Musical Talents

Prompted by 'neighboursfan27', this is a one-shot set around Christmas 2014 where Nate finds that Chris can play the guitar.

Georgia watched Chris practicing the songs that he was supposed to learn for the concert. She was guiding him through it and offering him advice but in all honesty, she felt a twinge of jealousy and wanted to be sitting there playing the guitar instead. Kyle was lounging next to her on the sofa, chipping away at some wax to make the candlesticks. He glanced at his wife out of the corner of his eye and realised what she was thinking. After Chris finished playing 'Silent Night', Georgia smiled weakly.

"You're sounding better" she murmured, approaching him.

"Thanks" Chris breathed, then stretched his right hand. Although he had slightly more control over it since the attack, his hand definitely wasn't as strong as it used to be, and he was concerned about whether he would be up to standard when he returned to work in the New Year.

"It's a shame you're not joining in" Kyle commented to Georgia, still engrossed in the wax

Chris nodded in agreement but Georgia shook her head, "It's fine" she replied casually, "My voice just isn't as strong as it used to be"

Chris looked confused, "But that doesn't stop you from playing the keyboard like Karl suggested"

Georgia glanced away uncomfortably and Chris realised, "It's about the whole 'performing' thing, isn't it?"

Georgia shrugged before admitting, "Just the thought of getting back onstage reminds me of my singing career, and everything's different now"

Chris smiled at her gently, "Look, my hand still isn't strong enough, but this concert's supposed to be about having fun, celebrating Christmas as a community" he pointed out before teasing, "Where's your community spirit, George?"

Georgia scoffed, "I dressed up in a ridiculous elf costume last week!" she argued, "If that's not showing 'community spirit' then I don't know what is"

"But that was the Hospital's idea" Kyle pointed out, "And it was part of your job"

"Plus, this concert is to raise money for the sick kids in Hospital" Chris interjected, "So it's technically the same cause but you don't have to dress up as an elf this time"

Georgia sniggered, "Ok, I'll think about it"

Chris grinned smugly, "Good"

Georgia pointed at the music sheets on the coffee table, "How about you try 'The Twelve Days of Christmas' again?"

Chris nodded before picking up the paper and propping it up against a book. As he began to play, Nate entered and glanced around the room. He noticed the small pile of wax and Kyle trimming away next to it, as well as Georgia watching Chris playing the guitar. He felt a sense of déjà vu as he recalled walking into a similar situation a couple of months earlier. Chris glanced up and noticed Nate's presence, then abruptly stopped playing. Kyle and Georgia looked up to spot Nate as well and there was an awkward silence.

Nate cleared his throat, "This is like the second time I've walked in on you three doing something weird"

The other three giggled at the memory of Nate walking in on them trying to set up a romantic atmosphere back in October.

"Don't worry" Georgia assured him, "We're just helping Naomi prep for the carols concert"

Nate nodded in understanding, "Is she still looking for helpers?" he enquired

Georgia nodded fervently, "Absolutely, I mean she approached Karl so she must have been desperate. In fact, I think she's about to resort to begging"

Kyle nodded, "You could help me with this" he suggested, "You seem like a handy kind of guy"

Nate shrugged, "Well I'll ask Naomi if there's anything in particular that she wants me to do first, then I'll give you a hand"

Kyle grinned at him, "thanks" he replied, then jumped up, "I need more wax" he announced, "I think there's some at the yard"

Georgia stepped towards him, "I'll go with you" she offered - still feeling jealous and wanting to get out of watching her friend playing the guitar - then turned back to Chris, "You'll be ok practicing on your own?"

Chris nodded, "Yeah, go ahead. I'll get these songs perfected"

"I'm sure you will" Georgia smirked before following her husband out.

Chris scoffed and shook his head in despair before smiling at Nate.

Curiously, Nate walked towards him, "I never knew you played the guitar"

Chris shrugged, "Well I'm no Jimi Hendrix, but I've been playing for a few years now"

"You've never mentioned it" Nate commented, "Even before the attack you never serenaded me with a song"

Chris laughed, "It was just a bit of a hobby. I only got into it in the first place because of a friend"

"Really?"

Chris nodded, "Have I told you about the car accident I was in back in 2012?"

Nate thought to himself, "I think so. You mentioned that Paul tried to sue you and Andrew got epilepsy because of it"

Chris nodded gravely, "Well Andrew's cousin, Sophie, was a passionate musician who wanted to go to the concert that we were all heading to" he began, "We let her ride with us, but that meant overloading the car. So when we crashed, she was the most badly injured. Afterwards she blamed her injuries on her love of music and refused to play the guitar again. I hated the fact that she did that, so I entered an 'Open Mic' contest and convinced her to help me out. Eventually she realised what I was doing, but I'd managed to get her to play her guitar again, and she loved it"

Nate smiled at him fondly, "That was really sweet of you"

Chris shook his head, "It was the least I could do. I mean, I nearly killed her" he pointed out, then hesitated sadly, "I nearly killed all of us. None of it was her fault; the accident was caused by too many distractions and a lack of concentration. She just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time"

Nate nodded sombrely, "I'm sorry you went through all of that"

Chris shrugged, "I'm just sorry I put them through all of that. Everyone's lives changed after the accident. Andrew's epilepsy, Sophie's injuries, and me and Summer having PTSD"

There was a pause and Chris glanced at Nate, "Not that I'm comparing my experiences to yours, your situation is totally different"

Nate shook his head, "No, I get what you mean" he reassured him, "It's actually nice to have someone who understands"

Chris smiled at him before studying the music again. Nate cleared his throat and tried to change the subject.

"So you're helping Karl out?" Nate clarified

Chris nodded, "Yeah, I'm fulfilling my lifelong dream of playing in 'The Right Prescription'" he announced sarcastically

Nate laughed, "Well it's just Christmas Carols, not 'Everybody, Let's get Happy', so it doesn't really count as the band"

Chris grinned, "Yeah, I wouldn't want to steal his thunder or anything"

Nate rolled his eyes, "No-one can steal Karl Kennedy's thunder, not in the music stakes anyway"

Chris laughed in agreement and Nate watched him expectantly

"What?" Chris asked, noticing Nate's expression

Nate glanced at the pile of music sheets, "Aren't you gonna serenade me?"

Chris chuckled, "Ok, if you don't mind Christmas carols"

Nate shook his head, "As long as it's not 'Jingle Bells', I'll be ok"

Chris giggled, remembering Nate's story about singing 'Jingle Bells' to a horse when he was in Afghanistan, then started playing 'The Twelve Days of Christmas'. Nate was impressed by Chris' music skills, but wondered whether there was anything else that he hadn't told him yet, though Nate realised that it was quite hypocritical of him considering everything that he kept hidden from Chris. Intently, he watched Chris furrow his brow as he tried to read the music whilst playing, and Nate thought he looked insanely cute.

However, he suddenly wondered how long this mellow time in their relationship would last and what 2015 would bring for them. After all, Chris' friend Lucy was due to visit in the New Year, and Chris had to decide whether or not he was going to accept her offer to be the father of her child. Nate sensed tough times ahead and desperately hoped that they would survive it. Nate shook his head dismissively, trying not to think about the future too much, and instead to just enjoy the moment.

Thanks for reading, and thanks 'neighboursfan27' for the prompt: I hope this was close to what you were expecting. I wanted to make reference to Chris' experiences with PTSD (which the show forgot about) and Nate's story about 'Mister Ed' (which was great). Anyway, if anyone has any ideas for Chris related stories then feel free to let me know, and reviews are always welcome.