Spellman Ch. 21

"Obviously not."

"It's been a rough week for her. I don't think she really knows what she wants or needs. We both know what that's like. I think she feels like she's drowning emotionally, and I would be a sort of life raft, or at least a floating piece of debris she could cling to."

"Oh Jack, Jack," Melissa said.

"I am not going to die of hypothermia in this pained Titanic metaphor."

"Do you think it would help if I talked to her?" Melissa asked.

"About me? Probably not. About the breakup? Maybe. You know what it's like to be cheated on. Just don't give her any ideas about how to get back at Thomas."

Melissa let out a devilish laugh. "Are you sure? I could lend her my handcuffs. I bet you'd love to rail her from behind while that cheating prick had to just sit there and watch his girl get worked over by a real man."

I did feel a little stir at that thought, but also an equal amount of revulsion. "I don't think I'm really one for an audience like that. Plus, I already told you that getting involved that way with Riley again was a bad idea."

"I know it's a bad idea..." she said, "...but it's also kind of hot, right?"

"Yes, it is," I admitted. "You're dangerous, Melissa."

"The fun kind of dangerous."

"Yes, very fun," I agreed.

After we finished our lunch Melissa drove me back to my apartment. I thanked her for the ride and gave her a kiss goodbye before heading inside. Once inside I spent a bit of time going over my lesson plan for the week, making sure I had everything I needed. For the most part everything was set besides making copies of the various worksheets, but I could handle that while the kids were in Art on Monday.

My phone started buzzing on the table, a call rather than a text. I glanced over and saw that it was from Beth.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Do you have plans tonight?" Beth asked, without any preamble.

"No, nothing going on. Why?"

"My band's doing a little gig tonight. You should come check it out."

"I'd love to see that. Thanks for the heads up. Text me the info?"

"Sure. I'll see you tonight, then."

"Awesome. See you later."

She sent me the information about the gig a few minutes later. They were playing at a small bar starting at nine. I considered inviting someone to join me, but decided I should probably just go alone. This wasn't an excuse for me to make up an impromptu date with Cece or Melissa or Tori--it was a chance for me to support my childhood best friend, my "little sister," and maybe hang out with her afterwards.

I decided to kill some time playing on my Playstation 3, booting up Madden NFL 13. The new Madden would be releasing in a few weeks, but I probably wasn't going to spend the money to get it right away. The upgrades looked decent, but that was mostly for the next generation of consoles. I definitely wasn't going to spend the money to get a PS4 when it came out in a few months.

My Chargers dynasty team made it two games closer to playing for their third consecutive Super Bowl before I got bored of playing. I tossed the controller onto the coffee table and grabbed a random poetry collection from my bookshelf.

I read through a few, but nothing grabbed me until I came across one by Ella Wheeler Wilcox.

After the fierce midsummer all ablaze

Has burned itself to ashes, and expires

In the intensity of its own fires,

There come the mellow, mild, St. Martin days

Crowned with the calm of peace, but sad with haze.

So after Love has led us, till he tires

Of his own throes, and torments, and desires,

Comes large-eyed friendship: with a restful gaze,

He beckons us to follow, and across

Cool verdant vales we wander free from care.

Is it a touch of frost lies in the air?

Why are we haunted with a sense of loss?

We do not wish the pain back, or the heat;

And yet, and yet, these days are incomplete.

I spent a long time with that one, turning the words over in my head, testing the way they felt as they rolled off my tongue. It resonated with me. I grabbed one of the sticky notes I kept on the bookshelf and marked the page with it.

When my stomach told me it was time for dinner I cooked some chicken on the stove and tossed together a Caesar salad. I had eaten a bit too much during my late lunch with Melissa, so I didn't need anything too heavy.

After dinner I texted Tori. Hey, missed hanging out with you today. Hope you guys had fun at Legoland.

We did, it was a great day, she replied. Can I come over for a bit tomorrow morning?

Yeah, sure. I'll see you then.

I did my best to keep myself entertained for a couple more hours in the apartment. What I really needed was to hit up a used bookstore and get a few new novels to read. That was always a good way to spend my spare time when I was alone at home.

Beth said that her band started playing at nine, but I decided to head to the bar a bit early. The place was pretty small, and the stage wasn't anything impressive. Definitely not a serious music venue like the Casbah was, but it was better than nothing.

