Chapter 09- Friction.
POV Roger
Friday. Eight-thirty at night. Freddie, Deacy, Bri and I are in my car, heading towards the pub. Let's introduce ourselves at eleven o'clock, but the boys and I will do a rehearsal at the pub before opening it and then we'll have some snack over there. I talked to the guys about Isabella.
"So, dear Rog, are you anxious to see the fair-haired brunette in the gray eyes?" Freddie asked, smiling.
"You just have to say you're in love," Bri smiled. "Take it easy, brother. You've had two amorous disappointments, if you have a third ...
"I'm not in love," I said, watching the traffic. "I just found Isabella too beautiful and sweet, she's sweet, do you understand?"
"You've fallen in love," Deacy smiled. "You almost killed the girl yesterday, run over. I do not know how she forgave you.
- Was inadvertently. What matters is that Isabella forgave me. And talking to her I noticed her accent, she's not British, I'm sure, both by the accent and the body. She's very hot, "she said, stopping at a traffic light." She has the face of an angel and the body of a goddess. You will see for yourself.
"Dear Rog, you fell in love," smiled Freddie, sitting on the side bench.
Bri and Deacy were in the back seat laughing at the comments.
"You're crazy," he said, leaving the car again when the signal opened.
About nine o'clock we arrived at the pub and set up the musical instruments. On the stage there was already the piano that belongs to the pub. The boys helped me carry the battery inside. When we arrived, Mr. Mike and Mrs. Janice were already there.
- Good evening, guys, I hope you like the acoustics of the house. Everyone says they are good. I hope you approve. Said Mike, smiling.
We all greeted Janice and Mike cheerfully and said we will test the acoustics of the house. After we assembled all instruments and tuned them, we began rehearsing around 9:30 p.m. The pub opens at ten-fifteen for guests. We only have forty-five minutes to get through most of the songs. The acoustics of the house is very good, really. Isabella had not yet arrived. Does she really come?
POV Isabella
I finish packing and put on a black shorts, red all star on my feet and a Pink Floyd T-shirt that I'm a fan of. I put little makeup on my face, just red lipstick and an eyeliner. I put some perfume and my flower headband on the head. My best friend Sue was in my room ready. She lives a street above my house.
"You look beautiful, Bella. You're sure to impress the blue-eyed drummer, the drummer boy, "Sue smiled.
"I do not want to impress anyone, Sue," she said, laughing as she finished passing the perfume and then taking my little bag, documents and the key to my grandmother's truck, which she left with me, to go to the pub.
- OK, I believe. It is nine-thirty at night. We'd better go. The pub opens at ten-fifteen. The way you drive just like a turtle we'll arrive after ten-fifteen at night, "Sue said mockingly.
"I do not drive a turtle like that, I drive at the speed limit, I'm not too fast and not too slow, I do not exaggerate," I smiled.
We got in the truck and went to the pub and while driving, Sue did her antics. She's like my blood sister.
We arrived in front of the pub at ten at night. I parked my grandmother's truck in a parking lot next to the pub. I saw the queue outside the building and smiled. It's summer and there are many young people in line and older people too. Since I'm the granddaughter of the pub's owners, Sue and I entered a side door without a queue and went straight to the bar and the diner to order drinks and food. Sue and I ordered two chilled coconut chips and a portion of fish and chips with pea puree. Sue and I sit at a table, next to the stage where the boys are rehearsing. They noticed our arrival and Roger smiled at me. At ten-fifteen in the evening they stopped the rehearsal because the entrance of the pub's customers was authorized. Roger and three other boys came our way.
"Isabella, you really came," smiled Roger, hugging me. "How are you?"
"I'm fine, Roger," he smiles at him, "introduce your friends.
Before Roger introduced, the boys themselves introduced themselves.
- Hello, dear Isabella, how are you? My name is Freddie, I'm the lead singer and pianist of the band. Said Freddie, smiling.
"I'm Brian, the backup guitarist and lead singer," smiled the boy.
"And I'm John, the band's bass player," John said sheepishly.
I smiled at them and greeted them.
"Welcome to my grandparents' pub." Guys, this is Suely, my best childhood friend, but, her nickname is Sue, "he told the boys.
