Chapter 2
I lock my bike at the front entrance, locking my helmet along with it. It being in the afternoon, most people were walking around, enjoying the bright sun warming the earth. The sun is high, casting its warm golden glow over everything, the air thick with the scent of fresh grass and the faint hum of distant conversations. As I walk around the right side of the Monona Terrace, I'm greeted by the sight of groups of friends lounging and laughing at the colorful tables scattered across the outdoor patio. A vibrant mosaic of red, green, yellow, and orange metal chairs, all facing the sparkling waters of Lake Monona. The clink of glass pitchers filled with beer punctuates the air, mixing with the sound of cards shuffling as people engage in friendly games. The lively chatter and easy laughter of the crowd create a warm, communal atmosphere. As I move closer to the second level down, my eyes meet my friends', their smiles wide as they wave me over to join them at a table that overlooks the water, offering a perfect view of the shimmering lake.
"Bella! Over here," Alice called, motioning me over. I snagged the open chair they saved for me and plopped down.
"You want in on this hand? We're playing spades," Jasper said as he started dealing out.
"I'm in."
Cards are dealt and we make our bids. I take an empty cup and pour myself a beer from the pitcher they got before I arrived. It's not as crowded now that it's May and a lot of students are at home for the summer. I like it better that way. There's a lot more space it seems and the world seems like it's your own for a bit. The stage was still empty, but there were always music events in the evenings in the summer, and apparently that guy Edward had known it would be good tonight.
"I saw Lakeside Echos posted about that gig you mentioned last week, Emmet told me he wanted to bring his cousin that just moved here over the summer," Rosalie mentioned. She and I had been friends since the dorms. We lived down the hall from each other in Dejope and had met in one of the hall meetings that first semester. It was slow moving and wasn't an immediate attraction, but I grew to realize that she didn't hang onto anyone right away until she knew your true intentions. You could say she was reserved, but really she only gave her full light to those closest to her.
"Oh yeah, it's an open invite. We are opening for Gumdrop Hero again so the usual crowd should pull up." My band, Lakeside Echos, had been reaching out to other more established bands in Madison to start playing around at house gigs, or anything we could get our hands on at this point. We had a pretty good base of written and covers and were just itching to play more really. We had an upcoming basement gig on Friday with this band Gumdrop Hero that played a lot of house parties and the occasional gig at Gamma Ray bar.
Alice, who up until that point had been occupied by her ice cream and hand of cards, started chatting about the mention of the gig this weekend.
Alice and I had been inseparable for two years now, practically experts in each other by now. We met by working together at a coffee shop on Regent. She had been my trainer, and had to witness me embarrass myself over and over for weeks,don't even ask about the "milk disaster" incident. I was a bit of a mess those days, but she never made me feel stupid, always just shrugged it off with that easy laugh of hers. Honestly, I think she started to enjoy watching my "fail moments" because, every time she would be laughing at my flops, but was always there to help me make it right. It was like I was her personal project and we couldn't be parted with since. We clicked in a way I hadn't before with a girl friend. It was like we just got each other, and everything felt effortless.
Alice had been dating my bandmate Jasper for a while now, most of our junior year. He and I had been jamming with our other bandmate Garrett since most of college. He and Alice took notice of each other at one function and effortlessly made a relationship
Friday evening rolls around, and the band is finishing up a pre-show practice. Alice is also present, loving to come to practices. We've been running through the setlist, making sure everything's tight. As we get to the last few songs, we decide to throw in Aquarius Rising. We haven't played it much lately, but Alice had asked Jasper to play it—it's her favorite song of ours, and he never really says no to her.
"I'm glad we're doing this one tonight," Alice says, looking over at Jasper with a teasing smile. "You know it's my favorite."
Jasper rolls his eyes, but there's no hiding the fondness in his smile. "Yeah, yeah, don't act like you're not always the one pushing for it." He strums the opening chord. "Alright, let's do it for Alice."
I laugh as I get into position. "At least it's not another one of your random cover requests," I say to Alice, sticking my tongue out. "I swear, we've done more Fleetwood Mac than I ever thought possible."
Alice grins, unbothered. "Hey, the people want it. Don't Stop is a classic."
