Instead of dropping Alissa off at her truck, I let her take my car. Her S-10 will be easier to load and move our things. My nerves are through the roof just thinking about telling my dad what we’re doing. I know he won’t be happy about it, and I’m hoping to God he’s not so pissed off that he fires the both of us. God knows that I won’t be able to pay for the house for long if I don’t have a job.

I park the truck and walk into the house. Mason is sitting on the couch watching tv. “Where’s Dad?”

“He’s in the garage looking for the sander for the dining room floor,” he answers.

I go upstairs and throw all our clothes into bags. I also grab all the blankets and pillows from my bed. As I’m making my way down the stairs with my arms full of bags, my dad walks into the kitchen from the garage.

Seeing me with my arms full, he stops dead in his tracks. “Where in the hell do you think you’re going?”

Mason sits up on the couch, studying me and all the bags in my arms. I look at my dad and motion toward the front door with my head, not wanting to have this fight in front of my little brother.

Dad is on my heels as I walk outside. I toss the bags into the back of the truck and turn to see him standing on the front steps with his hands on his hips. When our eyes lock, he holds his hands out at his sides in a “what” gesture and starts walking over to me.

I reach out my hand. “Thanks for everything, Dad, but it’s time for me to go.”

“Go? Go where?” he asks, shaking my hand.

“I’m buying a house for me and Alissa. We’re getting married.”

He lets out a long breath and rubs his forehead. “Fucking Dan,” he breathes out.

I laugh. “Why didn’t you ever tell me how you stole Mom away from him?”

The stress and worry lines on his face ease away as he laughs and leans against the truck. “He tell you that?”

I nod and slouch next to him. “He said that you and Mom ran off and got married when you were my age.”

“He’s always been full of shit. I didn’t steal her away. He just gave up way too easily.”

I smile. “So, it’s true?”

He nods. “Yeah, I guess it is. One look was all it took from her, and I was a goner. I would’ve given up anything to have her, even my best friend. And it did cost me our friendship for a while. He didn’t talk to me again until you were born, many years later.”

I smile. “So, I guess you kind of know how I feel then.”

The serious expression paints his face again. “Look, Dane. This isn’t a joke. Marriage, buying a house—it’s serious, and I don’t think you’re ready to take all that on.”

“I can do it, Dad. You think I’m the fuck up around here, but I’ve watched you my whole life. I know what I’m doing. I know I can take care of her.”

He shakes his head. “I’m sorry, but I can’t support this. You’re too young to get married. You shouldn’t be rushing your life like this. You should be thinking about graduating high school, going to college, and starting a career, not getting married and buying a house.”

I let out a sigh. “We both know I’m not going to college. I’ll be doing good if I can graduate on time, if at all. This is what I want. Why can’t you support me?”

“I’m sorry, Son. I just can’t.” He slaps me on the shoulder and walks back into the house.

A part of me is relieved that he didn’t try to stop me, but another part of me is disappointed because he won’t support me in doing the same thing he and my mom did.

I want to tell Mason goodbye, but I don’t want to walk back into the house. So instead, I get behind the wheel of the truck and drive back to town.

* * *

I unload our things and drop them all on the living room floor. “Lissa,” I call out.

“I’m in here,” she yells from the bathroom.

I walk into the hall and push open the cracked door to see her scrubbing down the sink. “We have water, but no power.” There’s a small window in the bathroom, but the sun is starting to go down.

“I bought a few candles when I was picking up cleaning supplies. What did your dad say?”

I take a step toward her and pull her against me. “He won’t support our decision. That also means he won’t help us either. We’re on our own.” I lean my forehead against hers and close my eyes.

“We’re on our own,” she repeats.

I run across town and grab us a pizza for dinner. When I get back, Alissa has the blankets and pillows thrown out on the floor in front of the fireplace with a fire going. Dozens of candles burn everywhere, casting a light glow around the room. I take a seat next to her on the blanket and open the box, offering her the first slice.

