I Don't Wanna Feel a Thing Anymore.

479 Days Ago

“Kellin!” Tony yelled across the back room as I walked in. He hurried over, pulling along a girl with long, dark hair and lots of tattoos. Hell, I was the gayest guy I’d ever met, and even I could tell she was hot. “This is Valerie. She’s new, and Rachel wanted you to show her the ropes.” He explained. I smiled and gave a small wave. Tony’s little walkie talkie went off, telling him he was needed in aisle four. He sighed and jogged off to attend to that. I stood awkwardly with Valerie.

“So, is there a specific reason that Rachel insisted you were the one that trained me?” She asked. I laughed.

“Well, I’m gay, and even I know you’re hot. She probably just didn’t want you getting harassed. Or, uh, hit on too much, I guess.” Wow, harassed was not the word I had been looking for. I guess I was still a little shaken from the morning’s events. Valerie looked a little taken aback by the comment. “No, not harassed. Tony and the rest of the guys are good. Um, really, never mind. Let’s go sell some cheese and stuff.” I amended awkwardly, shoving my hands in my pockets and walking past her. She laughed nervously, following my quick footsteps.

She would only be here for two hours today, so I tried to show her as much stuff as possible. We talked a lot, also. I found out she and her boyfriend had moved down here from LA, and they were both aspiring musicians. She went by the stage name of LIGHTS, and her boyfriend Beau was trying to start a band.

“Me and my boyfriend Vic, and his brother and girlfriend, we all go to this open mic thing on Friday nights. You guys should come!” I offered. I feel like Vic would like Valerie, and she seemed like she would get along with Frenchi as well. Valerie agreed to come, so I jotted down directions, and then sent Vic a text to let him know we’d have more company than usual. He said it sounded awesome; he was a fan of group dates. Tonight would be fun.

Tony bounced back to the break room as soon as Valerie had left, dragging me along with him to ask a million questions. I laughed at his dejected face when I told him that she had a boyfriend. Rachel yelled at us to stop gossiping and get back to work.

“Do you need a ride home today?” Tony asked me later as we were packing up to leave. I had let him know earlier that Vic and I were skipping out on the soccer game. I shook my head.

“Nah, Vic is gonna pick me up. And actually, we moved in together.” I said the words as casually as I could, but I still felt my heart flutter as I said that out loud for the first time. After two months, the mere thought of Vic still gave me extreme butterflies. Tony clapped happily at the news.

“That’s awesome, Kellin! Well anyways, I’m out. I’ll see you Monday!” He hung up his apron and left. I got a text from Vic the moment after, saying he was here. I put up the rest of my things, walking out into the summer heat to the car. Vic seemed much more happy than he had this morning.

“So, who is this couple coming to mic night with us?” He asked.

“This girl Valerie and her boyfriend. They moved from LA like three weeks ago. Starving musicians, like us.” I added.

“Oh, speaking of music, I forget to tell you my big news!” He almost yelled, bounding up and down in his seat. “I got a gig Kellin, a real one!” He said, lowering his voice.

“Vic, I am so fucking proud of you. That’s amazing.” I said, leaning across the car to kiss him. He grabbed my hands, playing with my fingers. He was so adorable.

“It’s just a small night club downtown, but still! You gotta start somewhere! Baby, this could be my break.” He said wistfully, pulling me as close as he could with the gear shift between us. I should have been jealous, but I honestly wasn’t. I was so happy for Vic. We planned his setlist the whole way to open mic, all the negative feelings from the morning forgotten.

We pulled up to the glass building to see Valerie and a buff guy with tattoos.

“Hey, that’s Beau!” Vic said as we parked, sounding slightly confused.

“Where do you know him from?” I asked.

“He’s the other guy who got he gig at the club! He’s playing before me, he’s pretty good.” Vic explained. We got out of the car to greet them. Beau and Vic told us how they had met that day. We all went inside, meeting Mike and Frenchi. We sat at one of the tables tonight, drinking and trying to keep our laughter down. They really were pretty awesome. Valerie had moved to LA from Canada when she was 20, and her and Beau have been together since about a month after she moved.

We all took our turns going up and performing, and Beau and Vic announced their gigs, encouraging everyone to come. Valerie and Beau were both amazing performers, and I had no doubt they would make it far. It was nice to have some new friends.