Macon walked into the busy square of his hometown. It was the yearly festival "Mullet Fest" and the town was bustling. He wandered over to "Sara-Beth Park" a park named for his great aunt who died of pneumonia at the age of seven. He looked around the town of Cordelia (named for his great-great-grandmother) and smiled. The small town had been his home for the first ten years or so of his life until his parents had decided to move to Dallas. He had hardly come back since then. But he was back now, and he did not plan on ever leaving his home again. His family had always been, and still was the largest landowner in the town, owning over 50% of all of the developed land. Most of the houses and businesses were rental properties rented out by families that worked either there or in nearby New Orleans. He was staying at his family home on the outskirts of town. A large five bedroom colonial that his great great grandfather had built for his family after coming over from France.
He sat on a bench in the middle of the park and people watched for a while, until he saw something that caught his breath. It was a group of young people (well younger than him) sitting on a pick-nic blanket. They were sitting and laughing, all five of them. Four of the five had plain black or brown hair, but then there SHE was. Her long red hair fell to her mid back like liquid fire in heavy rings. She was a beauty, all pale skin and bright hair, she wore a simple black sundress, with bright red shoes that matched her bright red lips. She had one of the black haired boys' heads in her lap and she was absently playing with his hair while talking and laughing. He said something to the group and Macon watched as she threw her head back laughing, exposing the pale skin of her neck to him.
Macon watched the group intently, the redhead his main focus. Jealousy raged every time she touched the boy with his head in her lap. The anger, lust and jealousy intensified as the boy reached up and pulled her down for a long kiss. The kind that only lovers shared. His fists clenched as he set his teeth. This was ridiculous, he didn't know anything about the girl, except that he had to possess her.
He was not sure how long he watched the group, but he watched until they left. The couple shared another long lingering kiss as they stood. Macon followed them, he followed them around to a small stage where they walked up and all reached for instruments, except the two girls. They picked up the microphones.
"Ladies and Gents, thank you all for joining us tonight" the boy said as he took the microphone from the beauty, "we want to thank you all for coming out tonight to mullet fest, and for sticking around to listen to us." Macon walked over to the bench seating and took a seat in front row center. "My name is Malachi Walker, behind me on drums you have my twin Marcus, on the bass is our friend Tobias Cooper." Macon watched as he walked to stand between the girls. "To my left here we have this ebony haired beauty Sasha Marks. Then to my right, the lovely Francesca Delacroix. WE ARE EBONY ROSE! LET'S GO!"
Macon grabbed the edge of his seat as Francesca stepped forward bringing the mic to her mouth, she began singing. He had no idea what she was singing, but it captivated him. He was stuck, barely breathing through the entire show. Her smile was wide, the enjoyment seeming to roll through her body.
He sat for over two hours watching her dance and sing. Her beauty and movement entranced him, her voice sounded melodious and pure. "OK ladies and gents," Malachi started again. "this is the last song of the evening, and it's one that means a lot to my girl and I." He grabbed Francesca's hand and pulled her close. "This is the first song we heard on our first date. Do you remember this Chessy?" he asked looking down at her. "I know we didn't rehearse this one together, but I also know that you know it by heart." She looked up at him with eyes brimming with tears. "Oh yeah, babe, I remember." He teased her gently, but kept hold of her tightly. The song was "ARE YOU GOING TO KISS ME OR NOT" at the end he leaned in "I'm going to kiss you" he said smiling and pulled her in for a dipped deep kiss. The crowd went wild. All but Macon.
When he righted her on her feet her face was the color of a beet and she looked dazed. The group took a bow amongst the thundering applause, and Malachi took her hand to guide the still dazed woman off of the stage.