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<< head over heels, the big one
bring it into the small world
Their Thursday nights always found them crammed together in a booth at the local karaoke pub. David usually drank two or three beers before hitting the stage; he liked inspecting the crowd before deciding which songs to perform. That Thursday, David was downing his sixth beer as he chewed on some chips that Joey Clement, the owner, had invited them too. Noriega's presence - even though he'd gone to the bathroom, leaving Archie with his orange juice looking down - was still a problem for him.
"Seems like Peek's in the house," Andy hissed. Neal and David whipped their heads toward the door to see another local celebrity, Kyle Peek, sitting at a table near the exit.
"No freaking way," David said. "I'm not getting out there with both Noriega and Peek in the audience."
"C'mon," Neal smirked. "As if you weren't going to sing tonight, Dave. The more you drink, the more you'll sing later."
"Or are you scared?" Andy piped in.
If there was something that unnerved David, it was being called chicken. He shook his head; his friends knew that, and they took advantage of it whenever they could. David just had to ignore them.
But the truth was that David was scared. He had a good voice - probably one of the best around, with the exception of Archie and Andy - but he wasn't a celebrity. He was just another guy. He’d lost all his chances to become a local famous karaoke singer, pretty much like Kyle Peek himself, when he came back one summer from college with his hair weirdly cropped and dyed in red strikes. And even though time had changed that and he'd left his indie rocker tendencies aside, David Cook was still the kind of guy that would never make it through a karaoke career. It was okay with him, actually, since he wanted more, but he still lived for the applause. And with both Noriega and Peek in the pub, his chances of getting some recognition from someone else that wasn't his friends decreased exponentially.
"What have I missed?" Noriega asked, choosing that very same moment to come back. David suppressed a gag when he saw the way Archie looked up at him.
"The local celebrity just got in," Neal informed. "Tonight's gonna be interesting."
"Oh, a local celebrity? What are they famous for?"
"Kyle Peek is a good singer," Andy told Noriega, who seemed completely unfazed by the idea of another celebrity taking away his spotlight. "Nothing to envy to our very own heartthrob, but he's been around long enough to have a legion of fans. He comes here some Thursdays to take part in the song battle."
"Song battle?"
David rolled his eyes. He was sure there were karaoke bars in California as well, and that they held song battles in them too. He didn't understand why Noriega had to act so surprised all the time. "You know, a challenge where you sing a song against someone and if you win you fight another song with another one until you're thrown off or you win."
"I bet that Kyle Peek wins every time he gets here."
"Well, not really," David said confidently. "I've won over him several times. It's a matter of waiting for the best song."
"So you're a master of karaoke nights," Noriega said appreciatively. David cut off a snort when he saw how Archie was staring at him. "I remember my first years, I missed karaoke so much, I used to sneak out of my tight agenda to find a bar and sing my throat off."
"Nice," David finally snorted. He managed to cover it up as a cough and Andy promptly handed him his own beer to down his laughter with. "So why don't you treat us to some of your karaoke skills?"
"David!" Archie admonished him. "You know he can't, he has contracts and-"
"It's okay, I can do it," Noriega assured Archie, patting his arm affectionately. David wanted to throw up. "I may even challenge that Peek kid."
"I'm pretty sure he'd be thrilled," Neal chuckled.
"Let me show you how it's done," David said, standing up. He had been expecting Noriega to try to show off, and he had been planning how to show Archie that his boyfriend was nothing but smoke and mirrors.
"What are you doing, Dave?" Archie asked, frowning. "Kyle's already up, do you really want to challenge him this early? You've drunk too much, Dave!"
"Please, Arch," he retorted, rolling his eyes. "I've barely started. I can still beat that little piece of shit."
"Hey, don't talk about Peek that way!" Andy laughed. "He might be our next drummer, you know."
"Over my dead body, Skib. Over my dead body," Neal muttered.
David left them to their banter and walked onto the stage, where Kyle Peek was already taking a microphone. He smirked when he saw how Peek frowned at him. "You ready to kiss the ground, Peek?"
"Not as much as you, Cook," was the witty reply. David rolled his eyes again. Seemingly, he was surrounded by lame people. "We're doing Always Be My Baby first."
"No way," David shook his head. "That'd be too easy for me. Let's start with Sweet Little Lies instead."
"You really want to lose quickly tonight," Peek marveled. David just gripped the spare microphone and got ready. He cleared his throat and allowed the other singer to start.
Kyle Peek's voice was fragile, way lighter than David's own, but it worked just fine with the higher notes of the song. When the tune got to the first chorus, David was already waiting for the second verse to begin - although I'm not making plans, I hope that you understand, there's a reason why, close your, close your, close your eyes - but got distracted with Noriega, who was leaning into Archie's personal space in a way that was undeniable sensual, so he missed the first part and had to join in with no more broken hearts, we're better off apart, let's give it a try, tell me, tell me, tell me lies. He knew he was off way before Peek looked at him with that knowing glint in his eyes.
