2.25 – A night to remember

Chapter tune: KISS – God gave rock ‘n’ roll to you

The big moment had finally arrived. Even though the cheering voices that were echoing from outside, waiting for Fourdust’s biggest concert, were a loud and clear indication of the countless people who had come to see them perform, Jesse and his bandmates were not prepared for what they saw the minute they entered the stage.

It was a good thing they had all been given a good pep talk by their manager, Vito – sadly, it was after Owen had already thrown up a couple of times – as well as having Bryce as their lead singer.

That guy. As calm, aloof and quiet he was at home, it was like he magically transformed into something else while performing. Into the ultimate, most badass sock singer anyone had ever seen. Well, at least one of the top five – that was certain.

“What’s up Starlight Shores? Thank you all for coming tonight! Are you ready to rock? I can’t hear you! ARE YOU READY?”

The front rows almost fainted when he started singing. The skill, energy and emotion he brought to every song was unheard of. No wonder many bands tried to grab him right after their first album got out. Yeah, Bryce was something else. Jesse knew he could never have done it without him. But apart from him, he couldn’t have done it without the help of his two best friends, Dylan and Owen. They were the ones – along with his crazy cousin Basil – that helped him out of countless slumps, that helped him turn dozens of sleepless nights into pure creative fever.

And it had finally paid off. There he was, absorbing the explosive energy of his fans and turning it into magic. Soon enough, his last traces of nervousness disappeared, and that raw feeling of pure excitement took their place. And the truth is, he was killing it.

But as much as he let the waves of thrill carry him along, he was still feeling that his happiness was incomplete. He was still hoping to see her. Maybe later, after the show was over, she’d come find him backstage. Thinkg about her made his nervousness return with a vengeance. What if she didn’t come at all? Should he have gone find her instead? Should he go find her after the show? Was that a sign that she didn’t want him anymore or that she just didn’t get his message? Maybe if –

His thoughts were cut short as his wandering eyes found their focus at last. Because among the countless people singing, clapping and cheering… he finally saw her.

For a split second, Jesse lost it. He thought she looked so beautiful, so amazingly bright amongst the faceless crowd in front of him, that he almost missed a whole riff. But he didn’t care. She was there. She had come for him.

It only took a nod from him for Bryce to get it and call for a break.

“And now, I’d like you all to welcome our lead guitar, Jesse Frio – yeah, you all know that guy – for a small announcement. Thank you!”

Jesse stepped in front of the microphone. He wasn’t nervous anymore, but even if he was, the girls that screamed and almost fainted as soon as he started talking would be enough for him to feel amazing.

“Hi everyone, thank you for coming to see our show! Are you having a good time? Alright! I know you can’t have enough of Bryce guys, I know. This won’t take long, I swear. Well… what I’d like to say is that tonight we have a very special person here with us. A person that not only looks like an angel – if you don’t believe me you’ll soon see that for yourself – , a person that not only has the voice of an angel, she is in fact one too.”

Jesse took a glance towards Skye to check out her reaction. When he saw her smiling, it was all the confirmation he needed to carry on. “She was our singer very long ago, before anyone even knew us, though personal reasons made her leave the band. But the truth is, there’s not been a day gone by that we don’t miss her. You see, she is – like i said – pretty special. And now she’s finally here with us again. Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like all of you to welcome to the stage, miss Skye Carlton!”

Skye didn’t need any further encouragement. Jesse could tell, this past one and a half year had been good to her. She looked calm, peaceful – nothing like the terrified shadow of a girl he had met so long ago. Pulling her into a hug, he felt every fiber of his skin waking up.

“I’ve missed you pokerface…” he whispered at her. There was so much he wanted to say but the unexpected lump in his throat got the best of him.

“I’ve missed you too ex-jerk” she replied while stroking his back. Some seconds passed with them in silence, almost forgetting the crowd that was staring at them in anticipation.

Skye stayed for a while on stage – she even sang a couple of their old songs which, surprisingly, some of the fans knew and sang along with her. Slightly after, everyone else followed as well.

Jesse couldn’t stop staring at her. The sight of her behind that microphone reminded him of that night when they first met, of the time they first fell in love and how far they had come. It was not an easy ride, but it had been one hell of it.

He was mesmerized by the way she was oozing confidence now, so different than how he remembered her. He felt like such an idiot for letting her go so many times – and he knew that from this moment on, he would not be so stupid again.

As soon as the songs were over, Skye started making her way towards the back, where she thought she would wait for him until the show was finished. But apparently, Jesse had other plans. He turned to face the crowd.

“Hey, this beautiful lady is walking away! Please give your best cheer if you’d like her to stay a little longer! Come on guys, I can’t hear you!”

Most of the people in the crowd began screaming their lungs out which made Skye stop and look at him in bewilderment, while Jesse fell down on one knee while searching his pockets.

“Jesse what… what are you doing?” was all she could mutter.

