by J. O Mantel
Backstage, Dark Falkon and Lightning Ridge had a final meeting with their managers. Both bands would sing three songs from each of their albums and a cover track. They had all decided that the song they would perform together would be Old Time Rock n Roll by Bob Seger.
It was almost 8pm as more people filed in and made their way to their seats. Sienna looked around, and a smile swept over her face as she watched the crowd fill the center. She looked at the stage, Lukas’s golden microphone, his stool and guitar were rested neatly stage left. Stage right, Sienna saw the microphone Jake regularly used during rehearsals, on its stand. Rested up neatly against it was the guitar she had bought him for his birthday last year. A tear trickled down her cheek.
Sienna talked with her family, Ivy and Dick, and pretty soon there wasn’t a vacant seat in the house. It was a sold-out show.
“It’s a full house,” Olivia said.
“Looks like it’s going to be an amazing night,” Ivy replied.
“Where are Lukas’s parents?” Carl asked Sienna.
“Um, I actually don’t know. He never mentioned if they were coming or not,” Sienna replied, slightly uncomfortable.
She looked around at her brothers and sisters, they all had big smiles on their faces. Robbie winked at her and smiled as Sienna placed her hands on her belly and rubbed it gently.
“What’s the matter? Are you all right?” Margaret asked in a panic.
“I’m fine. Everything’s perfect,” Sienna replied.
“Well, almost perfect” she whispered to herself, as she turned back to the stage.
Suddenly the lights dimmed, and the huge screens on either side of the stage lit up. There was a loud cheer and a burst of applause from the audience. Sienna and her family applauded, Ivy and Dick whistled as the crowd came to life. The lights completely turned off and the screens filled with Dark Falkon and Lightning Ridge logos. The crowd got louder and wilder, soon the stage was lit with neon flashing lighting and rock music began to fill the center. As the crowd watched the stage, the public address system sounded and the voice over began speaking.
“Good evening ladies and gentlemen and welcome to tonight’s performance. Please be advised that all video and recording devices are strictly prohibited.”
There was another roar from the audience, the lights and screens turned off, completely blackening the center. A spotlight illuminated the stage; Ryan stepped forward and placed the guitar strap around his neck. Another spotlight lit the stage, this time revealing Lance as he sat behind his drums. The stage lit up once more, Tori took a step forward and grabbed her microphone, adjusting her earpiece, as the crowd cheered and applauded. The stage stayed illuminated for a moment. Sienna and the rest of the group looked at the stage and the screens. The cheers and applause got louder. Sienna could hear Olivia, Tom, Chris and Emily chanting Jake’s name. Next, Ivy and Dick began chanting and soon the entire crowd was clapping and chanting Jake’s name. Sienna looked around, all the faces were glued to the stage and the screens. The chanting got louder and once again, the center was filled with total darkness. The audience continued to roar, clapping and screaming, when finally the lights turned back on and Jake stood center stage.
Sienna, her family, Ivy, Dick, Emily, Chris and Jake’s parents stood up and cheered. Emily whistled loudly and Sienna could hear Olivia and Tom scream his name.
The audience was going absolutely wild. Sienna couldn’t believe the standing ovation that Jake was receiving. Tears were flowing as she stood there staring at the stage. Jake looked at her and then the rest of her family, his eyes turned to his mother and father and soon, Olivia started crying. He grabbed his guitar and threw the strap around his neck. He gave it one fierce strum, sending the crowd into a frenzy. He strummed it again, then adjusted his earpiece.
“GOOD EVENING, NEW YORK” Jake yelled into the microphone. More applause, whistles and yelling were heard from the audience. Sienna looked to her right, and saw one of the girls sitting next to her, she was wearing a Lightning Ridge t shirt, and flashing her assets at Jake.
It suddenly reminded Sienna of all the times she’d been to a Dark Falkon concert, when she was the one flashing her tits at Lukas. Now however, it was Jake’s turn to be in the spotlight. Sienna couldn’t help but smile.
