Page 51 of Before We’re More Than Friends (When We Faced the Music #1)
Dallas
W e worked our butts off the entire week. Hayden stressed more than he usually did, wanting everything to be perfect for our audition. The pressure was getting to all of us, but we managed to pull through to Saturday afternoon.
But what I hadn’t expected was for so many bands to audition as well.
When I arrived at What Do You Bean, I nearly tripped over my own feet when I saw how many bands were here. Sure, with ten spots open, I hadn’t expected the place to be empty. But it was pretty crowded in here for a café that had a maximum capacity of two hundred and fifty people.
No wonder Hayden had been so stressed.
“Our first lead singer arrives,” Caleb sang when I approached our usual booth.
“Hey.” I smiled at everyone before sliding next to Hayden. “I didn’t expect this many people to be here.”
“There are eighteen bands auditioning,” Oliver said. “Not as many as I expected.”
Okay, not too bad. “That’s still quite a bit. ”
“They have nothing on us,” Hayden said, more anxiety than confidence in his voice. “There’s no way we’re at the bottom eight. Especially with you and Raina as the lead singers.”
“Come on, we all know where the real magic is,” Caleb said, pointing his thumbs at himself.
“You’re pointing at the wrong person,” Oliver said as he brushed through his shaggy hair he’d grown out. “It was my idea to turn my garage into our band room. And I keep all of you accountable. Especially Caleb.”
“I was the one who came up with the band in the first place,” Sienna said. “Before I came along, you three were just crying in your garage with instruments.”
“We weren’t crying ,” Oliver protested. “We were brooding.”
“Which is the masculine version of sulking.”
Hayden groaned. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Sheesh,” Sienna muttered. “Panties in a twist?”
“I prefer to wear boxers.” Hayden gave her a half-smile, though his muscles tensed.
“I’m nervous, too,” I said, knowing he didn’t want to admit it. My gaze went to the windows at the front of the café, looking for a girl with beautiful golden-brown waves and blue eyes that pierced my soul.
“Where the hell are they?” Hayden asked, reading my mind. “They’re always the last ones to show up to everything.”
“You sure you prefer to wear boxers?” Sienna asked.
Hayden rolled his eyes. “Okay, Caleb .”
“Watch your language.”
“Yeah, do not use my name in vain,” Caleb said. “I might have to strike you with lightning.”
“I wish you would,” Hayden grumbled.
Caleb’s brows furrowed. “What’s your problem, dude?”
I swallowed, looking down at the table. Even though I understood why he was stressed, I wasn’t a fan of this new Hayden. This wasn’t the cheerful boy who had helped me fall in love with music again.
“I’m sorry, I just . . .” Hayden put his head in his hands.
“I just don’t want to screw this up. We’ve worked so hard, you know?
And we deserve it.” His gaze bounced to a band not too far away, two dark-haired guys and a blonde having milkshakes and laughing.
Hayden muttered something under his breath about dairy being bad for your voice.
“Why do you keep looking at them?” I asked.
“Oh, they’re just?—”
“Our mortal enemies,” Caleb finished.
I raised an eyebrow. They had enemies this whole time, and I was just hearing about them? How out of the loop had I been? “What did they do?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Hayden said. “What matters is that we need to do our best.”
“I think stressing out is only going to make us more nervous,” Sienna said as she fiddled with her keys on the table. “We’re going to do fine.”
“They’re pretty good, though,” Caleb said. “Hayden?—”
“I don’t want to talk about that!” Hayden snapped, loud enough for a few people near us to look. He lowered his voice. “Okay?”
“Sheesh, can we just get our happy Hayden back?” Oliver asked, folding his arms over his chest. “You’re more wound up than Caleb when he’s out of chips.”
“And that’s saying a lot,” Caleb added.
Hayden sighed. “I’m sorry, I just haven’t been this nervous in a while.”
I rubbed his back. “It’ll be okay. We’re going to crush it.” I hoped.
The café door opened with a chime, and I looked over to see Raina and Arielle walking toward us.
Raina gave me a beautiful smile, and warmth spread to my cheeks as I grinned back.
Today, she rocked a purple crop top with long sleeves, a pleated black skirt, and black wedges.
With her usual jewelry and makeup to complement everything, she looked freaking stunning.
And way sexier than I’d expected for an event like this.
Not that I was complaining at all.
Sheesh, that’s a toned stomach.
“Bloody heck,” Sienna said. “Just run up and kiss her already.”
My cheeks grew warm. “Saving it for later.” I’d used to hate how much Raina made me blush, but now, I lived for it. I lived for her to fill me with warmth until I was overflowing with it.
