Chapter 32
Mikey had never written a song as quickly as he wrote the one for Luke, and it was a good thing, too, because the night of the concert came much faster than he’d expected.
He and Luke had seen very little of one another the last few days, but Mikey clung to the belief his song would work.
It had to. Fortunately for him, the band they’d hired were more than happy to go along with his plan, and they all wished him the best of luck in winning back his man.
Of course, he knew he could’ve just gone to Luke and forced a confrontation and told him the truth about Damian.
Mikey, though, was a showman. He wanted to win Luke Carter back his way, which meant showing him how much he meant to him via the one thing that meant so much to both of them: music.
It was a risky thing to do, and it could blow up in his face.
Still, as he knew better than most, with great risk came great reward.
To make matters even more confusing, he could swear Luke wanted to say something to him, but every time it seemed like they were getting close to anything approximating a conversation, they somehow managed to not do it.
And yet, every so often Luke would get a mischievous glint in his eye, and Mikey couldn’t help but wonder: what was he up to?
And then, of course, there was the awkward fact they had to rehearse “A Guy to Build a Life With.” Every rehearsal reminded Mikey how much had changed, and he found himself wondering: was his big gesture doomed to fail?
Still, despite his uncertainty, he was determined to go through with his plan, come hell or high water.
On the bright side, the concert was sold out within just a few days of tickets going on sale.
Apparently having the Center’s two biggest alumni come back for a dual concert was quite the draw.
What’s more, it looked like it was going to be an even bigger hit on streaming, and donations were pouring in.
Brenda was ecstatic about the whole thing, and Mikey lost track of the number of times she told them how grateful she was.
When the night of the concert finally came around, Mikey was very excited. The song he’d written for tonight…well, it was special. He just had to hope its sudden reveal wouldn’t throw Luke off his game.
“You’ve got this,” Tricia said, when she walked in and saw him standing in his hotel room gazing out at the city of Moundsville below. “I know it doesn’t seem like it, with everything going on, but you do.”
Strangely enough, he agreed. He’d done quite a lot of growing up during his time back in West Virginia, and if tonight went as he planned, well, he’d have a lot more to do.
Hopefully Luke would do it with him.
He turned and gave Tricia a smile.
“You know what?” he said. “You’re absolutely right. I do have this. I know Luke isn’t talking to me, but somehow I think we’re going to pull off the concert, and I think it’s going to be a major success.”
He could’ve spent more time angsting, but instead he sent Tricia on ahead to NACA and focused his energies on picking out just the right outfit.
He decided on a very tight pair of jeans, a white T-shirt, a black jacket, and a backwards baseball cap.
Looking at himself in the mirror, he wasn’t entirely satisfied.
Lose the hat, a voice in his head said, sounding suspiciously like Luke’s. And no wonder, since he was basically in a dressier version of Luke’s usual attire.
Well, Luke’s not the only one who can wear a white T-shirt, he thought. If he is tonight…well, we’ll deal with it when the time comes.
As soon as he took off the hat, releasing his curls again, he realized he’d made the right choice.
It took Mikey another hour or so to make sure he was ready for the concert.
When, at last, he bid farewell to his hotel room, he found himself wondering whether he’d be coming back here in a couple of hours heartbroken, or whether he’d be on cloud nine because he’d managed to have a breakthrough with Luke.
You’ve got this, Mikey, he thought. Just be yourself and trust the plan.
He thought briefly of his mother, who’d poured so much of her life and energy into making sure she could control every single aspect of her life–and his–and he couldn’t help but feel sad.
Maybe they all would’ve been happier if they’d just tried to live authentic lives rather than constantly trying to put on the right kind of performance.
He also briefly toyed with the idea of calling her, but he didn’t.
If they wanted to come to the concert, they would, and if they didn’t… well, he was used to that.
Mikey could’ve driven or called an Uber to get him to NACA, but for some reason he just wanted to walk there.
He needed the space and time to clear his head and to get into the space he needed in order to perform at his best. He always took a walk before a particularly high-pressure performance and, since NACA wasn’t that far away, he figured this would be a good opportunity to fulfill his usual ritual.
As soon as he stepped outside of the hotel he took a deep breath of the clean West Virginia air and sighed. No matter how many times he did this, and no matter how trite it might seem to some, there really was nothing quite like being at home in the Mountain State.
Passing by the spot where Luke had pulled up and where they’d had their last difficult conversation, he felt a pang. He almost reached for his phone but stopped before his hand even got in his pocket.
No, he thought. We’re not going to call him. We’re going to stick with the plan. Have some faith in yourself and have some faith in Luke.
He closed his eyes, taking deep breaths to calm himself down.
