Episode Two
Table For Two
Julie stared up at the flickering sign, its luminescent glow welcoming her into Barley's with the faulty neon. Julie swallowed the large lump in her throat, remembering the last time she was at the blasted restaurant, where she had been greeted by an unwelcome guest that reminded her all too well of her and Luke's little fight: Lisa. Julie had come here to get her mind off of Luke Lisa though, so she shook the reminder away. She had pulled her curly brown hair back into a slicked ponytail with a dainty little ribbon, and donned a light pink babydoll dress for her date Nick had planned against her will.
She inhaled through her nose, exhaling through her mouth nervously in perfect time with the flickering sign. Julie had so much on her mind from the drama with the phantoms, to Bobby knowing, to her music, so she just wanted to escape her problems by spending the night with Nick. She was actually a little grateful for this date.
As she opened the restaurant door, greeted by the hostess, she saw Nick sitting on one of the leather couches in the waiting room. He looked up from his glossy shoes to Julie, a smile slowly creeping on his face in a way that made Julie flustered and uncomfortable. He sat, legs crossed over one another, his tongue brushing against his lip for a second.
Julie sat down beside him, her eyes not looking up at him as she sat. "You made it," Caleb said to an unassuming Julie, "I was hoping you wouldn't forget about me," He jeered.
Julie smiled at what she thought was Nick, her eyes finally meeting him. "I could never forget. I've actually… I actually had a really bad day," She said, her lips curling into a frown. Caleb knitted his brows together in interest.
"What happened?" He asked.
Julie brushed a stray curl back behind her ear, her breath baited. "Well, It's actually kind of personal," Julie said, silently stirring for a beat. "can't we just move on and enjoy our night?" Julie asked Nick.
Caleb swallowed hard, biting his lip nervously. It would've been nice to find out what had happened to Julie that made her so upset; after all, there is no better way to trick someone than getting a little intimate, he thought. However, it looked like she was determined to forget about whatever happened. Caleb, however, was not. He knew if he convinced Julie enough to spill at least some sort of clue about her situation, he had a better chance of figuring it out. Caleb knew just what would get her to spit.
"Is it about the band?" Caleb pushed, biting his lip. Julie's face fell in front of his and she nodded. "Julie, I know they're ghosts."
Julie looked initially shocked, jaw slack, but then afraid. First she had to deal with the fact Trevor Wilson knew about her ghosts, but now she had to worry about Nick too? She felt angry at him, because she had come on this date only to get away from this exact thing, but here she was. The more she stared at Nick's blank face however, her features softened. Maybe, this was a blessing in disguise, so finally, she looked relieved. In truth, Julie was so happy she could talk to someone she knew and trusted about the burdens weighing on her shoulders; she loved Flynn, but she was getting pretty sick of being interrupted by her terrible singing while she was trying to vent about the band.
Julie paused for a minute. "How… how did you figure it out?" She asked him.
Caleb swallowed hard, scratching the back of his neck. "I just have a knack for the paranormal I suppose," He laughed at his dramatic irony. "Actually, it was pretty obvious. You talk to yourself a lot," He said. She felt very overwhelmed in the moment, so impulsively she adjusted herself, then opened her arms a little to initiate a hug.
Caleb hung his head back as far as he could get it from Julie, then reciprocated the hug. Getting touchy with a teenage lifer was something he did not feel comfortable doing, but still he uncomfortably wrapped his arms around Julie, uncomfortably accepting the hug. The awkwardness stilled until it was interrupted by the sound of the hostess calling the name of their party, leading them away towards the back of Barley's with a 'come on' hand gesture and cordial smile.
Nick got up first to get away from the hug, and started tagging along behind their waiter. Julie got up to follow, but paused for a second. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something felt wrong. She didn't know if it was just the harsh, luminescent lights above her head, or maybe the constant smell of oil and bread, but it was a feeling that was impossible for Julie to push away. She didn't feel like ruining the night for herself, so she ignored it and continued to follow behind Nick.
Alex kicked his feet by the edge of the Hollywood sign, playing with the drawstrings of his pink hoodie like always. He was glad he could have some time away to reflect on everything going on in the moment, a million thoughts racing in his mind, but sometimes he wished he could be alone with Reggie and Luke because they always seemed to help him figure out what was going on inside his head.
He still hadn't managed to shut the weird box-camera-thingy off that Carlos had set up, Luke and Julie were upset with one another, Bobby found out about their secret, and Willie and Alex's relationship was still pretty strained after the whole Caleb incident. He told Willie he forgave him, but he still was having trouble moving on from the whole ordeal, so Alex thought the logical thing to do was to sit by the most famous sign in America and cool off. As the image of a smiling Willie sat in Alex's mind, he coincidentally poofed in right next to Alex. Willie sat still, staring at Alex and his blonde waves.
