Strings (7 page)

With five minutes
to go until midnight, she knew she had to decide. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she pressed ‘submit’.

             
It was too late to change her mind now.  

P
lay for me

October 2013

‘Please tell me that wasn’t a joke,’ Luke said in disbelief. He was expecting to be told that the phone call he had just taken was some sort of prank.

             
Melissa shook her head, smiling on the outside but terrified on the inside, unsure how he would react to her entering them in the competition without their knowledge. ‘No, it really isn’t a wind-up – as if I would do that!’              

             
‘I can't believe you did that for us!’ Luke picked her up and kissed her.

             
They’d only been together for two weeks, but the feelings between them were growing stronger every day. They spent most evenings together, usually at Toby’s, which was the venue for the band’s practice sessions. His neighbours were used to hearing their music, but they tried to be considerate, keeping the noise levels reasonable and the times sociable.

             
Although he hadn’t slept at his parents’ place for days now, this was the first night Luke and Melissa had really spent the whole evening alone together. It was a rare night off from band activities, and they had decided to just relax together at Melissa’s place.

             
The phone call inviting them to compete at Amplified had nearly ended badly. The man who had phoned Luke sounded a lot like Dale, and Luke had initially thought it was a wind-up. Luckily, Melissa was nearby and heard his confused response.

             
‘Amplified? What the ... if this is you, Dale—’

             
Melissa had to intervene quickly, and pointed at herself whispering, ‘It was me … I did it – it’s real!’

             
Luke quickly realised that she was being honest, and that the call was genuine. He accepted the offer politely, and sheepishly apologised for the initial misunderstanding. He looked a little dazed as he hung up, looking at her for an explanation of what had just happened.

             
‘Wow, this is mad…’ was the only response he could manage after Melissa explained everything and brought him up to date. He was still trying to comprehend what it meant for them – it was huge. But then it dawned on him that they had only two weeks to prepare, and he began to panic. Should he write some new material or stick with what they knew? He seemed to want Melissa’s opinion, and it was a nice feeling for her.

             
‘Luke, you’ll be fantastic whatever you do, so just do what you feel is right. But if you ask me, you should stick with what you know and have practiced playing 100 times. There isn’t time to write and rehearse anything new, and even if you did, would it be better than what you have now? I doubt it.’ She did insist that whatever they did, they must include “Weekend High” because it was her favourite. Luke said she could have whatever she wanted.

             
‘What made you enter us? You really think we can do it?’ He couldn’t get his head round the fact that she had done this for them. Deep down, he knew it was exactly the sort of thing he’d been wanting them to do for a while, but he just hadn’t plucked up the courage to do it himself. It was a terrifying prospect, but at the same time very exciting.

             
‘Of course you can do it! I entered you because you are an amazing band! You’re much better than you give yourselves credit for.’ He laughed and made a joke about himself. He didn't seem to realise how good they were, or he did a very good job of hiding it. Melissa suspected it was to protect himself from rejection or ridicule, and she knew that he wouldn’t want to come across as arrogant.

She went on.
‘I wouldn't have even considered it if I didn't think you were good enough. I can't explain it … I just saw the flyer by chance and it was as though I was being told to do it, like destiny or something. I nearly did it the first night I met you but I waited until I’d seen you play again.’ She told him how she nearly decided against it, and how she was undecided right up until the deadline. ‘I know we barely knew each other back then, and I knew I was taking a big risk. I didn't even know if we’d be together—’

             
He cut her off by kissing her again. She didn't need to give any more explanation – he was delighted that she’d done it. ‘Thank you. We’ll make sure we do it justice, and make you proud of us.’

             
‘Can I come with you?’ 

             
‘You’re definitely coming with us! That is not up for discussion. We need our girls with us, you know, for protection.’ Her big blue eyes gazed into his, and her smile lit up her face. She admitted that she’d thought he wouldn't want her there, in case she was a distraction. He told her that was ridiculous.

             
Luke called the guys, and they rushed round to see them. They couldn’t believe that they’d been asked to compete, and they were equally amazed that Melissa had made it happen for them. As an aspiring band, they’d had to struggle for every small break they’d got so far, and nobody had ever done something like this for them before.

             
‘Melissa, you little beauty!’ Toby ruffled her hair before giving her a huge hug and lifting her off her feet. Hair ruffling seemed to be his trademark way of saying ‘Hi’ to people, and she now always made sure she had a hair brush in her bag, to tidy herself up after Toby had arrived.

             
Melissa watched quietly as they stood in her kitchen, talking and laughing excitedly, and making plans for the big event. She felt a warm satisfaction that she’d made her friends so happy. Her gamble had certainly paid off. They were like children, boisterous and animated, debating which songs to use in their set and listing the things they’d need for the big road trip to London. The first thing on the agenda was a trip to ‘Leo’s Guitar Heaven’ in Fratton. They needed to update some of their smaller bits of equipment, which they’d been putting off due to lack of money. But simply making do‌ wasn’t an option any more though, everything needed to be perfect.

             
Melissa noticed that Beth was standing behind Dale, quieter than usual and maybe looking a little annoyed. She was actually feeling left out – Melissa was the hero of the hour and Beth didn’t like to be anything other than the centre of attention. To push Beth aside had never been Melissa’s intention, but Beth needed to feel important – it was one of the scars left behind by her difficult childhood, a past she was still trying to heal from.

