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The word on their lips?Encore.
Mark looked pale. “Oh. I forgot about the encore.”
Petey glanced at me. “Do we even have a technician anymore? Or were they disposed of by Priscilla?”
I looked to Reed for some guidance. Unfortunately, he was otherwise occupied in Felix’s arms.
Instead, I looked at Forest. Time for me to make decisive action. “Hey, Forest. You’re good at computers, techy things, right?”
Forest could see where this was going. He grimaced, pushing his glasses up his nose, clutching the champagne glass into his chest with the others. “I guess so... yes...”
I snorted. “You run a tech company, so I’m going to take that as a more enthusiastic yes. Please, please, pretty please would you go and check out the sound desk?”
Forest handed his glass to Jude, shaking his head, and left the room.
I called after him: “Text me when you’re in position!” Then to the band: “Are we ready for an encore?”
Reed finally parted from my twin brother’s embrace. “Not really, no. But I guess we owe them one after the ramshackle nature of this gig.”
“Ramshackle? Never.Excitingis more like it.” I winked. My phone buzzed in my pocket. “Alright, Forest’s in position. Let’s get this over with.”
I started heading for the door that led to the stage, then I stopped and looked at Luna. “Are you alright, my love?”
She nodded. “This evening has been like a weird dream. But, yeah, I’m feeling... I’m feeling really good actually!” She was glowing like she really meant it. This was a Luna I don’t think I’d ever seen before. She wasn’t just happy, she looked... overjoyed.
“Join us on stage. Please.”
“Oh, I don’t know...”
“Please, Luna? It’ll make the crowd happy.”
She smirked. “Anything for your audience of baying fans.”
“That’s the spirit.” I took her hand and pulled her after the other members of the band and out into the bright, bright lights of the stage.
Seeing the five of us descending on our instruments once more, the crowd’s calls for an encore gave way to shrieks and yells of delight.
I walked Luna up to the front of the stage. Under the lights, she dazzled even more. I couldn’t help myself. I knew I was on a stage in front of thousands of people, but in that moment, I just had to kiss her. I turned to her, swept the loose strands of jet-black hair out of her eyes, cupped her face, and paused just long enough to see her eyes shining with that glow that she’d attained somehow tonight.
Then, in front of everyone, I kissed her.
Though the crowd became louder than they had been that entire evening, their presence kind of faded away as I held Luna in my arms and felt the soft push of her lips against mine, her tongue against mine, her slightly warm body against mine.
The thousands of people were barely there anymore. I only had eyes for her.
Luna
Isneaked a sideways look at my dad. Beside me, his eyes were welling up with tears, his mouth held stiffly to try and hold back the flow. I put my arms around him, leaning my head into him, and he ruffled the top of my head.
In front of us, through the glass of the recording studio, a huge orchestra were playing one of my dad’s compositions. This was the first time he had ever seen one of his compositions played in full. It had been my one goal in life to hire an orchestra to play these for him. And now, I hadn’t even had to. They were about to be used in a film by my dad’s favorite film director. Everything was perfect.
Eli Robinson looked up approvingly at us. “I’ll give you two some privacy to enjoy the music.” She left, closing the door quietly as she did so.
My dad was a man of few words, but I didn’t need him to speak to know what he was feeling right now. I was really proud of him. I was also, to my incredible surprise, really proud of me. I’d managed to shake off two decades worth of business and revitalize my passion for music.
I’d done a lot of the work myself, but I wasn’t sure I’d have started any of it if not for Sylvester’s re-entry into my life. I wished he was here with us right now, but he had said he had some other engagement and regrettably could not make it.
As the last song to be recorded drew to a close, my dad wiped his face of tears with a handkerchief and offered it to me, too.
