Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 117415 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117415 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
“You’ve probably heard a lot of things about me online. The stories n’ rumors keep changin’ every day. And the media’s tryin’ to spin it one way. My label’s spinnin’ it another. But none of it’s the truth—none of it’s the real story. I’m here to set it all straight. Don’t you wanna hear it from me? The truth?”
Another chorus of cheering and shouting yes.
I’m still looking right at TJ. “I met a guy. A really special guy from this beautiful town I’m in. Met him when I … when I was at an all-time low. I was lost. Couldn’t see myself through the noise.” I can’t help but smile, gazing out fondly at TJ, thinking of how it was when we first met. “This guy … he didn’t care about the shows or the charts. He wasn’t a fool for any of it. He just … saw me. For who I am. Not the version of me everyone else thinks they know.”
The audience has gone quiet. I can literally feel them leaning in, drinking in every word—like the world is right now, I hope.
“And somewhere along the way …” My smile brightens. “I fell in love with him.”
A murmur scatters over the crowd. Sighs of delight. Sniffles—are they crying? It doesn’t matter. TJ’s face is all I see, and it’s his face that keeps me from freaking out and flying off this stage.
It’s TJ who saves me every day.
“So don’t let anyone twist our story into somethin’ ugly. Don’t let ‘em turn it into a headline, pretending they know somethin’.” My voice grows stronger. “Ain’t none of ‘em know our story. And that’s my fault. Because I was told to hide it. Taught to hide it. But how can I hide the man I love?” I swallow hard. “They said I wasn’t allowed to fall in love. But how can I sing all these songs about love without being allowed to have it? This ain’t just a story anymore. This is my life. Our life. As real as real gets.”
“You betcha!” shouts that same woman, and the crowd erupts into cheers. TJ covers his mouth, eyes full of overwhelmed tears.
“This next song we’ve got for you … it ain’t about the life y’all have been led to believe I’m livin’. This song’s about the one I am livin’.” I give TJ a wink. “And I ain’t hidin’ it no more.”
Then I strike that familiar, bright, proud E-flat major chord, launching us into “No Fool For Love Songs”.
It’s funny to me, how this song sorta became an evolution of our relationship. It was in G-minor back then, reflective and dark the night I premiered it at the Horseshoe. Improvised, like little sewn-together pieces of thought that Wily, Fiona, and Raj fumbled their way through like a dark cluttered room. The song grew more confident the next time I played it, now in a brighter key, finding its footing the same way TJ and I started to find our own. The song gained familiarity. Became a part of me. I started trusting its lyrics and what it was saying.
I started trusting us.
You give me that look, love song. I’m on the floor.
You give me your sass, love song. I’m on my knees.
You give me a chance and I get it wrong …
I beg you please, please, just let me inside your world again.
The drums pick up pace. The music rushes into a crescendo.
I see a passion in you …
I see a passion in you …
Oh, I see that passion in you.
Bass note slams. Drums crash. Fiona flourishes with her keys as we swing into the chorus.
You ain’t no fool for love songs.
But you sure made a happy fool outta me …
And I know I’ll spend the rest of my days
Chasin’ that version of me you see.
‘Cause I’m a fool for you, love song.
Just a happy fool for you, love song.
Only for you, for you, for you …
Yeah, you ain’t no fool.
Feet pound the floor of the pavilion, and I feel it like a second heartbeat. This little audience of no more than fifty or so Spruce folk and crew sound bigger than any crowd I’ve ever played for, with all this love and enthusiasm they pour back into us.
Even if TJ’s face is the only one I see, clapping along when the audience really gets into it, giving me all his gorgeous smile, all his adorable sass—every bit of the kindling that started this way back.
I see a passion in you … Oh I see that passion in you …
TJ blows me a kiss.
I grin back like an idiot and blow one back.
Yeah, you ain’t no fool.
The music gets carried away. None of us seem ready to let it end. Fiona keeps riffing off the chorus, inspiring all of us to do one more round of it, Raj picking up the drums even stronger the next time around. Wily does some sick stuff on the bass, and it’s like the song has become alive, a mind of its own, dancing wildly on the stage as everyone in the audience claps along and screams, right there with us, along for the ride.