Tempting (Inked Hearts 1)

The lights are off in the main room.

All the lights. It's dark.

This really is a weird little dive bar.

Guitar notes fill the air. They're live and they're coming from the stage

. They're familiar too.

It's Stupid Girl by Garbage. And it's not just a guitar. There's the bass, the drums, the vocals-

No.

That sounds like Ethan. And it sounds like he's singing a gender swapped version of the song about a stupid boy who doesn't believe in anything, who lied to himself and wasted everything he had.

That must be a coincidence or a loneliness-inspired delusion. Ethan's show is in Baltimore in three hours. That means he's in Baltimore now.

He's not here.

It's just some guy who sounds like Ethan.

Then he's singing the next song, I Think I'm Paranoid, and I'm even more certain that it's Ethan singing. I've heard his voice a million times, a million different ways.

That must be him.

How could it be anyone but him?

The lights are still off. Nobody seems to mind but then I guess there are only a dozen people in this bar.

I know the next song the moment I hear the first note—lord knows I played that note enough times. It's I'm Only Happy When It Rains.

The spotlight turns on.

And there's Ethan, on the stage, in a Garbage t-shirt and jeans, singing his heart out.

I blink a few times.

It's still Ethan.

But… what… how?

The spotlight spreads until it's illuminating the entire stage. That's not just Ethan. That's all of Dangerous Noise. What the hell are they doing here?

From the mild reactions of the people here, it's safe to say no one recognizes them.

Ethan smiles as he finishes the song. He looks out at the dark room. "Thank you, I'm Ethan Strong. And we are Dangerous Garbage, the best Garbage cover band in all of Orange County. Orange County, California. I know you have one here too."

"And in Jersey," someone calls out.

"Could never forget about Jersey," Ethan says. "Let's hear it for the singer of the real Garbage, Shirley Manson, huh?"

No one applauds.

Fuck it, Shirley Manson deserves better than that. I applaud.

Then the spotlight is on me.

Joel jumps up from his drum kit to nod hello. Mal and Kit shoot me the same hellos but they stay in their places.