Twenty-One

Amanda led the group backstage with Petula, Darcy, and me right behind her. The rest of the band's partners were behind us, still giggling and telling each other to quiet down. Something about them irked me. They weren't making fun of me, but they were talking about me. Secretly. But if they were making fun of me, Petula would have said something. She wouldn't even let us hang around them. That was just the type of person she was.

But Petula had been acting weird that night. Sure, she typically was a ball of energy, but she was acting more, I guess, submissive. Whatever Amanda kept whispering to her, she instantly agreed to. It was like she was kept on a tight leash. Just thinking about that made me more nervous to meet her boyfriend.

The backstage area wasn't huge, but there were mirrors lined up against the wall with a long table against it. Three couches face each other behind the makeshift vanities, and the band all sat on the couches while the singer reapplied a layer of lipstick.

"Daddy!" Petula exclaimed, pushing past us to run up to him.

Her boyfriend turned around and jumped up from his seat, picking her up and wrapping her legs around his waist. "Hello, Princess," he said, and puckered his lips. She kissed him passionately. I felt like it would have been polite to look away, but I couldn't stop watching him swallow her face.

When they pulled away, her boyfriend turned to look at us. He didn't let her go as he stepped up to us and extended his hand. "Nice to meet you both. I'm James Newsie."

"He's my daddy," Petula giggled as she rested her head in his neck.

Like a bitch slap to the face, I understood why she assumed Brody and I were going to date. I shuddered as I looked at Darcy. "Is this what Brody and I do?"

"No," she scoffed. "You're like actual father and daughter."

"I beg your pardon?" James sassed, quirking his eyebrow.

"It's my fault, Daddy," Petula mumbled. "The clubhouse's director and her have a father-daughter like relationship, and I tease them about getting together."

"You mean you're actually joking about it?" I groaned.

"Of course. You two are nothing like Daddy and I." She wiggled in his arms and he placed her on the ground. "This is our kink, that's all. I like a dominant man who makes me feel safe and well cared for. Someone who orders me around in a way that's beneficial to me and my health, both physical and mental. I've always loved the idea of calling my boyfriend Daddy, and he loved the idea of calling his girlfriend his Princess," she hummed as she gazed back at him. The look on his face was pure adoration and love. I couldn't help but coo.

"To each their own," Darcy exclaimed. "I will never make fun of someone for their sexual fantasies. You're two consenting adults. I don't give a shit provided everything else you do is consensual."

"I second that," I stated.

"Good," James said, planting his hands on his hips as he smirked at me. "Which one of you two is Melanie?"

I groaned. "Call me Mel. I hate being called Melanie."

He chuckled, leading me over to the couch. The band moved off one for the two of us to sit down. Darcy sat on the arm of the couch beside me, and Petula plopped herself down in James's lap, cuddling into him. He wrapped his arm around her back, still looking at me.

"My princess here tells me you play drums."

And the giggling between the band's partners restarted, this time with the actual band as well. So that's what they were laughing at.

"I do," I stated, my voice cold and confident as I blankly stared at each of them. They stopped laughing instantly. "I've been playing for five years now."

"She really talented. She's always making up her own solos to add to songs, as well as learning the solos verbatim. It's all she ever does in her free time," Darcy stated, and sunk her hands into my shoulders.

"Hey, I have a life outside music too," I chuckled. "I'm constantly getting annoyed by my best friend when we play video games together."

"He's, like, ten times better than you and flaunts it?" the guitarist asked.

"No, I'm good. He just makes levels in Mario Maker that are designed to piss me off. And he always uses the cheap items in Mario Kart at the last second before I kick his ass. And then I literally do," I joked.

James chuckled to himself. "What sort of music do you play?"

"All genres. I helped at a jazz fair freshman year when their drummer got food poisoning. The concert ended earlier than intended because everyone who ordered the chili got food poisoning as well."

"Have you ever played in front of a crowd?"

"Sort of. I had that event, but I've also played at Clubhouse parties. Brody, the director, has a lot of parties, and I'll play with the band there. And I'll play at the music store in the mall, but I haven't really played in front of a large crowd, let alone the size you guys must play all the time."

"Do you have stage fright?" the drummer asked.

"No. Just not a very popular person. People know I play, but they don't care."

"Why not?" James asked, confused and sort of hurt. It surprised me.

"Like I said, I'm not a very popular person. Anything the goth girl plays has to be demonic. I mean," I mocked, looking back at Darcy, "how else could I have the most popular boy in school wrapped around my finger?"

