Let the Flames Begin

My phone sang annoyingly next to my ear and I sat up straight in bed, immediately picking it up.

Being nervous about phone calls in the middle of the night had been something that dated back to the days when my mom was just admitted. It could have been many things; her hurting herself or someone else, her breaking out, my dad calling.

"Hello?"

"Andy? It's Hayley. How are you?"

"Where are you that it's a normal time for calling up a friend to chat?" I groaned, laying back down in bed. A false alarm, just like it always was. Getting older, of course, meant that these late night calls were often drunk friends needing a ride or someone to commiserate with.

"I'm at home," she said brightly, "Which is where you need to be. Do you think you could manage?"

I glanced around the dark room, moonlight shining brightly through the window. Full moon. Figures, they always say weirdos are out on nights where there are full moons. My eyes rested on the old alarm clock in the corner on my desk.

"It's three o'clock Hayley."

I rubbed my face and threw off the covers, submitting to the fact that she'd get what she wanted. I was beyond tired at the moment, something disastrous for me. I stood up and stretched, phone still by my ear. She was talking to someone in the background.

"Jeremy says you two can order pizza and bum around until it's your turn."

She said this so confidently, as if she knew I'd already given in. I figured now that if Jeremy was there, this would be a band thing and that I needed to be there. Sad part was, I was going when I didn't even know what it was.

"Okay. I'll be there in fifteen."

I hung up without waiting for her to say goodbye. It was her own fault for waking me up. I went in the bathroom and brushed my hair and teeth, leaving my face without makeup. I pulled on jeans instead of the pajama pants I was wearing though I left my old t-shirt on.

I probably looked like a hot mess.

I crept into my aunt's bedroom. It was dark, a small sliver of moonlight lighting the floor a little for me to see. I shook her lightly and then, when that didn't work, more violently. She woke with a start, her eyes popping open.

"Aunt Lynn, I'm sorry to wake you up but there's an emergency meeting with the band that I have to go to at Hayley's house, okay? I didn't want you to wake up and worry about me," I whispered.

"Okay, sweetheart, I thought it was your--no, it's fine go ahead, drive safe hon," she whispered back. I leaned down and kissed her cheek quickly before leaving. If anyone worried about my mom more than me, it was my aunt.

I grabbed my keys and my wallet before quietly leaving the house. On my way over to Hayley's, I stopped at a 24 hour gas station and got myself coffee. I was entirely too tired to even deal with living.

When I pulled into the driveway, I sat there with the car off and my head on the steering wheel for a while. I got out and locked the car, marching through the mild night air up to my lead singer's house. When I knocked, Jeremy answered by immediately sweeping me into a hug.

"Finally! I'm not alone to be bored anymore!"

He dropped me on my feet and I stood there, shaking my head lightly, taking a giant gulp from my coffee. I was going to need as much caffeine as I could get. I followed the bassist to the practice room in the basement.

Hayley was sitting in an armchair, a notebook in her lap and a pen in her mouth. She appeared to be concentrating deeply. Ryder and Taylor were on the other side of the room with the guitars, working out intricate melodies. Robbie was in the center of it all, huddled under a blanket on the couch, a grumpy expression on her face.

"Hey, hey party people!" I exclaimed, raising my Styrofoam cup at them all. Taylor raised a hand and Ryder flashed a small smile, which I returned. Robbie still looked unamused but raised a hand in greeting.

"If there is an alcoholic beverage in that cup, I might have to cry in complete happiness," Hayley said, standing up to envelope me in a hug. I frowned playfully.

"Not this time mate, sorry," I snapped off the lid to show the liquid, "Just coffee because someone needed me at three in the morning?"

"I had the best song idea and I needed to get it out. I called Taylor first and he got Ryder and they came over and we're moving steady with guitar rhythms and things; lyrics are looking good too but we need help. You and Jeremy will be making up your parts soon enough!"

She was bouncing off the walls. I noticed Taylor shake his head lightly before turning back to Ryder. Hayley handed me the notebook and reading over the lyrics, I was stunned. They were truly beautiful and I was excited to contribute.

For now, I curled up on the couch in between Robbie and Jeremy. I leaned toward the girl and smiled, bumping her shoulder in a friendly way. She looked beyond displeased.

"What brings you here?" I asked, smiling widely. I was starting to feel more awake by the second. It could have been Hayley's speed-like temperament but I was leaning toward the coffee. Robbie pushed her hair behind her ear before rolling her eyes.

"Ryder wouldn't let me stay home alone and sleep and I am so tired," she whined. I smiled sympathetically. Hayley came over and smacked a hand to her forehead.

"If you want, you can use the guestroom upstairs to sleep in," she offered. Robbie perked right up and agreed but I watched the careful eye of Ryder. She watched Robbie and Hayley interact like a hawk, not once breaking stride with Taylor. As I watched, her eyes flicked over to meet mine. We just looked at each other, as if trying to figure each other out before the other.

"C'mon, we're bringing the young one up to bed!" Jeremy said, pulling my attention to him. I went up with him and Robbie, bringing her into a guestroom near Hayley's room. We made a big show of tucking her in but she was grumpy enough without us being assholes so we went down to the kitchen.

