I stayed at my post outside the bar listening to more songs. As the evening went on, they began playing more and more original tunes. I looked down at my phone and realized I’d been sitting outside for about an hour. The show had to be over soon. It was time for me to go back inside and play supportive friend to Avery.
As I walked up to the front of the crowd, pushing people out of the way and giving dirty looks to anyone who argued, I noticed Jenny had also pushed herself to the front. She stared up at the stage with the same lovesick expression Avery did. Only her gaze was stuck to Rainier.
What was it about him that brought out such strong emotions in everyone? There wasn’t anything special about him. He was quiet, awkward, and not exactly the best looking guy in town. His eyes were set too far apart and were a dull brown shade. Not to mention those thick glasses. His hair had the same generic qualities, a boring dark color that was cut into a style that didn't do him any favors. At least it was covered underneath a baseball hat tonight.
The Band finished their set soon after I came back in and Avery found me. It wasn’t hard. I was standing pretty close to her after fighting my way through the crowd.
“Did you even listen to any of it?” she pouted even as she linked her arm in mine and steered us closer to the bar. It was slammed now with a long line of teens waiting to get drinks.
“Of course I did. I was feeling overheated and needed some space.” She scrutinized my face determining whether or not I was telling the truth. “Avery, you know how much I hate sweating.”
That much was true, and she knew it. “Fine. So, what did you think? Isn’t Carter amazing?”
“Yeah, he’s great. Why didn’t you tell me Rainier was in The Band?”
“Really?”
“You know how much I can’t stand him. It would have been nice to have a heads-up.”
“Well, consider this your heads-up.”
“A heads-up happens before the surprise.”
She rolled her eyes at me. “I really didn’t think it would matter. Besides, it’s not like Rainier’s actually part of the band. He’s just filling in for Cooper.”
“Thank goodness.”
“Seriously, Michelle. You need to chill with your grudge against him.”
“Maybe. Hey, are you ready to go?”
“They just finished.”
“I’m tired.”
“You really are unbelievable. Did you know that?”
“So is that a yes?”
A sigh escaped her lips before she pulled her keys out of her purse. “Here. Take my car. I’ll have Carter take me home later, and I’ll get a ride tomorrow to pick it up.”
I looked down at the keys she placed in my hands. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I can guarantee any inconvenience is better than listening to you mope. I’ll see you tomorrow,” Avery said before walking up to the stage and kissing Carter. I wanted to be happy for my friend, but the display made me uncomfortable.
I only stood there watching for a few seconds before I walked out and drove home in her piece of crap car.
Chapter Eight
Rainier
I knew Avery and Michelle were best friends. I might not be up to date on all the drama and inner workings of our small town, but considering Avery was a common sight at practice, I knew just enough about her social life.
Knowing what I did, I shouldn’t have been surprised to see Michelle at our show. That didn’t mean I had to be happy about it.
I hated that tonight, of all nights, was the one Michelle showed up to our gig. I’d loosened up the best I could while playing and felt like I was doing a damn good job too until my eyes found her sitting at the bar. It wouldn’t have been so bad if she wasn’t staring at me when I spotted her. I was sure she was having a field day tearing me apart, and I could feel my face burn just from the thought of it.
Thankfully, I didn’t have much time to dwell on Michelle before Jenny came up on the stage. I was still packing my equipment up when she walked over. I almost didn’t recognize her. Instead of the usual jeans and tee shirt combo I was used to seeing her in, she was wearing a dress that left so little to the imagination I wasn’t sure if I should be enjoying it or trying to avert my eyes.
It didn’t help that she was standing near me as I was kneeling on the ground putting my guitar in its case. I quickly jumped up before my eyes made any rash decisions for me and rubbed my hands on my jeans.
Looking at her face was just as jarring as the dress. She was wearing dark makeup, and her hair was different than usual. She looked…pretty. Different, but it was good.
“Hey, Rainier,” she said, and I swore even in the dark lighting I could see a blush across her cheeks.
“Hey,” I answered, unsure of what else to say.
“That was a great show.”
“Thanks.”
“You were amazing.”
“I’m too stiff.”
Laughter rang out from behind me. When I spun around to see what the fuss was all about, I couldn’t help but notice Matt was looking right at me while he cracked up. I thought about what I’d just said.
Oh, come on. That wasn’t even bad, but Matt could find a way to make anything sound dirty. I didn’t want to creep Jenny out by giving her the wrong impression, so I shot him a look before turning around.
“Anyway,” I said trying to ignore how awkward I felt. “I’m glad you could come out.”
“Yeah, me too.”
Conversation usually came easily between us, but this was downright painful. Our one words responses were the kind you gave someone you didn’t like or know that well. Even knowing I should say or do something to break the weird tension, I couldn’t.
I didn’t know what else to say, and Jenny didn’t add anything either. We stood there awkwardly until my parents walked up. My mom wasted no time pulling me into a hug that practically knocked the breath out of me. She ignored any ground rules I’d laid out for her before the show.
