Erin - Sucker Punch (21)

Erin – Sucker Punch

It's getting late have you seen my mates
Ma tell me when the boys get here
It's seven o'clock and I want to rock
Want to get a belly full of beer

My old man's drunker than a barrel full of monkeys
And my old lady she don't care
My sister looks cute in her braces and boots
A handful of grease in her hair

Don't give us none of your aggravation
We had it with your discipline
Saturday night's alright for fighting
Get a little action in

Get about as oiled as a diesel train
Gonna set this dance alight
Cause Saturday night's the night I like
Saturday night's alright alright alright

                                                               Elton John (Saturday Night’s Alright)

Erin and Danny rode in silence for a few miles, both consumed with their own thoughts.  Danny’s rant about whether or not Violet should go to L.A. killed Erin’s high from their trip.  Frankly, he was more than a little worried that Danny would be able to convince her not to go.  He didn’t want to admit it, but Danny was right about Violet being his meal ticket.  If she didn’t go with him, it would be a lot harder for him to make it out there.  Words were not his strong suit that much was for certain.  Yet somehow, when he had the words in front of him, the melody came easily.

He finally turned to Danny.  “I think you’re going about this all wrong.”

Danny stared straight ahead at the road.  “How do you figure?”

“Being a possessive and manipulative asshole is not going to get her to stay.”

Danny slammed on the brakes and Erin had to brace himself against the dashboard.  He pulled the car over to the side of the road and ripped the emergency brake up.  “Get out of my car.  Now.”

Erin stared at him incredulously.  “You can’t be serious!  I can’t help it if you don’t like hearing the truth.”

“That’s rich, coming from the slipperiest Casanova I know.  Like you aren’t influencing Violet with your womanizing ways!  I’ve known you too long to think that you aren’t playing games with her.  You’ve had two whole weeks to work on her mind and steer her in the direction you want.  She only ever sang that song in the first place because she didn’t want to disappoint you.  She tried to get out of it, and Mr. Zimmerman told her that if she didn’t perform with you that you wouldn’t get to sing at all.”

Erin was stunned.  “Danny, I had no idea!  She never said a word to me.”

“Of course she didn’t!  She’s my girlfriend, but she’s ready to jump on a plane and go wherever you want her to.  I can’t even convince her to go to school with me, and I’m the one who’s her boyfriend last time I checked.  Now, I said ‘get out of the car’.”  He stared at Erin.

“Okay, okay, Danny.  Just let me get my bag from the back.”  Erin pulled on the door handle and climbed out of the car.  He went around to the back and opened the hatch.  He pulled out his duffel and shut the hatch; when he turned around, Danny was standing there in front of him, fists clenched at his sides.

“You know what the worst part is?  You’re my friend, and I feel like you’re trying to steal my girl from me.”

Erin opened his mouth in shock.  “Danny that could not be further from the truth.  I’ve got your back 100% all the way.  I always have.  I wouldn’t want to steal Violet from you.  I’m sorry that you think I have any ulterior motives here.  I’m following my dream to make it in the music industry; it’s what I’ve always wanted.  Have you ever considered that it might actually be Violet’s dream, too?”

Before Erin knew what was happening, Danny swung his fist and clocked him in the jaw.  He stumbled and fell against the back of the car, dropping his duffel bag.  He raised his hand to his bleeding lip.  Danny glared at him and held his fists cocked in the air, waiting for Erin to fight back.

Erin stared at Danny, trying to decide his next move.  He reached down and picked up his bag.  “I know you’re upset right now, so I’m going to give you some space.  I hope you get your head clear about all of this.  Thanks for the ride, but I think I’ll walk from here.”  He turned and started walking down the road towards his house.  It was still a good three miles away, but there was no way he was getting back in Danny’s car right now.  Not a chance. 

As he walked home, he mulled over Danny’s words.  He had no idea that Violet had not willingly participated in Senior Showcase.  She was in choir after all, and they had to get

up and perform for various functions and competitions all of the time.  Why would she be uncomfortable in front of an audience like that?  And why would Mr. Zimmerman have put her in that position in the first place?  That certainly didn’t make any sense to him.

Up until that phone call from Morgan three weeks ago, Erin’s plan had been to head to Nashville after graduation and take his shot as making it as a singer.  He knew that without writing his own songs that the road was definitely going to be longer than he hoped.   However, it was something he had dreamed about since he was nine years old and his dad had taken him to his first George Strait concert.  That had sealed the deal for him.  He had asked for a guitar that Christmas, and he was hooked from there.

The time that he and Violet had spent in L.A. had changed his mind about Nashville, along with a lot of other things.  He hated to admit it, but Danny was right about one thing: Violet was the key player in these plans.  His guitar chops were pretty sharp and he was sure he could get work as a session musician at the very least if he ventured out there on his own.  But it really was the lyrics that Violet wrote that made the difference in how successful they would or could be. 

Working with Violet all of the time would not be easy, though.  They really seemed to be in sync when it came to the music, but everything else required an immense amount of effort.  Erin was not sure he was up to abiding by Violet’s strict moral code of conduct in order to keep the peace between them.  Venus helped to keep things flowing along while they were in the studio, which had alleviated most of the hiccups that would have surely occurred between them if left on their own, but that might not always be the case.

Then there was the issue of where to live.  They had stayed with Morgan for the duration of their stay, but that had been a short-term deal.  He would have to find a place to live, and he was pretty sure that his car was not going to last much longer.  Erin had been saving most of his checks from his job over the last year in preparation for going to Nashville.  Adding the check they had received for their studio work would give him more than enough to get started, and if he sold his car before they left, he could pick up something a little more reliable once they arrived in L.A. 

Ah – home sweet home!  Finally, he could see the pine trees that lined his driveway off in the distance.  Erin didn’t mind walking, but his duffel was not getting any lighter.  He was definitely ready to pull off his boots and grab a Dr. Pepper from the fridge, along with some ice for his swollen lip.  Danny was going to owe him one hell of an apology for that one.