| The Song- continued "Lay your rose petals down upon my bed..." Lorie had a tolerable voice, and a pretty good talent for music herself, but a terrible stage presence. She was always too scared to perform. Niall was the one with the dream. All she wanted, music-wise, was to let Niall be famous. Lorie continued to play and sing until the song wound down, singing it over and over until the digital clock on the floor by her feet read 1:06. Then she sighed, finally relaxed, and put the guitar away, laying back down next to Niall and snuggling in his arms before she fell asleep. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ In the morning, she woke to find Niall pacing back and forth at the foot of the bed, an excited expression on his vivid face. "Lorie, I've got it! It's perfect! It's everything I wanted, and more. Last night, while I was sleeping, I dreamed of this perfect song that's going to make me famous!" With that, he snatched the guitar from its case, pulled out the pick and poised it at the strings. "Listen to this," he said with a wide grin. "Lay your rose petals down upon my bed..." His husky voice slowly rolled out the same lyrics. He went through the entire song, until his hands stilled on the strings and his eager, beaming face looked up at hers for approval. "It's great, Niall. I'm sure everybody's gonna love it. You keep practicing it, and make an appointment with that agent today, okay? I'm sure this is the one you've been waiting for." Without another word, she showered, brushed her hair, pulled the red Food Lion Meat Department apron over her head, and left to go to work. When she got back, he was still playing it, his intent face and imminent smell telling her that he hadn't bothered to take a shower or change clothes that day. "Niall, put the guitar down and take a shower. You're not coming anywhere near me until you stop stinking up the place," she commanded, pointing toward the small bathroom. He sulkily rushed through his shower, then came out with his hair dripping, wearing a pair of faded black Wranglers and nothing else. "Okay, I called the guy today. He said to come down tomorrow at three and play him a demo tape. I told him I didn't have a tape, so I'll just have to give him a live version. Would you come with me, Lorie?" "Well, I'd have to take off work tomorrow. . ." "Aw, come on. Play hooky and come." His eyes were brilliant. She sighed, not really reluctant at all. "Okay." He raced toward her and grabbed her up in his arms, swinging her around in a wide circle. "We're gonna be rich, baby! We're finally gonna get our big break, and from now on it'll be the sweet life for both of us." She laughed and reveled in his joy. Finally Niall was happy. She'd prayed for this ever since his slump began all those months ago. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Lorie!" Niall raced into their bedroom. "It's playing again! Listen!" He grabbed the knobs of their new radio and turned them until the room was filled with the heartbreaking thrumming of Niall's single. "That's great, Niall." Lorie forced a smile. "But don't you think you should have stayed home today instead of doing lunch with Alex?" Alex Sawyer was Niall's agent, and it seemed Niall was spending more time with him than with her. "Today was my day off." "They work you too hard over there, Lorie," Niall said recklessly, apparently not hearing her. "You should quit your job. I've got money now; I'll support you." Lorie shifted uneasily. "Niall- you can't get that far with just one single." "It won't be just one single. Now that I'm out of my slump, I can write dozens more songs. I thought up a new one today. Listen to this." He snatched up the guitar from its open case in the corner and began playing a familiar tune. "I don't like you, but you like me... Maybe we weren't meant to be... I'm not into you, can't you see... But who said that breaking up is eeeeezyyyy..." He set down the guitar and grinned expectantly at her. "What do you think?" Lorie changed her doubtful grimace into a smile. "It has- potential," she said eagerly, nodding. "If the tune varied a little." Niall frowned. "Lorie, if the tune changed it would be a completely different song. I'm the one into music, so I think I'd know just a little more about it than you do." She gritted her teeth. Continue |