I had no idea how good Beth and her band were, or how seriously they took their music, but I knew that at the very least Beth was a talented musician. She had played piano since she was four, and took private singing lessons all the way through high school. I had sat through a countless number of her piano recitals and choir concerts. Such things were rarely the most exciting events in the world, but she was always a bright spot.

After grabbing a beer from the bar I found a seat against the wall, not far from the stage. The place wasn't crowded, maybe fifty people in all, but a couple more trickled in every few minutes. About fifteen minutes before nine the band appeared and starting setting up their equipment, but I didn't spot Beth. The drummer was a really tall white guy, probably 6'6" or even 6'7", but skinny as a beanpole. He wore a sleeveless shirt and his arms were covered in tattoos. The bass player was the opposite in many ways, a short, pudgy Mexican guy. A third guy, this one a pretty ripped black dude, carried a couple of guitars onto the stage and then brought a keyboard up as well, setting it up on its stand.

The drummer started banging out a steady beat with his bass drum and the bass player soon followed, slapping out a steadily growing bassline. I was surprised when the third guy took his place behind the keyboard instead of picking up one of the guitars. He joined the others in their musical noodling, which had quieted the crowd that had started to gather around the stage.

When Beth finally appeared, I once again almost didn't recognize her. Gone was her two-tone, pink and black hair, replaced with a vibrant purple. She was wearing a heavily torn-up shirt that exposed both large sections of her midriff as well as a bra that matched her hair. Her black shirt was short, and I mean short, and her black, high heeled boots were laced up to her knees. I had no thoughts other than Holy shit, Beth looks hot.

She strode onto the stage and picked up one of the guitars, slinging the strap over her shoulder as the crowd broke into cheers and applause. Smiling, she stepped up to the microphone.

"How's everybody doing tonight?" she said into the mic.

The response was louder shouts and cheers, and I found myself joining them.

"We're Violet Riot, and we're here to have some fun. Let's go!"

The band started on her cue, with heavy drums leading into Beth strumming her guitar before she leaned into the microphone to sing.

That girl thinks she's the queen of the neighborhood

She's got the hottest trike in town

That girl, she holds her head up so high

I think I wanna be her best friend, yeah

Rebel girl, rebel girl

Rebel girl you are the queen of my world

Rebel girl, rebel girl

I think I wanna take you home

I wanna try on your clothes, uh

I was stunned watching the performance. This was a completely new side of Beth, at least for me. In the past, watching her sing meant she'd be on stage wearing a frumpy dress, belting out either classical arias or Broadway showtunes. I'd never seen her do anything like this.

To put it simply, she owned the stage. Beth was an absolute rock goddess. I wasn't any sort of musician, but I had seen and heard enough bands to know that the guys in the band were good, but not great. This was, without a doubt, Beth's show. The set list only reinforced that. Almost every song was a rock hit made famous by a female-led band.

After Rebel Girl came a high-powered rendition of Just a Girl, with Beth making for a killer Gwen Stefani. A few songs later she hit the crowd with the classic Barracuda, which was an obvious inclusion for any female rocker.

I was most impressed by her performance of Zombie, when Beth put on an absolute clinic with her take on Dolores O'Riordan's vocals. The crowd--which had grown significantly since the start of their set, stuffing the bar near to overflowing--went wild when she finished. She announced that was the end of their set, but the crowd demanded an encore, and I cheered for one right along with them.

"All right, all right, we'll do one more," Beth said, basking in the crowd's roar of approval. She rolled her neck, then signaled to her bandmates before stepping back up to the mic.

This was never the way I planned

Not my intention

I got so brave, drink in hand

Lost my discretion

It's not what I'm used to

Just wanna try you on

I'm curious for you

Caught my attention

I kissed a girl and I liked it

The taste of her cherry chapstick

I kissed a girl just to try it

I hope my boyfriend don't mind it

It felt so wrong, it felt so right

Don't mean I'm in love tonight

I kissed a girl and I liked it

I liked it

Beth had absolutely rocked out during the set, but now she oozed a confident sexuality. Two girls from the crowd climbed up onto the stage and made their way over to Beth. They danced around her, but Beth didn't miss a beat as she continued the song. I didn't know if she knew them or if they were just overly excited fans, but it fit the show perfectly.

Us girls, we are so magical

Soft skin, red lips, so kissable

Hard to resist, so touchable

Too good to deny it

Ain't no big deal, it's innocent

After one last trip through the chorus, the band brought the song to a close. Beth reached out, grabbing one of the dancing girls and pulling her into a kiss, then the other. The crowd went wild, whistling and screaming. It was hot hot hot.