“Oh, we are so proud of you,” my mom said still hugging me. She was rocking our bodies back and forth wildly. I was sure it would catch the attention of everyone in the bar, and I tried to slow her movements.
Of course, Owen chose that moment to walk by and laughed. It wasn’t the lighthearted teasing I’d just gotten from Matt. This was much more sadistic. I might be the weird homeschool kid who didn’t always pick up on social cues, but I still knew he got off on making fun of me.
Mercifully, my dad intervened. “Ok, Maggie. Let the boy go. He’s nineteen, and he doesn’t need his mother hugging him like he’s five.” My mom reluctantly released me and I turned to face my dad. “You really were great, son,” he continued and shook my hand.
“Thanks, Dad.”
Jenny turned to walk away, but my mother called after her before she got far. “Who’s your friend, Rainier?” she asked.
“Mom, this is Jenny. Jenny, my mom.”
“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Thompson.”
“You work with Rainier, don’t you? We've heard so much about you.”
At this, Jenny’s smile grew wide. She gave me a quick glance before answering my mom. “Yes, ma’am.”
They exchanged comments about the show for a few minutes while I wished I was anywhere but there. Being on stage made me feel vulnerable and having my parents and Jenny fawning over me when I was the weakest member of the band made me even more uncomfortable.
Eventually, my mom brought me back into the conversation. “We really are so proud of you. Maybe we can do ice cream or dinner sometime this week to celebrate our rock star.”
I felt my face heat up, but smiled tightly and nodded. Ice cream for the rock star. I doubted Mick Jagger ever went to ice cream with his parents to celebrate a show. I pictured the giant red tongue associated with The Rolling Stones with a giant cone of soft-serve.
“Jenny, why don’t you join us? I’m sure Rainier can text you when we come up with some plans,” my dad said.
“That sounds
great,” she answered before I could say anything. Not only were my parents so weird, but now they were dragging Jenny into it. How embarrassing.
“Then it's settled,” my dad said, shaking her hand. He turned to me and told me he'd see me back at the house before walking off hand-in-hand with my mom.
I spent the next several minutes trying to convince Jenny she didn’t have to come, that my parents were just super supportive. She insisted they were sweet and that she couldn’t wait before leaving. I didn't have many friends, and the support she showed by coming meant a lot.
“Does Weiner want some ice cweam?” a high-pitched voice said from beside me. I just wanted to pack my things up and go home, because like Jenny, I was tired from a long day. I didn’t want to deal with Owen and his attitude. If he hated me so much, why did he agree to have me play as part of the band?
I certainly wasn’t in the mood to deal with his crap tonight. “What do you want, Owen?”
“Nothing. I just think it’s adorable your parents take you to ice cream to celebrate your temporary position in The Band.”
“Oh, yeah? Well, I think it’s adorable that someone who is as into rock and roll as you claim to be didn’t realize there’s already a band called The Band. I bet every time we have a show; all the real music lovers are laughing their asses off at us.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, the confidence that was always evident in his expressions faded.
“Look ‘em up,” I said, and went back to putting my cords away.
There were better ways to address the name. Owen was volatile, and I never knew what would set him off. I’d been working up the courage to say something to Matt for the last couple weeks because even though I wasn’t a long-term part of the band, I was still embarrassed every time Owen announced our name before a show.
Everyone thought the name was so clever, and that just showed how little the group actually knew about classic rock. How could they act like they were the next big thing if they didn’t know their history?
Tap, tap, tap.
So, yeah, I needed to say something. I only wished I would have gone about it differently. I packed the rest of my things and got out of Wild Bill’s as fast as possible.
Chapter Nine
Michelle
Aves: Carter is bringing me by soon for my car.
My phone had been buzzing nonstop all morning, but I had no desire to get out of bed. This summer was the worst. I was so frustrated, and I just wanted to sleep my days away.
I didn’t hate my job at Between The Pages as much as I thought I would, but I didn’t like Rainier and his attitude. He thought he was so much better than me and it irritated me to no end.
And Avery and I had been fighting off and on more than we ever had. I knew part of it was I was still pissed about missing out on Mexico. Feeling like the third wheel to Carter and her didn’t help either. She’d messaged me several times asking if I was going to come by. She wanted to know how she was going to get her car. I’d been ignoring them until I saw she was on her way.
Me: I just woke up.
Aves: So, what? Are you working today?
Me: Tonight.
Aves: Then I’ll see you soon.
I got out of bed and brushed my teeth and put my bathing suit on. Avery would want to swim with me, and we could work through some of the issues that had been brewing between the two of us. My skin that had been bright red the week before had turned into a dark tan. I’d been worried about peeling, which was worse than being pale or burnt. The idea of flaking skin everywhere grossed me out.
Thankfully, there was Italian somewhere in my family tree that meant I usually just got darker. Genetics mixed with a strict routine of covering my skin with emu oil meant I was ready for another pool day. I just needed to make sure I didn’t fight with Avery and fall asleep again.
I played around on my phone while I waited for her. My dad was working at one of his companies today, which meant I had the house to myself. I saw a few people post pictures from the show last night.