"Sure, but Aquarius Rising is our classic," Jasper retorts, turning back to the guitar. "And Bella, you better belt it out like you're getting paid for it."
"Always," I smirk, knowing full well they're all watching me for this one. It's one of my only full vocal songs, and I'm not shy about giving it everything I've got.
Jasper, Alice and I arrive together with most of our gear. Garrett is behind us with Seth and the rest of the gear. We text the person hosting and get inside to start dropping off our cases and chords. Friends of the house owners are already here, with some beers cracked open and chatting away, not paying us too much mind. Since I have only my guitar to plug in and the next band was also bringing mics, I decided to take a moment for a pre-show ritual.
On the back steps I pulled out the joint I rolled earlier for this exact moment. It's a little ritual of mine before a show—just a quiet moment to myself. I let the calmness of it sink in, exhaling slowly and letting the good energy flow in. This is my reset. A deep breath, a little smoke, and I'm ready to go.
I hear footsteps, and when I look up, I spot Rosalie, Emmett, and... wait a second. That's the guy from earlier in the week—the one I ran into like a total wrecking ball. Great, just great. He's walking up with them, hands stuffed into his pockets, trying to look casual, but there's something about the way he holds himself that says he's anything but.
"Hey Bella! Excited for tonight?" Emmett greets me, sliding his arm around my shoulders in a friendly side squeeze. I smile and return the gesture. I've known Emmett for a while now, and the guy's got that effortless charm about him—always ready with a joke or a laugh. He's a good time.
"Always," I reply, taking another drag off the joint before offering it to him.
Emmett doesn't hesitate this time. He grabs it with a smirk. "Thanks," he says, leaning back and puffing out a cloud of smoke, his eyes half-lidded. "I can't lie, I've been waiting all day to light up?" Emmett just started working at an internship full time over the summer. Our smoke sessions have significantly lessened in the last few weeks.
I laugh and shake my head. "I can imagine."
Rosalie chuckles and nudges Emmett. "Just don't get too far gone just yet. I don't wanna have to drag your crossed ass home again."
"Don't worry, it's just a few hits." Emmett puffs out another breath of smoke and passes it back to me.
That faint glint in his eyes? I remember that from earlier this week. It's hard to forget someone you literally crash into. I take a drag, holding the smoke in for a second longer than usual. Then, slowly, I turn back to face him. He meets my eyes, and for a moment, neither of us says anything.
Our eyes lock. I could feel the air between us shift. Neither of us speaks immediately. The moment feels stretched, like we're both processing the awkward collision—or maybe just the fact that it's happening again, this time in a completely different context.
"Bella, this is my cousin Edward. He's finishing up at UW this coming year and moved to spend time this summer and get a feel for it all."
Edward shifts slightly, a half-smile tugging at his lips. He steps forward and extends a hand toward me. "Hi, Bella. Nice to officially meet you," he says, his voice smooth but carrying that double meaning.
I glance at his hand, then back up at his face. "Yeah, I think we've already met. Just not in the smoothest way," I say, an eyebrow quirking as I remember the "collision" that kicked this all off.
Edward's smile turns into a smirk. "Definitely not the best first impression," he admits, but his voice has this playfully challenging tone, like he's daring me to come up with something more clever than that.
I take a drag from the joint and exhale slowly, playing it cool. "Hey, at least you'll never forget it," I retort, grinning. "Not everyone gets the honor of literally running into me."
He laughs, but it's more of a low chuckle, as if he's enjoying the challenge. "Lucky me, right?" His eyes flicker, a little teasing, a little intense.
Rosalie's been watching the whole exchange, then throws a wink at Edward. "You're in for a treat. Bella's got some serious vocal chops. You might even like it more than Gumdrop Hero's set."
Edward's gaze flickers between me and Rosalie, then back to me. "I'll be the judge of that," he says, his voice calm but with a little edge to it. There's something about his tone that makes me think he's not just talking about the music.
"I'll be expecting a full review then," I shoot back with a teasing smile.
When we step on stage to set up, I give a look over at the crowd—there's a nice mix of people, but they're mostly waiting for the main event. Gumdrop Hero's playing after us, and honestly, it's their crowd, but maybe we can win a few of them over before they take the stage.
