"Yeah, that would be fine. Thank you," I said quietly. And just like that, one full day being in this new city, I had a job.
Chapter 3
My New Job
Listening to the band play their full set was amazing. They really were good at what they did and Kellan was unbelievable. I was a little surprised that someone hadn't scooped him up yet. He was the poster child for a bankable rock star - talented, seductive and smoking hot. And they already had quite the fan base; almost immediately upon starting their set, the floor around the stage had crowded with people.
Denny pulled me out to the floor near the edge of the pack, where we had more room to dance and move about. The song they were playing was extremely catchy and easy to dance to, and Denny twirled me around, then brought me tight to him as we danced close together. I laughed and slung my arms around his neck. Then he dipped me and I laughed harder. Most of the D-Bags songs were fast, but Denny and I were comfortable with each other and danced together easily.
Occasionally, I would glance up at the group onstage. Kellan would gently keep time to the music with his body as he smiled flirtatiously through his words. He was captivating to watch and I found myself doing it more and more frequently as the night went on. While watching the way his body swayed while he sang, I happened to notice Griffin look over at Matt suddenly, then scowl deeply. Somehow, without ever looking at him or missing a note on his guitar, Matt managed to flip him off, making Denny and I giggle and Griffin roll his eyes. Evan watched over the group, slowly shaking his head and laughing as well. Kellan didn't seem to witness the exchange, or he was just ignoring it, his eyes focused on the adoring crowd instead.
For some of the songs, Kellan would pick up his guitar and play along with Matt. His guitar wasn't amplified like Matt's, and the different sounds blended together nicely. He started off an intro to a slower song by himself, and I couldn't help but notice how good he was on it, probably as good as Matt. Most of the people around the front of the stage were still cavorting and dancing, even though the song was slower, but some of the couples near Denny and I were starting to slow dance.
Denny pulled me close, slipping his arms around my waist. He grinned at me goofily, in a way that I immensely loved, and pulled me tight against him. I sighed happily and brought my arms around his neck again. Running my fingers through his dark hair, I gave him a soft kiss. As the music swelled and picked up intensity, I hugged him tight and laid my head on his shoulder, breathing in his wonderful, familiar scent. Looking out over his shoulder, I watched Kellan on stage. He was smiling sweetly at me during a break in the vocals and I smiled back. Then he winked at me and I blinked in surprise. He laughed at that, finding my reaction highly amusing.
They played one more fast-paced song after that, most of the couples going back to regular dancing, Denny and I choosing to stay locked together, smiling at each other and softly kissing. When that song finished, Kellan's speaking voice broke through the noise of the crowd.
"Thank you for coming out tonight." He paused, waiting for the crowd's sudden eruption of screams to die down. After a minute, he smiled charmingly and held up a finger. "I want to take a second to introduce you all to my new roommates."
His finger pointed right at Denny and me. I blushed deeply and Denny laughed, moving to my side, his arms still around my waist. I looked over at him, biting my lip and wishing we had left after the slow song. He grinned and kissed my cheek while Kellan told the whole bar our names.
I buried my head in Denny's shoulder, mortified, while Kellan cheerily said, "Now, you'll all be happy to know that Kiera is joining the happy little family here at Pete's, starting Monday night." The crowd screamed again...I had no idea why, and I blushed even deeper and glared up at Kellan, wishing he would be quiet. He laughed at my look. "I want you all to be nice to her..." he looked over to the D-Bag beside him who was grinning indecently at me, "...especially you Griffin."
He said good night to the crowd, that hollered yet again, and then he sat down on the edge of the stage. My embarrassment fading, now that the attention was no longer focused on me, I thought to go up and tell him how great he was. It apparently wasn't necessary though. Almost instantly, about five girls hovered around him. One brought him a beer, one played with his hair, and one even made herself quite comfortable on his lap. I'm pretty sure at some point I saw her lick his neck. After witnessing that, I figured he didn't need any encouraging words from me, and I could just tell him something nice in the morning.
Denny and I left soon after the band finished, and practically stumbled to bed in our tiredness. I don't know exactly when I heard Kellan get home, but it was much later than us. So naturally, I was pretty surprised when I groggily made my way down to the kitchen the next morning, and there he was, already sitting at the table, fully dressed, looking annoyingly perfect while sipping his coffee and reading the paper.
"Mornin'," he said, a little too cheerfully.
"Uh," I replied grumpily. So, not only was he talented and ridiculously attractive, he was also one of those people who could run smoothly on very little sleep. That irritated me a little.
I grabbed a mug and poured some coffee while he finished his paper. Upstairs, I could hear the water start running as Denny prepared for his shower. I finished making my coffee and went over to sit across from Kellan at the table.
He smiled at me as I sat down. For a second, I felt really self-conscious in the lounge pants and tank top I had slept in. Irritation at his all-too-perfect face swept through me. Really, did one person need to be so blessed? It didn't seem cosmically fair. Then I remembered Denny's conversation with me in the car...about Kellan and his dad. That cooled my anger. Things hadn't always been easy for this attractive boy.
"Well, what did you think?" he asked, smiling, like he already knew my answer.
I tried to frown, like I was going to say it sucked, but I couldn't and laughed a little instead. "You guys are amazing. Really, it was unbelievable."
