Hopefully, someone else was paying for tonight.

That was his only thought the entire ride there. With one hand gripping the side of the truck to make sure he didn’t tumble out the back, Daniel pulled out his phone and checked his bank account. It was nerve-racking for sure.

$6.89. That’s all he had left. Daniel shrugs. At least he could afford a beer if it came down to it. Or maybe a few hot pockets if he became desperate enough.

The truck pulls into a dirt drive and backs into a parking spot. The parking lot is just compacted dirt and rocks, and the bar is what amounts to a shack on the side of the road. There was no sign, because it had no official name.

There were decorative lights strung over the deck that led into the entrance, and a few decorative streamers that have been out in the sun for years. They were clearly faded beyond recognizable color.

Daniel hops out of the truck when the car shuts off. Riding in the trunk is truly a taste of home for him. Jamie gets out of the car and wipes away tears. She sniffles, and Andy is already hugging her in comfort.

Matt and Patrick come to stand by Daniel.

“What did I miss?” Daniel whispers. Jamie wipes a few more tears away and pats Andy on the head. Her make-up is starting to run, and wiping it away only makes it worse.

“Let’s go inside so you can fix your make-up.” Andy suggests. Jamie nods and wipes away the last of the tears with a crumbling smile on her lips. The two walk inside with Andy’s arm wrapped around Jamie’s shoulders. They don’t wait for the others to follow.

“Well, I think we’ve cleared up that mess. I’m surprised you had the guts to do that, Ryan.” Matt compliments. Ryan smiles, but is quick to explain that Andy agreed to the idea before he sent the message. The sign language is a little too quick for Daniel to read. Not that he spoke very good ASL anyway.

“Alright! Who’s ready for a good ole’ fashioned night of drinking?!” Patrick exclaims to the group. He looks over at Ryan and cringes a little. “Drinking responsibly?” He corrects himself. Ryan is only sixteen, so there would be no drinking in his future tonight.

The four of them finally follow up the shabby steps and into the bar. Daniel is surprised to be hit with a ridiculously loud wave of noise. The lights were dim with a few red and green dotted lights littering the ground. Tables were pretty close to full, and people were singing along to an egregious cover of some country song.

Daniel found an empty table, and Patrick went to get drinks. Two Cokes for Ryan and Andy, and three beers. Jamie wasn’t drinking.

Eventually, Jamie and Andy found their table and pulled wooden stools up to it. By then, Patrick had also returned from the bar counter with their drink orders. He hands Ryan and Andy their cokes, and the rest grab their beers. Jamie asks for water from the waiter.

The terrible song ends at last, and a man jumps up on stage. “Let’s hear it for The Foxes and their wonderful cover songs!” The crowd claps and lets out a few whoops. Daniel sips at his beer. Will they really have to listen to loud, bad music all night? If that were the case, he would have just preferred to drink at home.

“Next up, we have Carly Jenn, our very own local singer!” The man waves the girl forward. She climbs the stage with her guitar and sits down on a stool in front of the microphone.

Daniel pays the stage no mind. Andy and Ryan are enthralled with the live music, but it doesn’t interest him. He looks around at the other people gathered in the bar. There are a few faces he recognizes from highschool, or from around town. Most people who come to Caitlyn’s bar are true locals, and everyone knows it.

The guitar starts, and it echoes through the suddenly quiet bar. And as Daniel starts to get annoyed at what he expects to be another crappy cover song, he is suddenly thrown off guard.

The girl- Carly Jenn - She could sing. The song was slow, and showed off her gift for singing. The audience, including Daniel, was captivated by her voice in that moment. No one dares to speak over her. And then she hits that high, long note, and Daniel can’t stand not looking at the stage anymore.

Daniel is confronted with a beautiful woman. She has soft brown skin and long dark hair twirled into a low ponytail. Her gentle hands glide over the guitar strings as she sings perfect notes to a song Daniel’s never heard before.

She sings almost all the lyrics with her eyes closed. She shakes her head slightly as the notes reach their high points. Her eyebrows pull together as she hits the low notes with a power Daniel didn’t know a voice could have. Her foot taps to the slow, gentle beat of the song.

“Look at him- he’s totally thrown for a loop!” Jamie whispers to the rest of the group. Since Daniel started to stare at the stage, the rest of his family, including Patrick, have been staring at him.

“Shush!” Daniel growls without taking his eyes off the stage.

Carly Jenn ends on the last note and plays the last few melodies on the guitar. The song ends and for the first time since she’s taken the stage, she looks out at the crowd.

“That was Saint Honesty by Sara Bareilles. Thanks for listening, I hope you enjoyed it.” Carly Jenn smiles shyly and stands. She bows, and a few of her long braids fall past her shoulder. Daniel can’t seem to look away.

“She’s amazing…” Daniel mutters. She picks up her guitar and climbs down from the stage. The guy jumps back up and pulls the microphone from the stand.

“Is she not the most talented singer in all of Dilly? Give it up for Carly Jenn!” The crowd whoops and cheers again. Daniel joins in.

Carly Jenn disappears into the kitchen, and Daniel has to pull his eyes away from the door. He’s only heard her sing once, but he knows he’ll never forget it. He couldn’t explain it- her voice was… was mesmerizing? Captivating? Beautiful? There wasn’t a word that existed to describe her voice.

“Okay… you’re starting to creep us out, bro. She’s just a waitress from Danny’s.” Matt pats Daniel’s shoulder. He still hasn’t moved. Daniel slowly brings the bottle to his lips and takes a slow, methodical drink.

“Tell me everything.”