I flipped on the radio, at some point, to fill the silence, in the car & after a few minutes, Nick started singing along to one of the songs that came on. I looked at him, astonished by his voice. "You sing beautifully." I said to him, which made him stop, abruptly & chuckle as if embarrassed. He covered his mouth, with his fist, laughing behind it, but then his laughter subsided & he continued to smile at me.
"Thanks. Sorry. Sometimes I get shy when people compliment my singing ability. I love music, though. Always have. At the restaurant my former best friend owned, I was a jack of all trades, but on the weekends, I played piano & sang in the bar, after the kitchen closed. It wasn't a huge crowd, which was good & most of the patrons were drunk... so I didn't care if I got stage fright."
"You shouldn't be singing for peanuts, Nick. Your voice is amazing. You need to be recording an album & going on tour. I should..." I was about to say something that would expose my lie, so I bit my tongue & shook my head. "I mean you should make a demo. Make a Youtube channel. Go to L.A. Do something."
Nick started laughing again, nervously & I was glad he hadn't caught on to my coverup. "There are way too many starving artists out there. We don't need another one. Especially one that is shy in front of crowds." He stopped laughing & bit his lip. "Technically, I'm just starving now, since I'm unemployed."
I chuckled, narrowing my eyes at him. "What's your plan now? Do you have one?"
He sighed, thoughtfully. "Nothing concrete. I was going to stay with my brother, hopefully. He'll be back later in the week & I can stay with him. If I can get a hold of him, he can tell me where he keeps his spare key." Nick looked at me & something on my face must have made him feel the need to explain. "My brother is on a cruise. He sings on ships as one job. His other job is a teacher, but he has summers off. He teaches music in a grade school."
I nodded, my eyebrows up with approval. "That is awesome. He can sing, too, huh?"
"Yep, me & my whole family can sing." He said, his chin up a little, then he looked out the window. "I sound like I'm bragging."
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"No. You sound proud." I said, concentrating on the road as the town came into sight. "We made it." I said with a sigh of relief.
"That's good." Nick replied, quietly. I got the impression he was hoping it would have taken longer.
I pulled into the motel parking lot & parked in a spot near the front office. I looked around, then frowned at Nick. "The garage is over there, but it looks like they're closed." I pointed with my thumb over my shoulder.
"I figured they might be." Nick said, then pressed his lips together & raised his eyebrows when he turned to look at me. "I guess this is where I get out."
"I guess so." I nodded, suddenly feeling like I didn't want to say goodbye to him, just yet.
Nick put his hand on the door handle & sighed. "I can't thank you enough for the ride. I really appreciate it."
