Alice woke up in her bed after yet another nightmare.
This time, the dream didn't drag her down. She didn't care about the flames or the screams—she just climbed out of bed and started getting ready.
Today was the big day, the day of their gig, but before that she still had to get through a shift, and if everything went well, maybe it would be her last.
She peeked into her sister's room for a moment. She could hear her soft breathing—Lucy was sleeping deeply, and Alice didn't plan to wake her.
In the past few days their father had behaved the same as always. He was almost constantly drunk, but at least he stayed quiet.
Alice cleaned every corner of the apartment, except for their father's room, where empty bottles had piled up and the stench of vomit hung in the air. Unfortunately she could smell it in the hallway too, because his door had been left open.
She walked up to the door and simply closed it. She hadn't seen their father in days, and it was better that way—she could stay much calmer, and she also kept the promise she'd made to Lucy: she didn't shout, she didn't argue.
She went into the kitchen to make breakfast and brew coffee.
After she set the toast, the eggs, and the mug of hot drink on the table, she looked out the window over the city.
You could see a slice of the Crow's Nest roof—the venue where they would be playing. She could hardly wait to sing there.
Lately, things had been going pretty well. Ervin really liked their music, and despite his oddness he wasn't bad company either. He was ideal as a manager.
After the last incident, of course, nobody left their instruments in the rehearsal room anymore. Alice kept the insanely expensive guitar she'd been given with her at all times.
Once she'd eaten her breakfast and finished her coffee, she quickly did her makeup, fixed her hair, and slung the guitar—inside its case—over her shoulder.
After her shift, she was supposed to meet the others at the rehearsal room, and then they could head to the gig.
Before she left the apartment, she placed a note next to the breakfast she'd made for her sister. It read: "Enjoy your meal, my princess!"
***
The shift started the way it always did, with one exception: this time, Alice wasn't late by even a minute.
That even managed to surprise her coworker, because until now he'd always arrived earlier than her, but this time she beat him.
— Look at that enthusiasm. Today's the big day, right?
— Yeah. Today I could smile even at the biggest asshole.
— Damn. Well, you're gonna need that big smile soon—rush hour's coming.
— Are you intentionally trying to ruin my mood?
— Come on, I'm just stating a fact. It's Saturday, and within two hours it'll be noon.
— Just fry those fries, I'm going to the register.
The first customers arrived, and Alice greeted them kindly.
As time went on, more and more people came in, and among them were plenty of rude and clueless types, not to mention the whining kids.
But Alice was motivated—more motivated than she'd ever been before—and nothing could break that momentum.
Even her boss noticed how cheerful she was today, and because she patiently served a bunch of truly stupid customers, he praised her.
Near the end of her shift, the most hated face of all showed up—someone she knew well: Rex.
There was still a faint trace of last week's fight on him, and when he saw Alice, he just grinned. One of his teeth was missing.
It didn't seem like an easy task, but Alice could even smile at Rex today, and she even read him the menu despite the fact it was posted practically everywhere.
— List the burgers again!
— Why, of course. I'm happy to help my illiterate fellow man. — Alice said with a smile.
Rex eventually chose what he wanted, which took a while. He was probably messing with Alice on purpose.
Alice brought him the burgers, the fries, and the cola, and she would've hurried back to the register, but Rex spoke up.
He judged the meat in his burger to be raw. He probably hadn't even taken a bite—he just wanted to be difficult.
It wasn't easy to throw Alice off on a day this great. She took the burgers back into the kitchen and told her coworker to remake them, this time more well-done.
When that was done and she brought the burgers back to the table again, Rex still complained—this time he claimed the meat was burnt.
Alice returned to him, took the food, and went back into the kitchen again.
Of course Rex didn't want to stop. The third time he still wasn't satisfied with the taste.
— I'm not willing to pay for this shit.
— I'm sorry the work of Burger Emperor's best cook doesn't meet your standards. I'm sure you could do it much better.
— Hell yeah, I grill all the time, I just won't work in a leper place like you. Where's this cook?
— Hector, could you come here for a moment?
Alice's coworker shuffled out immediately, and when he saw Rex up close he got a little scared.
— Y-yes? What's wrong?
— The gentleman doesn't like your cooking.
— Yeah, this is shit. — Rex held up the meat. — Find a different job, you dumbass.
— Sorry if y-you didn't like it.
— Ah, I don't care. — Rex stood up from the table, then knocked the burgers and fries onto the floor. — Clean it up, morons.
Hector really didn't like any of this, and even though he wasn't very brave, he felt like he had to say something to Rex as he was leaving.
— G-get the hell out of here, you jerk!
Rex turned around and it looked like he was about to go after Hector, and Alice wasn't going to let that happen.
Alice stepped in front of Hector to protect him, and they stared each other down, tense.
— Your buddy isn't here this time, bitch. You know how this ends, right?
Suddenly the boss appeared behind Rex and poked him in the back.
Rex turned around—and took a powerful right straight to the face.
He tried to strike back, but only managed to punch the air, because the boss ducked, then hit him in the face again with his iron-hard fist.
