The bright neon lights flickered as Alexander walked through the narrow halls of La Cueva, he'd never been in a Club before and he wondered if all of them were as poorly lit and felt as oppressive as this one. Once again, he promised himself to never enter a bet he wasn't sure he could win. He was so easily provoked by his sister, it was shameful.
"I think I'm going to throw up" He put a hand to his stomach and heaved
"Don't be dramatic, dude, it's just a club" Andrea laughed at him "You should have thought about how this would make you feel before agreeing on a bet"
"How was I supposed to know Shakira is a member of Mensa? She's a pop singer"
"This is why I'm always telling you to check your bias, but then again, your defeat means I can have a good time watching you pass out from the shock of coming here."
Alexander rolled his eyes at her and felt another wave of nausea coming. He wasn't ready to visit a place like this, he was an academic after all, and he didn't belong in hedonistic places. He was willing to admit defeat and accept whatever other punishment his sister could think about as long as he could get out of there.
"I'm not joking, I think I might be epileptic and I'm about to seize"
"I'm gonna smack you If you don't stop being a sore loser, the band's about to begin, let's go"
They finally arrived at the basement. There was a tiny stage where a technician was performing some sort of test, a couple of tables full of people were placed near the doors, and a counter also full of people was located opposite the stage. The place felt stuffy and suffocating. He made a mental note of all the exits and assessed the risk of fire, he also decided he was going to stand near the biggest door in case he needed to leave fast.
"I can see you watching the exit like a hungry dog watching a sausage, if you abandon me here, I'll leave a bag of used litter on your bed. Don't test me." Andrea smirked and grabbed his arm "I promised you the band is good" She squeezed his forearm and rested her head on his shoulder "Thank you so much for coming with me, you're my favorite brother"
"I'm your only brother and don't be cheesy, please" He removed her hand and patted her on the head "Now be a good sister and bring me some water. Bottled. Unopened."
"No one's gonna roofie you and I'm not an idiot, I'm not leaving you alone"
"I don't want you to leave me alone, people might think I want to socialize" he pushed her towards the counter "Don't be mean, I'm dehydrating here"
A loud bang followed by a shrill blasted through the speakers, it felt like a giant bee was stabbing his eardrums. He looked at the stage and saw a couple of people picking up a microphone stand from the floor, there was also someone standing in the back, it was so dark the only visible thing was the lit tip of a cigarette. He immediately lost it; they were indoors where it was illegal to smoke and on top of that there were a bunch of flammable things on the stage. That person was going to get a piece of his mind. He started towards the stage and was stopped by a hand grabbing his wrist.
"Where are you going?" Andrea stood behind him with a beer in her hand and a bottle of water in the crook of her arm.
"I saw someone smoking on the stage, I was about to talk to them about smoking indoors" He slowly released his wrist from her hand.
"Don't be a party pooper, let people enjoy things" She handled him the water "I managed to find what you wanted"
"Is not about enjoying things, it's about our safety, I'm not planning on dying here"
"Why do you have to be so catastrophic? Nothing's gonna happen" She scoffed "Walk with me to the back of the stage, I need to talk to Julian"
"I'll only go if you let me find the smoker and educate them" He crossed his arms defiantly.
"I'll go alone then. Suit yourself"
He saw her disappear amongst the people gathering close to the stage. He knew that if he wanted her to find him later, he was supposed to stay put but there were so many people getting close to the band, curiosity got the best of him and he joined them. He loved his sister, as much as someone like him could love someone else, but her taste in men was questionable and he doubted her crush's band was as good as she said. Still, if they had these many fans, they were bound to be at least enjoyable.
The rest of the lights were turned off and the stage lit up, people started whistling and cheering, and everyone got closer to the stage, squeezing him. He could feel the smell of cigarettes and body odor inundating his nostrils, he couldn't see where Andrea was and he could feel the panic tying a knot in his chest, cold sweat trickled down his back.
What if something happens and I get crushed? What would Mom do if I died? I shouldn't have come here.
The drummer, a woman, entered the stage and the cheering got louder and with it, the crowd kept on pushing him. His right ear started ringing and his vision began blurring, he was going to pass out and his sister wasn't there to help him.
The rest of the band walked in, or he supposed they did since the cheering turned unbearable and his vision blurrier. He was debating between holding onto the stranger standing in front of him or collapsing on the floor. He couldn't tell if the music began, he could only hear the ringing in his ears.
As he stood there facing one of the worst panic attacks of his life, the most beautiful sound entered the blur in his mind and he blinked to clear his vision. There was a tall man with long black hair and round clear glasses standing in front of the keyboard, playing an enchanting melody, Alex had never heard anything like it. The floor stopped feeling like jelly, his hands stopped shaking, and the nausea disappeared. A couple of seconds later the man started singing and he could only stand there and cry.