"Hey Alex," Willie swallowed. Alex didn't say a word, so after a minute he said, "I've missed you," Alex finally turned toward Willie, his face a blank slate.
"I… I've missed you too," He replied. Willie and Alex stayed still on the picturesque hill overlooking the city of angels for a moment, the two sitting still in the plushy grass that gave their jeans unsightly green splotched under their knees. Willie turned towards Alex again, opening his mouth to speak but no words came out. He wanted so desperately to tell him something, anything, but the only thing he could get out was this:
"I know you said you forgive me for bringing you to Caleb, but," He swallowed hard, "I can tell a part of you is still mad at me."
Alex nodded, not even putting up a fight nor looking at Willie. "You're right," Is all he said.
"How– how can I fix this?" Willie asked Alex, his voice shaky.
Alex sighed. "You do nothing," He paused, "I am trying to forget what happened. I want to forget what happened," He said.
Willie stood up before Alex, the wind blowing his brown locks around in his face. Willie opened his mouth like he was going to speak, but hesitated before he could get anything out. He then adjusted his posture and let the word vomit come out. "You know I love you Alex, right? And I want to convince you more than anything that I would never, ever, let something like this happen again, okay? And I know, I sound like a broken record–"
"Willie, stop," Alex interrupted, holding a palm up to him. Willie obeyed for a moment, but then continued with his tangent.
"Let me finish, Alex. I mean it when–" Alex got up, cutting off Willies rant once again with simply a look. He took him by the shoulders, clutching the fabric of his orange patterned sweater tight as he moved closer to him, and locked eyes with him. In one impulsive move, Alex leaned in and kissed Willie in front of the California sunset, a move Willie was not expecting in the slightest. He retreated back just as fast as he had leaned in and didn't say anything more. Willie stared blankly at Alex just as he had expected, two fingertips coming up to his own lips to feel the mark Alex made on him.
"Shit..." Willie exasperated. Willie was totally about to say anything to convince Alex to take him back, even though they never officially dated, but that sloppy kiss would suffice too. As he stared at the browning grass for a moment, he pulled a tiny bottle of whiskey out of his bag, took a shot of it, then tossed it into the grass. He then leaned back in for another kiss, this time wrapping his arms around Alex's frame, appreciating the innocence of the moment.
Alex pulled back. "Listen, I forgive you. No need to continue talking about it," He said, a toothy smile creeping on his face.
Willie looked unsure of himself. "Are you sure you fully forgive me?" He asked, his shoulders dropping a bit.
Alex chuckled. "Do you think I would be making out with you if I didn't forgive you?" He said, leaning in for another kiss.
"Touche," Willie answered, letting Alex kiss him again. One less burden was now on Alex's shoulders, which would hopefully be a sign all of his other problems would be figured out as well. Alex just had to be patient and just enjoy the things he already had, one of them in his arms, and hopefully that would be enough. Alex closed his eyes and tried to forget himself in the moment, enjoy himself for at least a little bit.
Trevor tapped his pen at a constant rhythm as he sat before his publicist. He hesitated to speak, his leather chair squeaking as he spun it around and the sunset shining through the window behind him reflecting off the metal, but knew if he did not discuss this matter now he would probably forget next time he drank.
"Linda, I am going to trust you with some very valuable information, m'Kay?" Trevor said, leaning over the oak desk towards his employee. Linda sat unphased, arms crossed in her lap, clipboard on the desk in front of her. "You are aware I used to play in a couple bands back in the day, right?" He asked her.
She nodded. "Does the name Sunset Curve ring any bells?" He asked her once again. She shook her head this time.
"What do you know?" He huffed, "anyway, I graduated 1995, playing gigs with my pals, living paycheck to paycheck," He said lazily.
"So you were an amateur band?" She asked him.
"We didn't put ourselves out there that much at the start but we had a fan base nonetheless," He paused.
"What does this have to do with anything?" Linda asked.
"If you would let me speak, I could get to the point," He continued, "We had been scheduled to play the Orpheum one night, which was impactful for our small band," He explained.
"The hour beforehand," He paused seriously, taking a moment to collect himself. "My friends died," He said, looking down at the desk.
Linda sighed. "It's really not funny to joke about death," She said, not understanding he was being completely serious.
"No, I don't think you understand," He said, "My daughter Carrie, one of her little girlfriends, is in a band. But… her bandmates were mine," he said.
Linda raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?" She asked.
"My friends who were supposed to be dead were playing with her," He said softly, placing his palms down on the glossy desk. After a breath, he continued. "She says their holograms,"
Linda's mouth fell slack. After all the shit she had to deal with, Trevor had finally ripped her a new one. His dead bandmates were roaming around Los Angeles playing local gigs, and she was supposed to believe that? "Am I hearing you right?" She asked.
"They're ghosts, Linda. They haunted me before; the ones that wrote my name in the mirror, remember?" He exclaimed. "And before you ask, yes I am sober."
