Andrew entered the room first, and made a beeline to the mattresses. Jack groped in the gray-scale darkness until he found what he was looking for and flicked on a switch that blinked warm light into the room. Andrew then slammed into the bed, like a overeager toddler, sending up specks of dust into the air that caught the light. Nate thought it quite beautiful. Nate smiled.
---
The practice had gone well, if 'well' standards meant that they truly had minimal music time, and ended up scattered around the motel room, Nate sitting back to the closed door, to the left of him by the window had stood Sam, glancing around with bright eyes over at Rachel when she spoke to jack, who was picking at her dark brown hair that cascaded around her bright red scrunchies. Andrew had not gotten up from where he had collapsed in the time spand of the first few seconds of him entering the room.
As they tired of pushing something that didn't seem to want to be pushed, they decided to relax at the nearest bar, maybe check up on the college basketball games (at least Nate hoped). They loosened up even more as the liquor sapped warmness into their bloodstream and relaxed their mouths into a common smile.
Nate has been easily chatting with a nice woman who sat to his left. It wasn't that he was talking to a girl that was the miracle in that moment, but the fact that he had been chatting it up with jack, who sat at the right of him, for some time now before they both turned their attention to the young woman.
"Wait, do you guys play instruments?" She had inquired, mixing her fruit drink- probably alcoholic, with her hand.
While Nate sat there, stunned, jack said with an easy smile, "Yeah, me n' him are takin' this little tour together," Jacks finger went back and forth between him and Nate.
"I'm Nate, i sing." Nate spurted out. Embarrassment swept over him before he realized the two really didn't take mind to his outburst.
"I sing too," Jack replied. The woman with the drink looked confused. "Different bands," Jack offered an explanation, the woman did not look as confused. "Jack," He continued as he introduced himself.
"I'm Jade," she seemed to stretch out the e drunkenly, then giggled a little as she realized what she was doing. "But i really don't like that name," she said, shaking her head, "just call me Jen."
Nate and Jack both nodded politely. A half smile creeped onto Nate's lips. "I used to play an instrument," Jen said, looking of into the distance for a few seconds before returning to the two men in front of her. "Bassoon," she blinked a few times, "Almost even took that scholarship for it...."
"A bassoon?" Jack interjected, leaning over to Nate's space. "Are you kidding me? How is that even fun?" He paused to laugh a while and Nate then knew he was just joking around.
"You hear this girl Nate?" He took his right hand over Nate farther shoulder and shook him, Nate went with the motion, chuckling slightly at the scene and looking down. "Bassoon!" Nate giggled some more and shook his head.
"Hey!" Jen tilted her head and moved to get a view of Nate's bowed one. "Singer boy! look at me!" Even through Jen's laugh, he figured she really wanted to tell him something so he looked back up at her.
"Now," she leaned back. "Don't you dare stop playing, if its something you really love," Jade shook her head in emphasis.
Nate scoffed at the seriousness in her advice. "You cant be two years younger then me, and you're planning on giving me advice?" he joked.
"Yes, i am." Jade said sharply. Both jack and Nate got serious, taken back by her turn of emotions. She groped for her drink, took a few moments drinking the rest of it down and returned the glass to the wood bar with a clunk. This reminded them of how many drinks they had.
Jade told them about what she gave up. She told them about her dream that had long since withered from dehydration. She told them of her hair falling out and her skin yellowing because of the stress of it all. She also told of this man that she had met who had pulled her out of it. That he is probably the reason why she is still standing here today. He is also the reason she quit. She left her dream and went inside to were it was comfortable.
This made Nate uncomfortable. Jack didn't seem to be shifting in his seat as much as Nate was.
