Trembling With the Strings

“That’s cool,” he muttered, probably not buying it. “I know I’m your ‘boss’ and all, but don’t let that come between us. All of my employees are family, Grace. You’re the only exception. But it doesn’t have to be that way,” he joked, I think. “Anyway, ready to rock out?”

“Um, sure,” I laughed softly, getting out of the fancy car and closing the door gently behind me. “So who are playing tonight?”

Toni shrugged. “Ask Rosie, not me. I don’t usually hit the club or anything. Well, that or I’m too drunk to remember a thing.” I gave him a funny look. “It’s a joke, love. Laugh.”

I forced a smile, but the fake grin was replaced with a real one when Rosaline ran up to me, grinning like a little kid on Christmas morning. She reminded me a lot of Marcella, and maybe that’s why I liked her so much.

“Are you ready to rock ‘til you drop?” she asked, making a face. “It rhymed in my head, anyway. Toni, I’m stealing your lover!” She grabbed my wrist and jerked me towards the local club. There were plenty of cars in the lot, but my mind was elsewhere.

I think I was mentally trying to replace everyone in my life. I pictured Rosalina as Marcy, and Toni was practically Darius. Gregory reminded me of Dante, because he was so close to his cousin and sister, but he remained a bit distanced from me (I only hoped he didn’t end up trying to murder me!). I hadn’t found a replacement for Demetrius yet, but I wasn’t sure I was ready to do that.

“I’m not his lover,” I mumbled, laughing as she turned on her heel to give me a really weird look.

“Aren’t we prude?” she whispered, tapping my nose and giggling. “I don’t care! I see the way he looks at you, little missy.”

I rolled my eyes smacking her hand away. “So do you think these bands are going to be any good?”

“I think so. I heard that one of the bands has a really cute singer.” She nudged me in the side, laughing. “Really, though, what’s your kind of guy? What’s Kai’s father like?”

I smiled softly, chewing on my lip momentarily. “He was great, really. Just a little stubborn. I don’t really know how to describe him. He was just…himself.” I couldn’t bring myself to praise him, but I couldn’t make him sound like a jackass either. I was leaning more towards the praising side.

“So he was hot,” she teased, grinning.

“Very,” I muttered, grabbing her wrist and pulling her into the building.

A band was already playing, but they weren’t that special, so I just focused on ordering a Coke. Rosalina sat on my left side, and Toni sat on my right. He smiled at me, ordering an alcoholic beverage that smelled awful.

I heard to band after band, but I didn’t really listen. They were all local, so they were okay. I didn’t want to be there at all, but Rosalina and Toni kept talking to me, trying to make me enjoy myself. Gregory excused himself to go make some new friends or something, and eventually Rosalina saw a cute guy and left to talk to him.

“Looks like we were ditched,” Toni joked, laughing softly and turning to face me.

I made a face. “Jerks.”

“Oh, well. Now we have some time to ourselves at least. How do you like the shop? You’ve been working for a month now, so what do you think?” he asked, trying polite conversation.

I smiled. “I love it, really. I know I’ve never had a job before, but I know that it has to be the best place to work. I’m not just saying that either.”

He grinned. “I try my best. It’s great having you around, too. We all love you,” he told me, absentmindedly throwing his arm around my shoulders, like he always did. I don’t think he even noticed that he did it even more.

The band left the stage, but I kept focusing on Toni. The song sounded familiar, though. It was definitely something I’d heard recently. Robbie always listened to it.

“Show me how to lie; you’re getting better all the time. And turning all against the one is an art that’s hard to teach. Another clever word sets off an unsuspecting herd, and as you step back into line a mob jumps to their feet.”

Yeah, that was definitely The Offspring. But I thought that the club was only presenting local bands. The vocals sounded just like the actual band, though! I couldn’t help but steal a glance.

And my heart nearly jumped out of my chest. He didn’t see me, but I certainly saw him. Darius was singing his heart out on the stage with his band behind him, but there was something unsettling about him. When he had rehearsed at home, he had always looked so peaceful and genuinely happy. On that stage, he looked absolutely dead. His eyes were full of silent misery, and he occasionally clutched the engagement ring hanging from his neck. It killed me to see him like that, it really did.

“That’s the cute singer I was talking about!” Rosalina told me, suddenly swirling around on the barstool beside me. “Isn’t he adorable? I hear that some girl broke his heart. I would gladly fix it for him, wouldn’t you, Gracie?”

Just then Darius’ voice cut out for a second, but he picked back up. I whipped my head around and looked at the stage. He was looking right at me, as if he had heard my name being stated, and he looked so tormented. I gulped, and Rosalina poked my arm.

“I think he’s looking this way!” she squealed. “Oh, my God, you are so lucky! I hate you!”

I think she was teasing me, but I didn’t care. Toni turned to look at me, waving a hand in front of my face and laughing. I smacked his hand, trying to watch Darius. Toni wrapped his arm around my shoulders again, muttering something. I looked around him.

All torment was gone from his face. Dray looked royally pissed off, but I didn’t get why. His hand fell from his necklace, and his hands clenched into tight fists. He practically started screaming his song then, and I couldn’t help but notice the emphasis on some words he was “singing.”

“Now dance, fucker, dance. He never had a chance. And no one even knew it was really only you. So dance, fucker, dance. I never had a chance. It was really only you.”

“I need to go home,” I whispered to Toni, taking a few shallow breaths, nearly having a panic attack.

“Why? Come on, have some fun,” he whispered back, kissing my forehead.

I grimaced, noticing that the vocals had stopped.

“I’m fucking done with this!”

Oh, boy.