Page 66 of Verses

No wonder I barely slept that night.

At each practice,the band got better and better. There was no doubt that we were beginning to gel. It was really cool listening to how Adrian’s style changed with all the new songs he’d been learning. With our own songs, he started trying different techniques. He still did a great job keeping the beat, but he was experimenting more.

But Intent to Murder as a whole was starting to sound really good, and I knew we’d probably decide to start playing real shows soon—maybe by the beginning of next year.

What convinced me even more was the amount of people in the bar. It was a Wednesday night, not one of the typically busy times for the bar, but the place was packed.

Good thing we’d already worked out the kinks to Alice in Chains’s “Bleed the Freak,” that week’s practice song.

We ran through our usual setlist, starting with that song and then going through our original compositions intertwined with all the covers we’d been learning. We’d even managed to smooth out “Dark,” the song Wolf had written that I created lyrics to and Adrian had recorded so we could bring it to life. Fortunately, singing it several nights a week helped make it less emotional for me.

I could still add all the emotion I wanted to my voice—but I managed to keep it from affecting my heart. It was nearly impossible to sing while I was crying.

The crowd was really into us too. They were enjoying each song, clapping and cheering afterward, even doing a littleheadbanging during our heavier ones. When we sang our cover of “Lift Me Up” by Five Finger Death Punch, a bunch of people even sang along.

The energy was high and the drinks were flowing. Marv was working that night and told us to keep playing, even though it was time for him to leave. I think he liked counting the money in his head.

Having him believe in us again was huge—and he was no longer grousing at us about setting show dates because of it.

Before our last song, I said, “Charlotte, I don’t know what brought all you guys out tonight, but I want to thank you on behalf of the entire band. Your faith in us is what keeps us going.”

The audience cheered and clapped, and one guy at the back even fist pumped.

Moments like these convinced me that we’d make it. And when Wolf and I made eye contact before he started playing, I remembered how he’d asked me last week about never making it big.

No way. We had far too much potential—and this crowd proved it.

At the end of what felt like a show but was instead an extended practice, Marv said, “One drink for each of you—on the house.”

Even he knew it.

Wolf asked, “You ready for me back there?”

“No. Enjoy your moment and your drink. What’ll it be?”

It was like body snatchers had replaced the bar owner—but as long as he stayed like this, I wouldn’t care if an alien inhabited the guy’s body.

Wolf said, “All us guys have to work right after this—so I imagine a Bud Light is all we should be drinkin’.”

Kyle said, “That’s fair.”

It wasn’t until Pedro showed up at the bar with his arm around a girl’s shoulders that I noticed he hadn’t joined us immediately. Wolf asked, “Bud Light okay with you?”

“Dude, I gotta work later. Britt, you want it?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“By the way, guys, this is my girlfriend, Brittney. Thanks to her, this bar was fuckin’ jumpin’!”

“Wait. What do you mean?” I asked, already feeling my balloon starting to deflate.

The girl with black hair and lips so big they surely had the assistance of an injection said, “I have a huge social network, baby—and I asked my followers to come watch an up and coming band I love. And here they are. Isn’t it amazing how they do whatever I want?”

“Fuck, baby,” Pedro said. “Your confidence makes me so goddamned horny. I just wanna bury my dick in you right here.”

I was surprised when she giggled.

Yuck.I kept my mouth shut, though, because I knew Kyle and I had engaged in a few over-the-top PDAs when we were younger. I just didn’t need to see the way Pedro was massaging the woman’s ass.

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