A few songs through the set we got to Aquarius Rising, my first only vocal song of the set. The first few notes from the guitar struck and I could hear a holler from Alice, jumping a bit and raising her hand. She has been a fan of our songs since we really started writing. She truly was there for the music and knew every word at this point. I could see Emmet wrap his arms around Rose's torso, nodding his head when Garrett's drums kicked in.
I can already feel that familiar flutter of nerves in my chest. It always happens just before I'm about to start singing—like a quick tightness, then a rush of adrenaline. We dive into the song, and I feel the nerves I always get before the first big note hits. But as I sing the opening line, the room fills with that familiar rush of confidence. I catch Alice's eyes, and her smile makes me feel like I'm already winning the crowd over.
Garrett's beat kicks in, and I lose myself in the song, focusing only on the rhythm, the melody, and the words—this song feels like it was made for me to sing. I could see Alice lean up to Edward in a way that looked like she was telling him I told you so.
During the build up to the chorus I caught his eye in the crowd next to Emmett and Rose. I was immediately locked into place. I was more like singing to him than anything and at that point, I really only wanted to convey the words to him, sharing a secret only he was allowed in on. Once the chorus came in, I was on fire, moving around on the makeshift stage, commanding attention. We practiced so much in the last month that it was all well versed and I could really start to riff on the melody. Even though I played guitar in most of our songs, I knew singing is what instrument I was meant to do. And this song had me on a control trip like no other. I secretly love the adrenaline that comes with playing live and having people like what you are doing. Something so personal and vulnerable can really captivate people and see it reflected back at you is a feeling like no other. Feeling Edward's eyes on me was no exception.
He didn't stop staring at me the entire set.
After the break between our set and the next band, I was standing next to Rose talking about her new summer job working for a local paper. She was going to school for journaling and had to get some experience. Emmett walked up behind her, Edward trailing too and ending up being right behind me. The crowd started moving back in, probably from grabbing drinks in between. Emmett started joining in with me and Rose about her job starting Monday. The Gumdrop Hero's members started filing onto the makeshift stage and the crowd pushed closer to bring Edward right up behind me because of it. They introduced themselves and people let out some woops or hollers. The drums led in with a few clicks of the drum sticks and a catchy guitar riff pierces the dull noise of the crowd.
I could feel his warmth right behind me, his presence so close now that the second band's set began to pulse through the air, the first notes thrumming like a heartbeat. The energy of the crowd began to shift, a slow crescendo building, and my skin buzzed with the heat and the electricity between us. They were playing one of their more recognizable songs so you could hear people singing along to the chorus around us. But I really wasn't paying attention to any lyrics at this point.
It felt like we were both caught in the same magnetic pull, swaying together as the music wrapped around us. The bass lines—thick, gritty, and infectious—rippled through the floor, vibrating in my chest. The rhythm was relentless, hypnotic, coaxing everyone to lose themselves in the chaos and beauty of it all. The crowd moved as one, and for a moment, we were moving together.
But the moment was fleeting when Emmett started striking up a conversation with him after the song had ended, bursting the bubble I was in.
After the set had ended and I helped the guys with packing the gear, I looked around for Emmett and Rose to see how they were getting home.
I must have had a look of disdain on my face because Edward walked up to me to offer to get me home.
"I can walk you home, it's no problem." He said with his hands in his pockets, watching Emmett and Rose head toward his car. From the looks of it, they weren't exactly trying to hide how much they wanted to take each other's clothes off.
I hesitated for a second, but only because I'd been the third wheel enough times to know how awkward it could get if I let myself fall into that role. But I wasn't going to leave Rose and Emmett to their own devices without at least offering an alternative. "Sure, I live in Vilas. It's a bit of a walk, though—if you're up for it."
Edward's eyes lit up with that familiar, half-smirking glint. "As long as I can smoke a joint and pick your brain on the way," he said, already pulling a joint from his pocket like he'd been waiting for the moment all night.
"You got a lighter?"
Without missing a beat, I dug into my pocket, pulling out the lighter I had in my pocket from earlier. "Oh yeah, here," I said, handing it over.
Edward took it with a grateful nod, then flicked it to light the joint. His eyes stayed locked on mine for a second longer than necessary, a flicker of something unspoken passing between us before he took a slow drag, letting the smoke curl up into the night air.