Rockstar Serenade: The Chorus

Ch 9: Rival Band, Our Stepping Stone To Fame

TREVOR~

For the last few hours I was convinced that things will finally return back to normal. Surprisingly, I have this longing to return to the studio to record songs for our second album. It does seem ironic considering that just a few months ago, I was excited as fuck to rock the stage of Castleburn High. Now I just wanna get out of Virginia and break away from the bullshit Flame Alyconia’s lead singer has been giving me since we set eyes on each other in that pool of people.

 Hours ago, I thought won’t have to deal with her again. That was hours ago.

“Why do you disagree on this, Radburn? This could be the perfect opportunity to make the band more popular!” I guess Brent and I will never be tired of these quarrels. He’d usually suggest and I’d usually oppose not because I don’t think his ideas are good but I believe there are better things that can be done.

“I’m not disagreeing on this," I tell our band manager, my eyes locked to his stony stare. "It’s just that I believe our band doesn’t need Flame Alyconia’s help in order to get famous. And don’t you suppose it’s like using their fame just to get a name?”

Brent creases his eyebrows and folds his arms in front of me, completely bothered with my last statement. “It does not work that way, Trevor. It’s a collaboration.”

“Collaboration? Yeah, right. Flame Alyconia never featured anyone in their two albums, yet in just a year they made it to Billboard's top 50 bands last year! We can do the same!”

Brent grunts in sheer annoyance. I know that we usually go with the band manager’s decisions, and his angry face does not imply otherwise.

“You will do a song with Poxlier and that’s final.”

“Fine! Do I even have the power to protest, now that you already sent Zephyr to their bus to ask her without my consent!?” I sneer. “I thought we are a band, and bandmates come up with the decisions altogether!”

“You and Winters were still asleep. Poxlier's bus will leave soon,” he says sternly while the folds of his forehead remains firm to its creases. 

“I’m sure Rick will concur with this since it’s y’know, Kailey and Keana and the dudes." I turn to the direction of Nathan’s voice and I see him coming from the upper deck, carrying a bottle of energy drink. “I don’t know why you’re so against this, bro.”

“Yeah, Trevor. You’re the only one opposing this,” Xavier says from his seat, munching on his early morning vegetable salad. “Can’t you just accept that our band is that bad?”

I pause for a while thinking that Xavier, of all my bandmates, would think of Irony Affairs that way. Making music is my life. To tell me that I–or the whole group–do not work well in it is an insult to my aspirations. My face immediately burns red from frustration.

“What the actual fuck? You are speaking as if you have no fault for this!” I shout at Xavier, unable to repress my temper. “As if you’re not responsible for recruiting that little dick for a lead singer, then this wouldn’t have to happen!”

“Who are you calling little dick?!”  The burning urge to argue with each other made us overlook the presence of Zephyr who just entered the bus. His normally calm and pleasant demeanor slowly changes and his face contorts in an all-consuming anger. “You have issues, motherfucker! Don’t you know how much patience we have to hoard just to deal with your temper problems?!”

I look at him from head to toe. In exchange for his resentful posture, I give him a dark glare. “You sore excuse for a fuckin’ vocalist!”

“You motherfuckin’ son of a bitch, so self-centered, acting like the best there is when you’re clearly not even as close as good as Jimmy Page!” he thunders, his voice heavily laced with contempt.