Page 57 of Sweet Music
But she never responded.
He knew in his heart then that he had lost her. But the next day he left one more message, just in case.
rockboy7:
i know you might never forgive me
but i’ll never forget you
there will be a ticket held for you at every show i ever play, if you ever forgive me i’ll be waiting
and one day i’ll be good enough to write that song for you
And all these years later, he still checked the app from time to time. But his Sweet Jane had never appeared again.
“Hey,” a deep voice called out from across the front lawn snapping him back to the present.“You’re still up?”
“Tripp,” Cash said as his brother approached. “Good to see you, man.”
“I couldn’t sleep either,” Tripp said, frowning.
“Why not?” Cash asked.
“I don’t know,” Tripp said. “Sometimes I feel like an outsider in this family.”
Cash looked over at his younger brother, surprised.
“That’s my thing,” Cash joked weakly.
“Not anymore,” Tripp said. “You’ve got a family now.”
“Only in the most technical sense,” Cash said, shaking his head. “I haven’t earned it yet.”
“You don’tearnfamily,” Tripp said.
“Well, I definitely didn’t earn mine,” Cash said. “Not yet. The way I behaved with thatboy’s mother…”
“I don’t get that,” Tripp said after a moment.
“What do you mean?” Cash asked, almost laughing. Tripp wasn’t exactly one to make commitments to women, so if anything, he shouldget itmore than the rest of the family.
“You just don’t do that kind of stuff,” Tripp pointed out.
“How would you know?” Cash asked, feeling a little defensive, even though his brother was spot-on.
“Well, we’ve known each other all our lives, for one,” Tripp said, his eyes on the mountains. “Plus, they talk about you online. They say you don’t party with the band, and you don’t fool around with women. Some of the guys think you’re crazy, but most of the women seem to love it.”
“So, you follow the gossip about me online, huh?” Cash teased, feeling secretly astounded that the online gossip was right for once.
“You don’t call,” Tripp said, shrugging. “You don’t visit. How else am I supposed to know how my brother is doing?”
“I’m sorry, man,” Cash said, feeling awful.
“It’s all good. I know you call Mom and Dad,” Tripp said. “And I also know the phone works both ways. But I see how busy you are. Do you ever stop touring?”
“I’m just trying to keep the music alive,” Cash said softly. “But lately, I don’t know. I’m tired.”
“It’s okay to take time off and recharge,” Tripp said.
