Chapter 4
Levi wished he could get a shot and smoke before going on, but they were already running behind. He ran up onto the stage and grabbed the microphone.
“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!” People were making their way in and getting the first drinks of the night. They were mostly ignoring him.
“Due to a scheduling error, it seems there won’t be any scheduled performances tonight, but it is still open mic night, and as they say, ‘the show must go on’. I’m Levi Ward, and I’ll be providing y’all with some entertainment. I won’t be playing non-stop all night, so I’ll let the jukebox take over from time to time. If anyone wants to play, I’ll let you borrow my guitar. If you have any special requests, just find me offstage.” Levi’s eyes caught the young, masked man in the crowd standing with a group of girls “and most importantly, Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler !” Levi started the jukebox, left the stage, and headed straight to the bar.
“Gus gimme a double shot of jack and a beer. I’m going out into the courtyard to get some cool air and a smoke before I start playing.”
Gus placed the shot on the bar and turned to get a beer.
Levi downed the whiskey. “I’ll be back in a few minutes. If anyone asks, just send them my way.”
“Sure thing, kid. Anything else?”
Levi took the beer from him and smiled. “Yeah, set an empty bucket on the edge of the stage,” Levi chuckled as he turned to walk outside.
“Why?” Gus yelled at him over the rising swell of the crowd.
“You’ll see,” he yelled back as he went out the back door into the courtyard.
In a previous life, the Ivory Dragon had been known as the Sassafras Lounge. The original owners had planted a sassafras tree in the back courtyard—no one knew when exactly, but now the tree was enormous. Levi knew the tree well and had used its colors to mark the changing of the seasons for years. The regulars rarely came out here to enjoy its beauty - and why would they? They only came here because they couldn’t stand the other bar in town. Gus was easygoing, and didn’t have a problem with anyone. He was thankful for that.
Levi sat on an old bench under the tree and lit a cigarette. He took a sip of his beer and muttered, “Well old friend, I think it’s just you and me again”. The leaves rustled in the wind, seeming to respond to him, reassuring him that his stage fright was nothing to worry about. He looked up and saw the masked kid look out into the courtyard and spin quickly away to rejoin the crowd.
He finished his beer and sat for a moment.
“Guess it’s showtime.”
He made his way through the crowd and back to the bar.
“Levi, two things. Someone asked if you knew the song ‘Carnival Time’. I told him I had no clue, but I’d relay the message.”
“What’s the second?”
“Your bucket’s on the stage.”
“Gotcha. Well, it just so happens that I know that song, and I think that’s an appropriate way to start the night, anyway.”
Gus seemed ready to say something else, but stopped himself.
“What is it?” Levi asked.
“Well, that kid that looks like he thinks this is Bourbon Street gave me a decent tip to leave your favorite drink on the stage for you. So I put three fingers of whiskey up there. He seemed nervous, and while he didn’t tell me to keep it anonymous, I think that was his intent, so you didn’t hear it from me.”
“Well, thanks for letting me know.”
Levi headed to the stage, grabbed his guitar, and played ‘Carnival Time’.
As he was finishing the song, he noticed the crowd was getting loud and decided this was the right time for an announcement.
“Hey everybody, I’m gonna play another song here in a sec, but before I do, I’m gonna say something that might get me in trouble, but I don’t care. Our illustrious host tonight is Mr. Gus Walinski.” he pointed over towards the bar where Gus was glaring at him. “This is his bar, and I just wanted to welcome you here tonight. Now, Gus, he’s not getting any younger, and a little birdie told me he would like to retire someday. Well, I think tonight would be a great night to show our collective appreciation.” He picked up the bucket and set it on the edge of the stage. He pulled out his wallet and dropped a few bills in. “Tonight, this tip bucket is Gus’s retirement fund. Let’s get him at least enough for a midnight train to Georgia.” He grabbed the whiskey from the stage and raised the glass to the roaring crowd.
As the night went on, the crowd grew, both in size and rowdiness. An older man came up and asked to perform ‘House of the Rising Sun’. Levi gladly obliged. During the exchange, he noticed the masked man come up and drop some money in the bucket, and he was sure it wasn’t the first time.
“Thank you,” he yelled to make sure he could be heard over the crowd. “I think you’ve been up here a couple of times already. I’m sure Gus appreciates your generosity, but I feel like I owe you a special request.”
The man stopped, and his eyes grew wide behind the mask. “Um. Not right now. Let me think about it, and I’ll get back to you,” he stammered. Levi took the moment of hesitation to get a good look at him. He’d been hovering around a group of young ladies most of the night. Levi caught how bright his blue eyes were behind the mask, and how his toned bare chest was accentuated by the beads around his neck.
