An anxious Christian Willis sat in the offices of Atlantic Reocrds along with his band, Item 16. It consisted of his twin brother and his three friends, Mel, Mike and Trent. They had been sending their demo tape to just about every record company there was for two months now. None of them seemed to be interested since Christian never got a reply from any of the companies. The band had been struggling ever since they all had graduated from high school. Their part time jobs and the money they made from local concerts wasn't enough to support their lives in college. They had to pay for food, books, college loans and their cars. It just wasn't enough. The band was considering to give up and just concentrate on their college education but that state of mind changed.

Christian recieved a phone call from Atlantic Records saying that they were interested and wanted to hear them play in person. Item 16 wasn't like most people who wanted a record contract. They didn't want to be stars, they wanted to be themselves. They wanted fans who liked the music, rather than just Christian's good looks, which had been the case in the past. They didn't want to be on MTV, they wanted the music to speak for itself. They weren't efven too concerned with their record being #1 or going platinum. If it happened, they would be thankful but they just wanted their music to be appreciated and for it to inspire somebody. It didn't have to be millions of people. As long as one person was inspired, they felt as if their job was done.

This was the chance they had been waiting for and they planned to take advantage of it. The band had been practicing for two weeks straight and had a good song prepared for the excutives of Atlantic Records to hear. None of them were doing that well in college anyway so if this worked out, they would definitely be extremely happy. No words needed to be said between the band while they awaited for the executives to arrive. They all had anticipation, excitement, nervousness and fear running through their veins since they knew this was the most important performance in their career. Everything that they felt was driving them to be at their best because they wanted this so badly. The silence in the room was broken by Christian's cell phone ringing.

"Didn't I tell you to turn that thing off?" Mel whispered, who was sitting next to Christian.

"Why are you whispering, girl?" Christian asked as he pulled out his phone and answered it.

"Hey Christian, did you get the record deal yet?!"

He chuckled to himself. It was one of his best friends, Jaleel. He was the first to know about Atlantic Records being interested in the band and ever since, it seemed that Jaleel was more excited about it than Christian. Jaleel did nothing but encourage Christian from the moment the band started sending out demo tapes and he would always find something to say to cheer Christian up. The two were complete opposites but for some weird reason, they ended up becoming very close.

"No, man. We're still waiting for them to come in here. We've been in here for like ten minutes. I have never been so nervous in my life, dude. I hope it doesn't screw my voice up. I'm so afraid of rejection. You have no idea."

"You've gotta remember this, Christian. When you're nervous, it's a good thing because it means that you care about what you're doing. That fear of rejection should drive you to perform to the best of your ability so that rejection isn't a possibility. How you do think I felt when I had to talk to Mr. McMahon? The same way that you do, but our conversation turned out much better than what I thought it would and got myself a developmental deal. You won't get a developmental deal though. You will get that contract. Just be yourself."

"I know, you're right. You always are and I don't think you would ever lie to me. Thanks for your words. Any type of inspiration could help me out right now and it is working. Mel, Trent, Mike and Deryck said what's up."

"Tell them I said break a leg. Anyway, just relax and be yourself. If those executives tell you to change your sound, tell them no. Christian Willis don't change for nobody. You've come too far for your music to be something not true to youself. Trust me, if you think you're gonna mess up, you will. I always get butterflies when I go out in front of thousands of people and that will be you someday."

Christian really appreciated Jaleel and was so thankful for their friendship, especially right now. Jaleel was known as Jamaal in the WWF. He started wrestling when he was sixteen and didn't get contacted by the WWF until he was twenty-two. He had been wrestling on television for about three months now and the band was very happy for Jaleel. He was also very over with the fans so if anyone knew about being nervous, it was him since he had to experience that feeling everyday.

"Thank you, man. I'll call you after the meeting is over. It looks like someone is about to come in here. I'll talk to you later."

"Alright, take care."

Christian put his phone in his pocket, took a big breath and stood up with everyone else as four men dressed in black suits came into the room and each of them sat down in brown leather chairs except one who remained standing. They all were carrying notebooks.

"It's a pleasure to meet the five of you. I'm Val Azzoli, co-CEO of Atlantic Reocrds and this Ahmet Ertegun, founder of Atlantic Records. The other two are Richard Nash and Darryl Williams. We've been looking very forward to hearing you guys."

