NB: THANKYOU so much readers and reviewers...You are all far too kind. The song's in this chapter are 'Landslide - Fleetwood Mac (I had the Dixie Chicks version in mind if you listen to the songs whilst reading)' & 'What Would I Do Without You - Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors' - All copyright to the respective artists, I own nothing. PLEASE KEEP your LOVES/HATES/HOPES/THOUGHTS/COMMENTS/FAVORITES/FAVO RITE LINES OR MOMENTS/PMS and WHATEVER ELSE coming...There will be three more chapters after this one, so we're nearly there people...it's a little bittersweet. This chapter was one that I really loved writing...I hope y'all like it...enjoy chapter thirty seven...
CHAPTER THIRTY SEVEN
"Thank you, Houston!" Rayna shouted, waving at people as she ran up the runway and onto the main stage. Applause echoed around the arena and Rayna smiled, flipping a loose curl out of her face before adjusting the power pack on her pants. They were six songs into her set. She gulped down air, trying to catch her breath as she looked over to Liam. Rayna pointed at him and looked out to arena. "Liam McGinnis everybody! Isn't he great y'all!?"
The arena roared with squealing and ovation. Rayna clapped too, smile wide as she encouraged the audience to scream louder.
"What about me?" Juliette piped up, microphone in hand as she suddenly walked onto the stage waving to everyone.
The whole arena erupted into applause and Rayna froze. Impulsively, she spun around, hoping that she'd been hearing things. No, she wasn't hearing things. Juliette was standing on her stage, in her allocated time slot, right there, right now, and no one seemed to mind. Rayna smiled a sugary smile, briefly looking side of stage to try and catch sight of Bucky. No Bucky. She looked at Liam and frowned. He was laughing.
"What'd you think about me Rayna, hmmm?" Juliette grinned, stopping about six feet from where Rayna stood.
"Well…" Rayna drawled, smiling through her teeth as she put a hand to her hip.
"Maybe don't answer that." Juliette joked, pretending to laugh as she looked out into the arena.
Rayna shook her head and tried to read Juliette's expression. She had no idea what was going on, but she wasn't about to have a melt down mid show. She held her microphone to her mouth and spoke dryly. "To what do we owe the pleasure of you joinin' us up here?...As far as I can tell, this isn't the encore yet…"
The audience laughed; some were yelling for a duet and more songs and some were just yelling in general.
"You see the thing is…" Juliette grinned, waving her hands around. "I um…Liam would you help me out here?"
Liam nodded, quickly putting his guitar on a stand before running up to centre stage. Rayna frowned, more confused than before as she looked between Juliette and Liam.
"Before we do anything else…I'm just gonna need to…" Liam started, quickly covering Rayna's eyes with his hands before she could figure out what was happening. She struggled to get free, but Liam finally convinced her to stand still.
"What in the hell is goin' on?" Rayna sung, trying to hide her frustration as she stood idly in front of Liam.
"You see y'all…" Juliette smiled as she talked to the audience. "Today is a special day…"
"Very special." Liam called, earning a few laughs from people in the front row. Rayna stomped on his toe and he nearly dropped his hands from her eyes. She smirked when he momentarily cried out in pain.
"It's actually Rayna's birthday today." Juliette nodded, as she pointed at Rayna. Rayna shook her head, still trapped in Liam's hold as the arena thundered with applause.
"…and we have a little surprise…two little surprises actually."
Rayna couldn't figure out what Juliette was talking about but she heard the arena explode into screaming and cheering. Rayna wanted to cover her ears as the sound tumbled onto the stage; it was deafening. Curious and impatient, Rayna pushed Liam's fingers off her eyes and threw her hands to her mouth when she saw Maddie and Daphne. Nervously, the two little girls walked onto the stage grinning and instruments in hand. Stagehands followed after them with microphone stands and a stool. The stagehands promptly placed the equipment on the stage, made adjustments and quickly left. Her breath caught when she saw someone else. Deacon. He was plugging in and talking to Rayna's bass player quietly. Rayna shook her head and looked back to her two daughters. Daphne was giggling as she looked at the stool; it was nearly as tall as she was. Liam and Juliette hastily ran to Daphne's side. Juliette took her ukulele off her so she could climb up onto the stool and Liam adjusted the microphone stand.
