Beyond the Coal Fields

It's Saturday. My brother asked me to go to a concert with him after I got home from work yesterday, which I definitely said yes. Zeke, my brother, doesn't get very many days off; for he is a coal miner as well. It's nice when we actually get the chance to have fun together like we used to, before dad died and mom turned into an alcoholic, pill junkie. He and I are the only ones who work in our home, mom draws a check every month from dad's life insurance and her SSI, that Zeke and I don't even get a penny of. We deserve an evening to forget everything, to have fun. Also isn't very often a decent band comes to West Virginia, so I figured why the hell not.
"Can you go to Karen's for me before you leave?" my mom asks.
"Really mom?! Zeke just went for you yesterday to pick up your dope." I snap back.
"He only got me 4! You know I can do those in a day! Please. I'm starting to get sick."

Thus the reason he and I can't wait to get out of here. My mother can easily eat 15 Xanax a day, plus 4 or 5 pain pills and down a 5th of whiskey. She's killing herself. Zeke gives in easier than I do to her pity party. She's either going to overdose or get us locked up for running after her addiction.

"Mom, I'm not going to Karen's. You go, if you want them so badly. Zeke doesn't get off from work until 5, but you don't need to ask him either!"
"Why do you hate me so fuckin' much?!" my mother shouts.
"I don't hate you, mom! I hate watchin' you kill yourself with the alcohol and pharma!" I shout right back.
"Well, if you loved me, you'd know that I'm sick. A real daughter would take care of her mama when she's sick!" her words cut like a scalpel.
Tears begin to blur my vision, and eventually run down my face, "I'm surprised you'd know what real is, the way you stay so messed up all the time!" I attempt to yell but my voice cracks.
"Whatever Josie! See, we could've avoided all of this if you would've just went to Karen's!" she yells again.
"Yeah, sure Mom! Let's completely avoid your addiction problem by getting you more pills! Sounds legit!"
"I don't have an addiction! I'm depressed, they help me forget!" my mom retorts. "You're right! They help you forget to eat, they help you forget to bathe. They help you forget to put out your cigarette, how many times have you burnt yourself, Mom?! They've damn sure made you forget that your child could be locked up while carrying them! But for some reason, I'm a shitty daughter for not getting them for you! I'm NOT your drug mule! You go!" I yell back.
"You know if something like that happens, I'll get you out!"
"Just forget everything else I said, Mom. It doesn't matter because, you'll get me out. That makes everything SO MUCH better!" I sarcastically shout.
"Yes, baby I will. So, you'll go?" she asks, apparently not catching my sarcasm.
I roll my eyes and grab my keys; slamming the door as I walk out. I'll be damned if I go to Karen's for her. What would my dad do? He probably would've already signed her up for a Catholic detoxification or divorced her. He'd make her choose; drugs or us. Of course, I'm not my father nor will I ever be half the human he was. I shove the keys into my ignition and go, not sure where but somewhere other than here.

As I'm driving down the road to an unknown destination, I receive a text from Zeke. I pull over at Bo's Gas N Gulp. I decide to go ahead and fill up my Jeep.

Zeke: I'll meet u at the concert. Mantrip broke down, gotta wait 4 repairman. Should be out by 6:30.
Great, now my brother is stuck underground. The concert starts at 7:00.
Josie: Are you OK?
Zeke: Yes. Foreman found the problem, electric wire was cut in 2 by a buggy. They shut the power off 2 it. Waiting on master electrician.
Josie: Glad y'all are safe. You'll have to hurry home and get a shower, regardless you'll be late.
Zeke: Yeah me 2. I'll be there around 7:30, u ain't gotta wait on me. Got my ticket, I know where u will b.
I walk inside to prepay for my gas, also purchasing a pack of Marlboro Red's and a RedBull. I walk back out to my Jeep, still texting Zeke.
Josie: OK. I'm at Bo's getting gas. Had to get away from home.
Zeke: :( I take it that she is out already? SMH. C u when I can, I'll shower n the bath house, got clothes with me. Not going home either. Keep ur head up and smile.
Josie: Yep, all gone. Be safe, see you there. Love ya.
Zeke: Luv u 2.

My brother has always had my back and knows what I'm thinking before I say it. Especially when it comes to our mother. I pump my gas and go back home, so I can get ready. When I walk in, I see my mother passed out in her recliner. She must've found something to escape. I shake my head and walk by her, making my way upstairs to my room.

I curl long blonde hair and apply my makeup; eye shadow a little darker than normal, using silver, grey, and charcoal grey; creating a smokey eye. I check myself out one last time for flaws before I brush my teeth and choose an outfit. My wardrobe is full of mostly nice work-related clothes but I dig out a GNR crop top and ripped skinny jeans that I've had since highschool. To my surprise, they still fit! I slip my feet into my black Converse and study my reflection in the mirror. It's weird seeing my flat stomach and curves exposed, but apparently it's in.