"I'm not sure I believe that, Mr. Wilson," Linda commented, sighing deeply. "Are you feeling alright?" She asked, getting up from her chair to feel his forehead.
Trevor started to get frustrated, swatting her doting hands away. He had to prove to Linda somehow that he was not crazy, which is pretty hard to do when you're claiming ghosts exist.
"Linda, I didn't believe it either but look at this:" Trevor pulled out an amateur video taken from the crowd at the Orpheum. On the stage was Julie and her phantoms.
Linda sighed loudly at him. "So you already had that pulled up?" She huffed, "What does this prove?"
"Look at the date," He said. She tilted her glasses down and looked at the upload date; just two nights ago. Trevor paused the music blaring out of his phone's speaker and set it down on the desk. He then fished his hand into his jacket pocket and pulled out the photograph of Sunset Curve on their last night together, the edges crinkled.
"Is... is that you?" She asked, taken aback.
"That is Luke, Alex and Reggie," Trevor swallowed, pointing to each boy as he said their name. Linda took the photo in her hands; she studied each of their faces in the photo, glancing back at the phone every so often.
"She said their holograms. Maybe she's just a big fan," Linda explained to him, feeling his forehead once again.
"No, Linda!" He boomed, "They died in 1995, and that technology is 4k. Also, a rig like that is hundreds of thousands of dollars, so are you really gonna keep telling me I am lying?"
Linda thought about it for a second. She supposed it didn't really make much sense for a 16 year old girl to own technology that was worth half a million dollars, but she was gonna need more convincing than that. "I am," She said, "If you want to make a claim as wild as that, you can't expect me to believe you," She sighed.
"Luke never wrote any of those songs. He let me see ALL his songs, and the ones in this video or not ones he practiced at all," He said.
"Maybe they were private, Trevor, You're–"
"No," He said coldly, "He showed me songs he wrote about drugs, his mother, arson; all types of crazy shit. And you're trying to tell me he recorded a song about being 'bright through the night' and didn't tell me?"
Linda bit her bottom lip, recognizing maybe she was wrong. "What... what does this mean?" She asked him.
Trevor frowned a little, his upper lip curling downward a bit. "It means that something is seriously fucked up."
Alex led Willie by a curled finger to the iPad in the garage, his long brown hair flowing behind him due to the windy day. Reggie sat in the corner of the room, sprawled on the leather couch as he watched Alex and Willie make their way towards the corner of the room, his head lifting up inquisitively at the presence of Willie; someone he hadn't seen in so long.
"Um, hey you two," Reggie said, looking towards the pair, "what's up..."
Alex raised in eyebrows and sucked in his lip in a way that told Reggie to 'shut the fuck up,' but Reggie didn't listen.
"What are you guys doing?" He asked again.
"Nothing," Alex seethed through clenched teeth, "Where is Luke?" He asked, changing the subject.
Reggie sighed, "Luke is still gone."
Alex frowned, ignoring Reggie's statement and turning towards his boyfriend who had been standing there awkwardly throughout their whole conversation. "So Willie, I know you have a much easier time touching things than us amateur ghosts, so I was hoping you could shut off this camera mirror," Alex said, pointing to the tripod.
Willie chuckled. "Camera mirror? Alex, love, that's called an iPad," He said. Reggie raised an eyebrow when Willie said, "love."
Alex's shoulders dropped, a hand brushing through his blonde locks. "How was I supposed to know? I come from a time before all this techy stuff," He whined. Willie patted him on the back, flashed him a smile, then slid beside him towards the tripod. He rubbed his hands together and stuck a finger out. He stopped the recording and deleted the video with no struggle.
"You know Alex, I did too. Doesn't mean you can't learn," He smiled, turning around towards Alex again.
Reggie clapped in amusement from on the couch, and Alex's cheeks just flushed bright red. "Thanks man," Reggie said.
"No problem Reggie," He said, crossing his arms with a smile. The silence stirred for a second, the only sound coming from Julie's metronome clicking after she left it on.
"Well… right now is actually a really good time to go to the skatepark, so I think I'm gonna head out," He smiled. Willie walked out of the garage after a quick, awkward wave towards his fellow ghosts, then poofed away on his skateboard.
Reggie crossed his legs in a casual manner. "Sooo… looks like you and Willie have smoothed things over?" He commented. Alex smiled back giddily, hands interlocked behind his back like a child about to get a cookie from the cookie jar.
"Yeahhhhh," He giggled, smiling. He jumped onto the leather couch next to his friend, the old loveseat squeaking. "I think things are gonna go well this time," Alex said, self assured.
Reggie crossed his burly arms, smirking proudly. "Dude, if youre saying that you have to give me details?" He said.
Alex cleared his throat, "Well, Willie came to talk to me about the whole Caleb thing," He said.
