Free Casey Barnes Eponymous by E.A. Rigg Page B

are the least
appreciated members of a power trio.   I could not disagree more.   Why?   Two words: Lars
Ulrich.   Know the names of anyone
else in Metallica?   Actually don’t
answer that as it may distract me from the exciting OPPORTUNITY OF A LIFETIME
I’m on the brink of dangling in front of your homework hoarding head.
    He read it, penned a response and passed it back.   I am not joining the band
of that dufus you were talking to the other day.   She paused.   Why do you say Alex Deal’s
a dufus?  
    He wrote back.   Because he is.   I’ve seen
him around.   And anyway I don’t like
their music.   The bassist’s in my
math class and he was playing it for someone the other day.   It’s boring and all sounds alike.  
    She smiled.   I agree with you about that dufus’ band and it’s not his band I want
you to play in.   It’s mine.   That’s right, mine.  
    She placed the note on her desk and paused.   Then she passed it up.   Ben read it.   For a moment she got nervous.   How could she have written that?   He probably thought she was a
freak.   But then he passed a note
back.   When’s the
first rehearsal?

 
    Catherine Hightower got permission from Mrs. Edwards to do the Beowulf project on her own.   She informed Casey and Sukh of this in a
crisp voice as soon as they broke into project groups that day.   Neither of them said a word, but as soon
as she turned away, they flashed each other thumbs-ups.
    Just then Mrs. Edwards walked over.   “What’s this I hear about you two doing
something that has to do with Elvis for this project?”  
    Casey and Sukh exchanged a look.   “Well Mrs. Edwards, we were trying to be
creative,” Casey said.
    “You said to be creative,” Sukh added.
    “I just don’t understand how Elvis has any relevance to Beowulf .”
    “That’s okay because we do,” Casey responded.  
    Mrs. Edwards sighed and walked away.   Sukh spoke in a low voice.   “Primary sources, my…well I will not say
what I was going to say.   At any
rate I am very glad not to be working with that windup toy.”
    Casey nodded.   “Amen.”
    Sukh whipped out his copy of Beowulf. “Okay
so it is I think unavoidable that the plot of this drek will at the very least
need to be addressed in our project, yes?”
    She shrugged.   “Can’t
argue with you there.”  
    He started writing out the main plot points of Beowulf .   “As
long as we acknowledge this she cannot give us too low of a grade.”   He grinned.   “And then we add Elvis in as…as the
icing, yes?”  
    “Absolutely.   But
also Sukh I’m wondering something.”  
    “Yes?”  
    “After school can you come over to my house?” Casey began, “This
guy Ben from my Spanish class will be there too.”
    “But what exactly will he be there for?”
    “For band practice.”   She sat up straighter in her chair.   “We, my friend, are going to start the most guitar-slaying,
album-selling, hotel-room-trashing rock band of all time.”  

16

 
    Sukh and Ben were also sophomores so none of them had their
license yet.   Since Yull had an
Amnesty club meeting that day, the newly formed power trio took the bus to
Casey’s house after school.  
    Thankfully all the three-seaters were taken.   The three of them cramming into one of
those would have been too unrock for words.   Casey sat in front of Ben and Sukh.   She took paper and pen out of her bag
and turned to face them.   “What are
your influences?”  
    “Let me consider,” Sukh said.  
    Casey looked at Ben.   “Drummer?”
    “Is that how you’re going to address me from now on?”
    “Possibly,” she said.  
    “Why do you need to know my influences?” he asked.
    “For when we write our band bio.   They always state influences in band
bios.”
    “I see.”  
    On one corner of the paper Casey scribbled A good
bandleader knows how to keep her musicians on task.   She threw her hand over it so
Sukh and Ben could not see.