The Boy Band Who Adopted Me!

Chapter 31 - An Incredibly Important Date

The days crept by. Mason started coming to school more; he flew a paper airplane across the room to me. His number was written on it. When I opened it up, he smirked at me. Emmett looked a little concerned.

"You're not like seeing this guy on the side or something, are you?"

"No, no!" I laughed. "I promise I'm not. He's just a friend."

"Heeeee keeps looking at you like he wants to be more than your friend," Emmett said, glancing sideways at Mason. But I could identify the mischief in Mason's gaze; it wasn't about flirting with me, it was about his natural sort of deviance.

"I'm telling you, Emmett, he's not interested in me like that."

We managed to get out of music appreciation every day to have band practice in one of the school's empty club rooms. Then, after dinner, we'd go out and practice again. This went on until the first Friday night show of November at The Den - a little, out-of-the-way venue nestled in the shops every local and Carroll student loved to frequent.

I surveyed the venue - wall-to-wall with people. I was impressed with Will's ability to get a show booked up and flyers out in exactly the kind of way that could get HfS to the top. I toyed with my hoodie strings as I wandered backstage during soundcheck.

Our tense-looking, long-limbed manager leaned rather wearily against the wall in a back room. I could hear Cody banging randomly on the drums out front.

Will smiled at me as I came into view. "Sup, rockstar?" I fist-bumped him and took a spot next to him on the wall.

"Hey, did you notice that your punk friends are at our show?"

I perked my head up in disbelief.

"Wait, seriously? They came?"

They weren't exactly my friends, they were Mason's--

"Yeah, Mason, too. He seemed pretty enthusiastic. You had better play a song or two so you don't disappoint," he joked.

So Mason was here. I was infinitely proud of the band, and was more than ready to show Mason the kind of heart that Gavin really had underneath that bristly jealous-guy exterior.

"Gotta check on lighting, Alex. Enjoy the show, okay?" Will picked up his messenger bag from the ground.

"Don't wear yourself out," I reminded him teasingly. He turned just to reply, "Already there," with a smile, then walked in the direction of the effects booth.

I peeked through the curtains. Sure enough, Mason was standing about mid-crowd, a gang of studded, spiked-up guys draped in chains surrounding him. I knew that it had to be out of friendship for me; these guys definitely didn't listen to emo pop-punk in their downtime.

My heart fluttered as I watched Gavin grasp the microphone stand with one hand and take the mic in the other. Unlike with homecoming, I couldn't tell whether the cheering was cursory or genuine excitement.

"Good turnout today," Gavin smirked at Emmett onstage. Showgoers always seem to love watching band members interact between songs. Cody grinned and gently rapped his drumsticks on the edge of his drumkit.

The show went smoothly. I watched Mason and his punk friends get seriously into it from where I was standing; the whole crowd was rolling and cheering, going wild. Will's second-ever attempt at mass-printing T-shirts for sale actually seemed to be working out well; people I knew to go to schools near Carroll were buying them in the back.

The band flew through more songs. Gavin beckoned me onstage near the end.

"Soooo how would everybody feel about hearing a duet?" he smirked with a cocky hand through his hair. The crowd cheered.