Chapter 26: Hypersonic

Part V: El Tango

We dance tango because we have secrets
- M.C.L.

“How was school today?”

Heather laughed. “Are you kidding? I didn’t go.”

“Really? Why not?”

“Didn’t feel like it.”

“So you just didn’t go?” I asked incredulously.

“Why bother? I felt like lying around, thinking of what a great weekend we just had. So I had a great day, actually! School will still be there tomorrow. It can wait. Thinking of the weekend couldn’t!”

“It was pretty amazing,” I agreed.

“Now we’re back to phone calls,” she added sadly.

“I know.”

“How was your first day back?” she asked.

“Ugh. It sucked.”

“See? You should’ve just stayed home,” she said with a giggle.

“Maybe I will next time. I got loaded up with assignments today, and I was busy until after dinner.”

“That sucks.”

“We have a science project due in a couple of weeks, plus I’m way behind reading the book for English class. I have to write a report by Friday.”

“What’s the book?”

“I have no idea,” I admitted, wincing at the thought.

“It’s only Monday,” Heather reminded me.

“Yeah, but she assigned our next English project today. We have to do a biography of someone.”

“Ooh, who are you going to pick? Me?”

“I wish. I have to pick someone in the community, whatever that means. Like a police officer, teacher, business owner, something like that.”

“Could be interesting.”

“Eh.”

“Are you rehearsing this week for the party?”

“Yeah, probably just Saturday, though. We’re all pretty busy this week. Still, me and Lara will play a bit every night, if we can.”

“How is it, playing with Lara?” Heather asked.

“It’s fine.”

“Okay.”

“I mean, it’s no big deal. She sings, I play.”

“I know. I just was wondering what it was like. I know how close you two are. Must be fun to make music together!”

“Honestly, I haven’t even thought about it much. And ... I guess it’s been a bit different lately.”

“What do you mean?”

“She’s with Pete.”

“And what’s that got to do with anything?”

“She’s busy with him, and, I don’t know. She’s been a bit different lately. Things change when you have a boyfriend or girlfriend, I guess.”

“Or not,” she countered.

“Or not?”

“Why should they?”

“What do you mean?”

“Just that you and Lara could still be close without it having to do with Pete. Or me, even.”

I contemplated. “I know. Still, for some reason, she’s been a bit different. I think we’re just getting older, finding our own space. That kind of thing.”

“That’s cool. I was just wondering.”

“Well, I need to get some more homework done, so I should go.”

“Anything else to tell me?” she hinted.

“Anything else? Hmm...”

I picked up the stiff envelope addressed to Martin’s Fish Market that was sitting on my desk. My mom was going to drop it off at the post office in the morning, sending it by express mail. I had already given her the money.

“No, not really,” I said, smiling broadly but keeping its expression from touching my voice.

“Okay. How many times have you looked through the Trilogy pictures?” she asked.

“But...” I paused. “Oh, Trilogy. None, actually. I’ve been way too busy. I’m hoping to have a look this week, though.”

“Really? I thought you’d want to see that last set you never got to.”

Wow, a hint. This was rare!

“Oh, I do. Maybe Wednesday I’ll have some time.” I fought to keep my voice serious and disinterested.

“I better let you go then, if you’re that busy!” she finished. “Talk tomorrow?”

“Def.”

It was hard to be away from her again. The wild high of the Thanksgiving weekend was making the coming weeks seem depressingly low. Still, there were a few things to look forward to, so I flipped open my books and tried to stay ahead of the wave of work that was going to close out the calendar year. Heather would be here for a few days around New Year’s Eve, so I had to do my best to keep from having any work to do when she arrived.

“How’s your project going?” I asked Shannon, as she fell in beside me on the way to our photography class.

“I took the mic stand into town and put it in different places.” She didn’t sound very satisfied.

“And? Get anything good?”

“Maybe,” she said evasively. “I’m still working on it. I guess you need it back?”

“Maybe for rehearsal this week. We need to practice a bit for the party on Saturday. Are you still up for going?”

Shannon grinned. “I have to go. It’s going to be the last photo of my project!”

“Cool. Thanks again for driving me down to the river yesterday.”

“No sweat. I was glad to help. Although I have to say I’m really interested in seeing your pictures now!”

“I know. Sorry I made you wait in the car for that long, but...”

But I had to masturbate on top of a big rock!

“I understand. I’m not letting you see my shots either!”

I grinned as we took our seats in class. Jane was setting up some photos, but before I could study them, Shannon leaned in close and whispered in my ear.

“What are you doing on the fifteenth?”

“I don’t know, what day is that?” I replied.

“Saturday.”

“Nothing at the moment, I guess.”

“I’ll understand if you say no, but I wanted to see if you wanted to go to a ballet.”

“A ballet? Like at a theatre?”

“Yeah.”

“With you?”

Shannon smiled. “Sort of. I’ll be dancing. But Clara and my folks will be going too. You don’t have to sit with them, though.”

“Yeah, I guess I could probably go. Are you going to dance that thing you did in the studio for the photo shoot?”

