Page 65 of Faux Real
Kenny: OMG stop. Grooosssss
Ollie: The lady doth protest a little too much
Ollie: See you tomorrow Kennedy
I snort, pocketing my phone as two girls enter the basement of The Garage.
“‘Sup, Tia?” Jaime says with a nod as he checks out the black-haired girl with vibrant tattoos covering her forearms. Not bad. “Long time no see. I almost thought you’d forgotten about us.”
“I could never forget you boys,” Tia coos, plopping down beside Colt. She glances at me, twisting her lips into a speculative scowl. “Who’s the new kid?”
“That’s Oliver, our new drummer,” Ricky says, passing Tia and her friend a beer. “Who’s yours?”
“Oh! This is my cousin Raven. She’s staying with me for a bit,” Tia explains, giving me a careful once-over. “You look young, high school?”
“Senior,” I mutter, chugging the Pabst.
I have a feeling where this night is going, and I can’t say that I’m down.
“Thought so,” Tia muses, nudging Raven. “Look at that, he’syourage.”
“Lucky me,” Raven sings, pulling a lighter out of her combat boots and sparking up a cigarette. “So you’re a drummer?” She inhales, casting me a smirk. “I love drummers, they have thebesthands.”
I conceal a knowing grin. She’s not wrong.
“I can see the family resemblance already.” Jaime laughs, coughing as he puffs on the spliff. “You’re a bad influence, T.”
Tia rolls her eyes, kicking Jaime’s thigh. “Oh fuck off,J. I never banged a drummer before.”
“Woulda if you coulda,” Colt teases, turning to face me. “Our old drummer was practically married; man was whipped asfuck.”
“What about thenewdrummer?” Tia coos, lifting her pierced brow. “Got any uh—attachments?”
Fucking hell. These girls are not very subtle, are they?
“Sorry, love,” I say, standing up and collecting my jacket. I grab a cigarette from my pack and light it up. “But I don’t date smokers.”
Raven snorts. “Yousmoke.”
“Ironic, isn’t it?” I say, nodding at the lads. “I’m heading out. I’ll catch you later.”
“Alright, dude, take it easy,” Ricky calls out as I head to the back exit. “Oh and try to think of a song we can cover for the finals if we make it.”
“A cover?” I ask, lingering by the door, mentally flipping through all the songs I know how to play. “Does it need to fit our vibe, or can it be different?”
“I think different could be cool,” Ricky replies. “Shows our versatility and shit.”
“‘Kay, I’ll think about it,” I hum, ashing into an empty bottle. “Have a good one, yeah?”
“Bye, Oliver!” Tia and Raven chirp at the same time before breaking down in giggles.
I’ve never hated my name more than I do right now.
“I can’t believe you’re kicking me out of my own room,” Cliff grumbles, collecting his jacket and bag. “What am I supposed to do?”
“You’re a clever chap, I’m sure you’ll be able to figure it out,” I say, changing into a grey hoodie. “Go chill in the common room or something.”
Cliff grimaces. “There are people there.”
