Chapter 22
Jett
I can’t leave the stage fast enough.
First time that’s ever happened.
What an awful gig.
“It wasn’t that bad.” Dylan’s not meeting my eyes. Like I don’t already know he’s just trying to make me feel better.
“It was fucked.” Our set was like night and day compared to last night’s. They loved us last night. It was one of our best shows ever. Tonight most of the crowd was ignoring us. Except for a few notable hecklers who didn’t let up trying to shout Zac down. We’ve never had a worse time up on stage.
“You played great. Those morons in the crowd who wouldn’t shut up were mostly friends of Ian’s. They don’t matter.”
“It still looks bad.”
Dylan knows that as well as I do. He can’t really argue. But that doesn’t stop Shayla from trying.
“It’s just one night, Jett. Tailspin’s still got the rest of the festival, and the tour. It’ll be great. Just as great as before.”
“Yeah, sure. You’re right.” I don’t know if that’s going to be true or not.
But I have to admit that it’s nice to have two people in my corner no matter what.
“Hey.” Zac pokes his head in through the door. “Band meeting. Lenny wants to talk to us. Says it can’t wait.”
“Lenny?” Shayla asks.
“Our new manager. We hired him right before this tour. What’s going on?”
Zac shakes his head. “He didn’t say, just that we need to get together. Right now.”
I grab a beer to take with me. “Fine. I’ll catch up with you guys later.”
He and I head down the hallway. “You don’t know anything about what he wants?” I swallow some of my beer. I should’ve brought another bottle with me. I’ve got a bad feeling about this meeting.
“No idea. He did sound kinda tense.”
Bailly and Seth are already sitting in the cramped little office space. Lenny’s on his phone, speaking low enough that I can’t make out what he’s saying. When he sees us, he ends the call.
“I’ve got some bad news.” Lenny toys with his phone for a moment before he tosses it aside. “Entangle’s really pissed off about what’s been put out there about you, Jett. Because it’s all being linked to Sound Off. This festival is their brand new baby, you know. It’s the first one they’ve ever put together, and the band’s worked hard to get it up and running. It’s also the longest one outside of South By, so they want it to set a precedent. This isn’t the kind of press attention they want on it. Not at all. It could tank the future of the whole thing.”
My jaw clenches as Lenny gazes at me while he continues. “They know it’s not your fault, Jett. They also figure it’s Ian that put this crap out there and blew it up online.”
“So, what then?” Zac asks. “There’s nothing we can do to fix it now. If there was, we’d be doing it.”
“That’s where Entangle disagrees.” Lenny looks miserable. “They want to distance themselves from Tailspin now. The festival runs for three more nights. You won’t be playing for any of them.”
“What the fuck? They’re kicking us off? They can’t do that.” I can’t believe what Lenny just said. Even Zac looks stunned.
“They can and they have. There’s a way out of every contract. You could fight it. But it’s too late. It’s already done.” Lenny scrapes his hand back through his hair. “That’s not all.”
“What else?” Zac asks.
“You’re off their tour. You’ve got to play until they can replace you. As soon as they do, Tailspin’s out.”
I’m speechless. I can’t even listen to what Lenny’s saying now. We’re off the festival. And the tour.
It’s Ian’s fault for doing this to us. The little bastard. But in the end, it really comes down to me.
“Can’t you talk them out of cutting us?” Zac wants to pace around, but the space is too small. It’s more like a closet than an office. It probably used to be one.
Lenny sighs. “I’ve been trying. They’re not backing down. Look, I’ve got to go see them again now.” He gets up, squeezing past me on his way to the door. “I’ll let you know if anything changes. But don’t hold your breath. Their minds are made up.”
“Fucking Ian.” Bailly leans back against the wall behind him. “That kid needs his ass kicked so bad.”
“He sure does.” Zac kicks at the edge of the desk he’s planted himself on. “But that won’t change anything now.”
My gut is in knots. I have to fix this. I can only think of one way to do it. “Tailspin should finish out the tour. And the festival.”
“Yeah. But it’s not up to us. Unless Lenny can talk us back in, we’re already out.”