She cackled. "It's cause you're charming as fuck." She looked at James. "The most popular guy in school has been best friends with Mel since seventh grade. He has a secret fan club at school, and everyone hates how close she is to him."

"Despise me," I said through a laugh, but it still hurt.

"I get it," James said. "I'm too fabulous for a lot of people to handle. People in high school used to tease me for my looks as well. I identify as a boy, but I love to wear women's clothes. I feel comfortable in them, and it shouldn't matter what you wear so long as you feel like your sexy self in them. It took a while to find a group of people who accepted me as well." He kissed the top of Petula's head. "But when this angel accepted me for who I was, I knew the world would soon accept me as well."

Petula softly kissed his lips. "I love you, Daddy."

"I love you too, Princess."

The drummer cleared his throat, and I looked at him. "Since they're in their own world, I'll explain why you're here."

"To hear your music?" I questioned.

"I meant back here," he smirked. "I'm heading off to grad school at the end of the semester. I have a few more concerts left before I need to leave, and they're looking for a replacement."

My heart stopped.

"Petula mentioned we should hear you play, so how would you like to audition for 7 Years of Blood?"

That was why she wanted me to come so badly. That was why she was looking forward to me playing. And that had to have been the reason everyone was laughing and looking at me. They all knew I was going to have a surprise audition tonight, and they were looking forward to my reaction.

"She's in shock, that's all," I heard Darcy say. I must have zoned out.

Glancing back at James and Petula, I saw them biting back their laughs while the rest of the band was laughing and smiling at me.

"Are you serious?" I whispered.

"Oh, yeah," the drummer said.

I jumped up from the couch and faced him. "Okay, where do you want me to play?"

"Do you need a minute first?"

I snorted. "Please. I've been waiting years to finally be part of a band. I have my music catalogue all booted up. You just tell me what you need me to play, and I will do it," I blurted.

James picked Petula up as he stood up and placed her down before leading me down the hall to the stage. There was still a large enough crowd left in the club, though half left after the concert. They were dancing to the prerecorded music, but when the band walked out onto the stage, they let out a whoop and a cheer, most likely thinking they were going to get another concert for staying late.

"What do you want to hear?" I asked James as I sat at the drums.

"Hot For Teacher, Van Halen."

I almost groaned, but I knew what he was doing. Whenever people thought of a drum heavy song, the first one to come to mind was typically Hot For Teacher. Any drummer should know that song, and with it being the song people want to hear the most, it's the song they'll sometimes have to play the most. And when you play a song repeatedly, you get tired of it, especially when asked to play it over and over.

If I were to be part of the band, I would have to play the same songs repeatedly, and people would ask me to play the same songs over and over as well. But for the sake of the band's image, I would have to put on a cheerful face when I either accepted or declined. I had to play this song with as much energy as I could muster up to show that playing the same songs over and over again would not bother me and that I would continue to put in as much energy at the beginning of the band till the very end.

I wasn't sure if he wanted me to start right away, but when he faced me next to the band, I counted myself in before playing. My hair cut my face as I banged my head, but I didn't care. The guitarist joined me. When I cut off for a moment to let him finish the intro, I tossed my drum stick in the air and caught it effortlessly as the rest of the band joined in.

James didn't sing, but the three of us played the entire song. I wished I took off my cardigan before I played, but I ignored the heat. For the first time, I was playing with a rock band. A band that wanted me to join. I had to prove myself, and I put my entire essence into the song. By the time I clashed the last symbol, I was heaving large breaths.

When my ears stopped ringing, I noticed the crowd was applauding us. Applauding me. I was part of it. I felt tears spring at my eyes, but I blinked them away. I forgot they were there, but I was glad they were. People heard me, and they didn't boo. That had to mean some of them liked my playing.

James and the rest of the band huddled while everyone else crowded around me. Darcy was the first to hug me, and I held onto her, my body still shaking. She pulled away but still held onto me. "You better play like that for the variety show."

I laughed, but it came out as more of a cough.

"I've never seen or heard you play like that," Petula gushed. "You were incredible!"

"Thank you."

James stepped up to us and smiled. "Mel, we would be honored to have you join the band. What do you say?"

I said nothing. Instead, I covered my face and fell to my knees, crying. After three long years of looking for a band, people who liked me and wanted to play with me, I found it. And with a name like 7 Years of Blood, I knew I'd feel right at home with everyone.

Although I said nothing, James knew I accepted. He crouched down with a soft laugh as he hugged my side and helped me stand up. I hugged him properly, and he whispered in my ear, "Welcome, Mel."