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Ray had no clue why he was here. Well, of course he knew. Jan wanted someone to go with her and all of their friends said no. So here he is waiting to watch some guy that used to be in some failed boy band called The Walkers that Jan has been in love with for years.
And it’s been literal years. He remembers having a crush on her in 6th grade, asked her to the Valentine’s Day dance, and she said no. Not because she didn’t like him, she didn’t obviously, but cause she said that the only guy for her was Peter McVries. So they went as friends and been friends since.
So when all her friends said they wouldn’t go, she asked Ray. She begged him to go because her mom wouldn’t let her go by herself.
And heck, they’re 18! They’re adults now! But Jan’s mother had always been a bit more strict than other parents. It has to be cause she’s so pretty. Ray glances over at her while she’s texting into some McVries fan group chat giving her fellow online fans the play by play of the opening acts and sending pictures.
Ray’s heart hasn’t skipped a beat for her in years, but he can still admit she’s the prettiest girl he’s ever met.
Ray looks back at the small stage watching the stage hands prepare it for Peter McVries. The crowd of 300 people cheering when the hanging background unfolds to show McVries written in huge yellow font on a dark green background.
“His stage name is just McVries,” Jan had leaned over to tell him as she took pictures of it.
“He doesn’t go by Peter McVries anymore?” Ray asked curiously.
“We think it’s to separate himself from his boy band career.” The fans Ray guesses she means. “But like that was ages ago. Plus he’s so much bigger than his band ever was.”
“He is?” Ray is confused. “But this venue is so small!”
“Exactly! It’s an intimate tour! I bought two tickets but Dave said he’d rather break up than go to this concert with me.”
“Damn Jan. I’m sorry to hear about that.”
Jan laughs. “No worries, I bought the tickets when we were in our honeymoon phase months ago. I’ve been wanting to break up with him for like two weeks now.” She hands Ray her phone. “Now he won’t have to see me fall all over Peter McVries and be self conscious about it. Can you take a picture of me with the background?”
She grabs from between her knees and unfolds her poster that says, Choose me! I know every song! for the picture.
When Ray picked her up earlier she showed him the poster and said that he always picks a fan from the audience to sing a song with him. And it’s never the same song every night. Usually the fan that goes up on stage gets to pick the song they sing together.
Ray’s taking pictures of her different poses when the lights dim all the way down.
Jan squeals with the rest of the crowd, probably 70% women, as the back track plays an intro mashup of songs.
Jan yells into Ray’s ear, making him flinch, “These are songs by The Walkers.” The sound of the music changes drastically, “this is off his first album. This one’s off the second. It’s like a medley of his music to now!” She starts screaming singing along to what Ray assumes is from the third album.
When she stops and the next song kicks in, “is that what you’ll ask him to sing when you get up on stage?” Ray yells over the crowd and track.
She just smiles at him so widely, “Yes! That’s my favorite song! Oh my god! I feel like I’m shaking!”
The music cuts off abruptly.
The over head lights come on. The band is already on stage. When did that happen?
The fans start chanting, “Mc-Vries! Mc-Vries! Mc-Vries!”
The bands starts playing an intro to a song and Ray’s heart skips a beat. The most beautiful man walks out singing the first verse of the song. The crowd is a mix of screaming and singing along. Jan is wildly flailing, poster going everywhere.
“Do you want me to hold your poster?”
She doesn’t even answer, she just pushes the poster into Ray’s chest as she starts taking pictures and then a video of McVries.
“How we doing tonight Freeport!” McVries yells between the chorus and verse. The crowd is crazy. Ray misses his earplugs he left on his desk at home.
The concert goes on like that. McVries sings a song, addresses the crowd, sings some more. Ray kinda loses track of how many songs have been sung because he gets lost in staring at McVries’ arms. His smile. His ass.
There had been moments when Ray felt like he was staring directly at him. But Jan would quickly knock into Ray saying that he was looking at her.
Which again, Jan is very pretty. The prettiest person here. At least in the audience. It’s no wonder that McVries would be looking at her.
“Well, it’s come to that time of night guys.” He takes out his inner ear. “Who wants to come up and sing a song?”
The crowd goes crazy! Jan grabs the poster and starts waving it. Hers isn’t the only one up in this tiny sea of people.
