𝒻𝒾𝓇𝓈𝓉 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 ~ 𝒿𝑒𝓃𝓏𝒾𝑒.

chapter thirty one • "rehearsal"

Mackenzie.

Today was the day of the little music festival at the Roxy, which meant hours of rehearsals. It was around 8 a.m when I woke up, and I surprised to see Maddie, Brynn, and Lauren already chilling in the kitchen.

"Morning, Kenz!" Lauren said happily.

"Hey," I said back. "Is Johnny awake yet? We have to go to rehearsal in literally less than an hour."

"Nope, him and Jack are still having their beauty sleep," Brynn chuckled. Suddenly, it looked like she was hit with an idea. "Let's burst in their room and wake them up!"

The girls and I all rushed to their room. I quietly opened the door and we slipped in. Then, all chaos broke loose. Maddie opened up the shades, letting in a bunch of light. Lauren and Brynn started shaking Johnny and Jack awake.

"Rise and shine!" Maddie and I yelled before bursting into laughter. "We have stuff to do!" I added.

Johnny groaned and rolled out of bed. "You guys are actually annoying."

"For real," Jack concurred. "Well, John, you have stuff to do. I could be chilling, but these girls wanted to wake up us up!"

"Oh shut up," Lauren rolled her eyes playfully.

"You shut up!" Jack said. "You have the audacity to talk to me after hanging out with Hayden Summerall all last night? Don't get me wrong, he's cool, but..."

"Oh, I totally forgot about that!" I told Lauren. "You guys were all close. Did you get his number?"

"Maybe..."

"Ooh, go Lauren!" Brynn said excitedly.

"Ok, off topic!" I told everyone. "John, get ready. You have like 40 minutes until we have to leave." I turned to Maddie. "So what are you guys going to do today?"

"We're going to the Grove with Charlize, and then to see you guys at the performance later," Maddie informed us.

"Yay!" Lauren exclaimed. "I really want to go shopping."

"Have fun! I promise that tomorrow we'll all hang out," I said. Lauren and Brynn nodded.

~

Later, me, Johnny, my mom, and Johnny's mom were on the road to the venue. It was a bit of a drive. To get comfortable, I put my legs on Johnny's lap. He opened his eyes from his little nap and gave me a look.

"Really?" He said to me.

"I usually have the back seat to myself, so yes. Really," I retorted.

"So do we have to stay here until the show starts at 7?" Johnny asked, already complaining.

"No, there's different rehearsal times," I explained. "Ours is from 9 to 10, since we're only performing one song. Then we'll probably meet the others at the Grove."

"Phew," Johnny said in relief. I rolled my eyes lightheartedly.

Johnny looked up at our moms, then started typing rapidly on his phone. A second later, my phone dinged.

Johnny: Maybe you shouldn't have your legs on my lap. The other day Brynn asked me if I liked you. That's why she's been all weird.

Well, that explains why she was acting weird at the party. A sudden rush of guilt went over me and I put my legs down.

Me: You said no, right?

Johnny: Duh. You don't have to feel guilty or anything. We know we're just friends.

I kept repeating "We're just friends" in my head, but my mind was just not believing it. Then the whole Lauren shipping us thing, despite Brynn being her best friend, came into my mind too. This was not ok!

Finally, we reached the Roxy, which took me out of my thoughts. We got out the car, showed our passes, and entered inside.

It wasn't the biggest venue I've ever performed at, but Johnny was taken aback.

"Well, this is way bigger than the school auditorium," he said in awe. I laughed a little.

We found Mark in the audience section, finishing up a phone call.

"Hey guys!" He said in a rushed tone. Clearly the phone call was not a good one. "You're up in 3 minutes. Oh, Meredith, have you and Johnny made a decision about the record deal?"

"Not yet," Johnny's mom said. "But we'll let you know by the end of the week."

"No rush!" Mark assured her. He turned to Johnny and I. "You guys can head backstage."

We left our moms and went toward the backstage area. I spotted Hayden testing out his mic.

"Hey guys!" He said to us. "Johnny, are you excited to be here?"

"Yeah," he replied. "I'm kind of nervous for tonight, though."

"You're going to do great," I told him. I turned back to Hayden. "Have you rehearsed already?"

"I'm after you guys," Hayden replied. He checked his phone. "I'm going to head to Starbucks. Do you guys want anything? My treat."

I said a pink drink and Johnny said a caramel macchiato. Hayden left, and then it was time for us to rehearse.

We went on the stage and walked up to our mics. We tested them out while the band was practicing our song. It was weird having it played live instead of Jeremiah's beat. Yeah, it was going to be in the background but still.

"Whenever you're ready, guys!" The guy at the sound board said, ready to adjust our sound.

We started singing the song, and I felt all the memories rushing back to me. It felt like ages since we sang it, when it was really only about a month.

"John, can you sing a little louder for me? You're not hitting the high level on the sound board," the sound guy said.

"Yeah, sure," Johnny said, but I could tell he was a little annoyed.

I put my mic down and tapped his arm. "Hey, it's ok," I whispered to him. "It's just a sound thing. You're doing great. Trust me."

We went through the song again, Johnny's confidence showing. We got to leave early because everything was good. Not before getting our drinks from Hayden, of course.

We went outside and headed back in the car. Mom was going to drop us off at the Grove to hang out with the others and shop.

"How did you like your first professional rehearsal?" I asked Johnny once we were on the road.

"Pretty good," he said. "I'm still nervous for tonight, though."

"You guys are going to do great!" Mom said from the front.

"Thanks, Mom," I thanked her genuinely. I was getting uncomfortable again, so I put my legs on Johnny's lap. He gave me a look but then went back on his phone.

I remember trying so hard to get Brynn and Johnny together back when we were in Phoenix. Trying to ignore anyone who was saying I might like Johnny. Trying to prove them wrong.

But maybe they were right.

~

A/N: I accidentally published this without finishing it, lol. I swear writing chapters are so hard for this book! But I'm still trying to finish it. Sorry for the lack of Jenzie; I'm still trying to gradually bring them together. Anyway, vote, comment, and stay tuned!