“ARE WE ALL READY TO HAVE A GOOD NIGHT?” Jake yelled, as the crowd answered, “YES.”
He started strumming his guitar, Lance started playing the drums, and Ryan then strummed on his guitar, as Tori stepped forward and positioned her microphone on its stand.
The crowd settled as Lightning Ridge performed their first song of the evening. Looking around her again, Sienna could see how happy Tom and Olivia were. Their smiles lit up their faces. Ivy curled up to Dick, while they watched Jake’s performance on stage. Sienna looked at her mom and dad, watching them as they bopped along to the lyrics. Looking around further, there was still no sign of Lukas’s parents, she had given up hope that they would show, so she turned her full attention to the stage and watched Lightning Ridge perform.
“THANK YOU,” Jake yelled after they finished the first song. He flung the guitar over his shoulder and grabbed the microphone off the stand.
“How we all doing tonight?” He said.
There was a flood of screaming from the audience as Jake continued his speech.
“Thank you all so much, this is an incredible opportunity to be here performing for you all tonight. First of all I’d like to say a big happy Mother’s Day to all the mom’s out in the audience, especially my mother. Where are you mom?” Jake looked out into the audience as Sienna, Ivy and the others cheered. Olivia stood up, blushing as the cameras closed in on her face and lit up the monitors.
“Happy Mother’s Day, mom. I love you” Jake said, as Olivia sat back down. One of the crew on stage walked down the stairs and handed Olivia a bouquet of flowers. Jake looked at his mother and blew her a kiss.
“You know, I think it’s time I told you all a little story. For those of you that know us, you’ll know that, Tori, Ryan, Lance and myself were just four ordinary New Yorkers chilling in our living rooms. Until one day, one of us had this crazy idea that we should form a band. Who was that?” Jake asked, looking at the band.
“It was me,” Tori replied.
“Tori Woods, ladies and gentlemen.”
The crowd cheered as Tori stepped up next to Jake.
“Do you want to tell them the story, or shall I?” Jake asked.
“What’s there to tell? We got bored of sitting around drinking beer and eating pizza, so I decided that we all needed to put our talents to better use.”
“Then we found this old run down shed in Manhattan,” Ryan interrupted.
“Ryan McGuire, on second guitar ladies and gentlemen.”
Ryan strummed on his guitar and made his way to Tori and Jake center stage as the crowd cheered again.
“I think our parents were glad when we finally found a place where we could rehearse, without waking up the neighbors” Ryan said.
“Actually I think they were more relieved to have their living room back, and after the state we left it in every night, I’m surprised your mother never kicked us out.”
The crowd laughed along with Jake, as he continued to joke on stage. Sienna slowly rubbed her belly while she watched Jake on stage.
“Actually I think they were just glad to get rid of our God awful singing,” Lance replied, hitting the drums.
“Lance Carlson, on the drums ladies and gentlemen.”
Lance stood up and the four of them stood center stage as the crowd cheered. Jake and Sienna exchanged eye contact, she threw him a smile and he replied with one of his own.
“When Stuart told us that we were performing with Dark Falkon tonight, my first reaction was, ‘What? Us? There are so many other rock bands out there, why would they choose us?’ His reply was that they wanted some new fresh talent, a new act that was beginning to make a name for themselves. And with the success of our debut albu
m and single, the timing was perfect. By the way, did I mention that we are still in the top five and NUMBER ONE in Australia?”
The audience broke out with more applause. Olivia and Tom were beside themselves with emotions. Sienna herself couldn’t help but shed yet another tear. She looked over at Ivy, who turned to her and winked, Dick also looked at Sienna and smiled at her. As she sat there and listened to Jake’s speech, she smiled again. Everything was perfect right now. Lightning Ridge were a hit and Jake finally had everything he always wanted… almost everything. Sienna knew that she was always going to be the love of his life, the one person he would want to spend the rest of his life with. The band quickly got back into their positions and prepared for the next song. Lance started hitting the drums, while Ryan strummed his guitar. Tori took a step forward and Jake flung the guitar back over his shoulder, and grabbed his microphone.
