How was he going to perform a Red & Ice concert without Red?
Serene. He glanced at her. As if reading his mind, she shook her head.
There was no way she would ever get on that stage, and he was aware of it. For the first time in his career as a musician, he had to take the stage alone. He gripped the neck of his guitar, nodded his head once, squared his shoulders, and faced the microphone on the mic stand.
Only then did he realize that most of the crowd had everything Diana just did on video. “Forgive Diana, please. Forgive me also for what just happened.”
“Now what?!” someone in the crowd yelled out.
“What did you do to her?!” another chimed in.
A commotion followed and the rumble of the crowd grew louder and wilder by the second.
Serene had her eyes closed, her lips moving.
Out of the pure desperation of that moment, Nolan shut his eyes and said one short prayer in a whisper only he could hear: “God, if You’re listening, please. What do I do?”
At that very moment, a faint recollection of his childhood drifted on his mind. How music used to come to him. Music from somewhere other than his own self enveloped him, silencing — at least in his mind — the noise surrounding him. Losing himself in the music, Nolan’s fingers moved effortlessly, plucking the guitar’s strings and playing a song never heard before.
The audience grew silent.
The band picked up their instruments and accompanied him.
At first, only the melody. After a few seconds, the words eased into his soul like a sweet promise from heaven.
“One battered rose in a cluster of thorns,” Nolan sang into the microphone. “Where does the blood go once a heart is too worn?” The song expressed the sorrow of his heart over both the women whom he had pulled into being the Red to his Ice. At the end, he drew a breath and let his ears absorb pure silence. He had no idea whether the song was any good. What did it matter? It was true.
Applause erupted across the stadium until the mention of his name, uttered by one voice, morphed into a chorus of voices.
“Nolan! Nolan! Nolan!”
“It’s time to go solo!” a random voice rose above the chants.
From the front row, Serene had a big smile on her face and tears in her eyes, and to Nolan’s surprise, so did he. Nolan placed his forefinger over his lips. “Shhhh…”
Like a wave, one by one, the audience hushed across the stadium.
Nolan, however, could clearly hear the thumping of his heart against his chest. He cleared his throat and wiped a tear away. “I’d like to say a few words before we all figure out what we will do tonight.” He checked the side of the stage and found Ramona there, nodding for him to go ahead. Where was Diana? With a heavy heart, he continued to speak. “Diana Rake and I have been through a lot. Many of you joined us on our journey through The New Red. To be honest, she was right when she said that I did hurt her. That is something that I will always regret. On behalf of Red & Ice, to all of you who have supported us and loved us as a duo—” his gaze swept across the crowd “—I apologize. This tour has been difficult on both Diana and me. Even now, standing here—” He choked. He paused to get a hold of himself and reel the tears back in.
“We love you, Nolan!” a female voice boomed from somewhere in the audience.
The statement genuinely warmed his heart. A light chuckle escaped his lips. “I love you guys too. Thank you for all the support you’ve given us and our music.” Again, he cleared his throat. “Ultimately, that’s what we all came here for, right? The music. That’s what this is all about. The original Red, Serene Sinclair, whom you all may already know was my childhood sweetheart, is here right now. And no. She will not perform tonight. Her days as a rock star are over. She can, however, attest to the fact that I have always loved music and will always love music. I’d like to give my solo spin to the music of Red & Ice. Tonight will be the debut of Nolan Stone. Solo artist. You came for a concert tonight, and if you let me, I’ll give you one.”
A numbing silence filled the auditorium before a commotion in one area of the stage distracted the crowd. A clump of Diana’s hardcore fans stood from their seats and began demanding a refund. Some of the audience began to respond to those walking out with derision and more than a few boos.
“Please.” Nolan lifted his arms in the air in a motion for them to stop. “Let them be. Anyone who wants a refund can have it.” Once again glancing backstage, Nolan found Ramona’s eyes growing wide as she mouthed, “What?!”
He shrugged at her before refocusing on the audience. To his relief, most of them were still there.
“Just play,” Serene mouthed at him.
And so, he did. He turned toward his band and instructed them to follow his lead. Never had he been more thankful for how supportive and professional they were.
Nolan plucked a tune and belted out a note, and the moment he did, the crowd was his. He performed only his originals, the ones he had written without Diana’s input. A lot of them were Red & Ice classics. The audience was right there with him as he improvised each performance, making up for Diana not being there.
However, when he started playing the intro of Rocking Serene, the song that shot Red & Ice to fame, one lone voice crying out, “Sing it with Serene!” became a chant that filled the stadium: “Sing it with Serene! Sing it with Serene! Sing it with Serene!”
Nolan cast an apologetic look at her. Her cheeks flushed red as she closed her eyes. She looked terrified. He stopped playing and lifted his arms toward the crowd. “Hey, guys. Come on. We can’t force—”
The audience began to cheer.
To his surprise, Serene was approaching the stage.
This scene is an excerpt from The One Who Rocked Away.