By Cleop65
There she was again. The girl with the earphones and the dog.
He met her the same time every day for the last two weeks, and still........his heart jumped every time they met.
She was around the age of 22-23. It was strange the way he felt for her. A little girl in a big blue t-shirt and baggy shorts who were out jogging with a dog, didn`t usually get his attention at 6 am every morning.
"Sooner or later we will have to say hello to each other". Darren thought. "And this might as well be the morning to do it". He slowed down and opened his mouth to say Hello, and closed quickly. Obviously she couldn`t hear him. She had earphones on, and so had he. He wondered what she was listening to, and smiled when the thought popped in his head that she might be listening to Savage Garden.
Elisa had noticed his attempt to speak, and slowed down too. Darren saw the beginning of a shy smile, and the blush in her cheeks when he didn`t smile back.
He raised his hand and waived as he send her a big smile.
She blushed even more and passed him on the trail.
Next morning Darren jogged the trail two times. But for the first time in two weeks, there was no sign of the girl and her dog.Elisa closed the door behind her and leaned her head against it. Her heart beating so hard she could hear it. Ever since she moved here she had been jogging in the park. And everyday she had seen him.
Darren Hayes. The first time not believing her eyes. Probably just a guy who looked like him. But the second and the third time......no....there just couldn`t be two guys on the same planet that looked so incredible.
The weird thing was that every time she started to jog, she hit the play button on her MD, and every time she saw him she heard the first notes of Mine. Elisa woke from the trance early enough to answer the phone.
"Hi Elisa, how are you doing today?" It was Nicole.
"Oh I`m fine" Elisa answered. "I`ve just been out on my usual jog with Darren"
"And how was he doing?" Nicole laughed
"Actually he waived too me"
Nicole laughed even more. "Let me guess; You didn`t waive back `cause you were busy blushing? Am I right?"
Elisa sighed, Nicole knew her too well.
"Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that we have a gig on Lukas tomorrow".
"Really? You are not kidding with me?" Elisa almost shouting. God she thought. This could be our chance. A lot of artists were discovered there.
"We get to play 4 songs. We are to play right after Halogen or something. So I was thinking that you should come over here, so we can deside on what to perform".
"I`ll be right over"
Elisa hung up the phone, and danced around the apartment before she ran into her bedroom, starting to pack
Leonie stood by the kitchen counter looking at him as he slammed the door.
"Well good morning to you sunshine" She said with a teasing twinkle in her eyes. Every morning for the last couple of weeks she had seen him come home from his jog. And she had seen his childish joy every time she had asked him about the girl in the park.
"Good morning" he mumbled, while he reached for a bottle of water.
"What`s wrong with your day?" Leonie asked
"She wasn`t jogging today" Darren said walking towards the bathroom. He slammed that door too. Leonie waited for the sound of tapping water before she started to laugh.
"I CAN HEAR YOU!" Darren shouted in an angry voice.
The telephone rang. It was Daniel.
"Darren is in the shower" Leonie explained
"Oh, well. Can you just tell him that Halogen is playing at Lukas tonight and I would really love it if you two were coming."
"Ok" Leonie said. "We`re coming! I`ll drag him there if necessary".
Darren actually surprised Leonie. He did not refuse to go. It actually looked as if he was looking forward to it. Darren didn`t really understand it himself, but there was a feeling inside of him, telling him to go.
By 8 pm, Leonie and Darren sat in the car on their way to Lukas. Nicole and Elisa decided what songs to play. They rehearsed for a little while. On the day of the gig they went shopping. As the day went on, Elisa got more and more nervous. What if her voice cracked, what if she forgot the words, what if...... Nicole tried to calm her down, but Nicole in the role of being calm wasn`t always a success. Usually it revolved around; "Here, have another cookie" or "Want some tea?". Elisa wasn`t usually the first to panic, but when she did....she reminded a lot of Phoebe in Friends.
