Alright people, here's chapter 2.
Now, for everyone who guessed the next song was Honky Tonk Badonkadonk, you were right! Albeit a slightly edited version to make this rating...
That song was the inspiration for the base of this story. Even though it's already taking a whole different turn.
And, for those of you who guessed about the girl, you'll definitely see soon enough...
"Alright you two," Greg began as they walked into the club for the one-thirty gig, "I want you to set up the instruments. I have a little business to set up for the show." Before Phineas or Ferb could reply, he walked off.
With a shrug, the boys headed over to the stage.
"So," Phineas began, "you think he's off talking to that girl again?"
Ferb snorted. "Of course he is, Phin. He's a sucker for a pretty face, you know that."
Phineas chuckled. "Yeah, but he usually learns his lesson the first time he strikes out. This time he's going back for more."
Ferb just shrugged.
The instruments were finished mere moments before Greg came up to the stage.
"All set?" he asked.
When the Ferb gave him an affirmative, he turned to the crowded interior. "Hello again! Ya'll remember us?"
The large cheer indicated that many of the patrons inside had been there the day before.
"Alright! Well, PFT has another tune for you today. Plus, we have a lovely little lady out there who volunteered to give you a sideshow while we played."
Even as a numerous amount of catcalls and whistles came from the crowd, Phineas and Ferb glanced at each other. Ferb gave Phineas a look, saying, Did you have any clue about this? Phineas shook his head.
Greg looked behind him at the two. "Alright guys, let's do this!"
Greg: Turn it up some.
Ferb: Alright boys, this is her favorite song, you know that right?
So if we play it good and loud, she might get up and dance again.
After Ferb said this, a woman about half-way towards the back set down a glass and started walking towards the stage.
Ferb: Oh, she put her beer down.
Here she comes, here she comes!
Left,
Left,
Left, right, left.
The woman reached the stage, allowing the men to see her clearly. She was slightly taller than Phineas was, putting her about five-eleven. She had sparkling blue eyes, shimmering black hair that ran down to her waist, and had a smirk on her face. She wore a pink and white cowboy shirt, slightly baring her midriff, and a pair of white cowboy boots that covered the bottom of her tight, pink jeans.
Once on the stage, she winked at Greg.
Phineas: Whoo.
Hustlers shootin' eight ball,
Throwin' darts at the wall,
Feeling dang near ten feet tall.
Here she comes, oh help us all!
One of the men in the audience let out a loud whistle, only to get shoved out of his seat by the woman sitting next to him.
Phineas: Ol' T.W.'s girlfriend done slapped him outta his chair.
Poor ol' boy, it ain't his fault,
It's so hard not to stare!
The woman on the stage began to swing her hips in time to the music, pulling the eyes of the men in the crowd. Phineas felt something nag him, but he ignored it as he kept playing.
Greg, Ferb, and Phineas: At that honky tonk badonkadonk!
Keepin' perfect rhythm,
Make you wanna swing along!
Got it goin' on like Donkey Kong!
The crowd began to get up and dance along with the woman.
Greg: And whoo-whee, shut my mouth, slap your grandma!
There oughtta be a law, get the sheriff on the phone!
Oh, have mercy, how'd she even get them britches on
Greg, Ferb, and Phineas: That honky tonk badonkadonk?
Phineas: Aww, son.
Ferb: Now honey, you can't blame her
For what her mama gave her.
It ain't right to hate her,
For workin' that
At that moment, the woman struck a pose and casually blew a kiss into the crowd.
Greg, Ferb, and Phineas: Money-maker.
Ferb: Band shuts down at two,
But we're hangin' out 'til three!
We hate to see her go, but love to watch her leave,
Ferb, Greg, and Phineas: With that honky tonk badonkadonk!
Keepin' perfect rhythm,
Make you wanna swing along!
Got it goin' on like Donkey Kong!
Greg: And whoo-whee, shut my mouth, slap your grandma!
There oughtta be a law, get the sheriff on the phone!
Oh, have mercy, how'd she even get them britches on
Greg, Ferb, and Phineas: With that honky tonk badonkadonk?
Ferb: Oh, that's what I'm talkin' 'bout right there, honey.
Phineas felt that nagging again. This time, he looked at the woman closely. Something about her seemed familiar.
Greg laughed along with the song, even as the woman turned in a circle, ending with her facing the three guys. She was looking over her shoulder as she did, so Phineas couldn't see her face.
Greg: We don't care about the drinkin',
Barely listen to the band!
Our hands they start a shakin' when she gets the urge to dance.
The woman faced the trio, first looking at Ferb.
Greg: Drivin' everybody crazy
She looked at Phineas, and it finally popped into his head why she seemed so familiar.
Greg: You think you fell in love!
