Chapter Text
It was just a normal day at rehearsal. The Rejects had a show coming up the next week so all they had to do was get ready. This was their biggest performance after all with a total of all of their songs including a snippet of an unreleased song that was still in the works. Around 4 hours later they finished practice and all planned to go home.
“I’m going now ‘cuz I am TIRED. See you guys tomorrow.” Skizz said, getting his stuff from the floor where all his belongings were. (There was a table btw. Fully vacant but he insisted and said that someone else needed the space more than him.) “Alright, see ya!” Jimmy said, him and BigB waving at the eldest.
“Hold it. Don't leave.”
They heard Joel say from the back. They turned around to see what was wrong only to be met with Joel on his phone with a face none of them could properly read. ”What happened?” Asked Tim, walking over to see what was on the phone.
“Gem and the Scotts: band quickly going mainstream after new single” Joel read the article looking up at them after as all of them shared the same reaction. “Isn’t that the one garage band?” Jimmy asked. Joel shoved his phone in his pocket a little too harshly. “Welp, they're not a garage band anymore.” “It says here they climbed the ranks in only a week!” BigB exclaimed, all of them in shock. “A WEEK?! WHAT THE HECK?! THAT MAKES NO BLOODY SENCE!” Joel yelled clearly annoyed at how quickly the other group made it to success. “WHO’S EVEN IN THAT DARN GROUP???” “Uhhh it says here the band members are GeminiTay as the bassist, ImpulseSV as their drummer, and their lead singer being Scott Smajo-”
“SCOTT???”
“WAIT IMPULSE?!”
BigB didn’t even have time to finish his sentence before getting cut off by two of his bandmates. “You guys know them?” Jimmy asked the two. “Yeah I do! Impulse and I used to be best friends in high school but we had to go our separate ways during college.” Skizz said with a laugh “We used to be in a band together actually! I can't believe he made it mainstream! How about you Joel? How do you know this Scott guy?” Skizz turned his head to look at him just to be met with silence. It was quiet for a solid 10 seconds before Joel broke the silence. “I… I have to go somewhere with Lizzie.” He said quietly as he got his stuff and stormed out of the room, pushing Skizz out his way. “Oh- uh- tell Lizzie I said hi!” Jim asked but there was no reply as the request hung in the air.
“What’s gotten into him?” BigB asked the others. “I’ve never seen him this mad.” It was quiet for a bit until Skizz spoke up. “Maybe he’s just stressed about others climbing the ranks faster than us?” The two went back and forth talking but Jimmy just stayed quiet.
That wasn’t the Joel he knew.
[|——— ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ———|]
A few hours passed and Jimmy finally made it back to his small, little apartment. Sure it was cramped and sort of in a mess right now but that was the least of Tim’s worries right now. He opened the door to be greeted by his two cats Flick and Norman. “Hello you two!” Jimmy knelt down to go pet them before taking off his shoes and going to the kitchen to feed the cats and heading to his room after.
He went to his bedroom with his phone in hand as he dialled his older sister/bestfriend/Joel’s girlfriend Lizzie.
“Hi Jimmy! How’ve you been?” Lizzie’s voice was cheerful, like nothing in the world could mess up her mood.
Jimmy let out a tired sigh, flopping onto his bed. “Hey Lizzie… honestly? I'm exhausted. Rehearsal ran way longer than I thought. And… there’s some news that’s got everyone on edge.”
“Oh? What kind of news?”
Jimmy hesitated, glancing at Flick and Norman pawing at his feet. He scratched Flick behind the ears while trying to decide how much to tell her. “It’s… this band. Gem and the Scotts. They’re blowing up. Like, overnight success. Everyone’s freaking out at rehearsal
Joel especially.”
“Joel?” Lizzie asked, her tone in voice shifting from a happy demeanor to a more curious and concerned one. “He was acting weird?”
“Yeah… it was bad. He stormed out of the place. No explanation. He looked… different? He looked mad, maybe even sad in some way.”
Lizzie’s voice softened. “That doesn’t sound like him. Are you sure it wasn’t just stress? Or maybe something else is going on?”
Jimmy rubbed the back of his neck, unsure how to explain it. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen him like that. He was, like, super tense, like every little thing was about to snap. And then he just left. Even pushed Skizz out the way. Joel would never do that!”
“That’s not good,” Lizzie said quietly. “Joel usually talks things through. You should keep an eye on him. Make sure he’s okay.”
“I will,” Jimmy promised, though a knot of worry had settled deep in his stomach. “I just hate seeing him like that though. It sucks. It's like he's hiding something that he doesn't want others to know."
"At least you're observant. It shows you really do care for people, Jim.”
Jimmy let out a small, tired laugh. “I guess. Maybe I’m a little too observant. Or maybe I just care too much.”
“Caring isn’t a bad thing,” Lizzie said firmly. “Just don’t let it eat at you, okay? And maybe talk to him tomorrow at rehearsal. He might open up to you. You're his best friend after all.”
Jimmy nodded, even though she couldn’t see him. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. Thanks, Lizzie.”
“No problem. Get some rest. It's already one in the morning. We don't want you falling asleep during practice do we? ”
“Yeah…” Jimmy replied, staring at the ceiling for a moment. “See you.”
He hung up and set his phone aside on his bedside table. The clock on it read 1:37am. He closed his eyes, letting the sounds of the city outside lull him to sleep.
