Disclaimer: I own nothing but a Lord of the Rings Calendar and a tape dispenser. With the exception of Jules Archer and Max Shepard, the characters in this story are the intellectual property of Ken Corday and Days of Our Lives.
Chapter 9: The Diva Returns
Chloe would swear that heaven began in Brady Black's eyes and ended in his touch. She had been a bundle of nerves the entire day, annoying Jules and Max to no end. With a frustrated shout, they had finally thrown her out of the club and sent her upstairs. Unfortunately, time went too slow in her apartment. She tried to catch up on her medical journals but couldn't seem to get past the abstracts. Then the flowers arrived from Brady, and she was so excited that she cranked up her stereo and danced around the room. Finally, she just decided to start getting ready.
Why is it, Chloe thought, that you never had the right thing to wear when you needed it? She changed three times before she found a satisfactory outfit. At first she had thrown on a sequined red cocktail dress, but it seemed too formal. Then, she slipped into a comfortable pair of jeans with a green funky shirt, something she might have worn clubbing in college. In the end, she opted to compromise with the chic Chinese style dress Jules had given her.
Chloe should have known that Brady would appear the first moment she wasn't watching for him. Annoyed by her fidgeting, Jules asked Chloe to go upstairs and ensure that the dinner had not burst into flames. After obliging Jules by giving all the pots a stir, Chloe returned downstairs to find Brady there. He looked wonderful, and when she embraced him, he felt and smelled wonderful. This is the way it's supposed to be, she thought as she introduced him to her friends, Brady and me together, happy.
For all intensive purposes, this was their first real date, but it was without awkwardness and timidity. Chloe and Brady were old friends after all, so words flowed freely between them. He talked about his life in England; she recounted her experiences in medical school. Their conversation was light and full of laughter. The really important words, the heavy ones that needed to pass between them, were left unspoken. She and Brady seemed to mutually agree that now was not the time or place for that discussion.
The Monopoly Table, Chloe thought. The secret joke brought a naughty little smile to her lips. They chatted, laughed, touched, and watched the crowd. Many faces were familiar to Chloe, and she suspected Belle had a lot to do with the club's success. John and Marlena, Belle and Shawn, Bo and Hope, Susan and Kevin, employees from Basic Black, and her colleagues from the hospital drifted over to the table to chat with them. For a while, it actually seemed as if the world revolved around her and Brady.
At ten, the lights in the club suddenly dimmed and the music that had been playing stopped. Chloe smiled with anticipation. Secretly, she had hoped that this would happen.
"What's going on?" Brady asked craning his neck over the crowd. Everyone in the club seemed to be wondering the same thing.
"Either a fuse just blew," Chloe answered, "or we're in for a good time."
Almost as quickly as the words were out of her mouth, a bright spotlight lit the stage. Max stepped into the pool of light and up to a microphone, "Ladies and Gentlemen. My name is Max Shepard, and I am co-owner and operator of Fantabulous. I'd like to thank everyone for making it out here tonight to see us off our feet. Tonight and every Friday night, we're going to be having the best live bands in the mid-west right here for your listening enjoyment. Please welcome, the 149th Street Band." At the end of the announcement, the rest of the stage lights flared up and illuminated the band and the equipment that stood behind him. The audience already excited by the club's atmosphere erupted with applause.
Chloe cheered loudly and watched the realization dawn on Brady's face as he began to recognize the band as their dinner companions. As Max reached back and slung his own guitar over his shoulder, Brady leaned towards her and whispered, "Max is in a band?"
Chloe laughed. "Could you imagine someone like Max not being in a band?" she countered.
"Touché," Brady said smiling and wrapping his arm around her shoulders.
Max's band consisted of a three-person horn section, a drummer, a keyboardist, a bass guitarist, and two guitarists including himself. The band, cleverly named for the street on which they had lived in college, had became quite popular playing frat parties and local bars. They were the one and only band in Chloe's opinion that could have done justice to the momentous opening of Fantabulous.
As the opening chords of Hot Chocolate's You Sexy Thing rang through the club, Chloe pulled Brady out into the crowded dance floor. They moved and swayed with the music, a subtle seduction. Dancing was one activity where they could be close and touch without the complications of a relationship or the messiness of emotions getting in the way. A dance was just a dance, yet it hinted at something much more intimate. Hot Chocolate gave way for a rendition of the Beatle's Come Together, but Chloe and Brady remained on the dance floor moving in time with the heavy rhythm. They remained on the dance floor while the 149th Street Band plowed through their set of classic rock, disco, and funk favorites. The gyrating crowd pushed them almost uncomfortably close to one another, but Chloe didn't honestly mind. Every time she gazed up into his eyes, she felt like they were alone on the dance floor.