When the music stopped, David attempted to climb off the stage unnoticed, but Peek grabbed his arm and whispered in his ear, "You really should tell him, Cook. It's going to end up badly for all of you if you don't."
"I don't know what you're talking about," David defended himself. He shrugged himself off from Peek's grasp.
"I'm just telling you, Cook, I know what's going on. The whole fucking town knows. Maybe Archie doesn't. But you and I know you're going to lose much more than a song battle if you don't speak up."
David gaped at him, looking for something to say and finding nothing. Peek smiled sweetly. "Just think about it, Cook. We may not be the best friends, but out of this stage we get along pretty well, whatever you want to make believe. I know you, and I know you're going to fuck this up if you don't say anything."
"Tell Hayden I said hi," David finally said, refusing to acknowledge Peek's words and instead referring to his child, a hyperactive four year old who had robbed everyone's hearts in the town ever since he was born.
"I will," Peek assured him. "Who's up next?" he challenged playfully as David made his way back to their table. He was greeted by Archie's laughter as Noriega stood up. Andy and Neal simply stared at him with that pitiful glance in their eyes.
"What?" he spat as he sat down.
"Nothing," Andy was quick to retort. "Only - you seemed way too cozy up there with Peek."
"You were cozy with Kyle Peek?" Archie exclaimed, peeling his eyes from his boyfriend's retreating form to place them on David. "Really? I thought you'd go for someone who'd be available!"
David shook the feeling of warmth that spread through his body at the mere thought of Archie possibly being jealous to sigh. "C'mon, you all know how I really feel for the bastard. Besides, he's married!"
"That hasn't stopped you from falling for someone before," Neal pointed out. David wanted to strangle him - he knew Neal referred to his feelings for Archie, who was everything but available, but that was one step too far, even for his friend. However, when he was about to reply, the music from the stage took everyone's attention away. David turned to find Noriega up and ready, and Peek bowing at him. David couldn't believe his ears.
They were singing Surperstar, which meant, obviously, that Danny Noriega would win his round. Even after he sang the first verse - long ago, and, oh so far away I fell in love with you before the second show, your guitar, it sounds so sweet and clear but you're not really here, it's just the radio - David knew he had not only stolen Archie's heart, but also everyone else's soul.
David didn't wait for the song to finish. He excused himself, saying he had to go to the restroom and escaped through the back door. He didn't have it in himself to come back to where he was obviously out of place, so he decided to go for a walk back to his apartment to see if the cool air cleared his mind.
i'm building the big big love >>
bring it into the small world
Their Thursday nights always found them crammed together in a booth at the local karaoke pub. David usually drank two or three beers before hitting the stage; he liked inspecting the crowd before deciding which songs to perform. That Thursday, David was downing his sixth beer as he chewed on some chips that Joey Clement, the owner, had invited them too. Noriega's presence - even though he'd gone to the bathroom, leaving Archie with his orange juice looking down - was still a problem for him.
"Seems like Peek's in the house," Andy hissed. Neal and David whipped their heads toward the door to see another local celebrity, Kyle Peek, sitting at a table near the exit.
"No freaking way," David said. "I'm not getting out there with both Noriega and Peek in the audience."
"C'mon," Neal smirked. "As if you weren't going to sing tonight, Dave. The more you drink, the more you'll sing later."
"Or are you scared?" Andy piped in.
If there was something that unnerved David, it was being called chicken. He shook his head; his friends knew that, and they took advantage of it whenever they could. David just had to ignore them.
But the truth was that David was scared. He had a good voice - probably one of the best around, with the exception of Archie and Andy - but he wasn't a celebrity. He was just another guy. He’d lost all his chances to become a local famous karaoke singer, pretty much like Kyle Peek himself, when he came back one summer from college with his hair weirdly cropped and dyed in red strikes. And even though time had changed that and he'd left his indie rocker tendencies aside, David Cook was still the kind of guy that would never make it through a karaoke career. It was okay with him, actually, since he wanted more, but he still lived for the applause. And with both Noriega and Peek in the pub, his chances of getting some recognition from someone else that wasn't his friends decreased exponentially.
"What have I missed?" Noriega asked, choosing that very same moment to come back. David suppressed a gag when he saw the way Archie looked up at him.
"The local celebrity just got in," Neal informed. "Tonight's gonna be interesting."
"Oh, a local celebrity? What are they famous for?"
"Kyle Peek is a good singer," Andy told Noriega, who seemed completely unfazed by the idea of another celebrity taking away his spotlight. "Nothing to envy to our very own heartthrob, but he's been around long enough to have a legion of fans. He comes here some Thursdays to take part in the song battle."
"Song battle?"
David rolled his eyes. He was sure there were karaoke bars in California as well, and that they held song battles in them too. He didn't understand why Noriega had to act so surprised all the time. "You know, a challenge where you sing a song against someone and if you win you fight another song with another one until you're thrown off or you win."
"I bet that Kyle Peek wins every time he gets here."
