Chapter Fifteen
Silas
I got off the phone and high-fived the air, just as Riley walked into the room. She looked at me and laughed.
“Did you just high-five the air?” she asked.
“Uh, maybe. You weren’t supposed to see that.” Of all the times for Riley to walk in, it would be the one time I was acting like such a dork.
“Is that the sort of thing you always do when you’re alone?” she teased.
“I was high-fiving my imaginary friend. He’s a ghost that roams the house. Have you met him?”
She stared at me, and I could see that she was trying to figure out if I was being serious or not. “Uh, no,” she stammered.
I laughed. “I’m just kidding. But it’s good to know you’re so easy to mess around with.”
“So, why were you high-fiving the air then if there’s no ghost?”
“I got a gig!”
“Really? That’s wonderful, Silas. Where?”
I groaned. “Just at the local pub again. So more than likely it’s going to be me singing to the air again. But hey, at least it’s something. I mean, I was happy enough to high-five the air.”
“The fact that you keep getting asked back to the same place has got to mean something, you know. They wouldn’t ask you to come again if they didn’t you were any good, so you might as well take it as a compliment. I think it’s great news. Tell me it’s not tonight, though? Ah, no. It is, isn’t it?”
“It’s tonight. Why, what’s wrong with tonight?” I asked.
“I’m working,” she moaned. “And I would’ve loved to have been there. Damn.”
I smiled at her. That was a nice thing for her to say and I could see that she meant it too. I hadn’t met a lot of girls like Riley in the past. She was beautiful but still grounded and kind. “You’re sweet. Thank you for saying that. But maybe it’s better that you’re not there. I’d rather you didn’t keep seeing me make a fool of myself.”
“You’re not making a fool of yourself. Trust me. Now, go and sing your heart out. Just pretend that I’m out in the crowd cheering for you. Remember, you never know when an agent might be lurking.”
“You never know,” I said and grinned. She had a way of always making me feel better about the situation, which not a lot of people knew how to do. I used to be the only positive one while everyone around me probably thought I was wasting my time. But not Riley. She truly believed that I should never give up. I decided that I would listen to her advice and just feel excited for the evening ahead. A small gig was better than no gig at all. And she was right; it literally took one gig to change my life. I would not get that if I was just sitting at home.
Later that evening, I made my way to the pub, and I was surprised to see it was busier than usual. For a brief second, I thought that perhaps people had come to see me, but then I laughed at the absurd thought. Nobody even knew who I was and the owner wasn’t very good at marketing the place. Even if he had told people that I was going to be there, I doubted they would’ve cared. He saw me and called me over.
“Silas, good to see you again. Thanks for coming on such short notice. I really appreciate it. We could do with some decent music around here.”
“Yeah, thanks for asking me. It’s a nice crowd tonight. What’s going on? It’s busier than the last time I was here, that’s for sure.”
He pointed to a group in the corner. A bunch of giggling girls all dressed in crazy superhero outfits that I hadn’t noticed when I had first walked in. There were quite a few of them. “Huge bachelorette party,” he said. “It’s nice to have so many people in here. They seem to have drawn quite a crowd, which is nice. Makes me wonder if we should have dress-up themes. I was always against things like that, but I’m not so sure anymore. And listen, because we have such a nice crowd tonight, I’m going to be able to pay you the full amount this time. I felt about the last time especially since you did so well up there.”
I smiled. “Thank you. That’s nice of you to say.”
“Don’t forget about me when you’re famous one day.”
I grinned. “You really think I’m going to be famous?”
“I’ll be honest, Silas. I’ve seen a lot of people come and go, and I never really see anyone make it big. I’m not saying that to put you off. I’m saying that because you have something that none of them have. Honestly. You’ve got something special. Don’t give up. You know I wouldn’t ask you to sing if I didn’t think you were talented.”
“Nice of you to say.”
“I’m only telling you the truth. You know me. I’m not a bull shitter. I say things as they are.”
It was true, and the fact that he was being so nice to me made me feel good about myself. Maybe he was right. Maybe Riley was right. I needed to keep pushing on. He told me that I would be up in an hour, so I sat at the bar and had a drink. I watched the crowd around me and hoped that they would still be there when it was time for me to go up on stage. The girls in their superhero outfits were getting rowdy, and I was pleased to hear them cheer when I finally went up to sing. Their reaction caused a few people to come up and see what was going on. For the first time, I had a crowd watching me. A very small crowd, but a crowd nonetheless, and I was going to milk it for all it was worth.
I began singing, losing myself to the music. I always noticed the people when I got up, and I always noticed them as I finished. But while I was singing, the only thing that I was aware of was myself at the moment. I concentrated on the strumming of the guitar, and I thought about the words of the song. I liked to feel the music rather than just sing it. And, as usual, the time went by in a daze. I heard a familiar cheer as I got to my last song, and when I looked up, I was surprised to see that Riley was standing right in the front. I smiled at her, and she smiled back, and then I finished singing my last song. It felt different knowing that she was watching me. It felt good.
She cheered when I was finished, and so did the group of girls, who I was pleasantly surprised to find still cheering me on until the end. I got off stage and gave Riley a hug.
