Exposed

Axel is a little startled as Jess’ hands slip over to his own. His eyes glance to her for just a second before looking back at the stage again. He doesn't let his attention divert from his job, keeping his focus forward, though he does not withdraw from Jess' touch. He could only be grateful she was here tonight - otherwise he'd have a painful ride until he had the time to get his hand working again by himself.

Allowing her to massage the muscles and relax the nerves, finally the pain starts to lessen, the tense shaking beginning to cease as well. Jess had a warm touch... one that Axel found to be more soothing than perhaps he would admit to anyone else.

Feeling better after several minutes, Axel gives Jess' hand a gentle squeeze to let her know before withdrawing to rest his hand on the sound board again.

As the evening continues some people start to filter out while others stay, the last song finally bringing the event to a close. JetStream had long-since found seats in the back, pizza having been forgotten for now.

“Hidden behind the doors of time,
Underneath the shadows.
Lying in wait for the signs,
Mysteries unspoken.

It’s cryptic,
Messages we try to see.
Cryptic.
We try to understand the words.
Buried deep from eyes.
Crying to be heard.
Desperate to be understood.

Whispered beyond a wall unseen,
Secrets kept from dying.
Sheltered from the eyes of greed,
Puzzling words to open.

It’s cryptic,
Messages we try to see.
Cryptic.
We try to understand the words.
Buried deep from eyes.
Crying to be heard.
Desperate to be understood.

Ciphers come in shapes of faith,
Keys in forms of truth.
Maps take on the shapes of hearts,
Willing to be new.

It’s cryptic,
Messages we try to see.
Cryptic.
We try to understand the words.
Buried deep from eyes.
Crying to be heart.
Desperate to be understood.
It’s cryptic.”

Despite the cheers for an encore, the band lets the last notes die away, and with waves of farewell, they make their way offstage. Some of the audience lingers for a few minutes, but volunteers for the fundraiser quickly clear the floor, ushering everyone into another room where there were final opportunities to give to the charities.

Axel leans back in his chair, stretching out from having sat too long. Bringing his arms back down, he accidentally bumps Jess in the head with his elbow. "Oops, sorry." He grins and nudges her on purpose, the tiredness behind his eyes covered up with a rare teasing glint. "You gonna stick around while we pack up? A crippled rainbow like me could use a hand."

Not giving her an opportunity to say no, Axel stands, giving Jess a hand up as well. "Come on. Fun's just starting."

Taylor sets her bass guitar back on its stand and wanders offstage with the others. Her eyes coincidentally browse the scene at the soundboard. For a moment, she just stands and watches. One might be able to see the wheels in her mind turning before she shakes her head and joins her friends.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Max gives Kyle a high-five. “You were awesome, man!”

Kyle gives him a wry grin, not wanting to admit how tired he was. “I was alright.”

“No,” Rocky joins in with emphasis. “You were awesome. How many times do we have to tell you that before you’ll believe it?”

“At least once more,” Taylor teases. She comes up alongside Kyle slinging an arm around his shoulders. “We’ve been trying to convince him for ages to be the one behind the mic on stage.”

Kyle rolls his eyes and heads for one of the boxes to start loading things up. “Yeah, yeah, just keep talking. Poor Logan will feel left out if you keep on saying things like that.”

“He’ll get over it,” Max teases.

“Yeah,” Taylor nods. “He’s the one that’s been talking about pulling out anyway.”

“Logan?” Kyle lifts his eyebrows in surprise as he starts to pack up. “Why?”

“Says he’s tired.”

“Aren’t you all?”

“Yeah, but the rest of us are looking to keep going anyway, even if it’s at a slower pace. Logan’s thinking about pulling out altogether.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah, wow.” Rocky pulls on an extension cord to coil it up. His tone says enough. No one will verbalize it, but everyone is thinking it.

Switching gears, they all jump in to clean up and pack, moving on from the subject. Rocky grabs an already-started ball of duct tape that would grow as tape was pulled up from the floor. “Hey Jess, think fast!” Getting her attention, he hurls the ball in her direction.

“Ooooh.” Max hails Jess with several teasing bows. “Only those in a place of honor may add to the sacred duct tape ball.”

Axel rolls his eyes and wanders from the sound table. “You guys realize you’re nuts, right?”

