CHAPTER TWO
-Several months later-
"Good evening Salem!" Liam Horton greeted through the mic.
The crowd cheered as loud as they could.
"No no no no no." Liam waved his finger. "I can't hear you. Let's try this again. What's up Salem!"
The crowd cheered even louder. Liam even heard some screaming.
"Wow," Phillip Kiriakis exclaimed. "I can't believe that's my nephew. Where was that shy and awkward boy I used to know?"
"I heard some of yall have come all the way from Wisconsin, Florida, New Jersey just to make it here tonight." The blonde informed. "And on behalf of every single artist of Meridian Records, I would like to thank you for your continuous support. You guys need to give yourself a round of applause." Liam said.
The crowd applauded.
Paul saw three members of the backstage crew carrying out a keyboard and a chair.
"I think it's time to take things down a little bit." Liam proceeded towards to the keyboard and took a seat.
"If someone don't come here within the next 10 seconds with a mic stand, he gon get fired" Liam stated as the crowd laughed.
Two men quickly ran out with the mic stand and quickly adjusted it.
"So I'mma take things down a little." Liam began playing a slow melody on the keyboard."As some of you know, I working on seven maybe eight-track EP and it's called 'Songs for Tammy'."
Sonny's heart sank when he heard the title.
"Does he love her that much?" Sonny wondered disappointedly.
"This next song I will be performing, will be dedicated to my wife." Liam informed. "This woman helped me though plenty of obstacles." He went on, "She motivated me when I was struggling through culinary school, helped me when I started out my first restaurant and together we started a life together."
Sonny was feeling more and more uneasy by the second. With every word Liam said, the more he felt like barfing.
"She helped me through one of the toughest breakups I had been through. She saved me, she's my angel." Liam smiled.
"Gosh, where can you find a man this dedicated to his wife?" A lady in the crowd fawned.
Sonny turned to his left.
"Gosh, Liam Horton I wish you were my husband." Another lady placed her hand on her own chest as if her heart was melting.
Sonny Kiriakis curled his fist into a ball, glaring at the two ladies.
"So this next song is dedicated to the one who broke my heart and the one who healed it." Liam announced.
Sonny narrowed his eyes.
Liam continued playing the keyboard when the crowd started waving their cellphones in the air.
And all I remember is your back
Walking towards the airport, leaving me back in your past
I sent fifteen hundred texts and you knew
Begged you to want me, but you didn't want to
Sonny felt a chill down his spine. He wanted to be angry with Liam, but he was completely mesmerized by the blonde's angelic vocals.
But piece by piece she collected me
Up off the ground when you abandoned things
Piece by piece she filled the holes that you burned in me
Six years ago and no…
She never walks away
She never takes my money
She takes care of me
She loves me
Piece by piece
She restored my faith
That someone can be kind
And a wifey could stay
The crowd was now completely silent.
Phillip was lost in a trance. The entire backstage crew stopped whatever they were doing and just watched Liam performed through the TV monitors.
Thoughts of Sonny walking out on him came to Liam's mind.
And all of your words fall flat
I made something of myself and now you wanna come back
"Sometimes I wonder do you want me now only because of who I am now." Liam wondered.
But your love it isn't free
It has to be earned
"You only want me because Paul is now in the dumpster right?" Liam questioned in his head while playing the piano.
Back then I didn't have anything you needed
So I was
Worthless…
"Tammy, I really wish you were still here. I really wish I'd never return to Salem in the first place." Liam was now trying to fight back his tears.
But piece by piece she collected me
Up off the ground when you abandoned things
And piece by piece she filled the holes that you burned in me
Six years ago and no
She never walks away
She never takes my money
She takes care of me
She loves me…
Liam lifted his hands from the piano. He was unable to continue playing.
The audience could now hear muffled sounds from the mic.
"I miss you Tammy, I miss you so much!" Tears were now flowing down his cheeks.
The audience applauded, attempting to give him moral support.
The blonde quickly wiped his tears away before placing his hands back on the keyboard.
Piece by piece…
She restored my faith
"I'm sorry." Liam apologized, which only resulted in the audience applauding even louder.
That a spouse can be kind
And a wifey could be… great
Liam quickly tried to finish playing the outro as quickly as possible.
Piece by piece…
Piece by piece…
By the end of the song, the audience cheered as loud as they could.
Liam broke down entirely.
"Tameka, please come back." Liam begged weakly.
Sami Brady's heart broke for his son. Tears started to trickle down her cheeks.
"Liam! Liam! Liam! Liam!" The crowd chanted away.
Liam quickly wiped away his tears. He giggled sheepishly. He felt touched by the moral support the audience were giving him.
-Present Day-
Gabi Hernandez stood up from the couch when she saw Sonny Kiriakis returned.
"Sonny, what happened?" She asked him worriedly.
"Tell me everything." Sonny demanded. "Tell me everything you know from the very beginning!"