"Well, thank you very much. It's a honor to be here and we hope you enjoy the song we're about to do for you." Mel replied, noticing that they all were writing as she talked.

"I already know who everyone is gonna compare you to." Ahmet Ertegun interrupted.

"No Doubt. Yeah, we hear that all the time since I'm the only female and the rest are guys. They say I try to be like Gwen Stefani. We're big fans of them but we just want to be ourseleves. I think we're ready to start unless you would like to ask us more questions."

"Oh, okay. Well, go right ahead. We're listening." The four men watched intently as the band began to play and the whole vibe in the room changed as Mel brought the microphone to her lips.

*Twenty minutes later*

Nash, Williams, Eretgun and Azzoli clapped as the band finished their last song and put their gear aside. They wrote some more information in their notebooks as they reflected on the band's performance.

"Trent, what would you say is Item 16's goal?" Darryl Williams asked, not taking his eyes off his notebook.

"We just want to inspire one person. We want to be seen as a symbol of inspiration to somebody who needs it and we want our music to be appreciated. We're not too concerned about going platinum or anything like that, we want to remain true to ourselves." Trent replied.

"Interesting answer. Mike, how did you guys come up with Item 16?" This time Richard Nash asked the question.

"Uh, when we were thinking about a new name, at the time, Christian and Deryck were the only ones who were fifteen while the rest of us were sixteen. Everyone knows that you're not really an item until you're sixteen so that's how we figured out that name."

"Deryck, who do you guys look up to in the music industry?"

"All of us are huge fans of Good Charlotte. From the moment we heard them, we were addicted and we still look up to this day. Mel already told you that we also like No Doubt. That's about it really."

"Mel, what is it like being the only female?"

"It's been a cool experience thus far. They teach me about guys and I teach them about girls...like if they're having a problem with one of their girlfriends, they come to me. I'm like a girl best friend to them. But as far as the band is concerned, I do my best to avoid the No Doubt comparisons. I grew up listening to Gwen but I think my singing is very different than hers. No other female can compare to her anyway and I'm not gonna try. I do know that most of the attention will be focused on me though."

"Christian, you also sing lead and wrote most of the songs. How would you describe Item 16?" Ahmet Eretgun asked.

"We're ourselves, man. That's all we can be. I write from the situations that I experience and since I've personally experienced them, it helps me to sing to the best of my ability since I've been there. Hopefully, people will be able to relate to us."

"Well, from what we've seen, you guys definitely have the potential to be pop stars. You just have to change a couple of things." Val Azzoli said.

"Hold on, anyone who knows me knows that I don't change for one...not even for a record deal. If you won't let us be ourseleves, then the record deal wouldn't feel right at all. That's why the other companies rejected us, they didn't understand what exactly it is that we want as a band. You have a great thing in us and we want to represent this company. We won't let you down. I'll admit, I am tired of being compared to No Doubt. They're stars and everything but they just ain't Item 16."

"So you don't want to be a pop star?"

"Hell, no. I can't take direction. If I were to be a pop star, I would be my own worst enemy. I probably wouldn't do it right anyway. None of us would. If it happened, I would want it to happen on accident but being a pop star is not our intention. If people liked the music for the music, I would be content."

Christian got a little frightened as the four men began to whisper to themselves. He hoped he hadn't said the wrong thing but then again, he didn't really care because the band didn't want this record deal if Atlantic wasn't gonna let them be themselves.

"Well, it was very nice meeting the five of you. You will be hearing from us in the future. Before you leave, give our secretary a number where we can reach you."

"Okay, you guys take care." Deryck said before the four men left to leave the band to clean up their gear.

"Where do we go from here?" Mike asked.

"We go to Burger King, I'm hungry." Christian replied.

*A month later*

Deryck sat by the phone, it was as if he had been in the same spot for three weeks straight. He was starting to fall asleep. Everyone was beginning to feel discouraged since they had expected Atlantic Records to call them back by now. They really didn't see themselves happy unless they got this record deal. The looks on their faces ever since they realized it was a possibility that Atlantic wasn't interested in them was a very sad one. The same process had been repeating for awhile now as far as them being rejected and they all were very tired of it.

"You guys wanna watch It Just Feels Right?" Christian asked, who was laying on the floor of his apartment.

