He held me closer to him. “I am happy. I have you and Amelia. You girls have brought me nothing but joy. Well, you definitely. Amelia brought me joy and gray hair.”
The Amy Evans Show
Skyler
The green room at the Amy Evans show was nothing much to speak of. A few couches, a catering table with water, coffee, and snacks, and a large flat screen TV taking up an entire wall.
I always wondered why they called it a green room. Google revealed that, back in the day, they always painted the room where performers waited green. Not this room, though, that’s for sure. Seems Amy Evans had a thing for hot pink.
“She goes on in ten minutes,” Amelia said, coming to stand next to me. I nodded as I watched audience members shuffle onto the set on the large screen.
“Is she nervous?”
“Sweating bullets,” she laughed. “But she’s also very excited. She has the wardrobe crew from the Hallelujah video pampering her.”
It was killing me not to go to Elsie. They sequestered me away in a separate room so we could stage a surprise. Elsie thought I was meeting with lawyers right now, much as I had the previous week. I filed legal papers suing the photographer who took our picture. I’m not sure if it’ll go anywhere, but I had to feel like I was doing something. The lawyers said we had a decent chance.
I knew all this needed to get done and fast, but I missed being with her. She needed solitude to work, and I had to be in LA to manage the lawyers. She and I talked on the phone daily, sometimes more than once since she ran out of my house that morning. I was going through severe withdrawal.
“Here…have some of this.” Camille handed me a glass of champagne as she took a long swallow of hers.
“Really, Camille? It’s not even noon.”
“It’s five o’clock somewhere,” Amelia said, snatching the flute from my hands and tipping it back.
“We’re celebrating, Skyler,” Cam said.
“What are we celebrating?”
“Elsie’s introduction to the world!” Amelia lifted her hands in victory.
“And you.” Cam smiled a real genuine smile. It was kind of scary coming from her. “Falling in love. Being happy. Making music. Coming back to life…”
She didn’t have to finish that sentence. I knew she was talking about Benny’s death and my subsequent decline, and she was right. Elsie had brought me back to life. I woke up in the morning excited at what I’d be doing next, thinking about plans and the future. Things she and I could do…together.
“Nice, they have cheese puffs!” Billy’s voice interrupted our emotional moment. He entered the green room and beelined right for the catering table.
“Don’t eat too much. We go on in half an hour,” I warned him.
“Bah! I’m not the one singin.’ I could chop on the ax after a rack of ribs,” he said with his mouth full.
“You haven’t changed,” Amelia snorted.
“Why improve on perfection?” Billy said, popping a small orange ball. I learned after I’d hired him that Billy and Amelia knew each other before she took over the label when he was starting with FiveDust. Billy was genuinely good people.
The red light on the wall flashed—filming was about to start. We all took our seats and watched, rapt.
“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Amy Evans show!” the MC toned. “Here’s your host…Ammmyyyy Evannnssss!”
A woman walked on stage wearing a bright pink pantsuit, her blonde hair ridiculously styled into some sort of poof. They covered her in jewelry—big rings, a diamond necklace, and drippy earrings. She gave Ivana Trump a run for her money.
Despite her looks, we knew Amy Evans was the perfect choice for Elsie’s first appearance. Her show’s ratings were second only to Oprah, and she had an anti-paparazzi stance. When she was just starting in show business, a pap filmed her in a risque situation. It didn’t stop her, though. Here she was, talk show host for the people.
“Welcome, everyone. I have an amazing surprise for you today. You’ve all heard of Skyler Dalton?” She paused as the crowd went crazy. I started laughing when the camera panned to one woman looking like she was going to faint.
“Now, now, now… Unfortunately, it’s not Skyler with us today.” Groans filled the audience. “But my guest is the most important person in his life.”
Damn right she is.
“Songwriter, and Skyler’s new flame, Elsie Clarke, is here to talk with us today and perform a song from her upcoming album, The Sound of Feelings. I give you Elsie Clarke.” Amy moved offstage, her hand swept out to the side.
Elsie stepped from behind the curtain and my breath caught. She looked amazing. The girls outdid themselves.
She had on black, sparkly leggings, knee-high boots, and a shiny tank top covered with a tight leather motorcycle jacket. She looked badass.
They pulled her hair away from the scarred side of her face to highlight Harley’s artistic vision. She’d painted an elaborate phoenix on the side of Elsie’s face, trailing all the way down her neck.
A phoenix rising from the ashes. Perfect.
Elsie performed a song we wrote together last night over FaceTime. We called it Scarred Melody. We’d written it with the question, if her scars could sing, what would they say?
The camera panned around the audience as she sang. I nodded, seeing they were appropriately awed. The woman could sing. Her feelings enveloped you with the sound.
When she finished, the audience lost their mind clapping, hooting, and hollering. Elsie took a bow and made her way over to the couch to the left of the stage.
“That was phenomenal!” Amy gave her a hug before they sat down.
“Thank you. I wrote that last night.”
“You wrote that just last night?” Amy’s eyes bulged. “Nothing like last-minute inspiration.”