"I thought you guys already did?" He interrupted, brows narrowing.
"We kinda talked about it again. Y'know, to smooth things over formally," Alex continued, "Anyway, it started a little fight."
Reggie swallowed, his face cringing. "Uh oh,"
"No no no… it's fine," Alex reassured him, "I kissed him."
Reggie's face relaxed, and he smiled coyly, giving Alex a stern high five. "Way to go man! You've had some major balls lately; I'm proud of you," He said. Alex nodded.
"Yeah, I guess so," He laughed nervously. He stared at his bandmate for a second, his face dark because of the sunset behind him.
Reggie tapped his foot at a constant rhythm against the concrete floor of the garage. "I am assuming it worked because of your guy's little pet names for each other," He poked Alex's shoulder a couple times with his elbow, a smile sprawled across his face. "Love?" He chuckled.
Alex smiled back at Reggie. "Yeah, it did," Alex said. He could not help but giggle at the moment. "Y'know, this is so surreal," He said.
"Why do you say that?" Reggie asked him, his features softening.
Alex then got really serious for a moment, swallowing a lump in his throat before preparing what to say. "After I came out to my parents, I had fully planned on never being with a guy ever again after their reaction. And now I have a boyfriend," He admitted.
Half of Reggie's mouth curved downward. "But your boys had your back," Reggie smiled, slinging an arm around Alex's neck, "You know we love you loads."
Alex looked at his arms crossed in his lap. "Well, um," He paused, resulting in Reggie's brows stitching together, "I lied. The day I told you guys I was kicked out was not the actual day I was kicked out," He said. Reggie frowned in confusion at his statement; what did he mean, he thought.
"I had– I had actually been sleeping around Hollywood for a couple days before I told you guys. My last resort was to tell you all because I was starving, and I felt so alone," He trailed off, his voice cracking a bit, "I know you guys accepted me despite being gay, but I wasn't sure if you really cared."
Reggie frowned, looking at his friend disappointedly. He never realized his best friend didn't trust him enough to confide in him about his troubles, and Reggie felt upset with himself that he never made it clear that that was okay. "Really?" Reggie asked him, his face looking a twinge horrified. Alex just looked down at his feet, not saying a word.
"Alex. We love you; I love you," He paused, "and I am so, so disappointed with myself that I never made it clear that that doesn't matter to me at all," Alex's face look shocked, a sign that the point was getting across, but Reggie took Alex by his shoulders to reiterate the urgency anyway, "So what, you want to screw a guy? I am sad that you thought that meant anything to me," He said.
"I didn't mean to make you upset," Alex frowned, "I– I just didn't know what to do and I didn't feel like taking any risks after taking such a big one that failed miserably," He said.
"I am not mad at you," Reggie said, "Far from it, actually. From now on we'll tell eachother everything," He said. Alex cracked a small smile after Reggies sweet confession.
"Do you understand?"
Alex nodded, a full smile on his face. Once Reggie opened his arm for a hug, Alex had realized he was going to cry. Alex wrapped his arms around Reggies much smaller frame, collapsing into it just as Julie had done to him. He let light tears drop from his eyes into Reggies now snot-stained tee, his hair in his face.
Alex pulled back for a moment. "Thank you, Reggie. I'm sorry I got snot on your shirt," He said, laughing a little bit.
Reggie wiped Alex's tears with two gentle swipes of his thumbs. "Don't mention it," He said, smiling back at his puffy eyes.
"I was actually hoping I could talk to you about something," Caleb swallowed, holding Julie's hand over the restaurant table gingerly, her elbows barely touching the wood. He swallowed the lump in his throat and took a swig of his water with his free hand, resulting in a raised eyebrow from Julie as she rubbed the pads of Nick's fingers, waiting for what he was going to ask. Julie was wondering if maybe Nick was gonna ask about them, considering the circumstance they were in. Maybe it was a proposal for a second date? Maybe he was gonna ask her to be his girlfriend? Maybe a friend with benefits? Hopefully not.
"What's up?" Julie asked. Something didn't feel right at the moment, and the restaurant had managed to go from bustling to quiet.
Caleb set down his water and adjusted his crooked tie. He spied at Julie's hand in his. "Well, I was hoping that I could come to one of your performances. I would really like to see what goes on backstage; the technical stuff, y'know?"
Julie sighed, relaxing her face and her grip on Nick's hand loosened as she breathed out. This wasn't exactly what she had hoped for, but it was a start nonetheless.
"Oh yeah, totally," Julie said. The whole restaurant seemed to get even quieter for a moment as they spoke. Julie didn't know what she was supposed to show Nick now that he knew they were ghosts, considering that the facade was now nonexistent. There were no fake projectors anymore, crazy talks about algorithms and math, or any sitting on the floor fidgeting with her box. There wasn't really much to it besides the band just having fun performing, so she supposed that's what she'd show him.
