Only The Beginning (Rockin' Country)

by Briscoe, Laramie

  “Yeah, they just talked about it on the radio. They said he put a picture up from the menu to the diner and everybody figured out where they are tonight. They’re starting to line up,” she explained as she sat at the counter, reading the magazine the two of them had bought at the grocery. “So, tell me…how was it?”

  “Different from what I’m used to. He’s a nice guy though—he’s sending over backstage passes for me tonight and a shirt to wear. I’m kinda nervous, but I’m excited at the same time.”

  Shell looked at her friend. There was a glow there that hadn’t been there in a while. Since an asshole had taken the light out of her. “Just be careful, Hannah. I don’t want to see you hurt again.”

  “I’m trying to take this slow, but there’s just something about him. He makes me feel like everything is gonna be alright.”

  “Just tell me that you’re going into this with your eyes wide open. His lifestyle, his music, his whole being is completely different than yours,” Shell cautioned.

  “I know,” Hannah nodded. “Maybe that’s what I like about it. That my whole life won’t be tied up with his because we don’t live in the same city and because he doesn’t do the same music as me. I won’t have to worry if we decide to stop seeing each other that I’ll see him every time I go down to Broadway.”

  Both of them knew that she was referencing her relationship that had ended badly over a year ago. It was still a sore subject with Hannah, and she, for the most part, refused to speak of it. Shell still wasn’t exactly sure what had transpired—only knew that it had caused an ache so deeply in her friend that it had taken her spark away. That spark was back now, and she would help her do anything to keep it there.

  The doorbell rang and Shell moved to answer it. “Want me to get it?”

  “If you want to. You know you don’t have to do everything for me.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Shell shook her head as she answered the door. “Can I help you?” she asked the courier on the doorstep.

  “I have a package here for Harmony from Reaper.”

  “Yeah, I’m Harmony’s assistant. I’ll sign for it.”

  Within moments the package was in the kitchen and on the counter.

  “I’m nervous to open it,” Hannah admitted as she looked at it. She had her thumb in her mouth, worrying her nail with the sharp edges of her teeth.

  Shell giggled. “Why? You afraid it’s gonna bite you?”

  “No, but it’s like if I accept this gift from him and go to this show, it moves everything along.”

  “Well that’s what you want right?”

  “I just don’t want to get in too deep, too fast.”

  “Hannah,” Shell shook her head. “He’s leaving tonight or tomorrow, and by then you’ll know if you want it to continue or not, but you have got to start living your life again. Why not start here and now? If you don’t want to wear whatever this is, you don’t have to. If you don’t want to go to this show tonight, you don’t have to.”

  Hannah knew that her friend was right, but her hands still shook as she opened the package. Inside lay a couple of backstage passes and a black shirt. On the front was a picture of Garrett’s face with the words ‘Reaper’s Girl’ below it. The back was shredded so that whatever was worn underneath could be seen.

  “That’s sexy,” Shell giggled. “I can’t wait to see you, of all people, wear that.”

  Included were a pair of sunglasses that matched the ones Garrett wore on stage. “Are you making fun of me?” Hannah asked.

  “No, I’m just saying modest little ole Hannah is gonna have a hard time wearing something where her bra can be seen, and I can’t wait to see how you pull this off.”

  Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, Hannah mumbled. “He did say he was going to have fun corrupting me.”

  Shell slapped her hand on the counter and laughed loudly. “Oh dear God, this is going to be so much fun to watch.”

  Chapter Four

  * * *

  Hannah turned this way and that in the mirror. “Do you think I look okay?” she asked Shell, her mouth screwed in a frown.

  “You look great, girlfriend. Seriously. I didn’t think you would be able to make yourself look like you belong with the Black Friday crowd, but you did.”

  Instead of smiling, Hannah looked at herself critically again. Her eyes took in the black leather leggings coupled with a pair of stiletto boots. The shirt Garrett had given to her was now on her body, a hot pink tank top underneath. When she moved a certain way, it gave soft glimpses and it covered everything along the shredded back.

  “Are you sure this tank top isn’t too bright?” she bit her lip.

  “I know you’re worried about this, but trust me. You look smoking’. I like what you did with your eyes and your hair,” Shell complimented.

  Finally a smile appeared on Hannah’s face. “Really? It’s way darker than I’m used to. I don’t think I’ve ever worn this much eye liner in my life, even on stage. But I have to admit, it’s really fun.”

  “I like the way it makes your eyes pop. That and your hair being super curly make you look like a completely different person.”

  She worried her lip between her teeth again. “I hope he still likes me like this. Ya know? Maybe he only likes good girls he wants to corrupt.”

  Shell laughed. “Trust me, you’re still a goodie two shoes under all that makeup and hair product. That’s not going to change who you are on the inside.”

  Hannah blew out a breath. She knew those words were true, but it still worried her. This was so different than what she was used to. While it was nice to branch out, it was also nerve-wracking.

  “Don’t wait up for me,” she grinned at Shell as she grabbed her bag and walked out of the bedroom.

  “You better call or text me.”