Rocky grins and tosses Jess a wink. “Yes, Axel. We all know this. But what I don’t know is why a stick-in-the-mud like you continues to hang out with us.”

“Somebody’s got to keep you under control.”

Kyle grins as he works. “Too bad you haven’t accomplished that.”

“Heeey,” Axel growls, though humor is in his tone. “Max, keep this newbie in line.”

“Not me!” Max laughs. “You just said that was your job.”

No one seems to notice the small group still in the back of the room, as the banter continues. Phil looks around to Jason, Mike, Katie and Jen. He didn't want to just up and leave now, but what were they supposed to say? Taking a deep breath, he nods to the stage and starts forward.

Jason is quick to follow, making sure Katie is still with them.
This should be... interesting.

Glancing over his shoulder he spots Misty. He’s seen her from a distance earlier, but hadn’t known that she’d stuck around. He catches her eye for just as moment, suddenly wondering what must be going through her mind as well.

The band approaches Cryptic quietly, observing the laughing and teasing for a couple minutes until Phil speaks. “Well, Kyle…”

Kyle looks up from packing a box, just pulling on his jacket. His smile quickly fades, his face turning to white then red. He’d thought everyone had gone. He’d thought he’d been in the clear. But from the tone of his brother’s voice, he’d been mistaken. JetStream must never have actually left. Kyle searches his brother’s face, unable to recognize the strange tone. “Hi.”

Phil crosses his arms and cocks his head. “You, uh… sounded good.”

Kyle adjusts his jacket collar, clearing his throat. Maybe just staying casual about the whole thing was the best approach. Maybe they could talk more about it later when not everyone was around. “Thanks,” he manages. His eyes glance past Misty, realizing that she was still there as well. The redness in his face increases.

Wanting to avoid any confrontation, Taylor gestures with her head to the door, getting Axel’s attention. “Help me out with this box, will you?”

Unaware of any other intentions, Axel nods and gives Jess a quick look that lets her know he'll be right back. There really wasn't need for her come out just to go back in again. The two exit, leaving the others as they continue to talk.

Phil takes a couple steps closer to Kyle, both JetStream and Cryptic growing quiet. “You just…planned on never letting us in on this or what?”

Rocky keeps low, trying to keep working, despite the tension. He pulls a bit of duct tape up from the floor and passes it to Jess to add to the ball, giving her a slight look of apology. He hoped this little conversation would end quickly.

Kyle can sense the hurt and irritation in his brother, and a guilt forms, even though he’d decided his decision was best. “I…I don’t know. It… wasn’t that big of a deal.”

“Not a big deal?” Phil’s eyes widen. “Singing lead for Cryptic? An even bigger band than JetStream?” He shakes his head, bewildered. “I don’t get it, Kyle. I never even knew you could sing like that, let alone would want to.”

“Maybe you never listened.” Kyle’s tone is quiet, though a million and one emotions flood his eyes. There was only one other person outside of Cryptic who knew his reasons for secrecy. And now… everything would change. He could feel it. One could hear a pin drop. This time, he couldn't even look at Misty.

Jason’s own mind begins to look at this situation, routes and consequences coming left and right. But one thought strikes him hard. JetStream hadn’t ever really needed him.

The guys from Cryptic exchange glances. They knew Kyle had wanted them to keep quiet, but apparently it was a bigger deal than they'd thought.

Rocky steps forward, pushing forth a smile. “Well, I’d say this was one great evening. The audience loved us all, so I say we go celebrate.”

Unfortunately, his enthusiasm isn’t absorbed. Phil and Kyle still lock eyes, neither willing to say what’s on their mind.


Taylor struggles with a heavy tote, trying to lift it into the back of the pickup truck, giving a grunt as it slips, and she barely keeps it from falling to the ground.

Axel steps in quickly to help, at just the angle to reach around her with both arms to catch the tote and add his strength to push it up all the way into the bed.

Taylor grins a little and turns around, face to face with Axel with no space in between. “Thank you.”

“Sure.” Axel turns to go, but Taylor’s hand on his arms stops him and he looks back at her, lifting an eyebrow in question.

“The others can wait,” she comments softly. “Why do you always have to be in a hurry?”

A bit confused, Axel eyes her cautiously, not quite sure what she was getting at.

