A Dying Breed

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A growing band trying to make big.

The woman held onto the man's arm as he guided her through the streets. Tonight was a big night for her and the band. After practicing and waiting for so long, they had finally been offered a 30 minute slot for tonight's show in a downtown bar. Samantha let out a moan and began to laugh. "Finally! We get to play on a live stage. Aren't you excited, George?" She cheered. George was the drummer for the band and has been friends with her long before she joined the rest of them. He was also the one who had introduced her to Alex. He was the one who had decided to teach her how to play the guitar and she's been growing ever since.

Sam smiled when she heard George laugh. "Of course. Let's just hurry so we can rehearse for tonight. The others are going to have our necks if we don't arrive on time." He said. It took about 20 minutes for them to reach Kilroy's. They would have arrived earlier but Sam insisted on grabbing a few hamburgers for everyone. Once they arrived, it was to be expected that she and George would get a scolding by everyone else but was soon forgiven once they were given their food.

A few hours passed and the bar was starting to get packed as the night sky took over. Sam sat at an empty table with her eyes closed and listened to the people laugh and talk around her. Ever since the accident, having to rely on her hearing has helped her become more focused. It was almost as though she became a super human with heightened senses. Or so she tells everyone. Of course, that wasn't humanly possible but it always a fun way to break an awkward silence.

Letting out a small sigh, Sam finally opened her eyes. It wasn't as though she was completely blind. Her vision was dark. It was like trying to look through a foggy window with a black curtain draped over it. Only bright lights were able to shine through but it wasn't enough. It took her by surprise when she saw a black figure whisk passed her and she pouted. "Who's that?" She asked, turning her head towards the direction the figure went.
 
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William was early. As usual. He always seemed to worry about being late, no matter what he was doing, and so it was no surprise that he arrived at the venue a full half an hour before the rest of the band would even think about starting to arrive. He was a practical man at all times, and so he made sure to find the manager and sort out the ins and outs of how the gig was going to go down. It was a short and clipped conversation, as it seemed that the poor woman that had to deal with William really didn't want to deal with his detailed planning.

Seeing as he had nothing else to do, the blonde simply sat himself down at the bar and set about drinking. Drinking tap water, that is, as he was hardly interesting enough to want anything more than that. He sat there, looking around at the somewhat dingy surroundings, wondering if this was really such a good idea. Of course, he'd been to similar places before, but it had always been a case of in and out, ten minute slots at best. He was aware of the smoke that permeated the air - much of it of illegal origin - and sincerely hoped that he wasn't going to end up getting high by accident. It was an obviously unrealistic worry, but one the naive young man couldn't quite shake off.

He was saved from his insular thoughts as he was eventually disturbed by the arrival of a wonderfully prompt Alex, who seemed fairly relaxed about the whole affair. "We're off to a good start. I remembered my bass." He grinned, making a point of lifting the guitar case, as if Peter might not have believed him.

"That is good. I just hope George and Sam aren't too late." He was beyond hoping either one of them would be on time, but he wasn't sure he could cope with them being so late it started to encroach on their set up time. It was frightening, to think they might end up being in a rush, something that Will really wasn't terribly good at.

"Chill. Chill. You'll be fine, I promise." Alex was a kind man, and a damn good bassist. He had enough knowledge of the guitar to be a decent teacher, but he wasn't quite good at that particular instrument. Bass was his talent, and his passion, which was good, seeing as Samantha probably wouldn't have been best pleased if he was always encroaching on her space and trying to muscle her out of the way.

Eventually the two other members of the band did arrive, receiving a sharp reprimand from the highly professional Alex, though Peter was more terrified that something was going to go wrong, rather than angry. But, the four of them were soon set up and ready to go, just waiting for their time to fly or fail.

Peter was just going to fetch the guitarist, as it was just about time for them to make their final preparations before heading on stage. He wasn't quite sure what or who she was referring to, but he assumed her poor vision had just led to someone sneaking into what sight she had left, before rapidly disappearing. "Are you alright?" The almost too caring William asked, though he did also mention, "We need to go and get ready." They would be going on in fifteen minutes or so, and although they were pretty much ready to go on, there were a few last minute tweaks to be done before they were completely sound.
 
