the new day - samuel kiszka (greta van fleet)

17- lover of mine

Rowan

Ever since the guys first bigger show that night, they'd been playing nonstop, and I did everything in my power to get to all the shows that I could. As much as I adored seeing them play so much and get recognized, it was an adjustment to say the least. They were really busy, which meant that the past couple weeks we didn't get to spend much time together. They were living out their dreams, and they'd only just begun.

The guys were still in the works of finding a record label that would be good for them, but they needed one that would be able to work with Sam and Danny's school schedules and whatnot. They played a new place nearly every weekend, with what seemed to be a bigger audience every single time. No matter how many shows I attended, their music never failed to give me the chills; it was beautiful. They'd recently gotten a manager, a family friend named Drew, who was helping them out a lot. He seemed to be really nice, and he understood the guys priorities for which they were grateful.

Sam, Jake, Josh, Danny, and I sat in the living room watching "10 Things I Hate About You" whilst eating popcorn and M&M's. It was the first time I'd gotten to spend a lot of time around them the past couple weeks other than going to their shows. I laid my head on Sam's shoulder as we watched contently. It was my favorite part, Bianca just most definately broke Joeys nose, which he totally deserved. Everything was pretty quiet other than small chatter here and there. At least, until Josh's phone rang.

"One sec, Drew is calling" Josh said quickly, standing up from the couch and throwing his blanket on Jakes head. I grabbed the remote and paused the movie, curious as to what that was all about.

"What do you think it's about?" I questioned, lifting my head from Sam's shoulder.

"I'm not sure," he began, shrugging, "Hopefully something good."

"Hopefully it's another show," Jake smiled, "I got a replacement for my flashback pedal I wanna use."

They were excited to be playing live so much, and I was excited for them too. They seemed to get better every time they stepped on stage, and they had a presence that was completely unparalelled. After about 5 minutes or so later, Josh came back in, a smile plastered on his face.

"Good news!" he smiled his contageous smile, "We're playing at The Fillmore in Detroit this saturday! It'll be our biggest venue yet. They're having a day long band showcase, and bands from all over the midwest are coming to perform." The boys all got excited, making plans before they could even fully process it. I was over the moon excited for them, and I wanted to see them play. The only real problem was that saturday was my birthday, and I knew I needed to spend it with my dad. We needed eachother, it was gonna be our first birthday celebration without my mom around.

"This is so exciting," Sam smiled, squeezing me close to him, "We should start getting a setlist ready now." he said quickly, patting my shoulder as he started to stand up.

"Yeah, you're right," Danny said excitedly, "Let's head to the garage."

All the guys got up, and Sam grabbed my hand, leading me to the garage. I sat and listened contently as they played around with ideas for saturdays set. They planned to play Flower Power, and I was sad I wouldn't get to be there for it.

I only stayed for an hour or so before heading home. I was hesitant because I knew Sam would be busy the rest of the week, and a part of me thought he might have forgotten my birthday. He didn't even flinch when he found out they were playing The Fillmore that day. He planned our movie night to celebrate, but that was a while ago. I didn't want to let it get to me, so I tried to pretend it didn't hurt a little.

The rest of that week was uneventful, and I didn't see Sam or the rest of the Kiszka's much at all, as I had predicted, other than sitting in one one of their practices that thursday.

Friday night I sat at my bay window, reading The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, one of my favorite books ever. I was a sucker for young adult romance books, especially the ones that tug on the heart strings.

It was drizzling out, and the sun had just set. It was peaceful which I needed. I had a lot on my mind.

CLINK

CLINK

CLINK

An all too familiar sound rang in my ears, the sound of Sam's little marbles hitting my window. I stood up quickly, cracking the window open.

"Hi, Sammy." I half heartedly smiled. He looked tired, like he'd been drowning in his own thoughts for far too long.

"Hello, Rowan." he began, smiling back at me,

"Listen, I just wanted to say that i'm really sorry I haven't been able to spend as much time with you these past few weeks. The band has been growing a lot and it's been difficult to navigate, but I-I just miss you. A lot." he paused for a moment, he seemed to be trying to gather his thoughts more.

"Once school starts, maybe the band stuff will slow down and things can go back to normal. I miss spending all my free time with you. I miss having free time. I-I..."

"Sam..." I smiled at him again, he's always been such a sweet soul,

"It's going to be okay. We will be okay. You boys are gonna go places, and I never want to hold you back." tears started to prickle in my eyes, I was so proud, but also lonely. I missed him. Sure, he lived right there, but I missed him, and the birthday situation still hurt. No matter how selfish it may make me, it's true.

"You'll never hold me back. If anything, you keep us going. You're the glue that holds us together. We can't imagine doing this without you by our side." he chuckled, tucking a loose strand of hair behind his ear.

"Good, because as the glue, you're all stuck with me." I joked, throwing him another smile.

"So, I hope that means you're coming to Detroit with us saturday?" he questioned, looking at me with his puppy dog eyes. I didn't even want to answer in all honesty.

"I wish I could, but I can't." I frowned, looking over to him.

"I wish you could too, I love when you watch us play." he began, a frown forming on his face too,

"Why can't you come? It's not a holiday or anything in particular." he questioned, shrugging. He didn't remember it was my birthday. A part of me had already thought he accidentally forgot, but in that moment he confirmed it. I guess I shouldn't have expected him to remember it but being the only one I'd told, I hoped he would.

"I need to spend some time with dad, and the showcase is an all day thing." I said quietly, trying not to let my sadness show.

"I'm sorry, Sam." I really wanted to be there, but I couldn't leave my Dad, not when he did so much to support me.

"It's okay, I understand." he said, smiling a genuine smile. "Wish me luck, okay?"

"You don't need luck, Sammy." I rolled my eyes, "Wait a sec," I shouted, running over to my nightstand and grabbing a friendship bracelet I'd been working on for him the past couple of weeks.

"Here," I muttered, throwing the bracelet through my window and over to him, "Though you don't need luck, keep this just in case. I made it for you." I smiled as a blush spread across his cheeks.

"Thank you, Ro," he whispered, slipping it onto his right wrist and tightening it, "It's beautiful."

"You're welcome, Sammy." I said with a yawn. It was getting late.

"Now, do me a favor and go kick some Fillmore ass tomorrow."