The arena in Charleston is packed, I could barely find a place to park my big Jeep. Suddenly, an arm wraps around my shoulder as I walk toward the entrance. I ball my fist and draw back, only to meet Donovan's regretful eyes. "Easy killer!" he throws his hands up and laughs.
"I'm glad it's just you!" I drop my fist and hug him.
"Do you know who that was yesterday?! That was M fucking Shadows of Avenged Sevenfold! I tuned Syn and Zacky's guitars, dude!" Donovan freaked out.
"Matt?" I question.
"Yes! He's the singer for A7X, he's Shadows!"
"Wow! He did say he had a show today, now that I think of it. Holy shit!" I boast. We begin to walk toward the entrance of the arena.
"So, you were starstruck, huh? That's what was wrong with ya." I tease Donovan. He laughs, "Yeah, you could say that. They're like idols to me, I told Matt that. So, he gave me this ticket!"
"Sweet! My brother ordered ours last night and printed them off. But he said he got us as close as he could."
"Hell yeah. C'mon, line's moving." Donovan pulls me by my arm.

Donovan and I was in the process of finding our seats, finally. His was C15, he was on the left side of auditorium by the stage. Mine and Zeke's F10 and F11, we could spit on the stage we were so close. I look around, trying to see if I could depict my brother out of the growing crowd; no sign of him yet. I pull my phone from my back pocket and shoot Zeke a text.
Josie: Hey, are you here yet?
Zeke: Just got here, in line.
Josie: Thank goodness, I was beginning to get worried :)
Zeke: I'm glad 2 b out... We got good seats?
Josie: Bub, we're like 2 feet from the stage!!
Zeke: HELL YEAH! Line is moving won't b long.
Josie: OK. Grab us a beer on your way ;) but better hurry!

The lights began to dim; eventually the stage was partially lit with dark red and purple, plus some fog, which presented a silhouette of a person with spikey hair. This man was only 15 feet from where I was standing. No one was cheering, was I the only person who saw him? All of a sudden a guitar began to play slowly, everyone began going wild and screaming "Gates!!" , but I just stared in awe, listening to this person play his guitar so confidently and without hesitation. He began to pick up the pace, his fingers moving so fast, it was tough for me to follow them with my eyes. My brother suddenly appears and hands me beer.
"That's Synyster Gates!" he yells after taking a gulp of his beverage.
I nod my head and smile, returning my attention back to Synyster Gates, whom still hasn't let up. A bright beam of light then reveals another man, whom begins to play guitar as well; sounding even better as a duo.
"That guy is Zacky Vengeance!" he points to the rhythm guitarist.
I take a sip of my beer and begin to get lost in the dueling riffs. Then a bass jumps in, this man standing behind Zacky Vengeance.
"Johnny Christ!" Zeke shouts the bass man's name.
Drums. They catch my attention quick, considering I was in the percussion in highschool. My smile, I'm sure, is taking up my whole face.
"That's The Rev!"
The musicians sound amazing once put together, all that's missing is a singer. That's all that was M.I.A at the moment, my stresses had subsided, worries gone. I was... care free. I looked over to the left and saw everyone dancing and head banging. To my right, Zeke was also head banging. It was nice to see him having a great time as well. Suddenly, a man runs out on stage and screams, which must be Matt.
"WHAT THE FUCK IS UP, MOUNTAINEERS?!"
I cheer.
The man then talks to crowd again, "I'll tell you what's up. On our way here, we hit a fucking 10 point buck, motherfucker ran right out in front of the goddamn bus. We were all like, what the fuck was that? Bump, bump. Damn, fuckin' 10 point layin' back here!"
Everyone laughs and cheer.
"We were just as surprised as the buck was. I tell you what, he'd make a hell of wall hanger." the man laughs, as does the crowd, "You might be a redneck if, you plow a deer with your tour bus and eat the tenderloins before you get to fuckin' Charleston."
I laugh at him mimicking Jeff Foxworthy. He's actually hilarious.
"That's M. Shadows." Zeke chuckles, he's still oblivious of my encounter with Matt yesterday.
M. Shadows turns and begins to walk our way, still talking, "The mountains are beautiful here! Where we're from, we don't have many mountains, we have fuckin' ant hills compared to what y'all have." His eyes stop on me, "So it's a blessing to admire the Appalachian Mountains." He smiles and turns away.
I secretly begin hyperventilating.
"Gates! What do you think of the mountains?" he asked the guitarist.
"They're big." he simply answers.
Everyone cracks up.
"Gates is jealous of the mountains." M. Shadows announces, causing everyone to laugh harder, "Let's rock the tops of these hills, y'all!"

The music began playing again. I recognize the song as Nightmare and sing. The audience was rocking out with the band. I could feel the beat through my whole body. As M. Shadows sang the lyrics, I felt my knees get weak. His voice is clearly amazing and made every molecule in my body seem electric. All I could do at the moment was move with the music and watch the talented singer perfect every note. I take a gulp of my beer and then another. M. Shadows starts to make his way back toward me again, between a break of singing.
"No one to call... Everybody to fear. You tragic fate is lookin' so clear. Ohhhhh, it's your fuckin' nightmare!" he looked me right in the eyes.
He smiles and another song begins to play. Beast and the Harlot. Matt let's out a vicious scream. The drummer bangs around crazily but with perfection. These guys put on one hell of a show. The pyrotechnics, lights, everything is overwhelming and exciting. I find myself banging along like the rest of the audience; this music can't be loud enough. Zeke is rocking out as well, his last sip or two of beer raised up in the air. I chug the rest of mine. Synyster Gates comes to the end of the stage and begins to show off for the crowd, but right in front of me. You could tell he was in it, constantly smiling and eyeing people for their reactions.

