The Sun-Blinded Life

One Two Three Go...

"Aileen hurry up and check if your bass is tuned, we have less than ten minutes before we hit the stage," my older brother Lincoln, our band leader and drummer, says in passing as I'm sitting on the floor. I was texting my father who was with my little brother Felix, the rest of the band's family and friends, and with the fans waiting for us to perform. I wanted to call him but I know I wouldn't be able to hear him with all the talking going on and the music playing.

I'm not one to get nervous before a show but this was the last time we were playing in a small venue before we start playing with the big leagues, I wanted things to go perfect tonight. I can see Hazael, our lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist, pace around doing vocal warms ups as he does before every show. I know he was freaking out because his family were here to see him sing before we go off touring the world.

I walk back inside our dressing room and set up the tuner on the table to check if my bass was in the perfect condition for the sixth time today. "Dude, you got to stop doing that or you're gonna end up over-tuning it and we know how that sounds," Levi, the other background vocalist like me and our residential lead guitarist, said with a grin walking over to where I was standing and put the tuner away inside his case. "Hey! Don't get mad at me, O'Neill. My brother told me to check it before we go on stage, so eff off," I say sticking out my tongue and laughing.

Alex, our keyboardist, came out from bathroom screaming with Lana, our hair, makeup, and clothes stylist, behind him looking exhausted. "GUYS, GUYS! Lana finally got my hair up in a quiff and it doesn't look absolute shit, no offense. It's a sign that the show gonna be a bomb-ass." Lincoln comes in with Hazael behind him and shakes his head, "Alex, calm your ass down and don't jinx it for us, go knock on wood or something."

We start laughing as Alex flips him the bird but stop when our gate keeper Michael, band manager/publicist, and Dave, head of security, walk in. "Okay kiddies, its show time. Go out there and perform like never before because next time you hit the stage, it's going to be in an arena filled with a crowd a hundred times bigger than the one you have out there tonight. Good Luck!" he says and walks out to while Dave gives us a thumbs up and starts pushing us out the door.

On our way to the stage, we walk in a line and start singing "I'll Make Man Out Of You," from the Disney movie Mulan, to get pumped. I know it's weird but it's tradition we sing that song before a show. We give each other hugs, do the group chant, and say our good lucks before splitting up with Lincoln and Alex heading to the left entrance while Levi, Hazael, and I go to the right entrance. The guys and I do our own secret handshake and get in the order we go out.

Our introduction video starts playing, I can hear the fans chanting our name and I get excited. Josh, our tech guy, instruments handler, and MC, starts calling us one by one and we head out with our instruments in our hands and earpieces on so we don't go deaf from the screaming and we can hear the music.

I walk out with a smile and a wave before throwing a few guitar picks to the crowd, like I do before each performance. "Hey Anaheim California, are you ready to lose your voices tonight?" Lincoln says and the fans go nuts. The guys and I laugh as Li continues his speech, "We are The Sun-Blinded and it's an honor that you'll spend your evening with us five dorks. I'm gonna now be turning it over to curly who will introduce the first song of the night. Take it away, Mister Hazael."

Crowd starts going crazy and I knew that was the cue to get ready to play. While Haz talks, I look for my dad and little brother in the balcony before spotting them and sending them a kiss and dad waves with Felix sending a kiss back. I look at the guys and see Haz is going to mention the song's name.

"So Sun-Blinders, I think it's time we get the show on the road. Let's start off with a song written by our own lovely bassist and the blonde guitarist called Tear In My Heart, they wrote one day when they were together and no they weren't on a date. It was just a writing session otherwise our drummer would hurt the little fella," he says with laugh as he gives my brother look and the crowds screams. My brother gives him a quick glare getting ready to count us out. I get a pick from the microphone stand so I can perform. Lincoln starts tapping his drum sticks, "Okay then. Are we ready guys and dolls? One, two, one, two, three, go..."
And it's show time.

A/N: OMG the first chapter is out, EEP!!! For those of you who don't know the song they sang is "Tear In My Heart" by Twenty One Pilots.
Just a heads up, many of the songs they sing through out the book will of course be by bands that I listen to but for the sake of the story, they will be as if the band wrote them.