Roger, Freddie, Brian, and John greeted her cheerfully and they ordered food and drink and sat down with Sue and me.
"Rog says you sing, Isabella. It is true? Brian asked.
"I sing church masses once a month on Sundays. I'll sing this Sunday at Mass, at six o'clock, "I said.
"Can we see her singing in the choir?" "Actually, I'm not much of a churchgoer, but I'd like to hear your voice singing."
I smiled and said,
"You'll have a chance tonight." Before you perform, I will sing two songs, I do not know if my grandfather spoke and you will have to play.
"It's true Isabella," John smiled. "We'd forgotten about that.
Soon Sue's and my requests arrived and we began to eat and drink and then came from the boys. Freddie told Sue and I his childhood and adolescence in India, he was born in Zanzibar. He said that he learned to play piano at boarding school and to sing, he never taught. He said that he finished Design College in December 1969 and that he had a clothes stand in the Kensington Market with Roger, but that he now works for someone else. Freddie has a younger sister. Brian commented on his childhood and adolescence as well, his passion for astronomy and music. He said that his father and he created their guitar at Red Special, Brian, was born in London. He graduated in Physics from Imperial College in London and is now studying for his PH D in Astrophysics and is still a professor of Mathematics and Science. I was struck by Brian's intelligence. He is an only child. John was born in Leicester. He said his father died of a heart attack when he was eleven. His sister Julie and his mother Lili still live in Leicester. John is an Electrical Engineering student at Chelsea College at the University of London.
"And you, Roger, were you born in London, too?" - I asked.
I noticed that Roger did not want to talk about his past.
"I was born in King's Lynn on July 26, 1949. When I was four, my father, who has family in Truro, got a job there and we had to move. I have a younger sister four years I call Clare. I had influence in music, thanks to my mother, who played the accordion in her youth. She bought it for me when I was eight years old a ukulele and then I also got her an acoustic guitar. The two instruments I learned to play alone, the guitar my older cousin still helped, but then my interest went to the drums. At Christmas 1961, I won a small set of my father's drums. At thirteen, I was part of a band with students from Truro School, where I was studying. I got the scholarship at the prestigious school because I was part of the choir at Truro Cathedral. I sang at mass, "Roger said, looking at me." When I was fifteen, my parents separated. At sixteen, I joined a famous Truro band, Johnny Quale and The Reactions. Johnny Quale later left the band and I took on the lead vocals as well as playing drums. We did a lot of success in the Cornwall area, but when I went to London in October 1967 to study dentistry at London Hospital. In October of 1968, I met Brian and Tim, another friend of ours, who announced on the Imperial College mural that they need a drummer for a rock and roll band. I did not see the ad, but another friend of ours called Les, saw and warned me. I auditioned for the band called Smile, which had Bri, Tim and me. I passed. In October of 1969, I gave up the course of Dentistry, because it was not what I wanted. But, I promised my mother I would do another college. Tim, Bri and I stayed for two years with the band, but, Tim gave up on the song, he was disillusioned. We met Freddie, because the crazy guy here was a classmate from Tim's college and a lot of Smile fans. When Tim Saiu, Freddie took over the vocals and before we met Deacy, we did tests with six drummers and none worked, until we met Deacy in February of that year at a party at the Maria Assumpta college where Brian's girlfriend is studying
We already knew Veronica, Deacy's girlfriend and through them we met Deacy and we knew of his talent for music. I recently enrolled in the London Polytechnic and will be studying Biology for two years. I was able to recover some subjects that I saw in the Faculty of Dentistry, so the Faculty of Biology will be faster. That's it, "Roger said uncomfortably.
I noticed that Roger was uncomfortable talking about his story. Bri, Freddie and John looked at each other. Roger was not authentic in the same words as his bandmates, it seems that he hides many things.
Next it was Sue who talked about her childhood and adolescence and how we met.
While we were talking we ate and drank too.
"And you, dear Isabella, were you born here in Brighton?" Freddie asked.
- I was born in São Paulo, Brazil. I'm a typical Brazilian girl in English lands, "she said, usually taking my coke.
