Page 38 of Broken Chorus

Shaking his head, Aaron backed away, determining this to be as good a time as any for him to join Kazzy on the stage.

“Too bad. Nowthatmight have been fun,” Cade replied, grinning. “Would have gotten a laugh out of watching him kick your ass all over the table.”

It was right on the tip of his tongue to take that challenge, only the overwhelming urge to get as far away from the pair as he could was much too strong.

“Naaa,” he drawled, taking another step back. “I think I’ll just bow out gracefully and call it a night.”

Of course, the moment the words left his mouth, he stepped on something slippery and stumbled, crashing backward into a table that wobbled and tipped, spilling him and a bunch of drinks on the floor. Colliding with the wood and metal sent a searing pain shooting up his arm and he grasped it, groaning and failing to stagger to his feet on the first attempt. He landed on a couple cups instead, liquid soaking though his t-shirt as several people gasped and a few snickered. When he’d finally righted himself, he saw a thin smile on Cade’s face and Declan shaking his head.

“So much for gracefully,” Declan remarked, but it was his brother that Aaron kept staring at, even as his own face heated up. At least in the gloom and dim of the room, it would be difficult to notice, or so he hoped. Humiliation had him feeling the urge to scurry, but his last attempt at a hasty exit was too fresh in his mind for him to make that mistake again, so he cautiously turned away from them both to weave through the crowd, intent on putting distance between them.

Talk about a disaster…on every front. The game, his exit, even the clumsy attempt he’d made at holding Cade’s attention. And to make matters worse, he’d have to look at Declan tomorrow when he showed up to play at Kelly’s place. His face felt hot as he made his way towards the bar, half tempted to order a shotjust to take the sting out his humiliation. With his luck, someone had probably caught his little crash and burn on video, which meant it would be all over the internet by morning, fodder for the gossips and the haters who’d love to get a laugh at his epic fail.

At least there was a lull in the music. He found Kazzy easily enough, bellied up to the bar with a highball glass in his hand and a mug of something dark in front of him.

“Hey man, I was wondering if you’d make it over here,” Kazzy said, glancing up with red rimmed eyes, the glassiness of them a surefire sign that he’d been into more than the alcohol.

“Yeah, well, I just finished totally humiliating myself at the pool tables and thought I’d do something useful,” Aaron remarked as he dropped onto the stool beside him. “Pretty sure I need a little guitar therapy to make things right again.”

“Well, Tommy brought a spare, just in case you showed up,” Kazzy remarked, throwing an arm over Aaron’s shoulder and giving him a little squeeze.

“Hell yeah,” Aaron murmured, pressing the side of his head against Kazzy’s. His dark hair smelled of weed and sweat, the way Aaron was certain his would before the end of the night.

“Good. Then drink your root beer. We’re only on a ten-minute break.”

Aaron eyed the drink Kazzy slid his way, raising an eyebrow at his friend.

“Relax. It’s just soda. I swear.”

“I’m almost disappointed,” Aaron murmured, as he raised the glass to his lips.

Trust, that was something else he and Kazzy had between them that he and Declan didn’t. If Kazzy said the drink was non-alcoholic then that’s all Aaron needed to know. He took a healthy swig, savoring the taste on his tongue.

“So, what’s the plan for the set?” Aaron asked after he’d drained half the glass. The jukebox had taken over for now, but it wasn’t too loud to make conversation difficult.

Kazzy slid him a list of classic metal favorites, every song one Aaron could play in his sleep. A couple read throughs, and he’d committed the list to memory. Of course, it helped that the intro’s to each were so uniquely different that there was no way in hell he could fuck shit up.

“Who the fuck did you run into at the tables that left you tuckin’ tail?” Kazzy asked when Aaron slid the list back his way.

Groaning, Aaron lightly banged his head against the bar. “Declan’s brother.”

“Oh shit, Cade? That’ll do it.”

“Gee. Thanks. Pretty sure I already figuredthatout myself.”

The loss stung, but at least now he had a good god damned reason to spend his free time back here polishing his game.

“Earth to Aaron, hello, did you hear a word I said?”

Aaron blinked and forced himself to focus on Kazzy. “Yeah, you said that’ll do it, which tells me you’ve had some experience losing to him yourself.”

Snickering, Kazzy shook his head. “Pretty much. If I were you, I’d forget whatever little plot you’re hatching over there. Don’t try denying it either, I know you and I know you don’t take losing gracefully. Eat this one and call it a day. All challenging him to a rematch is gonna do is aggravate you more.”

“Too late, I already went that route and he turned me down. Said he’d face me again only if I faced Declan and beat him.”

“Well then, there you have it. Case closed. Time to move on to a more attainable target, like the guy who left those fingertip shaped bruises on your shoulder last week.”

“Yeah, about that….”

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