Page 77 of Indescribable Love
After a few minutes of ribbing about fragile egos in this business, Simon was ready to get them back on track.
“Okay, let’s run through our first three songs of the set to get the sound guys going.” And as always, “The Power of You” was the opening song. He took his position—the one he started in every night when the curtain dropped—and let himself get lost in the music for a little while. It wasn’t like he’d been on a huge break; the week off had been one of the lowest points in his life and it just felt good to be back doing what he loved. Music had always been a refuge for him, and it still was.
Sound levels were tweaked, lights were moved around, but they had a fairly decent blueprint for his shows and it never took long to get everything just right. His crew was amazing, and they worked like a well-oiled machine together. By the end of the third song, everyone stopped to grab some water, and then Simon decided to change things up.
“So…the song I gave you guys last night? I’m thinking of throwing it in next,” he explained. “I know it’s not polished yet, but I think it could fit here. What do you think?”
“You’re going to introduce it, right?” his keyboardist, Aidan, asked. “You gonna just wing something, or is there a story?”
He chuckled. “There’s always a story,” he said as he walked toward center stage and picked up the mic so everyone in the arena would hear him. “I’m thinking it would go something like this…”
Pausing for a moment, Simon pretended there were tens of thousands of people sitting in the audience.
“I want to thank you all for being with us tonight! Are you having a good time?” Then he paused because he knew there would be tons of screaming at that point. “That’s good, that’s good. We’ve been on the road now for months and we’ve been playing the hits that you all know and love, but sometimes we like to give you a taste of something I’m working on.”
Another pause for the screaming.
“Just a word of warning, this song was literally written a couple of days ago. The boys and I have only played it together last night.” He paused for dramatic effect. “But out of all the music I’ve been creating lately, this one just begged to be shared.”
Behind him, an acoustic guitar began to play.
In the depths of your eyes, it's undeniable…
A love so fierce, it's simply indescribable…
We're walking on the edge, no fear inside,
In this world of chaos, with you, I'll ride.
And then, the music built up as he stood in place and sang with everything he had. His heart was pounding, but this song, more than any other, was a look into his soul. It was a promise, a plea, for a future he was desperate for.
This love is undeniable, wild and untamed…
In your arms, I'll never be the same…
We'll break the rules, defy them all…
In this indescribable love, we'll take it all.
The acoustic guitar was back, repeating the intro as Simon walked to the edge of the stage and jumped down. When he did that in the middle of a show, he was surrounded by security and there was a path clearly marked and roped off. But for the sake of the moment, he could go wherever he wanted.
And he wanted to go directly to Juliette.
Slowly, he made his way up the aisle to where he knew she was sitting. Celia was practically bouncing in her seat, and Simon had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing.
“Sweet Juliette,” he began, still speaking into the mic, and then sang the last line.
In a world that's lost, we've found our way,
In your love, I'm here to stay.
We'll rise above, we'll take the fall,
In this indescribable love, we'll conquer all.
By this point, the music faded away and he was standing right beside where she sat. Those gorgeous green eyes shone bright with unshed tears. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Nikki stand before she took the mic from him.
“Welcome back, my sweet girl,” he said softly, holding out his hand to her. She took it as she stood, and he gently tugged her close. “Hi.”