"That's good." Daphne whispered timidly, looking from Maddie to Rayna.
"What in the world are y'all doin' here in Houston?" Rayna asked, hand on hip as she finally recovered. She pretended to look at a watch on her wrist as she grinned. "It is way, way past your bedtime…"
"Surprise!" Juliette and Liam chimed, waving their hands gleefully as they smiled at Rayna.
Rayna rolled her eyes and the arena filled with laughter.
"Everyone…" Juliette called, pointing to the girls. "Maddie and Daphne."
"Maddie and Daphne…" Liam followed, gesturing to the arena. "…Everyone."
Both girls smiled and said hello, nervously fidgeting with instruments and microphones.
"Now, there's somethin' y'all actually came here to do…so now that you've met everyone…why don't you tell us what it is?" Juliette spoke affectionately, nodding encouragingly at Maddie.
Maddie laughed nervously, finally looking at Rayna as she spoke into her microphone. "Hi Mom."
"Hi sweetheart." Rayna raised an eyebrow, still stunned that they'd managed to pull this off without her finding out.
"Firstly, Daphne and I…we wanna say happy birthday, Mom." Maddie started, looking at her younger sister.
"We love you so, so much." Daphne grinned.
"We're so grateful to Uncle Bucky for flying us out so we could be here with you tonight." Maddie continued.
"Uncle Bucky, hey?" Rayna mouthed, hiding a smile.
"…and we actually have a little somethin' prepared for you Mom…" Maddie grinned nervously. "…if that's ok?"
Applause and excitement travelled around the arena and Juliette and Liam signalled to the girls that they could start whenever they were ready. Maddie looked over her shoulder, her eyes searching for Deacon. When she found him she smiled. He smiled back, holding his guitar up as if to signal to her that he'd follow her. She nodded and turned to her microphone.
"This song…it's a song we both really love…" Maddie started, looking at her guitar to position her fingers for the starting chord. "and we hope you all like it too."
"It's one our Mom wrote way, way, long ago…" Daphne scratched her nose and looked down at her ukulele. "Like, before I was born, before Maddie was born-"
"-I think she meant to just say Mom wrote it a long time ago." Maddie corrected Daphne.
"With Deacon." Daphne added, pointing back at Deacon.
"Yes…with Deacon." Maddie agreed.
Everyone laughed.
"Anyway…the song, its called Landslide…we hope you like it." Maddie smiled.
Completely shocked and in awe, Rayna's face softened as she heard her eldest daughter begin to strum the beginnings of the familiar melody. When Deacon, her bass player and her percussionist fell in behind Maddie and Daphne, it took everything in her not to burst into tears right in the middle of the stage. She was so proud of them, so proud that they were her daughters. Maddie looked at Daphne and Daphne smiled at her reassuringly before looking down to change a chord on her ukulele.
Maddie stepped up to the microphone and willed herself to sing, forgetting her nerves and the crowded arena. "I took my love and I took it down. I climbed a mountain and I turned around. And I saw my reflection in the snow covered hills…well the landslide brought me down."
Maddie stepped back and looked over at Daphne, gesturing to her sister's microphone. Daphne nodded. "Oh, mirror in the sky…What is love? Can the child within my heart rise above?"
Together they sang, Maddie taking the melody and Daphne taking the harmony. "Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?…Can I handle the seasons of my life?... Uh ah ... uh ah ... uh ah ..."
Both girls looked at Rayna, smiling nervously. Rayna's heart was bursting with every kind of emotion; she had so much love for those two little people, she couldn't describe it.
Maddie nodded at Rayna, mouthing the words. "Mom...sing!"
"Well, I've been afraid of changin'…'Cause I built my life around you. But time makes you bolder, children get older… and I'm gettin' older too." Rayna sang, slowly walking over to the side of the stage where Daphne and Maddie were singing harmonies. Maddie looked over her shoulder and waved to Deacon as Rayna sang. "Well…."
