The '
A Song from My Story, a Story for My Song
' event is a challenge for authors to write a story inspired by a piece of music or song, where the brief is broad and the point is to use music 'to create something new and unique.' On this note, I'd like to thank Literotica author
carrteun
for organising this challenge. And Laurel, who runs Literotica, let's not forget her who runs this show, making it possible.
I made the assumption music and song were universal, and lo and behold, when I looked it up, there is research to back my assumption (see Universality and Diversity in Human Song by S.A. Mehr). Music is a language of every society. It's used to tell stories, produces arousal and emotions and movement, making people laugh, cry and dance. And even fall in love...
Responses to music and song are deeply personal, often taking on new and different meanings for each individual, beyond what the original artist intended. Song can be evocative, making people long for places they've never visited, or long for something that never was, or long for a real and lived moment in time, a memorable event from the past, maybe something lost.
Thus, music and songs can be time machines, where surely most people have a song that takes them back to a place or moment, an experience, a lazy weekend, driving up the coast with a beautiful friend, afternoon sunlight glowing off her hair and sunnies, the curve of her tank-top and freckled skin of her bare shoulder, and the cheeky grin she shares when pressing replay on her favourite song off the CD you gave her, over and over and over, both singing together, happy and laughing...and more than 20 years later the song comes on the radio and it's like, bam, grabs you by the heart and soul, and in an instant you're right back there with her, singing and laughing again, and then you're crying...
With similar nostalgic themes in mind, I previously wrote the musically inspired story, 'Girl in a Rock Show', exploring things lost and retained when transitioning from care-free youth to responsible adulthood.
Which brings us to the song I chose here: When We Were Young, by Adele. I'm not examining song so much as exploring the themes of mistakes, personal change, reconciliation and second chances, and I've decided to use lyrics without writing them. Perhaps you'll understand when you get there. And I hope you get there, but be warned, this story is not a quickie. Indeed, it's pretty long. However, from the moment I began writing, the characters and tale came alive to me and I needed to see their journey through. I hope they come alive for you too.
Oh, and I'm sure there will be mistakes, forgive them, but most of all, please enjoy!
~~~~0000~~~~
Brisbane, Australia...
"I can't believe we're doing this," Erin said, her voice and eyes anguished. "This is the worst idea ever."
"Nah, it's gonna be epic," Charlie said with a slight slur, his eyes dreamy, reflecting the glow from the street light above them. "You said you wanted to go dancing this weekend and the club's not far."
"This is not cool." She gestured to the old Holden panel van, the rear packed with people. "We've all been drinking, including the driver. Let's all go back to the party."
Nik sat on the tailgate, his once thick black hair recently shaved to a buzz-cut Erin wasn't yet used to. "Hey, Rin, don't be soft. Froggy's a safe driver, and I never thought you'd knock back a night club run to The Valley."
At least three other young people were piled into the rear of the van behind Nik, and someone whooped with excitement and another called out, "C'mon, people, what are we waiting for?"
"Hang on a sec," Charlie said to them, then turned back to Erin, smiling. "Gorgeous one, it's only a short trip down the road, let's go. Nothin's gonna happen."
"Come on, Rin, jump in, it's fine." The voice was Libby's, her oldest friend in the world, but Libby was among the others in the van behind Charlie and Nik, indiscernible in the darkness.
A young man with a goatee and wild mane of dark hair leaned from the passenger window, his voice slightly aggressive. "Are you guys gettin' in, or what?" The V8 roared to life, revving, headlights flicking on, and the guitar intro to Metallica's
Enter Sandman
began blaring from the dark interior.
Erin swallowed, knowing this was
dumb, dumb, dumb!
"Not with them, not tonight. Come on, Charlie, let's just go back into Mel's party. You too, Nikko and Lib, cos this is the dumb shit that doesn't end well and ends up on the news in the morning."
"Nah, it'll be awesome," Charlie said, dancing on the spot, shaking his body and rocking his arms to the metal coming from the van. "Mel's party was lame and this'll be fun. Let's go find a club and dance the night away like we did on your birthday. Seriously, The Valley's not far up the road."
"There's no seatbelts in the back and we've been drinking..."
"We're not drunk," someone called out from the van, which revved again, guitars grinding and drums cannoning, and someone else laughed, saying "But we dropped some pingas!"
Nik was urgent now, "You two are either comin' or ya not, make up ya minds so we can get the fuck out of here."
Libby joined in, "Let's go, Bogs and Rusty, get in the van!"