He squared his shoulders, reminding himself why he was going through with this in the first place.
It wasn’t just to get Luke back; it was also to prove to himself he wasn’t afraid of a challenge anymore, he was happy and healthy with who he was, and he was the kind of person who wouldn’t stop until he’d gotten what he wanted.
And what he wanted was Luke Carter.
He opened his eyes and kept walking to NACA.
It was still a couple of hours ‘til showtime, and so there really weren’t many people there.
Mikey, of course, slipped in the side door and, as soon as he was inside, the usual wave of nostalgia washed over him.
He’d thought when he first came back here the feeling would abate with time but, if anything, it just seemed to grow more acute.
Faced with the possibility the Center would either close or at the very least be updated, he was yearning for a past he could never regain.
I must be getting nostalgic in my old age, he thought, then laughed at the idea of someone in their late twenties claiming to be in old age.
He made his way through the halls of the Center until he got to the stage. The band had already set up, and everything was set for sound check.
Except, of course, Luke Carter was nowhere to be found.
Damn it, Mikey thought. I swear if Luke doesn’t show up to this concert I am going to hunt him down and drag him back here.
Luke, though, chose that moment to come striding in, looking even more devilishly handsome than usual.
He was dressed in a simple outfit of a tight pink T-shirt, dark wash blue jeans, and cowboy boots, and Mikey was glad he wasn’t wearing a white shirt like he usually was.
The last thing they needed was to show up looking like twins.
Somehow the simplicity of what he was wearing just made him look even sexier.
Or perhaps it was the way the shirt clung to each and every muscle–including his biceps, which seemed to be stretching the poor thing to the breaking point–or perhaps it was the way the jeans hugged his hips in just the right way to showcase his thick thighs…
Okay, keep it in your pants until after the concert, he thought.
No matter how hard Mikey tried to distract himself from the handsome sexiness of Luke, however, the dirty thoughts kept intruding, reminding him of what it had been like to see and feel Luke out of those clothes.
Luke gave him a faint smile, and Mikey started grinning like an idiot.
Luke, though, didn’t say anything more than that, and for the rest of the setup–in fact, all the way through soundcheck–Mikey found himself wondering whether Luke was going to say anything to him before they did their performance.
Finally, though, he came up to him and looked him up and down.
At first, Mikey thought Luke was giving him one of his patented judgmental looks, but then he realized something else was going on.
That strange little light was back in his eyes.
When he looked more closely, however, it was gone, and he was left wondering if he’d imagined the whole thing.
“Break a leg out there tonight,” Luke said. “I hope it goes well for both of us.”
Mikey couldn’t help but shake his head.
“Thanks,” he said, but Luke was already walking away.
Then the last-minute preparations were under way and, before he quite knew what was happening, the concert was about to start.
He peeked out from behind the curtains at the auditorium, and he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. The whole place was packed, with every seat filled, and there were more people crowding in. His eyes flicked up to the balcony, and he saw they were filled, too.
Holy shit, he thought. That’s a lot of people.
Of course, Mikey was used to playing to much larger crowds, but even so, there was something humbling about seeing so many people gathered in NACA.
He was pretty sure the place hadn’t seen a crowd like this in far too long, and it made him happy to think he might play a part in saving NACA from the demolition that would surely have been the result if they hadn’t managed to pull this off.
Now comes the hard part, he thought. We actually have to sing.
As soon as he stepped out on the stage and heard the roar of the crowd, though, he felt himself swept away.
He was taken back to the fateful day a decade ago when he’d given his first performance on this very stage.
He’d come a long way since then–of course he had–but in some ways he was still that teenager just trying to figure out his way through life.
You made it, he thought.
Luke came on from the other side of the stage and, if anything, the roars of the crowd got even louder. Mikey tried not to be too jealous. Luke was a hometown boy who still lived here, while he was still a bit of an interloper. It was only fair Luke would get the louder acclaim.
And, truth be told, he wouldn’t have traded the beaming look on Luke’s face for anything in the world. This was the happiness Luke deserved, and Mikey was genuinely happy for him.
They both approached their mics and, after a bit of uncertainty over who was going to speak first, Luke took the lead.
“How we doin’ tonight, everybody?” he shouted.
The response was almost deafening.
“That’s what I like to hear!” Luke shouted back at them. “Are you ready for Mikey and me to play yinz some music?”
Again, the roar of a crowd more than ready for the performance to start.
“Whadya say, Mikey Smiles?” he asked, a mischievous smile in his eyes. “Are you ready to give ‘em a show?”
Mikey couldn’t help it. He broke out into a beaming smile.
“Hell yeah!” he yelled in his turn, and he let the celebration of the crowd carry him away.