“Thank you,” she says, taking a piece of pizza.

We sit and watch the fire while eating quietly.

“Dane, can I ask you something?”

I can feel her eyes on me, but I don’t look away from the raging fire. “Shoot.”

“Are you regretting this?”

When her voice crack with nerves, I finally look over at her. “Regretting what?”

“All of this.” She looks around, eyes flashing in every direction. “Me, this house, the proposal?”

My brows pull together. “No, why would you ask me that?”

She shrugs one shoulder. “Since you came back from talking to your dad, you just seemed sad. I don’t want to be the reason you’re sad. If you want, I can go back home, and so can you. We can pretend this day never happened.” I love that she wants to make me feel better, but we both know what we did today can’t be undone. She can’t go back home, and I can’t un-buy a house.

I drop my slice of pizza into the box and lay her back, moving my body on top of hers. “I don’t ever want to hear you say that again, you got it? You’re not going back to that house. I want to live here with you. I want to marry you. I don’t give a shit what anyone else thinks.”

“Not even your dad?” she asks, looking up at me.

“Not even my dad. I know what we’re doing is right. I’ll do whatever I need to do to keep you here with me, where I know you’re safe.” I move my lips to hers and kiss her soft and slow.

I don’t care if my dad isn’t on board with the way I’m living my life. I don’t care that I’m going to have to work overtime to pay for this house and all the bills that will pile up. The only thing I care about is Alissa and having her by my side every day, where I know she’s safe.

* * *

I wake with the bright morning sun shining in the window. The birds outside are chirping, making me feel like I’m in a cartoon where everything will be okay. But I’m still not so sure.

During my lunch hour, I try calling the electric company to get the power turned on at the house, but because I’m only seventeen, they won’t even talk to me. I don’t want to tell Alissa I’m already failing in providing for her, so I tell her they’ll be out sometime this week. I don’t want to lie, but I know I’ll find a way to make it happen.

When school ends, I drop Alissa off at the house to get some work done, and I head to the grill for my afternoon shift, if I still have one.

The front door opens when I push it. As I look around, I’m surprised. Nothing has changed, but for some reason, I almost expected it to. Turning, I walk back to the office and find my dad sitting in his chair behind the desk.

“What are you doing here?” he asks, looking up at me.

“I’m supposed to have a shift this afternoon. Unless I’m fired.” I fall into the chair across from him.

He looks me in the eye. “Do you think you should be fired?”

“No. I moved out. It’s not that big of a deal.”

He sits up, resting his elbows on his desk. “It is a big deal, Dane. What’s going to happen if you two break up? I can’t pay for your house. I have my own house to take care of. Not to mention, running two businesses.”

“We’re not going to break up, Dad. We’re getting married.”

He scoffs and shakes his head. “You’re not the first seventeen-year-old kid to think his relationship is going to last forever. Guess what? People change. Neither of you are mature enough or responsible enough to take all this on right now.”

“I disagree. You and Mom got together when you were seventeen, and you were together for most of your lives,” I point out.

He rubs his brow and shakes his head. “Times were different back then. The world has changed and with it, young people like you have unlimited possibilities. Why would you want to go and throw away your future like that? Why gamble it all on one girl?”

I stand, feeling my anger surge through me, and point at him. “You’re the one that made sure I knew I wouldn’t go anywhere in life.” I stand and walk to the door but pause with my hand on the knob. “You made sure to let me know every chance you got, that I wouldn’t make it out there. Any dream I may have had was never good enough for you. You just wanted me to follow in your footsteps, and now you’re pissed off because I am! Don’t worry about firing me. I quit!”

I storm out of the door and don’t stop to think about what I’m doing until I’m sitting behind the wheel of my car.

My heart slams against my chest so hard, it feels like it’s going to break through. I’m so angry I can’t even control my heavy breathing.

How am I going to tell Alissa I quit my job? I have to have a job in order to pay for the house. If I don’t, it’ll only be a month before we’re kicked out.