Caleb noticed her anxiousness, and tried to hide the smirk that started to creep onto his face. His grip on her hand tightening ever so slightly as he spoke. "Good. Do you have any gigs coming up?" He said, eyebrows narrowing at her.
Julie nodded. "Yeah... One of the guys actually booked us a gig here, actually," She said, looking towards the gig stage behind Nick.
Caleb looked behind him to spy the stage, a microphone stand a single bottle of water the only thing on the platform. "I can't wait to see you perform again," He said, looking back at Julie from across the table.
"I've still gotta write a new song though," She said, sighing at the reminder, "I've kind of been a rut," She swallowed.
"Writer's block," He sighed, "I get it. It's damn annoying," He said. Julie just smiled awkwardly.
"Yeah..."
Caleb let go of Julie's hand, leaned back against the beat up leather booth, and smiled wider. "Hmm... How about you write one for me, will you?" He asked, "I think it will be a… good reminder of me," Caleb said, crossing his leg over his other one.
Julie giggled like a child. "Alright, Nick. I'll consider it," She said, her face souring a bit at the thought. She never wrote love songs, especially with having to write them with Luke, but maybe she could use that to her advantage. Jealousy was a dangerous thing, Julie thought, and she wasn't afraid of danger. As the conversation stopped awkwardly, a waiter approached their table with a tray of food, popping out the legs of the tray table to set it onto the tile.
"Foods here," Julie laughed awkwardly, darting her eyes towards Nick. Caleb smiled coyly, only rubbing his chin as he watched the waiter place their meals in front of each of them.
Luke stirred in the silence of the sunset, crickets chirping every so often. Lisa turned towards him, her eyebrows knitted together in concern at his frowning face and crossed arms. "You seem really upset," She paused, "I know you mentioned your old bandmate and all, but you really don't look okay," Lisa said, frowning at him.
Luke turned towards her, fidgeting with the pick in his pocket. "It's really nothing," He stated. The sentence came off more aggressive than he wanted it to.
Lisa made an annoyed face. "You can tell me, okay? Whatever it is, I won't judge you," She said, reaching a hand out to place it on his shoulder.
Luke's lip quivered slightly. He wanted to tell what happened, but also didn't want it to alter the way she viewed him. "Are you sure, because what I did was really shitty," He whispered
Lisa's soft features remained neutral. "I'm sure, Luke. What is it?" She pushed again.
Luke hesitated for a moment, not knowing if he should reveal the complicated relationship him and Julie shared, and how he just seriously fucked it up. This wasn't show and tell after all, but Luke couldn't stop himself from telling Lisa what happened; so despite these qualms, he decided to just get the whole thing off his chest. "Julie was really upset about the whole situation, right?" He said, Lisa nodding in understanding, "And I kinda wasn't there for her because I was here with you."
Lisa laughed, a level of hysteria Luke wished he could achieve. "That's it? You didn't do anything shitty; what's wrong with hanging out with me?" She continued to giggle, "If that's bad, you might as well call me a criminal," She laughed.
Luke's eyebrows knitted together, wondering why she wasn't berating him for the terrible thing he did. "Wait... so you're saying I didn't do anything wrong?" He asked, "It surely felt wrong."
"That's exactly what I'm saying," She said, adjusting her lipstick with her pinky finger around the edges of her lips.
"I didn't even get to really apologize to her, though. I just walked out," Luke tried to explain to her, disappointed at himself.
Lisa scoffed. "Life's too short to apologize for silly things," She said, "Now, where is the guitar practice I was promised I could watch?" She asked.
Luke wanted to believe Lisa's excuses, but couldn't help but feel selfish for what he had done. He knew that Julie was probably out at Barleys having fun and forgetting about what he had said, and that comforted him a bit, but still not enough to get rid of the sour expression on his face. He got up, adjusted the strap on his guitar and started to pick the strings to a new riff he had been working on.
Lisa bobbed her head to the music, relaxing in her plastic chair as she listened. His playing started off strong, but progressively got more and more erratic and offkey. Luke tried hard to focus on the chords he played, but he kept messing up. He couldn't seem to rid himself of his shame no matter what Lisa said, and his chord progression turned into a mess of off key notes.
"Oh my g- I'm so sorry," He apologized. "I just... I just can't really practice right now," He sighed, looking at Lisa for reassurance with a frown.
Lisa's features softened at his gaze, and she crossed her arms politely. "Hey, I didn't mean to make you even more anxious. I just thought my input would help–"
"It did not," Luke interrupted. The silence stirred, crickets chirping and horns honking the only thing making noise in that moment.
Lisa frowned. "I'm sorry," She said softly.
Luke nodded to show he understood her, then took the guitar off from around his neck. He grabbed Lisa's hand, curling her fingers outward to place his pick in it, then closed her hand again. He then promptly blinked away, and left Lisa sitting there on the back porch with nothing to say and his pick in her palm.
