"Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease?" she begged again.
I watched the two of them, smiling a little. Honey had been begging Bee to sing a song–I didn't know which–for the last five minutes.
"You seriously expect me to sing Play?" Bee asked, annoyed but still a bit amused.
I recognized that name. "Us Against the World", "I Must Not Chase the Boys", "Cinderella". I used to love them.
"Hey, I remember them," I said.
The two of them looked up quickly, like they didn't know I was there. Well, maybe they forgot, but Honey had dragged me over to back her up.
Honey looked up at Bee with a giant, fake, open-mouthed grin, fluttering her eyelashes.
Bee sighed and grabbed her guitar off the floor. She said something to Honey, but I couldn't read what it was.
She turned to me. "Melody, come on in. And shut the door behind you."
I smiled and did what she said.
"So, what song?" I asked, sitting against the wall next to where Honey was standing.
She turned to me, beaming. ""What is Love"," she said.
I smiled a bit more, wistfully. "I remember that one."
She tapped my shoulder. I looked up. "I have the sheet music if you want it," she said.
I nodded. "That'd probably be good."
She reached into her pocket, took out a few pieces of folded paper, and handed them to me.
I unfolded them and smiled at the familiar–for once–music. She normally didn't do stuff more than five years old. Or, if it was, it normally wasn't something an eight year old would be allowed to listen to.
I looked down at the music, just to confirm what I thought. After all, I hadn't heard it in six years. I looked back up to see Bee starting to strum. I tried to imagine the intro stripped to acoustic. And realized, considering she wasn't looking at any music, that she must've known the song better than she let on.
"It's the way you're nervous when you speak
And the way I know just what you mean
It's the kind of thing that's bittersweet"
Honey was watching her. She'd lost the spazzy, begging expression and looked almost thoughtful.
I felt the same way. I remembered the song, but seeing her sing it, and like she had such a connection to it, made me wonder.
"It's the funny feeling deep inside
So many different sides
But still so easy to define"
Then I realized why. She was dating Jet, of all people. She felt for him, and he obviously cared about her, but I really didn't think either of them were in love. He honestly knew he wasn't, but she thought they were. And this is without zooming out and seeing Longshot in the background, crushing on Bee like crazy.
"'Cause you know it every time
And not just in your mind
You can feel the butterflies
Sending chills down your spine"
Honey started singing along, but softer. I tried to imagine her voice from what Tails had pointed out and thought up a soft but strong, if not incredible, voice keying in.
"What is love
But a kiss on a rainy day
A smile that won't go away
A safe place to run
What is love
But a complicated simple truth
A bond between me and you
The number one
Oh, that's love"
Honey dropped back out and Bee sang alone again. I tried a bit harder to imagine her voice.
"And the things that never cross your mind
But you do it all of the time
'Cause with someone special it's alright
It's like dancing when you walk
And singing when you talk
You're happy just to be alive
"Within the moment don't pretend
Let it go and take it in
You don't have to understand
The how, why, and whens"
Honey joined in again. I knew she was singing the melody (okay, I've gotta laugh at that wording) but, in my mind, it sounded like harmony.
"What is love
But a kiss on a rainy day
A smile that won't go away
A safe place to run
What is love
But a complicated simple truth
A bond between me and you
The number one"
She dropped out again.
"So take off your hat and stay for a minute
Love is a precious thing if you let it in
You'll never know what you'll find 'til you give it
Some time
Some time"
She joined in for the rest of it.
"What is love
But a kiss on a rainy day
A smile that won't go away
A safe place to run
What is love
But a complicated simple truth
A bond between me and you
The number one
"What is love
But a kiss on a rainy day
A smile that won't go away
A safe place to run
What is love
But a complicated simple truth
A bond between me and you
The number one
Oh, that's love
"Oh, that's love
What is love
It's a kiss on a rainy day
Oh, that's love"
"That was great, guys," I said softly, getting up and handing Honey her music back.
The younger girl looked back at me, confused. "How do you…?"
I shrugged. "I guess I just know. It must be those five years of wanting to be a singer."
I smiled halfheartedly and walked back to my room.