A/N: I'm back! Thanks to Michelle (Daydreamer731) for beta-ing. Also, thanks a lot to Arch of Wand. I always really appreciate your reviews and you are absolutely right, I do take absolutely too long between chapters. I shall try to remedy this situation. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, actually. Please continue to do so. I love feedback.
Mark and Roger sat at a table together at the Barracuda. Mark had helped Roger set up and now they were just waiting. Roger was supposed to play in twenty minutes. The split lip from his fight with Jake had mostly healed, but it still looked a bit odd. Roger doubted that anyone would notice. He drummed his fingers anxiously on the table. Glancing at Mark, Roger realized that his friend was just as tense as he was. Roger tried to start a conversation, mostly to ease his own mind.
"So, Maureen coming tonight?"
"Yeah. You know that."
Roger sighed. "I know. I've just got to say something. This waiting is killing me."
Mark let out a slightly manic laugh. "Me, too. But you'll be great."
"Mark! Roger!"
The men looked up to see that Collins and Benny had arrived and were coming over to join them. Roger grinned broadly. "Guys, I'm so glad you came!"
"Wouldn't miss it!" exclaimed Benny, beaming at Roger as Collins went to buy them all some drinks. "This is just the start. One day you'll be selling out huge concerts. Roger, my rock star roommate."
"Nice alliteration," remarked Collins with a smirk as he returned with the drinks.
"You laugh now," continued Benny, with a mock-suffering look, "but just wait 'til Cyber Arts is up and Roger's making hit CDs."
"What happened to Cyber Arts allowing me to produce hit films?" Mark teased.
"You can still produce hit films. Cyber Arts is flexible."
"But what about me?" asked Collins.
Benny looked at him for a moment. Finally, he responded, "Well, you'll just have to write a book or something, won't you?"
Roger laughed, pleased with the distraction from his nervousness provided by his friends. Raising his glass, he exclaimed, "To Cyber Arts!"
"To Cyber Arts!" was the enthusiastic reply of his friends.
"To Cyber Arts," was the rather confused reply of a woman whose voice Roger didn't recognize. He looked up to see that a very attractive woman with dark curly hair, wearing some very tight tiger-print pants with an equally tight white blouse. Roger realized that she was walking directly towards their table. "What's Cyber Arts?"
"Just a dream of ours," explained Mark, standing and gazing at the woman with an expression of extreme adoration. "Maureen, this is Benny, Collins, and Roger. Guys, this is Maureen."
"A pleasure to meet you, Maureen," greeted Collins as he shook her hand. Maureen smiled at sat down next to Mark.
"It's great to finally meet all you guys. Mark talks about you all the time."
"I could say the same about you," replied Roger, grinning as his statement earned him a death glare from Mark.
"So, Roger, what kind of stuff are you going to play tonight? Anything me and Marky can dance to?" Maureen asked, giving Roger a wink.
Roger laughed and tried to ignore Benny mouthing "Marky" and grinning at a blushing Mark. "I guess you could try, but I don't think you'll find it very danceable. I'm doing acoustic stuff. Some covers, a lot of my own songs."
"Well, I look forward to hearing you," Maureen replied flirtatiously. Roger grinned, not really taking her coquettishness seriously. "So Mark," the woman continued, "what exactly did you say you do here?"
"I'm a sound technician of sorts," explained Mark.
Maureen looked slightly puzzled. "Most bars don't have sound technicians, do they? How'd you get that job?" she asked.
"Yeah, Mark, how did you manage that?" inquired Roger. "I'd never really thought about it before, but it is kind of unusual."
"Well," began Mark, "it was kind of an accident. I was sitting at the bar looking at the want ads and the sound equipment for that night's band just started screwing up while they were trying to set up. I walked over and fixed it and Rick saw. He'd noticed that I had been reading the want ads and basically offered me the newly-created job of sound technician on the spot."
"Ah yes," remarked Collins, "the famous Cohen luck."
"No kidding," agreed Benny. "Only Mark could get hired and paid for a nonexistent job."
Mark rolled his eyes but smiled. "You exaggerate."