Samantha was startled by the sudden appearance of William and she pouted. "Jesus! Don't sneak up on a blind woman!" She said in a snarky tone before letting a smile pull up her lips. The man was right though. The previous band had already gotten off stage and she could hear the hustle and bustle of those prepping for their stage performance. Just fifteen more minutes. Finally. The world would finally hear The Dying Breed. Samantha hated the name in the beginning, but it slowly grew on her. It was George who came up with the name. He was such an emotional boy back then and the memory of their late night conversations between the two always brought a smile to the woman's face. George was the oldest out of the four, standing at the age of 28. Though scary in appearance, -a skinhead with a pierced nose- he was a kind man who always took care of the others.

"Okay, I'm ready. Let's go show 'em what we got." Samantha chirped as she stood up from the table. The woman reached out in front of her and waited. It was George, of course, who came up behind her and wrapped her arm around his. The man adjusted the black shades that rested on the bridge of his nose before guiding Sam down the stairs and into the back stage. "Come on, Princess. You too." George said over his shoulder as he looked at William with a teasing grin.

Only five more minutes until they were on. Sam could hear the instrumental of one of their songs being played through one of the speakers. Of course, the crowd was quiet and unsure of them. They had only played a few shows at smaller bars. Hardly worth mentioning. But Kilroy's was a huge club and very popular. They only got this gig because one of the other bands dropped out. What luck is that!? Sam placed a hand on her chest. Her was fluttering like a hummingbird and she could feel the blood rush to her cheeks. Everyone exchanged reassuring words but it was Alex who helped calm her nerves. "Remember... the guitar is just like the human soul, sending messages to the world using only six strings. Show them who you are." Those were the words he said to her when he first started teaching her how to play. And it stuck with her ever since. Sam lifted her hand and placed it on his cheek and smiled. "Thank you." And just like that, Sam spun around and wrapped her arm around the first person she grabbed. Reaching up to run a hand through the man's hair, she smiled. The woman had memorized the guys by touch. The length of their hair, their height. Simple things that could easily define someone. "William! You ready?" She asked.
 
"Sorry! Sorry, I didn't mean to." Poor William tended to take a lot of things seriously, and this was one of those things where he struggled to function without becoming terribly stressed. However, he had been around Samantha for long enough to know that she didn't really mean it, and he quickly regained his composure, managing to do so just as George made his presence known, encouraging the two of them along in his own unique style.

Soon enough the four of them were stood just behind the door, ready and waiting to go on. William was going to have to swallow his nerves and become the confident, outgoing frontman that was needed in any gig. It was such a polar opposite to his personality, it was kind of strange for his fellow band members to wrap their heads around these two manifestations of their friend, but thankfully it seemed to work well, and it hadn't failed them yet.

Now it was just seconds, and Sam slipped her arm into his, as she would need a little guidance to navigate the hazardous route up onto the stage. Why they couldn't tidy up a few wires, Will really didn't know, but it was just a fact of life that they would have to deal with, not that any of them had any qualms about helping Sam out whenever she needed it. She was the backbone of the band, all things told, and they all relied on her, and each other for various things. "I guess so. I'll try not to let you down." He worried that his fear would get the best of him, and that he'd complete ruin this one time chance that they had been extremely lucky to get in the first place.

There was no time for anything else to be said, as they were called to their places just a moment after that. William tried to ignore the fact that he was actually shaking, boneless legs taking him forward as he helped Samantha carefully through the short hallway and up the few steps onto the stage. There was no pomp and ceremony to the band taking the stage, and only a handful of the crowd were even looking in their direction, and it was almost enough to make the blonde turn and run for the hills, but then his on stage persona started to take over.

"L-ladies and gentleman...can I have your attention." Will was attempting to get control of them, and finally the other side of himself took complete hold and his nerves were transformed into excited adrenaline, "Hey! Pay attention to The Dying Breed! Tonight you're going to be part of something special, and I promise you won't be disappointed. No, you'll be transformed."

He gave a quick motion with his finger, and George timed them in, and they played their hearts out. What Will had done had at least grabbed the attention of the crowd, and it enabled them to pump up the energy that had dissipated between sets. Half an hour wasn't a huge amount of time, and they stuck to the more plain, surefire songs that they knew would be successful in such an environment, and the strategy seemed to work, as by the end of it they had the sole attention of each and every person in the club.
 
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