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Good.
We all have backstage passes, so when the concert is over, I want to look good for Jesse.
May as well let him see what he’s missing.
I’m tempted to wear my hair down, as that’s the way I think it looks best, but I know I’ll get hot and sweaty at the concert, and my hair will end up being a bother. So I brush it until it shines and then pull it into a high ponytail. Maddie has hers in one long braid down her back.
She takes a peek at her watch on her left wrist. “We better get down there.”
I shove everything I need into a tiny leather purse that I strap over my shoulder. “Let’s go.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Jesse
When I was a little kid, before we moved to Snow Creek, we went to church every weekend.
Mom and Dad weren’t overly religious or anything, but they had both been raised as churchgoers, so they began raising us that way as well. I learned to pray. I respect other people’s religions, which is why we have a moment of silence and not a moment of prayer before every performance.
But even though I no longer go to church, I have a relationship with God, and I ask for His blessing before each performance.
I also express gratitude for all the good things I’ve received in my life.
Sometimes it’s hard to see them, like right after the fire.
But tonight? Dragonlock is opening for Emerald Phoenix in London.
I have a lot to be grateful for.
So that’s what I do during my moment of silence. I express my gratitude first and foremost, and then I ask for God’s blessing that we may all be in top form. That we don’t let this wonderful chance go to waste.
When I’m done, I open my eyes. Everyone else’s eyes are open except for Rory’s.
A few seconds later, she opens hers.
“We ready?” I ask.
“We are damned ready,” Cage says.
I place my hand forward, and the others place their hands on top of mine.
“On three,” I say. “One, two, three—”
“Dragonlock!” we all yell in unison.
Silly, I know, but it’s been a tradition since we formed the band.
The sound check went well, and now the stadium is filling with spectators. Spectators here to see Emerald Phoenix, and who don’t want to sit through the opening act.
We can’t just be good. We have to bespectacular. We have to make them want more of us.
Talk about pressure.
We can do it. I’ve had Rory and all the guys practicing visualization since we got this gig. Something we’ve never done before, but it was our mother’s idea. She told us how she used to visualize before her pageants when she was younger.
The pageants are a sore spot for her. She always wanted Rory to get into them, but she wasn’t interested. Mom didn’t even bother trying with Callie, who was such a brainiac and felt pageants were degrading, and by the time Maddie came along, she had let it go.
But she did talk to us about visualization, so I’ve got the band doing it. We see ourselves out on stage, performing each number perfectly, and then we see the audience going crazy.
