Dark Hearts (Light in the Dark 3)

“Hey.” She waves back, her cheeks either flushed from nerves or cold.

Joel takes the empty seat beside me, leaving the last one for Sarah.

“Has he gone on yet?” Joel asks.

I shake my head. “No, not yet.”

“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever told you, but I love the brown hair.” Joel flicks a piece of my hair.

Sarah watches the exchange, clearly confused.

“I used to dye my hair crazy colors,” I explain. “Finally went back to my natural.”

“And shocked the socks off all of us,” Thea pipes in.

When she and Rae picked me up for dress shopping they both gaped at me like a fish and then proceeded to ask me a million different questions. Well, Thea asked the questions, Rae just stared.

“Oh, that’s cool,” Sarah says, clearly not that interested. Joel leans down and whispers something in her ear and she blushes.

The person performing finishes and Jace takes their place.

He sits on the stool, the spotlight shining right on him.

He’s dressed simply in his usual jeans and a t-shirt but the way he holds himself he could be dressed in the most expensive suit known to man.

He clears his throat and adjusts the microphone.

“This is a song I wrote. I call it “Dark Hearts”.”

He strums his guitar and begins to sing.

“They say they don't know us. They say they've never met someone quite like us. They say that we're crazy. They say that we're running, from our demons, from our demons.” His eyes close as he sings, and you can tell that the whole room has disappeared for him. That all that exists is him, the music, and the words. “And I remember looking in her eyes, holding back tears from that night. I find it hard to find the sun in the rain. I'm finding it hard to find myself when all I do is change.” His eyes open then and find me in the bar. “They said they don't know us. But they don't understand. No one understands. But I've figured it out. We've got dark hearts, dark hearts, and our demons won't let us go. Just tell me how I get out of this suffering. Just tell me how I forget this pain and be happy. And the pain is pulling me under, maybe I should give them names. Tell me, can my dark heart ever go away?”

The song ends and I jump to my feet clapping.

He’s amazing. More amazing than he ever gives himself credit for.

Several other people join me and Jace smiles, a little grin that tilts his lips on one corner. He bows his head slightly and exits the stage.

He comes over to our table and I wrap my arms around his neck.

“I love you,” I whisper in his ear. “You’re amazing.”

“That was great, Jace,” Joel says.

“Thanks.” Jace smiles but he’s looking at me. “I love you too,” he murmurs in reply to what I said. He kisses me and wrap an arm around my waist. He sits down in my seat and pulls me down onto his lap. His guitar rests against the table.

“The people love you!” Eli breezes over to our table.

I laugh when I take in his ensemble. He’s dressed in a pair of black slacks, with a black button down shirt, and a purple sequined vest with a matching purple top hat.

“I think I need to give you a whole show on Saturday nights,” Eli continues. “Oh, and thanks for hanging the balls.” He points at the ceiling where hundreds of ornaments dangle.

Jace mock-salutes him. “That’s me—Jace the Ball Handler.”

I laugh and take a bite of a fry as Eli moves to another table to ask them if they’re enjoying their evening.

“When are you playing again?” Thea asks, leaning into Xander as he glides his hand up her neck.