Black Hurricane

"It's a mess," Wilder grumbled behind the bar, where I, Jordan, and the new Damon greeted the guests. "I had to hire another bartender, and another security guard to keep the underage kids out. It cost more than I thought."

"At least you've added new customers," Jordan said over his shoulder.The bar is so noisy not only because of the crowds in front of the bar, but also because of the opening band playing heavy metal rock. "Let's hope they come back after tonight."

Wilder grunted in reply.

Kal-El and the others had stopped by here earlier, but hadn't come back.They may not be able to overwhelm the crowd of people scrambling to order.

Downey pushed his way through the crowd and yelled, "I'm so fucking speechless. Can I order?"

"What do you want, Donny?" I smiled. The leather hunk was wearing chaps over his jeans.It's pretty sexy.

"Hey, I'm first," said a woman to his left.More people tried to push Donnie past me, calling my name to order.I don't know any of these people, how did they know my name?

Downey bared his teeth at the lady, pushing the crowd back with his broad shoulders.

"Excuse me," I said to the lady, pouring Donny his usual rum and coke. "He's a VIP. I'll take your order next."

He wasn't the only biker who was annoyed.Ever since Dean brought a bunch of new customers to his door, the anger of the bikers has only grown.They were already hot enough before the last time Dean came on stage, and now they find "their" table occupied by new guests who have been looking forward to seeing him since Dean's performance last week .

"You want to sing?" Donnie asked while slapping ten yuan on the bar.

"No way. Not even close to the stage."

"You know, me and my buddies don't like to see that bastard dangling around you. As long as you say a word, we will support you, how about it?"

"I understand. Thank you Donny." I winked at him, then turned to greet the lady.

"Don't you sing?" she asked.

"Sing, he's going to sing," Wilder said behind me.

"No." I turned to Wilder. "I don't sing. It's not my job."

"McQueen made it clear that you're on stage with him, or he won't sing. It's all in the contract."

"It's none of my business," I cried, following Wilder's words. "Anyway, I don't sing!"

Wilder pointed at me with his fat finger, then turned and went into the back kitchen.

"Fucking speechless," I cursed at no one, but just in time for Donny to wink at me, and he went off to find an empty seat.

Just as I was taking the lady's order, the opening band left the stage and Wilder stepped up and tapped the microphone.

"Well, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming tonight." He kept sneaking glances at a yellow cheat sheet in his fat palm. "We've got Dean McQueen tonight"—the scene thundered, and Wilder waited for the crowd to quiet down—"'Black Hurricane'"—another round of cheers, whistles, screams—"and Ben The bar sings Jace."

I don't know which shocked me more: did he have the audacity to introduce me when I had clearly told him I wasn't singing?Or the frantic reaction of the crowd upon hearing my name?How would they know who I am?Did Wilder advertise?

Oh shit.Somehow Dean made me famous, and I didn't want to be famous.He's hellbent on ruining my life - building on what he's already ruined.I can no longer wander the streets without someone calling my name.Some journalists even managed to get my phone number and make interviews before I went to work because I was going to be on stage tonight singing with Dean?

"Enjoy some snacks before the show, please." Wilder pointed to the bar, and I was standing behind the bar, staring at him like I wanted to poke his head out. "They're going to be performing soon."

The noise was even worse, people in the lobby and at the bar were shouting and shouting my name to get my attention.I've never been afraid of crowds or claustrophobia, but now it's like my throat is swollen and it's getting harder to breathe.

I pushed past Jordan and Damon and rushed into the back kitchen, knocking over several glasses along the way.Because of the noise around me, I couldn't even hear them fall to the ground and shatter.The back kitchen was a buffer zone, but after a few seconds, Wilder rushed in, forcing me to get ready to go on stage.

"I don't sing, okay?" I yelled at him, pulling my jacket from under the bar.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"I'm leaving. I'm quitting. This time for real."

"You can't quit!" Wilder's face turned purple as he yelled. "You're on contract!"

"Really?" My fingers clenched into fists. "Well, I didn't sign you to work again, remember? I didn't sign anything to work or sing here, so go ahead and sue me."

"You little bastard," he yelled, and I pushed open the door, only to bump into a dense wall of people. "I'll pay you double if you come on stage tonight," Wilder whispered in my ear.

A few soft guitar hits from the stage quieted the crowd.It was Yin, looking for the key while waiting for the other band members to take their positions.Dean greeted the people, pausing every word to wait for the cheers to die down.There is one bodyguard on each side of the stage, and two in front of the stage.I stood still and looked at Dean. The leather jacket tightly wrapped his body, the pointed boots, and the heavy makeup.He wants to be awesome.