"And you came to live here in Brighton?" Brian asked.
"My paternal grandparents, Mr. Mike and Mrs. Janice, the owners of the pub, have taken care of me since I was ten. I'm a daughter to them. I completed eighteen years on May 15th, in October I will be in London, studying English Language and Literature, at King's College London, University of London. I dream of being a successful writer and university professor of Literature and my friend Sue will study law school on the same campus as me at King's College London. "You'll be a brilliant lawyer," I said without prolonging the subject.
The boys were amazed at my direct response, without going into details.
"My little sister Clare, she's eighteen, just like you," Roger said, sipping a beer. "She made her birthday in April, and in October she'll be in London to study law school on the same campus as you. Sure, Sue, you'll be Clare's college classmate.
I was angry because while Brian, Freddie and John talked about their childhood and adolescence and even the girlfriends they have, Roger made evasive answers.
"And your parents, Clare?" Roger asked, looking at me.
"I do not want to comment on that, I'm sorry," he said, taking my coke.
"What's the problem?" The boys and I talked about our childhood and adolescence. Roger said defensively. "We want to know more about you, Isabella.
"Brian, Freddie, and John were straightforward in the answers, nothing hid, about childhood and adolescence, about you, Roger I noticed a certain unease in the answers you gave. I said directly.
Brian, Freddie, and John laughed softly. Roger looked at me drinking his beer and then said seriously,
"There are certain things that should not be shared with people we do not know well, do you?" You're a stranger to me. There are certain things that it is up to the person to know whether or not to say to a stranger.
Wow. It hurt in me. All right, I know I'm strange to Roger, to all the boys, but if we were talking happily about our childhood and adolescence to get to know each other better, I think it would be no problem for Roger to tell us about his past. I was furious.
"So whether you will comment on your parents or not?" Roger asked.
I smiled wryly at him and said,
"When Freddie, Brian, and John are alone, I tell them, you're a stranger, I do not comment on private details with strangers. Excuse.
At this moment Roger, who drank his beer and ate fish and chips, slammed the glass of beer hard on the table and looked at me angrily. I smiled wryly back.
"Please, no fights," Sue said.
"Guys, I'm sorry, but I will not be at the same table as this being superior to us." He smiles scornfully.
I got my drink and my plate of fish and chips and went somewhere with Sue.
"Isabella, what was that for God's sake?" Sue asked. "Roger and you were surprised by something so silly.
"I'm not forced to talk about my past, if he does not want to talk about his past, Sue. Besides, talking about my parents' death only brings me pain, "he sighed.
POV Roger
I ran my hand over my head and sighed. I put everything to lose, to know better Isabella. I wanted to know more about her, but, by the way, I do not want to talk to her, not now, about my past totally. Brian, Freddie and John know most things, like my mother and I who were beaten by my father, about my amorous delusions, but there is much more than that, things that left hard marks on my heart, that even the Will be able to heal.
"Dear Rog, what have you done?" Isabella and you do not know each other properly, and they've already discussed it, for a trivial thing, "Freddie said.
"Freddie's right. They were both wrong, "Deacy said.
"I hope Isabella and you make up," Bri said.
I looked at Isabella who was sitting with Sue at another table eating. She looked at me. Fuck, I'm an idiot. I should have told her more things about me, not everything either.
The boys and I finish eating and drinking and go to the bathroom. We'll soon get on the pub stage. Isabella will sing two songs before and play the musical instruments.
A short time later, we took the stage with Isabella holding the pedestal and the microphone. Freddie would play the piano, Bri the guitar, Deacy the bass and I would drum it. Isabella first sang Alice Cooper's song I'm Eighteen. Typical for herself. And then she sang Don McLean's American Pie. The boys and I were impressed by Isabella's powerful and angelic voice. She was perfect. I gaped. Everyone in the pub applauded it with dignity.
Before she left the stage she said:
- Now with you will be presenting an incredible band, from London, who are seeking stardom. The band is formed by Freddie Mercury, Brian May, John Deacon and Roger Taylor. The band's name is Queen.
