Catastrophic Happenings

As Maryland was taken over by the heat of August, Catastrophic Happenings found themselves in a good place. They had at least one gig to play every week, thanks to Azalea’s high school friends and other connections Rick had in the area. Their Facebook was filled with likes and their Twitter had numerous followers. And best of all, they were just about ready to record their first EP.

The time that had passed since Austin first realized he had a crush on Azalea made him see two things: first that he was in love with her, and second that it didn’t matter. Ben was the best boyfriend that a girl could probably ever ask for, and Azalea and he had a relationship that could rival the love found in a Nicholas Sparks novel.

He was going to the University of Maryland, College Park in the fall. He had an internship in Washington, D.C., and hoped to be an entrepreneur in the future, just like his father. He hit the gym every day. He was sweet and charming in the non-pussy type of way.

And every time Austin would see Ben make Azalea laugh or the smile on her face when she received a text from him, Austin would just think Shit, I’m fucked.

He just hoped that none of the band, especially Azalea, could tell that he had a huge thing for her. He made sure his actions towards her weren’t super friendly or obviously mean. He kept the most distance he could from her without being rude. This, of course, ensured that the two didn’t become close friends (like Sammy and she were), but Austin knew he had to take these precautions. Especially since all he wanted to do when he was near her was crashing his lips on hers and serenading her with love songs.

The only plus to the situation was that it was helping him get over his ex-girlfriend, Rachel.

Bitch, Austin immediately thought as she crossed his mind.

Although nearly a whole year had passed since she broke up with him, she hurt him so badly that he still felt pangs of pain when he reflected on the two years and three months that they were together. He had really loved her.

Rachel and Austin had been close friends since the beginning of high school. He watched her go through douche after douche, and was always there to offer his support after the dozens of broken hearts she endured. But finally, during junior year, he finally got her to see that she deserved better. Austin got the chance to be the boyfriend that treated her right. But then suddenly—after two years of what Austin thought was a blissful relationship—when one of Rachel’s exes that she was still hung up on wanted her back, she dropped Austin just like all her exes before him had dropped her. She tried to blame it on the band by claiming that he didn’t give her the attention she deserved. But anyone would defend that that wasn’t true. He was totally infatuated with her. Everyone could see that.

All of his friends and family members tried to convince him that he shouldn’t dwell on it, and that it was all her fault. They said Rachel was screwed up in the head; she couldn’t accept what was good for her because she had self-esteem problems or something along those lines. But none of that mattered to Austin. All he knew was that he loved her, and she didn’t love him back.

And reflecting on his not-so-ideal situation with Azalea, Austin couldn’t help wondering if he was just trading in one broken heart to get another one back.


“I have the most amazing news ever!” Azalea gushed.

“What?!” Sammy asked with equal enthusiasm.

“You guys might want to sit down,” she said to the four boys.

“Just tell us,” Cade grunted.

Azalea rolled her eyes but complied, “You know the gig we’re playing on Friday for Trevor’s birthday? Well, I just found out that his step-aunt, who happens to be a scout for a music label,” she said in a singing manner, “will be in attendance.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Cade exclaimed.

“No joke,” Azalea grinned.

“Hey, Rick, I think Azalea is better at your job than you are,” Austin quipped.

“Ha ha,” Rick said dryly in reply. “But this really is great, Azalea.” He then clasped his hands and started to rub his palms together. “Wow, a label scout? This is big.”

“Yeah, maybe too big,” Austin said, although he felt the excitement everyone else was feeling. “Do you think we’re ready?” he asked nervously.

“Well, ready or not she’s going to be there,” Azalea stated. “So, let’s just hope she likes us. And if not, worse case is that Rick can sneakily talk to her and get her unbiased, professional opinion.”

“So it’s like a win-win,” proclaimed Sammy.

“Just don’t get your hopes too high,” Rick cautioned. “I think we definitely should practice hard so we can give an amazing performance, but let’s not go into this thinking we’re going to leave the party with a record deal.”

“But we could!” exclaimed Cade, completely disregarded Rick’s advice. “This could be our big break. All the sweet sixteens we’ve played will finally be more than just free food and booze.”

“And publicity, and money, and experience,” Azalea added nonchalantly. “But sure, we can just overlook all of that.”

“Come on!” Sammy groaned. “We should start practicing.” He grabbed Azalea’s hand and tugged her in the direction of the basement door.

As Rick watched the band scurry in the direction of the basement he tried to reign in his excitement. Although he wanted to act like the rest of the band and get his hopes up, he knew he had to be the rational one. Rick had to be the one to keep his expectations low so that he could offer support in the case that this whole thing ended in disappointment. But despite what his brain said, even he found it hard to keep the jitters away.