A chant started from the darkness,
"Get in the van. Get in the van. Get in the van,"
and someone, the other girl, Danira or whatever her name was, who Charlie and Nik called Dani, giggled.
Charlie smiled, shaking his head dreamily and he took her hand. "Come, Rin, let's go have some fun."
The V8 throbbed with noise and stinking smoke from twin exhausts, competing with the heavy music from the stereo, someone singing along at the top of their voice, off with the fairies. With the tail-lights shining bright red in Erin's eyes, and feeling like she was hallucinating, she nodded, Charlie smiling and pulling her by the hand towards the tailgate. She let him, and he climbed on board and she did too, the whole thing like an out of body experience, fate slipping from her control.
There was a cheer, more sound adding to the noise, vibrations engulfing the dark space, accompanied by the stink of sweat and exhaust, a thin mattress padding their arses against the steel floor. Erin hunched over like the rest, their backs uncomfortable against the van's thin steel panel sides, wishing she was elsewhere.
There was no escape, Nik closing the tailgate, the blackness enveloping her, and the engine revved and the van took off down the street, lurching, guitar squealing and drums smashing, exploding from the stereo, the beast laughing at their folly, and the sickening lingering stench of exhaust everywhere. Still, everyone appeared happy and excited, and conscious of her thumping heartbeat, Erin laughed nervously, thinking,
Why didn't I walk away?
Erin knew her reason; because she was with Charlie, her sweet, loving, wonderful Charlie, who always made her feel special and loved and brave, who encouraged her, both pushing boundaries together, bringing out the best in each other.
And sometimes the worst. Charlie could be reckless, but she found that side of him fun and exciting, and things always worked out and she believed he was charmed, because she felt charmed to be with him, every day an adventure.
Not quite a perfect adventure. Not since he'd begun hanging with these new mates of Nik's over the past year, his drinking and pot-smoking increasing significantly.
They'd already sunk a few drinks, but pot wasn't on the menu tonight because Nik handed them a pill each and a bottle of water. He gestured towards the driver, leant forward and yelled between Erin and Charlie's ears, his voice barely audible above the noise overwhelming the confined space.
"Got the E from Froggy. He reckons it's really good shit and not cut with other drugs and stuff. Says he personally knows the bloke who makes it."
Charlie turned to Erin, but in the darkness of the noisy, crowded, stinking van, all she could make out was his silhouette and smile illuminated by streetlights fighting their way through the dark tailgate window. She shook her head, but Charlie popped his pill, swigged some water, and with mouth open wide, he stuck his tongue out to show her it was done.
"Easy peasy," he said, laughing. "Let it slide..."
The pill she fingered appeared harmless, insignificant, and could be aspirin for all she knew, and she thought,
I'm in a stinking crowded van with no seatbelts and Nik's dickhead mate drink driving, and I can't hear a fucking thing over the noise, and I'm holding an unidentified pill. What could possibly go wrong?
Everyone was laughing, singing, and she looked to Charlie, his only feature an encouraging smile, and she shrugged her shoulders, popped the pill in her mouth and she felt Charlie push the water bottle into her hand and she drank, feeling the liquid-assisted pill slide down her throat.
"Tonight's gonna be epic," he said into her ear, warm lips against her skin. Erin felt his love, but wondered about her decisions, trying to let her inhibitions go.
Charlie helped, he always did.
With thumping music deafening and disorientating, their hot sweaty bodies squished tight, inertia pushing most to one side when they cornered, against the panel walls and each other in a tangle of limbs, feeling like they might tip and roll. The girl screamed, Dani who Erin met at the party this evening, because it was definitely not Libby screaming. Someone else laughed like a maniac, the guy in the back with them who Erin hadn't even met, and Erin felt her stomach lurch as Nik knocked into her and Charlie, her back braced against the panel sides. But then she felt Charlie's hand slip into hers, warm comfort, and she squeezed him back, closing her eyes.
"This is bullshit," she whispered, but no one could hear over the thumping music, the song changing to something she didn't know or care to know, more metal loudly competing with the purring V8.
The crowded car rocked on its springs and blue-flashing lights accompanied by a wailing siren briefly invaded the cabin, and Erin wished for the police to pull them over, but the lights and siren faded in the opposite direction. She wondered if she should send her brother, Connor, a text, knowing he'd contact his mate at the police station in Fortitude Valley and they'd send a car to intercept the distinctive panel van. That would be dumb too, because he'd berate her for getting in the van in the first place, then for taking an unidentified pill, and they'd likely be charged, and her friends would hate her.
