Jasey Rae (Short Story)

Forget about me, it's what I deserve

“Meet me on Thames Street! I’ll take you out but I’m hardly worth your time. In the cold you look so fierce but I’m warm enough. Because the tension’s like a fire! We’ll hit South Broadway in a matter of minutes and like a bad movie, I’ll drop a line fall in the grave I’ve been digging myself but there’s room for two. Six feet under the stars.” As I sung out as I gazed across the familiar faces below the rafts of the modern building they dubbed a ‘Church’. I caught her green eyes, sparkling from the crowd, she grinned encouragingly at me as she sang along. We’d barely had time to chat before I had to hop up on the also falsely-named wooden platform they called their ‘stage.’ After all the experiences of bright lights and stardom we’d had in the two years it really taught me how people learned to appreciate the little things. I finished the song and Jack swapped out for an acoustic and started the intro for Remembering Sunday. I walked around slowly, singing the start. I noticed her hustle to the front, mouthing along, that beautiful smile never leaving her face. I got to halfway through and spoke into my mic during the instrumental.

“I’m going to quickly ask my old friend to jump up here with me and sing Juliet Simms part. You know the words, don’t you?” I grinned cheekily, winking down at her. She gasped, looking angry momentarily at me for embarrassing her. She shook her fringe onto her face, blushing and hiding. She stepped back for a second. I took the mic away from my mouth for a second and put my hand down to her, offering to pull her up with me.

“Come on, Jasey.” I whispered. She smiled and nodded, locking her hand with mine and taking a microphone off Zack.

This was it. This was living the moment. Singing on stage with the girl of my dreams, listening to her sing for me, with me. Even if it was only in this crappy little community building in Maryland. These were the small moments we cherished.

“The neighbour said she moved away, funny how it rained all day. I didn’t think much of it then but it’s starting to all make sense. Oh I can see now. That all of, these clouds. Are following me in my desperate endeavour, to find my whoever, wherever she may be.” I held out the note and waited for her to cut in on cue, which she did perfectly.

“I’m not coming back! I’ve done something so terrible I’m terrified to speak but you’d expect that from me. I’m mixed up I’ll be done now the rain is just washing you out of my hair.” She turned to me and smiled, those sparkling raw eyes burning holes in me. Could she sense that something was wrong? Could she tell I was nervous? Worried? Could she smell the guilt on me? I worried, but hid it, smiling back at her encouragingly. She turned back to the crowd, the yellow lights silhouetting her curved back.

“AND OUT OF MY MIND!” She belted out perfectly. “I’m keeping an eye on the world; I’m so many thousands of feet off the ground. I’m over you now I’m at home in the clouds. I’m towering over your head!” I took over from her for the last bit of the song, watching her drop her arm and breathe heavily, excited from the moment. I finished the song and gave her a big hug, lifting her feet off the ground. The crowd cheering beside us.

Don’t make this easy I want you to mean it, Jasey. Say you’ll mean it. You’re dressed to kill, I’m calling you out. Don’t waste your time on me.

“That was absolutely amazing, Alex. Thank you so much.” She said, sighing and flopping onto my bed. I was back at my parents again. I’d texted her asking her to come around. I sat cross-legged beside her, perched on the edge of the bed. She lifted her head, looking up at me briefly, and then flopped it back down on the pillow. Her choppy layered hair splaying out around her.

“How long are you home for?” She asked softly, her voice blending with the once again dark of the room. I cringed at the use of the phrase ‘home’. I mean, this was my home after all, but it made it sound like commitment. I belonged here, but it made me feel guilty for not being able to come home as much. We’d had plenty of opportunities on our routes, but I think I’d been purposefully avoiding it.