𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐲 | roger taylor

XXXIII

September 28, 1977

Sweat dampens my skin, pooling along my neck and running down my back, leaving it cool to the touch. Heat rolls off of my body in waves, and my heart scuds out a steady beat, working faster the harder I pump my legs down the sun soaked sidewalk. The last of summer dripped into September, leaving leftover warmth to greet us every morning and afternoon. I'm certainly not complaining- it means I can keep doing my morning runs later into the year.

Running became therapy to me, and I can hardly go a day without it. As soon as I have my coffee in the morning, my body itches to go run, feel the wind on my face and get lost in the smells and sounds of the suburbs. Since Audrey came, my life was centered around her. Running gives me a bit of time to myself, time to clear my mind and get my thoughts in order.

I begin to slow my rapid pace as my house comes into view. I slow to a comfortable walk, wiping cool sweat off my forehead with the back of my hand. As I enter the house, I immediately spot Roger and my daughter curled on the rug, playing with cloth dolls. Audrey's mouth is agape in a laugh that fills my heart, while Roger makes the doll do a wild song and dance.

"Hey," Roger says as I appear, briefly pausing the doll's "show" to greet me. His eyes flicker to me, taking in my glistening, red-faced appearance. "I made tea, there's more in the kettle if you want."

I nod, disappearing into the kitchen so as to not interrupt them. This past week and a half was something entirely new to my daughter and I. Roger quite frankly refuses to leave us alone, and I don't blame him. I can't help but feel guilty about keeping them apart, so I had agreed to allow him to visit whenever he wished.

"You don't have anything you need to be doing? Like, work?" I had asked him when he called our house one day, genuinely curious.

"Not until tour starts again, in November. I'm pretty much free until Fred nags me about something else," he had explained to me.

His statement had made my heart surge. Queen had just finished a summer tour, and now another one was beginning, in merely a few months? That definitely complicated things, and I made sure to add it to my list of things I needed to talk to him about.

The frequent visits are beneficial to the both of them, it seems. Roger adores her, and Audrey is warming up to him... with time. She still only sees him as one of my friends, but I'm sure if he eventually takes a permanent role in her life she'll start seeing him as her father. There are a lot of reasons why that's making me uneasy. She's still a toddler, and Roger isn't exactly going to be around all the time. He'll be leaving again in November, so who knows when we'll see him again?

I breeze back into the living room, where they're still playing their little game together. That's one thing that brings me constant joy- watching them play and interact.

Roger glances quickly up at me as I sit on the sofa, then turns back to Audrey. "Alright, who wins the singing competition?" he asks her, holding three dolls in his hand.

My daughter's face scrunches up, thinking. Today she's dressed in red overalls, with a matching ribbon tied in her dark curls. Audrey's blue eyes observe each doll carefully, before making her pick. "Out," she says, pointing to a doll with yellow hair.

Roger tosses it over his shoulder, and she squeals with delight. "Alright, down to the last two finalists. Will the young lady please remind us of their names?" he announces in a commentator's voice.

"Stacy and Macy."

"Perfect. Now, which of these two lovely, talented ladies deserves the trophy?"

Audrey ponders her decision for what feels like several minutes. Finally, she jabs a finger towards the pink-haired doll, her favorite one. With that, the other brunette doll goes flying over Roger's shoulder, and Audrey falls into another fit of giggles.