Page 60 of Unfinished Noise

Farlan glanced around the hallway. “Where are Spencer and Nathan? Thought they’d be up by now.”

Jamie snorted. “They’re not doing anything today except sleeping. Last night wiped them out.”

“Fair,” Farlan said, smiling. “Tell them we said hi.”

Jamie nodded, and they all stepped into the elevator together. The ride was awkward—Billy silent, Farlan humming, Alfie staring at Billy like he was trying to figure out what species he was.

When the doors opened in the lobby, they went their separate ways—Farlan tugging Billy toward the hotel restaurant, Billy shuffling along like a scolded kid.

Jamie exhaled once they were gone.

Alfie turned to him, eyes lighting up. “Roller Towne?”

Jamie grinned. “Yep. Rock music, questionable carpet patterns, and the possibility of me breaking my ass.”

Alfie laughed, practically vibrating with excitement. “Let’s go.”

Jamie followed him out the door, grateful for a morning that didn’t involve band drama, yelling, or Billy’s weird habit of staring at him like he was a ghost.

Roller Towne sounded perfect.

The day had finally clicked into place. Spencer would rest. Nathan would recover. And Jamie and Alfie? They were about to skate their way into the kind of trouble that made everything feel normal again.

Jamie and Alfie showed up at Roller Towne looking like they were about to crash a fan meet‑and‑greet instead of a skating rink. Both of them wore their Black Shadows T‑shirts—black cotton, bold silver lettering, the old logo stretched across the chest. They looked utterly silly and undeniably awesome all at once.

The place smelled like popcorn, old carpet, and whatever cleaning solution Roller Towne had been using since 1998. Neon lights flickered over the rink, casting everything in pink and blue stripes. Rock music blasted from the speakers—something with heavy guitar and a beat that made Jamie’s chest thump.

He loved it instantly.

Alfie laced up his skates with the enthusiasm of someone who had absolutely no idea how physics worked. “If I die,” he said, “tell Nathan it was his fault.”

Jamie snorted. “You’re not dying. You’re gonna wobble around like a baby deer, but you’re not dying.”

Alfie pushed himself upright and immediately grabbed Jamie’s arm. “Okay, maybe dying is off the table.”

Jamie laughed and steadied him. “Come on. Let’s go.”

They rolled onto the rink, both of them shaky at first. Jamie’s muscle memory kicked in fast. Alfie, meanwhile, looked like he was reenacting a slow‑motion disaster movie. But he was laughing, and that made Jamie relax.

They circled the rink a few times, getting the hang of it. The rock music shifted into something louder—classic guitar riffs that made Jamie grin. The noise and movement had shaken all the tension he’d been carrying.

They were finally getting the hang of skating—Jamie steady, Alfie wobbling but determined—when a group of teens drifted closer, slowing down enough to stare at their shirts.

One girl pointed at Jamie’s chest. “Black Shadows… wait, is that real merch?”

Jamie nodded, not thinking much of it at first. People wore vintage band shirts all the time.

But then the girl’s friend squinted at him, as if she were trying to place a face she’d seen somewhere online. “You guys look familiar.”

That little jolt in his stomach showed up, the one he always got when someone recognized anything connected to the band. He wasn’t famous, but being with Spencer meant people sometimes connected dots he didn’t expect.

He tried to play it cool. “Uh… yeah. It’s real.”

The girl lit up. “No way. My older brother used to blast their stuff in the car.”

Jamie laughed under his breath. Great. Now he was ancient.

Another kid skated closer, eyes flicking between Jamie’s shirt and his face. “Didn’t they… disappear for a while?”