Page 21 of For One Night Only

“Oh yeah. Cheap Trick. Get ready, ’cause you’re tenth on the list.” She pulls an eyeliner stick and a small tub of pomade out of her bag and hands them to me.

“No way, I’m not doing that,” I say, understandingexactlywhere she is going with this. Keeley always pushed me out of my comfort zone, and I used to love her for it when it got me out of my own head.

But this…this isn’t going to feel right. Not yet.

She raises her brows. “You need to get your stage presence back. The stakes could not be lower tonight. So go make yourself hot, and get up there.”

I turn to Riker for the usual backup, but he just shrugs, betraying me. “Keeley’s right. Go make yourself hot.”

Damn him for always going with the flow. I sigh but grab the supplies and head into the stuffy bathroom. Keeley has a remarkable memory—this is the Perversion eyeliner stick from Urban Decay, the exact shade I’d used once I could afford more than the cheap drugstore pencils. I inhale sharply, staring at my blank face in the mirror, my normal hair.

It’s the face I’m used to seeing.

Putting on the makeup feels oddly symbolic. Carefully, I line my eyes with Perversion, then smudge it with my pinky to cover up my shaky application. Once I’m satisfied that it doesn’t look terrible, I get my hair a little damp in the sink, then slowly, methodically, scrunch it with the pomade over the basin, defining my natural almost-curls.

Glancing up at myself, I freeze. My hair isn’t the same length I’d rock on tour, but I look like him again: Caleb Sloane, rock star. I didn’t realize how easily he’d return until he was staring back at me in the mirror.

Huh.

By the time I emerge, there’s an emcee introducing the next person on the stage—by the sash, it looks like a bride-to-be on the first leg of a bachelorette party singing an off-key but enthusiastic rendition of “Still Into You” by Paramore. A lot of Paramore fans were kind enough to like our stuff too, even though we entered the scene much later, and I wouldn’t dream of comparing us in any way—except to say we deeply admire their music. Still, we’ve shared space on plenty of playlists over the years.

Maybe the eyeliner was a mistake. If any of the people in the bride’s entourage are Glitterbugs and post this online, I might just go viral as planned. I’m not ready.

But I square my shoulders, steeling myself.

“There he is!” Keeley calls, and I hurry over, shading my face with my hand. “You sexy motherfucker.”

“This was a terrible idea,” I mutter.

“You look so good, holy shit,” Riker says. “It’s like you went in the bathroom as Teacher Caleb and came back as Heartthrob Caleb.”

“Maybeyoushould put on eyeliner and parade around onstage,” I say, trying to shove my shoulders down from where they’re hunched to my ears.

“Dude,pleaselet me record this,” Mary Kate says, pressing her palms together at her chin in a pleading gesture.

“Only if he’s comfortable,” Riker says instantly. I soften at his defense. Even though he invited MK here, Riker’s got my back, and I know Keeley does too. It helps me breathe a little easier knowing I have friends I can rely on. I forgot how nice it was to have them in my corner…even as they’re literally pushing me onstage.

The emcee is calling next up, and it’s my number. I sigh, knowing full well I’ve lost control of the situation. “Record it, stream it, I don’t care. I’m going to go get this over with.”

I weave around the tables to the stage, trying to ignore themurmurs of the room. There’s no way anyone knows I’m here—or, at least, no wayeveryoneknows who I am—but if they do, I don’t want to know. Before he presses play, the emcee shows me where to see the screen, but I could sing the lyrics to “I Want You to Want Me” in my sleep.

Because10 Things I Hate About Youis Valerie’s favorite movie.

My heart races, and my hands shake on the mic, but I do my best to relax as I wait for the cue, jumping in with a clear voice. After the first line, the bar falls quiet. Phones come out to record. Someone in the bachelorette party squeals. But instead of freezing up, I feel an electric spark running through my veins with each beat of my hammering heart. I croon, I smirk, I swagger across the tiny stage. It feels so good to just be up here making people happy again. The excitement in the room is so thick you could cut it with a knife.

And when I get to the chorus, I see her across the bar, leaning with a casual ease against the back wall.

Straight out of a dream, hazy and dim in the lights of the room—she looks like she didthen. It catapults me six years back. Valerie’s eyeliner is thick, she’s rocking ripped black jeans and an old The Clash T-shirt that I could swear she stole from me during theWanderlusttour, and…and her hair is bright pink.

God, that hair. I can’t help but think of all those times I buried my fingers in those gorgeous locks. I’m not proud of it, but that pink hair has continued to star in so many of my fantasies. I even remember what that damn color is called—Pink Crush, as if it could ever be so innocent. But it’s seared into my memory, formative and life-changing. An instant turn-on.

And seeing her here, like this, makes all of my remaining nerves melt away.

Before I can stop myself, I wave her up to join me onstage.

@GlitterbugsUnofficial

SPOTTED: The Glitter Bats entering Siren Karaoke Bar in Venice! Our source confirmed Riker, Keeley, and CALEB FUCKING SLOANE entered the building tonight about ten minutes ago. No idea if they’re singing, but if you’re local, you should get there ASAP!

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