"Before we start," Dean said, looking down at the bar, "I need Jace on stage with me."

I just stood less than ten steps away from the stage and shook my head.He didn't see me, but people started looking around, trying to find me, and the group standing in front of me seemed to recognize me as Jace.

"Jace, come up, come up, wherever you are," Dean teased.

Wilder raised his hand beside me and pointed down at me.

When Dean saw me, I shook my head at him.

"Come on, baby. People want to hear you sing." The girls went crazy when they heard the "baby," and the crowd started chanting in time, "Jess, Jess, Jess."

As people started pushing me onto the stage, I felt like I was in the weirdness of The Twilight Zone.Thankfully, Kal-El popped up next to me, along with Alex, Rick, and Terry.Kal-El pushed Wilder away and led me to the back door with Rick in the front and Alex and Teri walking beside me like bodyguards.Immediately Eric and Benji appeared, and Eric touched my hand and held it tightly.

Note ①: TheTwilightZone, a fantasy/thriller/sci-fi TV series filmed in the United States in the 60s.

When we opened the door to the alley, it was already full of people.

"It's no use trying to have a drink here. It's not fun," someone yelled.

"We'd better talk to Wilder."

It's the bikers, Downey and his gang.There were at least twenty people standing in the alley, all wearing leather jackets, spikes and jeans.

"He won't listen. He's got a new customer now. Time to find a new bar to hang out with," said Downey, who happened to see me. "Hey bro, are you okay? You don't look so good."

"I'm fine, thank you Donny," I replied, and now that I was outside, my friends parted a little.Eric still held my hand tightly.Strangely, Alex didn't seem to mind either, but became wary of the bikers.Terry and Benji also looked at the group of people warily.

"It's okay," I told them. "These are regulars."

"Yeah, we're regulars," said Eddie, a small Italian who came in almost every day. "It's just that now we don't feel welcome here anymore."

"I'm sorry, it's all my fault," I murmured with my head down.

"It's not your fault," Mike said. "It's the gay singer and his gang. Fucking sissy."

Eric tightened his grip on my hand, and Terry raised his eyebrows.

"It's not that we're against homosexuality," Mike remedied. "Donnie and Jake are gay too, we just don't like the bells and whistles."

Eric cleared his throat in leggings and sequined eye shadow.

"I mean," Mike said, running his eyes up and down Eric as he continued to paint darker and darker.

"It's okay," Eric said. "We don't like Dean McQueen and his gang either. He's such a jerk to Jace."

"Yes," Mike said. "That's what I mean."

"Exactly," Eddie said. "I can't see him chasing our own people all the time. That guy just doesn't have eyes."

I refrained from smiling.Never thought I'd be counted among the bikers, especially since I don't even own a motorcycle, but it's nice to know they're on my side.

"Thank you, but I'm fine. I just quit my job here. Wilder is a bigger ass than Dean."

"Well, I'll let you know when we find a new bar and you can come to work then," Jack said. "It's not the same without you, a cheerful little dog, picking up customers behind the bar." He raised his eyebrows.

A laugh, the first real laugh of the day slipped out of my mouth.So the fact that he yelled at me before was not to insult me, but to hook me up.I've thought maybe that's what it means, but I'm not sure.It's hard to tell sometimes.

Terry put his arm around my shoulders. "Ready to go?"

"Okay, let's go."

Just as we were about to leave, the door opened and a crowd poured out, Dean at the head, Wilder shouting behind a crowd of fans, band members and bodyguards—

"We have a contract!"

"Yes," Dean said to Wilder. "We have, and you broke the contract."

"Can't you sing a song before leaving? Everyone is looking forward to it."

"Contract includes Jace."

I folded my arms across my chest and raised an eyebrow at Dean. "You forgot to ask me if I wanted to be on stage, didn't you?"

Dean turned his head to me. "You're here. Why aren't you on stage?"

"Because I'm not a fucking bar entertainer," I said, trying to stay calm. "I'm a bartender."

"But you're on stage every night when you work." He took a few steps closer, but stopped as soon as he saw Rick and Al-El approaching me.

"That's because Wilder put me on stage. I resigned tonight so I don't have to do anything I don't want to do - and that includes singing with you."

Dean was silent for a while, just looking at me steadily, then he turned slowly to Wilder.

"What's the matter?"

"You said he was one of your entertainers."

"he is the one!"

"Did he sign with you? You said he did."

Wilder blushed and cast his eyes to the ground.

"Fuck," Dean whispered.

"It's pathetic," said a lead fanboy.

"What's pathetic?" asked Benji, next to Rick.

"He." The fanboy pointed at me.

Donnie yelled "Hey!" from the other side of the alley.

