Nowhere Girl ~ John Lennon/The Beatles

Chapter Six: Confusing

"I can't believe you didn't tell me you were in a band," Robin said without looking up from her sketchbook, earning a small laugh from Stuart who sat across from her, working on his own canvas. "And don't say that it never came up in conversation,"

"Well it didn't though really, did it Rob?" Stuart said with a smirk and a shrug. "I'm no good anyway. I'm just bass because John made me join, though I think Paul'd be more than happy if I dropped out,"

It was Friday, and college had finished early for the weekend. Everyone had rushed home, ready to get out of lessons especially while the weather was still abnormally nice, but Robin wasn't in any hurry. She had plenty of work to be getting on with and didn't really fancy doing it at home where her mother could easily interrupt her. Her Uncle Albert seemed great when it came to giving Robin her own space, but her mother not so much, which only seemed to help her relationship with her uncle. He reminded Robin of her father, the way he was patiently kind with her, making sure she knew he was there but not insistent in his presence, and he seemed to understand Robin didn't always want her mother hanging over her, even if it was with the best intentions occasionally. That was why when he offered her a lift home from college if she ever wanted to stay late, she accepted, and so there she was, spreading all of her stuff out across one of the classrooms, trying to get on with her work in peace that she didn't normally get either at home or at college.

Except Stuart had the same idea as her. That was the good part of her friendship with him, his priority being his art rather than music or pissing about like John. Whilst John headed straight for the bus back home, his guitar over his shoulder as always, Robin left him in search of an empty classroom, but instead found Stuart already working in the first one she looked in. In the last few weeks she'd found he was good to work with, so she set up her stuff on a table across from his and the two got to work silently, until Robin finally decided to bring up what was meant to be happening that night, that being his and John's band playing a gig at a local club.

"Paul's the one who came to college the other day, who're the others?" she asked with a small frown, deciding that from what she knew she liked Paul; John clearly trusted him and liked him a lot.

"So there's George, George Harrison, a bit younger but really good, and I mean really good at guitar," Stuart explained, setting his pencil aside to look at her properly, not being able to fully focus on both their conversation and his work. "He was Paul's mate from school but he played Raunchy note perfect the first time he met John and John was smitten. Then there's Pete the drummer. He's alright, doesn't really fit in with the group as much as the others but he's the only drummer in Liverpool that isn't already in a band,"

"What, drummers are in short supply in Liverpool then?" Robin joked dryly, making Stuart roll his eyes.

"Good ones are," he shrugged. "I'm not saying I'm good, I'm only in the band cause John made me join, but sometimes I can keep better time than Pete. There are some proper good drummers though, like there's this other group who play the clubs called the Hurricanes, now they've got a great drummer. He's this teddy boy, Richard, but everyone calls him Richie, terrified Paul the first time we met him but he's nice enough and his band's great. Plus their lead is a lad called Rory Storm, makes all the girls go mad. I think John and Paul are always jealous of that bit,"

"So these bands, they're popular?" Robin frowned, realising that now she was actually interacting with people there was a whole youth culture she hadn't engaged with before.

"Some are, yeah," he shrugged again, turning back to his work for a moment before he looked up at her. "Are you gonna come tonight?"

Robin nodded, flashing a small smile, but in truth she still hadn't gotten permission. She'd never been out at night before, and she had no idea how her mother would react to her asking to go out. She remembered how John had expected her not to care, to just do as she pleased, but Robin didn't particularly fancy trying her luck at just going out and finding out afterwards that she didn't have parental approval. Robin had decided that she'd ask her mum if she could go as soon as she got home, hoping that she'd have had a great day at work and was feeling generous. Surely it'd just peak her desperate interest in Robin's new friends and she'd definitely have to undergo a lot of questions as to who she was hanging out with, but for the first time ever she really wanted to go out, so her mother's questionings was just a sacrifice she was willing to make.