Trevor laid in his bed alone, tossing and turning as the polaroid of Sunset Curve crinkled in his left pocket. The moon shone through his window sill as the last bit of sunlight disappeared behind the Hollywood sign, bathing the little light it had onto Trevor's sheets. During his conversation with Linda before he had gone to bed, he had conjured up a letter for his very devoted fan club. The letter, mostly written by Linda, detailed his experience working with Sunset Curve, and the evidence he had found to prove that they were still roaming around. The only reason she agreed to do it was because he offered her a raise of one vacation to Cancun, enough to get her to shut up.
His fans, aptly named the WilSONS, would take to the floor to make sure this story blew up; he was sure of it. He had no doubt that he would be on the news by morning, so he laid comfortably in bed with a sound mind. The letter covered most of the important bits of his story, and proceeded as follows:
Dear WilSONS,
I have taken the time to craft you all a letter written entirely from my heart. Unfortunately, the news I regret to inform you is substandard. Before you get too in depth with this letter, I want to make something abundantly clear: I am telling the truth. As someone with a less than superb past, I feel the need to preface everything I say after these words are unequivocally, 100% true. Now that I have cleared that up, I will try to proceed as normal. I hope you understand my situation.
As some of my more devoted fans may know, I, Trevor Wilson, used to be in many bands back in the 1990s; some of my own creation, others I piggyback on. However, there is a small detail I have kept from you all for the past 30 years of my career: my most successful band is dead. I used to be a part of a late band called 'Sunset Curve,' A band that, if you are unfamiliar with, was disbanded because of a grave accident. One that I have never had the courage to speak on until now. My fellow bandmates included my friends: lead singer Luke Patterson, drummer Alexander Mercer, bassist Reginald Petters, and guitarist Bobby Shaw.
You may ask me, "What do I have to do with this band?" And the answer is simple. I am Bobby Shaw. Woefully, my best friends and bandmates were extinguished by means of staphylococcal and our spot in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was taken from us. Staphylococcal, also called staph, is rarely ever fatal, but the bacteria had managed to get into the bloodstreams of my friends and cause sepsis, leading to their deaths.
The unfortunate part about this whole situation is not the fatalities, however. The real horror of this story is where my bandmates now lie: the underworld. Unexpectedly and uncomfortably, I have come to know that my friends are not in heaven or hell, or any spiritual land that you would think people go to when they die. Despite the risk of allegations of lying, I must say that they have taken the form of spectral phantoms, and lack of proof is for naught. Below is embedded a photograph taken on July 22 of 1995 as well as an amateur video taken in September of 2020 of local band, "Julie and The Phantoms," Who claims my bandmates are merely holograms; my friends, who met such a fateful tragedy, now being exploited. Consumption of both media is self explanatory and I will not take accusations of sham lightly. Use this as you will.
Yours Truly, Trevor Wilson.
[ .2764]
[ /Julie-And-The-Phantoms-Bright]
Hopefully his followers would believe him, but he wasn't particularly nervous. This is the same group of people who stalked him, had tattoos of him on their asses, and made a snake bite them because he held the exact same one in a music video. Trevor swallowed hard, sent out the email to the fan club, clicked off his phone and drifted off to a peaceful sleep with the situation pushed out of his mind.
Carlos crept carefully into the garage with a stuffed animal bunny in his clutch, a sort of shield he had to protect from any ghosts or ghouls. In his other hand he sported a black flashlight directed towards the floor before him, lighting the floor up in a round, bright circle. As he crept toward the iPad in the corner of the room, Reggie and Alex slept peacefully on the couch and the red recliner chair adjacent to the tripod. As Carlos signed in to the iPad and opened the camera app, he checked for the recording. Despite looking through all other recordings in the camera roll, the one he had set up in the garage was gone.
"No. Freaking. Way," He whispered, clutching his toy bunny extra tight that time. He looked around the garage unsure of himself, wondering what to do next now that he was presented with this information: Either the recording shut off by itself or a particular set of ghosts did not enjoy being watched, and that thought was pretty scary to poor Carlos.
Carlos slowly backed away from the iPad, clumsily tripping over the carpet in the dark without care. His flashlight hit the floor with a loud thud, the light bouncing everywhere. He landed into the seat that Reggie was sprawled out on, clipping through his ghost body.
"Oof," Reggie groaned, sitting up after being woken up, "what just happened?" Reggie asked, looking down at his chest. Carlos was practically inside him. "That feels weird as hell."
Alex rubbed his groggy eyes and sat up on the couch. "Why are you up?" He said with a yawn. However, as his eyes turned from squints to fully awake pupils, his question answered itself. "Woah," He said.