             
Dale looked up at her and took her hand. He knew her full story – she had trusted him so much that she had told him everything after just over a week together. It was a calculated risk in Beth’s mind because he could have run a mile. But she had a feeling he wouldn’t, and she felt that to be honest from the start was the right thing to do. She was right, because it had made them stronger. From Dale’s point of view, he got to know the real Bethany Watkins that day, and he was pleased that she trusted him enough to confide in him. It also made him understand a lot more about the bond between the girls.

             
‘Why didn't you tell me what you were up to?’ Beth asked Melissa as they both moved to one side of the room. She’d been sulking, but trying not to show it. As well as feeling a bit left out, she was nervous that Dale would think she didn’t care as much about him as Melissa did about Luke. She was completely in love with him, and she was just as proud of her man. If she was completely honest, she wished she’d thought of the idea rather than Melissa, or at least that it had been a joint venture between them.

             
‘Sorry, babe – I just sort of did it and then forgot about it.’ She felt a sudden pang of guilt and realised she needed to make her friend feel better. ‘If it wasn’t for you playing Cupid and making me talk to Luke, we wouldn’t have met them, and none of this would have happened. So you played a part too, a much more important one than me in fact.’ This went down well, and Beth’s mini strop was averted. Looking back, it had probably been the boys’ play fighting that had broken the ice that first night, but that didn’t matter.

             
Dale looked over at Melissa, smiled and winked as if to say, ‘Nicely done.’

             
‘Liss, have you seen the date of the competition?’ Beth suddenly started jumping excitedly on the spot. Her mood had clearly improved, and she felt part of things again.

             
Melissa grabbed the paper Beth was waving around and checked the date. In all the excitement she hadn’t even thought about her birthday. ‘Oh my god, I hadn't even noticed that!’

             
Luke looked up at her as he scribbled in the little notebook he always carried. He frowned and said he hoped that she didn’t have other plans. He really wanted her to be there as their good luck charm.

             
‘It's the weekend of my birthday, October 26th - it’ll be a perfect way to celebrate!’ The boys cheered at another reason to get, as Toby put it, ‘absolutely fucking mullered!’

             
Luke realised that they’d never discussed birthdays, and it gave him another reason to panic. He was already planning to use every penny he had for Amplified, but he couldn’t just ignore her birthday. After a bit of frantic brainstorming, one idea for a present came to mind. He thought it could work and wouldn’t cost much, but he cursed himself because he wanted to be able to splash out and buy her a special present. He hated the fact that he couldn’t spoil her as he wanted to. Then, to make him feel even more useless, she kneeled down next to him and whispered in his ear, ‘I can help out with money if you want. I’ll pay for our room in London and I know you need new guitar strings.’

             
She had a bit of money put away for a rainy day. She always saved a little each month – it was something she’d done since she got her first job. Her dad was a partner in an accountancy firm, and he had always taught her to be sensible with money. As a family they had always been comfortable financially, and as she grew up she looked back and was grateful for the security her parents had given her in her formative years. Her mum worked part time in a flower shop, not because the family needed the money, but because she enjoyed it and it was important to her to feel that she was making a contribution. She used her wages to buy little luxuries for the family, and she still helped Melissa out from time to time, even now that she was grown-up. She had paid for their tickets for the gig on the night they met the boys, as a treat, so Melissa gave her mum some of the credit for her having met Luke, as well as Beth.

             
Melissa had about a thousand pounds in a savings account, and it had taken about two years to save, but she decided she would use it for Luke if he needed it. He shook his head as he kissed her forehead, but she insisted that she wanted to help, so he reluctantly agreed, temporarily at least. ‘I shouldn’t be taking your money,’ he whispered, feeling embarrassed. The others were chatting loudly in the living room, so their conversation couldn’t be overheard.

             
‘Why not? It’s the twenty-first century – we’re supposed to be equals, aren’t we? I want to help, and I don’t want you to be stressing about money on top of getting ready for the competition – you need to be fully prepared and focused. I know I don’t really understand all the ins and outs of your equipment, but I know it doesn’t come cheap if you want the best.’

             
Luke appreciated her generosity, but knew he would feel terrible if she had to dip into her savings to pay for their competition. ‘I’ll get what we can afford, if that means—’

             
Melissa held her finger to his lips to stop him. ‘My Luke isn’t stepping up in front of thousands of people using cheap equipment!’ She tilted her head, smiling. ‘I really want to help ... please.’

             
‘You’ve saved for ages. You must want it for something.’ He was feeling very uncomfortable with the whole thing, but he had to admit that it would really help them out.

             
‘Nothing really. My dad always taught me to have something for a rainy day.’ She sat on his knee, and wrapped her arms around him. ‘Well, this is my rainy day,’ she smiled before kissing him and suddenly wishing they were alone. But she knew there would be many beers and several hours before the others departed.

             
‘What did I do to deserve you?’ Luke said between kisses. ‘Thank you.’

*****

After everyone had eventually left, Melissa and Luke sat together on the sofa. Luke was shaking his head after they’d had a full-on heart-to-heart. They’d been telling each other about their pasts. Melissa had told how Leon had broken her heart and humiliated her. She’d become a bit emotional after recounting how she’d walked in on him and some girl from work. They had been in her bed of all places! He could have at least done his cheating away from her home – that had really hurt her.

             
‘The guy is a total idiot. Forget him,’ Luke said, and wiped the lone tear that was running down her cheek. ‘I promise I won’t ever do that to you.’