I look out into the crowd, seeing smiles and hands waving to the music. Anytime we played at Belly's, the audience seemed to grow bigger and bigger. I remember the first time we played, only 15 people in the bar, turned around in their seats talking to one another, not caring about us at all. But Mom and Dad were always there, front row, singing along. And here they were now, their friends gathered around. Having Mom talk about us to all of her friends created a small fan base in our little town. Tonight the bar was full, no empty chairs, and some people standing just to enjoy the music.
The feeling of providing a good time away from the chaos out in the world was something we always chased. Josh especially. He gave his film dream a pause, making my dream of music the focus, a possibility. He was hesitant at first, but when the people started hearing us, it all changed for him. He loves people and making them enjoy the art of music. He wants the messages from the songs to be heard. And that's what we are slowly doing.
"Thank you everyone, it's been awesome! Stay safe out there, and don't have too much fun!" Josh laughs into the mic, waving at people. I look at the edge of the bar, smiling over to a special face. "Hey, I'm gonna go out the car for a minute." Josh leans over to me. "You played good." He smiles.
"Thanks Josh." I grin back. The rush I always had after shows, big ones and even the smaller ones, fueled me for hours. I was always giddy and wired. But now that I have my special lady to look forward to seeing after the show, made me even more excited. I practically skip over to her, seeing the huge smile on her face.
"Hey there captain." She jokingly salutes, making me shake my head.
"Hey there." I wink at her. I sit at the bar next to her, crossing my arms over the table.
"Hey there Jake!" Belly walks over, handing me my regular.
"Hey belly!" I nod at him.
"This was the best show yet." He smiles, handing a bottle to Bailey.
"You say that every time." I chuckle.
"It's true! You guys keep getting better and better." He laughs. I peek over at Bailey, seeing that she's staring at me.
"Is that so?" I mumble, turning to her.
"Belly never lies." She smirks.
"And this one here," he laughs, pointing to Bailey. "She hasn't stopped talking about you."
"Oh?" I turn back to him, seeing her freeze in the corner at my eye. "Tell me, what does this one have to say?" I smile.
"Can't tell you." He grins.
"I thought you said you never lie?" I ask.
"I don't. But that doesn't mean I always have to give answers." He drums on the table top, then smiles, leaving us when his name is called. I slowly swivel to look back at her, seeing her chug down the drink.
"Woah now." I chuckle. She finishes the bottle, wiping her lips with the back of her hand.
"This soda is really good. But it tastes weird. And I can't feel my hands." She looks down at them, wiggling her fingers.
"That's because it's not just soda." I smirk at her. Her head flies up, and her face is covered in confusion. I lean close to her ear, placing my hand on her knee. "It's vodka Red Bull." I hear her take a quick breath, her body tensing up. I lean away, smiling.
"You.." She's stunned.
"Belly knows my parents, and he knows me." I take a chug of my own, tasting one of my favorite drinks slide down my throat.
"He lets you drink?" She asks, looking up at me.
"He doesn't normally give anything to kids underage, but he makes exceptions. And I don't drink many, so it's not enough to get my drunk or anything." I answer.
"Oh." She hums. "Well I've had three of these." She picks up the bottle, looking at the label.
"Oh boy." I laugh. "Anyways," I look back at her. "How was the show?" I smile.
"It was really good. There was one player though, he caught my eye." She smirks, tucking the hair behind her ear, fully knowing it drives me crazy.
"Oh?" I ask.
"Mhm." She leans forward a little, still smirking. She's funny. One of the many things I adore. I've never met someone, especially a woman, with this good of a sense of humor.
"Well. Maybe you should ask him out." I smile back, taking another sip.
"Alright then." She giggles. "Jake," I set my drink down, leaning closer to her.
"Yes?" I ask. We both are smiling like love sick dorks.
"Will you go out with me?" She asks, lacing her fingers through mine.
"I thought we already were?" I chuckle.
"What?" I snap my eyes behind Bailey, seeing Josh standing there. Bailey let's go of my hand quickly, turning around in her seat.
"Josh." She croaks.
Josh's face turns white, clenching his hands, and eyes going wide. He spins around, stomping out of the bar. Bailey turns back to me, tears in her eyes. I stand up, marching after him.
"Josh!" I yell, slamming the door open, following him outside. I quickly walk to him, and grab his shoulder. As soon as I touch him, he spins around, glaring at me.
"This is what you've been hiding." He glares.
"Josh.." Bailey comes from behind me, trying to reach out to him.
"No!" He takes a step back. "You've been keeping this away from me." He snaps. "Why!"
"I didn't want-" Her voice cracks, and I can tell a wave of mixed emotions are crashing through her.
"She didn't want you to get upset." I answer for her. His eyes snap to mine. "This was my decision." I stand there. "She wanted to tell you, but she was scared that you would react, exactly like how you are now." He looks from me to her.
"Is this true?" He asks. She slowly nods, looking down. "This is the guy." He mumbles.
"Yes." She sniffs. She shouldn't be crying. There's no reason. He's being over dramatic.
"We we're going to tell you." I say, reaching out for her.
"When?" He snaps at me.
"At the lake." She answers.
"You were going to wait all the way till then?" He turns back to her, his voice sharp.
"Josh." I stuffy say. "There is no reason to get mad at her."
"You guys were keeping this from me!" He turns, yelling at me. "My best friend. My brother!" He throws his hands in the air. "The two people I love most, didn't even tell me!"
"Josh." Bailey looks up at him, tears running down her face. "We didn't know this was going to be a thing. At least a serious one."
"We didn't want to say anything just yet because we didn't know ourselves." I follow. He just shakes his head, hands running through his hair.
"So what? You guys are together?" He asks. We both nod. "Like seriously? Seriously together?"
"Yes." I step closer to her, taking her hand in mine. "For me at least." I answer, looking down at her, her eyes meeting mine.
"And you?" He turns to her.
"Me too." She stares up at me. Even though she's crying, she's still the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. We don't look away from each other until we hear Josh sigh.
"I wished you guys told me." He drops his hands. "This explains a lot."
"We wanted to tell you. But didn't know how." She let's go of my hand, stepping closer to him. "Josh." He looks at her, and I watch as the anger washes off of him. He too has a weak spot for her. "The past few weeks with you all have been the happiest I've ever been. Seeing how close you and Jake are, made me scared that liking him would ruin something. But I can't say that I don't have feelings for your brother. He's the reason I was able to get over the fight with mom. He's made me so happy, and I haven't had this much fun in a long time. He takes care of me, and I can't thank him enough." My heart begins to beat out of my chest. "I love you." She grabs Josh's hand, holding it with one of the gentlest touches. "But I refuse to let you get between me and my home." Josh's eyes leave hers, and looks back into mine. "Please." He looks back at her, holding her gaze. I stand there, soaking in the words. Home.
"If he doesn't treat you right, I'll kill him." He softly smiles.
"Hey." I scoff at him. He just looks over at me and smirks.
"He treats me better than I deserve." She giggles, letting go of him, turning back to me. She walks up, wrapping her arms around my middle, holding me close. I lean down and kiss her head, free to now do that when ever. Not having to hide it anymore is the best feeling. She turns her head up and looks at me, smiling.
"Alright." Josh huffs. We both turn our heads to look at him. "I'll allow this, but! I have ever right to make fun of you two when things are getting to close." He waves his hand between us.
"Whatever." I roll my eyes, laughing anyways.