“Sounds good bro, just let me know,” and he walks off to the bar.
It was getting late, and things were quieting down, so Levi stepped outside for a smoke. He grabbed a beer from the bar and walked out to the courtyard. He leaned against the tree and lit his cigarette.
“Just us again.”
There was no response this time. The sound of the door opening broke the silence, and the young man slowly came outside.
“Man, I hate to ask, but can I bum a smoke? I don’t smoke much, but when I drink, I always want a cigarette.”
“Sure thing,” Levi replied as he handed him a cigarette and a lighter.
Levi was struck by how handsome he was, even with the mask covering half his face. He lit the cigarette and handed the lighter back. “Thanks, man. You’re pretty good. Do you play here every often?”
Levi laughed, “Well, you could say that. I work here, but this is the first live music this place has seen in a long time.”
“That’s cool. I… I was thinking about what you said. I think I’ve come up with what I’d like to request, but you’re probably going to say no.”
“Now, why would I do that? Just tell me, and if I can do it, I will.”
“Well, I’m new to town, and my sister and her friends brought me out tonight to ‘find a girl.’ Well, I think I’ve found someone, but I’m worried I’ll say something stupid. I was thinking maybe if you could play a song, I could sing it and use someone else’s words to get my point across.”
Levi stared at him for a moment and the young man started turning red.
“Well,” Levi butted his cigarette, “it’s getting close to last call, so you’d better get your ass back in there and make sure the little lady you’re singing to is still in there.”
“So, you’ll do it?” he asked.
“If I know the song I will, and if not, maybe we can come up with one we both know right quick.”
His face went from a light blush to a beet red.
“Uh…do you know ‘Yellow’ by Coldplay?”
“Yessir,” Levi laughed. “It’ll probably be the first romantic gesture in this place. You’ll go up next.”
“Thank you!” he tossed the cigarette in the ashtray and rushed back inside.
Levi looked at the tree and said, “Well, isn’t that some shit? Tonight may mark a change in this place, and you might get some new friends.” The tree rustled, content with whatever happened.
Levi walked back in a few minutes later and headed to the bar.
“Gus, one last song, and I’m going to need another shot before this. The kid’s probably about to get his heart handed to him or make a fool of himself, or both. He’s going to serenade a girl.”
“Ah, to be young and in love - but it’s a good thing the crowd’s thinning out because they would’ve eaten him alive.”
Levi laughed, “They sure would’ve.”
He headed back up on the stage and grabbed his guitar.
The young man came on stage. He had taken his mask off, and his nervousness was apparent in his eyes.
He took a deep breath.
“Are you ready?” Levi asked.
The kid nodded, and Levi played. When he started singing, Levi thought to himself “Damn he’s not bad. Hopefully, she thinks so too.”
Levi looked over at the group of girls the kid was with to see if he could pick out which one the intended target was. They were only looking at the stage, with looks of confusion and anger on their faces. As the first chorus started, Levi looked at the kid to follow his gaze, but found that his eyes were fixed on him. Levi stumbled at the next chord change but recovered quickly. He could feel the blood rushing to his face.
Once the song was over, Levi thanked the crowd and announced last call.
The kid was still on the stage and walked over.
“Every time I came up here, I wanted to ask for your number, but I chickened out, so I just dropped some money in the bucket. Then when you went out to smoke, I followed, hoping to have a conversation and work up the nerve, but when I saw you under the tree with its yellow flowers, I had a moment of inspiration. Alicia wasn’t going to let me leave until I asked.” he continued talking, but Levi couldn’t hear his words anymore. He was captivated by this young man. He nodded as if he heard every word while he bared his soul - and then he saw fear creeping onto the kid’s face.
“What’s your name?” Levi asked.
“Jon,” he responded dejectedly. “I’m so sorry. You were just so damn handsome I couldn’t resist. I should’ve known you were straight. I’ll leave you alone now.” He turned to leave the stage.
Levi placed his hand on the young man’s shoulder. “I’m Levi, and that is the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. Let’s grab a smoke.”
Once in the courtyard, Levi lit a cigarette and handed Jon one. He lit it and said, “So…uh…Levi…is this the part where you let me down gently?”
Levi just looked at him for a moment and took a long draw from his cigarette.
“Jon, you seem like a really sweet kid.” He playfully grabbed the beads around Jon’s neck and pulled him in to kiss him. “I wanna take you home so you can show me how you got these.”