It was a circus behind the stage of Lukas. Elisa was the creator of it. Her palms were cold and sweaty. Her knees were weak, and her heart pounded faster than ever.
Nicole just watched her as Elisa`s jokes became more and more desperate. "Oh, yeah" Nicole said. "If it doesn`t work out tonight, don`t even think about becoming a stand-up comedian". That comment made Elisa laugh even more. Then she bursted into tears. She was sobbing and laughing at the same time.
"Want a valium?" a dark voice asked.Nicole looked up just to see a very familiar face. "Ah....no, I think she will calm down soon. If not I can always hit her on the head with my guitar before we go on. That should do the trick!"
Daniel laughed. "Daniel Jones, by the way. I`m with Halogen". Nicole Priestly. And the one having the nervous breakdown is my friend Elisa Jennings. We are the Charmed".
Elisa suddenly got up, and hurried past them.
"Is she going to be ok" Daniel asked
"Yeah, she`s just very very nervous. I think she`ll pull it together when it`s time. She`d better!" Nicole grinned
"By the way I may say so. I`m a big fan of your work in Savage Garden".
"Thanks. Listen; a bunch of us is going out afterwards. Would you and your friend like to come too?""Yeah, that`ll be great" Nicole said with a big smile.
Daniel nodded and startet walking away, then he turned around. "Good luck you two. I gotta go see if Darren`s still here. He`s always so restless.See you later!"
Nicole got worried "Oh my God" she thought "Darren`s here! How will Elisa respond to those news"
Elisa walked towards her. Looking very calm and together.
"Feeling better?"
"Yeah,I got to vomit, and now I feel brand new!"
"hmmm....Elisa? I better tell you this before you find out on stage. Ahh....well..Darren Hayes is here".
"HE IS WHAT!!??"
Daniel walked towards Leo and Darren and sat down beside them. "Gosh there`s a lot of nervous people back there. I can remember what it was like my first time. The vocalist from Charmed is cracking. She`s switching between making jokes, laughing and crying."
Darren smiled as he fully understood what this girl was going through.
"Do you want to go out afterwards? I`ve invited the band. And I also invited Charmed. I talked to the instrumentalist, Nicole, and she would love to come."
"Sure" Darren said while getting a strange look from Leonie.
Half an hour passed. The lights faded away, and Halogen started to play. Darren and Leonie listened and watched in silence.
Darren felt the earth moving as he saw who the vocalist were. The girl from the park! He couldn`t even lean over to tell Leonie. He just froze. He didn`t take his eyes of Elisa, he just listened to the wonderful and to him the seductive music throughout the performance.
The strength Elisa gave to the lyrics contained a little of insecurity that appealed straight to Darrens heart. The last song, a very soft and sweet ballad. Darren felt the hair on his arms move as the tingles rushed all over his body, when Elisa reached the high notes without missing anything.
When the show was over. Daniel whistled and applauded very enthusiastic. "Wow, Daz. That was pretty good wasn`t it?" Darren was still in a trance and didn`t really listen. "Darren what`s up with you?" Leonie asked. "That`s the one, Leonie. She`s the girl from the park!"
Darren was so exited he jumped up and down. "Ok, Darren calm down. You get the chance to meet her now. They are going out with us you know." Leonie said. Darren stopped to think about this for a second, and then he got that worried look in his eyes. "Leo, how am I looking. Is my hair alright?" Daniel laughed. "Relax Darren. As long as you don`t turn in to Elton in front of her, you are pretty charming." Dan and leonie laughed and continued teasing Darren.
Halogen were great. It was a half hour break before Charmed were on. Daniel came to join them at the table. Since Elisa and Nicole were going with them afterwards, they were going to watch their performance too. And even if they could have been leaving now, Darren suspected that Daniel really wanted to stay. Daniel hadn`t said much, but from the look of him, Darren suspected that he was very interested in this girl Nicole.
The lights faded again and they were ready for Charmed.
chapter three
chapter four
chapter five
chapter six
chapter seven
chapter eight
chapter nine
last chapter