chapter 10
Cody fell into his role as singer songwriter for Red Lawn with ease. He moved into the house and for the first time in his life felt like he was part of a family. Alex, Harper and Bobby shared their wealth of songs without lyrics with Cody. Cody loved matching his words to music and, unlike running track, this came easy. Cody pulled out his journal and drew on his own personal experiences to write lyrics. His words were emotional and deep, multi-dimensional feelings that were extremely relatable. Alex, Harper and Bobby couldn’t believe their luck. Cody was a godsend for the band. They realized that now there was potential for something to happen. They needed to get serious about practice. Their neighbors however did not agree. So in the interest of keeping the police away, the band rented out a storage unit to practice in. It was a great set up. No one cared about the noise and they could leave their instruments in the locked air-conditioned space.
“Hello! Hello! Everyone! Are you guys here!” Harper ran yelling through the house.
“What’s up?” Alex and Cody appeared in the kitchen.
“Where’s Bobby?”
Alex took a bite of an apple. “Probably sleeping. What’s going on?”
“Let me get him.” Harper ran into Bobby’s room and shook him awake. “Dude get up.”
Bobby got out of bed and joined the guys in the kitchen.
“All right, spill it,” Cody said.
“I got us a gig.”
“What!” they all screamed. “Are you kidding? Where?”
“We’re playing Saturday night at Chloe’s Backroom.”
“How?” Alex asked incredulously.
“I took a tape from our last session to the owner today. He booked us to play Saturday...at one a.m., but we’re on the bill.”
Chloe’s Backroom was the hottest club in their college town. This was huge.
“We gotta practice,” Cody said, suddenly aware of the time pressure.
“Let’s go.”
Red Lawn rushed to their storage space and began practice. Cody grabbed the microphone and sang his heart out. He closed his eyes and let the emotion flow. Behind him the band played.
“Hey! Hey!” The music stopped. The voice belonged to a female. Cody squinted up. He first saw her shadow on the ground. His eyes followed the silhouette up to meet the gaze of a beautiful girl. Ash blonde hair, hazel eyes and a slight frame.
“Can I help you?” Cody said, hoping his nervousness didn’t show.
“Hey, I’m Laura.” She extended her hand.
“I’m Cody.” He met her grasp with his hand. Her skin was soft.
“Ahem.” Alex cleared his throat.
“Oh, this is Alex, Harper and Bobby.” He motioned behind him.
“Nice to meet you. I just transferred here. My apartment’s not ready so I’m storing my stuff next door. I heard you guys playing. You sound awesome.” She tipped her head so her hair caught the sun. It looked like spun gold.
“Thanks.” Cody smiled and leaned on the mic stand. “We’re a band, Red Lawn. We’re playing this Saturday night at Chloe’s Backroom, downtown. You should come check us out.”
“Yeah, maybe I will.”
“We’re not going on till one in the morning...just so you know.”
“Thanks I’ll try to make it. Like I said, you sound awesome. Good luck.” Laura turned and walked away. Cody couldn’t take his eyes off of her. He turned to his friends when she was out of earshot and grasped his heart. “I think I’m in love.”
Harper rolled his eyes. “Gimme a break man, you just talked to her for what, two seconds?”
“She was hot,” Alex said jealously. Why did Cody have claim to her?
Bobby interrupted their hormones. “Look, guys, she’s a girl. If we can make it as a band we’ll get lots of girls. We got a gig. Let’s practice.” Bobby’s words put them back on track. They began playing again.
Cody couldn’t wait until Saturday. He couldn’t wait to see Laura. Somehow the gig was secondary. He’d dated a lot in college. He was handsome with a good build, it was easy to meet girls, but no one interested him like Laura did in those two seconds of hello. He hoped she showed up.
Saturday came quickly, but time moved slowly. It was May in Gainesville and their air conditioner was unreliable. Hot and sticky were the high and low of the day. Summer had settled early into the state’s armpit. Gainesville was in North Central Florida, midway between both coasts. There was no breeze, just an overpowering blanket of wet humidity. The guys tried to sleep during the afternoon so they’d be wide awake for their gig, but they were too excited. Restlessness found the eager four wandering their small house. Restlessness and discomfort.
“I think I need another shower,” Harper said peeling his wet shirt from his skin.
“You always need another shower,” Bobby replied, shirtless.
“What are we now...seven hours to our gig? I can’t wait.” Harper was growing impatient.
“Chill out, man.” Alex reached into the refrigerator for a beer. He tossed one to Harper, Bobby and Cody.