"Hell no, I think I've memorized every word she says in that thing." Mel replied.

"Why are you trying to deny the fact that we're not gonna get this record deal? Let's just go ahead, admit it and move on with our lives." Trent interrupted.

"I'll tell you why, Trent. We've come too far to turn back now. I refuse to give up. We're at the best we can be right now and I'm not gonna stop until someone appreciates the talent that lives within this band. Giving up is not an option so you can just go ahead and forget that." Deryck replied, raising his voice.

All of a sudden, the phone rang off the hook. Everyone looked at it and then, they looked at each other.

"Answer it, man!" Christian said.

"Hello." Deryck said after he picked up the phone.

"Is this the Willis residence?"

"Yes, it is. This is Deryck."

"Oh, okay. Deryck, this is Ahmet Ertegun, founder of Atlantic Records. Sorry it took us so long to respond to you but we finally have an answer."

"Really? Okay, well, I'm more than willing to hear that answer."

"We're gonna sign you guys."

Deryck dropped the phone and his jaw dropped. It looked like he had attained the serenity of happiness. He just stood there, a smile on his face.

"Who was that?" Mike asked.

"Atlantic...they're gonna sign us!"

Everyone in the room screamed. Christian and Mel hugged each other. Mike, Trent and Deryck jumped on the bed. The room was filled with happiness, nothing could change what they were feeling. This moment was theirs. They had worked for so long and the fact that they were getting a record deal made it all worth while.

*Seven weeks later*

Christian, Mike, Mel, Trent and Deryck were all packing their instruments into the back of Mike's van. They usually traveled to shows in that van but this time, they were on their way to Atlantic Records' exclusive studio to finish recording their debut album. All the contracts has been read, signed and they met their first official manger, Bruce Roberson at a dinner where the band presented the sixteen songs they wanted to put on the album. Only one song was rejected since it was too explicit but in the end, they agreed on fifteen songs and two interludes for their CD. Atlantic thought that it would take them four weeks to record the album but it had been seven weeks instead. They still couldn't believe everything was happening so fast. One minute, they were stressed out since no one was interested in them. Now, they were recording an album. It was unbelieveable.

Everyone got into the van and Christian decided to drive. He hoped that Atlantic wasn't upset at them for taking longer than schedule to record but the band was full of perfectionists when it came to their music. Christian smiled when his cell phone ran, already knowing who it was.

"Hey, Jaleel."

"How did you know it was me?"

"I just knew, I always talk to you at the right time. By the way, you had an awesome match last night."

"Thanks, I was calling to tell you that I have a surprise."

"Really? What is it?"

"It's a surprise, boy. I can't tell you. You'll be finding out in a few minutes, just wanted to do something special for you guys."

"Why would you wanna do something like that?"

"Don't ask, just take it. Now, I gotta go. You'll thank me later."

"Whatever you say, man. I'll talk to you later......hey guys, Jaleel says he has a surprise for us." Christian said, putting his phone away.

"When are we gonna get it?" Mel asked.

"He said, in a few minutes."

They arrived to the studio and got their gear out of the van. The studio was on the first floor of a two story building that Atlantic owned. It had become their home away from home and only one more song needed to be completed for the album. The band entered the building and went straight to their studio. They were surprised to see two men sitting inside with their backs turned to them.

"Uh, excuse me...can I help you?" Christian asked.

"Yes, you sure can. Is your name Christian?" The two men turned around to reveal their faces.

Mel and Christian gasped simultaneously, recognizing that it was Shannon Moore and Jeff Hardy. Each of them had guitars and notebooks laying next to them. Christian realized that this had to be Jaleel's surprise since he knew that Shannon and Jeff were good friends with Jaleel and he also knew that Shannon and Jeff had a band called Pure Oxygen.

"That's me." Christian replied as he walked up to the two men.

"Nice to meet you, man. I'm Jeff and this is Shannon. We're here to do a song with you guys. Jaleel told us that you might like that."

"Oh, yeah. We would definitely like that. I'm Mel. That's Deryck, Mike and Trent." She interrupted, pushing Christian out of the way. Mel had always thought that Jeff was hot.

"You sing lead, right?" Shannon asked.

"Yes, that's right. Do you sing?"

"I sure do." He replied before he shook hands with the rest of the band.

