The Rockstar Chronicles

THE END

I went to join my mother after telling Mrs. Crabtree goodbye. The boys were in their element, each totally absorbed by the cheering crowd in front of them. A prickly feeling came over me as I watched them. It was familiar, but I thought I had long since outgrown it.

I was jealous.

I wanted to be out there, not watching from the sidelines. I wanted to be the one in front of the crowd.

But did I want it enough to give up everything else?

Mom was standing nearby, chatting with Nate and Mr. Kane, who was beaming. Mom looked at me and caught my eye.

She smiled.

She knows, I thought.

"Don't worry, Lindy," she said. "It will be your day soon. Those two," she pointed at Nate and Mr. Kane, "have big plans for you."

"No," I shook my head. I had to shout to be heard. "I'm not like them. I want a normal life. I'm going to school."

Mom shot me a strange look and took a deep breath. "Lindy, I might as well tell you now. If you come with us, you're not going to school."

I stared at her in absolute shock. "Yeah, I am. We made a deal."

"You're being tutored. It's the only way if you're on the road." she laughed as she gestured at the band. "I mean, look at this. We can't keep it here. We're going on the road. And you're coming with us. If you want."

As I watched them dance, I wondered what it would be like, to be up there with them all the time.

"Or do you want to stay behind?" Mom asked me. "Either way, you're missing something. You can't have it both ways."

Mom was right. Either way, I would be missing something. The lights dimmed and the boys glanced around, trying to get their boundaries as they returned to this world. Grady caught my eye and flashed me a brilliant grin, giving me a thumbs up.

"Well, boys," Grant said as he as the boys rushed off stage and came to join us, "I've seen a lot of performances and I can tell you this, you're going to be big! Tom," his grin tightened. He still hadn't quite gotten over Tom's escape from his clutches and into the Berkeley's cabin, though he tried to hide it. Hardyn had been the one to tell us of the extent of his uncle's wrath. But despite everything, Grant was still Tom's agent. "Great job out there. Piece of cake." He scanned his phone. "So we're going to go with Nate's suggestion and have you boys play instruments. Not much at first, but we'll build on it. You're going to be rockstars. I need to get with you later, Diane," he glanced at mom, "about scheduling times for lessons." Mom nodded as the boys glanced at each other with excitement. Real rockstars.

I was suddenly even more jealous. "One day, I bet they'll even use your songs," I said and Bridge nodded, a huge smile covering his face as he high-fived Tom.

"That's the goal," he said.

"You're going to be great," Mom said as she punched the air with her fist. I stared at her in shock. I had never seen her do something like that. It was very unlike the mother I knew. "We're going to conquer the world!" she screamed.

Everyone laughed and hugged, some people even cried. It was amazing.

Dad smiled at me, nodding his head to the side as if he wanted to talk to me. Alone. I followed him to a dusty corner full of wires and cables.

"Honey, you were amazing out there," Dad said. "Maybe I'm biased since you're my daughter, but you stole the show. For me at least."

I grinned and he continued, his expression growing sober. "Listen, I talked to Albert and he told me about your call to him. We talked for a while, actually. Lindy, if you don't want to do this, just say the word. I didn't realize how unhappy you were. We'll figure something out, whether it's living with me or boarding school or something else." He smiled. "Grady came to me and said he would pay for you to go, if you want to." He hesitated. "He's a good kid and a good brother. I already talked to your Mom. It's your decision."