  * * *

  Garrett’s leg shook frantically as he checked Twitter on his phone. He was more amped for this show than he normally was. He tried to tell himself it wasn’t because he hoped Hannah would be here. It wasn’t because he wanted to put on an amazing show for her. No, it wasn’t for any of those things at all.

  “You sure she’s coming man?” Jared, better known as Train, asked as he had a seat next to his friend.

  “She told me she was.”

  His insecurities were beginning to shout in his head though. Garrett wondered what the hell he was thinking inviting her to this show. There was no way she would fit in with all of these people, and while he loved their fans, those same fans would eat her alive. Still though, he hoped she would show up. Messing around on his phone, he saw a new alert. It was from Hannah’s Instagram, and he immediately clicked on the icon. There was a picture of her smiling face, her makeup much darker than normal, her hair a curly mass hanging around her face. He could see the top of the shirt that he knew read ‘Reaper’s Girl’ on it. The picture was captioned.

  On my way to @BlackFriday show! My first! Wish me luck!

  Immediately the feed filled with people questioning whether they were dating or not—wanting to know exactly what was going on between the two of them. How did they explain to these people that they were normal? They were two people who had admired one another, and now they had decided to get to know each other. Not for the first time, he cursed his celebrity status.

  “She’s on her way,” he told Jared. “Just posted a picture to her Instagram account and said she was coming to see us.”

  “That’ll be fun to read about after the show.”

  Garrett couldn’t help but laugh. “You know my mom’s probably gotten her Google alert that our name has been used by another celebrity and now she’s planning children. You should have seen the fucking text message she sent me after that picture of us showed up yesterday.”

  Jared grinned. Garrett’s mom had been on him for years to settle down and give her grandchildren with a nice girl. He was pretty sure the woman was probably picking out which spare bedroom in her house she would be turning into a nursery as the
y spoke.

  “I don’t envy you, man, but I do love your mom. When she gets something in her head, she goes for it. No stopping Marie Thompson.”

  Garrett reached over and slugged Jared in the arm.

  “Ouch, that’s my playing arm, fucker,” Jared groaned as he rubbed his bicep.

  “Whine a little more for me.”

  The two of them were just getting going when their tour manager, Rick, came in. “Garrett, they told me to let you know. Hannah’s here.”

  This was it. He would see if she could hang out at the rock show or not. If she couldn’t then there was no reason for them to continue a friendship. But if she could, he planned to see how far he could take it.

  * * *

  Backstage at concerts were all the same. People ran around doing this or that, trying to beat the clock for that moment when the artist would step out in front of the hordes of fans and give them the show of a lifetime. The only difference between this one and her concerts were the way the people looked. Most of her employees were very clean cut. Here, almost everyone wore a t-shirt with the arms cut off and had tattoos covering their arms. She had been directed to this corridor and told that Garrett would meet up with her here.

  She did what most everyone did when they didn’t want anyone to know they were nervous. She took her phone out and began going through the comments that had appeared underneath her post about being at this show. Hannah was surprised as most of them were positive and wished her luck. That was unexpected. With the two of them being part of two totally different worlds, she had expected some horribly bad comments. It appeared that she had been spared—this time anyway.

  “Hannah.”

  She glanced up as she heard her name and saw Garrett walking towards her. “Hey,” she smiled as she walked up to him. It wasn’t awkward at all as he put his arms around her. Instead, it felt right to put her own arms around his waist and squeeze tightly. “Thanks for inviting me.”

  “Thanks for coming. And thanks for wearing that shirt,” he grinned. “Turn around; I’m interested to see how you handled the back.”

  He really was hoping to corrupt her, she realized. “I think you’ll find that I have a pretty sharp mind.” She turned to let him see the rest of her outfit.

  “You are good,” he told her as he put his hand at her waist. “I do have to admit, I’m glad you’re not the type of woman to be showing her bra on the first date.”

  She couldn’t tell if he was joking or not, so she just chose not to comment. “Did you see all the comments I got on my Instagram? I know you follow me,” she teased.

  “I did. C’mon, let’s take a picture together and let me put it up. That way I can be popular too. Who knows, maybe I’ll be popular enough that someone by the name of Harmony will follow me,” his dimples were prominent as he grinned, teasing her.

  “Fine, I’ll follow you if you tag me in it.” She rolled her eyes.

  “You roll your eyes, but I know you do want to follow me.”

  “You’re so right. It will completely make my life,” she told him dryly.

  He pulled her close and posed with his head against hers, taking the picture quickly. “I didn’t realize you had such a sense of humor.”

  “I don’t get to be dry a lot of the time. People expect me to be perky, happy, almost cheerleader happy, Harmony all the time. Hannah though, Hannah is a little darker, a little more dry, but I’m usually a pretty happy woman. It’s not much of a stretch, but I have moments just like everyone else does,” she shrugged.

  “People seem to think we should always be on all the time, just because of what we chose to do for a living. I’m with you. Sometimes I can’t smile. Sometimes I’ve been up for almost two days straight and I haven’t had a shower and I just want to be alone.”

  “I hope this isn’t one of those times you’ve gone a few days without a shower,” she pulled back slightly from him.

  “Ha ha.”

  “Garrett, we’re going on.”

