Chapter 50

Lucky sat nervously backstage. He was the last performer in the first set, and he was starting to second-guess his song choices. It had seemed like a good idea at the time, but now that he was so close to having to actually sing them, he was scared to death. For the past week, he had avoided the subject of the talent show every time Elizabeth brought it up, which was often. She had been trying to get him to tell her what he was singing, but he refused, saying it would be a surprise. Boy, would it ever...

~*~

Luke had talked Mac into saving the front-row-center table for them, so they could have a clear view of Lucky. He know his son would probably kill him for that, but he didn’t care. He was so proud of him for doing this, and couldn’t wait to hear him sing. After all, no one but Lucky himself had heard him sing yet! As the first act started, he glanced around the table at his “family”. Laura was sitting on his left, Liz was on his right, in the seat closest to the stage. She had her back to the table so she could see the performers. Emily was on the other side of her, and Nikolas was between Emily and Laura. He chuckled at the fact that Nikolas was actually sharing his table. A few months ago, he wouldn’t have believed it, even if he saw it for himself!

Liz was watching the first performer, but not really paying attention. She just kept thinking about what Lucky was going to play. He had been so secretive about it, she was dying to hear the songs now. Even though she’d never heard him sing before, she had a feeling he was going to be wonderful. She felt all jittery, almost like she was the one going on stage instead of him.

Luke looked around the room. Pretty much everyone they knew was there. They had all come out to see Lucky, not only to hear him sing, but to keep tabs on him for the bet. He still got a chuckle out of how a harmless little bet between him and his wife had become a full-blown gambling ring!

~*~

“Okay, Lucky, you’re next,” V said, pushing him to the curtain behind the stage. The contestant before him was just finishing, and she was determined to keep things moving. He sighed and picked up his guitar, taking a deep breath, hoping it would chase away the nauseous feeling in his stomach. How did he get himself into this? Okay, so Elizabeth got him into it, but why did he let her? Well, he knew the answer to that one too, and sighed as the previous contestant came offstage.

“You’re up!” V shouted over the applause, pushing him on-stage. He approached the microphone and cleared his throat nervously. They had been instructed to do their own song first, and then the cover tune. He sat down on the stool that was provided and started the first chords of his song, briefly glancing at Elizabeth, who was sitting right in the front, smiling at him. He made a mental note to kill his dad later for taking that table.

Softly, he began to sing...

(lines in italics are background vocals. I know it’s just him in the story, but just assume he found a way to do it!)

You’re under sheets
Tepid wall
Luke-warm shield of sheets
Your insides are frozen from past defeats
Well let go, and

Trip if you have to
won’t you fall
Trip if you have to
fall for me
We’re almost there babe
won’t you fall
This road we’re traveling
fall for me

And just forget about this telephone sinkhole
And just forget about this sexual overtone
Let’s just cut right down to the bone
And let go

Well we know what you want
Baby, baby, baby I know what you need
Yes I do
Let’s turn our leaf and shelter underneath
Yeah
Shelter underneath you

And just forget about your adolescent romance
And just forget about your fear of the fast dance
Let’s take it off, down and take a chance, and

Trip if you have to
won’t you fall
Trip if you have to
fall for me
We’re almost there babe
won’t you fall
This road we’re traveling
fall for me
It’s our own

We’ll get through we must get by
Slow-dancing through the night
Then we’ll spin until we fall

He sang the entire song staring out into the audience, but at no one in particular, because he knew that if he actually looked at anyone, especially her, he would chicken out. Everyone applauded, and he took a quick drink of water before launching into the next song.

Everyone was floored by how well he sang, and how beautiful the song was, but Liz was just plain dumbfounded. Was that song about her? There were so many references, the sheets, the dancing stuff, most of the song, really. She didn’t want to let herself believe it, but what other explanation could there be? Oh, why couldn’t he have sung something else, something that would have made it more clear?

Her question was answered when he began to sing the next song.

I can't fight this feeling any longer
And yet I'm still afraid to let it flow
What started out as friendship, has grown stronger
I only wish I had the strength to let it show

I tell myself that I can't hold out forever
I said there is no reason for my fear
Cause I feel so secure when we're together
You give my life direction
You make everything so clear

And even as I wander I'm keeping you in sight
You're a candle in the window on a cold, dark winter's night
And I'm getting closer than I ever thought I might

And I can't fight this feeling anymore
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
It's time to bring this ship into the shore
And throw away the oars, forever

Cause I can't fight this feeling anymore
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
And if I have to crawl upon the floor
Come crushing through your door
Baby, I can't fight this feeling anymore