“I’m making sure I won’t lose you ever again pokerface… You see, all my life I felt like something was missing. I couldn’t put my finger on it but… I admit, it was after I lost you that I realized what was missing had a shape, a face. Your beautiful face. And I know now, I don’t want to feel like that ever again… So what do you say my angel? Will you put an end to my misery? Will you stay with me forever?”

The minute Jesse took that ring out, the audience had already gone insane. Once again, there was a fair amount of screaming, crying and fainting, so Jesse took his sweet time to realize that Skye’s face had taken a rather serious expression. The moment he realized it, she opened her mouth. “So… you think proposing to me in front of an audience will stop me from saying no? Because I can assure you I don’t get swayed that easily.”

Jesse froze. Shit, I pissed her off, he thought. Fuck, I’m so fucking stupid, how did I even manage to do that? “Skye no… I didn’t mean it that way… I… I thought it would be romantic, that’s all. But if you hate it, I take it back. That’s right everyone! I take it all back! Haha! That was a joke, obviously!”

“Nah, you can’t just take it back” she interrupted him. “Not now, that I’ve started thinking about it seriously…”

“Uh… what now?” Jesse was the one confused this time.

Skye gave him a wide grin. “You thought you would do something like that and I wouldn’t take the chance to mess with you? Come on Jesse… you made it too easy.”

This was his turn to smile at her with relief. “Shit… you almost gave me a heart attack there baby… So? I didn’t catch your answer you know…”

“Well… okay.”

Jesse started laughing uncontrollably. “Okay? What kind of an answer is that? It’s yes or no baby! So… which one is it?”

“Let me think about it…”

“Oh, come on!”

“Okay… I mean yes!”

“What??! I didn’t hear you, you know!” Jesse turned his face to the crowd. “Did you guys hear her by the way? No? Could the lady be more loud?”

“Yes!”

“Whaaaat? I can’t hear you!”

“Goddammit, Jesse you idiot, of course I’ll marry you! Yes! YES!!!”

That was the answer he needed. He swiftly took her into her arms and dipped her into a breathtaking kiss. For a while they were the only ones up there, alone under the clear, starry sky.

But soon enough, the audience grew restless. Skye stuck around for the rest of the show, even pairing her voice with Bryce’s for a couple more songs. During the last part, the people were shouting her name too, like she had been a part of the band this whole time, like she had never left.

As people were screaming for more, Jesse knew he would be perfectly happy if he could stay up on that stage forever, if everything could stay like this forever. It had truly been a night to remember, for the rest of their lives.

Towards the end of the encore, he knew his life was finally on track. He was feeling full, happy, exhausted, yet hungry for more. He had everything now; his family, his friends, and now finally, the love of his life with him.

But what he realized is that the crowd in front of him screaming, singing and cheering was what made everything complete. He had lived for this moment and had finally achieved his dream. As the song was slowly ending, he gestured at them , a gesture that would later be known as his signature move, his unique way of connecting with those people to whom he felt he owed so, so much.

Thank you, it was like he was saying to them. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. For believing in me, at a time when even I had a hard time doing it. For giving me the strength to carry on doing what I love. For making me able to pour my heart and soul into the world. For making me be heard. For making me breathe. For placing me higher than I could ever imagine, for turning everything into a possibility, for making me matter. I don’t know you, but believe me when I say I love each and every one of you.

Thank you. Until next time.

–

A/N: Hey guys!! First of all: public proposal after months of seeing each other… yeah. Coersion at its worst, am I right? Buuut… this will always be Jesse! I mean, this drama queen *slash* attention whore can change a little, but not completely..! 😁 Second of all: Oh my god, it’s oveeer! I can’t believe it!! I’d like to apologize to all of you who had to endure this ultimate cliché of an ending, but aaah, whatever. I don’t even care anymore 😛 This gen will always be a mess and there’s no salvaging it, lol! Don’t get me wrong, I love my characters but I think it was such a waste… I could have done so much better! For example, instead of focusing on Jesse’s band and the ways they could have wreaked all kinds of havoc in their path (I mean, they’re a freaking rock band for crying out loud), I focused on this ridiculous storyline. It was super dark for no reason, there was no character growth whatsoever (at least not in a way that I would consider acceptable), no internal battles (you know, Jared style 😛), nothing of the sort. A freaking disaster, lol. Anyway, it is what it is now, and I guess all I can do at this point is learn from my mistakes, right? Besides, since it’s a legacy, there’s still time for them to suffer silently in the background, muahaha! I’m kidding, I’m kidding! Or… am I? 😈 There will be another chapter, which will most probably be wordless – so technically not a chapter in the traditional sense – and it will focus on the weddings (at least we gotta have a wedding after all this, am I right?), their life after etc etc, and then we can finally move on to generation 3! I’m super psyched about it and spent months preparing it, so hopefully it will go as nicely as it was in my head all this time *fingers crossed* And I can finally be more productive, yay! I mean, my blogiversary is coming up soon and I have no material this time – what on earth was I doing for a whole year? Lol! Ah, no matter, I have something in mind and I really hope I can deliver until then 😉 Well, that completes my little rant, lmao!! Thank you sooo much for reading!! ❤❤