Page 61 of Rocked: The Price of Dreams

Want for his guitar and painful reality swirled in his eyes as he took my hand. “But we can’t go to my place.”

I hauled him to his feet. We overshot our balance and toppled sideways a few steps. Catching each other around the waist, we laughed and found our feet.

“Not yours. Mine.” I clutched onto his arms to keep myself upright. The world spun at a million miles an hour. But it stopped when I focused on Kyle. Instant calm washed over me. Everything was right when I was with him...and Hunter. “Mom won’t be there. You can use my guitars and keyboard. My neighbor is half-deaf. It’ll be fine.”

“Gem. It’s late. We have a gig tomorrow night.” Kyle’s voice may have been serious, but his eyes betrayed him. This was exactly what he wanted to do.

Hunter lurched to his feet and straightened. He staggered on the spot to stay upright. “It’s perfect. We’re drunk. You’re messed up. We need fucking music. I’m in.”

After wobbling and weaving our way home on our bicycles, disturbing the neighborhood with our we’re-so-wasted laughs, we made it to my place. While I threw a pizza into the oven, the boys texted their parents to let them know where they’d crash tonight...and to hide the fact we were totally smashed. Our music was the best cover for everything.

As we devoured pepperoni pizza on my bed, the guys played the guitars and I scribbled down lyrics. At every opportunity, I pried Kyle to describe what his heartache felt like. He played slow, heavy riffs and chords. Hunter matched his strums. As words formed in my mind, my heart shuddered and ached. I felt Kyle’s pain. I could hear it in his notes. I sensed Hunter’s understanding and empathy. Music made us raw emotionally. True vulnerability took trust. We had that.

My hand skimmed across the page, jotting down lyrics. Softly, I sang.

Walking through the park at night,

Looking at the stars so bright.

Wondering where you are,

Are you loving someone new or not?

We had it good, where did we go wrong?

I’ve been loving you for oh so long.

Now I’m wishing we could make it right,

Start over and love you with all my might.

Maybe I was just a fool for you.

Loving you was so easy to do.

I never saw the troubled signs.

You leavin’ me has left me so blind.

How do you heal a broken heart?

How do you find strength for a new start?

How can I face the moon and the sun,

When I thought you were the only one?

Playing, laughing, and making music, we finished off the JD and stayed up until one a.m. We passed out, sprawled across my bed at weird angles, too tired and drunk to move elsewhere.

We woke the next morning around eleven a.m., nursing sore heads and hangovers from hell. Shit. We had to shake this off and get ready for our gig.

Dragging myself out of my room, I headed to the kitchen and put on toast. Kyle grabbed the Advil and water. Hunter just cradled his head at the table.

“Remind me never to drink the night before a show.” Hunter rubbed his bloodshot eyes. “I want to vomit.”

“See, Kyle?” I grabbed the Advil off the counter and popped out two tablets. “We’re suffering with you. That’s true love. True friendship. Don’t ever forget it.”

“Never. But a hangover is better than feeling like crap over Vicki. So I’d say the night was a success.”

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