Deacon walked over to them, his fingers picking the instrumental as he walked. He couldn't hide the smile on his face. By far, this instrumental had always been his favorite because he knew how much Rayna loved it. He looked over briefly at Maddie who was swaying in time with music, but his eyes kept moving till he found Rayna. Her eyes were just like his, soft and full of love. She gave him a knowing look and he smiled before playing the last note of the instrumental. Slow and discreetly, he walked backwards, nodding to acknowledge the applause throughout the arena.
"So…" Rayna sang, rocking on her feet as she looked around at her band who had easily fallen in behind her daughters. "take this love and take it down…"
"Yeah, and if you climb a mountain and you turn around… And If you see my reflection in the snow covered hills…Well the landslide brought me down." Maddie and Daphne sang.
"If you see my reflection in the snow cover hills…well, maybe." Rayna sang, looking to her youngest.
"Well maybe…" Daphne sang, playing the last strum on her ukulele.
"Well maybe…" Maddie sang, leading as Daphne sang a higher harmony. She played the final chord, gently resting her hands on top of her guitar. "The landslide will bring you down…"
Maddie stepped back from the microphone and cheering and screaming filled the stage. Both girls nodded, thanking everyone. Rayna ran to them, pulling both girls into a warm embrace.
"Thank you girls…." Rayna whispered, pulling them in tighter. "I love you so, so much."
"We love you, Mom." Both girls spoke in unison.
Rayna looked over Daphne's shoulder and saw Deacon watching her affectionately. She mouthed. "Thank you."
He nodded.
"Happy birthday….to you." Juliette and Liam started, gesturing to the arena to sing the rest. The audience came through, all eager to sing the birthday song to Rayna.
Rayna let go of the girls and turned around to see a stagehand wheeling out a big, meticulously decorated birthday cake. She shook her head, covering her mouth with her hands as she listened to everyone sing. Daphne and Maddie quickly gave their instruments to two stagehands and ran to stand beside Rayna. When the birthday song had been sung Rayna blew out the candles with the help of her daughters. The stagehand pulled out a knife and gave it to Rayna. Rayna's eyes immediately found Liam and she made a face.
Liam took Juliette's microphone and smiled. "So…Rayna…"
"No." She mouthed.
"So tradition says that if you touch the bottom of that cake with your knife…then you have to kiss the nearest boy." Liam mocked, crossing his arms as he looked out to the arena. "What do you think of that?"
"Ooooh..." Daphne scrunched up her face. Maddie slapped her on the arm.
Everyone cheered and Rayna shook her head. Liam and Juliette were whispering, signaling to different band mates around the stage. Juliette waved to Maddie and Daphne and they ran past Rayna to stand next to her.
"What are you waiting for?!" Liam asked, gesturing between the knife and the cake.
Rayna smiled and reluctantly began to cut into the cake. Immediately, Juliette, Liam, the girls, and every male band member ran to the opposite side of the stage. Rayna frowned. She hit the bottom of the cake and screaming and squeals echoed around her as people pointed behind her. She turned around to see Deacon looking as confused as her; he clearly had not been in on everyone else's plan. Rayna looked over at Liam and Juliette and swore under her breath, they were clapping wildly as they pointed to Deacon. Neither Rayna nor Deacon moved, suddenly aware of how they'd been played by the whole band and crew. Impatient, Daphne ran across the stage towards Deacon and promptly dragged him to center stage.
"Come on!" She groaned, pulling him with all her might. "You're like her boyfriend…so you have to…"
Deacon chuckled as he looked from the little girl to Rayna.
"There…" Daphne smiled, patting them both before running back over to the others.
"Hi." Rayna whispered, her cheeks three shades of red.
"Hi." He mimicked.
Before either could overthink it, Rayna leant over and kissed him on the cheek and quickly pulled away. They both smiled and screams roared around the arena as he walked back to where he'd been standing. Rayna walked over to the cake to pick up her microphone.
"Happy?" She sighed.
Everyone cheered.
"Thank y'all…" Rayna spoke sincerely, her eyes finding her two daughters who were giggling and smiling with Juliette and Liam. "I love y'all so so much."
Everyone applauded.