“Last minute but a long time coming,” Elsie said. “The song…the album…singing here today.”
“Tell me about that. Now, what some people here might not realize is that you’re the daughter of famed singer Hannah Clarke and Clarke Records owner, Ellis Clarke.”
“That’s right,” Elsie nodded. “They actually founded the label themselves. They weren’t happy with how their previous label was handling things so as my father likes to do, he took it in his own hands, and now the label helps dozens of new artists find their niche every year.”
“Yes, Clarke Records is known for taking on new acts. And you’ve worked with a lot of them, correct?”
“That’s right. I’m the head songwriter. Since I was sixteen.”
“Sixteen?” Amy’s eyes bulged again. Hopefully, her eyeballs wouldn’t fall out of her head.
“I’ve been writing songs and playing music since I was eight years old. I’d play with my mother a lot. When I was six, they diagnosed me as an autistic savant with an eidetic memory. I can play almost any instrument and write songs quickly.”
“But you don’t present as a typical autistic.”
“Well, autism is a spectrum, not a yes or no condition. Some of us are higher functioning than others. I’m high functioning because I can do things in life that most normies can.”
“But you’re certainly not normal; you’re extraordinary.” Amy turned towards the crowd and swept a hand in their direction. “Am I right?” The audience cheered in response and Elsie’s smile was genuine. She didn’t twitch at all, telling me she was doing okay. “Now, tell me about your mother. She died when you were fourteen, is that correct?”
“Yes, she did.”
Amy frowned dramatically as an audible gasp echoed through the room. “I’m very sorry to hear that. She was a rare musical talent.” People began to clap in recognition of Hannah Clarke.
“Thank you. And yes, she was.” Elsie braced herself. I could see her shoulders stiffen, and she grabbed the edge of her jacket, rubbing it between her fingers. “She died in a car accident, bringing me home from violin lessons. That’s how I was injured.”
Amy’s h
and flew to her chest and clutched her chest, “You were in the car with her?” She asked in a hushed voice.
“I know the papers didn’t mention it, we tried to keep it quiet. But yes, I was there and suffered severe burning.”
“But you’re fine now?”
“Physically, I’m fit as a fiddle. It took two years for me to gain back full movement and they had to reconstruct my ear, but everything else works just great. The only downside is the scarring.” Despite her smile, Elsie was still fiddling with her jacket, telling the truth about her nerves.
“Which, of course, the public has been cruelly lambasting you for over the last week.” Amy turns to the camera. “Paparazzi are suspected of trespassing on private property to catch Elsie and Skyler unclothed. They posted an almost entirely nude photograph of Elsie online. And though it’s been taken down, it raises a lot of questions about public lives and rights to privacy.” She turns back to Elsie. “You may not know Elsie, but in my early career, I was also a victim of a reckless photograph and, as a result, experienced bullying and shaming. When it happened to me, the consensus was I should just get over it. Do you think we just need to get used to this?”
“I’m not sure we can change the nature of people. People hurt, and hurt people lash out and try to tear others down. What we can do is consciously reach out to those being targeted and help them. Whether it’s legally, psychologically, or just as a friend. Skyler and I are working to develop a program for victims of media violation and bullying.”
“Tell me about that program.”
“We’re calling it Hannah’s Help. We’ll be fundraising for legal and psychological support for victims like us who can’t afford to or don’t know how to defend themselves.”
The audience began clapping and a few whistled in approval. Elsie nodded her appreciation in their direction. She was a natural and I was in awe of her stage presence as if she’d been doing this her whole life.
“Wow, I really wish that had been available to me years ago. You can count on my support, Elsie. It’s very special that you named it after your mother.”
Elsie’s smile was huge. She and Amy were getting along very well, and it was making her more comfortable. She’d stopped rubbing her jacket.
“Today you aren’t ‘wearing your scars,’ so to speak. You’ve put on some rather amazing and artistic makeup. Can we get a camera to zoom in on this and give viewers at home a better look? This phoenix is truly incredible, and what a powerful statement.”
They zoomed in close to Elsie’s face. She turned her cheek, giving the audience a great view of the elaborately painted phoenix. “Harley James, who I worked with on the Hallelujah music video, designed this phoenix I’m wearing. She’s an incredibly talented makeup artist. I used to wear a mask to cover my face, but I don’t do that anymore. The mask was more about hiding, and this is more about expressing myself.”
“So you’re not trying to hide anymore?”
“No. I’ve hidden away since I was fourteen. Though I was saved from the torture of public scrutiny, I didn’t have a life. I’d like to choose life now.”
The audience erupted once again, hooting out in agreement.
“What an amazing life you have, too! Ten-time Grammy winner for songwriting, a new album about to come out, and the sexiest boyfriend alive, if you don’t mind my saying.”
“Oh, Amy…I certainly don’t mind you saying.” Elsie laughed, her face turning beet red as the crowd cheered.
“For our viewers, after Elsie’s photo with Skyler circulated, she stood up for herself by making a statement on TikTok, telling the world to watch out, Elsie’s coming! Now, Skyler made a duet to her video, telling the world he was indeed in love with Ms. Clarke. We’re going to show you all right now.”
