Songs to Get Over You (Playlist #2)

by Jay E. Tria

  She was in her pencil skirt and collared long-sleeved shirt, her hair pulled up in a loose bun. Members of the tech crew zoomed around her, running around the stage in their beat-up sneakers and colliding with band managers. She towered over their hunched figures in her black corporate high heels.

  She faced him, eyebrows lifted in the air. Tentative, read Miki. Then she smiled, lines and shadows moving her face, sending a new spark in her eyes. And hopeful, Miki thought, a flutter alive in his chest. I’ll take it. I’ll take hopeful.

  “When the light comes I know for sure/ You’ll be here and I’m no longer alone/ The dark will warm, and I know—”

  Miki sang the last line of the song with Jill, grinning as Ana mouthed the words back at him.

  A collective gasp erupted in the air. Miki turned his head in time to see Jill jump off the stage.

  “What the hell—Jillian Marie!” he hollered.

  But it was too late. Jill was running through the crowd, the mass of people parting to let her through, a few hands attempting to catch the sleeve of her shirt, a touch of her arm. She continued her race, and when she reached Shinta, Miki’s face was still locked in shock, frozen. She took him by the arms, toppling him from the plastic stool, catching his face in her hands.

  Jill’s back was to the stage, meters away from where her bandmates stood, her feet planted deep into the cheering horde. But even from this distance Miki knew she was kissing Shinta, and Shinta was kissing her back, with the kind of wild abandon Miki had known to expect from him. He heard Mars’s voice screaming for security to save their vocalist from the crowd that enveloped the scene.

  That was when Miki felt it, coming with the rush of heat that rose to his throat. Relief. Then release.

  He turned to Ana. She was clapping, her cheers adding to Son and Nino’s whistles that filled the stage.

  “Stay there!” he called to her. “We’re just going to get our vocalist back.”

  “Then I get my request?” Ana shouted back.

  “Yes!” he promised. “I’m sorry it took so long.”

  October 31, Saturday, afternoon

  “Well? What do you think?” Son’s dark cape flew in the air with each twirl. He stopped one twirl short of getting dizzy, fixing his pointy black hat over his nose when he straightened up.

  Mars’s face remained a blank slate, his arms tight around his huffed up chest.

  “I think our awesomeness is too much for him to take,” Nino muttered to Son when Mars extended his stiff silence.

  “We did it.” Jill turned to Miki and Kim, eyes wide in mock triumph. “We shut Mars up.”

  “Finally,” Miki and Kim chorused.

  “Let me try to understand this.” Mars uncrossed and crossed his short legs, his deadpan face unimpressed as his talents sniggered in front of him. The five of them stood in front of the band’s square headquarters, smug smiles on their faces as they posed in their costumes. Mars decided to start with Nino from the far left, pointing a stubby finger at him. “The Phantom, from Phantom of the Opera.”

  Nino removed his half-mask to show off the prosthetic scars on his face. “The gentleman shows me compassion!” he boomed. “Turn your face away, from the—”

  Mars stopped him with a hand up, moving on to Kim. He glowered at the shaggy, horned thing that obscured Kim’s face. “Beast, from Beauty and the Beast?”

  “It gives me great pleasure that you can see through the face of a monster,” came Kim’s voice from inside the mask, his hand moving with a flourish as he bowed.

  Mars’s finger stopped in front of Jill, taking in her short pink wig and the flimsy sparkling top that matched it. “And who are you supposed to be?”

  “Jane Jones-slash-Alice Ayres. Closer.” Miki laughed as Jill tapped her foot against the floor. She had been explaining her costume choice to everyone who saw her glitzy get up in the past couple of hours. “Didn’t you watch even just the Natalie Portman-Julia Roberts movie?”

  “No, but I think I will soon,” Mars said with a curt nod. “Now put a jacket on. You look like a stripper.”

  “That is the point!” Jill cried, but Mars had moved on to Miki.

  “Marius from Les Miserables,” Miki offered, figuring Mars won’t get it either. He didn’t blame Mars. He had no idea about the guy until earlier this week when Jill made the suggestion. No, he didn’t watch the Hugh Jackman-Eddie Redmayne movie either. “And Son is green because he’s Elphie from Wicked.”

  Son released a throaty cackle, tipping his hat and clutching his matching broom. Mars ignored him.

  “Obviously you guys took to heart my instructions for the Halloween party you’re playing tonight. And don’t get me wrong; you all look great. But somebody please explain to me why you’re wearing your costumes over your old high school uniforms.”

