Chapter 10

“Two minutes, Tasha.” Leigh called out with a smile as she walked over to her backstage. “You okay? Can I get you something?”

Tasha’s hands were clammy and shaking in anticipation. But Leigh’s friendly smile calmed her nerves somewhat.

“An exit strategy?” Tasha suggested ruefully.

Leigh laughed and gave her new friend a tight hug. “You are gorgeous and a fabulous singer. You will blow them away, Tash.”

She was grateful for Leigh’s friendship, especially after the craziness that was earlier today.

After Nick left, Leigh whisked her away to wardrobe, hair and makeup to prepare for the photoshoot. It was there she met Leighanne, Brian’s wife and Rochelle, AJ’s on-again-off-again fiancée. Nick had apparently tasked the three of them to make sure Tasha was ready for her close up.

Leighanne, a designer, brought her newest line of pinup inspired vintage style clothing for Tasha to try on. She was in love with them immediately, especially because the dresses played nice with her generous curves. Rochelle, a makeup artist and hair genius, made Tasha look otherworldly with brand new blue and purple highlights and curled extensions. Leigh was delighted at her 70s-slash-punk-rock transformation.

And apparently so was Nick.

Okay, maybe ‘delighted’ wasn’t the right word to describe his reaction. According to Leigh, it was more ‘floored’.

Leigh explained that because Nick was keeping her a secret from the other competitors, he pulled in favours from all the Backstreet wives to have the photoshoot and soundcheck closed to anyone outside of people he knew and trusted. And because Nick had rarely asked any of them for favours, they were more than happy to help, even though their husbands/significant others had other talent performing on the same show.

“Nick is the only person who can make all of us come together against our husbands,” Leighanne had admitted with a laugh. “He knows we’re all dying to mother him.”

So when Tasha, Leigh, Leighanne and Ro showed up at the beach house where Nick and Kristen, their photographer (and incidentally, Kevin’s wife), were setting up for the photoshoot, Nick had taken one look at Tasha and dropped an expensive piece of camera equipment on his own foot. 

Kristen didn’t even bother getting annoyed with Nick for potentially breaking her equipment. Instead, she left him cursing to himself and gave Tasha a big hug. “You, my dear, are even more beautiful than Nick described.” With a wide grin to the rest of the women, she looked back at Tasha and said, “Welcome to the Backstreet family.”

And it was at that point Tasha fell in love with all four women. They were so welcoming, so positive, their energy so contagious, it was impossible to not have fun and feel like she’d been a part of their little posse for years.

Oh and Nick recovered quickly. Whatever Leigh saw in Nick’s eyes when they walked in promptly disappeared and instead, he fell back into his usual friendly and playful demeanor. With a slight limp from the fallen equipment of course.

Tasha went through a total of three wardrobe changes in a span of 2 hours, all of which Nick told her she can keep. Couture to take home? Someone pinch her now.

The rest of the day went pretty fast after that. After the girls left, Nick made her lunch so they could both talk about the contract that he had left for her to read this morning. Then it was off to rehearsals with JC and then soundcheck.

JC, the wonderful brilliant producer that he was, proposed a change in one of the songs she was to perform that night. Instead of performing three pop/rock covers, JC decided to replace one with a Mighty Mighty Bosstones song, “The Impression That I Get,” a ska infused rock record, which, even Tasha had to admit, was more her style. Its uptempo back beat and dance hall rhythm easily showcased her quirky personality.

And it was during the very private soundcheck, when she performed her whole set for the first time on a massive stage (and in a theatre she didn’t realize the compound had!) did she realize that she was ecstatic about performing music she actually loved in front of a crowd again. It didn’t matter that it was possibly the biggest stage she’d performed on in her life or that it was going to be in front of highly influential industry bigwigs. She was, for the first time in years, doing something she’d always dreamed of.

Her parents would be so proud.

Which brought her to this moment: two minutes before she was scheduled to go on, in front of a crowd of almost a hundred, most of them recognizable names in the music industry. And all of them with the power to make or break her career before it even started.

Oh she knew what she was up against. The three performers before her warmed the crowd up, got them excited. There was a buzz in the sea of people especially for the last act, a fifteen-year-old country music miracle who played guitar and the harmonica all at once.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Deep inside, she knew there was no competition. Nick assured her over lunch that no matter what happened, she was guaranteed a recording deal with his label Kaotic. And if what they agreed over salad held, he was now her partner in making her Grammy dreams a reality.

She felt Nick stand behind her before he even touched her. There was always a comforting feeling in the air when he was near and right now she was grateful for his quiet strength.

He ran his hands up and down her arms, his way of sharing her excitement. “You are gorgeous, you are phenomenal, you will knock ‘em all dead, Tash.” Putting an arm around her shoulders, he stood side by side with her and watched as the band and JC got the stage ready for her. “I almost feel bad for those who came before you.”

He surprised a smile out of her. “Don’t you dare jinx me before I go on, Nick.”

Nick scrunched up his nose and grinned. “You? Superstitious? For shame, Tash.” With that he dropped a kiss on her forehead and left her side.

At Leigh’s signal, Nick walked on stage.

“Most of you who know me know that it’s been a few years since I’ve been this excited about raw genuine talent. In just a moment, you’ll experience something so mindblowing, so unassumingly brilliant, I can guarantee you will be up off your seats and wondering what hit you. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you…Tasha.”

