Chapter 4: If You Go

My night was going by pretty okay. Tara was pissed off about something to do with my brother towards the end of our shift and I sense it had to do with V. All else was quiet until three redneck dumbfucks decided to be fucking stupid. I recognised them from The Descendents Of The Glorious Dead meeting at the church. These assholes were crushing garlic in the back and being your local generic degenerates. They sat in Arlene's section but I still kept a close watch on them. I think they believed me to be flirting because of it. Jason was sitting not to far off but he was high and drunk and didn't really catch on. Eventually, one dickwad sent his hamburger deluxe back and I could tell Arlene was upset by what they said. Judging by the look on their faces, this could not be good. Arlene took the food back and a few seconds later Lafayette strutted out of the kitchen and exchanged a few words that I didn't hear and then "...AND AIDS! DO ANYBODY GOT A PROBLEM WIT DAT?!" Shit just got serious! A few more words an then Lafayette turned on the charm but I knew this was going downhill fast. Swift as a fox he licked the top of a bun and ninja fast he landed blows on three guys and walks off, low fiving Jason as he passed. Other than that? Nada.

We had a lot of people after the church let out but not all the much after. Once my shift was done I walked to my truck and found Bill standing there. I knew that this wasn't a good visit. I could see it in his eyes. He felt sorry for me. I could almost feel the waves of emotion rolling off of him. Sorrow. Rage. Uncertainty. Doubt. Regret. I tried to prepare for the worst but I couldn't even imagine. "Bill? What are you doing here?" He takes a deep breath and looks at me with a sadness in his eyes that I could just cry. "I'm afraid I have some terrible news. Your grandmother was found murdered in the kitchen this evening. I am to drive you safely home." Tears stung as memories flooded to the surface in a rush and that's the last I recall. I hate to say that I blacked out. My eyes fluttered open to an unfamiliar room. A steady beeping and the white of the place screamed hospital and for a moment I feared that I went back in time and this is the hospital that separated me and Sookie.

As I sat up, I saw Jason asleep in a chair to my right and Sookie sitting in the chair next to him, also fast asleep. I found the nurse call button so I didn't wake them. The nurse poked her head in and I mimed for her to be quiet and pointed to the chair. She smiled and nodded and went to get the doctor. Quietly, he came in and helped me to a separate room so he could evaluate my condition. Turns out that the shock is the culprit and given where it landed me, he wants me to see a psychologist. I let him know that that sort of thing isn't really for me and that I like to live in the moment and experience whatever life throws at me...or some shit like that. I just wanted him to hop off the therapy express to cuckoo town. I never got involved with group sessions or therapy when I was in the system and quite frankly, the idea of it all just pisses me off. When I get back to the room, Sookie is still sleeping but Jason is waking up. "Hey, how're ya feeling?" He whispers to me as he sits on my bed and strokes my hair. "I feel better and worse all at the same time. Is that normal?" He chuckles lightly. "You are in a hospital bed and Gran died. Fuck normal and get well soon." I laughs lightly. My voice feels weak from not using it in two weeks. I missed Gran's funeral. I missed Gran. More than anything I wanted her to hold me and tell me everything will be alright. Just to see her right now would be a comfort even if we couldn't touch. To see her. To hear her. Gran. You were right and you're not even here to say 'I told you so.' I miss you because I loved you. You grew on me and I don't want you to be dead. Please come back home. I'm never going to leave again, Gran. Please. Please. Don't go. I'll go to pieces, if you go!

Two days later the hospital released me and although Sookie doesn't realize I know it, the doctor told her to keep an eye on me and if there are any red flags with my behavior to call the number on a card he handed her. Things have changed. After Gran died, Jason is no longer a suspect. Sookie apparently told the whole town to shut the fuck up at Gran's funeral. Jason and Tara split. A new girl started working at Merlotte's. Amy. She's now dating Jason. Jason is still doing V. I suspect Amy is, too. I start my shift Friday night. Nothing else to report. I sleep. I wake up. I work. I sleep I wake. I work. I eat so Sookie doesn't think I'm starving myself. It's not like I want to starve myself. I'm just not really hungry anymore. Saturday night. Singing night. I take the stage and kick it off with Piano Man and then roll into Somewhere Over The Rainbow by requests from the audience. Apparently, Sam got a lot of complaints since I wasn't there to sing. The people prefer me over most of the other bands, so as a way to appease them Sam made a request jar for when I came back. I was in the middle of Somewhere Over the Rainbow when the door opened and Bill walked in with three new vampires I've never seen before. I do my best to finish my song but the most handsome of them is steadily approaching the stage and I have never been starstruck but this hit me hard in a way I never knew I could feel.

The last note seems to still be buzzing in my ears as he says in a low and silky voice that seemed to drip with interest: "Well. Well. Well. Looks like you're the talented twin. Are you also Bill's?" "No. Are you a friend of his." I asked. "Something like that." Weird answer. My guess is more acquaintance than friend. "Any requests?" "I can think of quite a few." he says as he eyes me in a suggestive manner. "If I might reiterate, any song requests?" "Christina Aguilera. Hurt." I turn to the guy Sam hired to play piano and nod. I start the song and I see the vampire relax as he seems to enjoy himself. The other two step up close to the vampire who gave a request and watch. I watch as the woman vampire of the group moves her lips ever so slightly but in a rapid manner. She isn't speaking English and the same one who gave the request responds in the same rapid and almost impossible to see movements. As my song ends, the vampire who made a request is ready to give one more but he gets cut off by a boy I can't quite hear in the back. I rockstar jump off the stage and boldly make my way over. It was a little boy no older than 5 years old. So I go over to him and get down to eye level. "I'm sorry bug a boo. I can't hear you all the way back there. Did you want to use my mic so you can order Mr. Nickels on the piano your song?" A big grin pops on his face and it's like a light turned on under his skin. "I take that as a 'yes.' Go ahead and tell Mr. NIckels the song." I show him how to hold the mic and his voice came off clear as a bell, "Hi. My name is Aiden from New York and would like to request Let It Go from Frozen."

