@rawbutprecious wrote:
A familiar baritone filtered through the air. It seemed quiet and distant, as if outside the house. His voice mingled with everyone else's heart songs in support of their voices. Zoey followed as if a moth drawn to a flame. She went from room to room until she found herself at the back door. Out the back door Zoey went. The redhead exited the door and closed it behind her. She leaned, watching Max as he sang. "Max?” she squeaked wondering if he’d sweep her into a dance or what would happen next.
The party was all for Zoey. No matter where they stood, Max made it his mission to make it all about her. Helping Maggie buy some of the supplies, nudging David in the right direction for the caterer. Even the very present he chose for her took notoriously long to lock in. He was lucky his parents had some connections in New York that pulled through for him at the golden hour.
All for her. Even if it did pain him they couldn’t be more involved. But, he respected it. Respected she needed some space. He missed Mitch too. The man had become someone to look up to. Feel seen in. While Zoey had lost her biological father, he’d also lost his favorite confidant. One he felt that never judged but supported him. An alternate guidance to his life than the father he grew up with.
The best friend/brief lover had been a trooper for most of the party. Deciding to engage in conversations with her family members rather than their coworkers. It could be said he was unintentionally hovering. Hoping to step up if the party was too much for the red head to take, and escort her to the nearest exit. But seeing everyone coupling up, at some point, it got too heavy for him. A reminder that while they were close, they weren’t as close as he wanted them to be. So, he walked outside for some air. He always did like Mitch and Maggie’s garden.
~switch to heart song dream mode~
While his voice mingled with everyone else’s, the pitch was notoriously lower, softer-- more delicate. Intimate.
Max twirled once then twice as he moved through the gardens on his own.
Kiss me, down by the broken tree house
Swing me, upon its hanging tire
Bring, bring, bring your flowered hat
We'll take the trail marked on your father's map
It was as if Max were dreaming up his own dance with an invisible person, until his note carried onto ‘father’s map.’ Eye contact had engaged. It was as if he’d seen her. Still in the same tone, he continued to sing but his hand reached out to her, so she’d join him.
Oh, kiss me, beneath the milky twilight
Lead me out on the moonlit floor
Lift your open hand
He started to dance with her throughout the pathway of the gardens. There were solar lights glistening over the green grounds. The beautiful array of flowers somehow seeming more brighter and elegant the more they moved around it.
Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance
Silver moon's sparkling
Max twirled her, and dipped --his eyes transfixed on hers as he sang the last verse.
So kiss me
The beautiful melody continued as an instrumental and his face grew closer to her.
~heart song dream mode ends~
Max was sitting on a bench in the gazebo, his head hunched low, as he played with a loose flower bulb he’d found on the floor. He heard Zoey call out, and he looked up with a friendly smile. The smile didn’t quite reach his eyes the way it usually did whenever he was around her, but it was genuine. He wasn’t the best at faking things like that. “Hey birthday girl. Getting too much attention in there?” he nudged over so she could join him on the bench.