“This is my fault. And I’m sorry everything got so fucked up.” I suck in my breath. “So I’ll leave. If I’m not in the band any more, then there’s no reason for Tailspin to get cut. There you go. Problem solved. I quit.”
Never thought I’d be leaving Tailspin. Not for any reason. But there it is.
Zac shoots me an exasperated look. “You can’t quit.”
“I just did. I’ll tell Lenny. They’ll let Tailspin back in. They’ll have to.”
“You’re not quitting the band,” Zac insists. “We’re in this together. Besides. If they don’t want us to play because of a little negative press, then screw them.”
“You can’t say that. It’s the only way to get ahead of this. It’s me they have a problem with. Not Tailspin. I leave the band, it’s all good.”
Zac shakes his head. “We’re together on this.”
“You can’t throw away a chance like this. Tailspin’s climbing up fast. Not going for it now would fuck everything up. Every door that’s being opened by this festival and tour would all be out the window. I can’t let that happen. It’s the right thing to do.”
“No. If they’re going to kick us off because of something like this, then we don’t need to be part of their tour anyway. Fuck that. And you’re not quitting Tailspin because of this.”
“You’re not quitting the band, asshole.” Bailly yawns. “Are we done here? Cuz I’ve got stuff to do.”
My head whips around so I’m facing him. “I thought you’d be the first one to want me to leave.”
“Well, you’re not quitting. Tailspin’s got exactly who it’s supposed to have. We all go together. That’s it. And besides.” His eyes flash. “No little shit like Ian’s going to break up my band. When we want you out, we’ll decide that.”
Bailly’s mouth curves up in what could almost be a smile. I don’t think I’ve ever heard him make a joke before now.
Unbelievable. Bailly, of all people. He’s behind me too.
“What about you?” I appeal to Seth. “You’re on board with this? What about all the money you could be making? I know you need it. That’s not gonna happen now.”
“Sure I’m on board. I’ve got the money we’ve already made, that’ll last me a long time. And if Tailspin goes back to playing clubs again, that’s okay too. I was doing alright when we were playing clubs back home anyway.”
“That’s because you live in a house with four roommates.”
He shrugs. “So what? I don’t care. I mean, I wouldn’t ever turn down any extra money. But I just want to play. Clubs or stadiums. It’s all the same to me. We need a guitarist like you in Tailspin. That’s all there is to it. So, no. You’re not leaving. We’re sticking together.”
That has to be the longest Seth’s ever spoken at one time. It’s almost as shocking as the way they’re all rallying around me.
“I–”
“Just shut the hell up.” Zac cuts me off. “You quitting’s not an option. For one thing, we still have to play with Entangle until they replace us. And when that’s done, you’re still not going anywhere. So shut up and let’s get out of here.”
“Yeah.” Bailly pushes his way past me. We all follow him out.
I’m still dazed as I make my way back to the dressing room. Dylan and Shayla are there, curled up together on the sofa.
“What’s wrong, Jett?”
I give them the main points as I crack open another beer and sit down beside Shayla. She twines her fingers up with mine.
“That’s fucking crazy.” Dylan takes a drink of his own. “Kicking Tailspin to the curb like that? I never thought they had that in them.”
“Me neither. I’m still thinking I should quit.”
“What, after everything? No way.”
“Why not?”
“Because you love being in Tailspin.” Shayla leans into me.
Dylan reaches over her rub at my leg. “Because if you did, it wouldn’t be any different. What about the next band you join? You can run into guys like Ian anywhere. The same thing could easily happen again. Better to be open about things now. Either that, or you could break up with us.”
His tone’s light, but I can tell he’s serious.
That thought never even crossed my mind.
“Yeah, right. I’m not doing that. I’d give up everything else in the world before I’d give up the two people I need the most.”
Shayla kisses my cheek as I stare straight at Dylan.
He doesn’t flinch, except for a smile creeping up on him. “Is that right?”
“Yeah. It is. I need you both.”
Nothing could be more right than being with them. Not fame or fortune or anything else. I’m not giving them up for the world. No matter what the cost is.