How Owen could manage to look sleazy even in a picture was beyond me. I couldn’t figure out everyone’s obsession with the guy. Carter was looking down in nearly every picture I saw. Matt was hidden in the back behind everyone and his drum set. I saw his face in a few shots, but it was mostly blurry.
I spotted Rainier in some of the shots. Even in pictures, he stood out. Everyone on the group looked relaxed, comfortable. He looked tense. There was even a picture of him scowling. I wondered if someone captured the moment we locked eyes at the show. I smiled at the thought of that expression being saved forever on some fangirl’s feed.
“Hey, what are you looking at?” Aves said from behind the couch I was sitting on. I hadn’t heard her come in and I quickly turned off the screen and put it facedown beside me.
“Nothing.”
“Was that Rainier?”
“No, just some pictures from the show last night. Well, he was in that one. So I guess technically I was looking at him. But I wasn’t like, looking at him.” Yikes, when did I turn into a bumbling idiot?
“You were smiling.”
“He looked upset. So yes, I get a level of enjoyment from that.”
“Okay,” she said with a knowing smile that I didn’t like.
“Aves, it’s nothing.”
“Okay,” she repeated. “But since we’re already talking about nothing, I spoke to Carter this morning. I guess your boy pissed Owen off pretty good last night.”
“He’s not my boy,” I mumbled.
“Of course not. Did you know there was already a band called The Band?”
“You mean they’re not the only guys who thought it was awesomely ironic?”
“Nope,” she said, her smile still huge. “Apparently, Rainier is the one who told Owen. He was so mad.”
“Owen’s a dick.”
“Yeah, I know. But I guess they’re looking for a new band name and are having a contest to see who can come up with their new name.”
“Oh, yeah? What’s the prize?”
Avery’s face scrunched up. “What do you mean?”
“If it’s a contest, shouldn’t there be a prize for the winner?”
“I think being able to say you named the band is the prize.”
I laughed. “Oh, yeah, because everyone's dream is to name some crappy garage band from River Valley.” I clasped my hands together and smiled.
“The same crappy band you were stalking when I came in, you mean?”
My smile fell. “Whatever. Where’s Carter?”
“They had practice this morning, so he left as soon as he dropped me off.”
“Want to swim? You can borrow one of my suits,” I asked changing the subject. One of the advantages of being almost the same size as my best friend was we could share most of our clothing.
She agreed, and we spent the next hour or so swimming while not talking about The Band, or their contest to rename them, or Rainier. Avery was pretty good about keeping the talk of Carter to a minimum too, which was awesome.
She did manage to finally catch me up with the details of her trip to Mexico.
Avery had ended up taking her cousin Zoey. She didn’t live in River Valley but met her down there for the week. They’d had a great time, drank a bunch of frozen drinks on the beach, and worked on their tans. There were some hotties, but Avery only had eyes for Carter. Barf.
As she went on and on, I realized I wasn’t nearly as pissed as I’d been a couple of weeks ago. I wasn’t thrilled to be spending my summer indoors at nerd-central, but I wasn’t going to die either. I’d been holding that trip against her and just had an epiphany that maybe that wasn’t fair.
“Oh, Michelle,” she said when I didn’t immediately add anything of my own. “Please don’t be jealous. It was fun, and I couldn’t wait to tell you, but that doesn’t mean we can’t try again next year.”
“I’m okay, and you’re right. We can try again.”
�
��Really?”
“Yes, really. Don’t sound so shocked. I told you, Between The Pages hasn’t been that bad.” I regretted the words the second they left my mouth. Avery would interpret that to mean Between The Pages isn’t so bad because I get to watch Rainier shelve books all day.
Because that totally compared to a trip to Mexico.
“Well, I should probably get going soon since you work tonight,” she said, completely ignoring the opportunity to rub it in my face. Why wasn’t she rubbing it in my face?
“Hey, aren’t you going to make some comment about why I’m enjoying work?”
“Should I?” she asked getting out of the pool and wrapping her body in a towel.
“No, I just thought you would jump all over that.”
“Looks like I didn’t need to.” She stopped and winked at me. “But, hey, you should consider trying to come up with a name. You’re so good at that kind of thing, and it’s only this week until the next teen night.”
My mind went through all the different rain jokes I’d googled before our latest shift together. Rainier hadn’t been amused, but now I wanted to think of the best pun or joke I could use so that I could stick it to him. I could just imagine the look on his face when I told him it was me that came up with the name of the band he’d be playing with all summer.
“Anyway, Michelle, I’ll catch you later, okay?”
“Yeah, yeah,” I answered wrapping up in my towel barely paying attention. I had one week to come up with the best possible name, and I wasn’t about to waste any time.
I went inside and got cleaned up. I took a shower, did my hair and sat down on my bed. My dad still wasn’t home, and I had the day off. That gave me plenty of time.
Mount Rainier, Rainier cherries, Rainy weather. There were so many directions to go in. Narrowing it down would be my biggest struggle.
All The Things We Were Page 5