The fan continued: "Dean turned him into a star, but Jess didn't know what to do in return, and threw him back in the face."

"I'm not a star."

Eric cleared his throat. "Er, dear. You're pretty much on your way."

I glared at my friend and saw his sympathetic eyes.

"What do you mean? Wilder put my face on the poster or something?"

"No baby," Terry said, wrapping his arms around my shoulders. "You're a 'YouTube celebrity' now."

"Oil—what?"

"'YouTube celebrity,'" another fanboy chimed in. "Like a rock version of Justin Bieber? You're famous, thanks to Dean."

Hold.I've seen a few youtube videos on Kal-El, but didn't know it was a place to get famous.Someone uploaded my video there?Why?What do you want to do?

Suddenly, the image of me and Dean sharing the stage that night flashed into my mind.Someone must have recorded it with a hi-tech phone and uploaded it to YouTube.Shit, that's why those photographers started tailgating me?

"You all know that?" I asked my friends, sounding particularly unassuming.

"Sorry," Kal-El mumbled. "I don't know what to tell you. That's why it was like that at the market that day. The girls were crazy about you, and so were the boys. They all thought you and Dean were..."

"What is it? Lover?"

Kal-El glanced under his red bangs, ashamed as if he was about to be spanked.

"Fucking good," I gritted out the words, then turned to Dean, "You. You ruined my childhood, then ran away like nothing happened, and now you're killing me by the way. Ruined together. Why can't you let me go? Why did you do this to me? Why?"

Dean's pupils were constricting and he was speechless, but the showman pushed him away and rushed straight to me, chest against mine.The make-up on his face is so thick that I doubt if I scratch his face with my fingernails, I can't scratch his skin.

"You poor ungrateful whore. Dean made you popular. What's wrong with you?"

"Did I ever say I don't want to be red?" I squirt back.

"Who doesn't want to be popular." He put his hand on my chest and pushed me.Dean's hand fell heavily on the showman's shoulder, pulling him back, while the Bikers and my friends were walking up to the flesh and blood.It was almost at war, the Black Leather Party versus the Rainbow Bracelet Party, right next to me and Dean in the center.Dean's bodyguard pushed his way through the crowd to stand beside him.

Dean stared at me, and I glared back, but everyone else stood still.

"Listen guys," Wilder began, breaking the sudden silence of the alley. "I don't want to get into any trouble. I'll call the police if anyone does it."

"Scream, tell them to lock up these mad dogs," said a flesh and blood.

"They'll kick your asses too," Mike said, walking up to the man, chest to chest. "They're going to lock you up knowing what happens to your asses when you pretty little sissies go to jail?"

"What, do you want my ass? Don't you just keep talking?"

"I'm not gay."

"You sound like one. You're obsessed with ass, like all the guys who pretend they're straight."

They tore each other all the way, and then others joined in, and it quickly turned into a war of words.Flesh and skin versus speeding party.Looks like Wilder will have to change the name of the bar anyway: "Bloody Flesh" or "Crying Bikers."It's hard to say who will win in the end.

But Eric, Rick, and Kal-El weren't involved, and my friends kept quiet and stood next to me.Terry's arm is still on my shoulder, and Eric's still holding my hand, even though he's torn from a little guy's flesh and blood now, and then I feel a pair of hands on my back, too Big so it wasn't Benji's hand.Is it Alex's?

"Jess," Dean said in a low voice.

"That's not the way to get me back," I told him. "There's no way you're going to get me back. You've screwed up and now you're screwing up. So please, let's go, please," I said with all my sincerity, trying to make him understand.

"I can't," he replied, running his fingertips across my chin. "I just can't. Please, can we talk somewhere?"

"What's there to talk about?" I hated, hated how shaken I was when I saw his face, hated how his voice tugged at my heartbeat so much.

"All of it. Please, Jesper."

I am shaken.I was so shaken that I almost gave in, followed him to the hotel, let him fuck me, and then worry about the pain.

The first punch of my hand brought me back from my thoughts.The lead flesh and blood hit Mike, and all of a sudden the whole bunch started throwing their fists at each other.Some boys ran for the door; Wilder started calling, Benji screamed at Rick to stop, tried to pull him out; Eric let go of my hand and started talking to the little guy There was a chomping and clawing as Alex tried to drag him aside; the members of the Black Hurricane ran back inside; the bodyguards pulled Dean away from me.That's probably for the best, because if I do give in, I'll regret it for the rest of my life.

One pushed the biker past me straight to Dean.His bodyguards took a few punches, and Dean fled back inside, watching me from the door with solemn, sad eyes.

"Come on, guys." Terry put his arms around my shoulders. "Before the notes come."