I start the car and drive home. I sit looking at the house that’s now my responsibility. How am I going to do this? It’s been one fucking day, and already I’m failing. Maybe my dad’s right. Maybe I’m not mature enough for this.

Alissa peeks out of the window, so I get out and walk inside.

“What happened? I thought you had a shift.”

I flop down onto the couch. “Dad and I got into it… And I quit.”

Her shoulders fall and her eyes flash to where her hands twist at a rag.

I pat the seat next to me, and she comes willingly into my arms. “It’ll be okay, I promise. I’ll find another job.”

She nods. “I just don’t understand what happened. I knew he wouldn’t support us, but this?”

I place my hands on either side of her face and lean in, kissing her. I let that kiss say everything I can’t. I can’t tell her I’m too hardheaded for my own good. I can’t tell her I’m the reason this is starting to fall apart before it even starts. Instead, I just make sure she knows I love her, and despite how hardheaded I am, I will do anything I need to do to take care of her.

When I pull away, I say, “I’m sorry, but this will work. We just need time to adjust and get our bearings.”

“Okay. Tomorrow after school we’ll both go job hunting.”

“Why do you need to go job hunting? You haven’t quit.”

“I can’t work there now. He’ll blame me for coming between you guys.”

I highly doubt he’ll say anything to her, but I don’t argue. The day’s been hard enough as it is. I pull her against me as we sit quietly, trying to think of a way out of this mess.

We’re just finishing up dinner and getting ready for bed, when someone knocks on the door. I swat Alissa on the ass as I leave her in the bedroom to see who’s coming over this late.

When I open the door, I’m surprised to see it’s my dad.

I don’t say anything. I just step back and open the door a little wider, so he can come in.

He paces back and forth for a few quick seconds before he stops and turns to look at me. “I don’t want you quitting the grill.”

I cross my arms over my chest. “Well, I’m sorry. It’s done. I can’t work there if this is how things are going to be between us.”

He takes a deep breath and sits down on the couch, resting his elbows on his knees. I’ve already blown out the candles for the night, so the place is dark, but he doesn’t ask about it. He already knows I’m having trouble getting my shit together.

“Look, I don’t support this. I can’t. I think it’s completely crazy that either one of you would want to throw your lives away like this. What about college? What about a career? What about seeing what else is out there? I know you don’t want to be stuck in this town your entire life, you’ve always said that.”

I take a seat on the opposite side of the couch. “We can still do those things, Dad. We can go to college if we want. We can travel the world. But we’re going to do it together. I thought you of all people would understand this.”

He leans back and looks around the place. “What happens if she gets pregnant?”

I roll my eyes. “That’s not going to happen. We’re always safe. You keep treating me like a child, but I haven’t been a child for a very long time. I may only be seventeen, but you’ve made sure to treat me like a man since I was ten. I know I have to work to survive. I know I have to take care of the ones I love. And Alissa, she’s at the top of that list.”

He nods. “Alright. I won’t give you anymore shit about it then. But when all this falls through, I don’t want you to come crawling back to me. If you do this, you’re on your own. For good.”

“That’s all I ask.” My breathing picks up with the anger that’s pumping through me, but I push it down as Dad stands and walks to the door.

With his hand on the knob, he turns around. “You both better be at work tomorrow.”

I stand and take a few steps closer to him. “What?”

“This is going to be hard enough as it is. There’s no point in going and making it any harder on yourselves.” He turns his back to me and walks out the door.

I lock it behind him and go to tell Alissa the news.

We still have our jobs, now I just have to figure out how to get electricity.

* * *

Over the next several weeks, everything is crazy. We go to school during the day, then work at the bar and grill at night. Every Saturday, my band plays, and more and more people come out to see us. We’re really starting to make a name for ourselves around town. Any extra time we have goes to working on the house.