“Sorry we’re late,” Raina said, wrapping an arm around me once she sat down. “Arielle drove slow today.”
“I did not drive slow,” Arielle protested as she sat beside Sienna. “You were just eager to get to your boy .” Arielle winked at me.
I snorted. “I’m her boy now?” I grinned at Raina. “Not that I don’t like the title.”
“She’s been teasing me about it all week,” Raina said, grinning back at me. “She’s turning into Caleb whenever Oliver gets a girlfriend.”
“You get used to it,” Oliver muttered, texting someone on his phone.
“Gosh, you aren’t already talking to someone else, are you?” Caleb peeked over to see Oliver’s phone screen.
Oliver hugged his phone to his chest, his cheeks flushing. “No.”
“Who is it this time?”
“Your mom was looking like a real snack the last time I saw her. ”
“I know.” Caleb took off his glasses and pretended to flip his hair. “That’s where I get it from.”
“Dang, did your dad’s genes mess it up?”
Caleb shoved him against the half-wall, and we all burst into laughter.
“Good afternoon, What Do You Beaners!” Ivan said into the microphone with his usual big smile, and we snapped our focus to him.
“Welcome to the Battle of the Bands auditions. I’m happy that you’re all here today.
” His gaze traveled to us. “And I’m even happier to see some familiar faces in the crowd. ”
Sienna let out a soft sigh. Arielle nudged her shoulder and giggled.
After Ivan explained how the auditions would go down—each band would perform in alphabetical order, which meant we had some time—the first band went on stage. They were decent enough but didn’t intimidate us. Hayden seemed to be more relaxed with each band that performed.
But then the band he’d been shooting glares at, Joker Avenue, went up on stage. Hayden’s expression immediately hardened, and so did everyone else’s at the table. Gosh, whoever these people were, I hoped they sucked.
Joker Avenue, of course, decided to perform “Youngblood” by 5 Seconds of Summer. It wasn’t off the same album of the song we picked, but it was enough to make Hayden grumble to himself while the rest of our bandmates exchanged annoyed looks.
The lead singer, a tall guy with unruly brown curls and tan skin, picked up on their annoyance and winked at us. Just great . It was the guy who slammed into me when I was trying to find my English class.
Caleb saluted him with his middle finger as Hayden cursed under his breath.
Sadly, Caleb was right about their talent.
In fact, they were the best band that had performed so far.
Lead Singer Guy had a record-deal worthy voice, almost as good as Ivan’s voice.
The drummer captured the beat of the song while the guitarist kept up with the melody.
I would’ve thought I was at a 5 Seconds of Summer concert if I’d been blindfolded.
They freaking rocked.
Which sucked for us.
At the end of their performance, they did an outro that was different from the original song. Leader Singer Guy performed a riff with his guitar that matched the riff that the blonde guitarist played. The two of them exchanged grins, like they knew they had it in a bag.
When they finished performing, a chorus of applause ripped through the café. Out of habit, I clapped, but none of my bandmates joined. I quickly lowered my hands.
After Ivan complimented them, the band walked off the stage. Lead Singer Guy stopped at our table as his bandmates went back to their booth. “Good luck,” he said, his brown gaze bouncing between Hayden and Arielle. I could feel a you’ll need it behind his words.
“Find a LEGO to step on,” Caleb said in the same tone.
Lead Singer Guy smirked. “Isn’t that what happened to you?”
Caleb shot up to lunge at him, but Arielle and Sienna blocked him from doing so. I swallowed, my heart thumping harder than it had been before.
“Whoa,” Lead Singer Guy said, holding up his hands. “Just a joke.”
“Like that haircut?” Sienna fired back. “Yeah, I agree.”
“And those highlights in your hair. Not your color.”
“Leave my friends alone,” Arielle snapped as Sienna grimaced .
“So sorry, darling.” Lead Singer Guy chuckled before walking away.
Arielle shifted in her seat, muttering a word that rhymed with stick .
Ivan didn’t seem to pick up on the interaction because he got back on the mic and said, “Next up, also from April Springs High, is Like Airplanes!”
“That’s us,” Raina said before slipping out of the booth. I got out after her, my blood pumping in my ears. She grabbed my hand, her rings brushing against my fingers. A tingle traveled down my arm as I walked onto the stage with her, the rest of our bandmates following.
We spent the next few minutes getting our instruments ready in silence, not focusing on the crowd. I wanted to get a good look at Lead Singer Guy and his band, but I knew their eyes were on us. I wouldn’t let them make me crack.
When we were ready, I let out a deep breath, trying to focus my thoughts. Just pretend you’re in the garage. You’re not back in seventh grade when you choked up and almost peed yourself ? —
Shoot, I’m spiraling.