Page 71 of Giving Chase

"You say thank you. To our families who supported us. Our crew who kept us running. Our fans who kept believing. The industry that gave us a chance. And..." I find her in the group of people standing behind us, steel grey eyes bright with tears. "And to one person in particular."

The room goes silent.

"Eliza Kerr. You didn't just discover us. You didn't just sign us. You believed in us before we believed in ourselves. You saw what we could be before we knew how to be it. You protected us, guided us, fought for us. And personally..." My voice catches. "Personally, you saved me. More times than I can count. In more ways than I can say."

Will's hand finds my shoulder, steadying me.

"Everyone knows our story now. The ups and downs. The almosts and finallys. But what they might not know is that every song – every single one – was trying to say what I couldn't. What I can finally say now, in front of everyone: I love you. I've loved you for twenty years. And being inducted into the Hall of Fame wouldn't mean anything if you weren't here to share it."

The room erupts. I see Michelle dabbing her eyes. Justin whooping from his seat.

"To everyone else – thank you. For the support, the faith, the love. To my brothers..." I turn to Will and Mark. "We did it. We actually fucking did it. And we're not done yet."

The crowd catches that hint about the future, murmurs rising. I see Ryan and Jake exchange knowing looks – they've heard the new demos, know what's coming.

"Rock and roll isn't just about music. It's about truth. About heart. About love and loss and finding your way home. Tonight, we join the immortals. Tonight, we become part of rock history.But the best part? The best part is we get to share it with everyone who got us here. Everyone who believed. Everyone who stayed."

Michelle is full-on crying now. Justin's got that proud smile that looks just like his mother's. And Eliza...

I lock eyes with her one last time.

"Everyone who finally got their timing right."

The standing ovation drowns out everything else. Will and Mark envelope me in a group hug. Photographers go crazy. But all I see is her – the woman who first believed in our sound, who protected our vision, who saved my life, who waited twenty years for me to get it right.

Some dreams take longer to come true.

But they're worth every second of the wait.

Whispered Truths

ELIZA

Ryan takesOff the Recordfirst, his easy charm bringing fresh life to a song I've known since its birth in that late-night studio session. Jake follows withBurning Bridges, his rougher edge perfect for its angry heartbreak. The crowd is loving all of it, and I can’t help but feel the energy of the room lift to levels I don’t think we’ve seen tonight.

Then the lights dim.

A single spotlight finds Chase as the opening notes ofWhispered Truthsfill the arena, and the crowd goes crazy. My heart stops as his eyes find mine. This song - this song I've heard a thousand times, that I've watched crowds sing back to him in stadiums across the world, that I never knew...

In the silence between words,

In the spaces we don't fill,

There's a truth we've never heard,

A promise we can't fulfill...

Oh god. Every board meeting. Every studio session. Every time we chose silence over truth. My hands start shaking as the next verse strips away years of carefully crafted denial.

Drowning in expectations,

Reaching out as we both fall,

Every single complication

Echoes down this empty hall.

The crowd joins in on the chorus, thousands of voices singing our pain back to us. Michelle grabs my hand as the sound washes over me - all these people, all these years, singing about us without knowing. The way he's looking at me now, no substances dulling his eyes, no pretense left between us...

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