Rex hit the floor, clutching his jaw.
— Get the fuck out of my restaurant, you worm! — he snapped.
Rex got up off the floor and started weighing his options. They had the numbers, so he walked out and left them—he didn't want to end up like last time.
The boss let out a sigh and rubbed his fist.
— Fuck, that hurts. That asshole's got a hard face. Lucky nobody was here anymore, I would've lost a few customers.
— Wow, that was something else. — Alice said.
— See, kid? You duck, and they can't hit you. Now clean this up and get out of here—you can leave early today.
— Oh, boss, where's all this kindness coming from?
— Move it before I change my mind!
So they hurried off and started cleaning.
***
At last, what they'd been waiting for arrived.
In the rehearsal room they played through their songs a few more times, then packed everything into the van Justin's father had lent them and headed to the Crow's Nest.
They got out in the parking lot, and Hector showed up—Alice's coworker—because he was there to watch Lucy.
A lot of people were there, of course mostly because of the other bands they already knew well.
Sixty Wires was the highlight of the night—one of the city's most beloved bands. They played regularly.
The first band was already halfway through their set when they pushed their gear behind the stage.
They were all nervous, especially Pinky, who was just glad she could hide behind the drums where she wouldn't be so visible.
— Not gonna lie, I've got a bit of stage fright. — Justin said. — How are you holding up?
Cornel was sipping from a beer bottle.
— It'd be nice to drink more of this.
— We've all heard you play drunk and you can't do it, so forget it.
— I don't think it'll be a problem. — Alice replied. — If it goes like rehearsal, we've got this.
Ervin appeared, and he just couldn't seem to stop bowing, like it had already become part of him.
— Well then, it is good to see you again. I took the liberty of bringing the contract; it is in the car. I believe it is a fair offer, but please feel free to read it once you are finished. In the meantime—break a leg.
— Thanks, Mr. Count. I think we've got it. — Justin said.
***
The first band stepped off the stage, and finally it was Alice's turn.
They were very nervous, but at the same time they were ready to finally prove themselves to the crowd.
Alice stepped up to the microphone, her fingers already clinging to the strings.
— Hello to this wonderful crowd! We are Alice in Hellland, and this is our first concert with you. Are you ready?! — she shouted.
The audience screamed yes, and they could hardly wait for the show.
Pinky counted them in, and the band launched into it.
They decided to start with their best song—the one Alice had written not long ago.
The bass thundered, the noise poured out, they went all in right from the start, and the crowd appreciated it.
By the first chorus, more than a few people realized this band was bringing something new—something unexpected.
Alice's powerful voice filled the Crow's Nest, and more and more people left the bar to get a better look at the band.
Lucy was there further back. Hector lifted her onto his shoulders so she could see more, and she waved her little hand enthusiastically and screamed the lyrics she already knew well.
When their first song, "Burn With Me!", ended, the crowd showed their approval with clapping and cheering.
After that, performing the rest of their songs wasn't hard at all—they quickly got fired up.
The crowd was crazy about their music, especially Alice's voice, and she wasn't bad as a frontwoman either—she moved a lot with the crowd.
During their last song, Alice did something bold and jumped into the audience. Luckily the guitar cable was long enough, so it wasn't a problem for her to keep playing even while lying over people's hands.
After she got back on stage and they finished the song, the crowd demanded an encore, so they played "Burn With Me!" again—this time it went even better than the first.
The concert ended in a huge storm of applause, a success. Alice had never been this happy and free in her life.
They did it. They got their first push, and from here, a straight road could lead to the stars.
***
After they watched Sixty Wires perform—who of course got much louder cheering and applause—they sat down at one of the tables to celebrate.
Lucy, sitting next to Alice, sipped cola through a pink straw, still hyped up considering they were already past her bedtime.
— We're leaving soon, okay? — Alice told her.
— Ah, I'm not sleepy! It's a party! — Lucy said excitedly.
— Okay, but tell me if you get sleepy.
— He's sleepy, not me! — she pointed at Cornel.
Cornell had already passed out, no surprise—he really couldn't handle alcohol at all. You could already see during the Sixty Wires set that it was going to be too much for him.
— Who's he sleeping at?
— At my place. — Justin replied. — Like always. And did you guys read the contract too? Ervin's offer is really good. He said if we want, we can sign tomorrow too—we can even ask for legal help.
— Yeah, I think it'll be better to talk tomorrow. — Alice pointed at Cornel. — We need his signature too.
— Well, I think we could fake it, just like I had them put the booze on his name. — Justin laughed.
— Oh, you're such an asshole. — Alice said with a grin.
— He owed me and wanted to pay me back after the concert. Well, we're after the concert, aren't we?
— We are. Then let's drink to Cornel!
They clinked glasses, and even little Lucy proudly raised her cola into the air. They were happy, carefree, full of life.
The mood only got better when a few fans showed up and congratulated them—but the real surprise came when one of Sixty Wires' guitarists stopped at their table.
He decided to join them, and they couldn't exactly say no. They happily listened to the advice of a guitarist far more experienced than them.