tunes of togetherness

The air is filled with bliss and the smell of dark wood that’s been soaked with beer and cider. She can barely hear herself think as the crowd joins her voice, leading them through verses everyone feels differently about. Her eyes wander through the room; the little stage serves as a pedestal, allowing her to see everything she couldn’t when she was part of the crowd.

She glances to the side, her eyes meet his, and she can’t help but let dawn rise upon her face before she falls into the words, letting her soul take flight in the sound. An echo of unity creates a bond between strangers and fallen-out-of-love couples.

A group of brothers puts their arms around each other, swaying in her rhythm. Some of them tear up as she sings to them about waitresses performing soliloquies over the leaders of the world, and a bartender who is secretly a chameleon of the stage, a talent nobody in his small town has discovered yet.

For a few minutes, the world outside of the little sphere becomes quiet. Everyone leaves their worries at the front door like a backpack they aren’t allowed to bring in, only to pick them up later.

As the music slowly dies, echoes of admiration and appreciation fill the air. She almost feels a little uneasy thinking about the fact that this is all for her. She swiftly closes her eyes to take it all in before leaving the spotlight’s canvas – her favorite place on earth.

He welcomes her to the crowd with his signature smile and a warm look. He hands her the drink. The ice-cold whiskey lands in the well of her shaking body, calming her down to the point where she can’t help but smile right back at everyone she locks eyes with.

One thing is for sure: She will meet gratitude as long as he and she walk parts of their trails side by side, even if the tie their souls formed disintegrates every time they pick up that imaginary backpack of worry and carry on with their lives.

As she lays her eyes on him, watching him laugh and sing along to the words, she makes a silent promise to herself and him. For as long as they share the love for music, she’ll always stand tall for him, cheer for him, and support him – even if one day he stops doing the same for her.