Liv
I SLAMMED MY glass on the bar, nonchalantly waving the bartender over for another.
“Another cranberry and vodka?” I nodded. He smirked, pulling my glass off the counter to mix it. I was buzzing already, but it was the only way I could kill the jitters running through me prior to the show. It ran up my arms and down my chest like little flurries of butterflies high on meth. Unbearable, I had to squelch it somehow, or I’d never gain the courage to play on stage again.
The crowd was thick tonight. Bodies filled the floor and crowded up to the stage as the band playing before us finished their last set. The smoke was hanging above my head like a storm cloud and made me choke on the fumes. I grabbed my drink from the bartender as he slipped it onto the counter and dropped some crushed dollar bills to pay for it before I stumbled away toward the side of the stage. The incessant droning of the electric guitar player’s sorry excuse for rock and roll made me want to cut the strings and smash his instrument into the ground until it splintered into a thousand tiny shards. I was feeling bold tonight, and that could be bad or good.
“Liv, I need you to get the equipment set up for Saul first. I’ll get your acoustic plugged in.” Audrey stopped, narrowing her eyes at me before she gritted her teeth. “You aren’t drinking again, are you? Really? We’re about to go on!” She huffed, shaking her head, and turned away so I wouldn’t see her rage amplify across her face. I knew she was disappointed; she didn’t have to turn away from me to let me know that. I was pretty in tune with my sister’s feelings about how I dealt with my insecurities. She didn’t understand. She never would, but that didn’t stop her from trying, no matter how many times I had told her to just let it go.
That was the difference between me and her. Some things were better left unsaid and left alone.
“Don’t worry so much. Your hair will go grey before you’re even thirty!” I caught a slight slur in my words and cleared my throat. It was my turn to shift away, grabbing the electronic equipment and the tangle of cords, and readying to run over this God awful band once their song was over. It was starting to grate on my nerves, the way he screeched his guitar every two seconds. I was pretty sure he didn’t know how to play a decent chord if his life depended on it.
Lifting the digital usb midi pad and tucking one of the smaller keyboards under my arm, I began plugging in the necessary cords and untangling the mess. Finally, the screeching music ended, and I pulled the loops around my shoulder, letting the band step down off the stage, before taking the stairs two at a time to the table awaiting the equipment. It was easy work to set up. I’d done it so many times, I could do it asleep or blindfolded. Saul made his way to the stairs, carrying a small digital percussion pad set and a few more loops of cords around his arms.
Watching him take the steps, slowly but still fast enough, no one would’ve noticed he was blind, except for the cane he carried along with all the stuff in his arms. With dexterous fingers, he swept the cane in front of him and made his way toward me.
“Don’t trip. The snakes are all over the floor,” I told him, hoping he knew what I was talking about. I took the equipment from him before he could run into the table, which made him pause before throwing me a tiny nod and smile. It was brilliant and made me suck in my breath. “The table’s in front of you. There’s a chair behind it to get your stuff set up,” I added, darting my eyes away.
“Thanks. It reminds me of the sound studios I work in, but quite a bit louder.” His fingers graced the edges of the table and followed it discretely around. It was impressive, the way he moved so gracefully, never running into anything or tripping. It was as if he could sense the surroundings, like they were an extension of him. Must be the years of practice, I quietly thought. I wouldn’t mind those fingers gracing my skin the way they caressed the edges of the table. I moved my eyes away from his yummy backside, feeling guilty for eyeing a man who couldn’t even see me do it.
Audrey ran up the steps, leaning both our guitars against our chairs. Hers was a tall stool, stolen from the bar down below. I’m sure they didn’t mind it. She cradled her microphone and looped the excess cord near the table before plugging it in. Only one of the guitars was plugged in for an acoustic sound at its best. I took the instrument from her, and she arranged her variety of bells, tambourines, and jingles on the end of the table Saul occupied.
Soon, the crowd quieted enough for Audrey to announce us. The Fall of Sky was the name of our duo, now trio. Though unofficial, it would do for now. I began strumming my guitar and waited for Saul to start the looping percussion as I picked at the strings, sending a haunting melody into the room.
As the drums resonated, the music left my fingers, pouring out from my soul and into the chords as the pick clicked through the strings. The vibrating twang filled me up like a warm, soothing concoction, even in my half drunken state. I was oblivious to the crowd now−they didn’t exist when I was playing. In the background, I heard Audrey’s voice sounding out, softly at first, and then into the sway of the lyrics we’d both written and sung a thousand times before.
“Nothing like the rain
That amplifies the fear
And nothing like this endless pain
That wants to pull me near
Like a poison to my soul
A drizzle of your touch
A fiery death in my veins
Try not to taste too much
But, for you, I might let this guard down
For you, I might take a step around
And it might be a mistake…
Might be the last step I take
Maybe the fall is worth the pain…”
The melody continued in her soft, hypnotic voice. As the chorus sounded, I had joined her with my own voice, harmonizing and echoing in the room. The bar had stilled. Most were nodding their heads to the beats, which Saul was expertly looping and tapping out. I was definitely impressed, catching myself smiling through the words toward him. He sure could keep the rhythm, for a blind man. I swung my view back toward the crowd beyond the glaring stage lights. Some women were grinding against their lovers; some were in the dark crevices of the room, deeply buried within their kisses and feeling up on each other. It was definitely a sexual song, and the room had gotten the gist of it.
It made the room temperature rise as we continued on−a sure sign that it had been well accepted. I hungrily scanned the room as I strummed the guitar, looking for someone to quench my own thirst. Normally, Audrey would sway me from grabbing the first good looking guy I saw and keep me out of trouble when I was intoxicated. Not tonight. I wouldn’t let her. Tonight, I had a fire building up inside me, and it needed something to burn, someone to devour with every fiber of my being. I was on the hunt, and this was going to be fun.
Chapter Six