by Sammie J
Monica turned around in her seat and asked, “If you want to leave, we can go somewhere else or I will take you home. Lara can be such a bitch at times.”
I let out a breath, “Yes she can.”
Monica remains quiet but I know her well and she wants to say something to me, probably something that I don’t want to hear at this point or something that will bring me back to my senses. She turns her head to look out the car window, “You know at some point you will bump into Jacob and at least tonight you can ignore him. You know the pub will be packed and the music will be loud.”
I let that sink in for a couple of minutes and decided she was right, making up my mind to be a big girl about this I told her, “Okay let’s do this.”
I put Jacob to the very far recesses of my mind, and get out the car. I waited for Monica to get out and hooked my arm under hers as we walked to the pub. I put on a fake smile as my nerves have kicked in and I try to keep down the bile that has risen in my throat, I can do this, Jacob means nothing to me. I tell myself and I follow Monica in.
Noticing my unease and probably the shaking in my hand, Monica leans closer and whispers in my ear, “If you want, I could always beat the shit out of him and that would make your evening Jacob free.”
I look at my grinning friend and let out a laugh.
Chapter 2 (PEPPA)
As we walk into the pub, I notice that the place is packed and we actually have to fight our way to the bar. Finally, I manage to squeeze in-between two men who both look me up and down and smile at me. I smile back not really seeing them. After a few seconds, Monica manages to push her way in too.
I actually have to shout to make myself heard, “Wow, this must be some band. I’ve never seen the pub this full!”
Monica nods her agreement and we both wait to get the attention of the bartender. I find myself tapping my fingers on the counter with impatience but once he looks in our direction we start gesticulating like traffic cops to get his attention and laugh as we look at each other. I really need a drink to steady my nerves. I take a look around to see if I know anyone and at the far end of the bar I spot Jacob, who has a red head draped all over him. I was right, I wasn’t ready for this, well not completely, my heart wasn’t breaking but it didn’t feel right to see him with someone else either.
I move my eyes away determined not to cause myself anymore pain than strictly necessary. I continue browsing at the crowd. I recognize some of the faces and then I spot Noah, who is talking to Lara, she looks over and finger waves at me causing Noah to turn and smile at me. I was really tempted to flip her the bird but thought better of it.
My eyes travel back to Jacob who is now looking right at me, his black hair is shorter than I remember and his blue eyes light up as the red head whispers something in his ear and he laughs. I hate admitting that he looks really good. I realize that what I in fact do feel is a little hurt for what could have been but I can't help feeling sorry for the red head if she believes that she will have a happily ever after. The poor woman has no idea what she has let herself in for.
The bartender finally spots us and I can’t help the laugh that explodes out of my mouth as I look at Monica who is jumping up and down gesticulating like crazy to get his attention. Finally, he makes his way to where we are standing and he blocks my view of Jacob, which I am grateful for.
I turn to Monica, “I'm going to get a double vodka. Do you want the same?”
Her head moves from side to side, “I'm driving so I will have one beer, then I will stick to soft drinks for the rest of the night. Someone has to be responsible this evening, and besides, if I do get to beat up the little shit at the other end of the bar I want to remember every single detail.”
She makes me smile with that comment and I pull her in closer for a side hug to show her how much I appreciate her.
I tell the bartender what I want and he doesn't take long to fulfil my order. I thank all the saints I can think of for that, and I quickly down the double vodka.
Monica laughs, “You really needed that then?”
I smile at Monica, “Oh yes, I needed that and more.”
I’m distracted from getting another drink by the commotion that is coming from up front and then I hear some clapping, and then all of a sudden, I hear screaming. I try to look around the people in front of me but I can't see anything. Now I was really curious about this band, they must be good if they warrant all this screaming.
Even though I can’t yet see a thing, a voice, which I know to be Noah's, comes over the microphone.
“Thanks everyone for coming tonight to see this brand new band. If you haven't heard yet, they will be signed to the Devil record label for two years. You will be hearing a lot from these lads, so get ready for the phenomenon that is Viper.”
There is more clapping and Monica grabs my elbow and pushes everyone out the way to get nearer to the front. Taking advantage of a break in the crowd, she forces her way in to get that spot. I watch as three men exit from a door at the far side of the room and then the screaming starts all over again. The stage has been set up with a drum kit, and there is a guitar in a stand and a microphone stand with a bass guitar leaning against it. The men each take their places and I was feeling slightly frustrated at not being able to really see their faces because their long hair covered them like a veil. I can hear the microphone kick in as it screeches at us and one of the men bends down and picks the bass guitar up. You know the other guitar player has picked his up because when he puts it over his head his fingers strum a few chords and then my eyes fall onto the drummer who sits and starts to take off his top.
My eyes widen and I know I am not the only one to have noticed as Monica screams in my ear, “OMG! Peppa are you seeing what I am? Look at those muscles!”
I turn my head slightly and raise my voice as I say, “Oh yes I'm looking. Wow he is...ERM I'm speechless.” I can't take my eyes off him. If I thought Noah oozed sex this man screams it.
