My Little Decoy

♪ I'm a Renegade It's In My Blood ♪ {17}

"And when I get there
it won't be far enough
I'm a renegade
It's in my blood." -Renegade

"Why didn't you tell us that your dad works for Infinite Records?" Xander's eye twitched as the five of us craned our heads upwards to see the full view of the skyscraper. We were standing in front of the infamous Infinite Records; standing in a single file line in front of the entrance. It had officially been a week since Xander and I joined Chasing Avenues, two days since my suspension ended, and it's been three days since I handed in my permission form. Thankfully, the boys weren't suspicious at all.

"It never came into conversation." Drake smirked mischeviously, giving a shrug. "Besides, Zac and Gabriel knew my dad was a spokesperson for the company."

"Yeah, but we didn't." I muttered, my eyes capturing every essence of the building in front of me. The glass windows were spotless; the sunlight glinting off the surface of the windows made it seem like the entire skyscraper was glowing in its brightness. I shielded my eyes and squinted as a few ravens squawked overhead, flying past the enormous building.

"Oops." Drake chuckled but let out a pained 'oof' as Gabriel smacked him upside the head.

"Stop messing around, we're here to practice. Your dad said he booked us an open studio, right?" Gabriel asked, pushing open the massive double doors and letting us walk in first.

"Yeah, he says to just tell Charlene that we're here on his behalf, and she'll let us into the Treble Suite. But Dad also said that he can't do this everytime we want to practice, so we'll just have to stick with my basement for the majority of the time." Drake nodded, seemingly unfazed as he entered Infinite Records. Zac and Gabriel nodded nonchalantly, and the three of them headed off towards the lobby desk. My thoughts swirled from all the words and names Drake had spoken, recognizing nothing.

Xander, who seemed frozen to the spot right beside me, just gaped at how spacious the inside of Infinity was. I think my own reactions were getting there. Just like the outside, the inside was brightly lit with the rays of sun streaming in through the ceiling to floor windows, and the lobby was decorated to stick with the theme of music.

The entire lobby was filled with shelves filled to the brim with records and CDs, some looking older than others. Posters of bands that the label produced were hung up on the walls, much like the way the band posters were hung up in Drake's basement.

Awards littered the walls along with the poster; different achievements of different bands and individuals sporadically placed beside each other along to no order. Rock music played softly in the background and I half-smiled when my ears recognized the tune as Metallica's Battery.

The walls were each painted a mis-matching array of purples, greens, and beige, giving the atmosphere a 70's feeling, yet the modern leather furniture kept us in the present.

I knew I was going to love it here already.

"Xander! Lacey!" Zac's voice snapped my head to where the three other members of Chasing Avenues stood, in front of the lobby's desk. As Xander and I went to join them, I noticed the old woman with graying hair and spectacles sitting professionally behind the counter, giving us all warm smiles.

"Ah, so the five of you young musicians have an appointment here?" She asked, turning to the prehistoric computer beside her. Guess they left out that bit of technology in the 70's too.

"Yeah, Mr. Phillips said we were scheduled for the Treble Suite at 4:30 PM." Gabriel reiterated, tapping his fingers on the counter.

I noticed that besides him being the lead vocalist, his rhythm was nearly spot on and consistent. But then I remembered when I first heard the members of Chasing Avenues speak, or well, argue and when he protested that he could play instead. I guess Gabriel really was a drummer after all.

"Oh, yes, I see your reservation right here." The old woman, who I'm guessing was Charlene, mused and turned back to us. She fiddled with the drawer below the computer and fished out a silver key, handing it to Zac. "Here's the key to the studio. Don't lose it or else there will be consequences." She gave us an intimidating stare.

The five of us gave her a curt nod before starting off towards the elevators. My eyes wandered around again, wondering how many floors the building held. As Metallica's song began to fade, a new song started up and my ears perked up, my steps faltering slightly.

The song playing brought along a barrage of emotions, slamming me in my heart. This was a band that I would listen to on the days I were upset, or felt as if I couldn't go on. Their music always brought hope into my life, and they still do. After Mom died, this band was all I could listen to.

As Gerard Way's haunting voice echoed sweetly through the murmuring of employees in the main hall, I drowned out the excess noise and focused on his voice, and the electric finger-picking done by Ray Toro.

"They're gonna clean up your looks with all the lies in the books to make a citizen out of you. Because they sleep with a gun and keep an eye on you, son, so they can watch all the things you do."

I walked on, trailing behind the others slowly, feeling as if I were trudging through quicksand. Already, the music was starting to lure me into its sound.

And with a humorless chuckle, I found myself singing along quietly, "They're gonna rip up your heads, your aspirations to shreds. Another cog in the murder machine."

