By the end of the night, Gage had over two hundred dollars in his pocket and an invitation from Julio to return the next night. Gage decided not to worry about the fact that the bar might be slower on a Monday, or the fact that he wouldn’t have Christopher’s hand-picked audience in attendance. He had earned a second night, and he fully intended to make the most of it. Besides the money and the invitation, he also had a warm feeling in his chest. He had spent an hour with Christopher’s friends after the last set, fending off offers of beer while accepting their genuine compliments. The praise was more than a little intoxicating.
They were the last ones out of the bar, and when they finally left, everyone but Gage, Bodie, and Christopher were walking on a bit of an angle. Gage had never see
