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“Well, I only have an hour.”
“We’ll let you go longer!”
I waved to the girl with space buns at the end of the first row. “Come on, you know you want to see Lindsey and Jamie.”
“We’re good.”
I laughed. “Anyway, so you know we’re music junkies just as much as you guys. Maybe even more. And we have tons of inspiration. Well, the story goes that Jamie gave Lindsey crap about playing this one song over and over by a band named Lifehouse.” My fingers sought out the keys to the sweeping and sad song, “Broken”.
It just happened to be one of my favorites, as well. All the longing and the fissures of emotion thanks to life and broken hearts. Finding meaning in something bigger than yourself.
As the last notes of the song faded, I glanced at the small crowd, ready to see bored faces.
Instead, almost everyone had their phones up.
Bailey was sitting at the edge of the second row with her fingers wrapped so tightly around the mic.
“Okay, I had my fun. How about you guys give me a song?”
“Can you sing anything?” Came a voice from the back.
“Jukebox, remember.” I moved my hands down the keys and started singing “Stockholm Syndrome” from One Direction.
A girl on the left side squeaked. And just like that the entirety of the crowd, even a few of the guys, all joined in.
I laughed. “I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t mind a little time with Harry Styles in a locked room.”
“Girl, yes!”
From then the madcap circle of songs went from Evanescence, Lana Del Ray, Stevie Nicks, Radiohead, and Lizzo. Even Bailey got into the fun, running around and between the aisles with the microphone for those who didn’t just shout out their requests.
The hour went by in a blink. “Okay, guys. One more.”
“What’s your favorite song?”
I sat for a moment, with my hands on the keys. “It’s a little bit older. Not as old as ‘Lily Was Here’ though.” A few people laughed. “While my songs are ever changing, this one resonates.”
It was more of a guitar song, but Taylor Swift was very easy to translate to piano. Most of her songs had that component to them. And this one fit me down to the ground right now.
I let the crash of the piano fill the arena as the song built, and I sang my heart out about the freefall of love. Of the seasons and the changes and the colors of that particular emotion.
The quiet part of “Red” in the middle left me breathless all of a sudden. I glanced up the stairs and saw a form in the shadows. My heart jumped, and a chill raced down my spine, and then I saw the familiar rugged jawline and I couldn’t stop the smile. He edged out of the shadows, his hands in his pockets.
I sang the lyrics to him. Because he made me feel all of those feelings and all the colors, especially red. The passion between us burned hot and fiercely.
Thank God.
The slow and breathy end was just for him before I turned back to the fans I was supposed to be singing to. Whoops.
A couple of people had turned in their chairs to see who I’d been looking at, but Cooper was too good at the whole sneaky thing. He melted away into the pocket of darkness.
To bring the crowd’s attention back, I stood and crossed to sit at the edge of the stage. I fixed my skirt, so I wasn’t flashing anyone. “Thanks so much for coming guys. This was a ton of fun. I wasn’t sure if you’d be into it.”
“Every show,” someone called out.
“I can guarantee that our security peeps would literally faint at the thought of doing this all the time. But we can make it a yearly thing for sure. Maybe I can even get some help next time. If you think I’m a jukebox, you should see Jamie. That girl knows every song.”
I caught Noah’s head nod and gave a playful pout. “Speaking of security, I’m getting the old hook from the manager types.”
