Carrying my new guitar downstairs, I beam, seeing Jamie. She lets the band use her aunt's van to move our instruments to the venue the competition is at. She hands me the keys, and I promise I'll take good care of it.
"You sure you don't want to go with us?" I ask.
"Yeah. I have to finish up a project so I can have the rest of the break to chill. I'm rooting for you guys, though."
She gives me a quick hug while the guys finish packing up their instruments. We don't have to worry about Austin's drums because the competition thought it is easier and faster to let everyone use the same drum kit for our performances. It makes sense because everyone would have to set up their kits, and it would take to long.
There are only four other bands in my finals, so we have to make a great impression. I told the boys we should match in someway but also stand out from the rest. We chose to all wear black jeans and a white shirt, but what makes us stand out is our red leather jackets with our band logo on the back.Last week I looked up the other bands to see how they sounded and what they looked like. Three of them have people in their mid-twenties to thirties-one with forty to fifty-year-olds. Half is an indie band and the other punk rock. Jamie describes us as a pop-rock, but I think we try to incorporate flares of all styles. We don't focus on genres and trying to fit into one of them. I create music to represent my emotions; if so happens to sound like rock or pop, so be it.We hit the road, and I ride in the front seat while Austin drive. Cameron and Micah take the back seat and begin singing along with a song on the radio. Leaning my head against the glass, I watch the dark clouds float above us. The sun barely peeks through, causing the sky to turn grey. It's now winter, but it's still only chilly outside.
Further in the month, it'll get much colder. My fingers flick on the heater to the van, and a brush of hot air hits my arms. After two minutes, I'm all warmed up.
Passing the ocean, I frown, wanting it to be summer already. My entire body is in the urge to go surfing. I wonder if Jamie is staying for the summer too. She's never gone surfing before, and I'd love to teach her before she goes home-the waves crash across the shoreline. No one goes to the beach during the winter, so it's quite barren. Only a few birds fly over the water.
Micah grabs my attention by pulling a strand of my hair. My head yanks back, hitting the back of the seat. Groaning, I turn, giving Micah a mad glare.
"What the hell!" I shout.
"Sorry, dude, but I called your name like a hundred times." Huh? Was I that deep into my thoughts?
"Okay, what you want?" I rub the back of my head. It still slightly stings mainly from the impact of hitting the car seat.
"We're grabbing something to eat after the competition, right?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Sophie wants to join." He says, looking down at his phone, probably texting her right now.
I'm glad Micah found someone sweet like Sophie, but sometimes their relationship is nauseating. I don't think they'll go a whole day without seeing each other.
"She can only if Jamie comes along. No one wants to see you two suck face the entire time."
When Jamie isn't here, Sophie cops out of the conversation by being overly affectionate to Micah, and they ended up making out regardless of what we're doing. Sophie hasn't integrated herself into our group as Jamie has. Sophie simply doesn't share the same interests as most of us. I'm surprised how well she and Micah work considering their polar opposites. I believe their music taste is the only thing they have in common come to think of it. Jamie, however, is up for anything and loves finding out about new things. She's never afraid to ask questions or feel stupid when she gets something wrong. That's why she gets along with all of so well.
Austin looks for a parking spot close to the entrance while I look out the window seeing the tall silver building. Eurova Records this could be our record label. A chill climbs down my spine as I grab my guitar case. I've never been this nervous before in my life.
"Lucas, you alright?" Cameron touches my shoulder, examining my face.
"Just freaking out. This is our chance to become big. I don't want to fuck it up."
"Don't worry. We are more than ready for this. Let's just rock out and have fun, guys." Austin says, and I feel a little better.
He's right, though. We should just focus on having fun right now, this is a huge opportunity, but we can't stress over something we don't know how it will go. We play well and enjoy ourselves. The rest is up to fate.
Austin gets the door since he's only carrying his drum sticks while the rest carry our guitar cases. The lobby is the first thing we see, and a lady greets us. Her red hair tied up into a high ponytail. She tells us to check-in for the contest and go to the second floor for further instructions.We take the elevator up and leads us to a wide hallway where some of the other contestants wait. A short man in a fancy grey suit hands us a paper with a five number on it. I'm assuming we're the last band to perform today.
"Hello, I'm Melvin. This is the waiting area. Food and refreshments are on that table over there. When I call your number, you go to that room down the hall." We nod, and he goes back towards the room.
"Okay, since everyone's here, we'll start a little early. Group one, you're up!" Melvin shouts so everyone can hear.
