𝙵𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚎𝚗
𝙲𝚑𝚘𝚌𝚘𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝙲𝚊𝚔𝚎
'𝚈𝚘𝚞'𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝚊 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗, 𝚝𝚘𝚘.'
"Boys, honorary, being a ghost definitely has its privileges. I just wrote our names on the playlist for tonight." Luke announced proudly as they sit at a table in a café together.
"I'm getting a little worried about him." Alex whispered to Ash and Reggie, before directing his words the Luke. "He keeps forgetting Julie quit the band."
"She's gonna come back as soon as she knows we have a great gig." Luke says confidently.
"But if she doesn't come back, let's not forget, we do have somewhere else we can play and eat pizza." Reggie adds, making Ashton shiver from fear.
"Dude, I know. It was awesome to be seen by lifers at Caleb's party, but... but we got this with Julie." Luke told him. "We don't need him."
Suddenly, another large feeling washes over them, causing Ashton to topple over in pain. She could only compare it to period pains, but times ten. The guys all groaned, too, obviously feeling the pain as well.
"It's the same thing again!" Luke said. "Just like yesterday!"
"It feels like that time I was fixing my amp in the rain." Reggie groaned as he clutched his chest.
"Hey I remember that!" Ashton perked up, but immediately fell back down from pain.
"You shouldn't..." Alex trailed off, giving up on Reggie. "OK. Look, do you think
something's wrong with us?"
"Yeah. Yeah, we ate ten pounds of pizza yesterday without a stomach." Luke said calmly. "I'm sure it's just our bodies working through it."
"I barely ate one slice, and I'm still getting them." Ashton pointed out as Luke wrapped an arm around her for comfort which sent butterflies through her body.
They still hadn't talked about their talk in the Ghost Club, and Ashton couldn't be more nervous.
"So we're just gonna forget about getting back at Trevor?" Reggie asked, obviously wanting to change the subject. "That jerk stole our music."
"And he has to live with that guilt." Luke said. "It's just like what Julie said. We have a new band, a new sound, OK? That's what we should be focusing on."
"Hey, isn't that Willie?" Alex asked, before running out the café and trying to talk to him.
"Well, somebody's not focusing on the band." Luke chuckled.
"Oh, like you can talk." Reggie grinned, nudging him in the arm. "All you and Ash do is stare at each other and flirt all the time."
"We... don't." Ashton defended herself. "We just have musical chemistry."
"I think it's a little more than that." Reggie shrugged. "But whatever you say."
The next day, the phantoms decide to try to make it up to Julie for bailing on her dance that night.
Reggie suggested they sing her a song, but they barely had time to write it considering she was due out of school in half an hour. They eventually came up with a few lyrics and the young girl walked in.
"We're sorry." Reggie sung from the left of Luke when she came in.
"So sorry." Next came Alex, the other side.
"Really, really sorry." Ashton sung from behind Luke.
"We're super-duper, crazy, stupid." Luke sung on his knees in front of Julie.
"Sorry!" They finished with a harmony, with jazz hands and wide smiles.
"In case you missed it, we're really sorry." Reggie grinned at her.
"Yeah. I... I got that part." Julie nods with a worried look on her face.
"Seriously?" Alex frowned, but high fived Reggie, nonetheless. "We've been here for, like, three hours."
"Yup." Luke nodded. "We almost sang to your little brother."
"He comes in here a lot. Mainly to use the bathroom." Reggie gestured to the back room.
"Yeah." Alex exhaled. "It's not our favourite part of the day."
"I dunno, man." Ashton shrugged, "my least favourite is when Luke asks me to tune his guitar without payment. But..."
"But it wasn't OK that we flaked on the dance last night." Luke said, moving the conversation on. "We know we let you down."
"Yeah, and none of us wanted to disappoint you." Alex nodded. "You're the best thing that's happened to us since we became ghosts."
"So, in hopes that you'll re-join the band, we booked a new gig." Luke moved forwards, a sheet of paper in his hand.
"A mega important, life-changing gig." Reggie grinned as Julie looked down at the flyer for an open mic night at a local bar.
"Check it out." Luke leant over, pointing to various writing on the paper. "Tons of managers go here to listen to new bands. All we gotta do is blow them all away, and we're living the dream."
"So this means a lot to you, huh? Kind of how playing in front of the whole entire school meant a lot to us." Julie nodded.
"Sounds like sarcasm." Reggie said, cluelessly. He gasped and leant in to whisper at Alex and Ash. "I'm starting to think our plan isn't working."
"Look, we know we messed up." Alex stepped forwards, trying to sort the situation out.
"But we need you in the band." Luke said desperately.
"Of course you do. Because without me, no one can see you guys playing." Julie continued, stepping closer to Luke. "You know, I thought that the music that we were writing was special, but obviously not."
"Our band has a real chance at greatness." Luke said. "I'm not gonna let that get away from us again."
"Uh-huh. Right. So then why did you bail on us to get back at Trevor?" Julie paused, and Luke can't come up with an answer. "I'll tell you why. Cause there's only one thing you care about.
"Julie!" Ash warned her. "Wrong move."
"And that's yourself."
And with that, Luke poofed away. Ashton turned to scold Julie, but she had already left the garage. She looked between the two guys left, and sighed to herself.
"Where's he going?" Reggie wondered.
"Where do you think? Remember what today is?" Alex answered with more questions.
"We've gotta go check on him." Reggie said.
"I'll go." Ash volunteered. "I normally do."
"Okay. Make sure he's okay." Alex told her, she nodded and poofed away.
She ended up at a small house, nearby, and noticed Luke sat on the counter behind a small round table, his eyes red and tears threatening to fall out of them.