He couldn't believe it was her, after all these years. His hands moved across his guitar, but his mouth dropped open, even as she spun around to face the crowd.
Greg: Boys, you better keep your distance,
You can look, but you can't touch
Ferb and Greg: That honky tonk badonkadonk!
Keepin' perfect rhythm,
Make you wanna swing along!
Got it goin' on like Donkey Kong!
Ferb glanced over at Phineas, who was playing on autopilot and staring at the woman. He reached over, pushed his mouth closed, and slapped him.
Greg: And whoo-whee, shut my mouth, slap your grandma!
There oughtta be a law, get the sheriff on the phone!
Oh, have mercy, how'd she even get them britches on
Ferb and Greg: That honky tonk badonkadonk?
Greg: That honky tonk badonkadonk!
Phineas snapped out of his daze, figuring he'd better finish the song before he confirmed that it really was her.
Greg, Ferb, and Phineas: Yeah, that honky tonk badonkadonk.
Ferb and Phineas: That honky tonk badonkadonk.
Greg: That's it right there boys! That's why we do what we do.
It ain't for the money, it ain't for the glory.
Ferb and Phineas: That honky tonk badonkadonk.
Greg: It ain't for the free whiskey.
It's for the badonkadonk.
Ferb and Phineas: That honky tonk badonkadonk.
They played the final chord and bowed, with the woman bowing beside them. The applause was even louder than it had been last night. But Phin's eyes were only on the woman. He was certain it was her.
As the crowd began to return to their tables, Greg walked up to the woman. "You were great there. You sure I can't have your number?"
As Phineas and Ferb came up, she giggled. "No, but I did say I'd tell you my name. It's-"
"Isabella," Phineas finished.
She looked at him, perplexed. "Yeah, how'd you-" She stopped, her eyes going wide. "P-P-Phineas?" she squeaked.
He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Yeah, it's me."
A smile slowly grew on her face before she squealed and threw herself at him. He caught her as they embraced and even spun her around, laughing. But when he put her down, she did something he wouldn't have imagined.
She kissed him.
He could hear Ferb begin to laugh, quite loudly, and Greg begin to sputter. But Phineas could only stare at Isabella, his childhood friend, kissing him.
She suddenly opened her eyes and broke the kiss. "S-s-sorry," she stuttered, "I-it's just that I haven't seen you in- you guys in years."
She looked at Phineas, but he just stood there, seemingly dead to the world around him. Ferb finally smacked him on the back of the head.
"Wha- what?" Phineas exclaimed.
"Isabella was explaining why she was so excited to see us again," Ferb retorted.
"You guys know each other?" Greg shouted.
The three turned to him. "Yeah, this is the Isabella we told you about. You know, best friend, extremely cute, always there for us?" Phineas replied.
"How is she here?" Greg asked.
"Why don't we grab a drink and I'll tell you," Isabella said, walking toward her table. Phineas glanced at Ferb, who glanced at Greg, who looked toward Isabella. The three of them shrugged and followed her.
As they approached the table, the bartender approached them. "So, Ms. Garcia-Shapiro, you want another root beer?"
Isabella nodded. "And can you get these three some drinks, too?"
The bartender nodded. "Let's see, a root beer for Red, cherry soda for Green, and…?"
"Whiskey for me," Greg finished.
The bartender wrote something down and walked toward the bar.
"So, Phineas," Isabella ventured, "what are you doing here? I thought you'd be off being an amazing inventor with Ferb, not here in Nashville desperate for work."
Phineas grimaced. "You know when your stepdad cut us off?" He waited a moment and she nodded. "Well, not long after that, we just… stopped inventing."
"But, how is that even possible? You guys had months of blueprints to tide you over any rough spots!"
"Well," Ferb replied, "we were already running low at that time. After we lost contact with you, Phineas changed."
Isabella looked at Phineas, her eyes pleading with him to tell her otherwise. But Phineas nodded slowly. "I- I just couldn't think of anything," he murmured.
"Which is about where I come in," Greg interjected. "Apparently my humble dream of making a famous band was enough to keep these two from totally losing it."
Isabella smiled brightly. "So I guess you were good for something after all," she joked.
"Hey, I told you, don't judge me 'til you know me," Greg replied easily.
Phineas looked between the two of them for a moment. "What about you, Isabella?"
"What?" she asked.
"How did you change into, well, uh-"
"Into such a flirt." she stated.
Phineas nodded.
The bartender walked up and gave each of them their drinks.
Gently lifting her cup, Isabella sighed. "I guess, without you, I just… fell apart. I went from straight A's to barely scraping by. I graduated, just, and no college wanted me."
She tipped her glass up, taking a couple gulps, before returning to her tale.