“I think I saw a poster earlier where the guy holding it might have been lying.”
The crowd boos.
“Hold on now. Let’s give him a chance. Let him prove his poster right.” There’s audible groans from the women in the crowd. Jan saying dammit under her breath. “Please bring the house lights up and you all put your posters down.”
McVries searches the crowd, but his eyes linger on Ray for a moment before moving on. It’s all in Ray’s head, right? Right?
But the McVries stops searching and points at him. “You in the red flannel. Come on up.”
Ray’s eyes grow big. He looks at Jan and her eyes are big too, her jaw dropped.
Security escorts him up to the stage all while Ray is shaking his head no. But then he is standing on the stage. Five feet from McVries.
“Hey there.” His eyes squint a little as he smiles at Ray.
Ray swallows the spit in his mouth. “Hi.”
McVries walks closer to him. A foot between them. “What’s your name?”
“Garraty.”
“Germany?” McVries leans closer, ear to Ray’s mouth.
“No. Ray Garraty,” he shouts a little.
“Well hi Ray. You can call me Pete.” He sticks his hand out and Ray grabs it to shake. The crowd is screaming. Phones are out recording.
“Hi Pete.” Ray’s never been starstruck before, never had a reason to be, but this must be what it’s like.
Pete’s smile is less showy compared to the rest he’s done so far tonight. This smile is more subtle, “hi.”
They stand for a minute looking at each other before the guitarist handing his microphone to Ray snaps them out of it. “So your poster said you know every song?”
“I didn’t have a poster.” Ray says a bit lost.
“I’m sure you did! It was the biggest one here in bright pink.” Jan cheers from the crowd and starts waving the poster. “Ope, there it is! There’s your poster.”
Ray looks out and it finally makes sense. “Oh, that’s not my poster. That’s Jan’s poster.”
“Jan’s poster!” McVries says like it makes sense to him now as well. “And Jan is your girlfriend?”
“No no no no, she’s just a friend of mine.”
“Okay. Well, you’re up here now! Do you want to sing a song with me?”
“I uh- I don’t know your songs.” Ray’s face winces as the crowd gasps and boos.
“I knew that. I figured when you weren’t singing along to my biggest hit.” The crowd laughs and Ray feels pointed out and embarrassed. “But we can sing a different song that we both know.”
“Okay.” Ray nods.
No one says anything. Both waiting on the other to speak. Ray forgetting he was supposed to think of a song getting distracted by the way Pete’s jeans hug his thighs.
“Pete?” Ray’s head snaps up to Pete’s smirking face. “Can you think one up?”
“Oh. Right. Uh.” And Ray thinks. Thinks maybe he can ask for a song by The Walkers cause he has to remember one of those songs from when he was trying to impress Jan, but the only song with walking he can remember, “do you know I’m Gonna Be?”
“The 500 miles song?” Pete asks with a huge grin.
So unsure about this, “yes?”
“Guys,” Pete turns to his band, “do you know the chorus?”
Ray sees them all nod or shrug.
Pete laughs heartily, “Hell yeah, why not. Let’s do it!”
So the band kicks off with the chorus, Pete starts singing, Ray joins in, and somehow the crowd is singing with them.
They do the da da das, Pete and Ray alternating and doing a do-si-do jig at the da da dum diddy dum diddy dum diddy da da da.
They end it with a flourish, the crowd cheering, and a huge hug. Ray’s heart is beating so fast.
The hug lasts, Pete turns to talk in his ear, “stay after the show.” When they finally pull apart, Pete gives a half smile and pats Ray on the shoulder. “Everyone give it up for Ray!”
Ray waves and hands the mic back to the guitarist. Security escorts him through the side stage to where he gets a tote bag full of merch before he’s released back into the crowd.
Jan waits for him with a sad but also knowing smile, not even singing or paying attention to the song Pete is currently singing.
“What?” He asks and continues to watch Pete move around the small stage.
Jan leans into his space and tells him, “he never introduces himself as Pete.”
Ray looks at her like she’s grown a second head. “What?”
She just nods and turns back to the show. She seems a bit less excited than earlier, but still enjoying the music.
Ray’s looks back at Pete who’s looking back at him. Pete winks.
Ray can’t help but smile.