Short chapter. Sorry. Stick it out until the end, and I’ll explain.

Chapter 6

Olivia

Our first gig was coming around the corner, and none of us were getting along. We automatically thought that a new drummer would fix everything, but Julian was impatient. He’d huff and stop playing in the middle of a song if someone wasn’t playing perfectly with him. The whole point was to practice, to learn from our mistakes. Julian wasn’t giving us that option. So I jumped in to take a plan of action.

“JULIAN REID!” My patience had worn thin with him and Logan and Taylor would have been quick to agree. “I don’t fucking care if Taylor’s tempo is ahead or behind yours. Keep playing.” I took a deep breath and released my death grip from the microphone. Logan had a smirk on his face that he was trying to hide, but he ended up breaking out into a fit of laughter. He quickly excused himself for a bathroom break.

“We’re supposed to play perfect, ya know.” His sticks were sitting on the drum set and his back was to us. I figured he enjoyed staring at the Something Corporate poster more than the angry look on my face. “I don’t need a bad reputation. I really don’t.”

A reputation? Julian didn’t even reside in the area. I couldn’t seem to imagine how this was going to make him look bad. He was awfully self-conscious if he really thought we were this bad. It was practice. We messed around, but when we got to the show- we played like we meant business. Julian just didn’t see things our way, and nor did he agree with our methods.

“It’s ridiculous,” he confirmed. “We’re in a band to entertain people. How can we entertain people if we can’t all play at the same tempo?” he fired off.

We desperately tried to explain things to him, but he wasn’t seeing things our way. Instead, he kicked the ground and started to curse up a storm. He was pissed.

“That dude is fucking crazy,” Logan commented as he set down his guitar and walked over to the refrigerator to grab a Dr. Pepper. “I swear, I can’t take another day of him going all commando on us. I’m ready to beat the crap out of that shit head.”

I couldn’t disagree with Logan because he was right. Since Julian joined the band, he had been nothing but a pain in the ass. He wasn’t lying when he said being in a band to him was to make money instead of just being a hobby. I was at the last straw with him, and I was seriously kicking him out of the band when he suddenly came back into the garage and took a seat.

“Listen, I really need the money. I’m sorry.”

Logan and I shared a look of confusion. The nerve that Julian had to be such a jackass was starting to drain the last of the band of any energy we had. In two days, we hadn’t even gotten through one whole song before dear Julian decided to throw a hissy fit. And the worst part was that we only had three more days before we would make a huge fool out of ourselves. How could we handle such an arrogant bastard for a few more days?

“Fine.” I crossed my arms over my chest and eyed him wearingly. “But if you ever walk out on us again- you’re gone.”

“But you need me…”

At that very moment, he sounded vulnerable, and it was almost impossible to resist.

“You can stay on one condition.”

It was amazing what circumstances fully got his attention.

“And what is that?”

He was twirling his drumsticks between his fingers, not even looking at me. I didn’t even think he was very worried about the circumstances because he was already back to his old self, again.

“That you promise to help me make Wade jealous.”

I smiled in triumph. I had successfully found the root of Julian’s feelings. He would never make Wade jealous, and the plan was absolutely flawless. He would never go through with the wager, and that simply meant that I could let him out of our band, and stand down from the local band contest without much embarrassment.

Oh how I loved messing with his mind.

I was such a fucking genius.

--

Eros

--

One moment and everything was under control. Within a minute, it all spiraled into one nasty mess. I had to be honest- Olivia was a pretty girl, but getting involved with clients was a no-no. I had no intentions of ruining my chances of going home. Logan and Taylor seemed shocked all of their own, and I took an opportunity to act on instinct.

“I would have to say that is the most ridiculous idea I’ve ever heard. Your boys will back me up on that, right?”

Taylor was fiddling with a book full of sheet music, and I imagined he was too afraid to take a stand to Olivia. She was obviously the leader and followers always know how to keep their distance. I just hoped that she freaking understood what she was saying. Making Wade jealous would possibly throw my whole assignment, and I was at the point where I wasn’t ready to let that happen just yet.

“Umm…” Logan was trying to intervene, but when Olivia glanced over at him- he completely forgot what he wanted to say. I hated that she had so much power over her friends. They couldn’t even think for themselves. “I have somewhere to be. Sorry.” As quickly as that, Logan darted out of the garage with Taylor in tow. The first thing came to mind was that they were a bunch of fucking cowards for leaving me to tend to the fire.

“Olivia, I could do it…”

I knew I was an asshole, but I wasn’t about to let one girl sacrifice all my chances of getting off of Earth. The past few days have been the worst days of my life. Plus, the longer that it took to get Olivia and Wade together- the more that my parents were going to be on my case about it. I could imagine them complaining and saying that I took way too long, that I was a disgrace to the family.

Once again, I couldn’t figure out why I was so anxious to return home. It was kind of stupid, but I wanted to show up my parents, anyway. Wade wasn’t really my friend, but it was easy to feel sorry for the guy. He sure picked the wrong friend to fall for because he ran away- kicking and screaming like a girl.

So, why was I so worried about the bet?

Wade didn’t like Olivia, and she was just too much of a bitch for Wade to care about her. My plan was perfect. I could play along with her game, and show her that it really does take two to tango. She would never think that I’d go along with it. I knew she hated my guts, and that had been my impression. The more that she loathed me- the easier it would be to get what I needed.

You can’t outsmart a mastermind.

If you do the opposite of what one person expects- then your chances for success are a lot higher.

“But…”

She didn’t know what to say, and for the first time I felt like I was truly in control.

Although there was a downside. Wasn’t there always?

I had no fucking clue how I was going to beat her at her own game. I was fucked.

A/n: I feel really horrible for cutting this off at this point, but it was necessary. The next chapter will establish the agreement, and we’ll see Wade for the first time in a while. I know this chapter may not seem very important, but it is important to see why there is this agreement in the first place. When you bring two stubborn people together, you are sure to get burned by fire. I promise that when I write next chapter- it’ll make up for this one because that chapter will be the gig at Spittle This.

Also, I need to establish that I don’t write this story as much as I’d like to because I have 3 plus other stories I’m currently in the process of writing. I want everyone to know that I’m not neglecting it- I give all of my stories equal writing time, and I have a system that I use. So, this is usually the last story in my system. I’m hoping that it won’t take over two weeks to write a chapter because I want to finish this during the summer. If my schedule permits- I promise that if I take long to update- I’ll write long, detailed chapters to make up for it. How does that sound?

And, see, I could have written a long chapter here, but that just would have dragged everything out, and I don’t write chapters that are certain lengths- I just write and if they only last 700 words- then that’s how it has to be. I just want everyone to know that I’m not cheating you from the story.

Note: My responses could ultimately be a bit of a spoiler. Don’t read any further unless you want to.

Pecado- The only thing I’m really going to say is that Wade still likes Olivia. That’s why he’s staying away and that’s also why he dropped out of the band. He likes her, but she’s just too much for him to handle, and he has some pretty bad secrets of his own. At this point, I can tell you that Eros (Julian) doesn’t like Olivia because she’s too much of a bitch, and why would he be concerned for love? He wants to return home ASAP, so she’s the last thing on his mind… most of the time. Ultimately, Eros and Olivia could be a better match than Wade and Olivia, but that doesn’t mean that things will work out, right? Anyway, thank you for being so faithful with this story.

If you guys do have questions, please let me know.

Darkness of Reality