My Little Decoy

♪ Speak Softly ♪ {4}

The parking lot was filled. And by filled, I mean jam-packed. Cars of all shapes, sizes, and colors littered the streets and it took forever for Caden to find a parking spot. Was Tilted Reality really that important?

Well, I guess when a hot-shot, on-the-rise band comes to your city and does a live concert in a friendly environment for freaking free, you'd want to go too. And in a way, I guess I was a little excited.

1) I was breaking the rules for once and it felt pretty badass.

2) It was my first concert; I guess I should enjoy it at least a little bit.

3) Maybe letting a little bit of my real self out was a good thing?

After circling the park a bit (There was already a crowd by The Bench and it made me a little upset), we met up with Carter and her own band; Within These Cages were composed of her, Seb, Aislinn, and Austin. After the initial greetings, our large group weaved in and out of the crowd and finally came to a good position just a few feet from the made-up stage.

"This is going to be so awesome." Olivia squealed and I shifted uncomfortably, hating being around so many people in close proximity. This had better be worth it.

"Gooooooood evening, ladies and gentlemen!" A booming soprano voice sliced through the noise, making the crowd fall dead silent in anticipation.

"Oh my God, that's Vanessa's voice!" Amber half whispered, half shrieked, and the name vaguely struck a chord in my mind. Was she the bassist for the group? Wait, no. The guitarist?

While contemplating the thoughts in my brain, I completely blanked out until I was brought back to the present by the hundreds of screams from the crowd. I winced, focusing back on stage where the band Tilted Reality finally made their appearance.

There were two girls and two guys. One of the females was wearing a tight-fitted VersaEmerge shirt and dark blue skinny jeans combined with a pair of Doc Martens. Her pitch black hair stood messily on all sides, as if she just rolled out of bed, but it suited her image and made her look pretty cool. A light yellow guitar was behind her back as she ran up to the microphone and nearly yanked it off the stand, yelling into it enthusiastically, "Can we get some clapping going?" Immediately, the crowd started clapping in beat while a loud, guitar riff sliced through the night, introducing the next band member. The next person to pop onstage was a guy with dark brown hair that fell straight, his bangs getting in the way of his right eye. He wore a black Metallica shirt with the sleeves ripped off, jeans, and Osiris shoes. I watched as he started into a guitar solo that got the crowd screaming again, introducing his instrument. The body of the guitar was a beautiful aquamarine, rimmed with golden specks, and it reminded me of my own eyes.

"Who are they again?" I shouted over the blaring noise of the both the electric guitar and the crowd's shrill cheers. My memory was failing me; I listened to their music occasionally but I had no idea who they were.

Carter appeared beside me, grinning like an idiot. "The singer's Vanessa Lynston. She also does rhythm guitar, and the attractive brunet with the guitar is Zeke Carmichael, who also does vocals. He's like, my idol when it comes to playing electric."

I gave her a nod when the guitar abruptly stopped and the sound of a deep, rumbling note took its place. I recognized the rich tones as a bass guitar and watched as another female took the stage, holding a blood red bass guitar with skulls painted onto the body of her instrument. She wore a laced up red corset that made er, certain female traits pop, and a long, flowing, black gothic skirt that made her seem like she was floating across the stage. Her combat boots were studded and a thick layer of eyeliner coated her eyes, making the bright emerald pop. She played her own little solo which consisted of her fingers flying on the frets. A beautiful grin adorned her face; the exact opposite of her get-up.

I nudged Carter and she smirked, pointing at the bass player. "That's Katerina DeMarco. Don't let her creepy exterior fool you, I heard she was an adorable ball of energy." And all too soon, the low bass stopped and we were met with silence. I frowned, remembering that TR had four members, and that the most important member was missing.

The drummer.

Standing on my toes like everyone else, we all waited to get a glimpse of Tilted Reality's last member. When no one came out, hushed murmurs broke out among the audience, including my own group. I payed no attention and kept my eyes glued to the stage, watching the reactions on the band members' faces. Katerina was beaming, Vanessa was rolling her eyes, and Zeke had a slight smirk on his face.

All of a sudden, smoke covered the floor of the stage and the lights were dimmed so I could only see the outlines of the three members. Soon, the park was silent once more. A figure rose from behind the set, and I arched a delicate eyebrow. He wasn't there before...

The drummer's arms lifted dramatically into the air, and my breath caught as I sensed what was going to happen before it did. His arms came crashing down and just as the his sticks hit the snares, the lights flashed on, revealing who the sensation was behind the drums.

