Page 129 of Strange Lad

And the best part? I got to be the heroandget the guy.

Yeah, I’m cheesy. I know I am, but I’m so fucking happy that it all has worked out for everyone.

Eli is going to sell his house with the help of Damien; his stupid aunt is gone with the wind, and he’s still sober. Oli and I are in love, havingsexy fucking sex, and he’s now going to be playing music right beside me. My parents don’t care that I’m a little gay. I mean, what could go wrong?

After Eli’s recital last night, we all celebrated at Olive Garden like it was fine dining. My spaghetti was lackluster, and Oli was thoroughly unimpressed with his ravioli. No one was happy with their meals—no, we went for breadsticks. There just isn’t anything like those phallic puffs of garlic butter goodness. Today, though, we are dropping the bomb on Lex. I don’t think any of us are looking forward to it.

While we wait for our evil overlord to arrive, we jam out.

Let me tellyou, I am aroused.

I was rocking a semi the whole time we ran through our first album because Oli with a guitar is my new favorite thing to look at. He has memorized all the parts with ease, playing them like he wrote the damn things. Michael is so salty about it. We’ve been teasing him for the past two hours. I’m trying some new screaming techniques, but I don’t think I’ll ever be the next Will Ramos. Some of these sounds make my ears bleed, and not in the metal way.

“Time out!” I say into the microphone, ogling my boyfriend for a beat longer than appropriate.

“What the hell was that noise?” Kelly asks, slapping her ear. “Sounded like a dying whale.”

“I wasexperimenting, alright?” I defend myself.

Oli lets the guitar hang by the strap at his side and my dick tingles. He’s wearing a black T-shirt, dark jeans, and his work boots. That dirty blond hair is in its signature knot at his nape, and his beard is freshly trimmed down close to his skin. I want to lick him.

“Jorge!”

“What?” I yelp, spinning to see who’s yelling at me.

“We are going to go through Strange Lad, no?” Devon asks.

“Right. Yeah.”

“Stop eye-fucking Oli,” Phoenix growls, pointing with his drumstick. “It’s giving me nightmares.”

“Did you forget about all the nights Iheardyou phone-fucking Eli? Payback’s a bitch, bebe.”

Michael shakes his head and starts playing. We all scramble to join in. As the music gets going, I fall into my groove, living and breathing this shit. I love singing. I love my band and my life. I don’t know what I did in a past life to ensure I’d get lucky in this one, but I send a silent prayer to whoever that person was.I sing the lyrics I wrote all about Oli and me directly to him. He holds my eyes, knowing the truth behind them—hell, everyone probably does now. But for us, it’s a love song for the ages.

Our journey together, how our friendship deepened, grew, and blossomed into something gorgeous. He waited for me for so long, and to think I was always within arms’ reach of the best thing to ever happen to me, completely blind to it. I know he doesn’t resent me for my ignorance. I know he understands that we were always meant to be together, just not then. I needed to go through my life drowning so I could remind myself that I knew how to swim.

And he needed me to show him how.

I love you, I mouth to him during Michael’s solo. He blushes deeply and says it back.

On our third repeat of Strange Lad, my euphoric, happy-go-lucky mood tanks because the studio door flies open. Lex appears like some tiny demi-god, swathed in black leather and creepers. His perfectly coifed auburn hair reflects in the LED overhead lights. And his eyes bounce over each of us. The music dies. Kelly walks out from behind her keyboard, rushing out of the sound booth to start damage control.

“Here we fucking go,” Devon grumbles, following after her.

Like scared kids, the rest of us scramble out of the booth. And Lex is already losing his shit. “---not in the fuckingbudget, Kel! What am I supposed to do with a whole extra body?”

“We need a whole extra body,” she tells him simply, keeping her cool.

Lex pinches the bridge of his nose, physically vibrating with rage. “If any of you would have informed me about the lineup change, I could have prepared. I could have put off signing you fucks.”

“What?” I gasp. “We got signed?”

“No shit? With who? When?” Phoenix demands.

Devon stays oddly silent, watching Lex like a hawk.

Sighing heavily, Lex looks at us. “Kingsport Records, Overheaded by Arkham Records.”

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