Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
NOAH
“I have an idea.” I don’t preface it with any other information or warn the pack before I join them at Aiden’s apartment. The statement is the announcement of my presence to begin with, after having been gone for most of the morning collecting groceries.
“Is it contagious?” Leo asks from the kitchen island. He’s grinning up at me.
Mia sits next to him with a cup of coffee clasped between her hands. “About what?”
Aiden nods at me as I set the groceries down on the counter. “Mia, if I get something together, can you blast it all over social media?”
She sits back with surprise written on her face. “I mean, yeah. But what is it?”
Over the last week or so since submitting our album to Wes, our band’s general presence in the minds of fans has been rather empty. And there’s not much we can do except release those behind-the-scenes videos Sable’s been working on until he approves the music.
Except , if we were to remix something a little bit.
“I know we have to wait on Wes,” I say as I lean over the island. “But hear me out. What if we released a special version of Leo’s song?”
Leo’s eyes go wide. “Special version?”
I nod. “Word got around about you heading to the hospital.”
He frowns. “I know.”
And I know he’d rather not address it. Unfortunately, that’s not how fans work.
Aiden shakes his head. “I mean, we can do that I guess. If we’re going to do it with anything, I want it to be that song.”
I set my phone on the island before me and pull up some old Juilliard groups I’m still in online for some reason. “What if I put out a call for people to help, and we release an orchestral version. Something very different but no less cool, and record everyone.”
Mia’s eyes light up. “A live video. Maybe even a flash mob kind of thing? That’d go viral for sure.”
I nod. “All eyes back on us, and Wes can’t say no. And look, we’ve turned the PR nightmare around.”
“It was just one fight,” Aiden mutters under his breath.
I gesture to him. “I agree, but here we are. What do you think?”
Leo considers it and then nods. “Yes, let’s do it.”
Mia grins wide. “I think this is exactly a good move. But are you sure you want to get involved with the Juilliard crowd again?”
I shrug. “Either they ignore it or they don’t. I’ve got a few acquaintances from those days, too, who I’m sure would be interested. We put out the call, send music, pick a date. We’ll need someone to help write it out for an orchestra, but.”
“I got you there,” Aiden says as he grabs his own phone. “Give me a few days.
Leo smiles but it’s stilted. Nervous. “I could try singing it. I don’t know if that would help, or if I want to.”
Mia wraps an arm around his shoulder. “No, that’s a fantastic idea. And we can set you up separate from the crowd. I love this so much, Noah.”
I grin wider. “Love me when it’s set.”
* * *
Three weeks later we gather with everyone who signed up to join us in Central Park near Juilliard. We managed to collect at least fifty people and there are plenty here I don’t remember signing up. The call went out far and wide across the musical scene, and I couldn’t be happier.
As we set out to get everyone placed and the recording started, I catch a glimpse of someone in the crowd who I never thought I’d see again. Never wanted to see again.
The dean who had me kicked out to cover her own misdeeds.
She sits not far from Leo with a flute in her hands. Warming up.
Our eyes meet from across the way and I lift my chin. There’s an unmistakable apology in her eyes. Unfortunately, it’s several years too late. But honestly, I think everything that happened that night, even being kicked out of Juilliard, was for the better.
It set me on the path to meet my pack.
And my band.
It helped me exit one fate and walk right into another.
I give her a little nod and then focus on what we’re all here to do. When everyone’s settled, I grab a microphone and hop into the center of the circle we’ve created around Leo who stands beside Mia and Aiden.
“Thank you all for coming out today,” I say. Being surrounded by so many who knew me by reputation—good and bad—gives me more stage fright than any Knotty Tour crowd ever did. “This song is very special, and we appreciate everyone’s efforts to make this version of it. You’ll see cameras coming around to record along with the audio. We’ll run through a few times. Thank you again.”
I step down and take my spot not far away. Aiden and Mia join me with their guitars. Sable is here with Seth and a few others. They ready their cameras to record.
And then it’s just Leo in the middle of the orchestra.
Supported by so many.