“What are you doing here?” I said.
“I finished work a little early so I thought I’d come and see if you were still here. I’m sad that I came at the end of your set, but at least I got to hear the end. Wow, you had a better crowd today. This place is much busier.”
I was glad that she hadn’t walked in on me just singing to an empty crowd, and I felt a sense of pride well up inside me.
“Yeah, it’s a bachelorette party. They’ve become increasingly drunker since I got here, so I’m glad they made it to the end. Beer?”
“Yeah, a beer sounds great,” she said. “It’s on me though. I got some good tips today.”
We sidled over to the bar and Riley ordered two beers for us. We sat down and said cheers to the fact that it was the weekend, that her shift was over and that I had finished a gig.
“What else should we cheer to?” I said. “Oh, hey, how about your illustrations? How are they going?”
Her eyes lit up at the mention of them, and she smiled. “They’re going great. I’ve been working on the story and illustrating as I go along. I’m just doing a rough idea of it all for now, but it’s really starting to take shape. Right now, it’s mostly just been a thought in my head, but now that I’ve started working on it I cannot believe how well it’s going. And it’s changing too. I think it’s going to end up being very different to how I meant it to be.”
“It’s like it’s taking on a life of its own,” I said. “I think you’re doing great, Riley. Doesn’t it feel good to be working toward your goal now?”
“It feels amazing. I’m even enjoying working at the pub now. I think it’s because I’m not taking it as seriously anymore. I’m seeing it for what it is—a side job to make some money while I work on what I really want to do. And having the house and not having to worry about rent has also been so helpful. I feel like life is finally falling into place for me.”
“I feel exactly the same way. I was so frustrated before. I mean, I’m still frustrated in a way, but it definitely feels like it’s improving. So, did any guys hit on you today?”
She put her hands into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out three phone numbers.
I groaned. “Three? Are you kidding me? What are you going to do with them?”
She tore them up. “That,” she said.
It was hard to deny how relieved I felt as I watched her tear up those numbers. I knew she wasn’t my girlfriend, but I still didn’t like the thought of her dating anyone. The image of her with another man made me upset. Just a few more beers and I’d probably tell her to her face. I was just about to flirt with her when one of the girls from the party came walking my way. She was all in leather, with her hair pulled back tightly and dramatic makeup on her face.
“I’m, I’m Cat Woman,” she drawled as she purred beside me.
“Uh, hi.”
“What is your name, handsome?” she said.
“I’m Silas.”
“Silas, the singer. What a great name. And you have the most beautiful voice. You really do. The girls and I couldn’t stop watching you.”
“Oh, well, thank you, that’s nice of you,” I said. I looked at Riley and saw a bemused look on her face.
“Can I buy you a drink?” the woman said. She stood in front of Riley now, completely ignoring her, and she was staring at me with so much intensity it was making me feel uncomfortable. I couldn’t even feel flattered because I was so aware of how rude she was to Riley.
“I’m good. Actually, I was just about to leave. But thank you. I hope you and your friends are having a great night. Looks like you’re all having a party!”
The girl frowned. “Leaving? But why? Come on, Silas the Singer, the night is only just beginning. We are having a party, but it will be even better with you there. You can serenade me; won’t that be nice? I promise that if you stay, I will show you a night that you will never forget. I mean, I’m Cat Woman. And I’m flexible.” She purred again which was starting to get more than a little ridiculous.
“I’m sure you are. But really, I’m leaving. Have a great night,” I said. Then I turned to Riley. “Ready to go?”
She looked surprised. “Uh, yeah. Let’s go,” she said.
We were in separate cars, so we made our way home alone. When we got back, I looked at her and smiled.
“How about we finally open up that bottle of wine?”
“I thought you were ready to call it a night,” she said.
“No way. I just didn’t really feel like hanging around there.”
She smiled. “Well, I’m all for wine. We can have a house-warming party. A belated one.”
“Yeah, I like the sound of that.”
We poured the wine into two wine glasses and laughed when the bottle was almost empty. I held up the wine glass in surprise. “Wow. These are some big wine glasses.”
“They say we should have one glass of wine a day. Well, I’m having it,” she said and giggled.
We sat together in the living room, and I looked around the house.
“To good wine in a grand house.”
“Ooh, I like that. To good wine in a grand house,” she repeated. She took a few sips and then looked at me. “Uh, Silas, why didn’t you try and go home with that girl? I mean, she was Cat Woman, and pretty hot, if you ask me.”
“You thought she was hot?” I asked.
“I mean, if you’re into that sort of thing. Yeah, she was hot.”
“But I was with you,” I said. “And anyway, she was being rude. She just stood in front of you. I’m not into rude people. The longer she stood in front of you, the less attractive she became to me.”
She laughed, and I could see that she was pleased by what I was saying. “That’s good to know, Country.”
“Also, I was already going home with a girl. A girl much hotter than some fake Cat Woman.”
I looked at Riley and saw that she was blushing. Her cheeks were pink, and as she looked up at me, I knew that I would not be able to resist her any longer. “Dammit, Riley, why do you have to be so pretty?”