"Oww!!" I cheer and throw my arms up, still dancing.
The guitarist grins and bends down on his heels, continuing to shred. His attention focused on me, but his fingers never doubted which note to hit next. This really excites me.
"Hell yeah!!" I hoot again and smile.
Synyster Gates stands back up and winks. He proceeds toward his rhythm guitarist and smiles big.
"Hey! You want another beer?!" Zeke yells.
"Please!" I hand him a $20, "Grab you one too!" He takes the money and chases the woman down who is walking around serving alcohol in our section; like they do football games.
The song comes to an end and Matt begins to speak again.
"Ya know, we meet all kinds of kick ass fans on the road but it isn't very often we get the opportunity to run into the same person twice." he glares at me.
I feel my cheeks heat up.
"This is our first time to the mountain state, so we don't know anyone here. But, I recognize one face in this crowd so far. Once we got settled in the night before last, the next fuckin' morning I got up to try to find somewhere to do rehearsal before the show. I find this place on the fuckin' outskirts of Charleston, right? I walk in and go up an elevator, when the fuckin' doors open, I see this girl right here-" he points at me.
My face, I'm sure, instantly turns red.
"Her boss left her there all alone, he even had fuckin' studio appointments that day! He didn't say shit to her, just left. Anyways, this girl right here scheduled us in THAT day without hesitation. I witnessed this lady get verbally attacked by a client, who was there to see herb boss but, she remained calm and collective; me, not so much. Let's just say the lady who talked to her in such way fuckin' apologized."
The crowd cheered for me.
"Let's make Josie feel appreciated. C'mon up!" he walks toward me some more and stretches out his hand.
I grab it and lift myself up on stage, in the spotlight, in front of everyone. They cheer and clap, not for the band but for me. Even the guys applauded.
"So, Maverick Kiel never made it back yesterday." Matt asks.
"I didn't see him." I reply into the microphone.
The crowd booed.
"I got to meet Maverick this morning. I asked him why he left you, have you received a call from him?"
"Nope." I giggle.
"Well, I told him that you should be promoted to manager. Guess what he said to me?"
"Hard to tell."
Matt continues, "He told me that he'd call you and give you a warning about giving back a refund to the rude woman. He also said because you DID that, he wouldn't consider you as a manager in the first place. That's what this motherfucker tells me!"
I drop my head. Now, I'm publicly humiliated even though the crowd boo's. "Josie, don't get disappointed because I told your boss a thing or two." Matt chuckles.
I look back up at him and smile, the audience cheers.
"I told him you were a very respectful and intelligent girl and can handle shit without him!" Matt laughs again, "the second thing I told him was I'd let all of Charleston know not to do business with his crook ass. And the very last fuckin' thing I said to him was, I'd offer his secretary a position with us." he gleams at me.
My eyes go straight to my brother who is proudly announcing that I'm his sister. "What do you say?" Matt pulls my attention back to him.
"Holy shit. What?! Wait." I try to put two and two together in my blurry head.
"I want you to work for us instead of the childish motherfucker you work for now." Matt repeats himself.
"DO IT!!!" Zeke yells.
"Yes sir!" I eagerly accept his opportunity in front of a thousand people.
"Oh, hold on," Matt continues, "who's this guy with you?"
"That's my brother, Zeke." I point the man out who is frantically shouting and flailing his arms.
"Where's your guitar guy? Did he come?" Matt asks and scans the crowd.
"He's right there." I point as Donovan jumps up and down.
"My man, Donovan! Guitars sound great tonight. I know of a band who needs a tech at the moment, keep your phone close because you're too good to be working for that asshole too!" Matt motions him up.
Donovan and I stand in the middle of the stage with Avenged Sevenfold, with new jobs and opportunities.
"Zeke, c'mon up here man! You're going backstage with them."

My brother jumps up on stage and shakes Matt's hand, apparently thanking him. Zeke then runs towards me and takes me by the arm; the crowd cheers us on until we get out of sight. Matt and the guys begin to play again.

My head is swooning from all of today's events; then reality hits me, hard. I'll be living life on the road and in hotel rooms. The only roads I'm used to are my roads, my beautiful, twisted West Virginia back roads. My roots are here, my home is here, Zeke, my mother, and daddy. Everyone and everything that is important to me will be left behind, here, in this dying coal-dependant state. Where men who wear fluorescent colored stripes are town heros. I've only been out of this state a hand full of times, mostly to Virginia Beach; D.C once and to the Kentucky Derby. My mountain mama always called for me to come home, back to my country roads, West Virginia. But then, I remembered I always dreamt of this opportunity, to travel and see, to get the hell out of here. Daddy always told me to be careful what I wished for, because they just might come true.

Notes

Critiques and such are always very appreciated, tell me what you think!
I thank you for reading this second chapter <3

-sky