Dan agreed to turn the power back on in his name, as long as I switch it over the minute I turn eighteen. I willingly agreed, just needing to catch a break already. We’ve managed to gather up some furniture, so the house isn’t as bare. And after a week of sleeping on the floor, we finally broke down and bought a bed from a secondhand store in town. We’re no longer a couple of kids playing house. Now, we really know what it’s like to be adults and as hard as it is, I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Alissa is safe and in my arms every night, and she’s worth every minute of hard work and money I’ve put into this house.

Summer is right around the corner, which will give us both extra time to work and make money. Money we’ve agreed to save so that when our senior year starts, we won’t have to work as much as we have been. School all day, work all night, and then home repairs on the weekends are getting tiring and almost too much for us to take on.

Alissa does her best at making the house a home. She takes pictures of us that she frames and hangs up. There’s even a picture of my dad at the grill with a smile on his face that she’s hung on the wall. The blood red couch now has black throw pillows covering it. Rugs are scattered throughout the place. And scented candles are everywhere. It feels more like a home with each passing day — a home I never had since I grew up with only males and essential things surrounding us.

It’s Saturday night, and Alissa has a shift at the grill while my band and I are on stage.

My dad announces us, and the whole crowd cheers. We take our places on stage, and Mark counts us down. I lead in with guitar and start singing the lyrics to “All Along the Watchtower” by Jimi Hendrix. The crowd comes to life as soon as the music starts. Most of them are out of their seats and lining the stage like we’re headlining a major concert.

I’m dripping with sweat when the song ends. My hair is wet and hanging in my eyes. I look through the fallen stands and see Alissa’s eyes on me. She won’t admit it, but I’m pretty sure watching me on stage gets her going. Every time, her skin flushes, her lips part, and I can see the rise and fall of her chest from her quick breathing. Seeing her standing in a large crowd completely turned on from watching me, gets me going. I can’t wait to get her home tonight where I can take my time with her and show her exactly what she does to me when she looks at me that way.

We play Led Zeppelin, Bon Jovi, and A.C/D.C, but when I start singing “Simple Man” by Lynyrd Skynyrd the place grows eerily quiet. It’s the quietest a crowd has ever been while we’ve played. At first, it worries me because I think they don’t like it, but when I have the nerve to look up at them, I see that’s not the case. They aren’t being quiet because they hate the music, they’re being quiet because they love it. They’re in awe.

I give the song everything I can. The strings bite into my skin as I slide my fingers down the neck of the guitar. My throat practically yells in pain from belting the chorus. The feeling of the song washes over me, causing my eyes to close, not even caring about seeing the crowd anymore. Now, it’s all about the music.

During the instrumental break, I play the best I’ve ever played, not missing a beat or hitting a wrong note. The music starts in my head, but it’s felt in my heart where it flows through my body and out my fingertips. The lyrics pick back up, and I move closer to the mic while the words leave my lips in the perfect harmony. As the song drifts away, the crowd’s cheers grow louder and louder. Finally, I open my eyes to see everyone in the place on their feet with their eyes glued to me. My heart pounds with excitement, and a smile spreads across my face.

I make my way to the bar, and I’m handed a bottle of water that I quickly chug before Alissa presses against me.

“You sound amazing up there.”

I lean in for a kiss. “Thank you,” I say against her lips.

The bar is crowded. People surround us, and they’re being as loud as they can possibly be. But with Alissa’s lips pressed to mine, it’s like we’re in an entirely different world. I don’t hear a thing, but my heart pounding for her. I don’t feel the hundreds of people staring at our very public display of affection either. It’s only me and her. Nothing else matters.

I pull away and her dark blue eyes lock on mine. “What is it?”

“I have the perfect song for us. When the band gets back from break, we’re going to play it just for you.”

She smiles. “You’re dedicating the song to me?”

“It’s our song. When I play it, no matter how many people are in the room, it’s only for you.” I lean in and brush her lips with mine once again.

* * *

When the band comes back on stage. I fill them in on what song I want to play. They aren’t too happy about it, because we have a set list, and this song isn’t on it. But it has to be played, and I know the entire band knows it anyway.