Shannon shook her head. “No, it’s a Nutcracker performance, with a conservatory in Albany.”

“Nice! Do you go there for classes too?”

“I don’t, but Clara knows the director of this school, so I’m allowed to audition for parts in their shows.”

Jane announced the start of class, so I whispered into Shannon’s ear.

“Nice. I’ll come, but I don’t know how I’d get there.”

Shannon rolled her eyes. “You can bum a ride with me, as long as you don’t mind going a little early.”

I grinned. “Sounds good to me.”

Heather was extremely pleased when I talked to her on Wednesday night. “Wow, you really had me fooled!” she exclaimed. “I was thinking that you hadn’t even looked in the shoe box yet and then the pictures showed up, like magic!”

I looked over at the flat stone that she’d used to weigh down the paper bag. I’d put it on my dresser, displaying it like a natural trophy. “I’m catching on to you, I guess,” I said happily.

“Good pics, too. Putting the heels into the shot of you holding the boulder picture on the bed was a nice touch.”

“Thanks. I did that one at the last minute.”

“Awesome. I can’t wait until class on Friday!”

“Are you going to show them all?”

“I don’t know yet. I’ve printed a bunch, now I need to see what goes well together. Definitely the one at the swings, the bikes, the one on the fish counter—”

“That came out good?”

“Amazingly good! Weird, but cool. Oh, and wait until you see the catwalk one. Spotlights on! And I like the one of the couch, of course, where you’re cleaning. The three you sent me will be nice because it’s obviously not Montauk. Not sure about the steps at your aunt’s house.”

“Yeah, that was pretty weak of me.”

“The one from your room at your aunt’s house is a fun shot, but I don’t think I want it in there. It’s pretty clear that it’s a sex picture.”

I laughed. “You don’t want anyone to know, then?”

“I don’t care about that, but I don’t like it when things are in your face that much. That one is too obvious. The others could be anything, but come on. A picture of messy sheets, discarded clothes, and the heels? It’s been done a million times.”

“It was what it looked like after we finished, though.”

“I know. But anyway, that’s why we had lots of sex last weekend! So I could have options to choose from!”

“I’m suddenly feeling used again.”

“Sorry!” She giggled. “I won’t put you through that ever again. No more sex.”

“Actually, never mind, I’m not feeling used anymore.”

Heather just laughed.

Saturday arrived with remarkable speed. Band rehearsals and fresh stacks of homework competed with frequent phone conversations with Heather to dissolve the weekdays away.

“So what exactly is the story tonight?” Lara asked me, after the guys had packed up our band gear from the guest cabin and driven off.

“You’re sleeping over at Alice’s. I’m staying at Brian’s.”

“I thought it was Bruno’s.”

“I changed it. Easier to meet everyone there.”

“Okay. And how am I getting from Alice to Brian’s house?” she asked. “I’m not walking all that way in the cold.”

“We’ll come pick you up.”

“All right. Hopefully the moms won’t notice that your guitars and stuff are gone.”

“Doubt they’d come up here. Besides, the vocal amp is still here, and I can always just say Carl took my stuff because we’re rehearsing at his house tomorrow.”

“Cool. I am a little worried about what we’re doing, I have to say.”

I looked at her. “Really? Why?”

She shrugged. “We’re going pretty far away, Matt. Who knows what kind of party this is going to be? I just hope things turn out all right.”

“It’ll be fine,” I said, although I had to admit that I wasn’t without anxiety myself. “I bet we have a blast.”

Lara sighed. “I’m also worried about singing.”

“Okay, that’s definitely one thing we should not be worrying about.”

“First real show,” she said simply. “I’ve never done it before.”

“You’re going to kill it.”

“If you say so.”

As twilight was beginning to descend in the mountains, Melissa drove us to Alice’s house, where Lara popped out with her backpack. A short time later, I was at Brian’s. Since Brian’s older brother Craig was going to the party along with a couple of his friends, we ended up having plenty of vehicles. When Shannon showed up, she and I left to pick up Lara and Alice, while the rest of the guys loaded our equipment into the bed of Craig’s pickup truck and took off for Jonah’s house.

I was a ball of nervous energy by now. Thoughts of the show’s reception by the crowd fought with images of Alana in my head. I kept repeating to myself that there was no way she would be there and that the band would do just fine. I vowed that there would be no repeat of either the Esopus or the talent show auditions.

Shannon noticed my quiet. “Earth to Matt.”

“Huh? Sorry, did you say something?”

“I asked how your project was going?”

“Oh, sorry. I was thinking about the show. Um, yeah, it’s going. I think I just need to develop my shots. I took a bunch of pictures in Montauk over Thanksgiving.”

“What was your object?”

“Uh, a pair of shoes.”

“Nice. Can’t wait to see what you came up with this time.”

“Me too,” I said evenly.

“What’s the plan tonight?” she asked.

“I don’t know. What time do you have to be home?”

“No particular time,” she said. “I told my folks I was staying at a friend’s house.”

I laughed. “I think everyone in the whole town is staying at each other’s houses. Hopefully no parents decide tonight is a good night to catch up on the phone. But I guess we’ll play our set and then we can head back up here.”

