Katie's P.O.V
I stood, looking up at the sign. Velvet Records.
"Nice..." Dylan commented, looking through the window, hands cupped by his eyes, looking in.
"Let's go in..." I pressed the lock on the door down, opening the door to enter.
My friends all followed, us being the only ones in here, along with a guy in the back, heard, but unseen.
"Even better inside..." Dylan smiled, walking to the back wall, taking a look through all the records.
"Oh, man. First record I ever bought!" Vinnie held up 'The Blizzard Of Oz', standing at the shelf, by the till.
It's exactly how I remember.
The rows of records, the singles, the prices...
I heard beads rattling, my attention going to the back room, seeing a man standing there, with us at his attention.
"Ah, customers." He smiled, coming into the store. "Good morning."
"Good morning. This is a nice place you have!" Eddie smiled at him, looking over the singles, with Stevie.
"Thank you. I've had this place, since my early twenties." The man smiled.
It was him...
"You sold me my first record..." I looked at him. "Sweet - Blockbusters. It was there, in the corner." I pointed to the shelf by the window. "I came in with my dad-"
"Frank Monroe... It's Katie, isn't it?" The man smiled at me.
He was tall, with dark, greying hair, glasses, and a few tattoos, now fading with time.
I nodded. "Yeah... You were friends with my dad." I walked up to the counter, where he stood.
"Good ol' Frank! What a lad." He couldn't believe it was me. "I remember you coming in here... You were mesmerized by that record..."
"I still have it!" I smiled at him.
"Never!" He grinned.
I nodded. "It's a prized possession."
He laughed. "Oh, god. You were so small back then. Look at you now! With your own band, un-all."
"Yeah! You know us?!" I asked him, Vinnie joining me at the counter, listening.
"Janie's Gun! Of course! Your uncles came in here demanded I get your albums in stock. Your latest brought in a lot of business. Sold out in three hours." The man told us.
"No way..." I smiled. "Do you know where my uncles are?"
"Where they always are... If you go now, you'll make it for the lunch hour." He checked his watch.
"Great." I smiled, turning to my friends. "Who's hungry?"
. . .
Maria, Sherrie, and Stevie all bought some records, before we headed off, up the street, and around the bend.
The guys followed me to a car park, where another sign was hanging.
"The Velvet Revolver?" Vinnie read it out loud.
"Yeah. Standing longer than the band." I told them, as the pub came first, before the band with Duff McKagan and Slash.
I made tracks towards the doors, the guys catching up.
"It's a bar." Dylan looked at the building.
"A pub!" Stevie and I corrected him.
"Gotta love a British pub." I smiled, my Bolton accent on thick.
I followed Stevie into the pub, seeing a few tables taken, and a few people at the bar. It was the lunch hours.
We walked to the left, where Stevie stopped and looked up, above the bar, seeing framed photographs on the beam, where the ceiling meets the wall.
There were live shots of Janie's Gun, with framed cut outs, newspaper clippings, posters, lyric sheets...
"Whoa..." The guys all stared, taking the time to take in each one.
I followed the pictures to the left, taking me to two doors, next to the bar. One goes to the upstairs, and the other leads to the back of the bar.
The girls grabbed a table, in the back corner, and slowly, the boys joined them, apart from Dylan, who stood at the bar, ready to get the round in, and ask about lunch.
I saw a very familiar guy, in the back, moving a crate, into the back of storage.
"Service!" I called out.
"Be right there!" He called back, before I walked over to the bar, joining Dylan, smirking.
"You know them?" He asked me.
"Just like I know you." I smiled.
He walked out the back room, and scanned the bar, his eyes landing on me.
He stopped, before he started to smile, his eyes glistening, like tears were about to fall.
I smiled at him, before I walked back over, slowly going into a run, crashing into him.
"Hi, Mr Tequila." I smiled.
"Oh, Kate!" He hugged me tight.
Samuel 'Sam' 'Mr Tequila' Monroe. My dads youngest brother.
Average height, dyed black hair, in a little Mohawk, wearing a Jack Daniel's tee, with his usual leather jacket (claimed to be stolen from Gary Moore), black jeans, and black converse.
He picked me up, crushing my bones, taking us over to Dylan.
"Naaaah!" I laughed, before he dropped me.
"God, I've missed you. Let me see ya!" He took the hat off my head, holding my face, getting a look at me. He kissed my forehead and hugged me again.
"We are so proud of you." He held me tight.
"I came home." I looked up at him.
"Yeah! You did!" He cheered. "Drinks are on me. Alright, mate?" He held a hand out to Dylan, who shook hands with him. "You want some lunch? It's all on me. You got a table?" He looked around, seeing the gang all looking over here. "Go sit! What you all drinking?! Jason! Get down here!" He called upstairs.
"Jason's here?" I smiled, looking at Mr Tequila.
He nodded, smiling, before he jumped over the bar, grabbing some glasses.
"Colas all around, to early to drink." Dylan ordered.
"Coming up!" Mr T nodded, before getting to work. "JASON!"
"I'm coming!" He replied, from upstairs.
I hid behind the wall, waiting for him to come down, Mr T smiling, as he knew what I was doing.
Dylan walked over to the table and took his seat, next to Maria, all eyes on me.
"We can't have a rush at this hour. It's too- JESUS!" Jason jumped, as I jumped onto his back.
He caught my legs, spinning around, giving me the opportunity to grab him, like for a piggy back ride.
Mr T and my friends were all laughing, and I leaned around him, to see his face.
"Hey, there!" I smiled.
"Katie?!" He looked at me.
YOU ARE READING
The Leading Man (Multiband Fan Fic)
FanfictionWe all remember that night... The night four hearts stopped beating. Todd Ericson is gone, Janie's Guns is missing, and there's a voice that wants to be heard. After an unexpected phone call Janie's Gun is faced with a young, small town boy, by the...
