Fly the Rain by Robert Burton Robinson Read Free Book Online Page B

them the edge over the other
bands.
    Cindy went into a drum solo as the other
three women took off their guitars and set them in their stands.
They walked around behind the blackboard.
    “ What are they doing?” said
Billy-Eye.
    “ I don’t know,” said Craig.
But he hoped it worked.
    When they walked out, they
looked no different. They picked up their guitars and strapped them
on as Cindy continued to go crazy on the drums. Boomer was the
first to join in. Her five-string bass rattled everything that
wasn’t tied down. The standard bass guitar comes with four strings:
E-A-D-G. But her bass had a fifth string—the B below the E. Her
lowest notes could be felt more than heard.
    Next, Sondra joined in on rhythm guitar.
Finally, E. Z. came in with a screeching lead guitar lick.
    All this was a dramatic
lead-in to Sondra’s song, Puking My Guts
Out (All Over You) . It was in E Minor,
with a driving beat. Sondra sang lead, with the other three singing
backup on the choruses.

    Yapping with a babe in the parking lot,
You had a tight butt and a really hot car.
I took you for a ride and blew your mind.
But you burned my tires, threw me into the fire.

    I try to pretend you didn’t hurt me.
Nobody hurts me.
But then I get this raunchy feeling way down inside.

    And I’m puking my guts out,
I’m puking my guts out,
I’m puking my guts out
All over you,
All over you.

    (E. Z.’s guitar solo)

    Stomped me flat without a sound.
You buried my soul in the deep, deep ground.
I’m blacker than black, cold as stone.
I’m dead to the world since you left me alone.

    I try to pretend you didn’t hurt me.
Nobody hurts me.
But then I get this raunchy feeling way down inside.

    And I’m puking my guts out,
I’m puking my guts out,
I’m puking my guts out
All over you.
All over you,
All over you,
All over you,
All over you!

    For the last all over you ,
Sondra, E. Z., and Boomer slung their guitars to their backs and
stepped to the edge of the stage. They sang the last line a capella , and
then, in unison, threw their heads back. Then they barfed into the
crowd. And it wasn’t a tiny spew. They blew out a couple of quarts
each.
    The kids screamed and tried to get away from
the chunky orange goo.
    Billy-Eye yelled at Craig. “What is
this?”
    Craig was as confused and upset as his
father. “I don’t know.”
    “ Well they just lost! ”
    Craig couldn’t argue. It was no use. As
badly as he wanted to please Cindy, he couldn’t justify this kind
of behavior. Kids might not ever come back after this.
    The three women stepped back
from the edge of the stage, and Cindy stood up at her drums.
Then Orange Puke took a slow, dignified bow—as though they had just performed
Mozart for the Queen of England.
    They’ve got a lot of nerve, thought
Craig.
    Then the screaming died down. Some kids were
beginning to laugh.
    One boy yelled, “Taste it!”
    “ Gross!”
    “ No, really.”
    “ He’s right! It tastes like
orange juice!”
    “ But what are these
chunks?”
    A boy licked his arm. “I think it’s
oatmeal.”
    More and more of the kids
began to realize that they hadn’t really been sprayed with barf. It
was just a gimmick. A cool gimmick. The coolest
gimmick ever!
    Orange Puke had been disgusting only five
minutes earlier. Now they were the hottest thing in town.
    Billy-Eye had seen and heard enough. He
grabbed Craig by the shoulders. “Well, what are you waiting for? Go
tell them they got the job!”

    Chapter 9

    Craig hurried to the stage, zigzagging his
way across the floor of orange puddles. He ran up the stairs to
meet Sondra. “Are you crazy?” He tried to give her a stern look,
but then broke into laughter.
    “ Did we get the
job?”
    “ Yes, you did.”
    Boomer walked over to Sondra and gave her a
high five. “Yeah, Baby.”
    E. Z. grinned. She couldn’t believe Sondra’s
weird idea had worked.
    “ How did you do it?” said
Craig. “I mean, how did you get it in your mouth? You were singing,
and then