Rock Radio (20 page)

“Good to meet you too, man.  Thanks for the radio play.”  Cody shook hands with the man who programmed the radio station, the man who also dressed like a rock star in a yellow t-shirt, orange pants and black sneakers with gold glitter.

“You’re a hit.  Orlando loves you.  I just hope you remember us when you go platinum.”

“Of course, of course.”

              “Let me take you and the rest of the guys into the studio.  I’ll introduce you to Orlando’s favorite afternoon jock, Glenn Stone.”

             
They pushed through the heavy door into Orlando’s rock studio.  The walls were covered with posters of bands.  Pictures of all their jocks adorned the walls, their heads pasted on different bodies.

             
“Glenn, meet The Cody Blue Experience.”

             
They all shook hands.

Cody looked up at the wall and noticed Glenn’s head
was attached to the body of a swimsuit model.

             
“I love you guys, great first album,” Glenn said, with what seemed like a genuine compliment.  Glenn liked interviewing new bands.  They were untouched by too much money, too much fame and too much adoration.  With just a small taste of what success would be like, up and coming bands retained their hunger for success.  They still needed the disc jockey.  Big time rock stars often forgot from whence they came, not realizing it was the deejays who talk up their records to the fans who buy them...no, the deejays were not the right people to piss off.

But superstar bands did.

The Cody Blue Experience had great potential.  Glenn hoped they remembered him when they reached the top.  Inevitably, they’d want to know him again when they needed him on the way down.  And they probably would come down.  That’s what happened to most of them.

             
“Thanks for the kind words, man,” Alex chimed in, trying to take the leadership role.  He was still resentful that Cody was the point person.  He saw the way the Program Director approached Cody first to fill him in.  He was jealous.

             
Glenn addressed all of them.  “Here’s the drill.  We’ll go on, talk about how you got together, the album and your appearance tonight.  Then we’ll have you play the song.  Anything in particular you want me to mention?”

They all shoo
k their heads.  “No, that’s fine,” Alex said.  Cody hung back, he sensed tension with Alex and didn’t want to make it worse.

“Great, the song’s ending...here we go.”  He put on his headphones.  “Glenn Stone rockin’ with you on this Monday afternoon and I’m joined by The Cody Blue Experience or CBE as they’re being called these days.”  He hit the sound effect for applause.  “Welcome to Orlando.”

“Thanks,” the band said in unison.

“So tell us...how’d y’all get together.”

Alex leaned into the mic.  “Bobby, Harper and I were friends for years.  We started a band and went to college.  Then we met this guy, Cody, who apparently had a gift for writing lyrics.  The rest, as they say, is history.”

“And you’re doin’ real well...local band makes good.  We’re all proud of you as you must be proud of your self-titled debut album.  The lyrics are powerful...Cody, what’s the inspiration?”

“Real life stuff, observations...the words speak to me.  I hope they speak to everyone else.”

“They do and that’s a great segue into your song
All You Were
.  And now ladies and germs, live in the studio, it’s The Cody Blue Experience.”

Alex began to strum the signature cord.  Cody leaned into the mic and began to sing.  Outside the studio window a group of radio station employees gathered to hear the band...and check out the gorgeous Cody Blue in person.

Cody sang the last note.  The group in the hall applauded.  The band couldn’t hear them, but saw their enthusiasm and gave them a thumbs up.  The ladies giggled.

“Awesome fellas,” Glenn said, “Orlando you don’t wanna miss this show, CBE, The Cody Blue Experience live at The Living Room
downtown.”

He took off his headphones.  “Fantastic guys.”  He stood and shook their hands.  “Best of luck to you.”

“Thanks.”

The guys left the studio.  The group of employees accosted them for pictures and autographs.  The band didn’t mind.  This is what they dreamed of.

Moments later Eric apologized to the group at the station and led the band out of the building.  It was his job to keep them on time.  They did stop to sign some fan autographs for the people who still stood outside the building.  Fans were very important.  The band knew this.

As quickly a
s they arrived, they were back in the van, back to the hotel, with just under an hour before they had to get back in the van again and to the venue.

“So Cody, what’s up with you and that Miami deejay?” Harper asked.

“Nothing.”

“I thought you were really into her,” Alex said.

“Nah...just another girl, you know,” Cody lied.  He was eager to change the subject.  “What about your love life, Alex?

“My love life...well things are heating up between me and Kylie.”  Kylie was Alex’s girlfriend of six months.  They met on the road at their show in Gainesville.

“Is that so?”

“Yeah, um, she’s pregnant, she thinks.”

The three guys looked at Alex.  This was a bombshell.  “What?!?”

“That’s a bit more than heating up,” Eric said, upset at this unneeded complication.

Alex ignored Eric’s remark.  His face grew serious.  “She said the stick turned blue.”

“Dude, is this what you want?”  The normally reserved Bobby was curious.

“I think it is,” Alex said, trying to cover his sheer stupidity at being careless.

“Are you gonna
marry her?”  Harper’s shock laced every word.

“I don’t know yet...I haven’t really had time to think about it.  I just found out yesterday.”  He sighed loudly.  “She called to tell me about the pregnancy test.  I’m supposed to see her at our gig in Tam
pa.”

“So you’re gonna be a Dad...?”  Cody couldn’t believe this revelation.

“I guess.”  Alex ran his fingers through his hair over and over again.

“Are you okay with this?” Cody probed.

“I’m not sure, but I do know I love Kylie, I mean I think I do.”

“What about protection...to prevent this type of thing from happening?”  Cody felt bad for the unborn baby with two parents that weren’t sure if his or her conception was a good idea or not.  It was how he grew up.

