kiss.
I’m pulled away suddenly by Lake who is screaming at me with excitement. It’s then that I look into the crowd and notice they are also screaming, chanting out ‘more, more, more’ over and over. I shake my head in disbelief. I’ve been here all night and they haven’t shown this much enthusiasm with any of the other bands. Leon and Chris come to stand with us and we all entwine our fingers together. I feel an electric pull shoot up me, spreading across my entire body. Dominic holds my hand and I face him. Again his eyes are on mine. Lake raises my hand in the air and I do the same with the hand that’s holding Dominic’s. The crowd goes wild. I laugh.
They actually enjoyed it.
They liked me.
“Told you they would love you!” Lake beams at me. She lets go of my hand and hugs Leon who spins her around. I notice Dominic doesn’t release me. I don’t want him to.
A few more bands had to go up after but some people were disappointed that we weren’t going to do another song. I’m glad we’re done. I was lucky this time that I knew the song they had practiced. People here were treating us like celebrities. Telling us how amazing we were and wanting pictures. Mostly girls were coming over and trying to get with the guys. Chris was loving the attention, having a girl in his lap and another under his arm. Leon of course declined each one, saying he’s with his girlfriend. Lake, though, would give each girl a look that said ‘back off.’ Dominic declined each one also which made me feel happy for some reason.
We are still talking about Lake persuading me to sing and how Joey and Reese and I danced so well with no proper instruction. I told them that I followed their lead and just went with the music. Now, looking back, I have to admit the dance moves were probably too sexual. I had my legs around them, let them touch me in intimate ways, but at the time it felt right with the song. The crowd seemed to like it.
If your parents could see you now. They would gut you alive.
“Sky?” I look behind me to see Reese standing there smiling at me.
“Yeah?” I ask, giving him a warm smile in return.
“I was just wondering if you wanted to go for a drink sometime?” I look at him in shock. Is he asking me out? I look around the table and they are all watching us. Lake has a huge smile on her face. Leon and Chris are just watching in interest, but Dominic is looking at his phone. Why would I think he would care?
“Umm, Reese that is so sweet of you but I’m still trying to find my feet here. Maybe when I’m more settled?” I don’t think I’m ready for a relationship. I’ve never had one. I don’t want one yet.
Unless the guy who sleeps across the hall asks? That voice in my head chimes in.
“Sure, here’s my number just in case you change your mind. You were great out there. You were like a different person. You were made for the stage. Hope to see you again.” He leans forward and kisses the corner of my mouth. I don’t know why, but I close my eyes and enjoy that small contact. I hear him walk away and when I open my eyes again, they land on Dominic. He stares at me intensely before I watch him stand up and head to the bar.
“You should have let him take you out. It could have been fun,” Lake says, picking up a piece of paper that Reese must have left. I snatch it off her and put it in my pocket.
“I just moved here. Baby steps okay?”
“Okay. But he’s nice and you two looked hot up there. Damn I am amazing. I knew I made the right decision.” She rubs her nails against her top, well mine, and pretends to admire her nails. How can even my boring clothes look so amazing on her?
“Yeah, too bad Sherry is our singer, that bitch has gone power mad,” Leon joins in. I knew this was a one-time thing but I am a little gutted that I couldn’t do it again. Just hearing Leon say that Sherry is the lead singer and not me, makes me feel sad knowing I won’t be able to do it again. I did have fun up there. After I let myself go.
“Don’t even bring her up. I still want to slap that bitch. If it wasn’t for my quick wit and Sky’s voice and hot dance moves, the band wouldn’t have gotten the praise it needed. You heard that crowd, they loved you and she could have ruined it,” Lake says angrily.
Leon and Lake start talking about band stuff and Chris is kissing, well more like sucking, some girls face off. I look towards the bar and see Dominic talking to a girl. Another blonde. I don’t know what it is, but I don’t like seeing him talking so closely to another girl. I hate that now I’m starting to feel like a third wheel. I was having a good time and now I just want to go home and go to bed. I’m about to speak my thoughts when an attractive man in an expensive suit walks up to our table.
“Hi, I watched your band perform tonight. I have to admit, it was awesome. I love your sound. I love what you did and putting that extra bit with the dancing gave it even more of an appeal,” Mr. Suit says.
“Yo, Dominic, come over here!” Leon shouts out. I hate that he brings the blonde over with him. I see his hand is on her ass and blush, knowing I shouldn’t have been looking.
