CONAL
I’m pacing in our dressing room. The opening band did a good job of getting the audience warmed up, and they’ve just finished their final number of the night, so I’ve got that keyed-up energy that always hits me when it’s almost time to go onstage.
Getting it on with Hazel in the dressing room didn’t take the edge off at all; instead, it focused my energy, amplified it. I can tell my brothers are feeling the same. We grin at each other, sharing the anticipation, feeding off the rising tension that we’ll propel back out into the audience with every number.
All of this is happening because of Hazel. Sure, we would have put out some kind of album without her; we’re professionals, we work hard. But if we’re honest—and the three of us have talked about thisover these past months—before Hazel, we were feeling trapped.
That’s the problem with success—it brings a lot of good things, but it boxes you in, too. People want you to keep delivering the same winning product, over and over. Audiences, yes, but especially record company executives.
It made it too easy to coast, to go for the sure thing instead of challenging ourselves and risking blowback. We still loved our music, loved connecting with audiences, but we were starting to get frustrated creatively.
And then Hazel swept into our lives like a breath of fresh air, and revitalized everything. The new album hasn’t just been a commercial success; the music critics have had plenty of good things to say about it, too, with several mentioning how our sound has matured. We never put a record out with critical success as our goal, but it’s nice when it happens, like the cherry on a sundae.
So it’s fitting that we’re introducing a new song tonight, during the concert … one that Hazel hasn’t heard yet.
She’s our muse, our light, our everything. We’ll never stop singing about her.
RAFE
I’ve always said I didn’t need drugs, because I had my music. Performing for a live audience was the biggest high in my life.
Now it’s in second place. Still incredibly special, but nothing’s as wonderful as being with Hazel.
My phone pings with a text message. It’s Celeste:Have a great show!
We’re friends these days. She’s got a new man in her life, her acting career is going well, and I’m really happy for her. Alan was a jerk, but he did us both a favor breaking us up—just not in the way he intended.
The North American leg of our tour will last a while, but before we jet off to other parts of the world, we’re going to take a break and just be withHazel. Yes, she’s traveling with us on the tour, but out here we’re constantly surrounded by other people. We need time to be together, just the four of us.
All our priorities are different now. Our parties are few and far between, and not the wild events they used to be. People bring their kids! Which is awesome. I hope we can start a family with Hazel before too long.
Whatever the future holds, I know it’ll be golden. Every day seems to be better than the one before now that Hazel’s in our lives.
The changeover’s almost done; any minute now, we’ll get the call to go onstage. I roll up onto the balls of my feet and down again, ready to take on the world.
BRON
My brothers and I have had our differences over the years—hardly surprising—but never when we’re performing. When we’re onstage, it’s as if we become a single organism, we’re so in sync with each other. It’s always made concerts a blast, an experience that we couldn’t have any other way.
Except that now, it’s started to happen when we’re making love with Hazel. All three of us are focused on her and her pleasure, and we find ourselves working together, anticipating her needs, without even having to speak.
I don’t need a sign to know that Hazel’s right for us. But if I wanted one, that’d be it.
The only thing that bothers me is that Rafe and I can’t legally marry her, like Conal did. We can havea commitment ceremony, though. I heard that there’s a woman at the Belle Epoque resort —Lexy something?—who specializes in ceremonies for poly relationships. I hope we can do that while we’re on our break, after this leg of the tour finishes.
A knock on the door sounds, and the stage manager pokes his head in. “Showtime, gentlemen.”
“Let’s do it,” I say, and we wind through the back of the theater to the side of the stage, where Hazel’s waiting for us.
She gives each of us a kiss. “Have fun,” she says. “I love you. I’m so proud of you.”
It makes me want to carry her back to our dressing room for more fun and games, but instead I’ll channel that energy into the show … for now. “We love you,” we all say, and wait for our cue.
“Ladies and gentlemen …the Black Pythons!”
The audience explodes, a massive wall of sound that electrifies our bodies as we jog onstage. The cheers and screams only get louder as Rafe picks up his guitar and slings it over his body. Conal does the same, and I take my seat behind my drum kit.
Conal counts off the beat, and we launch into the first Hazel song we wrote, which is also the first hit off the new album. The audience is with us all theway, and they don't let up as we work through the first half of our set, mixing new songs with older numbers.