The singer starts to speak but my attention is still being held by the drummer.
“Thanks everyone for coming to watch us play, I'm Cruz. Over on the guitar we have Saul and my man at the back is Juan.” Another scream goes up. “I hope you like our sound and will follow us on our journey.”
Monica shouts in my ear, “Oh boy this group is going to be big, Peppa I think I'm in love.”
I nod my head because my eyes are still on Juan as he brings his drumsticks down and starts to play a beat.
Cruz starts to sing, his voice is soulful but has that raw edge to it you can't help but get lost in the words he sings. Then he starts to play his guitar and a deep sound hits you and the rhythm is set for the song. Monica shouts at me again.
“I wonder what Cruz is hiding under his T-shirt? His voice is sending shivers down my spine. Can I be in love with all three of them?”
I giggle. She is right about one thing, Cruz's voice is also sending shivers down my spine and also making the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
The one called Saul now kicks in with his guitar and it has a scratchy yet twangy sound, but with the three of them playing and singing together I knew there and then that this band will be big. If there is one thing I can say for Jacob, he knows his music and will hit it big with this band.
I take a look over to where Jacob is standing; the red head is now dancing beside him her breasts doing a dance of their own. Jacob is watching me watch him and I feel myself blush. It's one of those moments where you get caught and think, “Damn.” So I quickly look away and turn back to watch Viper.
My eyes are once again mesmerized by Juan and the way his body moves. His hair hangs in his face and I try to make out what the tattoo is on his torso but I can't make it out. He looks up and looks out at the crowd and starts singing to the song. I stand there silently chanting to myself, please look at me, I’m here, look at me, but he puts his head back down. When they are finished, a big roar goes up in the room and they stand and take a bow and wave as they e
xit the stage. They are then lost in the crowd. One good thing is, I can now get to the bar, so I take Monica's hand and lead her over to get another drink.
I turn to Monica, “Do you want a coke?” She nods a yes. I lean over to get the bartenders attention and it seems to work as he quickly comes over. I notice he isn't looking at my face, he's looking at my breasts and I look down to see them spilling out my top nearly showing a nipple so I quickly adjust myself.
I feel the heat rise in my cheeks but I'm not going to let it fluster me, “A double vodka and a coke please.”
I can see Monica looking over to where the crowd has gathered and see that she is desperate to go over. I hand over her coke and nod towards the crowd, “You're dying to go over, so go.”
“Are you sure? Come with me.”
I shake my head from side to side, “No it's okay, I don't feel comfortable going over there. You go and I will wait here.”
She looks at me and I know she is going to say she will stay with me so I nudge her, “Go on.” She gives me a big smile and says okay as I watch her walk off into the crowd. I turn back to face the bar and down my much needed second Vodka and ask for another.
I feel a brush against my arm and turn my head to see Noah standing there with a big smile on his face. He leans into me and says, “Are you not coming over to join the rest of the gang?”
“No I'm fine where I am thank you.” And I carry on drinking hoping he will go away, but no such luck.
“So what did you think of the band?”
I turn to face him, “They were very good.” He starts to look me up and down and it's beginning to annoy me because I know what’s coming next. I roll my eyes at him and say, “What are you looking at Noah?”
His smile gets bigger, “I'm wondering what underwear you have on.”
“Sod off!” And I turn back to the bar, pick up my drink and take a sip. Noah also turns to the bar and asks for two more double vodkas and places one in front of me.
“Why do you hate me Peppa?”
“Hate is such a strong word Noah, I don't hate you, I dislike you.”
“Same thing in my book, I, for the life of me can't remember what I did for you to feel that way about me. Care to tell me why.”
I look at him a little shocked, “Why ask me now? We have been like this with each other for years, and just because you saw me half naked a while back doesn't change anything.”
He shrugs, “A lovely sight that was too, and I want to know.”
My excuse is that I had a few vodka's and was feeling brave so I sigh, “You really want to know?”
He leans into me again and nods, “Yes, I really want to know.”
“You won't remember it was years ago.”
He shrugs his shoulders, “Try me.”
I take another sip of my drink, as I know what I'm about to say is going to sound very childish and when I think about it, it seems silly to hold such a grudge all these years, but at the time it hurt. I take a deep breath and let it out.
“Do you remember the time when we all went to the beach for Lara's fourteenth birthday?” He nods “We started playing truth or dare and it was my turn and I chose a dare. Lara dared me to kiss you. So I kissed you...”
“Shit, I pulled your bikini top off didn't I?”
“Yes you did, you pushed me away and your hand caught on my top and when we both jerked away from each other my top came off and my breasts were exposed to everyone which caused them all to laugh at me, including you.”
He laughs and I feel the warmth of a blush spread across my face. I get angry at myself for reliving the feeling at being laughed at again. So I turn back to the bar and ask for another drink.
“I was sixteen Peppa and you made me look stupid in front of my friends by kissing me.”
My hands ball into fists as I really want to punch him, but through clenched teeth I say, “I was fourteen Noah and in love with you. You not only pushed me away, but also embarrassed me in front of everyone. I decided from that day I would never talk to you again.”
