Tonight it's Fate

Part Nine

"Fuck, I'm so nervous."

Louna's confession caught David off guard as he was driving down a tight side street, looking for the back entrance to the venue grounds. "What? Why?" he asked. It had been almost two months since the night of the concert she'd gotten drunk at, and they'd both decided to finally try the introductions again. They'd spent the last couple days together in Montreal, celebrating David's birthday the day before, and were capping off Louna's week of vacation with the band's show at an outdoor festival that day and a couple more days together at a lake cabin north of Quebec City. They'd get to the cabin the next day, choosing to stay at a hotel after the show that night since neither of them wanted to drive into the woods in the middle of the night and encounter a bear or something.

She shifted anxiously in the passenger seat of David's SUV. "I just... what if they totally hate me after what happened?"

He shook his head, finally seeing the small sign that marked the entrance. "No one's going to hate you," he tried to reassure her. "You already won over Jeff, and he's really the only one I care about." He smirked. "Maybe Seb, but only 'cause he lives close." He turned into the venue driveway and rolled his window down, smiling at the security guard.

"ID?" the guy asked.

"Sure thing," David replied, handing over his driver's license and offering the laminate he'd been mailed.

The guy nodded and flipped through a few pages on his clipboard, marking off one of the spreadsheets. He reached for the radio clipped to his shirt then. "Graves, I got a black BMW SUV coming to you. Band member, all access, plus one."

"Copy. Send 'em on back," came the reply over the radio.

The guy nodded at David, handed back the ID, and opened the gate.

David thanked him before driving through and following the signs for where to park. An older guy with a gray goatee waved him into a spot and David paused before getting out of the car. "Don't worry about meeting Chuck and Seb, okay? Chuck just needs to know you're not a figment of my imagination and Seb pretty much loves everybody."

Louna laughed at the Chuck comment, but still looked worried. "What if Pierre brings up last time?"

"He won't," he assured her, shaking his head. "He might be a moron, but Chelle used to be a total party girl too and we all witnessed a few of her more embarrassing nights. He knows better than to dredge that shit up."

She nodded then, feeling slightly less anxious about the situation, but still not as settled as she would've liked. She just had to get it over with and things would be better.

The security guard with the goatee knocked on David's window then and he nodded to him, shutting off the car and getting out. "No rush," the guy told him, handing him a slip of paper, "just throw that on the dash and you're good. You have laminates for both of you?"

David shook his head, leaning back inside the car to drop the paper. "No, I've got one, but she needs a pass."

The guy nodded. "I'll get you set up when you're ready to head in."

"Thanks." The guy walked back to a chair that was on the far edge of the lot and David could see the festival backstage setup beyond it. He shut his door then grabbed his backpack from the back seat, pulling it onto his shoulders before walking around to the trunk. Louna was already out of the car and had grabbed her backpack, looking to David expectantly. He smiled. "You take one bass, I'll get the other?" he asked.

She smiled back. "Only for you," she said, grabbing the case that was on top.

"Thank you," he replied, leaning over to her. They kissed lightly and David grabbed the other bass before closing the trunk and locking the car. They made their way to the security guy, who gave Louna a laminate, then explained where to drop off the gear and that they could find the dressing room trailer from there.