I start in with my guitar, playing slowly and feeling every note. Alissa stands in front of the bar watching, her eyes growing cloudy with tears.

Mark pounds his drums, and I start up with vocals. The words to “Nothing Else Matters” by Metallica fills the room. Again, everyone stands, couples dance, but Alissa is frozen in front of me, watching every move I make as I sing of opening myself up and living life our way and how nothing else matters.

As I sing the song, she slowly steps toward me. By the time the song ends, she’s standing directly in front of me. The crowd cheers as I reach down and pull her up on stage for a lip crushing kiss, which only makes them cheer harder and louder. When I pull away, her face is glowing red with a wide smile.

“I love you,” I whisper so low only she can hear.

“I love you, too.”

* * *

The band finishes up around midnight and we all sit around a table to cool off before taking off for the night.

Mark pushes his blond hair away from his face. “I can’t believe we nailed “Nothing Else Matters” like that. We haven’t even practiced that song.”

I lean back in my chair. “You guys did awesome. But it’s Metallica. We’ve all played their shit time and time again. I knew you guys would kill it.”

“Hey, Dane!” Dad shouts at me from behind the bar.

“I’ll be right back, guys.”

I walk over to him. “What’s up?”

“Come back to the office with me,” he says, motioning toward the back of the bar.

I walk through the door he’s holding open for me.

“Take a seat.” He moves around the desk and sits down. I sit across from him. “How’s the new living arrangement going?”

Tipping my chair back, I run my hand through my still wet hair. “It’s good. Hard, but good.”

He nods his head in understanding. “You keeping everything paid up?”

“Yeah, bills are paid. There’s food in the fridge. We’re fine, Dad.”

“You need help with any improvements around the house?”

I shake my head. “I mean, there’s a list a mile long, but I don’t want help. I want to do it on my own. This is my place, our place. I want to take care of it. Take care of her.”

He grins and nods. “I find myself saying this more and more, but I was wrong about you.”

I cock my head to the side. “What do you mean?”

He holds up his hands, gesturing to me. “Well, look at you. You’re living on your own, paying your own bills, taking care of the woman you love, and making money doing the thing I told you would never pay off. I was wrong, Dane. I’m proud of you.”

Biting my lips, I try holding back the smile fighting to appear from hearing those words, but I fail. “Thanks, Dad. It’s all thanks to you. I thought the way I was raised was bullshit for the longest time, but now I see you were doing your best to prepare me. Thank you for that.”

He stands and walks around his desk, holding out his arms. When I stand, he pulls me in for a hug and slaps my back. “Get back out there, would ya?”

I laugh and head back to my table.

The rest of the night, I’m on cloud nine. Between the awesome show we put on, my private moment with Alissa in front of hundreds of people, and hearing those words come from my dad’s mouth, I couldn’t be happier. It’s the perfect ending to an already great night.

* * *

The weeks fly by. Alissa and I are as busy as ever. With school out for the summer, we spend our days working at the grill or working on the house. We spend our nights wrapped up in each other or having parties with our friends. The weekend gigs at the bar are only fueling the band. We spend every night in our living room playing music and drinking until the early hours of the morning. We get a few hours of sleep, then we do it all over again.

I’ve spent the day finishing up the bathroom. The floor is done. The toilet and sink are new. And thanks to Alissa, so is the paint.

Now it’s time to let loose. Everyone’s coming over tonight. While Alissa cleans up the kitchen, the band and a few groupies start piling into the tiny living room.

A small drum kit is set up in front of the fireplace. Amps and cords are strung out all across the living room. Everyone sits wherever they can.

Mark counts us down, and I start up “Behind Blue Eyes” by The Who.

The girls my bandmates brought along watch me intently, and I can feel Alissa getting jealous. She sends them dirty looks which they ignore. When the song ends, her hands rub my back, then tangle in my hair, and stroke my leg all while sending me teasing looks. I don’t like her feeling jealous, but I do like all the attention I get when it happens.