As they drew to the end of the first half of their set, Max's band began playing their version of Wild Cherry's Play That Funky Music. The crowd was completely nuts by this time. As the band took a short break, Brady and Chloe beat a hasty retreat back to their booth. They were both winded from the dancing and the crowd, but they grinned at each other like school kids. A waitress quickly appeared and refreshed their drink order.
"I think it is safe to say that Fantabulous is a raging success," Brady commented.
Chloe let her eyes dart quickly around the room. She smiled in response. "I knew it would be," she said.
"Hi you guys," a cheerful voice interrupted. Chloe turned her attention to Belle and Shawn who had materialized along side their booth. "Is it all right if we join you? Belle's getting tired and we've had trouble finding a seat."
"Sure," Chloe replied sliding closer to Brady. Her actions weren't really necessary as the booth was designed to seat at least a half-a-dozen people easily, but she was now positioned so Brady could rest his arm around her shoulder. "Are you two enjoying the club?" she asked her friends.
"This place is really amazing," Shawn said, his eyes roaming around.
"The music is great," Belle added, "but I would enjoy it more if Shawn would stop making fog horn noises as I move through the crowd."
"Does he make the beeping sound as you back up like the dump truck does?" Chloe asked with a chuckle.
"No," Shawn said plastering a horrified expression on his face. "But now that you mention it," he continued slyly as a grin split his face, "It's not a half bad idea."
Belle gave her husband a shocked look followed by glare that could have scorched his hair. She turned her indignant gaze towards her brother, "Brady, I expect you to defend me."
Brady didn't reply. He was slumped over laughing hysterically at the image in his mind of his sister backing up to a dumpster.
"Pffft, some brother you are," Belle uttered.
Chloe giggled, but she couldn't stop her doctor side from peeping through. "All beeping and fog horns aside, I think you look amazingly healthy. Are you sure that the club isn't too stressful for you?"
"It's fine," Belle assured, "Shawn and I don't get much opportunity to go out much anymore." She fondly rubbed her tummy. "Besides this one has been break dancing all night."
"Do you know if it's a girl or a boy yet?" Chloe asked.
"No," Shawn replied recovering his composure, "We like to be surprised."
"Ladies and gentleman," Max announced into the microphone, interrupting their conversation, "For those of you lucky enough to see us during our days at the U, you might remember that once in a blue moon a very lovely lady would join us on stage." The crowd cheered, and Chloe groaned inwardly. She had forgotten to tell Max that tonight was not a good night. "Well tonight you're fortunate," Max continued, "Cause I've checked the sky and the moon is the right shade. Please give it up for our favorite female, Chloe Wesley."
Applause and catcalls were abundant as the spotlight swung over and illuminated Chloe in her seat. "I…I," Chloe stammered looking desperately between the stage and her booth companions.
"Go on Chloe," Belle urged excitedly.
"Yeah, go on," Brady whispered as he slid out of the booth and helped her to stand. "Sing Diva!" he urged pushing her toward the stage. She hesitated until his smile reassured her that he was anxious to hear her sing.
Chloe felt a nervous flutter in the pit of her stomach as she weaved her way towards the stage. Many times she had belted out tunes with Max and his band, but it had never been to an audience full of family and friends. As she reached the stage steps, Max reached down to half drag, half help her onto the stage. Whistles accompanied her up to mike. From the back of the club she heard a loud voice shout, "PLAY MY SONG!" Chloe laughed gently at Jules' request and bowed her head in a charmingly shy manor. "Well," she sighed, "You heard the lady."
Chloe closed her eyes and reached deep down inside herself to that special place in her soul where the music came from. She tried to imagine that she wasn't in Salem; instead, she was standing on stage in one of the bars they had played at in college. In her mind, the place was filled with an audience of anonymous drunks that she would not be likely to encounter ever again. As the familiar music intro started, she reached that necessary zone. When her cue came, her eyes flew open and Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive escaped her vocal cords with all the passion and fire she saved just for the stage. The stage lights blinded her and turned the audience into faceless shadows. Chloe let all other versions of herself melt away, and the diva returned.
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Author's Note: I glad that people have enjoyed Jules and Max. They are based lightly on people I met during my many years in college. Anyone wishing to use Max, Jules, the 149th Street Band, or Fantabulous in their own fan fiction are welcome. I will be happy to fill you in with details about the characters, the band, or the club. I just ask that you inform me of your intentions prior to the fact. Also, I will be posting a list of songs that I imagine the 149th Street Band would play later. Thanks for your supportive reviews. This is my first fan fiction.