  Son stepped forward, his teeth sparkly white against the bright emerald green painted on his face. “Because together, we’re High School Musical. Get it? Get it?”

  “Don’t look at me,” Jill headed Mars off as he turned his accusing glare at her. “This was actually Son’s idea.”

  “You said you wanted us to have a connecting theme,” Kim backed her up. “We thought this would be funny.”

  “Now if you’ll excuse us, we have a couple of hours for some trick-or-treating before that gig.” Nino led the way out the room with a sweep of his black cape before Mars could retort, the rest of them not far behind him.

  He turned to them the moment the door slammed shut. “Okay, that was me messing with Mars. We’re not really trick-or-treating, are we?”

  “We are,” Son said, his thumb pointing to Kim.

  “Your loss, our candy,” Jill confirmed, turning to Miki. “The mall nearby has this thing where anyone in a costume can get candy if you complete a dare. Game?”

  “Why did Shinta have to go so soon? I wish he was here. He loves dares,” Son said, sulking. “Wasn’t he supposed to dress up as a Gundam pilot?”

  “Yeah. He even wanted to get his movie costume shipped. That wouldn’t fit our theme though.” Jill paused. “He never cared much about fitting in, that boy.”

  Miki saw Son and Nino exchange nervous looks, worried they had triggered a short fuse. He smiled, knowing better. “That dare-for-candy thing sounds cool.” Jill raised her chin to look at him. “But I have a class to catch. You guys have fun.”

  Jill’s lips moved to a swift smile. “Tell Ana I still owe her a banana cue. Now come here a second. Your French revolution rosette is falling off.”

  Miki stepped forward and allowed his best friend to fix his rosette, turn up his collar, and spread out the stains of fake blood (banana ketchup) on his vest. They had a lot of things to figure out about their friendship, but he knew he would still permit things such as these. Like Jill fussing over his haphazard costume, or buying his banana cue and soda-in-can, and helping him with his songs. But he would not give her his time anymore. Not all of it.

  He thought he understood things better now, even by an infinitesimal degree. Jill kept Miki grounded, and he did the same for her. They were each other’s rock in this life where they were sometimes required to wear themed costumes to work, where they were only as good as their last song. Kim had his grand plans, Nino had his flings, Son had his weird sense of humor. Jill and Miki had each other. And it was very easy to love someone who was always what you needed them to be.

  Eventually though, Miki realized he also needed someone who showed him that there was more to life than how he knew it. And love would come too, if he allowed it.

  “Give me a minute.” Ana watched him turn on the spot. Miki arrived in time for the dismissal of her last ever Marketing class. Her classmates were streaming out of the classroom, some slowing down in their tracks to watch Miki show off his costume to her. “Jean Valjean redeemed, or Marius Pontmercy?”

  “The latter.” Miki grinned, hopping on the low wall. He waved for Ana to sit beside him. “I didn’t know you liked musicals too.”

 
; “How could I not?” She skipped towards him, taking his invitation. “You know I love to cry while watching things. Besides, how else do you think I got Jill to like me so quickly?”

  Miki raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Well played, woman.”

  “Thank you. That lady has walls. I love her.”

  Miki smiled, knowing better than to echo the words. He pulled Ana’s books to his lap, taking her fingers too, tangling them with his.

  Ana was looking at him. Tentative, was still Miki’s reading. “Hello there, stranger,” she said in a soft murmur, releasing her fingers from his grasp, converting their touch to a handshake.

  Miki returned the pressure. He lifted one free finger to trace the line of her jaw, and no more. Hope is enough. I will take it. “Hello. I’m Miki. I play guitar for this band called Trainman. We play dance-y, in-your-face rock-and-roll with feelings. I love Economics too, though I wasn’t particularly good at it. I am considering taking a master’s degree just to see how awful I’d be at it. But it still depends.”

  Ana’s eyes lit up. “On what?”

  “On how much time Mars is willing to sell back to me,” he said with a chuckle.

  “Okay.” Ana gave his hand another firm shake. “I’m Ana. I’m a CPA, and don’t give me that look because I love my job. I’ve also sold a couple of years of my youth in return for a Master’s degree. Not because I need one, but because I like learning inside classrooms.”

  “Awesome to meet you, Ana.” He smiled. “You might find this too forward, though I really wish you won’t mind. I would like to date you, please.”

  “That sounds like a weak offer. Is that all you’ve got?”

  “Of course not. I come bearing a gift.” Voices resounded through the hallway, some trickling from the lobby where students were gathered, laughing out the pressure, releasing steam now that another term was officially over. Miki leaned forward so Ana would be sure to hear. “I wrote a song for you.”