The studio dimmed and Elsie’s TikTok video played on the big screen behind their couches. I watched the video from her perspective. Her speaking in defense of herself and me on a screen to the left, holding up signs to support and love her.
Reaching over, Billy gave me a high five. “We did good, bro,” he said.
A scraggly little man wearing a headset and an Amy Evans Show T-shirt opened the door to the greenroom and popped his head in. “Mr. Dalton, you’re on in five. Please follow me.”
“We’re on, Bill. Let’s do this!” We followed the headset man to the edge of the stage just as the TikTok video finished.
“Wow. That was awesome. You started a trend. Lots of other people are duetting you and supporting you both.” Amy nodded. “Now, we’re all dying to know, how did you hook the sexy Skyler Dalton? The man is sex on a stick and he’s never been out publicly with a girlfriend.”
“I wouldn’t say I hooked him,” Elsie snorted. “We’re more like two magnets that can’t get away from each other. We just…fit.”
“Tell us how you fit.” Amy wiggled her eyebrows at the crowd and they clapped in response.
“We talk about everything. I don’t feel like I need to hide from him. We can sit for hours with our guitars and play and talk and never get tired. It’s like we’re two instruments in tune with each other. When Skyler came into my life, I remembered how important my dreams were.”
“Your dreams of performing?”
“Yes. When I was younger, I’d perform with my mother on stage and I’ve wanted nothing more than to play my music for people. To make them feel what I’m feeling.”
“And you certainly do, as we saw when you played earlier.” Amy took a deep breath. “Now, Elsie, we have a surprise for you.”
Elsie’s eyes bugged out. She grabbed onto the edge of her jacket and clenched it in her hand. She was nervous.
“A surprise?” Poor girl didn’t know what to expect, it scared her.
“Someone has a song they want to sing for you.” Amy’s smile was sly as she turned toward my side of the stage. “Skyler?”
Elsie stood, her hands covering her mouth, as Billy and I walked on stage. The crowd stood, clapping and otherwise going fan crazy.
I love you. I mouthed as I picked up my guitar and pulled the strap over my head.
“You’ll have to excuse Elsie’s surprise, folks. She thought I was across town.” Everyone laughed as I spoke into the microphone. “But I couldn’t wait any longer to sing my girl a song.”
Elsie stayed standing as I strummed my guitar. Billy kicked up, bringing in the bass, and our tune filled the studio. My eyes met Elsie’s and didn’t shift as I sang the words I wrote just for her.
There is no smoke now
No more mirrors
You’re made to shine now
Your soul to mine
‘Cause I see you
See all of you
Come play me a song
And I’ll sing along
You take me back
To the heart of it all
Where our song starts
To when we fall
In your fortress, you hide
Hide away
But I saw you
The very first day
‘Cause I see you
See all of you
Come play me a song
And I’ll sing along
You take me back
To the heart of it all
Where our song starts
To when we fall
I’ll pull you out
Into this world
My love has found you
My sweet girl
‘Cause I see you
See all of you
Come play me a song
And I’ll sing along
Tears welled in Elsie’s eyes as the song came to a close. I hoped to God they were happy tears. I wanted only happy tears from this moment on.
I set my guitar down and walked toward her. The audience was in an uproar, clapping and whistling. Amy Evans was standing behind Elsie, smiling from ear to ear.
“I wrote it all myself, I swear,” I told her, holding up my three middle fingers in Scout’s Honor.
“
Ehem!” Billy cleared his throat behind me.
“Well, Billy helped. A little.”
Elsie laughed and threw her arms around me, pressing her lips to mine. It felt so good to hold her in my arms.
“I love you, El. I’ve been dying to say that to your face.” I whispered against her lips.
“I love you too, Sky. More than anything.”
Epilogue: The Definition of Winning
One Year Later–Staples Center, LA. The Grammy Awards
Elsie
“Skyler, oh my God, don’t stop! I’m coming!” I screamed, clutching his head between my legs as he sucked on my clit like it was a Skittle. His finger was thrusting hard inside me, pushing up against my g-spot.
I shook, my hips raising and lowering with the orgasm riding through my body. I screamed, not caring a whit we were in the back of a limo on the way to the Grammys.
Skyler licked up my juices as I came down from my orgasm. When I was clean enough not to make a mess of my dress, he pulled my legs from his broad shoulders and came out grinning.
“That was hot as fuck,” he groaned, shifting uncomfortably with the erection in his pants.
“Not enough time to take care of you. I’m sorry,” I said as he sat back down next to me, letting me lean my head on his shoulder. We were less than a mile from the Staples Center where I’d be attending my first Grammy Awards.
“Oh, you’ll make it up to me later,” he said, kissing me again. I pulled back, giving him the eye. That’s how all this started. A simple kiss turned into a wild make-out session, then his hand was between my legs and…well, the natural progression.
Scarred Melody: A Rockstar Romance: Bold Melodies Book One Page 24
