Billy Troll's Arc

Chapter 2 of 6

Billy needed a band by next month. He'd accepted the challenge without thinking through the most basic problem: he'd always been a solo act. That was how he'd built his name, just him and his guitar at every show, every hospital visit, every recording. But the Battle of the Bands had rules, and those rules required at least three people on stage. He drove across town to the bright pink mansion where his niece lived with her bandmates. The place practically announced itself from the street — purple roof tiles, orange trim, flower beds that looked like someone had spilled a paint set across the lawn. Out front, a stack of pink amps sat under a tarp next to a keyboard case and a guitar with a finish so bright it hurt to look at in the sun. Real equipment. Serious equipment. Just Girlz had been together for two years now, playing school dances and weekend gigs at the community center. They had what he didn't: a working band. Billy parked and grabbed the drumstick from his passenger seat. He'd found it backstage after one of their shows last month, the words "Love Suzie" carved into the wood. He'd been meaning to return it, but now it felt like the right way to start this conversation. When his niece answered the door, he held it up. "Lost and found," he said. She grinned and took it, then looked at him with that sharp teenager expression that said she knew he hadn't driven all the way here just to be helpful. He asked. She said yes before he even finished explaining about Mic and the battle and needing people on stage. "We've been trying to get into that competition for a year," she said. "They only take established acts. You're our ticket in." Billy felt something settle in his chest. He'd come here thinking he was asking for a favor, thinking he'd have to convince her or maybe even beg. But she wanted this as much as he needed it. He'd shown up asking for help, and that was different from being a burden. That was being the kind of person who knew when to stop doing everything alone.