Stories Yet To Unfold

Jittery, familiar boys surrounded me as smiled with little jitters in me. I knew they were nervous; and I didn’t blame them – it was their first gig on their tour. Out of the corner of my brown eyes I could see Matt talking to the bar owner about something serious; but I didn’t really pay attention.

Jeff was setting up the lights and getting everything situated for the show that night. He smiled at me once he realized I was looking at him and the job he was doing; and I quickly returned it.
Just as I was turning my attention back to the boys; Jack sat himself next to me on the floor.

I started a conversation to get his mind off his insane nerves he was obviously having. “Don’t worry about anything; you all will do fantastic.”

“Thanks,” he gave me a goofy, cute smile. “Just everything inside me is weird; I don’t even know what my feelings are doing. I’m excited, nervous, and pumped all at the same time; it’s weird.”

“I know how that goes,” I nodded and my hair moved slightly from it. “It’s like right before you do a presentation for school and everyone is staring at you. It feels like all the pressure in the world is on your shoulder.”

“Exactly!” he widened his eyes and slapped my knee lightly. “You’re good with comparing stuff.”

As I was about to reply, Matt came backstage with a frightened look on his face directed towards me. “Melissa can’t be in here because she’s underage and doesn’t have a job. I tried but the owner refused to have someone so young just there.”

Jeff looked at me warily before talking. “Well, she’s not sitting in the van in this neighborhood. Have you seen it? Teenage guys are walking all over the place and the buildings are dirty. Just no.”

“I could drop her off at the hotel really quickly and come back with only missing a bit of the show,” Flyzik volunteered. “I don’t have to be there; but you do, Jeff.”

“Can’t she sing a really small part of a song; then she’ll be doing something and therefore, will have to be here,” Rian suggested. “I heard you singing Noel in the shower today.”

I blushed a bit from his comment before Alex stepped in. “Yeah! When she was with Zack and I she did great! You could sing a part at the end of Noel; when there’s two parts, you know what I’m talking about?”

“The harmony to ’ Your lips are a hot flame baby and our chemistry is kerosene’ part at the end?” I questioned. “I’m not so sure about that, I have terrible stage fright.”
Zack then chimed in with his quiet voice. “You really are great though; you have nothing to worry about. Come on, just do it, you might have fun.”

They finally convinced me to do it after much pleading on everyone’s part and my time to go on stage was almost near. My body was physically shaking from nerves as Alex began singing the first lines of Noel. Matt patted my back lightly in reassurance just before my part to
enter was coming near.

I gulped once I stepped on the wooded bar stage to face a pretty decent-sized group of adults drinking alcohol and listening. I looked at each of the boys to see a smile on their faces. Alex continued to look at me as he sang into the black microphone.

My eyes fluttered open as my part came on and the harmonizing between Alex and I was spot on. I sang the following line twice. “Don’t treat this like a secret, just keep it quiet while we know that we could tear best friends apart with all the lies we’ve told!”

And with that; the song ended with a few more notes from Alex and the crowd busted into clapping. A huge smile draped all of our faces as the boys said goodbye and we all went to the back, where Jeff and Matt were also smiling.

“You all did great!” Matt stated excitedly. “Melissa, you’re a great singer, you know?”

“Thank you,” I blushed slightly as all the others nodded in agreement. The band and Jeff then
began to pack up the lights and other equipment for putting on the show into the van while Matt went to the front – where a few people were asking for their album. I helped Matt take the money and hand out CDs happily; getting compliments along the way from strangers about my singing.

After packing everything up and heading to the hotel; everyone decided it’d be good to celebrate – so we did. We landed ourselves in a nice family restaurant with a small bar closed off to the side. We all happened to cram into the biggest seat in the place with a bit of difficulty – myself squeezed between Jeff and Matt.

“Here are your food orders, guys,” the nice, brunette waitress said as she handed the plates of food to each of us. The guys crammed it all down their throats without much thought or chewing. I was in no way a polite eater; but they were ridiculous.

Jack was the first done and also the first to speak. “I think I’m going to go dance on that dance floor thingy over there. Anyone willing to join me?”

“Fuck yeah, man!” Alex agreed with his mouth filled with a hamburger. They ran out to the designated place for dancing as I just shook my head with a smile and continued eating.

We all began to crack up as they stared to dance together like complete idiots. Alex soon
called to Rian. “Hey fatass, get out here!”

Rian rolled his eyes and soon joined them with the ridiculous dancing – at least they were having fun; and sometimes we all need that. I finished eating just as a good song came on and I began to move slightly to the music, bouncing my foot along to the rhythm.

Zack and I made eye contact and he motioned to go out and dance with them just as Jeff began to talk. “You should go, Melissa; all three of you should.”

“Only if you go too, old man,” Matt patted Jeff’s back with a smirk and Jeff soon after hopped out of the booth with him. Zack then grabbed my hand and dragged me along with little protest
and a smile on both of our faces.

I began to dance around to the beat; moving my hips and arms in random directions. Zack laughed at me and did the same; making us the big group of young idiots who simply wanted to have fun. Soon enough Jeff and Matt went back to sit at the booth; but the other five us
stayed.

Alex and Jack began to try and dance like ghetto men, but they failed miserably; so I just joined them. And for the next hour; we just let loose and danced around for families all over the restaurant to see. But to be completely honest? I didn’t care. In that hour I forgot everything about my family, what I left behind, and what could go wrong in the future – I just had fun.