“I told you it was a bad idea to have Jenny join the band,” my sister said as she watched me gather my equipment for the show tonight.

It had been a stressful week, and I was still trying to wrap my head around it. First, there was the closing of Between The Pages. I still had three more shifts, but knowing I was done after that was hard. I’d been working there off and on for the last three years. It was my first job. I wasn’t ready to start looking for new employment.

That brought me to the second unexpected change, which was Jenny joining the band and pushing hard for us to hit it big. I'm not sure what happened when she and Matt got together, but they were on the same page in that regard.

And she was a great addition musically, but things were uncomfortable between us. At least on my end. She would laugh just a little too loudly at my jokes and was just a little too touchy-feely at practice.

I hadn’t wanted to see it, but I couldn’t deny Jenny was into me. I didn’t want to cause any drama, especially now that we were playing together and playing someplace new that night.

It left me in an uncomfortable position.

We’d had one show at Wild Bill’s to practice before playing at The Imperial. I felt so much pressure to succeed even though I still planned on leaving the band in August. It was so important to everyone else, and I couldn’t let them down.

Owen had been officially kicked out of the band, which I knew he was not too happy about. And poor Cooper was also gone. I wasn’t sure what to think about that. He was the whole reason the band ever got to play at the Wild Bill’s in the first place. It didn’t seem right to push him out because he broke his arm. Rainier and the Go-Aways was a far cry from The Band. Adding members, changing members.

“Are you listening to me?” Sarah asked, pulling me from my musings.

“Uh, huh.”

“And you don’t mind if I take over your room when you head back to school?”

“Uh– Wait, what?”

“I knew you weren’t listening.”

I sat down on my bed and looked at her. “Sorry, Sarah. I just have a lot on my mind.”

“I know. But I’m anxious about what’s going on with the band.”

“You're anxious about everything.”

“Yeah, but sometimes you're clueless about girls. I’m watching as Jenny is sinking her talons deeper and deeper and you don’t seem to realize.”

“I’m not completely dense. I see it, but what am I supposed to do? It’ll be a moot point in a couple of weeks.”

“If you say so.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

She lifted a brow at me. “It just means you’re putting an awful lot of energy into something that you say you’re walking away from.”

“Whatever. I gotta get going.”

I slung my backpack containing my cords and pedals over my shoulder and reached for my guitar as I moved toward the stairs. I didn’t say another word as I left the house.

The Imperial was so much nicer than Wild Bill’s. Not only did they have a real stage instead of the makeshift platform, but they also had a professional sound system and lighting. As we went through our setup and soundcheck, it was tough not to fall into the mindset that we were a legit band playing there. I fought my mind as it imagined what it would be like to do this all the time.

Jenny was positively beaming as we hung out waiting for the show to start. Matt and Carter were huddled together at a table talking furiously about something. I wasn’t getting involved. I planned to enjoy the atmosphere while we waited.

Besides the stage and equipment, The Imperial also had a reputation for being a place where the best bands played. They had a college night every Thursday, which meant we were skipping our usual teen night performance at Wild Bill’s. The pit where everyone would stand to listen was bigger and would fit more people.

The energy was palpable.

Tap, tap, tap.

As the crowd started to thicken, I couldn’t stop myself from the anxious movement that came before a performance.

“Hey, Rainier,” Jenny said as we walked toward the stage. We were opening for another local band with a fierce following. She pulled out a flask from her pocket. “Wanna sip? I’m so nervous I feel like I’m going to hurl.”

I knew that feeling. I had felt that way the first few shows I’d done, but for some reason, I didn’t feel that tonight. I didn’t grab the container from her for multiple reasons.

“No, thanks.” I grabbed my guitar and walked over to the mic. The lights here were much brighter than I was accustomed to and I couldn’t see the crowd very well, even though I knew they were out there.

“Thanks for coming out tonight,” I said into the microphone wondering how many people were out there that hadn’t heard us play before. “We’re Rainier and the Go-Aways.”

The sound of cheers was about what we were used to at Wild Bill’s, which was a slight disappointment since there were more people here. I tried not to dwell on that. It just meant I would have to work harder to win them over.

We played through our set. Matt on drums, Carter on bass, Jenny on violin, and me on guitar and vocals. The combination of covers and originals was perfect, and I could sense the change in the crowd the longer they listened to us play.

When we finished playing our last song, the cheers were much louder than when we first walked up on the stage. It felt good to know we played well enough to gain their applause and whistles. I looked back at the other bandmates to see their reaction. The look of awe on their faces only fed my high. Jenny came running over and hugged me while we were still on stage. Her face so close to mine, I could smell the lingering alcohol on her breath.

For some reason, the hug made me feel guilty. I wondered if Michelle was in the crowd and what she might think about the display. It was irrational, but I couldn't shake the feeling. I pushed Jenny away. Maybe a little too hard, because hurt quickly flashed in her eyes before she smiled and hugged the other two bandmates.

I shoved all my stuff in my bag and carried my things off the stage as quickly as possible knowing the other band was waiting on us. As I was racing off stage, I caught Matt and Jenny chatting. It pissed me off to see them acting so carefree knowing Chasing Sunsets was about to go on. They were big in Boise. If we wanted to have any chance of breaking into the scene, it would be a good idea not to make them wait.

I shot them both a look before walking off the stage.

As soon as I set my gear down, I went back up to help Matt with his drum set. He was grabbing things by the time I made it to him, and Jenny was taking care of her stuff too. Within minutes we had the stage cleared off enough for the next band to go up.

I took a deep breath and looked around. The place was crowded, and I couldn’t help but notice a few girls I didn’t recognize giving me looks of appreciation. It was flattering, but I was looking for someone. A special girl with an affinity for cherries.

I finally spotted her at the bar. I should have known. She was sitting with a glass of soda in her hand, which she lifted in an unspoken salute when our eyes met.

I walked over, bumping into people who were making their way closer to the stage for the headliner.

“Hey,” I said with a smile as I got close enough for her to hear me.

“You guys sounded good.”

I lifted my brows. “Only good?”

Michelle's face stayed stoic. “Honestly, I’m not even sure you know what you’re doing. Maybe you’re faking it.”

She got up and started to walk off, but I jumped in front of her before she got far.

“Faking it?"

"Uh, huh."

"How would I prove that it wasn’t a fluke then?”

“They say if you truly know something, you can teach it. Give me that guitar lesson you promised me.”

That again. For some reason, it wasn’t nearly as scary as it was the first time Michelle asked. My recent performance made me brave as I flirted with Michelle. “If it’s the only way.”

"It is."

"Then I guess I'd better do it."

“I’ll hold my applause until then.”

We spent a few minutes figuring out the details and agreed that the next afternoon would work for both of us. I planned to go to Michelle's house for the lesson. I didn’t want her at mine.

“Until then.” She got up and started walking toward the door.

“You’re not going to stay and listen to Chasing Sunsets?”

“Nope. I saw who I wanted to see already," she said, finally giving me her brilliant smile.

I watched her leave with a grin of my own plastered to my face.