Hey, guys. This is an outtake from Infinite, and it's Simon's first gig. I think it makes sense, mostly, without reading the other fic. For those who don't know, Gwen is Simon's friend, and like a female Jace, and her friend Delia has sent a bomb warning to the pres to close down the street where the big fight is happening. She knows what time it'll happen, so that's why she texts her.
The song is "Sexy Silk" by Jessica Cornish, and I couldn't resist having her sing to him.
Hope you enjoy, and if you read, please review.
XxX
"I can't do this." Eric hyperventilates off stage as Simon tunes his base guitar. It was half an hour till they played their first gig. It was nearly show time.
For a band without a name, Simon thought, this isn't half bad.
"Eric," Simon rolled his eyes, "stop being a drama queen."
"Hey, I'm not a queen- just ask your mom."
Simon cocks an eyebrow in his direction and glances over his shoulder. "Seriously? That's the best you can come up with?"
"Considering that I'm struggling to keep my lunch form making an unexpected pit stop, I think it was okay."
"Whatever." the strings came to life under Simon's nimble fingers, and the atmosphere was growing electric. If he let himself think about it, Simon would have been racing out the door as fast as his legs would carry him.
Which, for a vampire, is very fast indeed.
"I seriously can't do it," Eric's words flowed through his mouth, stuttering and staccato like word vomit. Simon stopped tuning his guitar and put it down. He placed a hand on Eric's shoulder as he dry-retched to the side of stage.
"You can read poetry in public, but not this?" Simon tried to keep the inverted commas off the word "poetry".
"I don't know…I feel-ugh." Eric rushed to the bathroom, the door swinging with almost cartoon speed. Simon started towards the doors, but the sound of Eric heaving made him pause at the door.
Crap. We now have no lead singer.
"Everything okay back there?" Kurt called from the drum kit. Simon turned his hand flat and see-sawed it in the air. Kurt gave a comic drum-roll and Simon grinned. He always made the best of a bad situation. His mantra was to do what Monty python say: Always look on the bright side of life.
Accompanied by a fairly in tune rendition, coupled with whistling, it could be very convincing.
"Simon!" He wheeled around at the sound of his name and found Clary racing across the fairly crowded bar. His heart plummeted. What was she doing here? The fight was only three blocks over. What if she found out? What if she got hurt?
"What are you doing here?" he asked bluntly, earning him a withering glare.
"It's your first gig. I had to be here for moral support, and to get emotional blackmail."
"Huh?"
"You think I won't use your epic failure against you?" she grinned. "Think of it as an investment in my future."
"You spend way too much time with Jace." Simon shook his head, but pulled her into a hug. He would keep her out of this fight. He would keep her safe. If it was the last thing he would ever do.
Even if it meant death.
The true death.
"You nervous?" she asked.
"Me? Nah…I'm petrified."
"Nice." she laughed. "Use that to your advantage."
"How?"
"When the audience start heckling you, you have an excuse to leave."
"We're being paid, Clary."
"Really?" she seemed genuinely shocked. "You don't even have a name; how can you be paid?"
Simon shrugged. "Beats me. But Eric is kind of…incapacitated at the moment, so it might not go ahead after all."
"By the angel, that's the best news I've heard all day…possibly all year…possibly all my life." Jace sauntered over, draping an arm around Clary's shoulder and kissing her swiftly on the lips. The desire burned in her eyes, and Jace smirked as she elbowed him in the ribs.
"Be nice."
"Why? I'm never nice."
"Okay," Simon said clapping his hands together, and trying to hide his discomfort. "I'm going to go now, and, you know, scratch out my eyes, so you two are free to…I don't know, whatever the cool kids do these days."
"Hardy-har-har." Clary scoffed. "Good luck, Simon."
"Yeah, well, he'll need it." Jace smirked. Simon answered sincerely "yeah, we will." he stumbled off, wishing for a miracle, since praying wasn't really a possibility any more.
"Ten minutes to show time." The bar manager called, and Simon offered him a simpering smile.
"What are we going to do? What are we going to do? We don't even have a name!" The panic began to set in Simon's bones, buzzing around his skull like the incessant droning of killer bees.
