The Saving of Benjamin Chambers (The Uni Files) Read Online Free

Man’s tone is slightly sceptical.
    I don’t blame him. This is not the first time I have said this. I say it about every two years; every two years when the frustrations become too much and I suddenly have a yearning to do anything other than what I do, which is, well nothing apart from fuck about with a guitar.
    “Yeah, he is.” Dave looks at me coolly but not seemingly bothered by huge announcement.
    That’s a bit weird. I was expecting him to be the one making the fuss.
    “Can’t you just give us another year? Liam says we are getting a lot of attention at the moment.” Trav peers at me through his floppy, sandy fringe, which he refuses to push out of his eyes.
    About seven years ago we got used to him walking around with his head at a funny angle as he tried to see where he was going from beneath his hair. People who are not acquainted with him and the hair still look at him a bit odd, like he maybe he is just ever so slightly special, and I don’t mean in a ‘you’re special to me’ way.
    Liam is our manager, but he is not here at the moment, which is one of the key reasons I am doing my little announcement now.
    Every time before I have tried to leave, Liam always comes up with a reason for me to stay that I am unable to say no to. I am sure he will still have something to say later.
    This is my opportunity and I don’t want to miss it.
    “Listen guys, it’s not personal. I love you like brothers.”
    I truly do. I have lived with these guys my entire adult life so far, but it is the ‘so far’ that makes me know this is the right thing for me.
    There is something else out there, I just know it. It is there, waiting for me. Waiting for me to stop messing about with guitars and take life a little more seriously.
    “Let him go.” Dave takes a deep sip of his beer and waves his hand dismissively in my direction.
    “What?” Mondeo Man asks in shock. “Without a guilt trip?”
    This makes us all laugh into our pints.
    Dave is the king of guilt trips. He uses them to get us to do bad things, normally involving alcohol and anti-social behaviour.
    “Is that it?” I ask.
    “That’s it.”
    “What do you know that I don’t?”
    “That you’re not going to leave!” Dave starts to smirk into his pint.
    “Oh really, and what makes you say that?”
    “Because the band is the only way you meet girls, whether you like it or not!” He chuckles again clearly enjoying his own personal joke.
    “Whatever,” I tell him with a roll of my eyes. “I don’t think you’re quite understanding my reason for leaving.”
    “Maybe not, but I know you’ll be back. That’s if you actually go anywhere.”
    “Arse.”
    “Arse yourself.”
    Okay, time to change the conversation or this will just spiral into one of our name-calling sessions and they can last for a while, and get more offensive the more we drink.
    “So what is tonight going to be like?” I ask. “If it’s our last gig then it had better be a good one.” My fingers are still tingling from the Gibson. I want it to be a good one.
    “Well they are all a bunch of banker wankers and will probably be too shit-faced to hear us,” says Dave.
    “Great, can’t think why I am leaving!”
    This gets a round of jeers.
    “So.” Dave calls us all back around to attention. “Let’s do the standard set and then throw in some of our old classics and covers just for old time’s sake. Let’s send Ben off with a memory of the good times, hey!”
    Okay.
    He is up to something; I can tell. He is grinning into his pint.
    “What do you know?” I ask again.
    “Don’t know what you mean, mate!”
    Yeah, right.

The Gig
    We are on in five. We finished our pint at The Globe in Borough Market and then had another two for good measure. Thankfully Caitlin was not there so that was one easy escape from another uncomfortable conversation where I would have had to pretend I remembered having sex with her. I don’t even know why that pub is our local; it just