My life has been such a whirlwind since I saw you
I've been running round in circles in my mind
And it always seems that I'm following you, girl
Cause you take me to the places that alone I'd never find

And even as I wander I'm keeping you in sight
You're a candle in the window on a cold, dark winter's night
And I'm getting closer than I ever thought I might

And I can't fight this feeling anymore
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
It's time to bring this ship into the shore
And throw away the oars, forever

Cause I can't fight this feeling anymore
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
And if I have to crawl upon the floor
Come crushing through your door
Baby, I can't fight this feeling anymore

As the song ended, Luke looked over to Laura and raised his eyebrows as if to say, “does that count?” She just smiled an shook her head. No, he wasn’t going to win until Lucky actually spoke directly to Liz. She was going to make this as difficult as possible.

Elizabeth’s head was spinning as Lucky stepped backstage and V came on to announce the first break. All she could hear was her heart pounding in her ears. She knew the other people at the table were probably staring at her, but she was frozen in place. After what felt like an hour, Lucky came out and smiled nervously at her. Figuring that his parents weren’t going to budge, he motioned for her to go with him over to a deserted corner. She got up slowly, afraid her legs were going to fail her, but managed to walk over with him.

“Hey, get over there!” Luke whispered to Nikolas, motioning to his retreating son.

“How? If he sees me, he’ll kill me!”

“I don’t care. Just hurry before he says anything! You remember the code, right? I think this is going to be the magic moment,” he said, grinning.

Nikolas nodded and stood up. He walked over and stood behind a potted plant, straining his ears to hear them.

“Lucky, that was beautiful. I can’t believe you’ve never sung for anyone before!” Liz gushed, trying to calm the butterflies in her stomach.

Lucky blushed. “Thanks. I guess you could say I was inspired.”

“Inspired?” she asked, her voice cracking.

He nodded and took her hands. “Elizabeth, I know that we haven’t known each other that long, and that for most of that time we got on each other’s nerves more than we got along, but lately I’ve... this isn’t coming out right, let me start again.”

He took a deep breath and looked into her eyes. She was smiling at him, waiting patiently for him to speak again. She looked so calm, although inside, she felt like she was about to burst. “Elizabeth, these past few months have been both the most frustrating and the most amazing months ever. That day we met in the parking lot, I would have never imagined that you would turn out to be one of my best friends, and one of the most important people in my life. I’m probably making a huge mistake, but I have to say this. My dad was right, and if you know anything about me by now, you know how hard that is for me to admit. I’ve fallen for you...hard. I don’t know how or when, but I’m in too deep now to turn back. I’ll understand if you don’t feel the same way, but I just needed to tell you, to get it off my chest.” He chuckled. “I thought I’d feel better, but now I just feel...”

Before he could continue, Elizabeth placed her finger on his lips. “Shh. Lucky, you’re rambling.” He smiled sheepishly and blushed, waiting for her to say something. She took a deep breath, gathering her thoughts. “First of all, I’ve never had anyone write a song about me, and I was so touched by it, I can’t even explain it. Thank you for that. And as for how I feel, you are so off the mark, it’s not even funny! Sure, when we first met, I didn’t like you much. You were rude and obnoxious and chauvinistic, and you did everything you could to irritate me. But then after spending time with you I realized that was all an act, that the real Lucky Spencer was caring and gentle and funny. I don’t know when things changed, but somewhere along the line something happened, and...” she trailed off, trying to find the right words.

“What? What happened?” Lucky asked anxiously, praying that she was about to say that she felt the same way he did.

She smiled up and him, their eyes meeting. “I tripped.”

Those two words were like music to his ears. He gently touched her cheek, their eyes speaking volumes to one another. Finally, he brought his lips down onto hers and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She threw her arms around his neck, cradling the back of his head as their kiss deepened. They were in their own world, completely unaware of the activity around them.

Behind the plant, Nikolas grinned and made an “L” with his thumb and forefinger, flashing the signal to the small group that had gathered around their table that Lucky had made the first move. There was an immediate flurry of activity as people began cheering and exchanging money.

“Okay, baby, hand it over,” Luke said to Laura, grinning from ear to ear.

“Hold your horses there! I may owe you $50, but you own me $100 from the first bet. You didn’t think I’d forget that, did you?” she asked smugly, holding out her hand.

“Yeah!” Emily said, whirling around to face Nikolas, who had just come back from his post behind the tree. “Fork it over, loser-boy. If I’m not mistaken you were wrong on both bets, and, gee... wait a second, what do you know? I was right Come on on, $150, right here!” She put out her hand and wiggled her fingers, laughing, as Nikolas shook his head in defeat and pulled out his wallet.

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