“No thanks.” Cody tossed his back to Alex. His father gave him a strong distaste for alcohol. He had no interest in it.
Alex shrugged. “Suit yourself.”
The day dragged on. Finally it was nine. The guys decided it was time to get ready. Wardrobe selection was an important process. Each chose jeans to wear – Alex picked a white baseball style shirt with blue sleeves, Harper picked his old gym shirt from high school, Bobby wore a plain black t-shirt and Cody picked a crisp white button down shirt. He purposely left the top two buttons undone to show off his muscular chest. All members of the band took hours to choose their outfits hoping to come off as nonchalant ‘we don’t care about fashion’ as possible.
Even with careless dressing, Cody looked striking. He had cut his light brown hair so the front stood up on end, going in no particular direction. His white shirt accentuated his light blue eyes and early summer tan. His lean muscular body poured into his dark blue jeans.
He looked like a rock star.
The other guys whistled when they saw him.
“I thought we didn’t care about looks,” Alex said tersely.
“We don’t.” Cody twirled. “Why, Alex...do I look too dressy?” he teased.
Alex backed off. “No you’re fine.”
“Good,” Cody said, “Now, let’s get this show on the road.”
The boys drove to Chloe’s Backyard in downtown Gainesville. They arrived at eleven, wanting to get a feel for the crowd before they hit the stage for their debut appearance.
Chloe’s was an institution. In a town where clubs changed hands as often as students changed semesters, Chloe’s had been there for years. The club had wood floors and wood ceilings. It was dark inside and cozy, a favorite among students. Tonight the place was packed. Two weeks before the end of the semester and everyone was out for the last weekend before it was time to buckle down for finals.
The guys looked around, very pleased. The one good thing about the hot weather was the clothing it encouraged. Scantily clad college girls lined the bar and filled the room. Another local band, Kate’s Last Dance, was playing. They were a town favorite. People sang along to their songs, crowding the stage, swaying to the beat.
“Well, at least we have a good warm up,” Alex observed.
“Yeah, we just gotta keep their interest,” Cody said looking for Laura. He didn’t see her.
The band finished up on stage. It was time for Red Lawn to make their debut. Andy Carr, the owner of Chloe’s, took the stage. He was well known in town and received loud applause as he took the microphone.
“Hey Gainesville!”
The crowd cheered.
“I have a special treat for you tonight. A new band in town that I think you’ll like.”
More cheers.
“They call themselves Red Lawn. Now, give them a hand...maybe you’ll be able to say you saw them here first! Here’s Red Lawn!”
The crowd erupted as the guys took the stage. Andy walked past them. “They’re yours to lose,” he said.
Alex played a riff on his guitar. Harper gently tapped the drums. The crowd grew silent.
“Five, six...five, six, seven, eight!”
They started the set with a new song they had just put together, The Winner. It was upbeat with a catchy rhythm. The crowd responded. Cody worked the microphone like he’d been singing all his life. The passion was evident in his voice and the crowd loved him for it. Cody looked out into the sea of people, scanning for Laura. No sign of her, but he did see people responding to the music. It was a great feeling. They finished the song and went into the next. They had found their groove.
It was then that Cody looked up and saw Laura. She was leaning up against a wood post in the back chatting with some other girls. Her long blonde hair fell softly around her face. She looked amazing.
The song ended. Cody took a moment to address the crowd. “How’s everybody doing tonight?”
The crowd yelled their approval.
“We’re Red Lawn and we’re glad you are staying up late with us!” Cody paused and looked directly at Laura, “Our next song is called All You Were and I hope you like it.”
He saw Laura smile.
The band broke into his powerful song about love and loss. Cody crooned, “And all you were is all I was.” He was singing for Laura. He only knew her name, but he also knew he wanted to know more. He belted out the lyrics. The crowd applauded and cheered like crazy at the end of their song, the end of their set.
“Thank you, goodnight!”
Red Lawn left the stage in ecstasy. “Did you hear the crowd?”
“They loved us!”
The applause was like a drug, they all wanted more.
Cody wanted to get out to see Laura. “I’ll be back.”
“Cody’s in love,” Alex chided.
“Can it.”
“Don’t stay out too late, Cody, we’re gonna go home soon,” Alex said.
“Maybe, you’re going home soon,” Harper chimed in, “but as far as I can see there’s a lot of single women out there who want to meet me. I’m not going anywhere so fast.”
“Yeah, me neither,” Bobby agreed and followed Harper and Cody to the bar.