At that moment Isabella leaves the stage and the boys and I start to play and sing. It was an hour and a half presentation. We played covers of Elvis, Beatles and also songs authored by Queen like Father to Son, The Night comes down, Doing Alright, Keep Yourself Alive and Liar. We were applauded and at the end of the band's presentation, some people came to talk to the boys and me and we took photos and even some autographs. Girls also came up to talk to me. There were lots of interesting girls, but at the moment only one interested me and her name is Isabella. I want to be friends with the brunette and who knows later boyfriend? I was enchanted by it.
I asked people out and I saw Sue at the bar, taking a caipirinha.
"Congratulations on the band's performance, Roger," Sue said, smiling. "I loved it.
"Thank you Sue, I'm glad you enjoyed it," she said, smiling. "Where's Isabella?"
When she finished the presentation she went upstairs to the pub and is talking to a boy.
- Thank you, Sue. I'm going to talk to your friend, "he said flatly.
I only heard the boys calling me, because some girls wanted to talk to me. Fuck you. I turn to Isabella and see her talking to a guy, with black hair to his shoulder.
"Isabella, I need to talk to you," I said directly.
"I do not think we have anything else to say, Roger," she said dryly.
Then I linked her tightly around the waist and looked at us intently.
"You idiot, imbecile, Bella does not want to talk to you," the guy said.
I looked at him and said angrily:
"Do not intrude, idiot. My talk is with Isabella.
"Luke, please calm down," Isabella said to the idiot. "Then we'll talk." I'll talk to Roger's asshole first.
"Anything to call, Bella," Luke said as he kissed her cheek and pulled away.
I felt my blood boil with rage, for this idiot to be so close to Isabella.
"So your nickname is Bella?" He laughed wryly.
"It's my nickname for intimate people, not unfamiliar like you, Roger, do you understand?" Isabella said irritably.
"Yeah, I'll call you Bella from now on. Listen, I need to talk to you, okay? - I said.
- For what? -she asked. "You do not want to talk, Roger.
"Bella, fuck, I want to meet you, I like you." I want to be your friend, did not you realize that? And to prove that I really want this, I'll tell you more about my life than I did when I told my friends about it, okay? Can you hear me? I pleaded.
"All right," she said.
Bella and I went to a quieter place in the pub and told her that I still have traumas in relation to my father, because he beat up my mother and I, I have traumas of relationship, because I've been betrayed before and also I already had a car accident before, that by a miracle I survived. Bella was impressed by my story. What I told her is what the boys already know. But there is much more than that, which will be kept only for me, for the rest of my life.
"Roger, I'm sorry," she said bewildered.
"Call me Rog, please, Bella," I said, looking at her.
"I'm sorry, and now I understand why you did not want to say such things. That hurts you a lot, does not it? - she asked.
"It really hurts me, Bella," I said in annoyance. "But now you know. Now, please tell me about your parents.
Bella looked at me closely and her eyes filled with tears. She told about the death of her parents when she was ten, that they died in a car accident and then left Brazil and came to Brighton and she already told that she was also betrayed in love by a boy she dated to Sixteen years in high school. He wanted to know only about sex, but she did not accept it. He hinted that Bella is still a virgin to this day.
"Rog, please promise me that when you drive, you'll be careful?" When you travel by car, will you be careful? After all you've had an accident before, I already lost my parents - said Bella with tears in her eyes.
"Bella, look at me, I promise I'll take care of myself, okay?" That I'll be careful. That I will be cautious. When you go to London to study we will keep in touch, you promise? I want to be your real friend. I can not explain it, but when you're near me, everything around me becomes more joyful. I said sincerely.
Bella smiled beautifully at me.
"I promise we'll keep in touch, Rog. I also want to be your friend and I never want to lose contact with you or the other boys. The unusual way we met, you almost running over is fate, I want to be close to you and be your friend - she smiled at me.
I smiled back at Bella's so cute and hugged her tightly and kissed her on the head. This girl came to change my life in a way that I can not explain.
POV Luke
I saw Isabella and Roger hugged. My blood boiled with rage. I was always Isabella's best friend besides Sue. Now is this newcomer coming to take my place? That will not happen. When I go to London, studying all this will also change ...
To be continued.