Jake took a step forward and started singing their next song. Sienna happily joined in singing it with him; she loved this new album and played it whenever she wasn’t playing Dark Falkon’s.
Jake looked at his mom and Sienna, smiling at both of them. She looked down at her belly and rubbed it gently, as she felt some movement inside her. It was obvious the twins were enjoying the show.
Lightning Ridge performed their number one hit, Tame, out of all the songs that Jake and his band had recorded, this was by far Sienna’s favorite. She sang along with the band and occasionally she and Jake would throw each other a smile.
As they had topped the Australian charts, Lightning Ridge decided to pay homage to one of Australia’s biggest and most successful bands. The audience lit up the center, swaying their cell phones side to side in the air, as the band played a tribute to Crowded House. Lightning Ridge performed a powerful rendition of one of their biggest hits, Don’t Dream it’s Over.
“Hey now, hey now, don’t dream it’s over” the crowd sang, white lights were seen from every direction, as people swayed their phones in the air. Sienna watched the stage as Jake, Tori, Lance and Ryan made their way to the center of the stage, arm in arm.
They bowed while the audience continued cheering and whistling. Sienna, her family and Jake’s family couldn’t stop staring at the stage. Olivia’s face was filled with a huge smile, Emily and Chris couldn’t take their eyes off the stage either. Ivy and Dick smiled at one another and then at Jake, there wasn’t a dry eye in the front row. Sienna’s face drowned with tears, Jake finally had the standing ovation and success he deserved.
“Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. We will return later in the evening to perform with Dark Falkon,” Jake announced, as they took a final bow and left the stage.
The lights in the center switched on and the voice over announced that there would be a twenty-minute intermission before Dark Falkon took the stage. The girls took the opportunity to go to the bathroom.
“He’s amazing isn’t he?” Olivia said.
“Yeah, he’s certainly talented that’s for sure.” Ivy replied.
“You must be really proud of him,” Margaret said, as the four of them stood in front of the mirror inside the bathroom.
“Sienna?”
“Hmmm?” She mumbled, playing with her hair.
“Are you all right?” Her mom asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine” She replied, now reapplying some more lipstick.
“What do you think of the show?” Olivia asked.
“It’s-it’s great” she replied, half-heartedly.
After they finished in the bathroom, the four of them headed back to their seats and waited for Dark Falkon. Sienna grabbed her phone from her purse and quickly sent a text to Lukas.
Sienna: I can’t wait to see you on stage, I know you’ll be amazing. Break a leg. I Love you. Xx
She then sent a message to Jake.
Sienna: You were absolutely wonderful out there tonight. I can tell you now that there wasn’t a dry eye in the front row. I can’t wait to hear you sing with Dark Falkon. See you after the show. Xx
As she pressed send, she couldn’t help but think about everything that had happened recently. The pregnancy was one thing, aside from being completely unplanned, it had brought her and Jake a lot closer than they had ever been. Not to mention, things were wonderful between her and Lukas, but all of a sudden, for some strange reason, all that wasn’t enough for Sienna. This wasn’t the first time she had thoughts like this, it wasn’t the first time she was thinking about Jake.
She’d been over all these feelings before and she tried to brush them off as just crazy pregnancy hormones, but lately, she did find herself more and more attracted to Jake. She knew it was crazy, she was madly in love with Lukas, she always had been, and he was the one that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.
So, why was she feeling this way about Jake?
Was she in love with Jake?
The lights in the center dimmed again. There was a roar of applause and screams from the audience as one spotlight lit up a section of the stage. Dave Barnes sat by his drums. He grabbed one of the sticks and hit the symbols loudly, making the crowd scream.