Alex shrugged his shoulders, if he couldn’t beat them, he’d join them.
Cody made his way to the back of the bar, to Laura.
“Hey,” he said, sidling up to her, “I’m so glad you came.”
“What?” she spoke loudly trying to hear him over the loud crowd.
“I said I’m glad you came tonight.”
She smiled and melted his heart. “Me too.”
“Are you here alone?” he asked, hoping she was single.
“No, I came with my girlfriends. That’s Holly,” she said pointing to a petite brunette who was in deep conversation with a fraternity guy. “And that’s Marci over at the bar.” She waved to her friend who was desperately trying to get the attention of the bartender. Marci waved back then resumed her pursuit. “You guys sounded great...again.”
“Thanks for that. It means a lot to me.”
“Well I heard you guys practice. I knew it’d be a good show.” She smiled.
Cody took a chance. “I kinda hoped you came for more than that.” He held his breath.
She looked him directly in the eyes. “I did.”
He rubbed his hand down her shoulder. “Can I get your number? Maybe we could go out sometime.”
“I’d like that.” Her eyes glanced around, “Do you have paper?”
Cody thought quickly and plucked a napkin from the bar. Laura pulled a pen from her small purse and wrote down her name and number.
“Laura.” Marci came up beside her. She had tired of trying to get the bartender’s attention. “I’m ready to go, it’s late, are you coming?” Marci eyed Cody. He was hot. Lucky little Laura, next time she could get the drinks.
“Yeah.” Laura looked disappointedly at Cody. “I have to go...she’s my ride.”
“I’ll call you, we’ll make plans.” He brushed her arm again.
“Great,” she said as Marci pulled her away.
Cody looked at the napkin and memorized the number, afraid he might do something stupid like lose it or wash it in his jeans. He found the other guys. They were all surrounded by women. It wasn’t long before Cody was accosted too.
“Hey you sounded awesome.”
“Loved your songs.”
They oozed, I want you, but Cody wasn’t into them. None of them sparked his attention like Laura.
That night he lay awake, too excited to sleep. He couldn’t wait until the next day to call Laura.
He didn’t wait long. At noon he called and fortunately she answered. They made a date for that night.
Cody took more time preparing for his date with Laura than he did for his performance the night before. He wore tan Dockers and an ice blue shirt. He borrowed Alex’s car and picked her up at exactly seven. He was determined to do everything right.
Laura opened the door wearing a denim skirt and a close fitting pink top. She looked gorgeous.
Cody took her to dinner at a cozy Italian restaurant. It was too expensive for him, but he didn’t care, it was warm and romantic and he only had one chance to make a good impression.
“So tell me about your family,” Laura asked, breaking a breadstick in half. He marveled at how she asked so casually, not knowing the depth and complexity of the answer.
“I’d rather hear about yours,” Cody responded, artfully turning the conversation.
“Well, I have a younger sister, Morgan, she’s a sophomore in high school. And my parents are, you know, your basic parents. I have an okay relationship with them, the usual ups and downs.”
Cody feigned knowledge of normal. “That’s cool. So, you lived your whole life in Jacksonville?”
“Yeah, pretty boring, huh?”
“Sometimes boring is good.”
“I guess. What about you Cody?”
“Oh we lived all over, I was in Waldo for a time,” he lied hoping she had never been.
“Oh, how funny,” she said, “right on the way to me in Jacksonville. See we were so close and didn’t even know it.”
“How about that.”
“So I feel stupid asking this, ‘cause everyone does,” she began. Cody held his breath. “What’s your major?”
Cody was relieved. They talked for hours over dinner, drawing angry glares from the waiter who wanted them to leave so he could get more customers. They didn’t care though, they were too wrapped up in each other.
Cody drove Laura home nervously. This girl was too good for him. She’d find out who he really was, where he really came from, and it would all be over.
“I’m sorry to see this night end,” he said en route.
“I know. I had a great time.” She touched his hand as he maneuvered the stick shift. They shared a knowing smile.
“Do you want to do it again this Friday night?” he asked.
“I’d love to.”
He parked the car at her apartment complex and walked her to the door. A slight breeze blew past them. She shivered. He immediately put his arms around her. Their lips met as if on cue. The kiss was warm and slow. He gently opened his mouth feeling her soft tongue on his.
“Oh,” she breathed.
He pulled back, not wanting to do the wrong thing. “I’ll see you Friday?”
“Friday,” she confirmed and turned into her apartment.
They both floated from each other.
Cody drove home with a rush of happiness.
He was in love.