"Well, not really," David said confidently. "I've won over him several times. It's a matter of waiting for the best song."
"So you're a master of karaoke nights," Noriega said appreciatively. David cut off a snort when he saw how Archie was staring at him. "I remember my first years, I missed karaoke so much, I used to sneak out of my tight agenda to find a bar and sing my throat off."
"Nice," David finally snorted. He managed to cover it up as a cough and Andy promptly handed him his own beer to down his laughter with. "So why don't you treat us to some of your karaoke skills?"
"David!" Archie admonished him. "You know he can't, he has contracts and-"
"It's okay, I can do it," Noriega assured Archie, patting his arm affectionately. David wanted to throw up. "I may even challenge that Peek kid."
"I'm pretty sure he'd be thrilled," Neal chuckled.
"Let me show you how it's done," David said, standing up. He had been expecting Noriega to try to show off, and he had been planning how to show Archie that his boyfriend was nothing but smoke and mirrors.
"What are you doing, Dave?" Archie asked, frowning. "Kyle's already up, do you really want to challenge him this early? You've drunk too much, Dave!"
"Please, Arch," he retorted, rolling his eyes. "I've barely started. I can still beat that little piece of shit."
"Hey, don't talk about Peek that way!" Andy laughed. "He might be our next drummer, you know."
"Over my dead body, Skib. Over my dead body," Neal muttered.
David left them to their banter and walked onto the stage, where Kyle Peek was already taking a microphone. He smirked when he saw how Peek frowned at him. "You ready to kiss the ground, Peek?"
"Not as much as you, Cook," was the witty reply. David rolled his eyes again. Seemingly, he was surrounded by lame people. "We're doing Always Be My Baby first."
"No way," David shook his head. "That'd be too easy for me. Let's start with Sweet Little Lies instead."
"You really want to lose quickly tonight," Peek marveled. David just gripped the spare microphone and got ready. He cleared his throat and allowed the other singer to start.
Kyle Peek's voice was fragile, way lighter than David's own, but it worked just fine with the higher notes of the song. When the tune got to the first chorus, David was already waiting for the second verse to begin - although I'm not making plans, I hope that you understand, there's a reason why, close your, close your, close your eyes - but got distracted with Noriega, who was leaning into Archie's personal space in a way that was undeniable sensual, so he missed the first part and had to join in with no more broken hearts, we're better off apart, let's give it a try, tell me, tell me, tell me lies. He knew he was off way before Peek looked at him with that knowing glint in his eyes.
When the music stopped, David attempted to climb off the stage unnoticed, but Peek grabbed his arm and whispered in his ear, "You really should tell him, Cook. It's going to end up badly for all of you if you don't."
"I don't know what you're talking about," David defended himself. He shrugged himself off from Peek's grasp.
"I'm just telling you, Cook, I know what's going on. The whole fucking town knows. Maybe Archie doesn't. But you and I know you're going to lose much more than a song battle if you don't speak up."
David gaped at him, looking for something to say and finding nothing. Peek smiled sweetly. "Just think about it, Cook. We may not be the best friends, but out of this stage we get along pretty well, whatever you want to make believe. I know you, and I know you're going to fuck this up if you don't say anything."
"Tell Hayden I said hi," David finally said, refusing to acknowledge Peek's words and instead referring to his child, a hyperactive four year old who had robbed everyone's hearts in the town ever since he was born.
"I will," Peek assured him. "Who's up next?" he challenged playfully as David made his way back to their table. He was greeted by Archie's laughter as Noriega stood up. Andy and Neal simply stared at him with that pitiful glance in their eyes.
"What?" he spat as he sat down.
"Nothing," Andy was quick to retort. "Only - you seemed way too cozy up there with Peek."
"You were cozy with Kyle Peek?" Archie exclaimed, peeling his eyes from his boyfriend's retreating form to place them on David. "Really? I thought you'd go for someone who'd be available!"
David shook the feeling of warmth that spread through his body at the mere thought of Archie possibly being jealous to sigh. "C'mon, you all know how I really feel for the bastard. Besides, he's married!"
"That hasn't stopped you from falling for someone before," Neal pointed out. David wanted to strangle him - he knew Neal referred to his feelings for Archie, who was everything but available, but that was one step too far, even for his friend. However, when he was about to reply, the music from the stage took everyone's attention away. David turned to find Noriega up and ready, and Peek bowing at him. David couldn't believe his ears.
They were singing Surperstar, which meant, obviously, that Danny Noriega would win his round. Even after he sang the first verse - long ago, and, oh so far away I fell in love with you before the second show, your guitar, it sounds so sweet and clear but you're not really here, it's just the radio - David knew he had not only stolen Archie's heart, but also everyone else's soul.
David didn't wait for the song to finish. He excused himself, saying he had to go to the restroom and escaped through the back door. He didn't have it in himself to come back to where he was obviously out of place, so he decided to go for a walk back to his apartment to see if the cool air cleared his mind.
i'm building the big big love >>