"Alright people!" Juliette called. "This is our cue to go…"
With that Juliette, Daphne and Maddie walked off the stage and Rayna and the band were left to quickly recover. Rayna readjusted an inner ear piece and hastily spoke to Liam before walking to center stage. "Alright y'all…how about a new one?!"
- NASHVILLE -
Walking out of the elevator, Rayna checked that she was on the right floor. Slowly she wandered, hoping that she'd read the post-it note correctly. She picked at the corners of the little piece of paper as she walked until she finally came to a glass door that read 'Indoor Pool: Operating Hours 7am – 8pm'. She laughed and reluctantly pushed her weight against the door, stumbling inside. Rayna's eyes fell on the far end of the pool and she gasped. Deacon sat cross-legged with his guitar on the concrete, lots of tea light candles offering a warm, flicking light around him as he quietly waiting.
Rayna walked slowly, surprise hanging heavily on her face as she made her way up the side of the pool. She looked at Deacon and he was smiling. "What's goin' on?"
Deacon stood up carefully, making sure he didn't knock over any candles. "Happy birthday."
"Seriously?" Rayna giggled, taking the final steps through a minefield of candles to stand with him.
"Seriously."
"Deacon, it's…" Rayna looked around her, lost for words. She could feel her hands shaking. "You did...you did this for me?"
"Only if you like it…" He grinned nervously. "I didn't really know what you'd want for your birthday, and I thought that maybe you'd…but if-"
"-Shhh…" Rayna shook her head, resting her fingers on her mouth as she looked at all the candles.
Deacon read her thoughts. "Lightin' all of those took a lot longer than I thought it would…I was half expectin' not to be done by the time you got here."
Rayna laughed, smiling absentmindedly. "Well, you did good…"
"So…" Deacon blew nervously, drawing her attention back to him. "Which present do you want first?"
"There's more than one?" Rayna chuckled, nervously fidgeting with her fingers. This felt surreal. She couldn't remember the last birthday they'd shared where it hadn't been a disaster.
Deacon nodded.
"Well…" Rayna drawled, swaying back and forth. "Which one do you think I'd want first?"
He promptly turned around and picked up a small package and handed it to her. She noticed the little card and opened it. You really didn't have to steal from me…all you had to do was ask and I would've given them to you…Happy birthday Ray. Love Deacon.
Rayna laughed so hard Deacon thought she was going to lose her balance. He steadied her and she ripped open the wrapping to find a Reece's Cups packet.
"That's the best birthday present I've ever received." She smiled, holding the packet close to her chest. "…Thank you."
"You're welcome…"
She looked behind him and noted that there were no more presents.
He laughed.
"So…I got to thinkin' these last few days…" Deacon swallowed hard, clumsily finding the strings on his guitar. "and this last little while, it hasn't exactly been easy between us…it hasn't been great, it hasn't been like it used to be…and there were times that I thought about givin' up…on this, on us…but the last two weeks happened and somethin' changed."
Rayna nodded, completely silent as she hugged herself.
"The last two weeks have shown me that I want to work on what we are together, I want to work on it with you…I didn't think it was possible….but I've found that I love you more now than I did before, I want to be with you more now than I did before and I just…." Deacon smiled warmly, strumming his guitar softly. Rayna's eyes were hazy and she was smiling. "…only way I can tell you how I feel is through gift number two…"
"You wrote me a song." Rayna whispered.
Deacon nodded nervously and turned his attention to his guitar. His fingers picked up the pace and he played a light and cheery refrain. He looked up at her and swallowed before he sang. "Sometimes I wake up with the sadness…other days it feels like madness…Oh…what would I do without you? When colors turn to shades of grey with the weight of the world at the end of the day…Oh…what would I do without you?"
Rayna gripped her hands together and stood perfectly still as she listened. He was singing for her, he was singing to her alone. That thought in itself was enough to ruin her completely. He looked at her and she couldn't breathe. Nervously, she brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes and attempted to ignore the sound of her heart hammering against her chest.