Seeing that he wasn’t taking the hint, Taylor straightens, bringing herself even closer to him. “Oh come on, Axel…you’re not blind. You've always needed your elbow space. You never let anyone into your zone. But why not? Can't you let me in? Just once?”

Axel can feel the heat creeping up the back of his neck. He'd known that Taylor had liked him, but hadn't expected her to ever be this bold about it, especially since he'd thought he'd given her a strong enough hint that he himself wasn't interested. “Taylor, I…”

She reaches up to put a finger over his mouth. “Don’t say it.” A hope flickers in her eyes that maybe there was something there she could grasp, wishing perhaps the look of rejection in his eye was deceiving... wishing perhaps that if she just had once chance, he would return her feelings.

Axel places a hand on her shoulder to move away, but instead of backing up, Taylor shifts through the opening he’d provided, and reaches her arms around his neck, bringing her lips to his before the opportunity was gone.

Despite her advances, Axel is still taken completely off guard, his eyes widening in shock. As quickly as she’d embraced him, he backs up, removing her hands with a firm grip. His heart racing, he stares at her, stunned.

Reading displeasure on his face, Taylor’s cheeks become red and she swallows hard. He hadn't returned anything at all. He hadn't even faltered for a moment. He hadn't even tried to enjoy her attention “Oh, Axel, I’m…" Her words stick in her mouth. "I just... I thought..." She wasn't even sure what she'd thought. It had been a rash move, and one she now regretted. "I’m so sorry.”

But the damage had been done. Axel slowly lets go of her arms and backs up several more steps, his mind whirling. Not even knowing what to say, he spins on his heel and walks quickly back to the building.

Taylor turns around to rest her hands on the open back end of the pickup. She bites her lip as finally a tear escapes… a tear that signaled the foolishness, embarrassment, and disappointment that she felt. She'd had feelings for Axel for a long time, and somewhere there had been a hope. But she had been wrong. So wrong. And way too impulsive.


Getting back inside, Axel sees the standoff still going on, but would rather be a part of a fight, than remain outside. Trying not to let any emotions show, he moves to pack more boxes. Knowing that his face is flushed, he keeps it hidden, turned away from the others. He would have to somehow deal with this later. He didn't know how, but he'd have to. For now, he doesn't even meet Jess' eyes. He couldn't, until his embarrassment had passed.

Phil and Kyle continue to stare at each other. Jen finally moves forward slowly, trying her best to smooth things over. “You sounded really good, Kyle. But… why didn’t you tell us? Did you think we’d be upset?”

“No, of course not. I just…” Kyle rolls his eyes to the ceiling, letting out a long sigh. “It’s complicated, alright? It was just easier if you guys didn’t know.”

“Thanks,” Jason retorts. “How long you been holding out on everybody?”

“A while.”

Rocky finally comes forward, setting a hand on Kyle’s shoulder, trying to reassure him. They’d been friends for many years, and as the oldest, Rocky had always been the one to look out for the gang. “It’s been a while,” he confirms.

Jen, Phil and Mike exchange glances, all completely confused. “But…” Phil shakes his head. “Why, Kyle?”

“’Cause he knew what y’all would do,” Jason states flatly. His mind had worked quickly, and a conclusion had been drawn. His emotions reflected a strange mixture of irritation, hurt and skewed appreciation.

Phil turns his attention to Jason. “What are you talking about?”

“Me.” Jason cocks his head. “He didn’t want to take the spotlight.” His tone of disapproval overlaps one of realization. “’Cause he’s that good.”

Kyle’s shoulders droop, his eyes finally falling to the floor. Yes… he’d avoided telling anybody his desire to sing… yes, he’d avoided displaying his capabilities… and yes, it was because he had not wanted to take the spotlight in any capacity. He had his place in JetStream, and it was simply not behind the lead microphone. And now… tonight… when he’d had the time of his life, he couldn’t even enjoy it. And it was all his fault.

“I’m sorry,” he apologizes quietly. “I shouldn’t have done this tonight. I shouldn’t have said yes.”

“Don’t say that,” Rocky chides. “We appreciated you, and you were great.”

Phil looks quickly to Rocky, not really upset, but not really liking the affirmation he was dishing out either. “He should have told us though. Even you can’t deny that.”

