Ramé

Induratize

(n.) to make one's own heart hardened or resistant to someone's pleas or advances, or to the idea of love

"Hey," Awsten said, looking angrily at him. "What the fuck was that?"

Otto just flipped him off. "I don't know what you're talking about."

He'd fucked up the drums to Silver. Badly . Four times in a row. It bordered on unrecognizable. And they had a show tomorrow.

"Look," Awsten said, running a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry I broke up with you the day before a rehearsal." Otto laughed emptily. "I should've given you more time to process everything."

"Yeah, that's my issue. I haven't had enough time to process it," Otto said, shaking his head. "You're fuckin' unbelivable. D'ya know that?"

Awsten just looked at him with wide eyes. "What did you want me to do, Otto?" Awsten shouted.

"I don't fucking know," Otto exploded. "I don't know, Awsten. I don't know if you've heard," he said, his voice starting to shake, "but you and I had a fight yesterday. Way to fuckin' paint me to be the bad guy, by the way." He bit his lip and looked at the ground, feeling tears gathering in his eyes. "So if they ask, that's what the fight was about. I fucking hated my part in Silver and I got mad."

He heard Awsten sigh. "I didn't mean to make you into a bad guy."

"Whatever," Otto muttered. "Give me five and I'll play it right."

"Can we at least talk about it? Please, Otto," Awsten approached him the following night after the show had ended. Otto sighed before looking to make sure Jawn and Geoff weren't hanging around anywhere.

"Yeah, sure. Just," he saw Geoff turn the corner, smiling when he saw him. He turned back to Awsten and let his smile dissipate. "Not here."

"Tonight?" Awsten asked hopefully.

Just as Otto went to answer, Geoff materialized next to him.

"Hey," Geoff said, clapping Otto on the back. "What did I miss?"

Otto threw an arm around him, smiling tightly. "Not much. Just talkin' 'bout the show."

"Oh my God," Jawn yelled, throwing himself on Awsten's back. Awsten teetered forward, annoyance and panic painted on his face as he tried not to topple over. "The show was fuckin' awesome!" Jawn smiled, giddy with excitement. "We need to get wasted!"

"Jawn we're eighteen," Geoff reminded him.

Jawn rolled his eyes and dismounted Awsten. "But we're rockstars now!"

Otto laughed. "We opened for a band. And there were, like, thirty people."

"There were at least fifty by the time you guys finished," Jawn argued.

Picking up his case, Geoff just shook his head. "Well, I'm loading the band van."

"It's my dad's van," Awsten said to no one in particular.

"No longer," Jawn said, patting Awsten on the chest as he passed him.

Otto grabbed his bass drum and turned to face Awsten. "If we can talk at your house, it can get done tonight."

And that's how Otto found himself parked outside Awsten's house, sweating bullets. He shook out his hands before getting out of his car to go into what was bound to be the worst conversation of his life. They'd agreed to meet at one because Otto could easily sneak out and back into his house when the time came. He was ten minutes early so he went to sit on Awsten's front porch, staring at the stars above neighboring houses.