  He grabbed her hand and pulled her through the crowds and maze of people as they made their way to where they would take the stage. “I had hoped we would have a little bit more time together before the show, but it is what it is,” he said by way of apology as he put in his inner ear monitors.

  “Believe me, I understand. Is it okay if I stand back here?” she asked.

  “Very. I hope you enjoy,” he told her as he went out on stage.

  There were flames and flash bangs, and then there was the roar of the crowd. Above all of that, she heard the smooth tone of Garrett’s voice. “How the fuck you doin’ Nashville?” he asked the crowd. They answered him with loud screams. “I hope you’re ready to have a good time tonight.”

  Hannah observed the concert through the eyes of someone who did this for a living but also someone who loved to see other people perform. The band was a well-oiled machine. They knew what worked well for them, and they knew exactly how to play off one another to get the desired response from the audience. At some point, Garrett had taken his shirt off and thrown it into the audience. She realized he had more tattoos than she originally thought, but rather than turning her off like she figured would happen, she loved them. His skin was red and wet with the flush of heat from the lights of the stage making the tattoos stand out in sharp relief. Another thing she hadn’t anticipated was how muscular he really was. His biceps were huge, his ab muscles cut. Hannah knew almost immediately that she was way out of her league, and she wondered exactly how she was going to be able to keep up a friendship with this man. He was something completely different than what she was used to. In a moment of uncertainty, she texted those exact words to Shell.

  Almost immediately, Shell texted back. “Different can be good. You won’t know until you try.”

  Maybe her friend had a point, Hannah rationalized. You didn’t ever know anything until you gave it a shot.

  Lifting her head up and giving the stage her full attention, she noticed they had slowed things down and they all now sat on stools. A few members of the band had what looked like acoustic guitars in their hands. The melody was familiar as they started to play, and she had to smile. It was one of her favorite songs. She loved the tone of Garrett’s voice on this one. As he started to sing, he glanced over and saw her mouthing the words in the wings of the stage.

  “Would it be alright if a friend of mine came out to help?” he asked the crowd, over the sound of the guitars.

  They answered with another loud scream.

  “C’mon out Harmony Stewart. Show this crowd how a country girl can rock.”

  She took a deep breath as she stepped out there. This was either the best or worst idea she had ever had in her life.

  Chapter Five

  * * *

  Hannah walked out onto the stage, a smile plastered on her face. This was part of her persona, the ability to be cool under pressure. Never before had she relied on the Harmony part of her personality so heavily. This crowd, out of any she had performed for, made her nervous. She had been handed a mic before she’d walked out from the shadows. “How’s everybody doing?” Her voice seemed so small amongst this room, but she had performed at this arena numerous times, and there was no reason she should be feeling this way. She had sold it out the last time.

  “Give her a hand,” Garrett instructed the crowd.

  It was less enthusiastic than Black Friday’s welcome had been, but at least she didn’t hear any boos and that was something. She looked around, wondering if she was supposed to stand there or if there was another stool sitting somewhere. Just as she was about to ask, the guy she recognized as Train slapped Garrett on the arm.

  “Dude, you’re slippin’. You invite a beautiful woman out here on stage—wearing a ‘Reaper’s Girl’ shirt that I might add goes on sale next week at our webstore—and you don’t even give her a place to sit. Hang on sweetheart, I gotcha,” he said as he got up off his stool and walked over to the wings and grabbed another.

  The crowd booed
and yelled at Garrett. “Now, don’t turn on me,” he told them. “I wasn’t sure she’d accept my invitation.”

  “Likely story,” she said quietly in her own mic.

  The guys laughed along with the expressive crowd.

  “Wow, I see how it is now.” He rubbed his hand along his jean-clad thighs. “Invite a woman out to the show to try and impress her, and it’s ruined by not offering her a seat. I’ll have to remember that.”

  She could tell by the tone of his voice that he was teasing, but Hannah couldn’t help but respond. “I accept gifts as expressions of apology. Carnations are my favorite flower, and anything coconut will make me forgive you on the spot.”

  Train, who had brought the stool out and sat it next to his, clapped the empty spot. “C’mon and sit next to me. I know how to treat a woman.”

  Hannah giggled as she walked past Garrett and had a seat next to the other man. She crossed her legs and looked up at the guitar player. “Hopefully, he took notes from you,” she grinned.

  “Hopefully, he did…actually he always does. I’ve been getting him laid since 1997.” The crowd roared as Train held his arms up in a victorious gesture. “That’s really my claim to fame. Has nothing to do with this band.”

  Garrett cleared his throat. “If we’re done talking about me like I’m not here. The reason I invited Harmony out was for her to sing. So whatcha say? You want to sing with me?”

  An immediate blush covered her cheeks. She normally didn’t sing with other people, and this felt so intimate compared to anything she had ever done before. The truth, however, was that she wanted to. She wanted to sing with him badly. “I’d love to. As long as you continue with Lonely Road.” That was the song that had gotten her interested in the band. It sounded more country than rock, but the lyrics were so heartfelt that Black Friday fans loved it just the same.

  “Then that’s the one we’ll do,” he grinned. “As long as it’s okay with the kids,” he gestured to the audience.