I looked up from my half-caf mocha latte with extra cream and cinnamon. "I don't need anybody in my life right now!" I screamed at my best friend, Simon, for the fourth time. We were on our weekly coffee shop trip, and he would not stop pestering me about finding a girlfriend.

"And that's why you're always so depressed? I'm telling you, a girlfriend is just what you need."

I was so angry at him. I know I had been down in the dumps, but I knew things would look up soon. I had been honing my drumming skills and had some band auditions lined up.

"All I need right now is my music," I replied.

"Dude, you're the worst drummer ever. Give it up. Besides, you're a way better singer."

As much as I refused to believe it, he was kind of right, but I had always been so embarrassed about my voice.

"Well, I gotta go, Patrick. Have fun living a life of loneliness"

"Thanks, Simon," I said sarcastically.

I got up from my cushioned chair. It breathed a sigh of relief. I should lay off the lucky charms, I thought.

I exited the coffee shop and went to my first band audition of the day.

When I got there, the fog was beginning to lift and the sun was peeking out from behind the clouds. I stepped inside the corner music store and made my way to the back room.

My audition time was 9:40, so I waited patiently outside the room until that time shone on the clock. When it was time, I burst through the door.

The room was large and empty. There was a drum set in the center, with two guitars, a bass, and a microphone surrounding it. All the cords twisted their way to a single, massive amp. There was also a single table near the front. A man with curly brown hair was sitting at the table fumbling through papers. A mysterious man in a purple hoodie with the hood up was seated in a tall chair facing the back wall.

I thought all this was kind of odd, but I had been to weirder auditions.

The man with the curly brown hair introduced himself. "Hey, I'm Joe. Welcome to auditions for our band. Are you here to sing or play the drums?"

"Drums," I replied. "I'm Patrick Stump," I added.

"Well, Patrick, step over to the drum set and show us what you've got."
I walked over to the drum set and sat on the stool. I picked up the sticks from the snare and started playing a simple rhythm. I threw in some tricks and solos, and in no time, I was jamming.

I got so absorbed in my drumming that I didn't notice how much time had passes until Joe started yelling at the top of his lungs. "Alright! Alright! You've got the job! You can stop now!"

I stopped my voracious drumming, covered in sweat.

"Thanks!"

"Here's our practice schedule," Joe said as he shoved a pink piece of paper in my face with a calendar printed on it.

I was about to leave, but then I wondered again about that man with his hood up facing the wall.

"Um…who is that?" I asked as I pointed toward the hooded stranger.

"Oh, that's Pete. He's our bass player. I really don't know why he's just sitting there like that. I think maybe he's tired. Pete! Say hi to our new drummer!"

Pete got from his chair and turned around. He took his hood down with one hand while holding out the other to shake my hand.

When I saw him, I was shocked. He was the most beautiful person I've ever seen. My eyes scanned him from the top down. I saw his perfectly styled, lustrous, shiny, black hair that topped his gorgeous brown eyes, surrounded in perfectly smudged black eyeliner. My eyes traveled downward to reveal his perfectly angled face and soft lips. Then I looked down at his body. He was wearing a tight purple hoodie that showed off how lean he was, and his skinny jeans were exceptionally tight, showing off his perfect legs.

After I had examined Pete from top to bottom, I reached out and took his hand to shake it. When our hands met, there was a shock sent through both of us. I was shocked at how perfect he was. I wondered where he had been all my life.

When he had gone back to his chair facing the wall, I just stood where I was. I was a little shocked with myself. I had seen true beauty in him, but…he was a guy! What was I thinking? I'm not even gay!

Or am I…

Either way, I liked him as a person, regardless of whether he was a girl or a boy. I just wondered what he liked…

On the first day of band practice, I was so excited to see Pete. I showed up right on time with my favorite pair of drumsticks. I sat down at the drums and noticed that only Joe was there.

Although I didn't want to seem eager, I decided to ask. "Where's Pete?"

"He's always late. He's probably sleeping. He hardly functions before noon. And that's even after his third Monster."

I was a little disappointed that he wasn't there at first, but I told myself that he would show up eventually.

Since I had accepted defeat, I decided to just sit down at the drums. Joe passes me a piece of hand-written sheet music titled, "Switchblades & Infidelity." I started playing the beginning drum rolls and beats, and Joe joined in on the lead guitar.

After a while, I noticed there were words on the page.

"Do we have a singer yet?" I asked Joe.

"No, we're still auditioning, but we haven't found what we're looking for yet. Can you sing?"

"Um…" I started. I still wasn't sure about my voice. "I guess."

"Well, why don't you sing something for me? Since Pete isn't here, I'll make the executive decisions."

"Okay…but what do you want me to sing?"
"Why don't you sing the song we're working on? Switchblades & Infidelity. I have the vocal sheet music right here."

Joe gave me the music and started playing the beginning guitar rifts. I took a deep, nervous breath and started singing.

"Walking out on the show is walking out on you. And walking out on you, still the best thing that I ever did. Last night I saw my world explode. Last night I saw my world explode. Last night I saw my world explode. Last night I saw my world explode."

I trailed off, unsure of what thought of my voice.

"Oh my god! That was amazing! Dude, forget the drums. We can find any old drummer. You are our new singer!"

"What?" I said. I was shocked. Nobody has ever told me I was a good singer before. They told me that my voice was weird and kind of girly, even though it's technically classified as a tenor.

"Put down those drumsticks and pick up the mic. 1, 2, 3, 4!"

Joe started the guitar up again from the beginning and motioned me toward the microphone stand. I picked up the microphone and started from the beginning.

We were about halfway through the song when the door opened. Through the door burst none other than Pete. I immediately choked up from a combination of excitement, embarrassment, and shock.

"Was that you?" he asked excitedly.

"Um...yeah." I said with my head down, embarrassed. But on the other hand, he was talking to me!

"Wow! You're exactly what we've been looking for! You're in the band!" He patted me on the shoulder. I almost fainted.

"Th-th-thanks a t-ton," I said, stammering. I was making it too obvious that I was completely infatuated. Once he saw that I was freaking out from his very presence, a little smirk formed on the corner of his mouth.