Right To Be Heard: Epilogue
Adam peered out the curtain at the small dinner theatre, and tried not to be nervous. It wasn’t that the place was especially full or crazy. It was what the night represented.
Tonight, it had been nearly a year since he’d had surgery, and it was his first time back onstage performing. Adam would be performing two songs. An acoustic version of Starlight and Speak, which he hoped to perform as a duet with Alisan, if she ever got her ass there.
He locked himself in the men’s room and tried to calm his anxiety and focus on his warm-ups. But his mind kept wandering. He had invited everybody from tour, even though he knew they were all busy with their own lives or careers. Still, there were people in the audience that he absolutely did not want to disappoint. His parents. God, even Neil had shown up in an uncharacteristic show of support. Katy had gotten back to him right away, telling him that she and Kris would be there.
And there was one more special guest, who he made sure he could see when he looked at the people.
He had gotten Tyler’s contact info out of the inside of her notebook cover and given her a call, once the date got closer. Adam was pretty sure he’d given her the shock of her life. Who really expects a call from him after all? But to her credit, Tyler kept her cool and said that she would it would be her honor to come out and hear him sing. She even thanked him for remembering her, and told him he sounded great.
Tyler didn’t know it, but he was doing Starlight for her.
Before he knew it, it was time to go on, and Alisan, being Alisan, was nowhere to be found, despite her excited proclamation that she wouldn’t miss this for anything.
Offering up a quick thanks to the universe, Adam took the microphone and spoke.
“Hey, I’m glad you all could make it tonight. If you’re here tonight, you probably know I’ve had an insane year. Because of some vocal health issues, I wasn’t able to sing for the last nine or ten months. But I’m back. It’s going to be a little different than you’re used to from me, but hopefully you’ll really enjoy it.
“This first song is a cover that I did on tour last summer. It’s called Starlight. Tyler, this one’s for you.”
Scanning the audience, he found her sitting at a table and smiling. She looked much the same as she had the first time he saw her. Jeans and a college shirt, her hair in the pretty cornrows he admired so much. She sent him a nod of encouragement, and was promptly distracted by whooping from the direction of Kris and Katy’s table.
Laughing, Adam began. He sang the song gently, with only acoustic guitar, pacing himself and making eye contact with the audience. He could see Tyler, her eyes shining as she just sat quietly and listened.
Adam got through Starlight in one piece and began the intro to Speak, when from the darkness, he saw someone stand and walk up to join him onstage.
Calmly, Alisan took the second microphone and listened to him finish talking about how the song came to be. He mentioned Kris, his parents, Neil, Tyler, and Katy, and then he introduced her.
Then, their voices twined together, singing the words he had written all those months before. Where there had once been only melody, now harmony suddenly existed, and Alisan felt herself tearing up as she sang his lyrics.
Adam knew better than to get emotional. He focused and channeled what he was feeling, but he didn’t let himself let go. Not yet.
First, he finished, gave Alisan the hug she deserved, and then he let himself go. He heard the audience rise to their feet but didn’t notice. Only when all those he asked to come were suddenly around him onstage. Their compliments running into one another in a huge happy sound, as they embraced him.
“You did great, honey,” and “Awesome,” from his parents.
“Who knew you inherited some writing talent?” From Neil, of course.
“I love you so much.” That was Alisan, holding him close.
Kris and Katy tackled him and kept cheering him on as if his return to music was the equivalent of the Super Bowl. “You were amazing!” Katy exclaimed. And then, “Wasn’t that worth the wait?” from Kris.
Adam was lost in the sea of people when he felt a scrap of paper being pressed in his hand. The thank you was barely a whisper in his ear. He glanced up in time to see Tyler’s retreating back, and nearly spoke up to call out to her when he realized that wasn’t advised.
So, instead, he took a few steps away from the throng of people, and opened the note.
It read:
“You are just as beautiful silent as you are with a voice.”