Rocky shrugs. “Who am I to judge? All I know is that Logan is sick, and we asked Kyle to fill in. End of story.”

“You said it had been a while though. How long is a while?”

Rocky hesitates. “A few years.”

“What?”

Though sworn to secrecy at one point, now wasn’t the time for any more hidden truths. “Last time we were out here… we did a recording with Kyle.” Rocky remains steady, even though his stomach had started to churn. “But he wouldn’t do anything else with it. You guys had a lead singer at the time, and he said his place was behind the keyboard, and writing music. So we didn’t push him.”

“A recording?” Phil’s eyes widen even more. He didn’t need to know every detail of his brother’s life, but this was big stuff, and he was a bit offended that he didn’t know about any of this.

“Yeah, we put it on a CD.”

Kyle’s face grows even hotter. He still had it, and Misty had the only copy. “Look, can we just forget about this?” He raises his head again. “So I sang for a night. It’s over. Cryptic moves on. JetStream moves on.”

“Kinda hard to forget, Kyle,” Jason comments. Though not carrying on any silent conversation with Katie, his emotions were there, and they were going in a direction he didn’t want them to, but he felt unable to stop the negativity. “Maybe you should be singing more for JetStream if it’s what you’re really wanting.”

“No one said it’s what I’m wanting!” Kyle raises his voice a little, throwing his arms in the air. He couldn’t even begin to tell how good it had felt on stage tonight. But he wouldn’t try. He couldn’t. Not to JetStream. It felt too disloyal. “Just forget about it, alright?”

“No!” Jason frowns, his eyes narrowing. “You’ve been holding out on us. And why? Because you think you’re good enough to be the lead singer? Because you think if we thought that, you’d be in the spotlight?” He didn’t want to feel this way. He was sorry as soon as the words were out of his mouth. But his emotions had worked quickly and were now to a point somewhere in the vicinity of self-pride. “So what then? Apparently if you think your position would have changed, you think that I don’t belong where I am.”

“I didn’t say that!” Kyle’s humor and easy-going nature disperses, leaving his raw feelings. “You do belong where you’re at. I just didn’t want to interfere!” Emotions start to pool hot behind his eyes. “I’m sorry, okay?!”

Cryptic stands close, all eyes lower than normal. Even Axel, who didn’t have as long a history here, was now standing nearby, feeling low and not knowing what would happen. He glances in Jess’ direction with a look that said he was sorry for the scene. He had his own little episode with Taylor to be worrying about, but at the moment, this took priority. He felt badly though, that he'd invited Jess, and she had to witness this.

Rocky shakes his head slowly. Kyle was apologizing for finally having been able to live his passion. It wasn’t right. “Look guys, let’s all just cool it, alright? We gotta clean up here, then we all can go relax and think about something else for a while.”

“I want to get this straightened out!” Phil exclaims. “I don’t want to go sit around not talking about something like this.”

Jen looks to her brother, her eyes full of compassion. She didn’t know what to think, but she could see the passion in Kyle’s own eyes, and knew that he was hurt. What he needed right now was a pat on the back, not to be yelled at. He’d done nothing wrong. “It’s okay, Kyle,” she says quietly. “You did good.”

Kyle scoffs and shakes his head. “No, I didn’t. Does this look good to you?” He looks around at all the others… all the eyes that were aimed in his direction. “No… no, I didn’t do a good job. Y’all pack up and go celebrate the good night, okay?” His tone has dropped back down to a more mellow voice, full of sorrow, not anger. “I’m tired, so I’m just gonna go home early.” Turning around, he trudges for the exit. Making it outside, he gets to his truck, and just leans against it for a moment, trying to gain control of his emotions.

Inside, Jason has a hard time communicating with Katie, all his mixed feelings getting in the way. Part of him knew he'd been wrong to get so upset, while part of him couldn't get past it. He shifts his weight uneasily, his eyes roving every which-way.

Phil and Jen look to each other but stay quiet, Mike standing near as well, not knowing how to respond either.

The men from Cryptic start moving slowly back to their work. Despite this argument, they still needed to clear out of the building. Axel is finally able to move past his own little experience, enough to approach Jess again. "Um... we'll be going out for pizza after we're loaded up. You're welcome to join us." He hoped the invitation would serve as the apology it was meant to be.