Requested by and dedicated to JamieVanHalen

~ That's Business ~

"And that's why we hired him," Alex said, tapping his drumstick against the carpet.

"That's not the only reason, right? How is he at singing?" I looked over at Eddie to see if he had any input.

He met my eyes and gave a little shrug, tilting his head from left to right.

"That's not an answer."

"He's good, (Y/N). Happy? He's a good singer. He just happens to come with the perk of a free P.A. system."

"Alright, I get it. So when do I get to meet him?"

"You really want to?"

"Yeah, why not? If he's going to be in your band, I think I should know him."

"Yeah, you're right. Well, later today, if you want. We're going to play for a while and see what happens."

"Alright. Well until then, show me the new stuff."

Both of them perked up. Eddie grabbed his guitar and settled it under his arm while Alex moved to sit behind the drums. They started playing something Eddie said they'd written the day before.

I sat up and watched as the pair made their magic. Damn, that was good. I could listen to them play all day.

And I almost did, but the time to leave came sooner than I thought it would. The brothers packed up their stuff (well, not really-- Eddie just angled his guitar down, but kept it on, and Alex just stuck his drumsticks in his back pocket) and gestured for me to go ahead.

I walked out the door with them close behind. We all piled into Eddie's car, and, despite him forgetting where the place was and Alex giving him the wrong directions the entire time, we made it to where they were supposed to meet at.

They got out of the car, neither showing a hint of an emotion. Eddie brought his guitar up and noodled a bit with his left hand as we walked into the building. I can't lie; I was a bit nervous about meeting who they had recruited for the band.

Alex led the way through the hallways of the building, which was some kind of studio. Eddie played a jazzy tune on his guitar as we walked.

"Right through here... Mark said they'd be here."

Alex walked in first, followed by Eddie (who was now doing rapid hammer-ons that shouldn't have been audible), and finally by me. Mark was there, as expected. And then there was this... stranger.

He looked nothing like I had expected. This guy obviously had character. I couldn't tell if it was good or bad yet, but it was definitely there. He seemed relaxed and confident; not what I would expect of someone who had just joined a band. Shouldn't he look nervous?

"Old friend, meet our new singer," Alex said, gesturing to the stranger. He was sure not to give either name, probably to make it so I had to introduce myself.

I moved forward and extended a hand. He shook it with a firm hold, a little grin playing about his lips.

"David Lee Roth. Nice to meet ya."

"(Y/N) (L/N). Pleasure."

I moved back, noticing that Eddie and Alex had already taken seats. Feeling awkward as the only person standing, I sat down next to Mark.

"Well, how is everyone?" Mark asked, looking around at all of us. "What's been going on?"

"Not a lot besides this," Eddie replied with a little laugh. Alex nodded in agreement, lightly clicking his drumsticks together. I accidentally met David's eye and, still feeling a bit awkward, quickly turned away. That probably made me look even worse.

"Aren't you guys going to play something?" I asked. Now I looked stupid. Well, I always did, but even more so now. It sounded like I was trying to break some kind of tension when there wasn't any. Meaning I'd just created some by somehow implying that there was. Was I over-thinking it? No, I couldn't have been the only one to sense that note of discomfort in the tone of the room.

"Yeah."

That was it. That was all Eddie said. Did that mean I really had been reading too much into it? Or did it mean the air was so awkward that he couldn't bear to say more? Jeez, what was wrong with me?

I seriously needed to chill.

Mark slung his strap over his shoulder and attached the ends to the bass guitar. "I'm set, lemme just plug it in."

Eddie nodded and plugged his own guitar into one of the amps. Alex went and sat behind the drums, twirling a drumstick around and around. They started on a song not too long after, and I got to hear the new singer do his thing.

It seemed everything about this man was a surprise-- his voice didn't sound at all like what I expected. I'd never heard anyone with a voice quite like his; it was different, but I liked it. It fit with the band's sound, and I knew I wouldn't ever mistake it if I heard it on the radio.

They played a few songs, working out little things here and there before deciding to call it a day. Eddie and Mark unplugged their guitars as Alex stood up and moved around the drums. I held out my arms and Eddie put his guitar in my hold.

"Now what?" I asked them, strumming a random chord.

"Move your middle finger up a fret," Eddie said, nodding toward my left hand, "and I have to go get something for the guitar. I think I know how to make it sound better... I just need something else."

"Like what?" I asked, moving my finger like he'd said.

"That's right. And you'll see."

"Alright, Mr. Mysterious, be on your way."

He laughed and shook his head, then gave us all a little wave and left the room.