"I'm fucking hungry," I complained, making myself at home and rummaging through Hayley's cabinets and refrigerator. In the large, modern kitchen, there wasn't too much food I was interested in. I remembered what Hayley had said on the phone and immediately perked up.

Jeremy sat on the clean granite counter, polishing an apple on his shirt. He always seemed to be dressed nicely, even now, when everyone was in sweats or pajamas. I bounced over to him, my over sized, white t-shirt billowing around me like a mushroom. I started drumming a beat on his knees.

"Dude, let's get pizza!" I yelled, trying and failing to maintain an indoor voice. Jeremy grinned widely and started pulling his phone out of his pocket. I danced around the kitchen in excitement.

He ordered a sausage and pepperoni pizza and a regular pizza, in case anyone downstairs wanted some. Due to the late hour, we had to pick it up. It didn't bother us much, we were bored anyway. I ran downstairs to tell my three band mates before Jeremy and I got in his car.

"You said you liked The Monkees right?" he asked, as we drove down the street. I nodded. "Grab the CD in the glove box then and put it in."

i listened to him. The disc was a mixed CD that had messy Sharpie handwriting that said, "After Interviews." I assumed Jeremy was the type the made his own playlists. I placed it into the CD player and turned it on. The first song was Daydream Believer.

I smiled widely and turned it up, leaning back in the seat and started humming along. This was one of my favorite songs ever. Jeremy drove with a peaceful look on his face, his hands tapping on the steering wheel. He looked over and grinned at me.

"She's a daydream believer and a homecoming queen," I sang quietly, "Cheer up sleepy Jean, oh what can it mean to a daydream believer and a homecoming queen?"

I was glad that everyone was seemingly comfortable with each other already. I had an open personality and adjusted to people quickly. It was like I was born without a shyness barrier or something. I knew it wasn't as easy for other people to be the same but it was going well.

I'd probably bonded with Jeremy the most and then Taylor but the other two girls in my band remained a mystery to me. Hayley seemed busy and very independent, flitting from one thing to the next and always wearing a bright smile. Ryder was almost kind of a loner but I knew better than that. She was as over cautious as I was over analytical.

"A penny for your thoughts?"

"You like to mix CD's for every occasion?"

"There are a few on here about you actually," he said, skipping to the fifth track. What Is Life? by George Harrison started to play and I immediately felt my cheeks get red. He chose this song to be about me? I was flattered.

"I really wanted you to be in the band," he explained, switching the song. I knew it well though, and the lyrics haunted me. An upbeat song I didn't recognize came on. "Especially after you cried in the interview. I knew you were genuine then."

"Well, thanks. It really means a lot. I felt like such a girl when I cried in front of you guys," I admitted, shaking my head.

"You are a girl though," he pointed out. I looked at him in fake horror.

"What? I am?" I gasped, my eyes wide. I felt my long hair and looked down at my body.

"You're hilarious," he stated, coming to a stop next to a small pizzeria. As he turned the car off he turned to look at me and flashed a smile before getting out. I sat, dumbstruck, for a moment and then shook my head and got out too. I pouted when I saw him walking down the sidewalk.

"Um, hello?" he turned around, "Doesn't the hilarious girl get a ride into the pizza place, hm?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I completely forgot about the whole 'hilarious girls get to be carried into pizza places' rule," he said. He squat down and allowed me to jump on his back. I laughed and held on as he walked casually down the small stretch of sidewalk.

Conveniently, the door to the pizzeria was open, and when the old man behind the counter saw us, he laughed gleefully.

"Look! Look at this young man bringing in his bella fidanzata! Oh my wife would be so happy to see such beautiful couple!"

I blushed and choked on air, falling from Jeremy's back and using his shoulders to steady myself. I didn't know how many authentic Italians we had around here but we just stumbled into one. A younger man, in his forties, came from the back and shook his head.

"Dad, you're gonna scare the customers away," he said, his English perfect, "I'm assuming you're the two pies."

"That's us," Jeremy affirmed, pulling out his wallet and stepping forward. I stepped with him and pulled out my wallet.

"Let me split with you," I said. He shook his head and pulled out two crisp twenties before handing them to the younger man.

"You never let a pretty lady pay," he said seriously. The old Italian man clasped his hands together happily and I blushed, looking down at my feet. We got the pizza and left, silent. I sat in the front seat, the pizza boxes warming my thighs.

"Did somebody order a pizza?" I called down to the basement when we entered. Jeremy pulled paper plates and napkins and put them on the counter. I didn't hesitate to open our box and sit down next to him with it at the table.

"I'm so happy," he whispered, grinning at the pizza. I snorted and patted his shoulder, taking a slice and putting it on my plate. We ate together for a minute before everyone else came up. Jeremy and I must have looked hilarious, eating our pizza while grinning ear to ear and they all laughed.

"How's the song coming along?" I asked as they all sat down to eat. Taylor and Ryder looked excited and started babbling to one another. Hayley shrugged her shoulders.

"I need some help with lyrics now. The initial flood of creativity is getting depleted now," she said, a tired look in her eye. I smiled and nodded. Lyrics were something I always had a problem completing on my own.