Gabi sighed. "This is going to be a long night."
"Mrs DiMera has been taking her meds frequently." The nurse reported.
"That's good to hear." Chad nodded his head. "Thanks for keeping me updated." When he put down the phone, he heard an awful ruckus from outside his office.
"Where is he?!" He heard the voice shouting.
"Mr Kiriakis, Mr DiMera is in a very important phone conference!" He heard his secretary spaning out a frequently-used lie.
"Get him out now!" Sonny Kiriakis kicked the door wide open.
"Sonny!" Chad stood up and left his desk, "What are you…" Before Chad could finish his sentence, Sonny threw a punch at him, knocking Chad down on the floor.
"Mr DiMera!" The secretary quickly went by his aid. "Are you okay?" She quickly turned her head to Sonny. "Are you out of your mind? I'm calling security!" She took out her cellphone.
"No, Heather!" Chad grabbed her wrist. "It's okay, I can take it from here!"
"He punched you!" Heather argued.
"It's okay I promise!" Chad assured.
"I will get security to wait outside just to make sure you're alright." Heather left the office and closed the door.
"Argh! That hurt!" Chad groaned.
"You son of a bitch!" Sonny took a few steps forward, grabbed Chad by the shirt and pulled him forward. "How could you do this to me?"
"What do you mean by do this to you?" Chad questioned. "You were living happily with Paul!"
"Don't even try that!" Sonny barked. "You knew my husband was alive this whole time! You knew how devastated I was and you never tell me about me?"
"I had to protect Abigail! She was under Ben's mercy!" Chad raised his voice, trying to compete with Sonny's volume. "If he knew that Will was still alive, who knows what would happen to Abby! She's my wife for God's sake!"
"And you kept my husband away from me for almost six years!" Sonny threw another punch. Chad fell back onto his desk.
"You sent my husband away because you didn't want to be exposed." Sonny growled. "You wanted to take this secret to the grave!"
"That wasn't my idea! That was all his!" Chad stood up from the table. "It has been almost six years now! You have already moved on with Paul! If I were Will and I saw my husband dating another man, and not just any other man, Paul of all people! Do you honestly think I can take that lightly?"
Sonny tried to open his mouth, but he was left speechless.
"Look, I understand that you're mad at me." Chad lowered his voice. "But when Will first got back his memories, I saw the look in his eyes. It was pure devastation. He was like a zombie for days and his face went completely pale."
Sonny recalled the sudden change in his former chef's behaviour. He finally understood why Liam Robertson began ignoring him and shunning away in every situation possible. He understood why he got so uncomfortable around him.
"He is now Liam Robertson, successful chef and a rising Youtube celebrity." Chad said. "Why would he want to go back to feeling worthless and unloved?"
Sonny shut his eyes, reluctantly taking in every word Chad has to say. Chad was right, any idiot would have done the same thing.
In disappointment, Sonny Kiriakis waddled slowly out of Chad's office.
Heather quickly ran in with an ice pack. "Mr DiMera, are you okay?" She held Chad's head still and shoved the ice pack onto the black eye.
"Damnit Heather! That hurt!" Chad groaned.
"Thanks for letting me stay with you guys while I find a place on my own." Liam Robertson said.
"Sweetie, you is family!" Tamela exclaimed. "And family help one another. Besides, why bother hiring a nanny for Devon when he loves his grandma the most? Isn't that right, D?" Tamela gently pinched her grandson's cheek.
"Still, I feel guilty for imposing on you guys." Liam confessed. "Rest assured I will be out of your hair soon."
"You know, Alfonso has been asking a lot about you lately." Tamela informed.
"Alfonso?" Liam furrowed his eyebrows in curiosity. "What has he been asking about?"
"Ever since you sold the business to him, I heard that things ain't too good for them." Tamela said. "I heard that landlady is tryna kick them out of the place."
"That Alfonso!" Liam grumbled, "He's always letting everybody walk over him. Heck he's been like this since Culinary School!" He sighed, "He's always too nice. We livin in Queens for crying out loud! I need to help him."
Sonny Kiriakis sat on a bench in the park. In despondence, he reflected on himself over the past five to six years. He looked back on his relationship with Paul and Will. Paul was his first love. Over the course of the past few years, they had a rocky on-off relationship. Yet, they still managed to keep relationship afloat.
Then there was his husband, Will Horton. The man, who made him understand the importance of undying love. The man who made him understand not to take for granted. Despite Will's infidelity, Sonny knew that Will loved him and would do anything to salvage their marriage.
"A penny for your thoughts?" Sonny looked up and saw Paul Narita staring at him.
A/N: Ok that's it for now. I will definitely go through some of Liam/Will's life in New York and the death of his wife.
Song is 'Piece by piece' by Kelly Clarkson. That live performance really inspired me to write this chapter!
To be quite honest, I don't feel this is my best chapter, but review and tell me what you think! :D
Thanks for checking! :D