  “Wow.” Ana leaned back, looking on the verge of impressed. “Is that like a code for something, in your world?”

  “It’s actually a very important hallmark,” Miki said with a solemn nod. “In my world.”

  “Well, since you say it’s very important, I’d like to hear it.”

  Miki arched backwards. “Now?”

  “Yes, now.” Ana finished their handshake, releasing his hand as she hopped off the low wall. “Isn’t it finished? Why bother mentioning it if you’re not ready to sing it?”

  “It is finished,” Miki stammered, joining her on flat ground. “But it still needs a few tweaks here and there…”

  “I don’t mind. I really wouldn’t know any better.”

  “But I don’t have my guitar…”

  “Miki.” Her voice was bright and bold, and it demanded from him. “Sing for me.”

  Another classroom door burst open, a new stream of people pouring out into the corridor. Nerves shook under his skin, the kind Miki knew from the last five minutes backstage, to the first five minutes onstage. The kind of nerves that made him move.

  Miki looped Ana’s arm through his, resting his fingers on hers, the way Marius Pontmercy would maybe do it if he was being a proper gentleman. He started the song with a low voice close to her ear. Ana squeezed his arm, her deliberate steps guiding them to a slow walk through the crowded corridor. Miki’s voice gained pitch and tenor with each step. The students and teachers scattered around them fell into thick silence, listening aptly to his serenade. Some took out their phones, taking pictures, recording this moment, maybe to show their friends, or to share in social media as something to laugh at.

  Caption: weird guy in confused Halloween costume singing in local university hallway like a crazy person.

  Miki didn’t care. He unlinked their arms and hooked his hand around Ana’s waist, pulling her to him as his song reached its bridge. Miki was used to singing in front of crowds after all.

  Drunk in Love

  I’ve seen you cry

  Over a movie you didn’t like

  And I’ve seen your eyes laugh

  At every lie I tried to hide

  Why was it hard to fall for you?

  I’ve seen you try

  To like the songs that I write

  And when you fail

  You say you like me anyway

  It took me a while to fall for you

  Sometimes a broken heart falters at the fall

  Now I think I want you more than once

  I think I need you more than air

  When you cross the street

  I want to be the man you will meet

  I think that I feel this

  But I want to be sure

  That I’m drunk in love with you

  You’ve seen me hide

  From love in plain sight

  And you’ve seen me run

  From things I should have done

  You waited until I’ve fallen for you

  Sometimes a broken heart falters at the fall

  Now I think I want you more than once

  I think I love you, and that’s enough

  When you open your eyes

  I want to be the man you will see

  I know that I feel this

  How wonderful it is to be sure

  That I’m drunk

  So drunk in love with you

  I will wake from this long dream

  Sure that it’s not a spell

  That it’s you and you’re there

  And I would still be

  Drunk in love with you

  No one quite like you. (Miki)

  The End

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  Acknowledgements

  A shower of thanks and love to the following:

  Layla, for being your usual fairy godmother self as I struggled to finish this story.

  Mark, Gerald, Chasha, and Tania, my book cover dream team. Special thanks to the wind and sunset, for setting the mood.

  Ines, for being such an English teacher. Don’t ever change. I’ve forgotten the score, but I think we now owe each other ice cream.

  Chasha, again. Aren’t you glad you enrolled in my reading workshop? Now you’re so involved, there’s no turning back! No really, there isn’t. You’re trapped. Special thanks to TJ for the long-distance support.

  Tin and Bentham, for agreeing to be subjected to the crudeness that is the first draft. If that’s not kindness, I don’t know what is. Hazel, this is for you. You know all about borrowed guitars and fire exits, among many other things. I hope you’ll like the ‘texture’ of this one too.

  The gorgeous ladies of #romanceclass and everyone on #TeamMiki. Thank you for the pressure (haha), encouragement, and support. I hope I did the friendzone justice.

  To God be the Glory always.

  Love, Jay

  About the Author

  Jay E. Tria is inspired by daydreams, celebrity crushes, a childhood fascination of Japanese drama and manga, and an incessant itch to travel. She writes contemporary young adult and new adult romance. Sometimes, paranormal fantasy too. Visit her website at www.jayetria.com.

  Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Wattpad, Pinterest: jayetria

  Email: jayetria@gmail.com

  Also by Jay:

  Blossom Among Flowers

  Playlist #1: Songs of Our Breakup

  That Thing Called Closure (A Playlist Short Track) - available on Buqo.ph

  Majesty - coming soon on Amazon