All the stage lights went out and the first upbeat guitar notes resonated throughout the room. As soon as the horns started playing, Tasha ran on stage and grabbed the microphone from the stand.

She stood there, with one hand on her hip and a teasing smile. She turned to Nick who was still on the side of the stage and gave him a wink.

And then she sang her heart out. All over the stage she went, jumping, dancing, rocking out to this wonderfully danceable melody. Pretty soon, everyone else was up off their seats, as Nick predicted, joining in on the fun. Most importantly, Tasha’s words rang clear and beautifully, her unique soulful sound giving this classic a whole new voice.

When she was done, everybody…EVERYBODY stood up and screamed for more.

“You are wonderful wonderful dancers, all of you,” Tasha pronounced with a grin as she walked up to JC and the grand piano in the middle of the stage. “How about a hand for JC Chasez on keys?”

JC stood up, waved and promptly grabbed Tasha’s hand to kiss the back of it. She waved him off in embarrassment.

“If you’d told me last week I’d be performing in front of people I’ve adored my whole life, I would’ve said you were crazy. But today, I stand here, with you, just about to sing one of my favourite Peter Gabriel songs, and he’s standing right there.” She waved at the older gentleman standing next to Kevin in the front row. In a stage whisper, she said again, “You guys. He’s right there.”

That elicited collective laughter throughout the seasoned industry crowd. “This is for you, Mr. Gabriel.”

JC’s hands flew on the piano keys and Tasha launched into an impassioned soulful version of ‘In Your Eyes’, showcasing the raw emotional depth her voice carried throughout the whole theatre.

She spotted her wonderful new friends Leighanne, Rochelle and Kristen off to the side of the stage as she ended the song and noticed they were wiping their eyes discreetly. She blew them a kiss just as she hit her last note and the lights went out on stage.

This was it. The last song. Tasha took her spot in the middle of the stage and placed her microphone on the stand. Her breathing controlled and her mind focused, she blocked out the continuing applause and waited for JC’s cue to start.

She was going to do it. She was going to prove to herself that last night wasn’t a fluke, that she could channel that rocker chick and belt the hell out of this song. She had to.

A lone spotlight shone on her as JC started playing the first few notes to ‘Grenade’. She cocked her head to the side and caught Nick’s gaze from the side of the stage and held it.

Before she knew it, her voice glided through the first verse, her eyes breaking from the hold of Nick’s gaze and promptly released all the pent up emotion the song called for. She then made contact with her audience. They were silent, as if they were waiting to see what was going to unfold.

They didn’t have to wait too long. By the time Tasha hit the high notes after the bridge, the whole theatre was once again on their feet, wild with applause and screaming.

And when Tasha hit her final high note at the end of the song and the lights went out on stage, the applause and screams were deafening. Her hand went to her throat in disbelief.

She did it.

******

She had a vague memory of bowing and walking off the stage straight into Nick’s arms. What she did remember was how tightly he held her, how, over and over he whispered that she was phenomenal, and how, in spite of the many congratulatory pats on the back and half hugs other people backstage offered her, neither of them let go of each other.

She was freaked out. She just got through her most important performance without messing up and she was just now understanding what this meant. But Nick didn’t let her get too far gone. With his hand caressing her back soothingly, he held her, kissed her temple and waited until she calmed down.

A part of her subconscious heard JC on stage, thanking all of the night’s performers and inviting the guest judges on stage to award the winner.

“Tash, baby, you need to start listening, they’re going to call your name soon.” Nick whispered in her ear, careful not to spook her.

She shook her head and kept it burrowed against Nick’s chest.

Leigh started pulling her off Nick. “Darlin’ we need to fix your make up. Rochelle is here, we need you to be ready to go back on stage.”

Tasha started breathing rapidly in panic. “Wha—one more…song?”

Leigh laughed as she led her to the side of the stage where Rochelle was waiting with a blotter, foundation and fresh mascara, eyeliner and lipstick. “No silly, to give you the award.”

Nick was right beside Tasha, with a hand on the small of her back, keeping an eye on what was happening on stage. The other performers were seated comfortably in the theatre seats, waiting for Kevin to announce the winner.

Rochelle made quick work of fixing Tasha’s make up and once she was done, she grabbed her friend’s (very cold) hand and waited for the announcement.

“…an amazing display of talent tonight and we are so glad to be a part of this privileged audience.” Kevin nodded to the other suits in the front row. “You all didn’t make it easy. But all of us saw one particular star shine tonight. I know you know who I’m talking about. Millennium Records would like to award $25,000 and a record deal to the winner of this showcase….” Drumroll. “Tasha!” Kevin turned to the side of the stage and saw a shell shocked Tasha, clutching Rochelle and Leigh’s hands in a death grip. “Come on out here, Tasha!”

Nick shook his head as he laughed, pulling Tasha with him to the centre of the stage and next to Kevin. Not even sure what was happening, Tasha let herself be pulled into a Kevin and Nick sandwich of a hug.

“I won?” she asked with a squeak to Nick.

“Yes you did, baby. Like I said you would.” He smiled, his eyes shining with confidence. “Next stop, the Grammys.”