back and forth, back and forth. Jason’s solo tapered off, and Phil swelled with his breath, rising to his full height.
“This road seems to go on forever/
I’m tired, I’m thirsty, jaded and dirty/
Just another world-weary traveler/
The dust of this journey has left me filthy/
I don’t think I can ever feel unsoiled/
But now this is starting to look familiar/
A long time ago, I took this route/
It has led me far, far away from her/
I followed it to the ends of the Earth/
Only to come full circle.”
We were all captivated. Bougainvillea had turned its face toward Our Boys, watching in collective awe as NOLA’s Junk redefined itself—unabashed, fearless, unapologetic.
Jason’s fingers slipped beneath the surface, and the subliminal current rose, X floating through a bass solo that drowned us all. He pulled, tugged, and rose over us in such a gorgeous heavy tide. A brilliant flood of genius flowed from his hands through his five strings.
When X sank back below the surface, the masses exploded, cheering to the rafters for the shy bass player who had never displayed just how amazing he truly was before that moment.
Eyes still closed, Phil’s smile eclipsed the burning stage lights.
Next to me, Alys had tears shimmering in her eyes. She had never realized it either, and I witnessed her love for X increase exponentially.
“I’m not sure what it is I’m worth/
If I’m even worth anythin’ to her anymore/
I just want to find my home again/
I need to walk along the river stones/
Worthy or not, I have to be her own/
I’m jumpin’ in those fuckin’ waters!/
Wash off this filth!” he roared.
“Take me to the end!/
Let me rise up! Rise out!/
Fuck please!/
I’m flesh! I’m blood! I’m bone!” he screamed, bent in half, eyes screwed up tight.
Straightening to his full height, he opened his eyes, looking directly into my weeping face. I swallowed hard around the lump that had formed in my throat. I didn’t even realize I had been crying almost from the beginning.
“She stands before me/” Phil’s voice filled with wonder.
“I’m not alone…/
I’ve come home.”
Oh. My. God.
Phil chucked the mic, not taking his eyes off me, and simply stepped off the stage, dropping and landing gracefully. Burly One lifted me up by my waist and just handed me over the barricade to Phil, who crushed me in his arms to his chest, soaking me through my shirt with his sweat.
“My Baby Girl,” he whispered. “My beautiful other half. I love you, I love you, I love you…”
A cacophony of eardrum-bursting cheers erupted around us and swallowed us, his words, and my responses, enshrouding us in a noise so profound that it could be touched, felt. Our relationship was now the stuff of legends.
Everyone knew about Baby Girl. Everyone knew she was real, could be seen, touched, and she was me. We now were a part of something much greater. We both felt it. It was terrifying and somehow wonderful.
Phil and his Baby Girl were immortal.
Phil woke me up early in the morning, which did nothing for my mood, nor did the fact that I had no time to do yoga. I did a few quick rounds of Sun Salutations in my bedroom to get the blood flowing, and then my overbearing, demanding, mean boyfriend tossed me into the bathroom.
“You should spend more quality time with your brother,” Phil announced while fiddling with his phone.
“What a load of sh—” I grumbled.
“Jump in the shower. I’ll be in there in a sec.”
“What’s going on?” I demanded. “I’ve already told Connor I’d go over there to help him get stuff for dinner tonight, so you can cut the crap.”
“Surprise,” he grunted. “You have to be out of the house for however long it takes.”
“My house. I have to be out of my house,” I fumed, infuriated further when I discovered I was turning on the shower like a good little girlfriend.
“Yes,” Phil snapped back, his phone pressed to his ear, shutting the bathroom door.
Da and Gloria had gone to Lafayette for a few days for what I guessed was a romantic getaway. They had left on Tuesday and were coming home tonight to have a quiet Christmas Eve dinner with their rising rock star of a son. Their daughter would be otherwise engaged with whatever the hell her crazy-ass boyfriend had planned for her. I had already agreed to spend it alone with him. The surprise crap was unnecessary.
Connor and I already had an awesome surprise last night. Da had proposed to Gloria, and she had said yes. Mom would have