Chapter 27
The week with Mikey had gone even better than Luke could ever have imagined. It wasn’t just that they’d reunited romantically, though that was amazing enough on its own. They were also in a creative synergy he’d never experienced with anyone else.
They’d returned to “A Guy to Build a Life With,” which they’d agreed was going to be the centerpiece of their concert, and the lyrics were finally in what Luke hoped was their final form.
The song had ended up being a bit of a twangy ballad about two mountain men from northern West Virginia who spend most of their lives only crossing paths occasionally, neither of them able or willing to imagine what it would be like to have something more permanent until, at the end, they get to spend the rest of their lives together, alive and in love.
“I see it as a happier Brokeback Mountain,” Luke explained to Mikey, who was nodding along as he spoke.
“That movie had a profound impact on me when I was a teenager. I…I think I saw some of myself in Ennis, and I was honestly never sure whether I was going to be able to have a happy life with another guy, or whether I was always going to have to sneak around. And when it ended so tragically, it sort of broke something inside of me. This song is me trying to write a different story. What do you think of the lyrics, now that they’re done? ”
Up to now Mikey had taken a bit of a backseat to the actual writing of the lyrics–preferring to focus on the music and the instrumentation–but Luke genuinely wanted to know what he thought.
In some ways this was also a song about the two of them, about how they’d managed to make their way back to each other despite all of the obstacles in their path and despite the years separating their younger selves from who they were now.
“I love them,” Mikey said. He was wearing one of his shiny shirts and a pair of tight jeans Luke had found very distracting, so distracting he almost missed the rest of what he was saying.
Focus, Luke, he thought.
“They have a lot of melancholy to them, but they don’t get maudlin.
And they work really well with the music I wrote.
The song has all the things we’ve been aiming for.
It’s modern yet classic, simple yet powerful, with some killer instrumentation.
I think we’ve got a hit. And you know what?
I think we work better together than we ever did alone. ”
Luke didn’t want to admit it, but there was some truth there.
He was starting to rethink some of his own assumptions about what music could and should sound like.
He still hadn’t quite figured out how he felt about this change in his perspective, but he was willing to let things play out for a bit.
If it helped him to be a better musician, and if it helped to build up a good following for NACA, then it seemed like it all might be worth it.
Who even am I, anymore? He wondered.
“I told you some change would be good for you,” Mikey said.
Luke wanted to argue with him, but he found he couldn't.
“Anyway,” he said, ignoring Mikey’s jab, “I was thinkin’.
We could release a few snippets of these songs, just a couple, to Spotify and YouTube.
We could go ahead and start getting some interest built up for the concert.
And, who knows, maybe after the concert is all over we could record an album together. ”
That, of course, was the dream, but he had no idea whether it was something Mikey would be interested in.
Mikey’s eyes lit up at just the mention of doing a record together, and Luke let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.
Mikey reached out and took his hand in his own.
“You know,” he said, looking deep into Luke’s eyes, “you don’t have to keep thinking I’m going to ditch you at the slightest sign of commitment. I’m not going to leave, Luke. I promise.”
Luke believed Mikey, of course he did, but he couldn’t help but feel like all of this was incredibly fragile.
I guess I’m just going to have to accept we’re both works in progress, he thought.
“I believe you,” he said, just so Mikey wouldn’t worry. “Really.”
Mikey looked at him for a moment more, and then he nodded his head, clearly satisfied.
“Okay, then. Once this concert is over we’ll put this album together, and then we’ll start figuring out the rest.”
Luke didn’t like the way things still felt so unclear, but he was learning to accept there were certain things he was just going to have to take on faith, and Mikey’s assurance he wanted to build a future with him–both romantically and professionally–was one of them.
I can do this, he thought. I really can.
Luke was pretty sure the two of them could’ve spent a lot more time in the cabin–working on the music, baking and eating and, of course, having the best sex of their lives–but it was inevitable the real world would intrude on their little oasis.
It was, of course, Brenda who was the one who broke things up, because she’d always had an uncanny sense of timing.
