Chapter 68 - Pull The Trigger - But Only If You Have To

The crowd in Argentina is wild.  The guys can feel the energy grow with each song that they do, the biggest reaction comes from their first number one hit, Runaway.  

That was quickly climbing and hanging out on all the charts, Billboard being the most popular.  The five guys from New Jersey were quickly becoming the biggest thing since you could buy bread, pre-sliced.  Jon Bon Jovi is an exceptional front man, but he'd be nothing without the four guys behind him and he knew it.

They gave Argentina every drop of sweat that they could produce and everyone within the sound of Jon's voice went away with a smile on their face and a beat in their soul.  Bon Jovi went to Argentina and ROCKED IT, just as they all knew that they would.  

When the lights go down and the show is over, they all meet backstage and share the high that they are all on.  "That kicked ass!"  Alec proclaims, "I mean, really kicked ass."

"It was radical." Richie added, "The crowd was hot!"

"You guys were perfect, so in tune and dead on."  Monica tells them, handing Jon a towel and tossing one to the other 4.  

"Do we ever do it any other way?"  Jon boasts, kissing her cheek.

Tico enters the crowd and hands everyone a beer, except Monica.  They huddle, do a toast and hang out backstage until the crowd thins out.  As they sit there and talk, smoking cigarettes they are interrupted by a knock on the door.  Richie yells, "Come in."  And they all looked at him like he's crazy.

"Don't ever do that again."  Jon snorts at him.

"What?"  Dumbfounded look on his face.

They all had talked about security already, how could Richie be so careless and allow someone to walk in.  Jon goes to the door and opens it.  It's Doc McGhee.  Jon rolls his eyes, "What?"  Stepping back, holding the door open for Doc to walk in.  Jon closes the door.  

"You guys are on fire!"  Doc says, with a grin on his face.  "Did you have fun?  Did you like being the headliner instead of the opener?"

"Yeah,"  David says.  "Who wouldn't?"

"Well, the show was a sell out, 66,000 people.  How do you feel about that?"

They all look at one another, "Are you shitting me, there were 66,000 people out there?"  David squeeks

Doc laughs, "It was pretty close.  The stadium holds 80,000 and there were seats that weren't for sale."

Jon walks up next to Monica and slides his arm around her waist, she looks at him and kisses him, "That's pretty amazing!"

"What are you doing here?"  Jon asks Doc, having no idea why hes be there.  HE didn't represent the band that opened for them.

"Funny that you ask.  The show that you just played is one of my shows.  I helped plan and implement this festival, I have for years."

The guys all look at one another, again.  Richie was a little pissed by what Doc just said, "How come you didn't tell us?"

"Because I wanted you to play the big leagues, see how it works and then see if you still didn't want me to represent you."

"That's kind of a cheap shot, Doc."  Monica says, minding business that really wasn't hers.  "You should have told them."

Doc looks at her, "Had they known it was my show, they wouldn't have played, right guys?"  Doc says, addressing the band as a whole.  And as if they practiced it, they all nodded their heads no.  "See."

"We don't like the under handed way that you do things. We are what you see.  There is no second guessing with us."  Alec snaps at Doc, feeling like they were tricked.  Their high is being quickly brought down, but they each are thinking about what he just said.  They played to almost 66,000 people.  

Jon, being the business man that he is, pipes up and says, "We were contracted to play for 17.5 percent of each ticket sale."

"Yes you were.  And the organizers decided to pay all of your expenses, leaving you only having to cover the fuel for your plane."

"Seriously?" Richie chimes in.   "We only have to pay for fuel?"

Doc takes a seat on one of the backstage sofas and lets out a breath.  "This show."

"What do you mean this show?"

"It's our way of wining and dining you, so to speak." He admits to them that it was all a plan, a way to get the next big thing to sign with him.

Bon Jovi has been sought after and wanted by some of the bigger names in the industry and Jon thought he was doing fine without any help.  Doc has him second guessing himself and wondering if he's taking the band and the music in the right direction.  

They all decide that they will talk as a group and decide the best course of action.  Jon knows that it's going to be a hard talk to have with stars in their eyes, it doesn't get much better than what they had today.  But he needs to remain true to the music and true to his beliefs.