Riffs in Time

Chapter Thirteen

"Only if they fail to sing along." He smiled smugly.

I was seconds away from embarrassing myself further when, by the grace of whatever higher power was looking out for me, Frank barreled in and grabbed me in a hug. "I HAVE BIG NEWS."

"Oh god."

"I PROPOSED TO JAMIA."

I gasped. "Frank, that's amazing!"

"Right?! She actually said yes!"
I grinned. "Of course, she did! She's been dealing with you this long—might as well make it official."

Frank cackled, shoving my arm. "Wow, thanks for the vote of confidence."

Mikey clapped him on the back. "Nah, man, congrats. She's too good for you, but I respect her commitment."

Frank beamed, then turned to me. "What about you, Yana? Still doing that casual dating thing?"

I shrugged. "Yeah, actually. It's going well."

Frank smirked. "With who?"

"His name's Tyler," I said, crossing my arms. "He's cute. Easy to talk to. And, weirdly enough, he actually believes women are people."

Frank snorted. "Damn. Low bar, but good for him."

I laughed, but then I noticed something—Gerard, who had been standing off to the side, had gone completely still. His arms stayed crossed, but there was a slight tension in his jaw.

Frank, oblivious, smirked. "Well, congrats on your very progressive boyfriend."

"He's not my boyfriend," I corrected, rolling my eyes. "We're keeping it casual."

Frank waggled his eyebrows. "Yeah, yeah. That's what they all say."

Ray rolled his eyes. "Quit hogging her, Frank."

Frank threw his hands up. "Alright, alright! But if I come back and she's been brainwashed into saying Tekken is better than Mortal Kombat, I'm blaming you, Toro."

Ray scoffed. "That's not even a debate, I—You know what? Not wasting my energy on this."

Frank smirked and wandered off, leaving Ray to shake his head before turning to me. "So, how are you?"

"I'm good," I said. "You?"

Ray exhaled, shifting his weight. "Kinda nervous, not gonna lie."

I tilted my head. "Why?"

He shrugged. "I don't know if the crowd will even like us."

I blinked at him. "Ray. You are literally the best guitarist I've ever met. If they don't like you, they have bad taste."

Ray chuckled. "You say that now, but wait till you hear us butcher a song on live TV."

I raised an eyebrow. "You? Mess up? Please. You could play blindfolded and still outshine half the industry."

He snorted, rubbing the back of his neck. "I dunno, man."

I gave him a look. "Ray, they'll love you."

Ray huffed a small laugh, but his face softened. "Thanks, Yana."

"Anytime," I said.

Before I could wander off, Mikey appeared at my side, nudging me with his elbow. "So, what's the verdict?"

I frowned. "On what?"

"On Ray's nerves. Did you manage to convince him he's a rock god, or is he still spiraling?"

I snorted. "I think I got through to him. But if he starts stress-sweating, that's your problem."

Mikey smirked. "Great. Love that for me."