the lucky one || reggie peters

> eight

Jo walked through the door of the venue that evening. The lights were low and the focus of the room was on a stage at the front where a girl in a bright pink, sheer jacket was introducing her band. The room was packed with people, but eventually Jo's eye caught on Julie beside another girl at the front of the room.

    As the girl began to sing, more girls joining her on stage to perform perfectly polished choreography. The guys poofed in behind Julie and Reggie's focus was immediately broken when a girl with purple hair in a green, gingham skirt and blazer over a cropped white tank top headed their way.

    "Jo, what are you doing here?" he said, excitedly wrapping his arm around her waist as the rest of the band greeted her.

    "Had a little change of heart. Thought I'd come see the show."

    The song continued in front of them until, suddenly, Alex disappeared from beside them and showed up in the middle of the stage dancing around the girl wearing the bubblegum pink wig. Jo laughed as he rejoined them, out of breath.

    "Having fun up there?" Julie asked sarcastically.

    "It's not my fault. It's my, um... it's my feet... Join me, Jo?"

    "No, you go have your fun," she chuckled.

    Alex looked back up at the stage happily. "Put me back in, Coach."

    The song ended and so did Alex's choreography. He claimed he was just doing it for them, but they all saw straight through him. "That song was annoyingly catchy," Jo muttered.

    "Yeah, I'm not gonna lie. That was... kind of good," Julie said, looking at Flynn.

    "I forgot why I hate her so much."

    The pink girl and her minions approached the group, obviously only being able to see Flynn and Julie. "Hi, girls! Um, isn't it past your bedtime?"

    Flynn said, "Now I remember."

    "Hm. If you're looking for Nick, he didn't come," she told Julie.

    "Who's Nick? Oh! We can have a girl talk later, Jules!" Jo exclaimed.

    Julie glanced back with a smile, but scoffed and stepped up to Carrie. "That's not why I'm here."

    "Okay, it looks like we're closing the night out with one more group," the man on stage said. "Julie and the... Fat Ones."

    Dirty Candy laughed as Julie and the boys turned to Luke. "Oh, so this is your fault," Jo guessed.

    "Yeah, man. My handwriting sucks," he admitted.

    Julie forced a smile and pushed past the girls, climbing the stage and Dirty Candy dismissed themselves. Reggie squeezed Jo's waist lightly where his arm had lingered. "You've gotta come up there with us. You're too good to just be watching."

    "He's right," Alex said. "He's got ulterior motives because he's in love with you, but he's right."

    Reggie hit his arm as Jo rolled her eyes. "Mmkay. I'm already destroying whatever work relationship I had with Caleb prior to you idiots. Performing with another band would be the last nail in the coffin."

    "Come on. We need you," Luke pleaded.

    Reggie lowered his lips down by Jo's ear. "Please?"

    Julie played the opening notes of Finally Free on her keyboard. "Hearts on fire. We're no liars. So we say what we wanna say. I'm awakened. No more fakin'. So we push all our fears away. Don't know if I'll make it 'cause I'm falling under. Close my eyes and feel my chest beating like thunder. I wanna fly. Come alive! Watch me shine!"

    Four ghosts appeared on the stage, Alex behind his drums up on the riser and Luke and Reggie on either side with their guitars. Between them stood the newest member of Julie and the Phantoms, Jo Newton with her stickered guitar.

    "I got a spark in me. Hands up if you can see! And you're a part of me. Hands up if you're with me. Now till eternity. Hands up if you believe! Been so long and now we're finally free!"

    Julie took Jo's hand and pulled her up to the microphone beside her. "We're all bright now. What a sight now. Coming out like we're fireworks." Jo joined her on the next line, "Marching on proud. Turn it up loud. Cause now we know what we're worth."
(bolded part is the only lines that Jo sings along with her here)

    Luke joined Julie on the pre-chorus so Jo stepped back beside Reggie as they both played facing each other, as if singing along directly to the other. "Watch me shine!" Through the chorus, Jo joined Reggie singing into his microphone with the background vocals. "Been so long and now we're finally free!"

    Julie and Luke sang the bridge together as the other three band members shared suggestive looks. During the last few lines, Reggie came up behind Jo and set his chin on her shoulder, making her lean back into his touch. Again, Reggie and Jo sang into the microphone together for the last chorus and background vocals.

    Julie held out her microphone to Jo for the final lines of the song. "Finally free! Yeah," she sang harmoniously, Reggie staring at her in awe.

Jo stepped back as the last notes rang out and Reggie grabbed Jo's hand instinctively while they bowed. The ghosts disappeared from the stage and the crowd gasped before applauding even louder. "Thank you. We're Julie and the Phantoms. Tell your friends," Julie concluded.

The girl ran off the stage to her friend as Flynn squealed and hugged her. "You were incredible! And that must've been the new member, Jo. She's amazing!"

"Awe, that's so nice," Jo said, sitting on the bar behind her with a hand on her heart.

"Jo says thanks," Julie relayed.

Flynn looked behind her suddenly. "I can't wait to meet you for real!"

"She's so nice," Jo told the boys as Reggie looped an arm around her waist again like his arm was meant to fit there.

"Yeah. She almost disowned Julie as a friend when she found out about us," Alex said.

"Oh, that's... cool."

"Hey! Whoever Carrie was trying to impress is coming this way!" Luke pointed out, making Julie and then, a moment later, Flynn turn back that way.

"She looks all business," Alex said. It was true, the pretty woman with caramel-colored curls was in a fancy tan pantsuit and purple turtleneck.

"Who should do the talking?" Reggie asked anxiously. They all looked at him stupidly while Jo smiled and patted his shoulder. "Right, Julie. Julie."

"Hi, I'm Andi Parker I would love to-"

The businesswoman was cut off when an older man called Julie's name. "Dad," she said, answering Jo's question of who it was.

>author's note
was thinking abt my bestie jo today <3. very much miss writing this story.

the next few weeks of my life are weird, so apologies in advance if my update schedule gets weird.