Just Go With It!

"You have to let me join the band!" Mallory cried over dinner the next night. She sat at the table doing homework while Brian finished the dishes. Roger sat across from her at the table drinking beer and twirling his drumsticks.

"School," her brother reminded.

"I know, but it'll take me forever to finish!"

"Four years."

"At least!"

"Four years isn't forever."

"But who knows where we'll all be then? Look, I promise school will get finished!"

"But if not now, when?"

She paused thoughtfully. "Sometime! I didn't say never!"

He sighed. "Mal-"

"Please, Bri! And besides, if you're looking for a new lead singer and bass player, you're already reworking things, so it makes perfect sense that I join in now! Are you going to contact Freddie?"

Brian and Roger exchanged a glance.

"You are! Well he thought I should join, he told me so. He said, 'You should be up there with them'. And I told him my brother wouldn't let me until I finished school." Brian rolled his eyes. She turned to the blond. "Rog, you told me before that you wanted me in the band."

Roger pointed one drumstick at her. "I did. I do."

Brian sighed. "You're all ganging up on me."

"Sorry, Mate," said Roger with a smirk.

"See, majority rules!" She grinned.

"Come on, Brian." Roger came around and sat in the chair next to her. "You know your sister would be a great addition. Like I said, our last show was bollocks. We need some reworking."

"It wasn't that bad of a show..." Brian continued to defend.

"Bad enough that Tim walked out on us."

"Wasn't our fault!"

"'We're never going anywhere with this, guys,'" Roger mocked their former bandmate.

"Well, now's your chance to show him," said Mallory.

"Hey Mal-" Roger put his arm around the back of her chair and leaned in close. "What'cha doing later?"

"Homework," she sighed. "Dull, I know."

"Really, Rog? My sister? I'm right here," cried Brian.

Roger pulled away, raising his hands in surrender. "I'm just making conversation."

"Sure you were. Real subtle, as always."

Mallory raised her eyebrows at Roger. "What did you have in mind?"

Brian sighed and rolled his eyes. "Any ideas on where we could find a bass player?" he jumped in, quickly changing the subject, ignoring the lovesick look being shared between his sister and friend.

"That sounds like the perfect job for you, Brian," Roger said, not looking away from Mallory. "Guitarist to guitarist."

"You're going to help me," Brian told him. Then he turned to his sister. "You think you can get a hold of Freddie?"

"Yes!" She beamed. "Does this mean I'm in?!"

Brian sighed. "Yes, I suppose it does."

"Yes, YES!" she cheered. "I'm glad to see your overwhelming enthusiasm, Big Brother."

"I just don't know if that's the kind of life I want for you right now."

"I appreciate your concern, as always, but I can't let you have all the fun. Besides, someone's got to keep an eye on you lot. Especially Mr. Taylor here." She poked Roger's arm.

"And someone's got to keep an eye on you two," muttered Brian.

Roger tapped out a rhythm on the table with his drumsticks. "Welcome to Smile, Mallory May."

By the time of the next scheduled show, they had gained Mallory, Freddie, and a new bassist by the name of John Deacon.

"I wish we'd had more time to practice together," Brian was fussing as they waited backstage for their turn.

"Brian, relax, it'll be fine," Mal assured him, too excited about performing with the band for her first time to worry.

"Can't be any worse than last time," said Roger.

"Don't worry, darlings," said Freddie with confidence. "They'll love us."

Applause and cheering signaled that the current band had finished their set and were now heading backstage. Smile took the stage.

"Hello, everyone, thanks for being here tonight," Brian addressed the crowd. "As you can tell, we have a few new faces up here with us tonight: We've got John Deacon on bass, Freddie Bul-Bulsara," he struggled a little with Freddie's last name, which didn't go unnoticed by Freddie.
"-Lead vocals, and Mallory May, vocals."

"Where's Tim?" someone shouted.

"You can't be Smile if you've got all new members!" cried someone else.

"Hey Love, what're you doing after the show?" a guy in the audience called to Mallory.

"Oi-" began Brian, always ready to defend his sister.

She jumped in ahead of her brother. "Not you, Mate," she retorted, into the microphone for the whole pub to hear.

There was laughing and a chorus of "Ohhhhhs!" all around. Roger even added a ba dum tish! on his drum set.

"Well, now that that's out of the way, and we've introduced everyone, we are Smile. Thanks, and we hope you enjoy the show," Brian finished.

"This one's for all you beautiful people out there tonight!" Freddie addressed the crowd.

"Ready, Freddie?" asked Roger.

Freddie gave a nod, and they were off. The guitarists struck the first notes. Freddie began nodding his head to the beat, quickly followed by moving his whole body, and grabbed a tambourine which he began shaking in time to the music. This surprised the others, to say the least, who hadn't had any idea of him adding this. He hadn't used it in their rehearsals.

Next he grabbed the microphone stand, and tried to carry it around the stage with him as he walked/danced, but it didn't work out so well. This didn't appear to phase him though, and he just went with it, belting out the lyrics. Mallory tried to follow his dance moves as he took up the whole stage, the whole room even, with his presence, and soon both were dancing to the beat, different moves, same rhythm. She had felt a certain instant connection with Freddie when she first met him, and obviously that carried onto the stage and into their performance.

"Uh, wrong verse, Freddie," Brian tried, but Freddie was too into it to notice him, the others desperately trying to keep up with his intensive energy. The audience too, seemed a little hesitant at first, but slowly seemed to be warming to it.

"Keep yourself alive! Keep yourself alive! All you people, keep yourself alive!"

"Just go with it!" Mallory called to her brother.

By the end of the song, the whole group was singing along together:

"Keep yourself alive! Keep yourself alive! All you people, keep yourself alive!"

They received great applause and cheers at the end of their set, and returned backstage breathless.

"Sorry for stumbling on your last name up there, Freddie," Brian apologized.

"Oh don't be, darling, it's alright," Freddie assured him. "I'm thinking of changing it, actually."

"Oh?"

"Yes, to 'Mercury'. I like Mercury, what do you think? 'Freddie Mercury' - think that'll be a big name someday?"

Yes, Freddie, it definitely will be! ;) There's chapter two, and we get to see some more flirting between Mal and Rog ;)

I think I'll jump right ahead to the recording studio section (the timeline will probably end up a bit different for this story).

Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed! :)