The band of forty and fifty-year-olds, the Lonely Hero's of Sydney, enter the room.We take a sit on the floor since all the chairs are currently full and wait for our turn. I get out my guitar and strum after a couple of minutes of waiting to pass the time. After an hour later, we're called to perform.The judge's sit on the other side of the navy blue room. A bald man with thin glasses sits in the center, a blond woman on his left, and a much older gentleman on his left. The woman asks us to introduce ourselves and explain why we entered the contest while we plug up our guitars into the amps. Once everyone's in position, the older man tells us to perform the song we entered in for the contest.
"1...2...3!" Austin counts us in. I take a breath and imagine us playing in Micah's basement. The judges turn into Jamie and Sophie, cheering us on. I relax, coming in for the first verse. I ignore the judges and only focus on Cameron and Micah you are on my side. They beam smiles my way as we enjoy playing with each other. At Austin's drum solo, the rest do a quick silly dance before we return, finishing the song off with the last chorus.
"Really great lads! We have to vote and discuss now, but we'll call the winners two days."
If we don't hear from them in two days, then we lost. I know our performance was excellent, but I overheard one of the other bands say they look at everything. Their sound, chemistry, look, possible marketing, and more. If they like all of it, then we have a chance.After packing up our things, we rush to the van high on adrenaline. This was the most nerve-racking moment of my life. Performing in front of others always is but also thrilling. For a couple of minutes, I get to be someone else on stage, not a fragile guy that everyone wants to fix, but rather a confident guy everyone wants to be.
***
The crisp smell of cheese and pepperoni overwhelms my nose as we walk into the restaurant. The guys find a booth while I get in line to order. It's lunch hour, and Mario's is pretty packed. We still haven't gotten a call from the label, and it's the second day. If I don't hear anything in the next couple of hours, I know we didn't win.
My eyes move around the restaurant and observe people chat with each other. As I scan my eyes lock with familiar blue eyes. Victoria, just great. A baby boy with ash blonde hair sits in her lap, slapping his tiny hands on the table. Victoria's mother sits across from them doing a crossword puzzle. She hands her son to her mother and starts walking towards me. I turn away, not wanting to speak to her.
"Lucas, can we please talk?" She grabs my arm, pulling me to turn towards her. A white bandage covers the bridge of her nose and a cut on her bottom lip.
"What happened?" She explains a girl at school jumped her but didn't go into much detail before changing the subject back to us.
"You have five minutes," I say, assuming that's how long it'll take until I get to the front of the line.
"Luke, I still love you, and I've changed. Being a mother has changed me. I don't want endless flings. I loved what we had, but I fucked everything up like I always do."
"Victoria, you hurt me and broke my trust," I state.
"I know. That's why I'm asking for a second chance even though I don't deserve it. Just think about it, okay." She says before going back to her family.
Should I give her a second chance? She does seem different, but how do I know it's not all an act. My brain hurts thinking about it.
The man at the counter gets my attention, and I finally order our three pizzas. I find my friends at the booth by the window and join them. Our food comes shortly after, and we dig in. Mmm, Mario's pizza is the best in the city.
Taking the last bite of my second piece, Jamie bursts into the restaurant frantically, looking around. She shouts our names once she sees us and rushes over. Jamie huffs, out of breath. Did she run here? Sweat covers her body.
"Lucas, you left your phone at my house earlier, and I answer it. It was the label you guys won the contest," She explains once she regains her breath. I froze not knowing what to do with myself. Is this really happening? We're getting signed by a major record label.
"Holy shit! For real!" Austin exclaims. She nods, and Austin hops out of his seat.
"I gotta call my mum!"
"This is huge. We need to celebrate!" Cameron says.
"My aunt is out for the weekend. Let's have a party at my house tomorrow," Jamie suggests.
I leave with Jamie wanting to go straight home and tell my parents. We take a cab home. As we climb out the vehicle, I pick her up, spinning her around on the front lawn.
"Lucas put me down, you, goof!"
"Sorry, I'm just so fucking happy. We wouldn't have even won if it was for you, Jamie. Once we're big, I'm giving you the best gift ever."
Oh, wait, that reminds me. I rush inside and grab the long thin box on my nightstand. I was going to give this to her weeks ago as thanks for my guitar but forgot.
"This will have to do for now," I puff out some air handing her the box.She grins and opens it. Her eyes go wide, staring at the silver charm bracelet with diamond accents that she wanted. There's currently three charms: the letter j, Thalia & Melpomene masks, a butterfly.
"Lucas, it's beautiful," Jamie gasps, pulling me into a hug. "Thank you."