Page 18 of Tangled Weeds

“Wait right here and I’ll go see where they want us,” Tanner said, and walked inside through the big roll-up door. The sound of music could be heard in the background, far off and disjointed.

“They must be practicing,” Jeremy said and tipped his ear toward the sound just as Tanner walked back out to us.

“They’re just finishing. We can take it all in and set up now so we’re ready to go. They also made sure we get an hour to do a soundcheck and work out any equipment issues before its time to play,” Tanner said.

“Great, I was hoping we didn’t just have to set up and play. Thanks, Tanner,” Jeremy said, and we all grabbed as much as we could carry and followed him back into the building. As soon as we entered it was pitch black, lit only by neon lights placed just far enough apart to lead you down a long hall that opened up just to the side of the stage.

“Whoa, this is bigger than I expected it to be,” I said to Tanner. Even though I was nervous, I was also so freaking excited to play it and see how everyone liked us.

“Go ahead and start setting up, I’ll go speak to Blinding Light’s management and see if there’s anything else we need to do before you play,” Tanner said and hurried off to the backstage area.

Jayne dashed over to the elevated stage for the drummer and examined their setup before putting her own equipment directly in front of it. “Someday I’ll be drumming with the headliner not the warm-up band,” she said, more to herself than any of us.

“Mateo, where did you want to play?” I asked, and figured I’d go to the opposite side of the stage. Jeremy took the center with Jayne right behind him. It took us close to an hour to be ready to go and then we checked the sound and thankfully it was all good.

“Hey, guys, you can do a quick run-through of your playlist if you want, but they’ll be opening the door in about forty-five minutes. So, if you’re hungry or need the bathroom, don’t wait until the last minute,” Tanner said as he walked back out to the stage. We started to play our first set, and he watched each of us with a critical eye, but overall seemed happy with what he heard. When we were all happy, we unplugged and stood there, not really sure where to go. “Come on, I’ll introduce you to Blinding Light.”

Jayne’s eyes widened and we followed Tanner behind the stage to a room where a big group of people had gathered. There was food and drinks laid out on a table and music played while everyone chatted. The mood was light and fun and so different than the chaos I was used to. “Easy, this is Anchor Grey,” he said and introduced each of us.

A guy I knew was the guitar player walked over and leaned into Easy, who slung his arm around his back and pulled him close. “Are you guys from around here?” Liam, the guitar player, asked.

“No, we’re from Sacramento too, but we’re really just starting,” Jeremy said.

“So are we,” Easy said and laughed at his own joke. “You guys are going to do great tonight.” I glanced around the room while they spoke and then I saw him. The drummer who was filling in for their regular guy. He had on a leather vest with no shirt, and black pants that were painted on showing off his beefy thighs and flat stomach.

“Fuck me,” I mumbled, and hoped no one had heard just as Jayne narrowed her eyes at me. I shook my head and went back to listening to what everyone was saying while trying to sneak a peek at the new guy.

“I heard you guys had to dump two of your members earlier this week,” Liam said.

“Yeah, they were showing up drunk or hungover and we decided enough was enough. I’d rather not be in a band if it’s going to be a constant battle,” I said, and didn’t worry about who heard it.

“We’ve had our share of that through the years, but now we’re all serious about it and want the band to succeed,” Easy said. I was surprised how friendly he was being. Through the years I’d heard many rumors about him being difficult, but he was morethan friendly to us, and his boyfriend too. They both seemed very happy to answer any questions we had, and once we started talking there were many.

“How do you think the sound will be tonight?” Mateo asked. “I’ve heard this place can be a little loud, but not really in a good way.”

“Our sound engineers dialed it in to tone the echo down. This place wasn’t really built for loud music, but it’s a big venue and they can still let the girls dance in the other part of the club,” Easy said.

Mateo and Jeremy looked at each other with a grin before Jayne punched Jeremy in the arm. “Hey, if you’re going to the club I want to go to,” she said surprising us all. “What? There’re some hot girls who work here.”

Jeremy laughed while rubbing his arm. “Okay, everyone, we have about ten minutes until they open the doors. That gives you about forty-five minutes until you take the stage. Are you all ready?” someone who had headphones with a microphone over his ear said as he walked over our group.

I looked between Mateo, Jeremy, and Jayne before answering him. “We’re ready.” I hoped this time we really were.

Seventeen

Devon

Iwatched as Easy and Liam spoke to the warm-up band, they all looked so nervous, but the longer they chatted, the more they seemed to relax. The singer met my eyes, and it was all I could do to tear my eyes away from him. He was a little older than me, I only knew that because I’d been researching them on the drive here. Johnny Brown was thirty years old and had beenplaying in numerous bands since he was a teenager. He had long blond hair that he let down while they were performing and the warmest brown eyes I’d ever seen.

Through the years he’d gone from singer to singing and playing guitar, but I’d learned today he knew how to play most instruments and didn’t mind filling in when needed. Their band, Anchor Grey, had only been together around a year, but they had so far replaced everyone except Johnny and the bass player. The girl was new, but I also knew she was a studio musician who had a good reputation on her own. His eyes met mine again and I found it hard to look away.

“Of fucking course, I see the hottest guy I’ve ever seen the first night I’m playing with the biggest band I’ve ever played with,” I mumbled to no one but myself.

“What was that?” Rory asked as he and Kai walked over to where I was still trying to catch a peek at Johnny Brown.

“Nothing,” I said and looked away. “Just ready to go play.” Kai grinned at me, and I would have sworn he had heard me and was amused. They led us to the food and drink area and said we were welcome to anything, but my stomach was a little iffy and I didn’t want to find out the hard way that I was like Rory and needed to puke before a show. Although he looked pretty calm right now.

“Hey, so you’re the drummer huh?” the drummer from Anchor Grey asked and I strained to remember her name.

---