He smiled and nodded, sipping his coffee again. Not a great shock to him, then. "Thanks. I'll tell the guys you liked it." He looked up at me with the corner of his eye. "Less offensive?"
I started to blush, remembering our conversation yesterday, but then his performance started replaying in my head. With mild surprise, I realized that he had toned down the sensuality. He had certainly still been flirty and charming, but less...obvious. I smiled over at him. "Yes, much better...thank you."
He laughed at my comment, and it pleased me a little that he had actually listened to something I had, rather rudely, criticized him for.
We sipped our coffees in silence for a few minutes, and then something said in conversation last night suddenly popped into my head and slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it. "Joey was the roommate before us?" Really, what was wrong with my loose tongue around him? I was going to have to work on that.
He paused in drinking his coffee and slowly set the mug down. "Yeah...she left awhile before Denny called about the room."
Curious at the odd look in his eyes, I asked, "She left a lot of her stuff here. Is she going to come back for it?"
He looked down at the table for a second, then back up to my eyes. "No...I'm pretty sure she left town."
Surprise loosened my tongue again, "What happened?" I really had had no intention of asking him that question. I wondered if he would answer me.
He looked thoughtful for a second, like he was wondering as well too. "A...misunderstanding..." he finally said, slowly.
Firmly, I shut my thoughts off and focused on my coffee. I was NOT going to pry anymore. It was not my business and I didn't want to ruffle my new roommate. It didn't matter anyway; our situation was so vastly different. I just hoped that if she did come back, she would leave the bed. It was incredibly comfortable.
Denny and I spent the remainder of that lazy Sunday resting and preparing for our jobs that we were starting the next day. Denny's internship paid next to nothing, so we were both relieved that I had found a job so quickly. I thanked Kellan for his small part in introducing us to Pete and mentally thanked Griffin for not being able to keep it in his pants, the thought of which, of course, made me blush a little.
I was nervous about it though. I had never waitressed at a bar before. Denny and Kellan had a great couple of hours quizzing me on different drinks and what was in them. I protested at first, since my knowledge really wasn't that great, and told them repeatedly that the bartender was making the drinks. I only had to repeat the orders. But after some amusingly suggestive drinks, some of which I'm sure Kellan completely made up, I started having fun playing their little game. I suppose it would help me to know everything I could.
By that evening, Denny was starting to get nervous about his first day as well. He picked out three different sets of clothes, flipped through all his old schoolbooks, organized his briefcase four times, and eventually sat on the couch, tapping his feet nervously. Kellan excused himself to meet with the band - apparently they met nearly every day to rehearse, probably why they felt so comfortable before a show. I took the opportunity of our aloneness to do everything in my power to get Denny's mind off of his nerves.
On the second time, I think he finally relaxed...
Monday morning came up quicker than expected. I made my way downstairs for my morning cup of coffee while Denny got ready for his first day. Spotting Kellan at the table, casually leaning back in his chair, drinking his coffee and reading the paper, I had to chuckle at his shirt. He was wearing a black t-shirt that quite boldly in white across the front read, 'Douchebags'. He noticed my laugh and my gaze and smiled attractively.
"Like it? I can hook you up." He winked at me. "I know people." I smiled and nodded back at him as he went back to drinking his coffee.
Denny came down a little while later, looking very handsome in a nice, light blue button-up dress shirt and khaki slacks. He looked over at Kellan at the table and pointed to his shirt. "Nice, man...score me one of those."
Kellan laughed and nodded, then Denny came up and slipped his arms around me. I frowned at him as he gave me a kiss on the cheek. "What?" he asked, looking himself over quickly.
I smoothed out the front of his shirt, then ran my hand along his jaw. "You...are entirely too attractive. Some perky blonde is going to snatch you away from me."
He raised an eyebrow and smiled warmly. "You silly nong."
Kellan popped up from the table. "No, she's right, man." He shook his head at him quite seriously. "You're hot." Then grinning, he went back to drinking his coffee.
Rolling my eyes at Kellan, I gave Denny a long kiss and wished him a good day at work. Kellan came up playfully and gave him a peck on the cheek as well. Denny laughed, and still looking rather nervous, made his way out the door.
I didn't have a whole lot to do during the day, since I wasn't starting school for another two and a half months, so I called my Mom again and told her I already missed everyone terribly. She immediately offered me a plane ticket back home. I assured her that everything was going great here, and I even had a job already. Sighing repeatedly, she wished me luck and lots of love. I told her to give Dad and Anna kisses for me.
I spent the rest of the day either watching TV, or watching Kellan write lyrics at the table. He seemed to be constantly jotting down some notes or thoughts, scratching them out, moving things around, and chewing on his pencil, thinking. Occasionally he would ask my opinion about a verse. I tried to give him as insightful of an answer as possible, but music theory was not one of my strong points. It was fascinating to watch him work though, and before I knew it, I needed to get ready for my shift.
I showered and then dressed, fixing my makeup and pulling my hair back into a ponytail. I sighed. Not great, but presentable, I guess. I made my way downstairs to grab my jacket from the hook at the front door.
"Kellan?"
He looked over at me from the living room where he was watching TV. "Yeah?"
"Is there a bus schedule around here? I want to look at the route again." Denny, with our only vehicle, wasn't home from work yet, and I wanted to leave early since I didn't know how long the bus ride would take.