From the front I heard Mr. Nickels call to me that he doesn't know it. I mock an angry parent in a playful way. "Mr NIckels! What do you mean you don't know it? Am I going to have to teach you everything?" He calls up from the front again. "You already taught me everything I know. What's one more?" "Oh! Alright! Kiddo you're going to have to hang on while I give him a super speedy run through." I sit at the piano and I run through the first few notes once and then Mr. Nickels gives it a try. Mr. Nickels and I have a bit of an improv chemistry and he starts playing Chopsticks. "Mr. Nickels! That's Chopsticks! Here." "That's not chopsticks! These are chopsticks!" With that he pulls out giant prop chopsticks from his prop bag. The audience laughs and the boy who requested laughs the loudest. "One more time." I teach him the same notes and then he plays Beethoven's 9th Symphony. "Mr. Nickels! That's Beethoven's 9th Symphony. How can you play that but still be unable to Let It Go?" "Well that's simple Sophee. I wasn't paying attention when you did these notes." And with that he starts to play the song perfectly. I do an exaggerated sigh and step into position and begin. The kids all seemed to enjoy our bit as well as a few kids at heart. The mom came over to thank me personally and asked if I've ever do any professional show business. When I said no she suggested that I look into it.

The two vampires who followed the one vampire that requested Hurt walked over to speak with him. He held up his hands in a just give me a moment kinda gesture and walked over "I have to go but can I get one for the road." He said but someone shouted a request and then someone else. I heard him sigh and he started to jump up and down with his hand in the air. The kids and most of the adults laughed. The ones that didn't laugh couldn't help but smile. I laughed and was forced to compose myself. "If you have to use the little boy's room Mr. Nickels will take you in a minute." Mr. NIckels did a double take and then hit a few notes from Beethoven's 5th symphony. "I'd like to hear Ave Maria before my friends make me leave. Your voice is...really something." "Aw. Well, I suppose it can't hurt. Hit it Nickels!" Mr. Nickels made a quick big show of making it look like it's going to be a hard song by doing a few fast paced arm and finger stretches, standing up and raising his hands above his head only, to swing them fastly down, and stop at the last possible second to gently play the song slowly in soprano.

The stretches were a signal. He wanted a quick break after this and I could also go for some water or something. I was parched. If he had started doing push ups, that would mean he a longer one and I would need to go and get song requests table to table. If he had started off the wrong song but with a similar baseline in the intro, I would know he had to leave. The intro was slow and higher in pitch because we decided which songs get sung in what fashion prior to our working together. We spent a full day and a half learning what we could do to signal to each other and how to do what songs and the like. This is a harder piece for me to do due to the amount of skill needed and also because it made me think of Gran. I knew that whatever happens to us after death, she was right upstairs, sitting next to the big guy in charge, watching clouds pass, and still being the angel I had met her as but this time with the wings and halo to show for it. I took a couple of deep breaths and:

"Ave Maria, gratia plena,

Maria, gratia plena,

Maria, gratia plena,

Ave, Ave, Dominus,

Dominus tecum.

Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus,

Et benedictus fructus ventris (tui),

Ventris tui, Jesus.

Ave Maria!

Sancta Maria, Mater Dei,

Ora pro nobis peccatoribus,

Ora, ora pro nobis;

Ora, ora pro nobis peccatoribus,

Nunc et in hora mortis,

In hora mortis nostrae.

In hora, hora mortis nostrae,

In hora mortis nostrae.

Ave Maria!"

As the last note of my aria fell, I looked and saw there wasn't a dry eye in the house. Mr. Nickels had pulled a hankie out of his back pocket without realizing it was one of his comedic props. Even the vampires were tearing up because all four were quickly trying to get rid of it while keeping the tears themselves hidden. I knew for a fact that all vampires had tears of blood and that the typically didn't like to share that with the public when it could be helped. An elderly man in the back stood up and started to clap. Not long after everyone was doing the same. I must've looked rather surprised because the vampire who requested it had recovered and said, "What are you waiting for? Take a bow. And...thank you. That was...enlightening." "Your welcome but there's no real need to thank me. I enjoyed it." I replied softly as I smiled and curtsied. "As did I. Eric." he said as he held out his hand. "Sophee." I replied as I shook his hand and the weirdest thing happened. I could hear him talking but he was in my head he was monologuing like I couldn't hear him.

Something about waiting until Sam scares me off and I can go sing for him anytime. I broke it off by withdrawing my hand and it stopped. He smirked. "Perhaps I may drop by again if you're a regular act here. Are you? You seem to be." I took a bit longer to recover and said "I am. Every other Saturday. You were rather lucky to catch me when I'm actually here. I was forced into a sabbatical of sorts." I was testing him for any sign that he did that on purpose. "Very lucky then. Until next time, ado." As I watched him go, I saw Maxine Thortonberry passing tissues to the two vampires that walked in with Eric that were there when Bill left and patting the lady vamp's arm in an endearing kind of way. The lady vampire was softly sobbing and it was a good thing Maxine hadn't seen what the tears were and even more of a good thing that she even kept so many tissues in her bag. I heard Maxine say, "It's alright dear you just let it out. That song got the best of everyone." I couldn't decide if he put those thoughts of his in my head or if I was going el pollo loco. Then rather suddenly, time seemed to move again and the next thing I knew I was in Sookie's arms and she was crying.