Motivation of Memories: The Second Book of the Labors of Love Series

Opening Up

Prince's POV

I can't believe it. She slept through the night. No early rising. No gym. No trouble falling asleep. No waking up in the middle of the night. No tossing. No turning. Just sleep.

Maybe this was my first good night of sleep too.

I smile looking at her next to me. She seems more like herself as we ride the bus to soundcheck.

"What're you reading over?"

"My travel plans to go talk to Janet."

"What is there to talk about? Her dad said no to everything."

"I have no idea but she called me personally and asked for this meeting."

"And she didn't tell you what it was about?"

"No but I think she was in the airport. She was probably just in a hurry."

"Do you have to go before or after Syracuse?"

"After, on our next short break."

"That's good." She looks over at me with an inquisitive smile. I can't help but smile back.

"What?"

"I'm just glad yesterday went so good."

"Me too."

Andre sneaks up beside me and grabs my arm. I follow him to the back of the bus and we have a seat.

"What's up?"

"I forgot to tell you something about yesterday." I raise my eyebrows in anticipation. His face tells me it's nothing crazy but something still important.

"I heard her sing yesterday. Like really go for it."

"Okay?"

"She's holding out. Her range is huge and she switches genres well."

"What'd she sing?"

"Queen. Aerosmith. Aretha Franklin. Stevie. Luther. She can sing anything." I look over the music catalogs in my head. Those are some pretty heavy hitters.

"In their original keys?"

"Yea. Full voice. Full performance mode. Just in the car wailing like her life depended on it."

"She seem okay after?"

"Yea. She was just having fun, playing around and the craziest part is I don't think she was really trying."

"So what're you saying?"

"I'm saying smoking...it unlocked something in her. Something she doesn't always tap into."

"Have I ever seen her like this before?"

"You remember that one day on set she was dancing up a storm?"

"Like during rehearsal?

"No that one day she was pissed and went to the garage and danced to whatever came on the radio for like two hours." I look over my shoulder at her as she rustles through her papers. She's so full of surprises. Is there anything she can't do? I wish she felt comfortable just leaving it all on the stage. In all the ways she performs.

"You gonna help me?"

"I think you just gotta let her get high and let her perform."

"I'm not doing that."

"Only other option is to piss her off enough and hope she sings."

"I'm not doing that either besides. I don't want to hear her give my music her all. I want to hear her."

"I don't know what to tell you."

"Thanks for the help." I say plainly, rolling my eyes. I walk back to the front of the bus, taking my seat beside her again.

"What was that about?"

"He just forgot to tell me something." I shrug. "How are you feeling about Syracuse?"

"I don't think I feel anything about it right now. I'm refocusing my show. Probably just do a larger WOO instead of a bunch of different things." She flips to the back of her current notebook and shows me a draft of her concept. I tilt my head as I examine the doodles and notes scribbled beside them in the margins.

"Will you just tell me what you're planning? Your handwriting is too loopy and what the hell does WOO stand for?"

"Wiz of Oz."

"You know it's The Wizard of Oz right? Or are you talking about the Black one? That one's just The Wiz."

"I know but this performance is both. When my mother tells me to perform it she only wants to see me do the character songs but when I originally envisioned it, it starts with me singing Somewhere Over the Rainbow and I wear Judy Garland's dress but when we get to Oz it switches to the music from The Wiz. It felt like an embodiment of growing up somewhere and coming to find yourself in a new place and new culture. My Dorothy is very mixed up and a little uncoordinated. She hasn't learned to clap on the 2 and the 4 yet."

"That's sounds pretty funky."

"It was a pretty grand idea but it got simplified. So, normally, I sing the opening songs and dance the rest of them."

"But?"

"But I think I'm just going to sing them all."

"So you're just going to stand and sing through all the songs?"

"No. It's a stage production. I'll be singing and dancing. There will be other performers too."

"You're putting together a full production?"

"Yes."

"With other people?"

"Yes."

"With lights and props and costumes and all that?"

"Yea."

"In two weeks?"

"Mhm."

"Without rehearsing?"

"They are rehearsing. We've performed this a million times in the last three years. The only thing that changes is I'm singing instead of the track."

"But you've spent the last year working on Purple Rain. There's no way you all can put that together without a rehearsal!"

"We'll have one. It's the day before."

"And you know all your music?"

"Have ever known me to not know my music?"

"Fair point. You seem really confident in your friends."

"We don't disappoint each other." She smiles. I can almost see the memory playing back in her eyes. "That reminds me. Do you want to come to a party?"

"What party?"

"My old cover band is throwing me a welcome home party. It's more of a jam session with an audience and booze. We'll perform our old material and just have fun."

"Sounds like my kind of party."

"They're excited to meet you."

"They are?"

"Yea, no one can believe I found someone that works as much as I do. Plus they said they've never seen my smile look so real in pictures before."

"What does that mean?"

"Well before we met I only took pictures for pageants and dance but now that I'm dating a rockstar there are pictures of me in magazines all over the world. They said every photo we take together I seem more than content."

"What about that one shot they got when your shoe got stuck and I laughed?" She squints her eyes at me not happy with my joke. I can't help but laugh all over again.