“Okay. I just don’t want to drive too late, you know.”

“Yeah, that’s cool. You let me know when it’s time to head out. Even, I think we have enough seats that if you took Alice and Lara back, I could still get a ride back with someone else.”

“I’m not going to leave you stranded!” Shannon exclaimed.

“You won’t. I don’t want you getting in trouble if it gets late.”

“Same here. And I’m not sure I’d want you to be riding with any of those guys later tonight.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” I admitted.

We pulled into Alice’s driveway and the two girls slid into the back seat.

“Ready to party?” Lara exclaimed.

I grinned. “Sounds like you are. Feeling better?”

“Now I am!”

The drive down was a bit tricky even with a map, but we managed to find the massive stone entrance that was blanketed by an overgrown thicket of vines. The iron gates, blacker than the night, invited us in. As the driveway wound up through the trees, we were all quiet. There was a bit of grandeur to the place, and yet we caught glimpses of ruin as well. As the colossal house came into view, we started seeing cars parked haphazardly on the lawns to either side of the long driveway.

“Damn, there’s more than a few people here,” Lara remarked.

“Yeah,” I agreed. I didn’t know if that was good or bad.

Up ahead, I made out Craig’s truck, parked near the side of the giant house.

“I think they’re up there, unloading. Maybe we can squeeze in along side?”

Shannon shook her head. “I think I’m going to park down closer to the gates. If this clearing fills up, I don’t want to get locked in here. I’ll drop you off and then go park. Can you take my camera, Matt?”

“Sure, I’ll grab your stuff.”

We exited Shannon’s car, pulling our coats tight against the chilly air. The night was crystal clear, letting the unusually bright evening sky prick our eyes with a variety of singular colors.

“What’s up guys?” I called. Carl and the rest of them greeted us.

“Almost loaded every thing in,” he said. “Just need to grab my bass drum and your amp.”

“Let’s do it. How’s the place?”

“You’re going to shit your pants,” Carl said with a grin.

“Why?”

“It’s fucking ridiculous in there, man!”

I stepped into a dark hallway, pushing my amp along on its wheels. Lara was in front of me, following Carl and his bass drum. After a short walk past a dark kitchen of some sort, the passage opened up into another hallway. The sound of clamoring people and thumping music at the far end of the hall grew louder. Then Lara emerged into the great room.

“Holy shit!” she cried. I barely caught it above the din. Once I passed the threshold, I took one look around and then caught Lara’s glance as she turned to me. There was a moment of fearful incredulity.

Then we grinned at each other. The great room – for it couldn’t really be called anything else – was practically a small concert hall. Giant windows that overlooked some invisible outdoor vista formed the semi-circular backdrop of our stage area. Jonah had set up a P.A. system, through which recorded music was pumping out into the room. Several lighting trees plastered the walls with vibrant patterns that tracked to the beat of the music. Overlooking this performance area was a wide-open floor that was filling with people. A second floor balcony flew over the space, accessed by a curved staircase along one side of the great room. The balcony also supported a number of people milling about, holding plastic cups, smoking, and generally having a good time. Some of them watched the band setup with interest, while others were carrying on with their friends. For an instant, an image of the room packed to the hilt with screaming people made me shiver. Then I turned as someone tapped my shoulder.

“Good to see you, man,” Jonah said into my ear.

I shook his hand, returning the greeting.

“This is crazy!” I yelled.

He made a dismissive face. “This is nothing, bro. It’s still early!”

I shook my head in disbelief as he led me to the area that was cleared for our band to set up in. After I placed my amp in a good spot, Jonah pointed to a large cooler.

“Band fridge with a bunch of beers,” he indicated.

He looked around and then waved someone over. A cute blonde girl with a Goth look sidled up to Jonah and gave me a polite smile with her black-painted lips. Her lively eyes were set in a bed of deep shadows. Jonah introduced me to her.

“Miss Ellie is here to take care of the band,” he explained. “If you want anything, just ask one of us. We’ll take care of you. You name it. Tequila, scotch, wine, pot, blow, chicks, you just say the word and we’ll get it for you.”

I nodded, wondering how much of his list was truly accessible. Do we really have someone waiting on us?

“Cool. This is going to be awesome,” I said, trying not to sound too awed.

“Most definitely. You guys play as long as you want. And, I still wouldn’t mind sitting in on a song or two!”

“Do you have your guitar set up?”

He nodded, indicating a rig that was on the other end of the stage area. “I have a monitor speaker set up for Lara,” he explained. “I already showed the guys where the power is and stuff, so I’ll let you do your thing. Help yourself to anything.”

Jonah wandered off, slipping into a group of three girls passing a joint just in time to grab a hit.

“Do you need anything, sir?” Miss Ellie asked.

I smiled, savoring her English accent. Did she really just call me ‘sir’?

“Nah, I’ll grab a beer in a sec. Is that your real name?”

“I am Miss Ellie,” she deferred.

“Nice. I think we’ll be pretty easy to deal with, so just have a good time and enjoy the music.”