"What about 'The Shadowhunters'?"
Simon's head snapped up and was met with Gwen's iridescent green eyes glinting mischievously.
"What?"
"It's simple, effective, kind of ironic, because of…well, you." she smirked. "Plus it has a 'The' in it. It's pure gold."
"The Shadowhunters…." Simon mused. Kurt overheard him and yelled, "Hell yes!" accompanied by a fanfare. Kurt grinned idiotically. "Dude, that's awesome. Why the hell didn't you think of that earlier?"
"I didn't think of it now. She did." Simon jerked his thumb towards Gwen, who flipped her hair and winked at blushing Kurt.
"Thanks," Kurt mumbled.
"Gwen," Simon said, pulling her into a hug, "I could kiss you."
"Benn there, done that, don't need a memo." Gwen laughed, tightening their hug before letting him go.
"Five minutes, guys." The bar manager called again.
"All right." Simon called, growing slightly frustrated. He never was good with deadlines.
"You ready?" Gwen asked.
"As I'll ever be."
"I didn't mean for this."
He fixed her with a sombre look. "I know."
Simon shook his head. If he could forget about the apocalypse for just this time, this gig, he may actually hang on to the last semblance of sanity that he happened to have.
"That's one problem sorted. Delia called the press."
"About three hours ago. Their lapping it up."
"Good….good. Now all we need is a singer."
Simon practiced his best puppy dog look, and Gwen shook her head. "No way, nah-ah."
"Why? Why not?"
"Well, for one, I have a voice only dogs could love."
"Oh."
"And for another…"
"I'll do it."
Simon jerked around and was struck speechless. Isabelle stood there, dressed head to toe in slinky black battle clothes, her hair in a pony tail, trailing down her back, and her whip coiled along her arm like the newest accessory to hit the market; that looked so good, everyone should have one.
And damn, did she look good.
"Thanks, but there's no need for flattery," she smirked, "I already said I'll do it."
Crap, did I saw that out loud?
"Can you sing?" he asked, trying to pick his jaw up from the floor.
"What do you think?"
"Ummm…"
"Simon," she rolled her eyes. "When are you going to realise that I am good at everything?"
"Except cooking." Jace threw in as he passed on his way to the bar, chancing his luck.
Isabelle slunk the whip of her arm, flicked it towards his ankle, wrapped it around and pulled; sending Jace sailing toward the floor with a triumphant ooof.
I love you. Simon thought as he laughed, suddenly startled by his own realisation.
"So where do you want me?" she asked.
"In his bed." Gwen murmured, so only Simon could hear and he crushed his sole on her instep.
"Onstage. Do you know any of our songs?"
"That would be a no." She rolled her midnight blue eyes.
"Okay, what do you know?"
"A few. Why don't I choose and you keep up with me."
"Iz, wait…"
"It's show time." The bar-manager called, racing towards the stage, where Isabelle was fixing her hair and getting ogled by every present male.
Alec and Magnus strolled in, arm in arm and waved at Isabelle, who winked back; sending one of the guys at the bar into a state of shock when he thought she was winking at him,
Weirdly, Simon felt an odd mix of amusement and jealousy.
Usually he felt one or the other.
Isabelle just brought out a different side of him.
"Welcome, folks, now let's get this party started. This is…"
He placed a hand over the mic and hissed "What's your name?"
"The Shadowhunters." Simon called, earning a grin from Isabelle. The Manager shrugged and said "The Shadowhunters."
There were a few polite claps and a whoop or two from Jace and Clary, and a delightful "Don't suck too hard" from Magnus.
"Isabelle, what if we don't know the songs?" Simon hissed.
"Oh, you know it," she smirked. "I took it off the most listened to list on your Ipod."
"Oh," Simon said.
"Sexy Silk on three." she called, and Simon couldn't help but grin. This was going to be interesting.
"One, Two, a one two three."
Boy I will be you're sexy silk.
Wrap me around, round, round, round.
I'll be your pussycat licking your milk right now, down, down, down.
