CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
“Hey, Natalie, calm down.” Caleb said from across the table where I sat.
It was 5:59pm and we were at The Stone Wall. We’ve been here for almost an hour, listening to all the other bands perform while we got our fill of free food and drinks. I jiggled my knee—an unconscious habit I did when I was nervous—making the table was vibrate, which in turn made the glasses and plates look like they were doing a little jig. Valerie, Kaycee and Ann were sitting at the table with us.
There were other familiar faces in the room, too. Most of them were from the school that I went to. Some of them were, according to Tyler, from his school. It’s a good thing none of my classmates were there—well, except for Valerie, Kaycee and Ann. Most of those from my school were Juniors and Seniors. And they were all there to cheer our band on. Seems like the band already established a considerably sizeable fan base even before I became the keyboardist.
Juniper was there, too, but she was sitting at another table across the room. Apparently, she had a band, too. They called themselves Urban Renegade, and they were the second band to perform that night. Juniper had an amazing voice. I never would have expected her to be able to belt out like that and soar over the notes the way she did.
“Yeah, querida.” Zerrah advised as she snuggled up closer under Caleb’s arm. “Breathe.”
Iggy laid a gentle hand on my knee, stopping my knee from shaking any further. The table and dinnerware stilled.
“You’ll do fine.” Iggy assure me.
I frowned at him. “But what if I don’t?”
From the corner of my eye, I saw Valerie roll her eyes and flick her bangs. “Psssshhh… Oh, come on, Nat. You always do good.”
“Yeah.” Ann, who sat on Caleb’s left (no surprise there) agreed.
“But what if I screw up this time?” I fidgeted with the table napkin to keep my fingers busy.
“Then we’ll kick you off the band and find another keyboardist.” Tyler said easily.
My head snapped to Tyler and my eyes widened in shock. “What? You’d really do that?”
Anne, Kaycee and Val snickered. Some friends they were!
“I don’t see why we can’t.” Tyler shrugged.
“Shut up, Tyler.” Iggy rolled his eyes and leaned back into his chair so he could stretch out his arm on the back of Valerie’s chair. Despite my anxiety, I was still able to notice this. Iggy liked Valerie? I made a mental note to “casually” bring it up with Iggy later.
Tyler chuckled and hooked his arm over my shoulder. “I was just teasing you, love. Iggy’s right—you’ll do fine. Listen to Zerrah and breathe.”
“But I don’t think—”
“Breathe.” He repeated a bit more firmly, so I took a quick intake of breath. “Take another breath. Slower.”
I sighed, but did as told.
“Now another.”
“I don’t see how—”
“Just do it, Allie.”
I inhaled again, slower, letting the air fill my lungs, before exhaling in an audible whoosh.
“Do it again.”
I repeated the same process of inhaling and exhaling until finally—and surprisingly—I felt calmer, and my heartbeat felt steadier.
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Beautiful Disaster (Ongoing & on Hiatus)
RomanceEver since her mother died, Natalie has been the glue that desperately tries to keep the remains of her broken family intact. And when Caleb, her older melancholic brother, runs away from home, she comes to a moot point in her life---go after him...
