Battle Of The Bands (FOB FanFic ft. Panic! At The Disco)

[Chapter 2] Replacement Bassist (Brendon)

(Brendon's POV)

I was hanging out with Pete at my house playing video games. I was constantly glancing over my shoulder making sure that no one would see me with him. Especially anyone in my band or any of my friends at school.

It's not that I was embarrassed to hang out with Pete. It's just that...he wasn't really a popular guy like I was and people like him and me don't usually hang out. But that didn't mean he wasn't cool. He was the coolest. Really.

Plus I've known him since him kindergarten. We've been best friends since.

It's just that we went our separate ways, I guess you could say, when high school came around. He started hanging out with that shy Andy guy and eventually those losers Patrick and Joe. He even formed a band with them. They sound pretty good...I guess.

I don't really know how I feel about him being in that band. I guess I just don't like that when I asked him to be the bassist of our band - because who wouldn't want to be in a band with their best friend - he declined. So we recruited Dallon instead. Dallon's an amazing bassist and an awesome guy, but I just wish Pete would've said yes, that's all.

"So are you going?" Pete asked me out of the blue, not breaking his gaze with the television where we were racing around one of the Need For Speed: Underground race tracks.

"Going to what?" I replied, also not looking away from the game.

"The Battle Of The Bands," He elucidated.

"No...what's that?"

Pete paused the game and glanced over at me, "You haven't heard?" I shook my head no. "Oh, it's this competition for new bands that they're having in November, three weeks from now. Grand prize is five thousand dollars and a record deal with this label called Fueled By Ramen so you can produce your first album."

"Wait, did you say Fueled By Ramen?"

"Yeah."

"Oh my god, Pete!" I smacked him on the arm.

"Ouch!" He dropped his Playstation 2 controller and rubbed his arm, "What the hell was that for?"

"That's the same record label that signed people like Jimmy Eat World and Gym Class Heroes!"

"Jimmy Eat Who?"

I shook my head, "Never mind. What's the competition called again?"

*****

I slammed down a flyer for the Battle Of The Bands that I had Pete copy for me onto my lunch table, causing everyone to jump. "We have to do this."

"What is it?" Ryan asked me as he picked up the piece of paper and began reading it over.

"Our way to becoming famous," I answered, slipping into the seat next to my girlfriend, Catherine, and folding my hands on the table, "Guys, we have to enter. We have to win."

"Five thousand dollars?" Spencer, who was looking over Ryan's shoulder, inquired.

I nodded my head, a wide smile crawling onto my face, "And a record deal with Fueled By Ramen. Along with producing our first album."

"Let me see it," Dallon remarked, extending his hand across the table and wiggling his fingers. Ryan handed him the piece of paper. "We have to register by Friday," He pointed out, looking over at me.

"Yeah? And...?"

"Brendon, today's Thursday. That means we have to register by tomorrow."

"So let's do it!" I exclaimed, almost sky-rocketing out of my seat I was so eager to enter this competition I'd only found out about yesterday.

"Brendon, it says here that the competition's November 14th to November 21st," Dallon once again brought up. I glared over at him, already knowing he was going to come up with some reason he couldn't make it. "The SAT is November 15th."

"And...?"

"I can't miss the SAT," He slid the piece of paper back over to me, "I'm sorry, but I can't do it."

"Well then...we'll just have to get a replacement bassist." I crossed my arms.

"I'll do it."

We all looked up and saw a kid I'd never seen before standing over us with his lunch tray in his hands, a meek smile on his face.

"And who are you?" Spencer asked for all of us.

"Jon," He set his tray down on the table in between Catherine and me and sat down in between us. "Jon Walker."

"And what makes you think you can just join our band?" I questioned, turning towards him and leaning my elbow on the table, resting my head in the palm of my hand.

"Oh, I don't want to join your band," He clarified, "I'm already in a band - The Young Veins. I just overheard that you need a replacement bassist and thought I might offer my services. The rest of my band is registered for the SAT too, so I couldn't join the Battle Of The Bands. But maybe we could combine forces and join the competition together."

"I like this guy," Ryan said, nodding his head in approval.

I heaved a sigh, "Fine. You can be our bassist. But only for the competition. Then you can go back to whatever you said your stupid little band was. Agreed?" I stuck my hand out for a handshake.

"Agreed," He replied, placing his hand in mine and shaking it up and down.

Dallon scoffed and stood up from the table, taking all of his things with him.