Wandering Fireflies

Chapter 10: Bad Singers

"Yeah. If someone loves you, no one can steal them from you. If they really care about you, then they wouldn't leave you in the first place."

Kolton was a complete asshole. How was I ever friends with him? That made me wonder, was I like that too? No way. I'm not a total jerk. At least, I don't think I am.

"Where are The Fireflies?" We all turned our attention to the tall bearded Sikh man who was dressed in a professional suit and wearing a turban.

"Right here!" waved Katja.

"Great! Thank you all for coming. I'm Harjot Singh, the stage manager of this event. You guys are up now. Good luck!"

"Thanks! C'mon guys, let's go!" With that, "The Fireflies" got on stage.

"Benji, I told you, don't worry. I've got this whole video thing covered, now go! They need you!" said Kennedy.

Benji got on stage and took his place behind the electrical keyboard. With Dashiell as their DJ, Kolton on drums, Ariadne on bass guitar and Katja on lead guitar and vocals, they began to play.

I was impressed but not surprised. After all, Katja was practically perfect at everything. I smiled. When she sang Bette Davis Eyes, I couldn't help but feel proud of her.

Song: Bette Davis Eyes by Kim Karnes

"Wow. They're pretty awesome," said Vance. He turned to me and smiled. I grinned back. Is it weird to say that Vance just had the most contagious smile?

"Oh no, this is bad. This is very bad."

"What's wrong Mr. Singh?" asked Vance.

"The group that was supposed to be performing next never showed up. That's the fifth group we've lost so far. That is way too many. I need a replacement and I need it now!"

Now I'm not Albert Einstein, but even I should've seen what was coming next.

Mr. Singh turned towards me and Vance with a huge grin on his face.

"No." I deadpanned.

"Please, we need at least one more performance!"

"Then you'll just have to find someone else."

"You know what, maybe we should do it."

I turned towards Vance with a horrified look on my face. "NO!"

"Great! You boys can sing the song that the other group was supposed to perform!"

"I can't sing."

"Well neither can I but it'll be fun."

"Did you hit your head or something? This is insane. We didn't even practice."

"You both can practice right now."

"YOLO am I right?"

"No you're not right."

"Come on Zaavan, what have you got to lose?" My pride, my dignity, my reputation, my sanity...should I continue?

I should've said no at any cost, but for some reason, the second I looked at Vance's face, I just couldn't. He looked really excited and I just couldn't let him down. I mean, he deserves to be happy after everything that his freaking aunt does to him.

"Okay, fine." With that, we got busy preparing for our performance. We only had a couple of minutes, but we managed to put together a decent duet.

"Okay, are you boys ready?" asked Mr. Singh.

"Yes Sir." Vance looked over at me. I didn't even realize that I was so nervous I was actually shaking.

"Hey." Vance put a hand on my shoulder. I flinched at his touch. "It'll be fine. Just relax and have fun. Besides, if we screw up completely, we probably won't see any of these people ever again, so don't worry." He gave me a reassuring smile which was enough to calm my nerves. The weird thing though, was that even though I wasn't stressing anymore, I could feel my heart pounding faster. I guess it was just an adrenaline rush before the performance. Anyways, I nodded and we both stepped on stage.

"And now, introducing Vance Dallas and Zaavan Fleetwood!"

Song: Like Magic by JRDN

The crowd cheered as the song started to play. Vance started us off by singing the first 4 verses.

"The sky never been so blue
The grass never looked so green and I
I wanna give my all to you
Cause I never felt this feeling in my life"

Of course. I shouldn't have expected any less of Vance. He had the most amazing voice I had ever heard. He hit every single note perfectly and never missed a beat. On stage, I could see the Vance Dallas that everyone else did. His green eyes were sparkling and his cheeks were slightly flushed. But his smile, it was everything. The only thing brighter than the stage lights was his perfect smile, which I swear lit up the whole room. I know, that's a really weird thing to say.

I took a deep breath and sang the next four verses and we sang the chorus together. We split off and then synced once again.

"Something sexy bout the way you smile
It pulls me in and I just don't know how
I'm hypnotized I'm under your spell
Baby I'm not going anywhere"

At that moment, everything felt just right. Being here on stage with Vance, everything was for once in my life perfect. I never wanted to lose him. He was the best friend I've never had. But what can I say. All good things come to an end, don't they?

The song finished and I swear my face was about to split in half from smiling so much. I don't think I've ever smiled that much in my life before. Vance slapped me on the back and grinned. "I thought you said you couldn't sing?"

"I can't."

"Come on Zaavan, you were-"

"VANCE!!!" My smile faded as I turned my head to face an excited Kennedy.

"Vance, you were amazing!" She shoved me aside and hugged Vance tightly. I could feel the anger rising inside of me. What the hell was her problem?! Vance gave me an apologetic look.

"Vance, that song, it just reminded me of the first time we met...and it just made me think of all the good times we had together...and I was thinking..." No way. Was she being serious right now?

"I don't think we should let a silly fight get in the way of us, right? We have something special and we can't lose that. I see that and I forgive you. So what do you say? Let's get back together?" I looked at Vance. He's a smart guy, he would never say yes, right? RIGHT?

Vance hesitated for a bit. "Ummm...Kennedy..." She looked at him and pouted, giving him puppy dog eyes. Blech, there was no way Vance would fall for that...

"Okay, sure." My mouth fell open. WHAT?! He's actually taking her back? After everything? I didn't know why, but at that moment, my heart sank and I just felt drained. Why did I care so much? Just because they're dating again, that won't change the fact that Vance and I are still friends. It shouldn't even matter, it doesn't change anything.

But I did care. I cared a lot. And it did matter. More than it should've. For some weird reason, it felt like I was losing everything that mattered to me. I  had no idea why.

A/N: Question: It might be too early to ask this, but who is/are your favorite character(s)? Let me know in the comments I'm curious.