Heart Strings

CHAPTER 9

A spotlight from above came to life, slowly, slowly brightening as the familiar strains of a tune that he had heard Holly and Eric play a half dozen times began, with only the two of them hi-lighted slightly right of center stage. His heart raced as the music filled the air, crisp, clean, heart-breaking in its purity. He'd had no idea that the two of them would be the opening show and he was so moved by their performance, he felt tears began to well up in his eyes. If they had sounded good in Holly's living room, they were exceptional in the acoustic surroundings of the music hall!

And Holly... God she was so beautiful! She wore a stunning, blood-red velvet dress that comfortably hugged her curves and ended about mid-calf; her blond hair much like an angelic halo softly caressed her face; and the way she smiled tenderly as she cradled her violin?... it was so much more than Bucky had ever imagined. Her assessment of Eric's talent on the piano was right on target; he played extraordinarily well. The two of them together was absolute magic... and the night had just begun! When they finished their version of Jar of Hearts, the crowd applauded wildly. Eric stood and bowed slightly before pointing at Holly who also bowed her head as smiled brightly. Looking into the crowd, she spotted Bucky and her smile turned into a silly grin... Bucky took that opportunity to send her a discreet two finger salute, which meant more to her than he could know.

For the next piece, more of the orchestra joined in, playing "Rain" by Simply Three, another wildly popular number that the crowd loved. On this one, Holly and Jean shined together, along with the cello, drums and eventually several other instruments completed the sound. With each new piece, more and more members of the orchestra took their place on stage and by the end of the 5th song, all members were accounted for. Bucky had never seen anything quite like it and he couldn't help the sense of pride, not just for Holly, but for Jean, Eric and all of the others... they were all so talented!

By the end of the night, Bucky's felt as if every emotion he posessed had been through the ringer. The entire evening had been filled with songs of love, heartbreak, loss, longing... the music had been crafted together like a love story, using old and new pieces of music that everyone knew and loved and wanted to hear over and over again.

As the musicians graciously accepted the thunderous applause during their final curtain call, Holly was overwhelmed by the crowd's reaction, and nearly brought to tears by their whistling and stomping feet when she and Eric took their bows together. Spotting Bucky again, she gave him a small wave as he beamed at her, his broad shoulders straining under the dress jacket he wore. She hadn't noticed before how handsome he looked, as he sat in the shadows on the ground level. When she left the stage, she grabbed one of the many attendants and asked that he please show Mr. Barnes the way backstage, pointing him out and getting a nod from Bucky as he watched.

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As corks popped and champagne flowed, laughter filled the room and everyone congratulated each other on a job well done. The Conductor made his way around to each musician, giving hugs and shaking hands and reminding everyone that they needed to celebrate lightly as they would be back on stage in less than 24 hours to do it all over again. He needn't worry as they had all played concert seasons before and it wasn't too long until the party began to break up.

Bucky, who hadn't left Holly's side for even a second since she had thrown her arms around him when he had joined her backstage, was looking quite content and happy to just watch. He had shaken hands with everyone who greeted him as he stood with Holly and was quite generous with his congratulations to Eric, whom he had decided was a good guy and an important part of Holly's life.

Grabbing her things, Holly tucked her arm under Bucky's as they left the building through a back exit. The night air was mild and the stars shone like jewels above them... and still Bucky could not take his eyes off of her.