She had the attention of every male in the room, and a sexy, husky singing voice that made Simon's chest tighten. She whipped her head around and smirked, throwing in a shimmy and a shake and sending the crowd wild.
Of course she knew how to work a room.
She'd been doing it for years.
Oh a kiss can last all night! (Mhmm)
You'll have to seduce me nibble and bite. (Awh Yeah!)
Simon couldn't be sure, but he was sure she had turned in his direction and winked. He felt a bit hot under the collar, which was ridiculous, since he was cold blooded.
But oh no, no no, woah woah, go slow, baby don't ohhhahahahah.
Woah Woah Woah Woah Woah boy you're gonna win!
Say ya ya ya ya you're under my skin.
I got buuutterflies within.
Ohhhhh! I think I like you..
"She definitely winked that time" eh thought, but continued to play.
Will you be my medicine man?
Put your hand on my chest feel the bump, bump, bump, bump.
Will you be my sugar rush?
Make me get high with just one touch.
Isabelle strolled across stage and trailed a hand against Simon's cheek, before returning to the song.
A kiss can last all night! (Mhmm)
You'll have to seduce me nibble and bite. (Awh Yeah!)
But oh no, no no, woah woah, go slow, baby don't woahhhohhhooooahhhhh!
Woah Woah Woah Woah Woah boy you're gonna win!
Say ya ya ya ya you're under my skin.
I got buuutterflies within.
Ohhhhh! I think I love you.
She turned to Simon, said it, then turned back to the audience, who were cheering their heads off and wolf-whistling to boot.
Now let's play a little game. (Woahhhh!)
Close your eyes and count to five. (One, Two, Three!)
Open your mouth for me sugar. (Yeah mhm come on!)
Just a little more, yeah, yeah that's right.
Wooaaahhhhhhh!
Yeah I can feel it baby can you?
Ohhhh, oahhhhhhhhhh.
Woah Woah Woah Woah Woah boy you're gonna win!
Say ya ya ya ya you're under my skin.
I got buuutterflies within.
She held the note, strolled back to Simon, wrapped an arm around his neck and pulled him close. He could feel her breath against his skin, hot and sweet and making his chest tighten like a vice.
Isabelle pressed her forehead against his, tilted her head, their lips centimetres apart, millimetres, almost nothing….
Ohhhhh! I think I love you.
Then she pulled back, whipped her hair, and blew an air kiss. Kurt finished with a final flourish on the drums and the crowd went wild. Simon was still trying to piece his thoughts together as he felt like his mind had melted into a puddle on the floor…
That was…
Wow.
The applause was deafening, cheers and applause, all for Isabelle. She grinned like a Cheshire cat and just lapped it up like a cat to milk. The bar manager rushed forward.
"Well, folks, wasn't that something," their was raucous agreement, which stang Simon's sensitive eardrums, but gave him a sense of pride. The manager continued. "However, we have been informed that the bar will have to be closed and to avoid the 72nd and 2nd area until further notified. Thank you for understanding. Goodnight."
The manager ran off, ushering patrons out the door with a worried look on his face. Simon hopped off stage, followed by Isabelle, who was pulled into a hug by Magnus for being "fabulous".
"Guess Delia's tips paid off." he said as Gwen strolled over and offered her congratulations.
"And I assume your floating on air." she grinned.
"Why?"
"That song was totally about you. Hello?" Simon couldn't meet her eyes, but felt pleasantly pleased with himself.
A putridly-pale Eric ambled over, grabbed Isabelle's hand and kissed it. She cocked an eyebrow, and grabbed her hand back swiftly.
"You saved our band," Eric said, eyeing her in a way that made Simon wish he could punch him, just once, and not hear constant bitching about it. "We are eternally grateful."
"Yeah, whatever." she said, and returned to her conversation with Magnus, and Simon had to stifle his laughter at Eric's heartbroken expression.
Eric pulled Simon aside and said "How come all the hot girls want you, when they could have this?"
Simon tried to keep his expression composed. "It's one of life's great mysteries, Eric."
"Speaking of," Gwen said, "Delia text. It's time."
"It's time?"
"It's time."
Now the real work was about to begin.
