The Wi-Fi never kicked back on strongly enough to run the credit card reader. That was okay, though, because the T-shirts sold out before the Battle of the Bands even started.
Didi had the idea to start a list for back orders, taking down names and email addresses, so that the Startup Squad could get in touch when a new shipment of T-shirts came in. And Harriet had the idea to offer a 15 percent discount on back orders if people paid right then and there.
Pretty much everyone who had cash took the discount and paid in advance.
“And if you want to show your support for the Radical Skinks right now,” Harriet told each back-ordering fan, “we’ve got plenty of buttons for sale!”
So they sold out of buttons by the time the show started, too.
“I wish we’d ordered more T-shirts!” Harriet lamented as the last customer walked away from the table.
“We couldn’t order more,” Amelia reminded her. “We needed a deposit of fifty percent up front. We barely had enough to cover this amount of T-shirts.”
“And besides,” said Resa, “it would have been way worse to order too many T-shirts and not sell them. That way, we’d have lost money.”
“I guess,” said Harriet. She couldn’t help but wonder if she’d done a good enough job, done everything she could to make the table a success. Things had definitely turned out better than last time—but was that really saying much?
Didi put an arm around Harriet’s shoulder—and turned Harriet’s body toward the audience, who were waiting for the first band to start playing. The emcee had given a short introduction and announced the randomly chosen lineup (the Radical Skinks were fifth), and now Tricky Vulture was plugging in, tuning up, and getting settled.
“Look, Harriet,” Didi said, pointing toward the crowd.
Harriet had been so busy handing out merch and making change that she hadn’t even glanced at the growing crowd in the auditorium. The large room was chock-full, with every seat taken and tons of people leaning against the walls. It was a sea of people. But that wasn’t the most incredible part. The most incredible part was that the sea of people was midnight blue.
It wasn’t all blue. But it mostly was. Harriet’s eyes scanned over one pair of shoulders after another, clad in Radical Skinks T-shirts. The crowd was jammed with Skinks fans, and, when Harriet’s brothers took the stage and looked out over the crowd, they’d see it. So would the judges.
“You did good, Harry,” said Resa, giving her a playful elbow jab. “You did good.”
Harriet smiled. “We did good. If it hadn’t been for you and your tough love, I’d probably still be pouting in bed.”
“That’s what business associates are for,” said Resa, shrugging.
“And friends,” Didi chimed in.
“Five! Six! Five six seven eight!” The drummer for Tricky Vulture was hitting her drumsticks together, counting down for her band. The show was about to start.