“Aw, you guys know how it is in the heat of the moment...”

They looked at him.

“Do we look that stupid?” Harper asked.

Cody interrupted Harper’s sentiments, “If you need a friend I’m here.”

“Me too,” Bobby said.

“Yeah dude, I’m with you.  I was just bustin’ your chops,” Harper added.

“Thanks...it means a lot.”

“Okay, any other confessions?  Let’s clear the air now.”  Eric asked from the driver’s seat.

Silence.

“I’ll take that as a no.  Now let’s try and get this out of our heads and get ready for tonight.  We need a good show.”

When don’t we need a good show?
Cody thought.

They arrived at the hotel, showered and left for the club.

Tonight Orlando, tomorrow Tampa...the crazy train pushed on.

Cody looked out the window en route to the venue as the streets passed by and let the image blur before him.

Clarity was not something he wanted right now.

Jill Roeker got home early from work.  She had a splitting headache.  Still feeling unresolved about her relationship with Jonny, she ducked out of a meeting with Miami Motors.  She was actually relieved she had an excuse.  The ad partnership with Nick Coleman was getting on her nerves.  He was an obnoxious little weasel who spent the entire meeting trying to hit on her.  The less time she had to spend with him the better.  She lay down on the couch and fell asleep.

Jonny’s touch woke her from her slumber.  “Hi, Jill.”

“Hi.”

“Are you okay?  You look like you don’t feel good.”

“I came home early today.  I had a massive headache.”  She put her hand up to her head.  “I still do.”

“Is there anything I can do...make dinner, maybe?”

“Yeah, that’d be nice.”

“Why don’t you get undressed, take a shower, I’ll have supper ready when you get out.”

Jonny was trying extra hard.  He thought he could break things off with Heather, but it wasn’t so easy.  He wasn’t emotionally attached to her, but physically she had become an addiction.  He couldn’t stop fantasizing about her.  There had to be a way to keep her and Jill...he just hadn’t figured it out yet.

“Dana’s back with Sam,” he told Jill at dinner, filling the uncomfortable silence with station gossip.

“Really?  I didn’t see that one coming.”

“She didn’t either.  I’m not sure she’s all in.”

“Huh...well...”  She put her head down on the table.  “I’m sorry Jonny, I’m not much in the mood for conversation.  I think I’m just gonna go to bed.”

“Okay.  I’ll be in soon.”

The phone rang.  Jonny jumped.

“I’ll get it,” he said rushing to pick it up.  “Hello?”

“Jonny, it’s Dana.”  He was relieved.

“It’s Dana,” he mouthed to Jill.  “What’s up?”

“I’m freaking out.  That guy Larry called me.”

“Larry?”

“Larry, the listener.  The one who sent me that card?  Remember we had a long discussion about it today?”

“Oh yeah...what happened?”

“He called me tonight.  He thinks we’re destined to be together.”

“Does Sam know?  This might make him jealous.”

“Be serious, please, I’m really spooked.  He was delusional.”

“Dana, I understand what you’re saying, but I really think he’s harmless.  You know how some people get.  Whenever I go to an appearance the listeners are always acting like I’m their buddy.  It’s the whole illusion.”

“This guy seems different.”

“You may be overreacting.  He’s infatuated.”

Dana wanted to believe him.  “You think?”

“I think.  He’s just some lonely guy with too much time on his hands.”

“I guess you’re right...but I think you’re lulling me into a false sense of security.”

“You don’t have to go with my advice...”

Dana sighed.  “Frankly, I don’t even know why I’m trusting you on this one.”

“Yes
you do, because you know I’m always right.”

“I don’t have a sense of humor tonight.”

Jonny grew serious.  “I’m sure it’s fine...just make sure George walks you to your car.”

“I thought you said not to worry.”

“I meant it...but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be careful.”

“Okay, well, thanks...I’ll let you get back to Jill.”

“G’night Dana.”

“Good night.”

Larry Carter woke up Tuesday morning with a mission.  Get Dana Drew’s home phone number.  He looked her up in the phone book, but her name wasn’t there, so he called information.

“I’m sorry, I don’t show a Dana Drew in Fort Lauderdale.”

“How about Miami?” he asked anxiously.

“Nope, not there either.”

“Is it an unlisted number?”

“No sir, I don’t show a record of a Dana Drew at all.”

“That can’t be,” he said, “Dana Drew is a real person.  Don’t you listen to the radio?”

“Look sir, I don’t know what to tell you.”

“But...”

“Sir, I’m sorry, goodbye.”  The operator hung up on him.

Another woman hung up on him.  They were all the same.  All like The Bitch.

Larry was angry and confused.  How could this operator not know who Dana Drew was?  Of course she lived in South Florida.  She said she lived here on the radio.  Dana wouldn’t lie.

This was a mystery.  Why was Dana Drew not listed?  Larry walked naked from the kitchen back to his bedroom to think.  He’d seen enough episo
des of
Perry Mason
to know this mystery could be solved.

Suddenly a revelation hit him like a lightning bolt.

Maybe Dana didn’t lie about where she lived, maybe she lied about her name.

Not really a lie, though, it
must be a stage name, he rationalized.  Larry remembered seeing episodes of
E! True Hollywood Story
– his favorite show.  Many big stars changed their name to sound more interesting.  Liberace was really Lee.  Marilyn Monroe was Norma Jean.  And Dana Drew was...?

Larry called the station.

“WORR.”

“Yes, can you tell me Dana Drew’s real name.”

“Sorry, we can’t give out that information.”