Rocked (The Everyday Heroes World) - Julia Wolf Page 0,30

from recognizing me, I wore sunglasses and a ball cap pulled low on my forehead. It wasn’t the most creative disguise, but it was the best I could do.

I hadn’t been to too many places down here yet, but Better Buzz sounded like the perfect start. Nothin’ wrong with beginning the day with a big cup of coffee. I had my notebook with me too. I thought I’d lean into the whole coffeehouse, artsy vibe.

A pretty woman with faded red hair and about a dozen bangling bracelets on each wrist waited behind the counter. Something about her was vaguely familiar, especially when she smiled at me, but there wasn’t much of a chance I actually knew her. I must’ve seen her when I was out with Kat and Ellie yesterday.

“Hi there, baby. What can I get you?” Her voice was slow and scratchy. She sounded older than she looked.

“I’m a simple man—” I glanced at her nametag, “Rose. A big ol’ cup of coffee.”

“Sure thing, baby.”

Being called “baby” by a woman old enough to be my mama had me taking a step back. It took me a second to realize Rose wasn’t flirting. She’d barely given me a second glance, going about her business, doing her job. She probably called everyone baby. She had kind of a Cali surfer, hippie thing going on. I could picture her saying “right on” and “totally bogus” too.

With my steaming mug of coffee, I took a seat near the back at a table for two. There were a few other people around, but it wasn’t overly crowded. I opened my notebook, pencil making curly doodles around the lyrics I’d been working on since I got to town.

Stitch it and one day it’ll fade

That don’t mean a thing

You’ll never forget how it was made

One mistake until the end of days

Now you gotta carry it with you always

Oh, how the mighty fall down

Who am I fooling?

Your strength is your crown

You crash and you fall, but it’s become clear to me

You’ll never stop until you’ve climbed free

There was no denying who’d inspired the song, but finding inspiration in my surroundings was normal. I’d once written about my favorite sushi delivery guy. He was always running, dropping my food off, then disappearing into the night. Actually, “Faded Red Lights” was one of my biggest singles ever.

That was all this song was. No deeper meaning. Kat was cool as hell and deserved at least one song written about her—not that I’d ever tell her.

Just as I started writing the next verse, two young guys approached my table. My normal MO when fans approached was to get surly and tell them to back the fuck off. Michaela would call it a power trip, because she knew as well as anyone I enjoyed the attention. But since I was trying to change my ways the best I knew how, I tamped down my instincts and nodded at them.

“Gentlemen. What’s up?”

They both looked to be in their twenties. Thickly muscular, but wholesome, with apple cheeks and bright eyes. I figured they were brothers, given their strong resemblance. One wore a Swift City Fire Department T-shirt, the other had on a vintage-looking Pearl Jam concert tee. I dug it.

“Ah, hey.” The taller one gripped the back of the chair tucked into the table across from me. “We’re sorry to bug you. You’re Devon Chambers, right?”

“I am. Who are you?” I shot him a half-smile to soften the question.

“I’m Shane.” He smacked his brother’s arm. “This is Jeff.”

I nodded. “Brothers?”

“Yeah. And we’re big fans. Your first three albums are on permanent rotation at our place and in the car.” Still Shane talking. Jeff, the Pearl Jam fan, seemed to be stuck on mute.

“Hey, boys.”

All of us turned to find a stern-faced Rose wagging her finger in our direction. “Let the man live, brothers. His aura was a lovely shade of blue before you invaded his zone. Now he’s gray.” She shook her head. “I hate seeing creativity sucked right out of the air.” She sprinkled her fingers all around her. “It’s all up in the ether now, anyone could grab it.”

I had no idea what aura colors meant, or if I even believed in that, but gray didn’t sound so great. And fuck anyone who tried to snatch my creativity. I was just getting it back; that shit was not up for grabs.

Shane and Jeff started to scramble away, but I kicked the chair out across from me. “It’s all good. Have a seat.”