Page 8 of Just My Type of wrong guy

A shame, because I could do this all night. I take her almost non-alcoholic beer as retaliation.

“Pietra,” the girl responds, offended, and I understand why.

We’ve already hooked up, and she thinks I’ve forgotten her name. I didn’t, I just pushed it aside because there’s no way I’m saying it without my accent making it sound ridiculous.

“Well, the first time the band played the song for an audience, it was one of our first shows, there were about five thousand people.”

“Wow, quite a small show,” Adam Driver 2.0 says.

“For me, that’s a pretty big crowd,” Alex comments, laughing. “But go ahead, A.J.”

“A very beautiful girl caught my attention during the show. It was impossible not to sing directly to her, touch her hand sometimes, and when ‘One Last Kiss’ came on, she held up a sign that said ‘A.J., give me one last kiss?’ And I wanted to, so I kissed her,” I say, shrugging.

“Wow, that’s a hot story,” Pietra smiles at me as if I were all alone.

“Why don’t you ever tell the truth?” Alexandra asks, confused. “It’s cute.”

“Because Victor likes me to make it a big deal. That I say it was an impulse, at a huge show. He likes to sell me as the reckless guy in the band and make people believe that ‘there’s A.J. for everyone,’” I joke, taking a sip of Alex’s beer.

“And is there?” Adam Driver 2.0 asks, and I lower my neck to look at him.

“You’ll be on tour with us for the next three months, you’ll figure it out.” I wink at him and return Alexandra ’s drink, who’s in shock, before waving goodbye and turning toward Suzane.

Finally, I’m going to have some time with my girl of the night.

Chapter Three – Alex

Hey, dad, look at me think back and talk to me

Did I grow up according to plan?

And do you think I'm wasting my time

Doing things I wanna do?

But it hurts when you disapprove all along

Perfect - Simple Plan

Sunday is family lunch day.

This was an absolute truth in my house for fifteen years. But everything changed when I joined the cast ofZ Generation, the soap opera that gave rise toGenZ. Since I was still in school, I started recording on some weekends, and then, with the success of the show and the band, the country became our home. Every Sunday, we were in a different state, singing for thousands of people who also didn’t get to enjoy Sunday lunch that day.

AfterGenZended, when the world shut down because of COVID, Sunday lunches became important again. Even though we ate together every day, Sundays withfeijoada[2]andsambawith family were special.

Until my mom passed away.

Two years have gone by since the last Sunday lunch, with my dad and mom at the dark wooden table with a glass top in the kitchen, and I can’t even remember the last Sunday lunch I had with Luiz Saldanha.

But in two days, I’ll be flying to São Paulo with Vicious Bonds to kick off a tour across Brazil and then Europe, where we’ll spend another two months doing shows at the coolest summer festivals in the old continent.

So here I am, ready to press the intercom button at the house where I grew up, as if it doesn’t feel much more like a prison now. I inhale the air slowly, rising my torso in rhythm, and press the little green button. It only takes a few seconds for the gate to open without a single word.

“Don’t you ask who it is anymore?” I ask, walking on the rustic wooden pavement that covers the backyard lawn.

“I ask, but I recognized your shadow under the gate, sweetie,” he defends himself, and I pretend to believe him.

My eyes scan all the plants and fruit trees in the garden beds before landing on my dad. The little white beard crowns his black face, and his bald head shines in the sun, exactly as I remembered. His genuine smile makes my heart beat a little slower, and his loving eyes almost make me feel at home. But behind the emotion, there’s the distance.

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