As we ate, I noticed a weird new closeness between Taylor and Ryder. Honestly, they'd always seemed to click as people but now they were sitting close and talking quietly as Jeremy and Hayley yelled across the table at each other. Ryder felt me staring and looked up, eyes suspicious. I grinned at her and she smiled hesitantly back.

I wanted her to like me. I thought originally that we would be close because we were both the newcomers. Oddly enough, her and Taylor seemed to form that bond.

"Alright, let's go downstairs!" Hayley said. We cleared the table and followed the bouncing lead singer down to the basement. She was curled into a ball on the armchair and Taylor sat on the couch, smiling up at Ryder while he patted the seat next to him. I pulled my stool out from behind the drum kit and watched Jeremy bounce on the couch.

"Okay, let's go over the chorus then," Hayley said, tucking hair behind her ear, "So far I have I'll stop the whole world, I'll stop the world from turning into but I'm not sure what it turns into..."

"A monster," Ryder spoke, "The world is turning into a monster that eats us alive."

We all stared at her. "Make that the next line," I piped in, "I'll stop the whole world from turning into a monster, eating us alive.

"That works!" Hayley jumped, scribbling it down, "What I have next is Don't you ever wonder how we survived, now that you're gone... Now I need help."

"The world is ours," Taylor suggested simply. We all looked at each other excitedly. Hayley already had the first verse solid, though Jeremy suggested she change on of the first lines from 'I let my mind go' to 'I let my heart go.'

The second verse wasn't as solid. She had some of it written but wasn't sure about anything else. We all thought for a few moments before I sprouted an idea.

"Since you say something about not being the villain, how about I'm only human, I've got a skeleton in me?" I suggested. Jeremy looked impressed and leaned forward.

"Put that in front so it'll end up like, I'm only human, I've got a skeleton in me, but I'm not the villain."

"What about putting, something about them preaching it?" Ryder said, biting her lip and smiling at Taylor, who had squeezed her knee encouragingly. She looked slightly uncomfortable but I took her idea and ran with it.

"How about, Despite what you're always preaching?"

It went on like this, with us adjusting words and Hayley scribbling in her notepad. The sun was shining just over the horizon as Taylor and Ryder played some of their chorus melodies for us. I took my seat behind my drum kit while Jeremy plugged in his bass and sat in front of the kit. I was aware of Ryder's eyes on us.

"Okay this is what I'm thinking intro-wise," he said, plucking some chords. I stopped him and asked him to play it again, at full speed, while I automatically picked up the drum beat. Ryder jumped up.

"Wait, guys play it again okay?" she said, pulling her guitar over her head and played a few chords before nodding at us to start. We had the intro down when Hayley and Taylor came back downstairs, lugging a giant box and loads of blankets.

I continued playing, perfecting the intro, while they started blowing up what had to be the biggest air mattress I'd ever seen in my life. Hayley dropped blankets and pillows on top while Ryder's guitar faded, her watching the spectacle.

"If you wanna sleep upstairs with Robbie that's fine but this is what I always set up for Jeremy and Taylor when we have these sessions,"Hayley offered.

"Yeah," she said, pulling the guitar off her shoulders, "I think I'm gonna go up now, I didn't get much sleep."

Though I was still playing, I didn't miss the look that passed between her and Taylor. I would have killed to know if they'd come together. I focused back on the harmony between Jeremy and I instead of speculating. I didn't know how to bring that up and I didn't want to start problems because I was too curious.

Ryder said good night and soon after that I was setting my drum sticks down, hugging Jeremy since we'd basically set up the structure for the entire song. It really hit me now that I was in this band, a hundred percent, and that this was something good in my life.

"Andy, you can sleep in my room with me if you want," Hayley offered and I took her up on it. I'd rather sleep in a bed anyway. We went upstairs and she let me borrow pajama pants. I screamed good night down the hallway and down the stairs to whoever I hadn't said it too.

Hayley was already in bed, pulling her covers over her small body. I got in next to her, feeling slightly weird. I didn't really know Hayley and if you told me a month ago that I'd be sleeping in her bed with her, I probably would have laughed myself into asphyxiation.

"We got a lot done. I'm so glad you came by," she said.

"I'm glad I woke up to come," I admitted. She laughed and hit my arm playfully.

"What? You don't like waking up at 3 in the morning to stay awake until, what time is it? Until 7:30 writing a song with us?" she snorted, rolling over to face me.

"No, trust me, that part I'm so happy about just, next time, your inspiration should strike at a normal time of the day."

We were quiet for a while, just our breathing and the sounds of a distant TV. The sun was up and the blinds were drawn, a weird half-light filling the room. Finally, my over tired brain realized it should be tired and I felt myself shutting down.

"Andy, I'm really happy you're in the band now."

I turned to my head to look at her. Her eyes were shut and she looked tired. I didn't think I'd ever seen her without makeup before tonight, nor had I ever seen her hair such a mess. I was thankful that they'd given me a job, given me a family, and on top of everything else, allowed me to do what I loved.

"I'm really happy I am too."