"A decade goes by without a warnin' and there's still a kindness in your eyes. Amidst the questions and the worries…a peace of mind always takes me by surprise…" Deacon sang, pausing briefly to meet Rayna's gaze before he looked at his guitar again. "The difference between what I've said and done…and you're still standing by my side….A guilty soul and a worried mind. I will never make it, if I'm on my own…"
Pensively, Rayna swayed back and forth as she tried hiding her smile. Deacon's fingers slipped when he kept his eyes on her a few seconds too long and she giggled. He grinned happily and quickly recovered as he found the next chord.
"You've got your sunshine, I've got rainclouds. You've got hope, I've got my doubts." He sang lowly, cocking his head as he contemplated his next lyric. He smiled to himself as he continued. "Oh…what would I do without you? Oh…what would I do without you? Oh…what would I do without you?"
Deacon leisurely let his fingers pick the outro instrumental of the song before playing the final notes. He slowly released his grip on the guitar neck and looked up at Rayna. She was smiling, her cheeks flushed and her eyes warm as she clapped. Gently, he pulled the guitar strap over his head and put the instrument on top of its case.
"You see, Ray…" Deacon started, his voice husky and low. He straightened up and walking towards her. Rayna's eyes widened, but his action didn't faze her. "Problems or not, I don't wanna know what I'd do without you…because I wanna be with you. I love you. I want this, us, you…I wanna be with you…I want you…if you'll have me."
Rayna bit her lip and nodded promptly, a combination of relief and affection crossing her face as he took her hands in his.
"I want you too." Rayna whispered breathily, resting her palms on his chest as he gently pulled her into him, wrapping his arms around her waist.
They both smiled, searching one another's eyes as they looked at one another quietly. Deacon smirked and Rayna made a face, squirming as his fingers brushed across her lower back.
He pursed his lips and repositioned his hands on her waist as he spoke softly. "I'm gonna kiss you now…"
Rayna blushed and nodded coyly as she looked up at him knowingly. She could feel his body against hers as he pulled her closer. He felt her shiver and he smiled as he leant down slowly and lifted a hand to her cheek. Expectant, Rayna's hands trembled against his chest as she waited and watched. Her heart was pounding, so was his. The tension around and between them was palpable and she was finding it hard to breath as his lips lingers inches away from hers. The anticipation was unbearable. These quiet moments were unnerving. When she thought she would come undone, Deacon leant in and kissed her slowly and deliberately. Rayna wrapped her arms around his neck, sighing as his mouth stayed on hers. Her whole body was on fire; reignited with things she had spent so many nights dreaming about. She knew he felt the same. He groaned when she trailed her fingers up his neck to his hair, letting him kiss her again. They became lost in one another's kisses and embraces; both desperate not to let go, both desperate to remember how the other felt, how they tasted, how they reacted. Both breathing heavily, they pulled back and rested their foreheads together.
"Wanna get out of here?" Deacon smiled, running his fingers up and down her back.
Rayna raised an eyebrow, pretending not to understand the connotation behind the question. "Why?"
"Well…" Deacon shrugged, leaning in to whisper against her neck. "I might have another birthday gift for you…if you're interested…"
Rayna gasped, trying not to react when he kissed her neck. "Is that right?"
"You interested, Ray?"
"I might be." She chuckled, letting him spin her around so he could wrap his arms around her and walk her towards the door. "...Hang on, what about the candles? Your guitar? Hell, my Reece's Cups-"
"I'll fix it later..." He smiled, pulling her hard against him as they wandered slowly. "Right now, I'm wantin' to know if you're interested in gettin' another gift..."
"It depends..."
"On?"
"It depends on whether this gift is really about me…or if it's actually about you." She smirked, feeling him react to her. It was obvious that he wanted her; his body was giving him away.
He laughed, shaking his head.
"That's what I thought." Rayna scoffed, pulling his hands back to her waist when he tried to send them downward.
"Tonight…" Deacon spoke huskily, bringing her laughing to a stop as she gulped. He ignored her request to keep his hands on her waist. "isn't about me…Darlin', it's all about you…it's all about what I can do for you."
"Mmhmm." Rayna managed, trying to ignore his travelling hands as she looked up at him.
Deacon grinned. "…and if you find a way to thank me after…I'll be up for that."
Rayna laughed, shaking her head. "I'm sure you will be..."
- FOR BECKYPO -