Publicity

4 - Underground Ambitions

In the morning, Jonathan drives me to the sent address. As I get out of the car, my nerves are at an all time high. First of all, I don't even know what I'm doing here, or whose house it is. I feel so out of place that I just want to turn around and run back to the car, but Jonathan has already driven away.

Of course, it's safe to assume that it's one of the boys' houses, but they didn't exactly specify.

I clutch the straps of my bag nervously as I walk as slow as humanly possible to the front door, my legs wobbling as they escort me. I can almost feel the strap beginning to rip in two as I reach the front door, raising my fist to knock on the wood before quickly retracting it.

I can't let whoever is on the other side see my shaking hands. I'm especially grateful for that decision when I'm faced with the very last person I wanted to be greeted with.

"Not buying anything, sorry."

I open my mouth, even though I'm not exactly sure how to respond, but before I even get the chance, the door is slammed in my face.

A little stunned, I check my surroundings to make sure nobody witnessed what happened.

Before I can decide whether or not to sprint down the block and pretend I was never there at all, the door reopens, and this time a much more appealing face is on the other side.

"I'm so sorry about that - he's just..." Finn looks at me, a little panicked, before glancing back inside the house. I can't exactly see what's inside since it's too sunny outside, but it seems like he's looking at somebody.

Without a word, he steps out onto the porch and pulls the door shut, lowering his voice a little.
"Uh, we just invited you here because - well, clearly there's some lasting tension between you two, and we obviously need to solve it. I don't know if you two are going to be able to make up or not, but it's best if we try as soon as possible."

I nod, the desire to go home still overwhelming me. I shouldn't even be here in the first place. I don't belong in this band, it's starting to seem silly that I even auditioned all over again.

"We want to get used to your vocals, too. Feel things out a bit, you know?"

Nodding again, I try to remind myself why I'm here. This could be huge for me. Everybody loves them, and the success of my career is all I'll ever want, I know that.

"Sounds good," I say, extremely thankful that my voice doesn't come out shaky or hoarse.

"Come in, it's just the three of us." He takes me inside, and I'm instantly comforted as soon as the cool air brushes my skin. The heat from outside could have been making my nerves worse, I suppose.

The house is beautiful. It's decorated perfectly; not too much, not too little. It's the perfect example of "just right", with warm, homey colors and expensive looking furniture. I can tell that whoever lives here takes pride in their home and their wealth.

"This is Banks's place. Nice, isn't it?" Finn tells me, offering to hang my bag up on the coat rack.

"It's lovely," I reply, stepping further inside to see two recognizable faces in the living room.

I get a 'hi' from Banks, and Brian decides to avoid my gaze at all times, which doesn't bother me at all. Banks offers me a coffee, and I take it just to have something that I can distract myself with.

And I was right, because for the first few minutes, there's nothing but idle conversation between the three boys, and I'm too awkward to join into any part of the chatter. My own silence is just a vessel for all the troubled thoughts to return to me. The worst part about it all, is that I know Brian is right about it all.