Maybe We'll Pretend Right Now

I still remember the day we met like it was yesterday. I was with my friend Tony - you've met Tony. We were excited because we had an audition to join a band. We had called and signed up and now was our time to show them what we had in store.

Tony and I followed the directions that had been given to us by Vic over the phone. We eventually ended up on the front step of a medium-sized typical San Diego house.

I rung the doorbell, and after a short wait, the door swung open. Cigar smoke swirled out into the air and surrounded both me and Tony. A short, old Mexican man with glasses and a brown mustache stood in front of us.

"Victor, Mike, es para ti," he called over his shoulder before stepping aside and motioning us into the house. Tony and I stepped inside, thanking the man in Spanish as he pulled the door shut. Just then, I heard a few footsteps.

From around the corner, we were approached by a tall, slender shirtless guy with dark hair and a few tattoos. He sported a professional-looking grin on his face. I figured he was one of the brothers that we were supposed to meet.

"I'm Jaime," I stated, and then pointed at Tony, "and this is Ceasar, but he goes by Tony."

"Tony, Jaime, nice to meet you," the boy nodded. He motioned for us to follow him. "I'm Mike, and my brother Vic is downstairs. He sings and does a little guitar, and I play drums, which leaves bass and guitar up to you two. If you suffice, that is." He winked while saying this before pushing open a door at the back of the kitchen.

Tony and I followed Mike down the crowded stairway and into a dark, unfinished basement. There was an old tan couch against one wall, a shiny red drum set in the opposite corner, and several guitars hung on the wall. Besides a rug and various beer cans scattered around the floor, there was nothing else in the room.

I remember seeing a long-haired figure kneeling on the floor, shuffling through some papers. Mike approached the boy as Tony and I stepped down into the room.

"They're here!" the younger-looking man ruffled the other boy's hair. I invited myself to sit on the couch while Tony stood awkwardly in the corner.

"Hey guys, how's it going?" the brown-haired boy stood up and grinned. "I'm Vic, I sing in our little band."

I stood up and shook Vic's hand. "I'm Jaime, that's Tony," I pointed at the boy standing in the corner. He smiled shyly and walked over to join us.

"So, uh, I guess we should get started," Vic said, clapping his hands together. He then began explaining the band's short past.

"Mike and I have been doing it all ourselves for a little over a year now. We threw together a full-length, it took a bit of time but we're happy with how it turned out. One of our songs was actually featured in a video game. Hey Mike, why don't you put that song on so they can listen?"

Mike nodded and pulled an iPod out of his pocket, circling his finger around the center to scroll through the songs. He clicked a button and the song began playing.

I payed close attention to the vocals, getting lost in the deafening screams and perfectly-pitched harmonies. All I remember thinking was, "this guy has talent." The song sounded amazing and by the time it was over, I found myself wanting to hear more.

"That was great, really," I tried not to sound too desperate to join the band - although I was as desperate as they come.

"Thanks man, it means a lot. We really put a lot into what we do." Vic patted my shoulder with a smile.

I looked over at Tony who had a big goofy grin plastered across his face. "What'd you think, Tone?" I chuckled and he snapped back into reality.

"Oh, uh, it was good, you guys are really good," Tony said, tugging at his earlobe. He was always such a nervous person, especially back then.

Mike smiled and looked at Vic with a nod. Vic nodded back before turning to the guitars that hung on the wall.

"Now you guys get to show us what you got!" he said, taking a guitar and a bass off of the wall.

I smiled and took the bass out of his hand, Tony taking the guitar. Vic plugged them into an amplifier that was hidden behind the couch. We both decided to sit on the couch while the two brothers told us what to play.

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The audition ended up going great. The boys seemed very impressed most of the time, but they were obviously trying to hide it. After about an hour had passed they told us that they didn't need to hear anything else and we were all set to go. They promised to get back to us the next day and let us know if we were in or not.

Of course, the news reached us that we had been chosen to be in their band. Tony and I jumped up and down in excitement around the small apartment that we shared. After lots of excitement and celebrating, we met up with the brothers at a cafe to have lunch.