"Oh, bloody hell, I love this song!" Drake yelled, spinning around and grinning at us. Employees shot us dirty looks for disturbing their morning quiet. I'm pretty sure the song playing summarized their thoughts.

"Bloody hell? Dude, you're not British-" Zac started but was cut off when Drake started dancing and belting out the lyrics to the song.

"They said all teenagers scare the living shit out of me! They could care less as long as someone'll bleed. So darken your clothes or strike a violent pose. Maybe they'll leave you alone, but not me!"

To say I was shocked was the understatement of the century. The way he just let go and made a fool of himself... On purpose, mind you. He danced in time to the music, singing in his smooth voice, his eyes closed as a smile stretched over his face. Drake wasn't as good a singer as Gabriel, but now I knew why they made him a backup vocalist.

"Come on, Zac, sing with me!" Drake yelled as Ray's guitar took over, giving Gerard time to regain his voice.

Zac rolled his eyes but joined in quietly as the lyrics came back over the music, "The boys and girls in the clique. The awful names that they stick. You're never gonna fit in much, kid. But if you're troubled and hurt, what you got under your shirt will make them pay for the things that they did."

Zac was just as good as Drake, at nearly Xander's level. His voice was quiet and soothing, distinctly different against Drake's energy and Gabriel's rough tone. The two of them glanced at Gabriel who just gave them a shrug and turned back to head over to the elevators.

"Killjoy." Drake muttered.

As the next verse started up, Xander sent me a shrug and mouthed, "Oh, what the hell." I glared at him, sending him the silent signal, "Don't you even dare," but of course he ignored me and jumped right into the song, throwing his arms around Drake and Zac's shoulders.

"They said all teenagers scare the living shit out of me! They could care less as long as someone'll bleed. So darken your clothes or strike a violent pose. Maybe they'll leave you alone, but not me! Ohhhh, yeah!" He sang obnoxiously and intentionally out of key, laughing a bit. Drake and Zac grinned back, chorusing in with just as much enthusiasm and just as badly sung. I felt like my ears were going to bleed. Someone put me out of my misery...

"Lacey, you try!" Drake yelled, pointing to me as if sending an invisible spotlight my way.

I arched an eyebrow, pointing a finger to myself.

"Yes, idiot, you!" Xander added, sticking out his tongue.

I sighed and felt uneasiness grow in the pits of my stomach, making me hesitate. A few workers from the label were looking at us like we were some mutant disease while a couple others were grinning at our youth, as if happy something unsual was finally happening in their dull, mediocre lives.

But as the song spiralled into the guitar solo, as if noting my reluctance, I figured that there was nothing left to lose. Gripping Rev in my pockets, I waited until the next chorus started up and then sang, "They said all teenagers scare the living shit out of me! They could care less as long as someone'll bleed. So darken your clothes or strike a violent pose. Maybe they'll leave you alone, but not me. . ."

Zac smiled and Drake gave me a thumbs up, both obviously pleased with my voice. "That's it!" Drake laughed and he walked over to me, pulling me into the middle of the circle comprised of him, Xander, and Zac.

As their cheerful faces surrounded me, I couldn't help but feel like I belonged. Just right then and there. These people understood music, and they didn't care what others thought. They were just... well, them. Some part of me wished I could feel like that too.

"All together now!" Drake yelled in time to the song, his voice slightly louder than the recording's.

And together, the four of us belted out the final chorus, singing at the top of our lungs with a passion that I realized was the same from our earlier practice. We laughed, well they did, and I offered a half-smile. Drake flung himself to the ground, shredding his air guitar as if it were his actual instrument. Zac and Xander headbanged as the song came to a close, and I stood there, taking in the scene before me with a small smile. It was if their energy cascaded into me, making me forget everything like how I can forget everything when I'm with Blake.

And I don't know, but something was blossoming in my heart, yet I couldn't pick out what it was. It's been so long since I've felt it.

Content? Happiness?

My gaze caught Gabriel's stance leaning against the wall beside the elevator, and the sight startled me a little out of my music-drunken daze. He had a goofy smile on his face, and when his eyes caught mine, the smile didn't waver. I quirked an eyebrow, silently asking him why he didn't come over to join us. As if hearing my thoughts, Gabriel give a shrug and jerked his chin in the direction of where Drake was currently tackling Xander and Zac to the ground playfully. He shook his head and mouthed back to me, "Teenagers scare the living shit out of me."

--

"Alright, here we are!" Drake chirped; he was the only one still musically high from our karaoke session from before. The boy has a ton of energy, I'll give you that.

He stopped at a glistening white door with a gold-plated star logo attached on the center, spelling out the words, "Treble Suite."

"And now, lady and gentlemen, I present to you-" Drake grinned, taking the key from Zac and plugging it into the door, opening it slowly.