⇄ ◁◁ I I ▷▷ ↻
⁰⁰ ²⁵ ━━●━━━━━━━━ ⁰² ⁰⁸
The band was all at practice the next morning, though they didn't do much of the sort. Jimmy leaned against the edge of the drum riser, watching Joel scroll through his phone again. The air in the studio felt heavy, even with Skizz humming absentmindedly while tuning his guitar.
“I still don’t get how they blew up that fast,” Skizz muttered. “Like… a week? That’s insane.”
BigB let out a low whistle, flipping through his setlist. “Yeah, and look at their socials. Everyone’s losing their minds over them. Not that we care or anything.” His voice trailed off as he shot a side-eye at Jimmy, who shrugged in response.
Joel didn’t say anything. Not a word. His jaw was tight, and his thumbs tapped the phone as he was probably playing mindsweeper or some crap. (Mindsweeper so peak) Jimmy had never seen him like this. Not even when things went sideways on tour, not even during arguments, nothing!
“Joel..?” Jimmy started cautiously, stepping closer. Joel glanced up, eyes narrowed, and Jimmy froze. For a moment he thought the man might snap at him. But instead, Joel let out a sharp breath.
“I’m fine,” Joel said, voice clipped. “Just… focused on something.”
“Sure you are,” Jimmy muttered under his breath, earning a side glance from Skizz.
Skizz grinned. “Focused, huh? That’s one way to put it. Looks more like you’re plotting murder in there, buddy.”
It was quiet. Deathly quiet. Like you could hear a pin drop on the carpeted floor kind of quiet.
“Alright,” BigB said, raising his voice over the tension. “Let’s just get through this set. The show's coming up in only five days, people! No more staring at phones and panicking.”
▶︎•၊၊||၊|။||၊၊||၊၊၊||၊||။၊|။•
↻ ◁ || ▷ ↺
A few hours later and the rehearsal finally wrapped up, the last chords of the final song they played fading into the hum of the studio’s lights and air vents. Jimmy stepped back from the mic, letting the tension of the session slowly release from his shoulders.
“Alright,” BigB said, packing up his stuff. “That’s enough for today. We’ll pick up the rest tomorrow. Is everyone good?”
Skizz yawned dramatically, slinging his guitar over his shoulder. “Good enough. I’m starving. Someone get me food before I die.”
Joel didn’t respond. He was slouched against the wall with his arms crossed, staring at the floor like he could burn a hole through it. Jimmy glanced at him and hesitated. He remembered his conversation with Lizzie the night before with her telling him to maybe have a little chat but for some reason he just couldn’t.
Jimmy shook it off, grabbing his bag and slinging it over one shoulder. “Yeah. I’m good.”
The rest of the band slowly left, with two of them talking about their usual banter and complaints except for Joel who was normally the one who talked the most, leaving Jimmy alone for a moment. He walked to the corner where the spare mic stands were stacked, running a hand over the cool metal. He loved singing, he loved performing, he loved this band of his but something just didn’t feel right to him.
He pulled out his phone and checked the notifications again. Gem and the Scotts were still trending. Every new post about their rise to fame made his chest tighten a little more. Not that he was jealous… well, maybe a little. But mostly, he was worried about Joel.
Jimmy shook his head. Focus. Just focus on what you can control.
He slung the bag higher, stepping toward the door. Flickers of movement in the corner of his vision made him glance down. A stray guitar pick had rolled under a chair. He crouched to grab it, tucking it into his pocket a small, grounding gesture he did almost subconsciously.
Outside, the sun had set further, painting the street orange and gold. The city was busy, but from here, it felt like a safe bubble. Jimmy breathed it in, letting the noise fade into the background for a moment.
He started walking home, backpack heavy but not with instruments, just thoughts and tension. He passed a small café, the scent of pastries and coffee mingling with the crisp air. A few kids from the neighborhood waved, recognizing him from past shows. He waved back, smiling faintly. Life goes on. Shows go on. The band goes on.
Halfway home, he stopped on a corner, pulling out his phone. Lizzie. He needed to talk to someone, process the weird energy from the day. He dialed quickly, relief flooding him as she picked up almost immediately.
“Hey, Jimmy! How’s it going?” Her cheerful tone made him relax a little, even if only slightly.
“Hey… Lizzie. Can I… talk to you about Joel?” he asked quietly.
There was a pause on the line for a short moment. “Of course, what’s wrong? Did you talk to him?”
Jimmy took a deep breath, looking at the sun sinking behind the rooftops. “He… he’s different today again. Barely said a word to us today, pushed people aside. I’ve never seen him like that. And I… I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to bother him, but… it’s like he’s hiding something.”
Lizzie’s voice softened. “That doesn’t sound like him at all. You’re right to notice. Just… be patient. Give him a little space, but make sure he knows you’re there.”
“Yeah… okay. Thanks, Lizzie. I appreciate it.”
“Always, Jimmy. Go home, relax a bit. We’ve all got enough stress already.”
He hung up and looked around. The streets were quieter now, shadows stretching across the asphalt. Jimmy adjusted his bag, letting the weight of the day settle into his bones. Rehearsal was over. But the stress wasn't. It was just at a standstill, and tomorrow, he knew, would bring more tension, more music… and maybe the answers he didn’t want to hear.
One week. One show. And already, Jimmy felt like the ground beneath him was shifting.