“Who’s this?” Dominic asks.
“I’m Robert Daniels. I was just telling the rest of your band that I enjoyed tonight’s show. I come here now and again and I’m glad that I showed up tonight.”
“Sorry, but what is it that you want?” Chris speaks up.
“I’m with Delta Record Company. I have seen a couple of your shows but tonight was so raw and different. We’re interested in you. If you’re interested in us representing you, come to our office nine a.m. Monday and we can talk contracts and strategies. Here is my card, my number and the studios address are both on it. I hope to see you there.” He shakes each of our hands and walks away. I pick up the card that is laying on the table with my mouth hanging open.
They did it.
They’re going to be famous.
“Fuck yeah! We did it! We fucking finally did it!” Chris stands on his seat. “I’m going to be a rock star!”
Fuck me. I can’t believe it. I take the card that Sky is holding and look at it. Shit it’s actually happening. Music is my life, my whole world. I know there are hundreds of bands trying to make it big; I never actually thought we would have stood out from the rest.
You were spotted because of the girl with creamy white skin, black hair and deep, dark blue eyes, my head mocks me.
It’s true; this guy was here and if Sky didn’t stand in we might not have had this chance. Her voice was sexy and smooth, her body flexible and moving so effortlessly. No one would be able to take their eyes off her. I knew I couldn’t. I watched her from beginning to end. Fuck, I was so tempted to kiss her. Her body flush against mine. I even got hard when she pulled my hair.
Fuck, I’m getting hard again just thinking about it.
“Dude, we’re going to have a record deal. We’re going to have albums, tours. This is a fucking dream come true!” Chris jumps off his seat and stands near one of the girls that is flocking him, planting a hard kiss on her. She looks more than happy to accommodate. Who wouldn’t? She knows he’s going to be big one day.
We all are.
“What about Sherry?” Leon asks. My body that was just on cloud nine falls fast. Fuck, fuck, fuck. She is the lead singer. She’s been with us from the making of the band. She is a bossy little bitch, but we can’t kick her out. I look at Sky and she is looking at her hands. I don’t want her to leave either. She was perfect.
Is perfect.
“I was only here to fill in. I’m not taking Sherry’s spot,” Sky speaks up.
“Sky, you were amazing up there. Sherry...” Lake starts, but Sky interrupts.
“Is the lead singer. I’m not
stealing her spot. She earned this, not me. I did one song. She has done so many. This is hers not mine.” She stands. “I’m going home. With all that excitement I feel drained. I need my bed.” I notice she won’t look at me.
“I’ll come with you.” Lake whispers something in Leon’s ear and they both wave before they leave.
“Fuck man, what are you going to do?” Chris looks at me. I notice the girls that were hanging around him are gone too.
“What do you mean, what am I going to do?” I scoff at him.
“Come on man, Sherry may think she’s the leader of this band, but it’s you. You were the one to start it. It’s your choice. We’ll go with whatever you say,” Leon states, taking a sip from his bottle of beer. I rub my face with my palm.
“Sky said she didn’t want to take Sherry’s spot. Sherry has been here from day one, so we keep her. I know she has become a total bitch, demanding and a grade A ass but we have to do what’s right for the band.” Even though I know what is right is the girl who is sleeping across the hall from me.
“Even if Sky rocked it? She was hot out there. The crowd could feel it. I saw how everyone’s eyes were mesmerized by her. Even you Dom.” Chris wags his eyebrows up and down.
“Fuck off man, I was shocked okay? Come on. Hearing her voice, watching her come out onto the stage, watching her dance. Who could blame me?”
“Well, Lake will kick your ass if you try to touch her. Just warning you.” Leon downs the rest of his beer.
“Yeah, got the memo a hundred times. I haven’t tried to touch her yet so it’s all good. Plus, it was her that came to me on that stage,” I say defensively.
“True, but I noticed something that Lake wouldn’t like.”
“What?”
“How you said yet. You said you haven’t touched her yet.”
Fuck.
Lake finally dropped the topic of me becoming their lead singer. Even though Sherry is a bitch, I wouldn’t take that from her. She knows all their songs. Knows the band, knows what’s what, where I have no clue. I wouldn’t know how to set up the equipment, I wouldn’t even know if I could remember every single song they have ever written. It’s too much pressure and I have made my decision anyway.