"The Treble Suite!" He announced loudly, throwing the door open.

"Sshhh!!" Several voices hissed at us, making the five of us jump in surprise. As we got over our shock, I noticed that we were not alone in the room after all.

There was a bald man with headphones securely placed on his ears, his hand hovering a button he was probably going to press before we barged in. Another man, dressed more formally in a well-groomed suit and tie, stood behind the mixer. He angled a glare at us, his eyes sparking with irritation. I frowned, feeling as if I knew him from somewhere. Recognition dawned in my mind when I realized he was the man from school; Tilted Reality's manager.

Well, that must mean one thing.

"Holy crap." Xander choked out, looking as if he was going to pass out. In the small waiting area beside the recording room, three-fourths of the band Tilted Reality, sat in the seats. All of them fixed curious glances our way.

Katerina was painting her nails a vivid, glossy black color, Vanessa was reading a Rolling Stones magazine, and Zeke just gave us his usually stony expression. I instantly wondered where Blake was.

"Tom, I thought we had this studio booked just for us...?" He murmured in confusion, switching his gaze to his manager.

"We did." Tom answered gruffly, straightening his tie before walking over to Chasing Avenues. "I believe you have the wrong room."

After recovering from his shock, Gabriel shook his head and explained, "No, sir. Mr. Phillips, he's an employee here, told us that he booked the Treble Suite for us to practice in at 4:30. He said that we can practice until seven before someone named Mike Vaughn will come to-"

"Mike?" Tom spat, and I noticed a hint of disgust in his gaze. Composing himself, he added, "Listen, kids. We booked this studio until 8 PM tonight, so I suggest you leave now and reserve another slot."

"But, sir-"

Gabriel was cut off by a rapping tap on the glass separating us from the recording room. My eyes snapped to the noise and I felt my lips twitch when I saw Blake's familiar face, although instead of the crooked grin I was used to, he was wearing a frown that I wanted to disappear.

In his hands were a pair of drum sticks, looking brand new and expensive. Another pair of headphones adorned his messy black locks, and his bangs fell messily into his face, covering the tops of his emerald eyes. Blake spoke, but no words came out of his mouth.

"Hold on, son. I'll turn the mike on." The bald man spoke into an intercom and moments later, I heard Blake's voice drift through the speakers.

"Tom, what's the problem here?"

"Blake, don't worry about it. These kids just got their studio time mixed up-"

"Hey, Sturm!" Blake cut him off, waving frantically in my direction. He smiled and ignored Tom's argument, making the latter seem quite peeved off. I felt my cheeks burn and I subconsciously shifted to hide behind Xander's lanky frame.

"Sturm?" The remaining members of Tilted Reality chorused, craning their heads towards me. A look of recognition and interest sparked in their eyes. I hid even further, barely noticing how tense Xander was as he glanced suspiciously at Blake. The door leading to the recording room opened and Blake came tumbling out, smiling.

"Well, Tom. Don't you think we've had enough time for practice? I mean, we already recorded the tracks for Whisper Softly and Trapped. I think we should give them their practice time." Blake said to his manager; gesturing to the rest of his band. "I'm sure they're fine with it, right guys?" His words came out in a rush, obviously pleased by the fact that we had made our presence known.

Katerina smiled, still keeping her gaze on me, which I found extremely uncomfortable. "Yeah, we've been here since morning. I think we need a break."

Vanessa nodded, setting her magazine on the table desk in the middle of the chairs. She stood and stretched, "Yeah, let Sturm and her friends rehearse." She sent a smirk my way, and even more confused by how she knew my nickname, I arched an eyebrow at Blake.

Zeke was the only one who seemed reluctant, seeing how Tom was getting angrier by the second. "I don't know..."

Kat pouted and elbowed him the gut, and he let out a pained grunt. She whispered something to him, pointing to Blake and instantly Zeke let out a sigh of admittance. At that moment I wished I had superhuman hearing so I could understand what she had spoken.

"Come on, Tom." Blake asked, patting his manager's shoulder.

"You guys do realize your new album comes out in three months, and we've only recorded six of the fourteen tracks? And, I still need to prep you guys up for the competition. And-" Tom growled low, narrowing his eyes at the band.

"Come on, Tom! You've been working us like slaves for the past few months, give us a break." Katerina whined, sauntering over to where I hid behind Xander. She threw an arm around my shoulder in a friendly manner, acting as if I've known her for years instead of minutes. I felt myself flinch the slightest.

Tom pinched the bridge of his nose, inhaling deeply. When he opened them, he nodded to Mr. Baldy and the latter stood up, turning off the the recording equipment. "Alright... but first thing tomorrow morning, we're back at this studio and recording Sinking Ship."