"I'm going to go get something to drink," Alex said, following after his brother.

"I'm going with him. He never gets the right thing." Mark walked out to catch up with Alex. Now it was just David and I.

"What about you? Got anything you gotta do?"

"Nah, I'm just gonna wait for them to get back. Are you leaving?"

"No, not yet. I'll wait with you, then."

"Alright," he said with a grin. "So, how... how's your day been?"

I tilted my head right, then left, then nodded. "Pretty good. Better than usual. Yours?"

"Same, yeah... Mostly because of something that happened a little while ago."

"Why, what happened then?"

"You walked in." He looked almost proud of himself.

A little puff of air escaped my nose as the corners of my mouth involuntarily turned upward. What a flirt.

"Right, right." I didn't even know how to respond to that, and it was obvious. "Nice line."

I wanted to smack myself. What the hell was the even supposed to mean? Nice line. I... that... what?

"Thank you," he grinned, not appearing to mind my inability to reply with anything smart. "What'd you think of the band?"

"Gonna go down in history as one of the best, I can see it," I said, absentmindedly tapping a finger against my knee.

He laughed a little. "Ah, I hope so. Thanks."

I nodded and fastened my eyes on my shoes. Now what?

"Shot in the dark-- are you doing anything after this?"

I looked back up. "No, not at all. Why?"

"Second shot in the dark. Would you like to go out to get some food with me?"

Would I? "Oh, yeah, sure."

He moved his head down a little in a weird half-nod, right as Alex and Mark came back.

"All I'm saying is I can't tell the difference. That doesn't mean I don't like pink lemonade..."

"Yeah, sure. Hater."

Yeah... I wasn't going to get involved with that conversation. Instead I talked to David. It was pleasant; he came off as a little cocky at first, but he was actually really nice. I almost didn't notice when Eddie came back (almost, but I did, because he started playing something on his guitar that I couldn't just ignore).

David took me to a pretty fancy restaurant afterward, and it was a splendid evening with him. I actually liked him a lot, despite having met him only a few hours prior. He was funny and had something to say about everything, which made for a long, interesting conversation.

When we'd finished eating, he drove me back to my house. We talked the entire way back, and all the way up the drive, and still at the door.

I didn't quite want the night to end that soon, but I was tired and the band was meeting pretty early the next morning. But I asked him one last question before I said good night.

"What do you yourself think of the band?"

"It's good. But I want to see if I can convince them to change the name."

"To what?"

"Hm... I was thinking... Van Halen. What do you think?"

"The brothers' last name?"

"Yeah, why not? It sounds cool."

I laughed. "Yeah, it does. When are you going to tell them?"

"Ah, soon enough. They'll probably agree. Rat Salad isn't exactly the coolest name ever, anyway."

I had to agree. "Should've stuck with Mammoth, then?"

"Van Halen will stick, trust me. It has class, doesn't it?"

"Oh, for sure. I'd buy it."

"Right," he said, drawing the word out as if he didn't believe me. "Anyway, didn't you have to go in?"

"Oh, right. Hey, what are you doing tomorrow, after the band meets?"

He thought for a moment, then shrugged. "Nothin'. You wanna do something?"

"Maybe," I said, not trying to sound too eager. "Would you?"

"Yeah, for sure. It's a date. I'll see you tomorrow, then. Have a good night."

"Good night, David. See you tomorrow."

He turned and walked down the path, giving me a little wave before getting into his car. I waved back, then went inside my house.

I closed the door and leaned against it for a moment, thinking over the day. It had been pretty much perfect; the brothers had a singer, and I had a date. Yeah, it had been a good day. I went to bed soon after and fell asleep feeling nice and happy.

***

I'm baaack! Alright, I'm gonna say it-- this wasn't my best work. It's just that DLR has a personality that's hard to capture in words!

Anyway, I made a mistake in the other book; there are three more after this one. But I already wrote the first chapter of the Duff book, so it'll be ready to go up right after.

And can I just say... WRITER'S BLOCK IS THE WORST. I HATE IT. I'M GLAD IT'S GONE.

There, that's it. And yooo I was watching this Def Leppard video and there was a comment saying 'Joseph sounds really good here' and for a second there all I could think was... Who the hell is Joseph? Then it hit me that they meant Joe and I was like oh my God, don't call him that. It's so weird. We're not out here saying David Mustaine or Frederick Mercury or James Page, are we?

ALSO THIS IS COMPLETELY UNRELATED BUT LOOK 

HE LOOKS SO CUTE HERE

Question, do any of you like Ratt?

Alright, I'm gonna stop talking now... till next time!