"Get him off me!" Reggie started to freak out. Carlos pulled himself off of the chair, grabbing the bunny and flashlight that had scattered the concrete floor. Reggie exhaled a sigh of relief as he stood up, his chest feeling much less heavy now.
"What is the guy up to now?" Alex said, a hand behind his neck as he laid down.
Reggie adjusted himself on his seat, still sighing heavily. "I think he found the recording," He said.
After Carlos picked up his belongings, he turned around to head back to bed after his enamoring discovery. However, before Carlos could even make it to the door he spotted a disturbance in the seat. The leather cushion seemed to… move around? Carlos dropped the bunny from his left hand and walked towards the chair once again.
"Alex... what is he looking at?" Reggie said worriedly, looking up at Carlos nervously.
"Dude, I don't know," Alex said, watching the whole thing unfold before him.
Reggie sat still for a moment, watching Carlos' expression turn neutral. Although once Reggie moved again Carlos moved closer. Reggie raised an eyebrow. "What is he doing?" Reggie asked.
Alex drew an annoyed face. "I already told you I don't know," He explained.
Reggie moved once again, causing Carlos to look a little afraid. "Holy cow..." Carlos trailed off.
Reggie then realized what was going on in Carlos's little lifer-brain. The thing he was so enamored by was his movement against the chair; an anomaly that would make anyone stop and stare. "Wait, he can see the chair moving. Holy shit, he's looking at my butt print!" Reggie cackled.
"You are such a child," Alex sighed, laying back down to sleep. Reggie then began to move his hips around in the seat while laughing, watching intently for Carlos' reaction.
"That is definitely not normal," He bit his lip, "I don't think I should be here much longer," He whispered. Then Carlos panicked, dropping his flashlight once again and darting out of the garage with hasty feet.
Julie had been waiting patiently for Nick to finish his food, her hands crossed in her lap as she sat in the booth. Caleb hadn't had the feeling of being full since he died, and it felt great. He was hastily shoveling forkfuls of steak into his mouth, weird groans coming from the inside of his mouth. He honestly didn't really care what he looked like to the lifer world, he only cared about getting as much food into his now human stomach as possible.
Caleb set down his soiled fork, wiping his mouth with his suit sleeve. "I'll cover the bill," He said.
Julie smiled. "Thank you…" She said awkwardly after watching his odd way of eating.
She slid the receipt the waiter had brought over across the table to Nick, her hand retreating back to her lap. Caleb picked up the blue pen that rested on top and signed his name. It read, "Caleb Covington," Oops, he thought.
He covered the bottom portion of the receipt with his palm, holding it in his lap until the waiter came back over to take it. It would be really stupid of him to show Julie that he has the signature of her enemy, so he kept it hidden on his knees.
Julie and Caleb's eyes darted towards each other awkwardly as they sat at the booth waiting for the waiter to pick up the check. Julie swallowed hard, pulling out her wallet to grab a crisp five dollar bill from it.
"Here's for the tip," She said as Caleb awkwardly smiled back. He tapped his foot, and exhaled with a huff.
"Look, Julie. I realize there is some tension between us right now… and I know you feel it too," Caleb stated blankly.
Julie looked up from her lap with a surprised look on her face. "Wait… really?" She questioned. "Like... tension?"
Caleb nodded, playing along dumbly. He didn't exactly feel comfortable knowing a 16 year old girl had a crush on him, but he had to put up with it anyway for his own procure. Young love could be the foundation of trust with Julie, and being allowed to get closer to her was an asset Caleb was not willing to give up.
Julie leaned across the table at a slow pace, hesitating for a moment before she made her decision. Caleb, quick to move, turned his head to the side to give Julie the cheek. She pecked his rosy teenage jawbone instead, retreating back to her seat just as fast as the kiss had lasted.
Caleb swallowed hard. "Uh... thank you," He said, struggling to keep a smile. Julie smiled back just as the waiter came over and grabbed the bill.
"Thanks for dining with us…" the waiter looked down at the signature, "Caleb," She said, walking away with a smile on her face.
Julie raised an eyebrow. "Caleb? What is she talking about?" She asked Nick, concerned.
"Guess my handwriting is just that bad," Caleb said.
Julie chuckled, brushing the weird situation off, then made a split second decision to get up. After a few seconds of confused stares from Nick, she stuck out her hand as a greeting, and pulled Nick up out of his seat with haste. After he caught his footing from the reckless yank, he was lugged out of Barleys by Julie's eager hand onto the street.
Pushing through the exit doors, she stood still for a minute under the moon, the light pollution making it more bright out than normal. The Barleys sign flickered a bit, making it look like the sign actually read Barles. Julie twirled around in the Los Angeles wind childishly, Caleb watching unamused.
She stopped her movement for a moment. "Nick… I'm really happy you took me out tonight. I needed it,"
Caleb smiled. "No problem, Julie," He replied blankly.