"I was no good in a leadership position in the local Fireside Girl troop. Heck, the way I sulked after that day, I was actually kicked out! The only thing I had going for me was my looks. So I applied to be a showgirl, a model, whatever I could get with just looks."
She paused, drawing a deep breath.
"But even then, I never managed to get a job. So, I'm still living with my parents. In fact, my stepfather owns this club."
As if summoned by her words, the door behind the bar opened, and a tough-looking Hispanic man walked out. "Isabella!" he called out.
She groaned, but lifted her arm and waved to him.
He approached the table like he was expecting trouble from the boys. He was clean-shaven, but he had the kind of face that seemed more complete with a mustache. He was almost as tall as Greg, but had a lot more muscle. His outfit only magnified his hostility, with his black shirt and black jeans. His boots even had spurs on the back.
He put a hand on the table and leaned over, glancing at Greg, Phineas, and Ferb. "Watchcha' boys doin'?" he growled.
"Dad!" Isabella protested, "I'm just talking with them!"
He glared around the table once more, then broke out in a hearty bout of laughter. Immediately his impression changed to a jovial air. "I'm messin' with ya! If anything, I should warn ya 'bout my hija, here. She may be pretty, but she won't look at ya twice. Still pinin' over some redhead from, uh, what's it called?"
"Danville," Isabella muttered, sinking into her chair.
"Right. Anyways, unless one of ya'll be that boy, Phil or whatever his name was, she won't give a hoot."
Ferb actually chuckled along with Isabella's stepfather, but Greg stared at Phineas, who was staring at Isabella. The gears began to turn in his head. A redhead from Danville, her change after she lost contact with them, and, most important, her kiss.
Phineas turned bright red, and Greg immediately laughed at his distress.
Isabella's stepfather calmed down, slapping Phineas on the back. "Of course, then I'd kick ya out of here. Don't want my girl obsessin' over one boy, unless he meets my standard."
Isabella moaned and put her head on the table. Her stepfather chuckled. "Well, enjoy her attention while it lasts, fellas."
As he walked away, Ferb said, "Well, he certainly hasn't changed from what you described."
"Was what h-he said true?" Phineas asked, rather shaken.
Isabella nodded as she brought her head up. "No one around here takes me seriously because I do that kind of thing all the time. It- it was a way I got over- covered how much it hurt."
"And what was that about a standard?" Greg ribbed.
"Most of it isn't that bad. He wants the guy to have a steady job, not be abusive, that sort of thing. But the hard part is that he'd have to pass the 'gut-feeling' test. And no one has passed that."
"Sounds almost like a drinking contest," Ferb chuckled.
"Nope. My stepfather has to have this… I don't know, this feeling, that the guy is the right guy."
"Sounds to me like you're being too much of a daddy's girl," Greg sighed.
Isabella glared at him, but Greg simply stood and said, "It's been great, but we need to head back to the apartment now."
"Oh, okay," Isabella said softly. She looked toward Phineas. "It was great to see you again. I'll be here tomorrow."
Ferb nodded and stood up, followed by Phineas. But as the guys headed for the door, Phineas lagged behind. He looked back to see Isabella looking forlornly at the table.
He turned around and walked back over to her.
"Um, Isabella?"
She practically spun around in her seat. "Phineas! Wha-"
"I was wondering if yo- you'd like to do something tomorrow."
She tilted her head quizzically. "You mean like today?"
"No!" Phineas said quickly. "I mean… uh, I was wondering if you wanted to go somewhere tomorrow after our performance. With me."
Her eyes widened, and her voice took a hopeful tone; "You mean-?"
He nodded. "Yeah, like a- a date."
She leapt from the chair and embraced him. "Yes! Of course, Phineas!"
Ferb was just about to go back in after Phineas when he finally emerged. He opened his mouth to ask Phineas what had taken him, but he stopped when he saw Phin's face.
Phineas had a smile that was sincere and packed with joy. It was a smile Ferb hadn't seen since they were kids.
"Dude, what happened?" Greg asked, elbowing Phineas.
When Phineas didn't reply, Ferb snorted. "I think he's on cloud nine right about now."
Greg looked at the door, then back to Phineas. "Seriously? I strike out every time, but he hits a home-run first swing?"
Ferb laughed as he guided his joyfully incapacitated brother towards their apartment.
So, the girl was Isabella! And she was still waiting for Phineas!
But now we have a stepfather that might just get in the way. Man, this wasn't my original plan at all... But it does seem better.
Now, next chapter will have a song, too. Again, it's by Trace Adkins! I left metaphorical hints at the beginning and end of the chapter...
Also, I might just include a song in every chapter. I have an idea for the fourth chapter, but after that I'm drawing a blank, so please, suggest some country songs! Just make sure they aren't too much.
So, please review!