Chapter 5

When Abby finished, Brad gave her good applause. “You have a fantastic voice, Abby! I bet you’d have a great singing career.”

“You think so?”

“I’d be your number one fan,” he said, giving her another good kiss.

“Britney and Amber say I should try out for Canadian Idol when I turn sixteen.”

“Count me in. You’ll always have my support. I’ll always be your number one fan, no matter what you do for a living. Your talent is matched by your incredible beauty.” They looked into each other’s eyes and touched foreheads together.

“I love you, Brad,” she murmured softly, those three powerful words slipping away.

“Oh, shit ... shit, shit, shit!” Abby repeated, stomping her foot on the floor. “It wasn’t supposed to come out that way. I wanted to wait for you to say, ‘I love you first!” She hurried through her apology and began to blush.

“I think you said it absolutely perfectly,” he smiled.

“I couldn’t help myself; it just seemed the right thing to say at the right time.”

“Does it really matter who says it first?”

“Isn’t it supposed to matter?” She asked.

“I don’t know, I’m not an expert on this love and romance stuff either. I could always ask our parents; I’m sure they must know. I could ask my mom. Mo...” Brad began to yell at Mom loudly, but Abby cut him off, covering his mouth with her hand.

“Shush ... I don’t want you to ask them that!” She whispered.

“Do you listen to country music?” She asked, changing the subject.

“No, I don’t. Mom and Laura used to in the 1990s. They must have had over 100 CDs by different singers.”

“Same here; my mom and I would sing along to all of Shania Twain’s stuff, but I prefer modern pop and rock.”

“Same with me.”

Abby had said, I love you, to Brad, but he didn’t reply with the same words as she expected he might. Brad could see that she was very emotional right now, with the telltale sign of tears in her eyes.

He gave a little laugh. “What’s so funny?” She asked.

“Just remembering the look on your dad’s face when I said, ‘It was logical to assume that you and I would consummate our relationship.’ I didn’t think I could be that bold by talking so directly to him. I find your dad is like my dad, easy to talk to.”

“And speaking of consummating, when are we going to have our first fuck?” Abby asked with a yearning gaze.

“That’s hard to say, pardon the pun. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely want to do it with you, Abby. I mean, you’re most teenage boys’ dream of a beautiful young woman. But we only get one first time, and I’m willing to wait until the timing is perfect. I hope we can make love without having to sneak around to find a place and time.”

“Aren’t you something else? You’re being so logical, Spock would be proud of you,” she smiled. She cupped his face, giving Brad a long kiss.

Brad noticed a tear in the corner of Abby’s left eye. He brushed her soft cheek, touching the corner of her eye. He took the tear on his right forefinger and kissed it. He then began strumming his guitar again.

Come stop your crying, Darlin’ It will be all right Just take my hand hold it tight

I will protect you from all around you I will be here Don’t you cry

For one so small, you seem so strong My arms will hold you, keep you safe and warm This bond between us Can’t be broken I will be here Don’t you cry

‘Cause you’ll be in my heart Yes, you’ll be in my heart From this day on Now and forever more

You’ll be in my heart No matter what they say You’ll be here in my heart, always

Why can’t our parents understand the way we feel They just don’t trust what they can’t explain I know we’re different but, deep inside us We’re not that different from them at all

And you’ll be in my heart Yes, you’ll be in my heart From this day on Now and forever more

Don’t listen to them (We’ll do our best to make them listen) ‘Cause what do they know We need each other, to have, to hold They’ll see in time I know, we’ll show our parents together When destiny calls us We must be strong I may not be with you But you’ve got to hold on They’ll see in time I know We’ll show them together, (yes, time will show them we belong, together)

‘Cause you’ll be in my heart Yes, you’ll be in my heart From this day on, Now and forever more

Oh, you’ll be in my heart No matter what they say You’ll be in my heart, always Always

Abby began clapping her hands, tears of love and pride for him flowing freely. “You’ll Be in My Heart. That song was written and sung by Phil Collins for the Walt Disney movie, ‘Tarzan.’ It’s one of my favourite songs. I just changed a few words as I went along to fit it to our parents.”

“That was so beautiful!” Then she started weeping into her hands.

“Hey ... what’s wrong?” He asked, gently standing up close to her and rubbing her back. “That song was supposed to cheer you up, not make you sad and cry,” he said, taking her hands away and brushing her tears aside. “Abby, I promise you, as long as I live, I’ll never, ever give you a reason to be sad and cry.”

“I’m not sad; I’m happy. That song is so perfect for us. These are happy tears,” she reasoned, wiping her cheeks and her lower lip and chin, which were trembling. “This time I’m very proud to say that I love you, Brad Miller. I know that you love me too, and I’m not going to pressure you into saying it back to me just for the sake of it,” she said, putting her left hand over his heart. “You can tell me when the timing is right for you.”

“Thank you,” he felt relieved.

Karen and Vicky were trying to control their sniffling as they also wiped away tears. They felt guilty about spying on them, but this has shown the four watching just what Abby and Brad truly mean to each other.

“You’re not as solid as a rock yourself, mister,” Abby teased, touching a tear at the corner of Brad’s right eye.

“Okay, so underneath this tough exterior beats the heart of a romantic softy. Please don’t tell anyone that. Okay, what are you going to sing for me next?” He asked.

“How about the song I want to be played at our wedding, ‘From This Moment On,’ by Shania Twain.”

“You sure are getting this marriage stuff figured out already,” Brad commented.

“I’m dreaming a little already, I guess, but you know my parents met and fell in love when they were seventeen and were married at twenty. Even though we’re only fifteen, the same thing has happened to us too.”

“Yeah, but our parents will think and say we’re too young to know about love, just like the ‘You’ll Be in My Heart,’ song says.”

“We’ll just have to prove to them we are for real. My dad may want me to have a big white wedding, but, you know, it doesn’t even matter that much to me if we get married at city hall or in a church. We’d be just as married as any couple that spends thousands of dollars for the same results,” she stated.

“I had better save up my allowance to buy your dad those five cows and five goats,” Brad kidded. Abby laughed and gave him a playful slap on his right shoulder.

“Ha, ha, very funny!” Abby couldn’t help but laugh. Dan, Karen, Scott, and Vicky had to hide their laughter. “I love you so much, Brad!” She said it again.

The parents snickered at the deal Scott and Brad had made for Abby’s hand in marriage. Brad sat down and looked up the sheet music for Abby’s song on his computer and went through the notes.

“I remember this song. Didn’t she do a duet version of it with some guy named White?”

“His name is Ryan White.”

“We could do it as a duet too.”

“I’d love it, Brad. We can see how our voices harmonize together, and I bet, like us, they’ll be perfect together,” Abby said, rubbing his right shoulder. She kissed his forehead as he quickly tried the chords.