Chapter 3: Encounter
As the band left the stage the girls went out to the patio to talk about the performance.
"Omg those guys rocked!" screamed Dawn
"Yeah they really did! The energy, the skill. Who knew they had so much talent? Plus, that guy with the guitar was cute. I think I have him for my government class!" Misty said excitedly
"What did you think of the show May?" Dawn questioned her blue-eyed friend
"I've never heard anything like that before. I always thought that metal, emo stuff was about devil worship and plain screaming. But after that performance I have a different perspective on it now!" May said still in shock
"Well whatever it was, it was so good! Maybe that Gary guy will show me some more songs!" said Misty with hearts in her eyes
"That guy on base was hot! I might look for him on Monday for sure!" said Dawn with a look of determination
Although May did not wanna admit that she was looking at another boy. her eyes were glued onto a very specific lead vocalist.
"I thought the guy singing. Ash, right? I think he did a really good job and his energy was so- "
May was immediately cut off by both girls: "OMG!"
"May do you like him?!" Dawn teased
"I'd totally ship them together!" Said Misty who noticed the teasing
"What?! No! I have a boyfriend remember." An annoyed May said
Dawn replied: "I know May we're only kidding. Come on it is getting late we should all head home."
The Next Day
Ash woke up the next day feeling like he was on top of the world. He had a big day ahead of him. He was going to meet his friends at the mall and talk about their performance. After he showered, he put on a Van Halen T-shirt some khaki jeans and vans. After he got dressed, he air-guitared his way into the kitchen where his mom was making breakfast.
"Good morning ma" he said as he made his way to the dinner table
"Good morning sweetheart how did your gig go?" said an excited Delia Ketchum
"Great! We really gave it our all at least that is how I feel about it. I am hanging with the guys today to go over everything."
"Okay honey, have fun and be careful" she said as she leaned in and kissed her son on his head
"Thanks mom I'm so glad you support my dreams. I promise I'm going to become successful because of music and then I'm going to buy you a big house."
Ash and his mom lived in an apartment on the north side of pallet which was known as the 'ghetto' because of the reputation for crimes. However, it did not matter to him or his friends because to them it was home.
Ash looked at his watch that read 11:45 "I got to go! Mom can I take the car today please?"
"Sure, hon just be careful please." she said
"Will do! Thanks mom I'll see you later!"
At the Maple residence
Saturday morning arose, May was up and excited. Her and Drew were going to spend the entire day together. She was finishing up the final touches on her makeup. She wore a white bandana and a yellow romper with white converse.
"I wonder where Drew is going to take me! I hope it is to brunch or a picnic!
*Ding Dong the doorbell chimed
'" Ahh he's here!" She hurried putting on her lip gloss and ran downstairs.
"Hi honey" She was greeted with a single rose and a kiss to the lips
"Drew... this was unexpected, thank you." She said with a hint of blush running across her face
Drew had on a green polo with khaki pants and a pair of loafers.
"Ready to go? My parents just bought me a 2019 Cadillac CTS and I've been wanting to break it in" He said with excitement
"Woah you're so lucky! What are we going to do today babe?" She asked
"I was thinking we go to the mall and take you on a shopping spree"
"Oh" she said with a hint of disappointment
"Come on, lets get you some sexy clothes." He said and with that they were on their way
At the mall
Ash and his friends had been walking around the mall working up their appetite. After constant walking they decided to go to the food court to discuss the events that occurred the following night.
"Alright fuckers, about last night…" Gary started
"Did you see all the chicks?! They loved us!" Brock screamed with excitement
"You idiot we're talking about us, how we sounded!" Paul retorted
"Oh yeah, I knew that" Brock said nervously
"I think we kicked ass. Not only that but did you see how packed the place was? I swear I felt like we were Metallica up there!" said Gary
"Woah easy their Oak. There is no way I'll ever be James Hetfield. However, we did put on a hell of a show. Everything was on point. From the insane base skills, the shredding guitar and not to mention how hard you were whacking those drums Brock!"
"Okay well how about you Mr. Hype Man?! You were killing it with the crowd interactions!" Paul said with enthusiasm.
"I was just doing what all great vocalists should do and that's playing each show like it's our last!"
"So, I guess we can all agree that there was nothing but positives from last night, right? Brock asked
"Fuck yeah!" screamed the other three members
"Let's go check out the guitar center!" Gary suggested
Although she was upset about her "date" that didn't mean May wasn't going to take advantage of free stuff. After 45 minutes of shopping at different stores she stopped in front of a store with the logo being red and in the shape of a guitar.
"Woah… Drew can we go in here pretty please!?"
"What?! All the creepy goths hang here! I am going to H&M to check out the clothes. You have 5 minutes!"
Back with the band
"I'm going to check out the posters." Said Brock
"I'm going to play the electronic drum kit." Said Paul
"And I'll be checking out the turntables." said Gary
With his friends going on their own Ash decided to go check out the acoustic room where he can have some alone time.
"Woah, this place is so cool!" May was amazed by all the things the store had to offer. From records, instruments, souvenirs, she was astonished.
"No wonder the goth kids hang out here, this place is huge!
Suddenly, she noticed a room right in the middle of the store. It was a room full of acoustic guitars. She thought that nobody was in there, so she opened the door to get a closer look inside.
"Woah these guitars are beautiful"
May sat down on a pillar bench noticing that the room was absolutely silent. She enjoyed the quietness as it echoed throughout the room but before she could process a thought, she heard the strings of guitar and the voice of a musician coming from the other side.
Ash Began:
Send away for a priceless gift
One not subtle, one not on the list
Send away for a perfect world
One not simply, so absurd
In these times of doing what you're told
Keep these feelings, no one knows
What ever happened to the young man's heart?
Swallowed by pain, as he slowly fell apart
And I'm staring down the barrel of a 45
Swimming through the ashes of another life
No real reason to accept the way things have changed
Staring down the barrel of a 45
As Ash held that note May started smiling at the rasp but calmness in his tone of voice.
Send a message to the unborn child
Keep your eyes open for a while
In a box high up on the shelf, left for you, no one else
There's a piece of a puzzle known as life
Wrapped in guilt, sealed up tight
What ever happened to the young man's heart?
Swallowed by pain, as he slowly fell apart
And I'm staring down the barrel of a 45
Swimming through the ashes of another life
No real reason to accept the way things have changed
Staring down the barrel of a 45
Everyone's pointing their fingers
Always condemning me
Tears began running down Ash's face.
And nobody knows what I believe
I believe
And I'm staring down the barrel of a 45
Swimming through the ashes of another life
No real reason to accept the way things have changed
Staring down the barrel of a 45
And I'm staring down the barrel of a 45
And I'm swimming through the ashes of another life
There is no real reason to accept the way things have changed
Staring down the barrel of a 45, 45
A/N: So, I left this chapter on a cliff hanger! Sorry but I figured why not give the reader some motivation to continue this story! I apologize if I took long, I went out of town to visit my sister for the weekend! For this chapter I wanted to bring out a little more emotion in the band and the differences between Drew and Ash. Please leave a review, recommendations are always welcomed as well. Thanks for reading! I appreciate it and rock on!
Song I used was 45 by Shinedown (Acoustic Version) one of my favorites!
I do not own the rights to any songs/bands I use or Pokemon whatsoever! Peace!
