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When they had first been put together in a band, all of eight of them had a lot to learn about each other. They didn’t get along easily and they had their little disagreements all along the way. But the biggest hindrance in their bond had been the misunderstandings and the inability to trust each other readily. Some of them were talkative and formed a little group early on, some were younger so they got together very quickly and for some, they struggled to even make their presence be felt in such a large group.

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To be honest, Chris had kind of closed in on himself when he got put in a band. Having recently gotten out of a band, he wasn’t quite sure of how far this group would go. Similarly, his group didn’t know much about him and thus, he wasn’t trusted easily at first.

“Alright, so who’s getting a solo for our next performance” James asked.

“Charlie’s getting one” Barclay said, earning a smile from the younger one.

Chris had tuned out the whole conversation until he heard his name being whispered.

“Chris? Nah? I don’t think he should be given a solo” Jake said.

Chris was about to ask why when suddenly Casey added, “Yeah, his voice cracked on his last performance.”

Hurt, the boy left to go to his room without even saying a word to his bandmates.

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Tom had been kind of worried about how Chris seemed cut off from the band. He noticed how during practice, Reece kept giving the boy reassuring smiles and Charlie too stuck close to Chris. The younger ones had noticed that one of their bandmates was a bit down.

Clearly, the two younger ones had made a plan between themselves. First came Reece’s insistence of Chris practicing with them and then somehow, they roped Chris into singing Charlie’s solo with them under the façade of better practice.

Tom kept an eye on them and found himself shaking his head during their performance when Charlie turned around and faked a coughing fit which prompted Reece to turn to Chris and plead him to cover up.

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Once Chris started singing, his own bandmates were caught off guard. He had a good voice and there were no voice cracks on basis of what they had refused him a solo. Chris garnered a round of applause for his performance and his bandmates were all praises as well.

“That was good mate” Barclay clapped his shoulder.

“I take back what I said, you’re good” Jake said.

“Yup, voice cracks were just you downplaying your performance, wasn’t it?” Casey chuckled.

“You were good, man. Saving us right when Charlie decided to be an old man having a coughing fit” James added.

Chris smiled, turning around to find Charlie and Reece smiling at him.

“It was a trick, right?” Chris whispered at Charlie.

“Uh no! My chest… No, my throat got tight…” Charlie tried to come up with a lie.

“What are you saying? We don’t know anything” Reece said, wrapping an arm around Charlie as they hurried away.

“It was their plan… But that doesn’t take anything away from you. You were fantastic out there” Tom clapped the boy’s shoulder, pulling him in his side.

“Thanks” Chris whispered.

The plan of the two youngest had actually worked as they tricked Chris into performing.

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Ever since that performance, Chris grew more confident into putting his views ahead or asking for solos. His band learnt to trust him and trust into his performances. And that’s how Stereo Kicks started growing as a band.

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A/N