She walked up to him slowly, not to startle him. He looked up when he heard footsteps approaching and smiled weakly.
"Hey." She said softly. "I thought you'd want some company?"
"Please." He nodded as he watched his parents.
Ashton had met Emily and Mitch several times on many occasions, mostly Luke's birthdays. They always came off as nice and caring, but when Luke ran out, she hadn't seen them as happy.
She first found Luke sneaking off on his birthday when she went to surprise him in the garage and he was leaving. She insisted on going with him for support, and had done ever since.
"Have they done anything?" Ashton asked, referring to the birthday cake they made Luke each year. He shook his head and buried it in his knees. She hugged him tightly, pulling him in by his shoulders. "That's okay."
"I just want to talk to them." He sniffled.
"I know you do." She nodded. "For now we've just got to... be here."
Ashton looked back at the parents as they set the table up for a meal, she noticed Emily hand Mitch a plate with a fairly small chocolate cake on and he set it down on the table with care.
"Hey, the cake's ready." She nudged Luke gently. He always wanted to be there when they made cake.
This is the first time he'd been inside the house in three years, normally he would just stay outside and observe from there. "You wanna watch?"
He lifted his head up as he sniffled again and focused his eyes on his parents.
"Yeah." He nodded as he swallowed his tears. "You coming?" He asked as he stood up from the counter.
"This is a family thing... I shouldn't." She declined politely.
"No, I want you to. I'm inviting you to my birthday, Ash." He chuckled slightly as he looked at her with tears in his eyes. "Think about it as meeting my parents for the first time."
"If you want me there." She nodded and took his hand.
The two parents sat at the table opposite each other, and a teary-eyed Luke joined them, sitting between the two. A place had been set there for Luke, like there was every special occasion.
Ashton took place behind him, holding his shoulders gently as she watched from above. Luke's father lit the candle, which was placed in the centre of the cake.
As Luke blew out the candle, Ashton pulled him back and held him tightly, both adults shared a look of confusion.
Their expressions were replaced with ones of comfort, glad to see a sign that their son was watching over them and there with them on that day to celebrate.
"It's okay." She comforted him as he took deep breaths, "It's nice of you to do that. I'm here, okay?"
Emily and Mitch held hands, and all the family collectively blew out Luke's birthday candle.
Luke reached for his mother's hand, but can't touch it. His eyes welled up with tears again, and he put his head down in frustration.
Ash held his hand as Emily and Mitch sit there in silence, and celebrate their son's birthday. He interlaced his fingers with my own, and held tightly.
"You wanna go?" She asked softly.
"Not yet." Luke sook his head. "Can we stay a while?"
"Of course we can stay, Luke." She smiled at him as she knelt on the floor beside him. The four stayed in silence, not speaking, just enjoying the atmosphere. It was Ashton who eventually spoke, "Hey, I know we agreed not to, but I got you something."
"Ash, I thought I said not to." Luke spoke softly.
"I know, I know. I just wanted to." She told him. "And it didn't even cost me anything. I can't really pay because of being a ghost... but that doesn't matter. Can you just take it?"
"Fine, because it's you." He nodded as he sniffled to get rid of his tears. She handed him a small box, the same size as one a necklace would come in.
He looked down at her before hesitantly opening it, delicately unfolding the ribbon she decorated it with. The lid came off, and inside was a dark blue guitar pick and a white guitar strap.
"I know how you have a lucky pleck, but this one is better, considering I got it engraved." She told him proudly, flipping it over in his hand. On the opposite side were the words 'Midnight Moonlight', a reference to the song they wrote before they died. "Do you like it?"
"It's great, thank you." He smiled down at her. "What's this?"
"A guitar strap." She said slowly. "It's white so you can doodle on it. I remember you liked my one, so I thought we could doodle together?"
"That sounds good." He chuckled slightly. "Do you think they'd be proud of me?"
"Your parents?" Ash asked as she packed the box back up and rose to her feet. Luke nodded weakly as he watched Emily and Mitch stare at the cake. "Luke, they'd be more than proud of you. If they could see how far you came since... that night, they would be so, so happy."
"You think so?" He looked up at her.
"Yeah, I do. Even if Bobby did steal our songs, we managed to play the Orpheum, that's a huge achievement, Luke." She told him. "And it's not just music that changed. You've became a better person, too."
"Really?"
"Really." Ashton nodded as he leant into her side and began to sob again. She held him tightly, knowing that he needed comforting.
She never expected Luke to be this emotional, but it was only natural under those circumstances. Ashton looked up and saw Mitch and Emily eating the cake, and had put a slice out for Luke.
"You think we could go now?" Luke tore from her.
"Of course, let's get going." She nodded and took his hand as they poofed back to the garage. When they got back, the band, including Julie, were in full rehearsal with their instruments.
"Whoa, Julie." He grinned at her in amazement.
"Grab your guitar." Julie instructed him. "We got work to do."
"What made you come back?" He chuckled as he raised his guitar strap over his had to rest on his shoulder.
"I realized how important music is to all of us." Julie said. "And we've lost so much already. We can't lose this too."
"Thanks, I will not let you down." He promised.
"All right, boss. Where we at?" He asked, taking his place on the other side of Alex as usual.
Ashton noticed Luke had exchanged his lucky pleck for the new one she gifted him. She smiled at him, and he knew what her focus was on.
"Oh, and by the way, happy birthday." Julie added sneakily. Luke looks between other two guys, who just shrug. "Let's go from the pre-chorus." She said, and Alex counted them in by clicking his sticks in the air.
"One, two, three, four!"