We play “Don’t Fear the Reaper” by Blue Oyster Cult, and then lead into “Rock and Roll All Night” by Kiss. The three girls with the band members get up and dance seductively. I try to keep my eyes off them — it’s not like I’m checking them out — but three girls rubbing on each other is hard to ignore. I stare down at my guitar while I play and sing. My eyes drift up, and I notice the dirty looks Alissa is shooting my way.

When the song’s over, I’m damn near sweating from my nerves being through the roof. I don’t want to argue with her. She should know how I feel about her by now. It’s not like I’m checking out the girls to pick which one I want for the night. They’re just something to watch.

“Anyone want to pick a song?” I ask.

“Play “Call Me” by Blondie,” Alissa says.

I laugh. “I don’t think I can do Blondie justice, babe.”

She rolls her eyes and laughs. “Not for you to sing. For me.” She takes a long drink of Jack and puts her glass down, standing up.

My eyebrows skyrocket. “You’re going to sing?”

She giggles and nods.

I shrug. “Okay, here we go.”

The band starts playing her song, and Alissa starts singing the lyrics. A chill goes through me as my mouth hangs open. I’ve never heard her sing before, but the girl can belt out some lyrics. She sashays about the room, making the other girls jealous and making my bandmates watch her every move. I strum along on my guitar, never taking my eyes off her. My own jealously rises from both the guys in the band damn near drooling over my girl.

She sings the song like it’s her theme song — knowing every word, drawing out every line that should be drawn out, and throwing out just a bit of flirtatious looks to all the guys, including me. She walks around the room, causing everyone’s eyes to follow her. But she’s not just walking, she’s teasing everyone with every single step. A part of me wonders if she’s giving me a taste of my own medicine. Then when she bends down to sing directly to Mark, I know she is. She may be giving the girls a taste of their own medicine too, because the girl that arrived on Mark’s arm is now staring daggers at Alissa.

I lean back, playing my guitar while watching Alissa seduce every person in the room all while making me jealous. I’ve got to hand it to her, she knows how to work a crowd.

When the song ends, the guys clap and cheer her on. She bows and bounces back to her seat giggling.

“That was fucking awesome, Lis. Sing another one,” Mark says.

“Really?” She looks at me.

I shrug before taking a drink of my beer.

“Okay. Well, do you guys know “I Love Rock and Roll”?”

The guys laugh. It’s a song we’ve played around with many times, trying to give it a more updated rock and roll feel. We never could pull it off though.

We start playing, and Alissa rocks out again. While I play along with the song, I watch everyone in the room. My bandmates watch their instruments, while still taking turns looking up at her. The girls are now sitting on the floor, looking completely bored. Someone knocks on the door, but we don’t stop playing. After a minute, the door opens and Sean walks in. I nod hello at him, and he takes a seat on the arm of the couch, getting sucked into Alissa’s show like everyone else.

When the song ends, everyone claps, and Alissa smiles proudly.

“Damn, she’s good. Why doesn’t she play at the bar with you guys?” Sean asks.

“Yeah, why doesn’t she?” Mark adds on.

I set my guitar down and reach for her, pulling her into my lap. “I saw the way you guys were checking her out. Do you really think I want a bar full of people daydreaming about taking my girl home?” I tease before moving in for a kiss.

We take a break and have a few drinks. Alissa sits with me and Sean while the band goes back to their girls.

“Alright, guys. Let’s get back to practice,” I say moving Alissa off my lap and grabbing my guitar.

I move to stand in the corner of the room, needing to stretch my legs. As I start playing, the guys join in. After every song, we stop and make note of the songs that need more practice and which songs sound best next to each other. Every time I look up, Sean and Alissa are talking and laughing. Believe it or not, this pisses me off more than the guys drooling all over her while she sings. I can only think about one thing.

Sean’s warning in the pool hall that night.

Is he trying to move in on my girl because he thinks I stole her away?

I push it to the back on my mind and concentrate on the music I’m playing, but I grow angrier and angrier every time I glance up.