Rock Bottom | Charlie Gillespie

Charlie POV #1✨

Bad first impressions...

"And scene," Kenny yelled, "that was great, let's take a break, and then I want to hear bright." I sighed, moving to grab my water bottle from the other side of the stage. "Charlie, Aubrey, just remember; Luke and Elena are supposed to feel drawn to one another instantly; make sure you keep that in mind while interacting."

"Dude, why are you so awkward around Aubrey?" Owen asked, nodding over to the brunette girl on the other side of the stage. I shrugged in response; unlike Jeremy, Madison, Owen, and I, who have been through dozens of auditions, and rehearsals, Aubrey's been cast from the very beginning. Kenny offered her the role the minute he started working on the show, no audition required, "Wait, does someone have a crush on his potential love interest?" Owen asked, wiggling his eyebrows teasingly as he nudged me.

"What?" I scoffed, "of course not," did I think Aubrey was pretty yes; you'd have to be an idiot to think otherwise, but my feelings about her so far were indifferent.

"What's your problem with her then, man?" Jeremy asked, tuning his bass; I paused to think over his question, was it bad I had so many reasons already? First, she showed up late; and not a few minutes late, like half-an-hour late, she was also overly confident of herself, and I could already tell she was a stuck-up snob; also, unlike most girls, she didn't laugh at the jokes I made in between rehearsing if anything she found them annoying.

"I don't know," I shrug; it was easier to say that than explain my long list, "she just seems kind of narcissistic."

"Woah, man," Owen held his hand out for me to pause, "that's kind of a huge accusation to throw around about some you just met." While in theory, he was right; it was also pretty hard denying it; Aubrey Summers clearly knew she was better and more famous than the rest of us, and she didn't mind showing it off.

"Yeah, I've only talked to her for a little bit, but she seems sweet," Jeremy added; I watched Aubrey and Madison, who stood on the other side of the stage, both of them animatedly talking as if they were sisters in real and not strangers.

"She's an actress," I reminded them; everything about Aubrey seemed fake to me, I couldn't exactly explain why, but no one is that perfect.

"Dude," Owen laughed, shaking his head, "that's crazy; Kenny loves her; if she was really that bad, do you think he'd hire her?" I opened my mouth to argue but then shut it again; as much as I hated to admit it, he wasn't wrong.

"Just try to get to know her," Jeremy encouraged, "speaking of, here she comes; be nice." He warned me, dragging Owen away.

"Hey," I greet her, my eyes pleading Owen and Jeremy to stay.

"Hi," She nods, her voice no longer sweet like it had been to everyone else, "listen," She took a breath, preparing herself for what she had to say, "do you have a problem with me?" I opened my mouth to respond, but she continued, cutting me off, "because I've been nothing but kind, despite my first impression of you." I furrowed my brows in confusion, her impression of me? I've barely spoken to the girl.

"Your first impression of me?"

"Yeah," She nodded, as if it were obvious, "the constant flirting with the assistant choreographer," She said, gesturing to Tori; before Aubrey had gotten here, I'd been talking to Tori, someone who actually got my sense of humor, but we definitely weren't flirting, or at least I wasn't, "the immature jokes in-between rehearsing," She added, "the- "

"Okay," I held up my hands for her to stop, "I get it, but I'm not the only one who gave off a bad first impression."

"Me?" She scoffed, pointing to herself, "I'm pretty sure you're the only person that thinks that."

"And that's exactly why," I snapped, pointing at her, "just because you didn't have to work hard to get your role doesn't mean you're better than the rest of us." Aubrey's expression fell slightly for a moment; I'd hit a nerve, but just as quick as it fell, her smug smile returned to her face.

"You don't know anything about me," She informs me, her tone more serious than it had been moments ago; while that is true, she sure wasn't proving my first-impression wrong.

"Aubrey, Charlie, you ready for bright?" Owen asked, walking over to us; he glanced between Aubrey and I, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Yeah," Aubrey nodded, walking away; I scoffed in annoyance, grabbing my guitar off its stand.

"Everything okay?" Owen asked, nodding at the girl who now stood behind her keys, "we couldn't hear you, but that seemed intense." I chuckled, nodding my head in response; no matter what happens after this audition, it's going to suck.

"I don't get why Kenny likes her so much," I mumbled, strapping on my guitar, "she's a piece of work."

"You just met her," Owen reminded me before stepping behind his drums, "give it some time." I was pretty sure not even time could fix what Aubrey and I felt for one another; I could already tell she seemed like the type to hold a grudge.

"Yeah, maybe," I responded anyway; luckily, before Owen could say anything else, Kenny nodded for us to start playing. Allowing me to get lost in the music; even though I hadn't heard the other groups, I could tell we're special and more than just some random band that was put together.

"Bright Forever," We all harmonized, Madi nailing the final note; Kenny gestured for us to step forward and take a bow while the crew surrounding us cheered loudly.

"Can I tell them?" Kenny asked, walking up the stairs; the executive from Netflix nodded, "Alright, you are our band." I released my shoulders, letting out the breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding; this was it, after months and months of auditions, we made it. The room was abuzz with various people hugging and excitedly chattering; I'd made my way around our new band, hugging each of them and saying congratulations.

"Congrats," Aubrey nodded stiffly once I'd made my way over to her; even though I didn't doubt my first impression of her, I kind of regret saying it aloud, especially now that we're going to be working together.

"Thanks," I responded awkwardly, "you too."

"Why are you congratulating me?" She asked, "it's not like I worked for it." I cringe at her use of my previous statement before I can respond though Owen steps past me, pulling Aubrey into a hug, the two of them acting like real-life best friends. I take a step back, rolling my eyes in annoyance; how am I the only person who can see how pretentious she is?

"So," Jeremy asked, walking up beside me, "did you figure things out with Bree?" I shake my head in response; this is going to be a long few months.

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The first Charlie POV chapter!

I plan on writing at least eight of these, so keep an eye out (comment what scenes from Rock Bottom you'd like to read)

Also, if you haven't checked out my new story Other Side of Hollywood yet, then please do; I have some really exciting (and original) ideas:)