My breath caught in my chest as I watched his drumming, the movement captivating me almost instantly. The crowd's incessant buzzing seemed to disappear as I focused only on the wonderful sounds his instrument was producing. His own mini-solo was filled with the effects of each part of the drum set and his hair flipped as he struck away, in complete concentration. The rhythm was intense and perfectly timed, as if he had been practicing for hours but improvising at the same time.

He was amazing.

And when the final hi-hat cymbal was hit, the crash reverberated around the stage, all I could hear was that one left over pitch until I shook my head and the noise of the crowd returned. I yearned for more as I took in the drummer's appearance. And then I felt as if I was hit a second time. His hair was a dark shade of brown; so dark that it was nearly as black as Vanessa's hair, and natural golden highlights sparkled under the stage lights. His hair was messy and damp, the bangs falling into his eyes and clinging to the sides of his almond-shaped face. The contours of his muscles surpassed even Xander's, and I was hardly surprised: He was a drummer after all. Wearing a dark navy Linkin Park shirt and loose-fitting jeans, I couldn't take my eyes off of him.

My hands found their way to Carter's shoulders again, shaking her a little too forcefully. She blinked and then glanced down at me, taking in my flushed cheeks and slightly glazed eyes. "Who's he?" I asked, pointing almost eagerly at the dark-haired angel, who had just settled back into his seat and was tapping off the counts on his drumsticks to introduce the rest of the band into the song.

Carter eyed me skeptically before grinning and chuckling a bit. "That's Blake Mercer, Lacey. Why are you so anxious about it?"

With a jolt, I snapped out of the daze I was in after listening to Blake's drumming and I quickly composed myself. How was I so stupid to let my emotions show? It didn't feel right to show how much music meant to me to someone other than myself. And it even felt weird just smiling. "Anxious? What are you talking about?" I snapped, turning away from her coldly and pretending not to be interested in the band at all.

"And she's back." Carter rolled her eyes and nudged me slightly, making me jump a bit. "Jeez, Lace. Relax a bit and just enjoy the music."

I didn't respond; that was already what I was planning to do.

I hadn't caught Tilted Reality's last song since I had been too caught up with Carter but this time when Blake clacked his sticks together, I closed my eyes and focused on the music. And when Zeke struck the first chord, it was something I didn't expect.

I was expecting some hardcore, metal screamo and horrible acoustics and riffs, but no. The bad on stage dove into a playful, pop-punk cover of We Are The In Crowd's Rumor Mill. The exact opposite of the music that they produced. The crowd seemed to notice too because the mosh-pits disassembled, the cheering quieted ever so slightly, and Caden yelled, "Play Destroy It All!" But the band seemed to ignore the crowd's reactions and continued on with their song.

Vanessa gripped the microphone in her hand and sang, "Here we go again, it's like you're calling all the shots before I shoot them. And I hate that! And every time I turn my back, I wonder what you'll say to make me sound like someone different!"

Zeke stepped up to the microphone, his raspy voice bringing an edge to his part as he yelled, "It's not worth it anymore!"

Her rich, alto voice combined with the different ranges of her backup vocalists, Katerina and Zeke, sent shivers up my spine as I listened. They played incredibly in sync; I would catch Zeke glancing to Katerina and Vanessa to perfect his timing. Then, Vanessa would head bang and sing the chorus with so much energy that the remaining crowd (those who hadn't left saying things like, "What a rip-off" and "Losers. They don't even sound like themselves. What stunt are they trying to pull?"), giving the one-fingered salute to a guy in the crowd who yelled about them being a sellout.

"I don't ever wanna know what it feels like to be a shadow of myself! And I don't ever wanna come back down from this feeling. What makes you think that you know what's better for me? And I don't think you wanna see what's underneath your made-up version of me." They sang altogether, the harmonies and melodies blending together as one. Their voices sounded almost pleading, as if the song held a secret message that they desperately wanted their audience to hear.

And even though my friends were complaining about the change in music genre, most of the crowd had left, and the remaining spectators just ignored the famous rock band, I stood rooted to the spot, taking in their music with an open heart. Because for the first time since I listened to their music, I heard something that made their sound more magical than it already was. There was something that was missing before that I could clearly see now in their energetic head banging, emotional singing, and the twinkling in their eyes.

My gaze caught with Blake's as he brought the song to a close with a literal bang, and he grinned at me. I couldn't help but answer back with a small smile myself. He didn't even know me yet he smiled because just like whenever I drummed, the music had taken over and I couldn't help but feel the aftermath of it later.

That night, I gained new respect for the band called Tilted Reality. Because tonight, I finally heard it.

Their passion.

—

Dedicated to Starfern because, yo man, she's super chill. And like, my best friend. She has this amazing story up called Lithium City. You should all read it, comment and vote!

—Isabelle