I waited around for a bit as the band broke down the stage before I approached. Beth was putting her guitar into its case when she saw me. She leapt up and ran over to me, giving me a big hug.

"You made it!" she said.

"Of course I did. You were amazing!"

She dragged me over to the rest of the band. "Hey guys, this is my friend Ryan. He's basically my brother. Ryan, this is the band. Brandon," she said, pointing to the drummer, "Chuy," pointing to the bass player, "and Thorn," pointing to the keyboardist.

"Hey guys, awesome set. Nice to meet you." I shook hands with everyone. "Thorn, that's an interesting name," I said when I got to the keyboardist.

He laughed. "It's actually Thorton, well, Thorton Junior, but I started going by Thorn instead of T.J. in high school and it stuck."

"It's pretty cool, especially for a dude in a rock band."

"Thanks. So you've known Beth for a long time?" he asked.

"Yeah, since we were kids. Best friends growing up."

"That's cool. Why haven't I seen you around before?"

"Been away for a while. Just moved back into town a few weeks ago," I said.

"Gotcha. Well, nice to meet you, man. Beth, you gonna come chill?"

She shook her head. "I'm actually gonna go hang out with Ryan. I'll see you guys on Monday, though." That was a little bit of a surprise to me, but I didn't mind. I had hoped we get some time to hang out.

"Oh, okay," Thorn said, a little put out.

Beth picked up her guitar case. "Come on, Ryan. You're giving me a ride. Later, guys."

"Later," Brandon and Chuy said, but Thorn didn't reply.

Beth led me out of the bar, stopping a few times to accept some praise from fans. When we got to my car she put her guitar in the back before climbing into the passenger seat.

"Where to?" I asked her.

"I assume you've got some beer and a console at your place?"

"I do."

"Then let's go."

I started driving back towards my apartment.

"So what'd you think?" Beth asked.

"Honestly Beth, you were fucking incredible. I guess it shouldn't be surprising given your new look, but for some reason I was expecting you to be more opera prima donna and less...sexy punk rock goddess."

"Goddess, huh? I like that," she said, grinning.

"I don't know how else to describe it. You absolutely owned that stage. Truly, I was blown away. I'm so glad you invited me to come see you."

"Well I'm glad you could make it. I love performing like that."

"If someone told me you were signed to a record deal, I'd believe them. Seriously, you rock."

"Thanks, but nah. It's just for fun."

We made it back to my apartment I offered to carry her guitar up the stairs, but Beth just gave me a look like I had offered to punt her baby off a cliff. Once inside I grabbed some beers from the fridge and turned on the Playstation.

"Let's play some Call of Duty. I want to pump you full of lead," she teased.

We played for over an hour, drinking beers and giving each other shit as we went back and forth killing each other. Eventually I started to fade, the late night and the multiple beers taking their toll.

"Shit, it's getting late," I said. "I don't know if I'm good to drive."

"It's cool, I can just crash on your couch."

"Are you sure? It's not the most comfortable thing in the world."

"Yeah, man. It's no big deal. Trust me, I'm no stranger to couch surfing," she said.

"If you say so. Let me grab you a blanket and a better pillow. You want one of my shirts or something to sleep in?"

"Sure, thanks dude."

"No problem."

I grabbed everything from my room and brought it out to Beth. She downed the last of her beer before flopping onto the couch.

"This was fun. It felt like old times," Beth said.

"Yeah, it did. I'll see you in the morning. Help yourself to whatever if you need anything."

"Cool. Goodnight, Ryan."

"Night, Beth."

I went to my bedroom and closed the door before stripping down to my boxers and climbing into bed. Beer always made me sleepy, so it didn't take long for me to drift off.

Sunday, August 11th, 2013

I slept until the sun woke me, its warm rays shining through the blinds and summoning me from my slumber. Without opening my eyes, I rolled over and moved to pull Amanda closer to me. She shifted, molding herself against me as my little spoon, her butt pushing up against my morning wood. I ran my hand over her bare stomach and up to her breast, cupping it through her bra. Still half-asleep, she gave a soft "Mmm" as I did so. I nuzzled my nose against the top of her head, opening my eyes slightly to see her mane of vibrant purple hair.

Wait, purple? I was immediately fully awake.

"Beth?!"