| The Song- August 1996 Lorie lounged on the large beanbag in the corner of the small bedroom. Strained chords drifted aimlessly through the air, as Niall strummed the acoustic guitar that she'd earned the money to pay for. He opened his mouth to belt out ingenious, poetic lyrics to match the aimless tune, but nothing came out. Niall had been stuck in this rut for some time, now. He was a songwriter, or so he said. He'd written dozens of 'masterpieces', but for some strange reason producers hadn't seemed too wild about them. The lyrics were always young and childish, with cop-out rhymes and tedious tunes. And for the past three months Niall had been slavishly working to find a love song. The perfect love song. As he explained it to Lorie, "Everybody likes love songs... they make them feel good. So all I need is a good tune and good words, and I'm all set." The only problem was, Niall couldn't find it. He searched for a tune, waiting for something to come to him like a bolt of lightning, but from the time Lorie left the three-room apartment to work at the Food Lion nine or ten hours a day, to the time she came back, reeking of raw beef and bloody hams from behind the meat counter, he would still be sitting on their double bed, wearing his tattered blue jeans, hair long and unkempt, as his throaty voice searched for a tune. And he always said in frustration to her, "I just can't get it." Then she would climb on the bed in her Food Lion apron and put her arms around him from behind, resting her cheek against his bare, taut back, and whispering "It's okay, baby. There's always tomorrow." Then she would change into a raggedy sweatshirt or threadbare t-shirt, and go to see if there was anything to cook dinner with. Usually, there wasn't. Because Niall was so wrapped up in his music that he forgot to go out and get groceries. So she'd run down to McDonald's, or maybe Ling Pen's Quick Chinese, and they'd kneel by the dilapidated wooden coffee table in the only other room. And as they ate, Niall would always promise, "Lorie, tomorrow I'll think of something. I'll find that song, and we'll be rich." Of course, Lorie would answer with her happy-go-lucky grin that was becoming a tad worn itself, "Sure. I know you can do it." But that night in particular, Niall said, "I know I'm on the verge of something. I was thinking I could make up a tune that's kind of mellow, y'know, with something about roses and stuff. That's in every great love song. Roses and diamonds and big promises." Lorie nodded, and sat back against the wall on the vinyl beanbag that they'd found split open in the alley behind their apartment building. Luckily Lorie was pretty good at sewing, so now, when the clumsy seam was turned to the wall, the beanbag looked pretty darn spiffy. Niall played tunelessly for a few minutes, muttering a tune under his breath, until finally he shrugged, muttering, "I guess it's not happening tonight. Maybe in the morning..." "Yeah," Lorie agreed brightly, and Niall put the guitar back in its case, tucking the pick behind the strings, and joining Lorie in the double bed. "Things'll change, Lorie," Niall sighed as he was drifting off to sleep. "I promise, things'll change..." She nodded, and waited until Niall's breathing was deep and even, his face empty of stress and finally peaceful. Then she slowly withdrew from Niall's now limp arms, and walked through the silvery moonlight back to the guitar case. Opening it, she pulled out the guitar and sat cross-legged on the beanbag. Lorie plucked the pick out from under the taut strings and, making sure the instrument was in tune, began strumming in a key that just came to her. This was comfortable. Niall wasn't worrying anymore, and she could have her time alone to just play. Niall, like all men, had this thing about being the provider, the bread-winner, the pants of the family. It really hurt him that he sat at home all day praying for inspiration, while Lorie went off to earn enough money to keep them going. Niall was about three years older than Lorie, and dropped out of highschool his junior year to pursue his singing career. Lorie had graduated and was about to go off and struggle through college when she met him. They fell in love almost at first sight, and she gave up college to be with him. They made a pact that Lorie would support them for the short amount of time it took for Niall to come up with a masterpiece, and then he could be a star, and they'd never have to worry about money again. But that 'someday' when Niall found his song seemed to be retreating, rather than getting closer. Lorie sighed and kept strumming until the guitar began making up a tune of its own. She rested her head in the crook of the wall where the corners met, and began singing softly as a strong, low tune came to her. Continue |