Matt and Evan joined the group, and Kellan shut the front door once we were all inside. As Matt hugged my mom, Chelsey grabbed my arm. Voice intent, she hissed, “Why didn’t you warn me?”
I blinked at her, completely lost. “About…?”
She slyly indicated Kellan. “That he is so much hotter in person. I mean, I thought I was prepared for his looks, but clearly, I was wrong.” She chewed on her lip. “Dustin wouldn’t be comfortable with me being here.”
She looked so worried about it, I almost laughed. “Why? Are you going to jump him?”
That remark instantly earned me a glare. “No, of course not. I love my husband.”
I shrugged. “Then what does it matter what he looks like. It’s the same with me and Anna. I’m constantly surrounded by chicks, but I don’t do anything with them because I’ve got her.” Peeking over at my wife talking to her sister, I smiled. I can’t wait to suck on her tits tonight. “Your husband is enough for you, and my wife is enough for me, so the Kellan Kyles of the world don’t matter.”
When I looked back at my sister, she was staring at me openmouthed. “Who the hell are you, and what have you done with my brother?”
I shoved her shoulder away from me. “Asshat.”
Chapter 6
And Then There Was More Awesome
After everybody was introduced to everybody, the core group of us moved to the rehearsal room. Mom, Dad, Liam, and Chelsey came with, while Anna and Kiera stayed behind to watch the kids. When I asked Matt and Evan where their gal pals were, they glanced at each other before looking back and me and replying, “Work,” almost simultaneously. I took that to mean they were truly working, or they were still irritated about the gallery thing. I was going to assume they were just busy, like the guys said. Not even chicks could hold on to a grudge that long.
Since my family was watching, and also because I wanted the guys to take me more seriously, as Anna suggested, I manned up, let my irritation over the tour go, and tried to take a more proactive approach to the part of being in a band that was a struggle for me—the creative process. I just didn’t have lyrics constantly running through my head like Kellan, or rhythms constantly pounding on my skull like Evan. But that didn’t mean I didn’t have ideas. I did. And I was going to share them with the guys, even if they did moan and groan after hearing each one.
“So, wait, you want us to bring in a didgeridoo on our next album?” Matt asked. By his face, you’d think I’d just told him we should wear kilts…which was actually an awesome idea. Kellan would probably veto it though. Wouldn’t want his chicken legs exposed.
“Yeah, I think they sound cool, and do you know anybody who uses them? We’d be totally unique.” I looked over at Mom and gave her a chin raise. See how smart your little boy is? You did good, Mom. Real good.
Matt sighed as he glanced between my parents. He almost looked like he was unsure if he should respond in front of them. I didn’t care. Go ahead, they can know how much of a genius I am. I don’t mind. “It’s not that they don’t have a great sound, it just doesn’t mix with ours. We’re a rock band, so we should stick to the traditional rock instruments.”
I gaped at him, surprised. “I thought you said you wanted to be cutting edge? Fresh? Sticking to what works, playing it safe…that’s how we go stale. We should surprise people on this next album.”
“Yes, surprise people, not turn them away. We want to grow our fan base, not completely replace it.”
Crossing my arms, I shook my head. “I think you’re being too technical about it. We won’t lose fans by trying new things. They’ll respect us for attempting to grow.”
Sighing, Matt looked over at Kellan and Evan. “Anyone miss the days when he just sat around and played video games while we worked?”
Evan gave him a humoring smile, while Kellan turned to me and said, “We appreciate the input, Griffin, and I actually do think you have a point, it’s just not quite the right fit. Keep thinking on it, okay?”
Irritation ran up my spine and the words Not tonight, maybe tomorrow rang through my head, quickly followed by You are never going to play lead. Guess I hadn’t let that go as much as I’d thought. Holding on to Anna’s pep talk of not giving up, I gave Kellan a tight smile in response. At least they hadn’t flat-out said no this time.
After the guys worked on lyrics that I cared nothing about, and rhythms that were good but all too familiar, we played a couple of our older songs that we’d played five million times before. I knew the guys wanted to show off to my family, so I didn’t object to playing “Callous Heart” and “Sucker Punch,” since those were two of our better songs, but I thought Matt could have offered to give me the lead, just for today, just so my parents could hear me jam. They all clapped and applauded once we were through though, even Liam, although his was more of a polite golf clap. Chelsey made up for it though with an impressive ear-piercing whistle.
We were just about to pack it up for the day when I walked over and grabbed Matt’s arm. “Hey, I know it’s your instrument, but can we do another one with me on lead…for my mom and dad?”
Matt hesitated as he looked over at them animatedly chatting between themselves. They looked genuinely proud of me, and I wanted to bolster that image of my greatness in their minds. When Matt looked back at me, I knew my parents had managed to do what I hadn’t—they’d swayed him. Looked like I would have to have them around for every rehearsal, since it might be the only time Matt let me play.