"And now I will officially promise to write that song for you. My three little ghosts will stay out of it completely," She declared. Caleb's mouth seemed to curl into a smile when she said 'ghosts.'
Caleb shoved his hands in his pants pockets, clicking his tongue. "Will I get to hear it when you perform this weekend?" He asked her.
Julie's curls fluttered in the wind. "You sure will," She said, "at least I hope," She smiled.
"And you can't imagine how much I hope I do as well," He smirked, narrowing his brows.
Luke watched Lisa's hair blow in the breezy wind as she slept in the lawn chair, the sun creeping up behind her, studying her dark features and her smeared red lipstick. If he was honest with himself, Lisa was extremely beautiful, a thought that angered the part of his brain that still liked Julie. Her brown hair fell like gentle rain, framing the sides of her face perfectly, and Luke couldn't help but just stare at her sleeping face.
As he continued to stare at her, she opened her eyes with a flutter staring right back. "You should take a picture, it will last longer," She said groggily, laughing a bit.
Luke didn't crack a smile nor even chuckle. He just watched her. "Do you know how you look when you sleep?" He asked her point blank, not hesitating at all.
"Uh... no?" She said, obviously confused.
Luke smiled. "You look pretty," He whispered. He leaned over the plastic chair and wiped a stray hair out of Lisa's face. She struggled to hide the blush on her cheeks, hoping he wouldn't notice it.
"Gosh, you're pretty," He whispered yet again, this time even breathier.
Lisa smiled. "You think so?"
Luke nodded. No longer did Julie blur the forefront of his mind when he was around Lisa, however that didn't mean she was really gone from his thoughts. Luke was distracted, and he liked being distracted. If Lisa could keep Julie off his mind for at least a little bit, he was going to take that. He took a deep breath and smiled back at Lisa. "I know so. I see it right in front of me."
Lisa got up out of the plastic chair and stood in front of Luke. The sun shone behind her, casting a dark shadow right through her and Luke's ghostly bodies. "I guess it's safe to assume you're feeling better about Julie?" She asked, hands on her hips.
This reminder made Luke frown. "I was until you mentioned her."
Lisa's face fell. "Hmm…" She hummed, "Well, how about I tell you a story, huh?" She asked. She sat crisscrossed in the pavement below Luke, looking up at him in the chair.
"Back in 1981, I had freshly been signed to a modeling contract," She started.
"A good one?"
"That damn document covered all my insurance, gave me tons of leeway in my career, and secured me enough money to buy the Taj Mahal... basically everything," Lisa started.
"That's great, but what does this have to do with anything?" Luke asked.
"Let me finish," Lisa shushed him. "Anyway, I was in downtown LA doing a runway for a local brand called, 'La Mode C'est L'amour' and they had offered me a ton of money for the show. I was living paycheck to paycheck at the time, so I really needed that," Luke nodded in understanding, "So, I had been given this really pretty white dress made of raw silk," She gestured down to the outfit she was wearing, "and I was ready to go out on the runway."
Luke knew exactly where this story was headed. Looks like Lisa hadn't gotten those fresh clothes after death yet like he and the band had.
"The high heels I was wearing were absolutely unwearable; I'm talking about a 7 inch heel–"
"I know exactly where this is going," Luke cringed.
"–when I made it to the part where I had to turn, I fell. I fell hard," She swallowed. "I fell on one of the miniature lamp posts fastened around the stage, and it went right through me."
Luke winced. "Yikes... so you got impaled?" He asked.
Lisa nodded. "I couldn't get myself off of it. By the time an ambulance had arrived, my blood painted that fashion show."
Luke made a disgusted face. "So… what is the point of this story?"
"After I died I was so angry at myself for such a simple mistake. If I hadn't worn those stupid shoes, I probably would have been living lavishly on a yacht somewhere in Monaco," She sighed, "I lived my life in such shame that I sat by that store curb for about 12 years."
Luke furrowed his brows in concern. "Wow."
"Wow" is correct. But, here's the part where this pertains to you, I eventually realized that my death wasn't my fault; I was told to wear those shoes, I had been paid to walk that stage, and I did not install those lamps," Luke nodded, "So... what I'm essentially trying to say is that you shouldn't blame yourself for things out of your control. How were you supposed to know Julie was dealing with the Trevor situation alone?"
Luke sat still for a moment, looking down at Lisa on the concrete for a moment. "I guess you're correct about that part. However, I did do something wrong," He sighed.
"What's that?" She asked Luke.
"I wasn't there for her after I had found out," He sulked.
Lisa frowned and rubbed Luke's shoulder, tracing over a small tattoo under his forearm. "Well, just look where you are. You have to wait until she comes home to figure this out, but for now, just sit here with me," She asked him.
Luke looked at his calloused fingers on the arms of the plastic chair. "Okay… okay," He finally relinquished.
"Good," She smiled back.