Jude strolled through the doors of Gmajor early Monday morning, followed by three wide eyed guys, obviously impressed. "Look professional, will ya?" Jude stated, annoyed by their behavior. They had been blabbing all weekend about their 'bad ass image' but when they finally get here, they act like toddlers in a candy store. She had to beg for their audition as it was and she really didn't want them to screw it up. "Now remember," Jude spoke quietly "Act natural. We've been playing together for years, this is just another jam session. Okay?"
"Morning Jude." Georgia greeted from behind the receptionist's desks, gathering up a stack of papers
"Morning Georgia," Jude replied with a smile and turned to the guys, "Chill," She hissed her breath "Guys, this is Georgia. The head of Gmajor." Her eyes widened in warning to be cool, "And, uh, Georgia, these are my friends I was telling you about, my back up band hopefuls."
Georgia reached over the desk and shook hands with one of them, "Nice to meet you, boys. Can't wait to hear what you got."
Tommy came through the front doors and stopped short at the group around the receptionist's desk "Who let the bums in?"
Jude turned with a raised eyebrow while Speid's eyes widened at the sight of him. She elbowed him once in the ribs hard, her gaze settled on Tommy "Hm, a little late aren't you, Quincy? Rough night?"
Tommy's eyes narrowed at her "No, I hit some traffic."
"Really? We seemed to get here just fine."
Georgia looked between the two oddly and spoke hesitantly "Iiit's fine, Tom. Just get the studio set up." She rounded the desk and gestured for Speid, Kyle and Wally to follow her, "C'mon boys, let's get you some instruments." Jude groaned internally at her words; she should've made them bring their own stuff.
Tommy kept his eyes on Jude with a hardened expression of annoyance "Calm down. I'm at work."
Jude gave him an amused smirk and motioned for him to proceed, "So work."
When Jude entered the studio, Speid was at her side immediately, his eyes wide and panicked, "Dude!" He hushed in a whisper
"I know, shut up." She whispered back
"But its him," Speid was bouncing from one foot to the other "It's the guy! He saw my face."
Trying to be discrete about it, Jude turned away from the mic and from Georgia and Tommy watching them from the sound booth, "I know! Relax. And stop jumping; you're drawing attention to yourself."
"Relax? He knows! Why didn't you tell me he was here?!"
Jude sighed and put both hands on his shoulders to stop his movement all together "To avoid a reaction like this, maybe?" She looked over at Kyle and Wally, who were busy adjusting the drum set "We'll discuss this later."
Speid lifted his hand to point at Tommy but Jude snagged his wrist in a tight grip before he could "He will tell everyone and we're screwed, dude!" He exasperated but managed to keep his voice low "Screwed like a cheerleader on prom night!"
"Shut up." Jude said from behind clenched teeth, "Trust me. I've got this covered."
"There a problem here?" Tommy asked, his voice coming through the intercom speakers
"Nope!" Jude and Speid replied in suspicious unison before she looked over her shoulder with an innocent smile, "He's just nervous."
"I'm sure you'll be great." It was Georgia's encouraging voice that filled the room this time
Jude kept her smile in place, set there firmly with a nervous stiffness "Can we do a new song for you?" She asked and Georgia nodded; Tommy merely cocked an expectant eyebrow in response. "Let's do I'd Do Anything." She said, and the boys all nodded in agreement
"Ready when you are, dude." Kyle said, twirling a drum stick
Jude took her place in front of the mic and Kyle counted them in. The silence in the booth was suddenly cracked open with a burst of music that made Tommy cringe. He reached over and lowered the volume before looking over at Georgia "Seriously?"
Georgia lifted a finger with a quiet "Shhh. Give them a chance."
Tommy's gaze lifted and watched the interaction between Jude and her band. He couldn't deny the strength of their chemistry, but the cringe never fully left his features "They're a little rough around the edges."
"…But I, I wrote this letter in my head
'Cuz so many things were left unsaid
Now you're gone, and I can't think straight
This could be the one last chance to make you understand
I'd do anything just to hold you in my arms
To try to make you laugh, somehow, I can't put you in the past
I'd do anything just to fall asleep with you
Will you remember me?
I know I won't forget you."
"In fact…they're all edges." Tommy finished the thought with a sigh, his attention focused on the power in Jude's voice, her conviction. The way she manipulated the music streaming from her guitar "Damn, she can play." He muttered to himself. A small wave of excitement swept through his thoughts; the girl was talented and could be interesting to work with. "Maybe I could make it work."
Georgia smiled "A bonified garage band playing with Jude? Press would eat it up."
Tommy nodded in agreement and a smile came across his face for the first time that morning as he gave Jude a thumbs up as the song came to a close.
"Woo!" Jude exclaimed, "That was awesome!"
"Congratulations," Georgia said, "You've got your first gig. We'll do a live test and go from there. Cool?"
"Yes of course!"
Speid put his guitar aside and threw his arms around Jude, "Did you hear that?! We're your people now!"
Jude laughed and looked at Tommy, "How'd you like that song?"
Tommy looked her over with sincerity, "You did great, girl."
SME exited Georgia's office with matching grins, each holding mock-up Gmajor contracts that would become official and debated if the live test goes well. "We are like, official now dudes." Wally said as they gathered around the counter at hospitality.
Speid scoffed with excitement "I know, can you dig it?"
Jude met them in the lobby, "How'd it go? You're all set up?"
"Yup" Kyle replied proudly, holding up his contract
"Great! It's gonna be so fun to have you guys with me."
"Fun for some, maybe not for others." Tommy remarked bitterly as he approached the group "We've got a lot of work to do, guys." As he said the works, a look of exhaustion clouded his eyes "What do you call yourselves, anyway?"
"Speiderman Mind Explosion." Wally announced proudly "SME for short."
Jude watch as Tommy rolled his eyes an prepared a retort but before he could say it, she interjected defensively, "Don't start taking shots at my band." She glared and folded her arms, "You wouldn't want me to get mad and spill some dirt about you, would you?"
Kyle looked over at them with interest "Don't tell me lil Tommy Q has a dirty lil secret?"
"No, I don't." Tommy said quickly "And don't call me that." He grabs Jude by the arm and brings her out of ear shot of the others "How long are you going to hang this over my head?" He hissed
Jude shrugged with amusement "Until it stops being fun."
Tommy ran his tongue through his mouth in irritation "What do I have to do to make you stop?"
Jude drew a thoughtful expression, tapping her finger to her chin, "Hmm. I want you toooo...dance on Georgia's desk naked."
Tommy's eyes widened with a demanding "What?!"
Jude giggled and held up a hand "Relax, Boy Bander. Unlike the girls that follow you around, I would pay not to see you naked."
"This isn't all one sided, you know." Tommy's tone turned warning "You were there too."
"Yeah, but I was smart about it. No one sees my face when I'm there, too many cameras." Jude stepped forward a little, too close in Tommy's opinion "Trespassing...breaking and entering…racing illegally" She clicked her tongue in fake sympathy "So many things they could nail you for. Life sucks for you, buddy." She finally backed away with a shrug
"Yes it does." Tommy said under his breath as he watched her walk away.
