Hush, be careful of what you say

Brian POV

Holy shit! It’s 1am and I’m tired as fuck! We have been rehearsing non-stop for tomorrow’s event. I have to say, I’m a bit pissed that Matt forgot about this gig. If he would have remembered, we would have had more time to rehearse. But certain circumstances did not allow for this to happen.
Arin had agreed to play with us, he sounded really eager to get to it and promised to give his outmost so that he won’t make a fool of himself. We haven’t exchanged one single word today, and maybe that’s for the best. Less talking, less temptation to strangle the guy. Nonetheless, I do admire how determined he is.

“Okay, so what is the next song in our playlist?” he asks, after he takes a sip from his energy drink.
“After ‘Buried Alive’ we were thinking of playing ‘Nightmare’. It is a bit of an energized song. You’re up for it kid?” Matt asks him.
“Hell yeah. I told you I will do my best, and if needed I will not sleep to keep on learning and practicing these songs” Arin replies.
“No sleep? You’re kidding right?!” Johnny exclaims. I look at him and notice how both him and Zacky are lying on the couch, on the verge of sleeping. They’re both yawning and have swollen eyes, almost an impossible task to keep their eyelids open. It’s almost like a funny scene to stare at.
“Sleep is a must kid, we worked hard for today. We should rest for a bit, and wake up early tomorrow to prepare ourselves before the gig in the evening” Matt continues.
“Listen guys, I was serious when I said that I will do my best. Right now I don’t feel that tired, I still have some energy left. So I will continue practicing. You can go and rest for a bit no worries. Once I’m done I will head to bed as well” Arin says as he picks up his drumsticks and points to the couch.
“If you say so. But please Arin, don’t drain yourself. We need you tomorrow!” Zacky says. In one swift he gets off the couch and drags himself out of the living room. We all follow Zacky, leaving Arin behind. Before we even get out of the room, he starts drumming again. I close the door behind me as I take a quick look at Arin, but he is too focused on the music.

“What do you think Brian?” Johnny asks me.
“What do I think short shit?”
“About Arin. How do you think he’s doing? You haven’t said a word to him today. Don’t think I haven’t noticed that!” Damn, sometimes he can sound like a jackass father.
“Well, it’s no secret I don’t like the fact that he’s in our band for now. I don’t know why you’re surprised with my attitude. But he’s doing alright” I quickly say.
“Alright? He’s doing alright? Come on Gates, just admit that he’s doing great!” Zacky shouts at me from the top of the stairs.
“I said he’s doing alright and that’s the end of it. Good fucking night” I tell them, as I throw myself on the bed, making myself comfortable.
It’s true, he’s doing more than alright. He’s being phenomenon! But I’m still finding it hard to admit it. Maybe after tomorrow’s show I will. Until then, they have to be satisfied with ‘alright’.

I wake up in the middle of the night. Still tired I look for my phone. I realise that it is only 4am. I sigh as I adjust myself in bed again. But I find myself with bloodshot eyes wide open, listening to loud noises coming from downstairs. I stay put, when I suddenly remember that Arin had to continue rehearsing through the night. Damn, he hasn’t stopped?!
I can’t take it anymore.

I storm out of the room and get downstairs. I wait for a while and lean by the wall, watching Arin all sweaty, drumming to the song ‘Seize the Day’.
“FUCK!” he yells as he misses out one beat, throwing one of his drumstick to the wall.
“You seriously aren’t going to start over again because you missed one beat, huh?” I ask him. He looks at me surprised, he didn’t notice me there.
“How long have you been there?” he asks me as he gets up to pick up his drumstick.
“Not long, don’t worry!”
“Sorry for waking you up Brian” he says, as he grabs a cloth and cleans his face from the sweat.
“Arin” I say, as he looks at me puzzled. “Did you go to rest for a bit?”
Quickly he looks away and sits back down on his stool and starts the beat for Seize the Day all over again. When I realise that he’s avoiding me, I move towards him and take away his drumsticks.
“What the fuck are you doing Brian? Seriously, I’m not in the mood for one of your games or speeches. So please save it for another time and just give me back my goddamn drumsticks!” he says in one breath, looking at me all pissed.
“I asked you a question first” I tell him, all calm.
“And it was…..” he stops, waiting for me to repeat the question another time. Damn, this kid sure knows how to get on my nerves.
“I asked you if you went to rest for a bit. You look exhausted!” I tell him.
“The answer to your question is no. Satisfied? Now, I need to continue so, good night” he says as he snatches the drumsticks from my hands.

Once he do so, I grab the drumsticks another time and throw them over the counter of the kitchen, hitting the cupboards.
“Dude!! Don’t make too much noise, the others are sleeping!” he says looking at the kitchen.
“Seriously?! That is the noise that is bothering you?! What about the drums that you have been playing all this time?! Oh yeah right, no-one can actually hears them. Soundproof rooms, whatever” I say sarcastically, making him look unimpressed.
“Just go to sleep Arin. You need to re-boost you energy. Go and rest, tomorrow we’ll continue”
“I can’t plus I’m not that tired!” he yells, as he gets up and grabs his bag, to get himself another pair of drumsticks.
“Why not?” I ask him.
“Because…..” he starts but he immediately stops, like he’s afraid of what is going to come out from his mouth.
“I’m waiting”
“Because…I’m fucking nervous. I know there will be a lot of people, most of them your fans obviously. But tomorrow is going to be different. They are going to see their favourite band with a new drummer. What if they do not like him, the way he looks? What if they do not like how he plays the songs? What if he fucks up the songs and the gig turns out to be a total failure? If you ask me, the drummer has a tad pressure on him because of this gig. So, my advice to him? He should work his ass off to try and make at least one person from the crowd proud. Yes, I would be proud if there would be just one person who stands up and proudly says ‘wow, I like the new drummer! He’s awesome!’”, Arin replies, getting everything off of his chest.

I wasn’t expecting such speech from Arin, and leaves me with my jaw open while he sits back down to start and play the songs again. This is too much, I almost feel sorry for him, and that doesn’t happen often.
“Arin”, I start but he is still staring at the drums.
“Arin”, I start over again, this time he acknowledges me and looks straight at me.
“I know we didn’t start on a good note and everything. But what I’m about to tell you is the truth and I want you to think about it. Today I was seriously impressed on your skills and on how determined you are. You showed us that you truly want to be part of this band and to have a successful gig tomorrow. If you ask me, your playing is quite good. There is room for improvement obviously, but kid, believe me when I tell you this. I’m proud of how much you have learnt in a couple of hours! If I were you I wouldn’t be so terrified of tomorrow. I’m sure the gig is going to be great, you’re going to play flawlessly and the fans are going to adore you!”
He seems moved by what I just said.
“Wow Brian, I was thinking that you’re going to make a fool out of me!” he says, sounding relieved.
“We still have a long way to go kid, honestly I’m still a bit on edge about the new-member and shit. Baby steps I guess…”
“I’m happy with that!” he chuckles.

“Now, just go to bed, rest and we’ll continue tomorrow morning!” I tell him again, as I take away his drumsticks and put them on the table.
He nods at my request and stand up.
“Fine. I’ll rest for a couple of hours”
“Finally! No more drumming! My head is still banging like the beat of ‘Unholy Confessions!” I say as I start to leave the room. “Good night kid”
I look back, only to see him already asleep on the couch.
He wasn’t tired he said. Not tired my ass.

Notes

Another update for you lovely readers! :) What do you think?! Make sure to leave some votes/comments or to subscribe <3

So, the rehearsals just started !! Did you expect such POV from Brian, or were you surprised?!