Next the spotlight moved to another section of the stage, there was a flash and suddenly Tyler Fields sat at his keyboard. He hit a few keys sending the crowd into yet another frenzy.
A third spotlight lit up the stage, this time on Matt Wills. He stood stage left and peered out into the audience. He reached for his guitar and threw the strap around his neck. He strummed the strings loudly, as whistles and cheers were heard from all directions of the crowd.
Sienna quickly turned her eyes to the front, ready for that moment when her man walked center stage and grabbed his guitar. The drums got louder and the neon lights filled the stage as the crowd waited. Matt, Tyler and Dave began playing, as they waited for Lukas.
Just as they had earlier, with Jake, the audience started to chant Lukas’s name and began banging on chairs. Sienna looked next to her, Ivy, Dick, Tom, Olivia and Sienna’s entire family were even joining in. She turned back to the stage, there was still no sign of Lukas.
The atmosphere in the center continued to come to life. The shouting got louder. The chanting got louder. The banging got louder, but Lukas continued to tease his fans.
Even Sienna started to get anxious. She knew how much Lukas loved to surprise people, especially her. But he had this certain way of surprising his audience, often wandering onto the stage from somewhere completely random, taking the audience by surprise.
It felt like hours, sitting there waiting for the blonde haired heart throb to show, but it was only five minutes. Sienna looked around the stage and in all directions of the crowd, but Lukas was still nowhere to be seen.
Ivy looked over at her, “He sure knows how to make an entrance, doesn’t he” Ivy yelled over the crowd’s chanting.
“Yeah-yeah he does,” Sienna replied.
Something wasn’t right, this wasn’t like Lukas to take this long.
What if something’s happened backstage, Sienna thought.
Just as she reached for her phone to text Jake, the roaring got louder and they began whistling, Lukas had made his entrance on stage.
A sigh of relief swept over Sienna. She turned her full attention to the stage, as the band played louder and the crowd screamed.
Lukas grabbed his microphone, took a couple of steps forward on the stage and adjusted his earpiece. He placed his arms out in front and gestured the audience to applaud louder and louder.
His eyes met with Sienna’s and they both smiled at one another.
Lukas then gestured the audience to cease applauding.
“That never gets old,” Lukas said into his microphone. “Good evening New York.”
The crowd burst to life again with more cheers and applause.
“Thank you. Thank you all so much,” he said as the audience started to calm down.
“Wow! What a crowd” he said, turning to look at the band.
“Have you all met my band?” He yelled, the audie
nce replied with loud screams of “YES.”
“Give it up for David, Matt and Tyler,” he yelled and applauded as the band played their instruments.
“It’s an absolute honor to be here with you all tonight. When our manager Mike asked us to perform for a Mother’s Day concert, I didn’t hesitate. And then when he told us that we would be performing with a new band, one that he chose, we jumped at the opportunity. And can I just add, Lightning Ridge were absolutely amazing. Let’s give them another round of applause.” Everyone in the center and on stage started clapping and cheering again.
“Those guys have a remarkable talent, and it’s no wonder they’re number one in Australia at the moment. I was talking with Jake their lead singer, backstage, and he was telling me how this was a surreal opportunity for them. They still couldn’t believe it themselves, that they were actually going to perform with us tonight. So anyway, Lightning Ridge will be joining us a little later for a duet. Before we kick off with our first song, I want to wish all the mothers out there, a wonderful Mother’s Day tomorrow. An even bigger Mother’s Day to my gorgeous girlfriend, Sienna Forrester who’s sitting here in the front row, she’s expecting twins any day now.”
The audience clapped and cheered while the TV monitors showed a close up of Sienna’s face. She was red with embarrassment.
“I love you” he mouthed.
“I love you too,” Sienna replied from her seat.
“My mother text me earlier and told me that she and dad were delayed on a flight from Paris. Unfortunately, they can’t be here with me tonight, but I know they’ll be watching the live telecast somewhere. Happy Mother’s Day, mom.”