Page 128 of Fallen Stars

Oliver rises from his seat and smiles as he joins Hailey and Trip at the front of the stage. Stools and mics are set up. A stagehand brings them each an acoustic guitar.

A low hum dances under my skin as I watch him settle on the stool. As Oliver quietly chats with Hailey and Trip a moment, I think back to the last time he stepped out from behind his drums.

In a couple weeks, it will be a year since that night. When I drove to Smoky Creek and listened to him play his acoustic guitar and croon lyrics about life and love and us. That night was the first time I kissed him in public and didn’t care who saw us.

“Fallen Stars.”

A song he wrote for us. A song I haven’t heard him play since that night. A song that got me through some of the darkest nights of my life last year.

Eyes closed and chin tucked close to his chest, Oliver strums the opening chords of the song. But it isn’t “Fallen Stars.” Hailey and Trip pluck strings on their guitars and sway to the melody.

I know this song.

How do I know this song?

“A shocking surprise, you came out of left field. Broody and quiet with undeniable appeal.” Oliver’s fingers shift on the neck of the guitar. “A nameless boy, that’s who I was. Then our eyes met”—he lifts his head and meets my eyes—“and the world stopped and stumbled.”

The backs of my eyes sting and I swallow.

“Blue, you branded my heart. Reserved, you tattooed my soul.”

The tempo slows as Oliver tucks his chin once more.

“Hoarder of game pieces, you always needed control.”

The corner of his mouth twitches as he becomes one with his guitar.

“Even then, we danced in the shadows. Pretenders. Impostors. Lovers in disguise.”

Saliva pools in my mouth as emotion swells in my throat.

“And all I wanted was to be your light.”

Since the day Oliver entered my life, he has always been my light. A voice of reason. The one person I could always count on. The one person that made me want to be a better version of myself. My biggest motivator, advocate, friend, and hero.

“I’ll take the long road. Spend forever on your right.”

Again, he lifts his head. His brilliant green eyes lock onto and hold my blues.

“Be yours until the end. But only if you’re mine.”

Vision blurry, I mouth,forever mine.

A bright, toothy smile spreads across his face.

“Take my hand and never let go. Spend forever on my left. Be my home.”

The melody slows once more.

“Let me be your light, be your light, be your light.” He closes his eyes as the drawn-out notes float through the air. “Say you’re mine, always mine, forever mine.” His dazzling blues meet my blurry gaze. “Forever mine.”

The final chord echoes around the silent crowd. And then everything comes alive as whistles and cheers fill the amphitheater.

Frozen in place, my eyes don’t leave Oliver.

Freed of his guitar, he rises from his stool, takes Hailey and Trip’s hands, and bows. Then he hops off the stage into VIP and weaves between everyone to reach me. Wrapping his arms around my middle, he lifts me off the ground and kisses me as if no one is watching.

When I’m back on my feet, I frame his face with my hands. “When did you write that?”

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