When Luke saw her number come up on his phone, he was half tempted to just let it go to voicemail and pretend he hadn’t seen it.
“You’d better just answer it and get it over with,” Mikey said with a chuckle. “You know she’s just going to call and call until you answer.”
They both knew what the call would almost certainly be about, but neither of them wanted to say it aloud. Even if, as they both hoped, there was something for them beyond this moment in time, they both knew they’d never recapture exactly the feeling they’d shared.
Still, Luke answered the phone.
“Hello?”
“Luke!” Brenda said brightly. “How are my two life-saving talents doing?”
He couldn’t help but roll his eyes a bit.
“We’re fine,” he said. “How are you?”
“I’m going to be a lot better if you tell me the two of you have managed to put together a good, strong set. The concert is racing toward us, after all,” she said. She paused meaningfully. “So, have you?”
He sighed slightly.
“As a matter of fact, yes we have,” he said. “We were putting the finishing touches on a really good song just when you called.”
“Good,” she said, all business as usual.
“So, we’ll need the two of you back here as soon as possible, preferably today.
Once you’re back, we can start getting the logistics handled.
We’re gonna have to find the right band to play for you both, make sure the venue is as in-shape as it can be, and have some rehearsals.
It’s crunch-time, babe, which means I’m gonna need both of you with your heads in the game. Can I count on you?”
Luke sensed something behind what she was asking, but he decided to just answer the direct question.
“Yes,” he said. “You can count on the both of us. The concert is going to knock everyone’s socks off, and I think you’re gonna be very impressed.”
Brenda actually laughed.
“I knew I could count on you two. I’ll see you soon!”
Before he could say anything she’d hung up.
He proceeded to talk to Mikey about the problem of logistics and, though Mikey assured him he knew people who could do a lot of the heavy lifting when it came to getting the auditorium at NACA in fit state for a concert of this size, Luke couldn’t quite wrap his head around the idea of not being in control.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Mikey, of course.
It was just, when it came down to it, he was a bit of a control freak and wasn’t entirely comfortable with the idea of so many moving pieces of the concert being out of his hands.
When he told Mikey some of this, he just laughed and shook his head.
“It’s okay. You like things how you like them. It’s just who you are.”
That was the thing about being with Mikey now. They just seemed to get each other.
For a few more minutes they both just stood there, neither of them quite willing–or able–to admit it was time to start getting ready to leave. It was only when Duke barked, clearly ready to go outside, that the two of them broke out of their mutual reverie.
Luke sighed.
“I guess there’s no point in putting this off any longer, is there?
Let’s get to town, see Brenda, and then we can go from there.
I mean, maybe, once we get the ball rolling, you’d like to come back here?
I mean, I know you have your entourage, and I know you’ve already paid for your hotel and everything, but you could always just stay here for the rest of the time it takes to put the concert together.
I wouldn’t mind, and I think Duke here would probably be overjoyed. ”
Duke gave Mikey such an imploring look it would have taken a heart of stone to reject such an offer.
“I’d love to,” Mikey said, and Luke felt nothing but joy.
It ultimately didn’t take them much time at all to load up the truck with Mikey’s things, and as they got inside and he started up the engine, he felt a twinge of melancholy, particularly once he looked back at the house and saw Duke at the window, an equally sad look on his face.
Great, he thought. Even my dog is going to miss Mikey.
He wished he could just bottle up the feeling he’d had all this week, so he could access it whenever he wanted to.
Just enjoy the memory of it, he told himself. There’ll be other memories you two will make together.
Try as he might to convince himself of the truth of this, though, it just never quite worked.
Mikey seemed to pick up something of what he was feeling, because he reached over and took his hand and kissed it. Luke dared to look into his eyes, then, and the expression of tenderness and affection he saw there literally took his breath away.
“What are you doin’ to me, Mikey Smiles?” he asked.
A flicker of something uncertain went through Mikey’s eyes, but he just tightened his grip.
“Would you believe me if I told you I was casting a spell on you?” Mikey asked.