He looks at me and one of his eyebrows rises, “You were in love with me?”
I could have banged my head on the bar as I think to myself, did he really need to know you were in love with him you silly cow. I look back up at him and he stands there staring at me wide-eyed and there is an awkward silence between us.
Noah breaks it by saying, “Peppa look, I'm sorry, it was a stupid thing that happened a long time...” He doesn't get to finish what he was saying as a voice from over my shoulder interrupts him.
“Sorry to interrupt Noah, we are off now, so I wanted to say thanks for tonight. It went well and Cruz wanted me to tell you he will be in touch.”
I turn and look up and up into 6 foot 2 inches of pure hotness and my mouth dries up and goes slack. My body quivers at his nearness. I notice that he now has a T-shirt on with the band’s name across the front. As he looks at me I am swept away into the deepest darkest bluest eyes I have ever seen. He smiles at me and puts his hand out, “Hi, I'm Juan Cassidy.”
I reach for his hand and shake it, my mouth opens and closes to tell him my name but nothing comes out. Juan moves his hand away and raises it to run it through his long black hair, which I notice has red streaks in it. I take in his features from his pointed nose to his cupid lips and high cheek bones and oh boy those lips, he is one hot piece of ass.
Noah's voice brings me back into the room as images of kissing Juan vanish from my mind. “I guess Peppa here is dumbstruck from meeting a rising star. Thank Cruz and Saul for me and tell Cruz I will wait for his call.”
They shake hands and out of nowhere a rush of people come up behind them and I'm suddenly pushed up to the bar counter, my body squashed on either side by Noah and Juan. My hands instantly come up to protect myself from being crushed and one hand rests on each of their chests.
Something happens in that moment, an inexplicable surge of power flows between the three of us. It feels like I have been hit by lightning and my whole body flows with electricity and comes alive. The energy that it gives off causes my body to shiver with pure pleasure. I look down at myself I can feel my whole body pulsating and then the heat hits me. I look up at Juan and Noah to see if they felt it too as they are both looking down at themselves with frowns on their faces.
Then they both look up at me and the expression I see on their faces must be the same one that is stamped on my face too as we all mouth, “What the hell is going on?”
Chapter 3 (JUAN)
I look over at Cruz, who is taking a swig of the beer he has in his hand, and shake my head in disgust. “Tell me again why we are here in this shit hole of a pub? All you had to do was brainwash a big record company boss and we would be famous by now. Come on, look at this place.”
“Don't fucking start again Juan, we can't let on to the world what we are, so we have to start at the bottom and work our way up like the good little humans have to.”
I shake my head again, “Bullshit man! We could be rich and living the good life instead we are here, about to sign to a small time record company.”
Cruz stands and walks over to the door, “I'm not talking about this anymore. This is the way it has to be for now. I need to feed, so, I suggest if you two haven't already, you do it soon, there's only thirty minutes left before we go on stage.”
Saul stands and follows Cruz, as he walks past me he puts his hand on my shoulder, “You coming?”
I look up at my brother and shake my head, “No, I've already eaten.”
He gives me a nod of the head and then walks out the door and I'm left alone.
The air in this place is stifling and it doesn't help that I can smell and literally taste the warm bodies in the next room waiting to hear us sing. I pick up my sticks and tap the table with them. I know the song that we are preforming tonight by heart but I still go through the motions.
As I reach the end, out of nowhere my body suddenly jerks forward, it feels like I've been shoved hard
from behind and I lose my balance and manage to stop myself from falling on the floor. I drop one of my sticks, I bend over to pick it up and I feel the air suddenly change. I can feel the static electricity flowing around me, the energy it is giving off is amazing yet confusing and the hairs on my arms and the back of my neck stand up. “What the hell,” I have never felt anything thing like this before and I stand and start pacing the floor. Cruz and Saul come back into the room and watch me with bemused faces.
“Can you feel that?” I say to them both.
Cruz opens his mouth to say something but a knock on the door takes his focus away from me. The door opens and Jacob pops his head in and announces, “There is a great crowd out there tonight, are you ready to show them what you’re made of?”
Cruz shouts out a, “Hell Yeah!” Saul nods his head and I want to get it over and done with and get out of this place, something doesn't feel right.
“Come on then lads, let's release Viper to the world.” Jacob sweeps his hands in a follow me motion and we do. He takes us through a small hallway and stops at a closed door. He turns to us and says, “Give it everything you have, go out there and blow them away.” And with that he opens the door and I take a step back as I’m hit by all the smells. Stale beer, cigarette smoke, unwashed bodies and blood all penetrate my nasal cavity, then the chattering starts in my head.
As I walk nearer to the stage, I feel the energy again but it's much stronger now. I nearly trip up when stepping onto the stage but manage to hold myself upright. I take a quick look around to make sure no one noticed. I make my way over to my drums and I'm hit full force with this static energy and my body shivers. I swear every hair on my body has come alive. I take a look around to see if I can see anything but nothing jumps out at me. I sit at the drums, take my T-shirt off and look out at the crowd.
