Page 23 of Dark Room Junkie

Ramon shrugged, but Chris thought for a moment. “Well, we’ve been sharing the rehearsal space with the Lighteners for about three years now. Noé showed up pretty soon after. I think Tom, the singer, knew him and brought him in as a bassist. I was surprised last week when I heard how the guy can sing. It made me see him in a whole new light. Before, he was just the guy who hooked up with everyone.”

“He still is,” Ramon interjected.

“Yeah, well... a word of advice, Alex,” Chris said confidentially. “If you’re into women, make sure your girl never meets Noé. And if you’re into guys, stay away from him. The worst thing that can happen to you is falling in love with him.”

I chuckled. “Why’s that?”

“Noé’s not the relationship type.”

“How do you know that?” Ramon asked. “He’s about to start one with Nightrain. Should we be worried?”

“Tom explained it to me after my girlfriend left me because of Noé. I can’t even be mad at Noé about it because he just gave Claudia the cold shoulder after a one-night stand where she was wasted and confessed her love to him. Tom said Noé pulls this with everyone. But don’t worry, Ramon, I doubt he’ll do that with Nightrain.”

“But with your girlfriend? Dude!”

“He didn’t know she was my girlfriend,” Chris deflected. “Even apologized to me afterward. But anyway. I want to see the day when Noé falls in love. Hell will probably freeze over before that happens. As soon as things get too hot for him, he’s out. Honestly? I don’t know what the guy is searching for, but it’s certainly not love.”

“Then let’s hope it’s music,” Ramon muttered. “Anything else could break us.”

I mustered a smile and sipped my beer. Somehow, I was disappointed, but at the same time relieved. Noé and I didn’t owe each other anything. But what did that moment in the car mean? He couldn’t deny that there was a certain feeling between us. After all, his hand was on my thigh.

You don’t just do that for no reason, right?

8

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Noé

“Relax,” Marco said through the headphones. “No need to be nervous. You know the songs and you’re miles better than Manuel.”

Although I was warmed up and my vocal cords were ready, standing in a soundproof booth about to record my first song still made me nervous. I could hear my irregular breath and clenched my sweaty hands into fists.

It had only been a week since the first rehearsal, and Alex had come to take photos just the day before yesterday. Everything was happening so fast. Almost a bit too fast. But I would ignore my distrust and irritation because this—all of this—was what I wanted. My chance at a life that I had worked so hard for.

So, stay cool.

When Marco mentioned we would record the vocals, I didn’t think he would bring the studio into our rehearsal space. Yet, there I was, in a booth covered with foam. I adjusted my headphones and waited for Marco’s instructions. Through a small window, I saw him sitting on a chair in front of the stage, using it like a desk and adjusting some knobs on the mixing board. He kept switching to the laptop to do who knows what. Eventually, he looked over at me, grinned broadly, and gave me a thumbs-up.

“Are you ready?” he asked through the headphones.

I nodded.You got this, I told myself, trying to calm my pulse.Just sing the song.

As the music started, I waited for my cue but couldn't get past the first verse.

“Sorry,” I said immediately.

“No problem!”

“Can you lower the drums a bit and turn up the vocals?”

“Sure thing. Already done. Let’s try it again.”

This time, the mix was more comfortable, and I made it through the song to the end.

“That was good. And now let’s do it again. We’ll take it step by step. This is sounding really good.”

Marco’s enthusiasm gave me reassurance because I couldn’t gauge at all whether what I had just delivered was any good. But Marco was an honest guy, and he wouldn’t have held back criticism if I had been crap.

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