Born to Rock by Gordon Korman Page A

established him in his own room. I was there when his eyelids fluttered open, and I heard his first words: “Do I know you?”
    By five A.M ., I was back in the waiting area at emergency. Cam had abandoned me, but I didn’t care. I was finally asleep after twenty-seven frenetic, stress-packed hours, and it was plenty sweet.
    A deluge of ice-cold beer soaked my face and chest, and shocked me awake. I jolted upward, arms and legs flailing. “Rise and shine, new guy. Been waiting long?”
    Cam.
    â€œThanks to you,” I told him.
    He led me out to the parking lot to an equipment van full of roadies and girls. My anger dissipated enough for me to realize that they’d all been drinking since the show had ended more than four hours ago.
    â€œI’ll drive,” I said firmly.
    â€œYou’re the boss, Hoss,” Cam sang out, dumping more beer, this time onto my shoes. But I stood my ground until he gave me the keys.
    We drove around for a long time because nobody could remember where the Hilton was. I got directions at a gas station, and that’s where we lost the girls. They went for frittatas at the Mexican diner across the street.
    Finally, we found the hotel, and I dragged up to my room. Who dragged along with me? Cam, my roommate. Lucky me. At least my luggage was there, miracle of miracles.
    Cam invited the others to come along, and I had to let them because I was the idiot who stopped for directions and cost them the girls.
    â€œWell, okay,” I said, “but I’m going to sleep.”
    They were loud and obnoxious, and pelted me with cashews from the minibar. I tried to be good-natured about it. Who wants to start something with all his coworkers on the very first day? I was caught between a rock and a hard place. What happened right now could set the tone for the whole summer. They were bigger than me, adults to my seventeen, worldly to my naive, and there were four of them and only one of me.
    But when I saw Cam shaking up a fresh can of Budweiser, it was too much. I probably could have controlled myself. McMurphy, however, was another story.
    My foot snapped up and booted the can out of his hand and across the room. “No more beer showers!” I snarled. “I’ve been taking your crap all night, and it ends here! I may be the new guy and the kid, but if you don’t lay off, I swear to God I’ll find a way to make you pay!”
    I looked at their faces and knew I’d just made a big mistake. I wasn’t sure exactly what they’d do to me, but this was about to get ugly.
    And then there was a knock at the door.
    â€œLater!” snapped Cam.
    â€œLeo?”
    Never did I think I’d be so glad to hear the voice of King Maggot. The mood changed in a heartbeat as all those Neanderthals broke their necks to let the boss inside.
    King walked in, ignoring everybody else, and taking note of the sight I must have presented, having last seen to my grooming thirty hours earlier in Connecticut.
    â€œYou look terrible.” A fine greeting from my bio-dad, for whom I’d crossed the country.
    â€œI just got here,” I explained.
    He looked amazed. “What—now?”
    â€œBernie sent me to the hospital with Neb. You heard he’s off the tour, right?”
    He shrugged like I’d just told him we were out of Kleenex. “I came to see if you wanted to do breakfast. But I guess you’d better get some sleep.” He turned back to the door and began to stroll out the way he’d strolled in. To the room in general, he said, “You guys are getting along okay, right?”
    It was a question, an order, and a threat all rolled into one.
    After a silent moment, I replied, “Oh, yeah, they’re showing me the ropes.”
    â€œGood, because I promised I’d look out for you.” And he was gone.
    A big hulk I came to know as Julius spoke first. “Welcome aboard, kid. Good working with you.”
    I