"Deal." The four of them chirped simultaneously and Tom let out an agitated huff before he gestured to the bald mixer. The two of them stalked out of the room, and I imagined a fiery blaze leaving his trail.

"What crawled up his ass and died?" Drake grumbled and Katerina stared at him. Drake instantly paled and stammered, "W-wait, I didn't mean it like that!"

But instead of a scolding, the four members of Tilted Reality burst out laughing.

"Uhm..." Zac murmured, confused.

"Sorry, sorry. It's just that you guys don't know how true that statement is." Vanessa chuckled, walking over to us. Blake popped up beside me, snatching me away from Katerina with his tongue sticking out childishly.

Drake gave a nervous chuckle and it seemed that the energy from before was gone, replaced with a large amount of awkward.

"Aww, come on. Don't be that way guys. Anyone who loves music is a friend of ours." Katerina smiled.

"Yeah, and it doesn't have to necessarily mean our music." Zeke shrugged.

"It's just. . . you guys are you know. . ." Xander trailed off, poking Katerina in the arm curiously as if he couldn't believe she was real.

"Hey, that tickles!" She chided with a laugh, slapping away his hand.

"Famous?" Zeke finished Xander's sentence boredly, grabbing his jacket off the couch and shrugging it on.

"So?" Blake added, his chin resting on my shoulder. I found myself not flinching away like I usually would do, and it was extremely weird. Xander seemed to notice and his jaw tightened just the slightest.

"Oh, we should all introduce ourselves!" Kat smiled, removing her arm from mine and clapping. "I'll go first!! I'm Katerina, but you guys can call me Kat!"

"Zeke." Zeke muttered, appearing beside Vanessa.

Vanessa smiled, "I'm Vanessa, as you all probably know. Just call me Vee though."

"And I'm Har- Blake." Blake said, stumbling as he almost introduced himself as Harnage. I snorted in mild amusement.

"We're on a nickname basis now?" Zac choked out, widening his eyes.

"Oh, goodness. You guys exaggerate way too much. We're not God, just a successful band, you know." Vee laughed, nudging Zac lightly. His face was priceless.

"Exactly. Besides, we don't get to socialize much. Tom's pretty strict about having too much free time. It's nice to meet people around our age. And you guys seem pretty chill. You there," Kat pointed to Drake, who blushed a bright red. "That was a fabulous entrance, by the way."

Drake muttered a muffled thank you as Blake spoke up, his voice rumbling on my shoulder. "You guys should introduce yourselves too, okay?"

"Oh, yeah." Drake chuckled, trying to smoothly recover from his embarrassing reaction to Katerina. "I'm Drake."

"I'm Zac." Zac waved with a small smile.

"Name's Gabriel." Gabe nodded.

"I'm Xander!" Xander chirped, grinning.

Everyone turned to me. With a sigh, I murmured, "My name's-"

"Lacey." The members of Tilted Reality spoke in unison, startling me and the rest of the guys.

"How did you know...?" I muttered suspiciously, narrowing my eyes.

"Blake doesn't shut up about yo-" Zeke explained when he let out a strangled noise due to suddenly being placed in a headlock by Blake.

"Ahahhaaaa! What did you say, bro?" Blake laughed obnoxiously loud, sounding nervous.

"Oh, no reason," Kat answered my question, rolling her eyes at the boys in her band. "You just looked like a Lacey."

". . .Uh-huh." I said slowly.

"Anway, we should probably get going. Blake, stop molesting Zeke." Vanessa piped up, kicking the drummer and the guitarist in the shins. They both cried out, Blake releasing Zeke to hop on foot, cradling the other. Zeke just winced, stretching his foot. "It was seriously awesome to meet you all. Maybe we could all hang out one day? The four of us could try to sneak out of Tom's clutches."

"Bye guys!" Kat waved excitedly, hugging the guys (I swear, tomatoes were not as red as they were) and then stopping at me. She gave me an air kiss, like the French do, and with a smile and hooking her arm through Vee's, the two headed off on their merry way. Zeke gave a curt nod before following soon after.

Blake was the only member left and dejected, he walked over to us. "See you, guys. Good luck with practicing!"

Patting them all on the shoulder, he headed for the door. But as he passed me, I swore I heard him whisper, "See you, Sturm."

And then he was gone.

Chasing Avenues was left in shocked silence, gaping at each other. "Did... did that just happen?" Zac asked.

"Apparently." Gabriel muttered, running a hand through his hair.

"Hey, Lacey. When did you get so buddy-buddy with Tilted Reality?" Xander murmured, casting me a confused look.

I let out a sigh and leaned against the wall, shaking my head. ". . .I don't even know the answer to that myself."

--

Finally, a My Chemical Romance reference!

Dedication: _Unlimited. I'm going to get a story ad from her. c:

Stay lovely~
Isabelle