Skeletons of their Music

Kevin found it behind the desk in his sons' old bedroom, a battered spiral-bound notebook full of scribbled lyrics, chord progressions, production notes, and doodles. It was a songbook, the heart and soul of almost ten years of songwriting. Kevin sat down and paged through the smatterings of lyrics, tracing the handwriting and knowing instinctively whose hand had written what.

He’d lost his sons somewhere along the way, and all he had left was skeletons of their music.

Kevin settled back against Scott’s old bedstead and read.

Antifreeze and aeroplanes
Killing you and killing me
Tell you what? We can fly away

She makes me touch the sky
She makes me cry
Stole my heart and made me bleed
I don’t mind when she goes
Bang Bang Boom

I open my eyes and see her face
But I want one more night
in California, one more night with you

She’s all right, but
She’s a hangover I can’t get over
I call up her machine just to hear her voice
Call the doctor - she’s in my head

Every town I pass, your name’s on the road sign
Your voice is on the wind
Tell me if I make it back there again you’ll let me in

Carolyn

You keep moving, you’re tired of the places you call “there”
You are the girl of my dreams
All alone in my room wishing that you were here
I’m going down in flames
I’ll never be the same

No hard feelings
You left me breathing
How does it feel?
I don’t want you to want me
Tonight I’ll hold you tight
but I won’t come back again

I mean
I’ll be there for you
Isn’t it funny how time seems to slip away so fast?
If life is so short
I’m going to love you endlessly
But I won’t forget
Love isn’t always going to find me

Misery is when I touch you and
You can’t feel me
When I look in your eyes
Can you see me?

I look good with my heart in my throat

I’m perilously here and
She is gone

I’d say you were a supermodel, so

Tell me why do these walls
Lead me to a place
Where I can’t think about your face
Without missing you
So raise a glass to a love long past

This one’s for you

Every drink you down you taste reluctantly
Free yourself, be yourself, or lie my pretty
Venus butterfly

I’m walking behind while
They’re banging on every door
Hoping you’re alive
What were they looking for?

When you touch me it’s like
Nothing I have ever known, but

I’ve seen you looking at him
Who do you love?

We can take our time
Take it on
Take it all in till it’s all gone
In the moonlight you’re
Wide-eyed and lovely

I want to be wild at heart but
Without you my world

came
     undone

Maybe it’s wrong to have fun

(493 words)