Losing My Way (A Brian May fanfiction)

When The Curtain Falls

When we finally entered the lecture hall, Diana and I were quick to grab some unclaimed seats at the front. It was strange to be attending a rock gig at a university, and as I look around, I almost get the feeling I'll be sorely disappointed by the whole experience. There was an okay turn out, but it didn't have the same atmosphere or excitement of a bar. It wasn't exactly what I was craving, but I still kept my hopes high that the music would be good.

I took a brief glance through the audience for the mystery man from the hallway, but he seemed to be nowhere to be found. My search for him was interrupted when the lights of the room cut out, and the audience was left in the dark.

Just barely, I could make out the forms of some men walking out onto the small stage. Diana and I were in the front row, so they were hard to miss, but I'm sure the people further back had no idea the band had come out already. They all took their respective positions, and I saw one of them sit down behind the drums. I was eager to see the face of the guy that's spent the day swimming in Diana's mind, but it was still too dark.

"For fuck's sake, how long are they going to-" Diana started to complain, but she ate her words when a piano began to play out through the darkness, followed by the sound of a moaning guitar, and then a voice. A single spotlight shone down at the guy sitting behind the piano while he sang:

"Yesterday, my life was in ruin
Now today, I know what I'm doing
Gotta feeling I should be doing alright."

"Doing alright," The other members of the band echoed him, prompting the rest of the lights to turn up, displaying all four band members. My eyes immediately turned to the drummer, who was indeed as fit as Diana had made him out to be.

I gave my friend a playful "you were right" nudge in the ribs, and in turn, she pointed back toward the band, directing my attention to the guitarist.

Ah, so that's where the mystery man ended up.

My heart fluttered at the sight of him, his fingers were masterfully working to create some genuinely beautiful sounds. He was so focused, so into what he was doing. So damn handsome.

Whatever song they were playing seemed like it ended in a heartbeat, as I had become so entranced with the guitarist that I barely listened.

"They're so fucking good, Roger was right!" Diana squealed beside me.

"Yeah..." I droned, my eyes still locked on the curly haired god before me.

The guy at the piano stood up, beaming at the claps from the audience. He took center stage, and spoke into a different microphone that was set there.

"Thank you, you beautiful people!" The singer purred in a posh accent. "We thought we'd start you off slow tonight, before we really brought the heat!" The guitarist played one short rough riff, as if agreeing with the singer.

"Now here's a little number we like to call... 'Keep Yourself Alive'." The singer bowed, and the rest of the band began to play a faster song.

The song they opened with was beautiful, but "Keep Yourself Alive" was more my speed. It was exactly the type of song I needed to hear tonight. I fumbled for Diana's hand, and pulled her up to stand with me so we could start dancing.

It was magnetic. Everyone in the room seemed to shift from absolute strangers, to a crowd of people enjoying a great song together. The band played perfectly, and the singer sang with a breath taking voice. Hearing this song made me sure they were far too talented to be playing a gig at a school.

While Diana and I danced, I noticed Roger was periodically watching us when he wasn't looking at his drums. I squeezed Di on the arm and nodded toward him. She went wild under his gaze, feverishly swinging her hips, and flipping her hair around. He smiled widely at her, showing off a set of perfect, white teeth. Seeing this exchange was almost like watching one of those nature documentaries as a kid, where the animals perform strange mating rituals right before my parents would inevitably change the channel.

If I knew anything about Diana, I know that Roger's in for a good night.

Di and I continued to dance for the rest of the song, along with most of the crowd. While I danced, I felt like everything was melting away. This was the feeling of freedom I was so totally craving, and Queen was the band scratching my itch. I didn't have to think about church, or schoolwork, or college. I didn't even have the nagging voice of my mother in the back of my head telling me I wasn't behaving like a lady should. All I could feel was the music coursing through my veins.

Song after song, it seemed to never slow down again. I closed my eyes and got lost in it all.

•••

Eventually, the band began wrapping up their final song- which was dubbed "The Night Comes Down". It seemed they were going for a slow start, and a slow finish to punctuate their more energetic songs. The guys were glistening with sweat after each of them had played their heart out.

"And it's dark again
And it's dark again."

The singer sang out, and the lights slowly dimmed, while the wail of the guitar continued for the rest of the song.

Again, because Diana and I were in the front, we saw the band make a hasty exit when the room went completely dark. After they had gone, the lights flicked back on and the audience began to cheer and clap for their outstanding performance.

The band let the suspense linger for a bit before they came running back onstage for a final bow.

"Thank you all!" The singer called out. "I'm Freddie Mercury, and this is Roger Taylor," he gestured to Diana's heartthrob. "This is John Deacon," he pointed to the guy who played the bass guitar. "And this is Brian May." He finished, revealing the cute mystery man's name. "And we," they all huddled together with their arms around each other's shoulders. "Are Queen".