Roger chuckled and glanced at his watch. He began to feel the nervousness creeping back into his body and made an attempt to shake it off by taking a breath. Incidentally, this deep breath also caught the attention of the other four people at the table and caused them to turn and look at him.
"Well, it's time for me to go up there."
Mark smiled. "You'll be great. I know it."
Collins nodded. "I have complete confidence in you."
"Get up there and wow 'em for us!" encouraged Benny.
His fears melting into a surge of confidence and adrenaline, Roger left the table and walked up to the part of the bar that served as a stage. He pulled his guitar from its case and sat down on a stool in front of the microphone. Roger glanced at his friends one more time and began to speak.
"Hi, I'm Roger Davis. Some of you have seen me play here before with my band, the Well Hungarians. Well, as it turns out, the Hungarians are a bit unwell right now." It was a corny joke, but there were a few laughs. "So for tonight you've just got me." Applause, mostly from his roommates. "So, um, here we go."
The performance was perfect. Roger played beautifully, he sang beautifully, and a few of the girls in the audience had fallen in love with him in the first ten minutes. After playing for about an hour, Roger began to speak into the microphone again.
"Before I play my last song, I'd just like to thank you guys. You've been a great audience. And I'd also like to thank a few other people, it you'll put up with me talking a bit longer. First of all, Rick, the owner of this fine establishment. A great bar owner and a great friend. He's really helped me get here. Thanks, Rick. I also want to thank my roommates, Benny, Collins, and Mark, sitting right at that table over there." He pointed. "Anyway, thanks for being awesome friends and really supporting me in this. Especially Mark—that's the scrawny one. He's done so much for me lately, and I really don't know how I can even begin to thank him. So everyone give Mark a big round of applause for me and I'll go ahead and play this last song for you." The audience obeyed Roger's request and he fulfilled his promise. He began to play a sort of a rock ballad, one of his originals. When he finished, he was greeted by a surge of enthusiastic applause. He was absolutely euphoric.
Mark and the gang managed to beat a path to Roger before all the girls hoping to congratulate him while batting their eyelashes excessively were able to reach him. Mark practically jumped on him, hugging him in delight.
"That was amazing, Roger!"
"Great job, man," agreed Benny, shaking Roger's hand before Roger pulled him into a hug as well.
"You'll do this again," predicted Collins as he, in turn, embraced Roger. "You're talented, and you have a great rapport with the audience."
"Great job, Roger," said Maureen simply. She smiled at him, but Roger thought she looked just a little bit bored. "Marky," she began, but she stopped, looking a touch frustrated, when Mark, who was quite nearly as excited as Roger, launched at him a second time. They embraced, laughing, like little boys in celebration of something wonderful.
"Thanks so much, guys," began Roger as he let go of Mark. "This is just… so incredible."
"Marky," Maureen repeated. "Marky, let's go dancing."
"Dancing?" Mark looked slightly surprised. "I don't know, Maureen; I'm pretty tired. I really don't feel like dancing right now. Maybe some other night."
"But Marky." Maureen grabbed hold of both of his hands and pouted slightly. Roger smirked. He knew his friend didn't stand a chance.
"Tell you what. Why don't I take you out for a late dessert instead? That would be fun. We'll go to some really nice place and order a fancy dessert."
Maureen sighed melodramatically. "No, I have to watch my weight. I'll just go home."
Mark looked guilty. "All right, Maureen, I'm sorry. Come one, I'll take you dancing. I guess I'll see you guys later." Mark waved to his friends and he and Maureen left the bar, hand in hand.
"That girl's going to wear him out," remarked Benny.
Roger nodded. "That's the truth. But you're one to talk. Alison's got you pretty whipped yourself, Benny."
"Hey, I rescheduled her tonight to come see you."
"Touché."
Collins shrugged. "Mark will have fun. Well, Roger, I guess we'd better leave you to mingle with your adoring public. Want to head back to the loft, Benny?"
"Sure," agreed Benny. "We'll see you later, Rog."
"All right, see you guys," replied Roger as his friends left. He turned to receive the strangers coming up to congratulate him and smiled. He felt that this night was some sort of a beginning, and he was enjoying it thoroughly.