"I'm really lost for words right now...I used to look up to you so much, Jeff. I still feel that way to this day. Uh...what exactly would you like to do?" Christian asked.

"I think we should write a song first." Jeff laughed.

"Okay, would you excuse me for a minute? I'm quite sure Mel or someone else will entertain you."

"Sure, no problem."

Christian left the studio with his heart beating rapidly. Jeff was his idol and he could not believe he was in the same room with him. He wanted to kill Jaleel for doing this to him but he couldn't that, he had to thank him. He dialed his number and put the phone to his ear.

"Ah, Christian...I take it you've discovered what your surprise is."

"Yes, I have. How did you get them to come here?"

"I gave them one of your tapes and they digged it. I told them you were recording your album and I said it would be cool if you guys did a song together."

"Man, I can't thank you enough. You have no idea how happy I am right now." Christian ran his fingers through his hair.

"You're welcome, dude. Just make sure that I get a copy of that album before it's released."

"Oh, trust me. You will be the first to hear it."

"Cool. Well, you stop talking to me and go write a song."

"Thanks, man. I owe you one."

"I know. Take care."

*A year later*

Jaleel was riding in his car along with Jeff and Shannon to the local airport so that they could fly to tonight's house show. It had been a year since they recorded a song entitled "Don't Let Me Get Me" with Item 16. Atlantic Records released the album not too long ago but the first single didn't do so well. It was a remake of No Doubt's "Sunday Morning" and the people didn't appreciate that too much. Christian later admitted that he realized why the people didn't like it and that was because it was someone else's song. Some people did buy the album and that's all that really mattered to the band. They didn't want commerical success, they just wanted at least one person in the world to appreciate and be inspired by their music.

"Well, that was 'Lipstick and Bruises' by Lit. We have a new song here by Item 16, it's entitled 'Don't Let Me Get Me' and if you dig it, feel free to call me and let us know. You're listening to 96.8 and here's Item 16."

"Oh, shit! That's our song! They released it! Turn it up!" Jeff said.

Jaleel smiled and quickly turned it up. The music blasted through the speakers as everyone in the car nodded their heads to the beat. Jaleel continued driving as Jeff and Shannon began singing along with Mel's voice.

I never win first place, I don't support the team
I can't take direction, and my socks are never clean
Teachers dated me, my parents hated me
I was always in a fight cuz I can't do nothin' right
Everyday I fight a war against the mirror
I can't take the person starin' back at me

I'm a hazard to myself
Don't let me get me
I'm my own worst enemy
Its bad when you annoy yourself
So irritating
Don't wanna be my friend no more
I wanna be somebody else

LA told me, "You'll be a pop star,
All you have to change is everything you are."
Tired of being compared to damn Britney Spears
She's so pretty, that just ain't me

So doctor, doctor won't you please prescribe somethin
A day in the life of someone else

Cuz I'm a hazard to myself
Don't let me get me
I'm my own worst enemy
Its bad when you annoy yourself
So irritating
Don't wanna be my friend no more
I wanna be somebody else

Don't let me get me
I'm my own worst enemy
Its bad when you annoy yourself
So irritating
Don't wanna be my friend no more
I wanna be somebody else

Doctor, doctor won't you please prescribe somethin
A day in the life of someone else
Don't let me get me

Don't let me get me
I'm my own worst enemy
Its bad when you annoy yourself
So irritating
Don't wanna be my friend no more
I wanna be somebody else

"That sounds awesome! I know Christian doesn't want to be successful but that song is gonna make them huge. You guys really helped them out." Jaleel said.

"Well, we just started writing about our personalities and put them all together. It turned out real good."

"Yeah, I heard your voices in the background. I've got to call Christian." Jaleel laughed to himself and called Christian on his cell phone.

"Hello."

"Dude, you guys were just on the radio! They played Don't Let Me Get Me!"

"You're kidding me. They didn't tell us that song had been released!"

"Yeah, it's been released. The guy on the radio here is saying that the phone lines went crazy when the song was over requesting it again."

"Oh, man. I can't believe it. Thanks for everything, man. Tell Jeff and Shannon I said the same. We're at a photo shoot now but I will tell everyone the news."

"Alright...I always knew you would be a rock star, even though you don't want to. Some kid out there is really liking the album."

"Well, that's all that matters to me. Take care, dude."

"You too, man."

The End.