A Table For Two...

[Dane Summers]

He took a long deep breath, and let it out slowly - He always did when the sense of contentment in his life threatened to overwhelm him. As he let his emotions out in a wave, he smiled.

Dane sat at a back booth, stretched out alone. A barely touched bourbon & coke sat perspiring on the table, next to an ash-tray with one his hand rolled cigarettes, slowly burning away. The slow curl of blue smoke seemed to match the laziness of the day. He sat watching it snake it's way to the ceiling, but his mind was on the twists and turns of his life. The popular, if old term for his reverie, was Marveling.

The Lone Drunkard was empty. Mick stood behind the bar wiping down the polished wooden surface to a mirror shine. The bounty hunter enjoying a meal had left, and the place seemed to become a huge expanse of empty space. A vid was on in the corner displaying some sport, but the sound was down so low as to be unintelligible. An old music machine sat unused.

No, it was only Dane now. Dane, marveling on his life, wondering why it seemed he could never figure out what day it was anymore, and absent-minded'ly picking a few strings of his old acoustic guitar.

As the melody emerged, something soulful and romantic, the chords filled the room, covering up the whispering Vid, relieving the old music machine of its duty, and tying the quiet peaceful room together. Mick even looked up from his cleaning, only for a second, and gave the barest hint of a smile.

Emotions. Dane couldn't speak well, and he would never write novels. He couldn't paint or draw, and would never write a play, or inspire a crowd. His relief was music, and even singing. Every chord was his feelings given life and breath in the world. It was his only real communication. And to think, he started carrying a guitar in grade school to pick up chicks. Dane chuckled, its amazing where life takes you.

As the music picked up, and his heart stirred, whispered words left his lips, and he began to sing. All he knew was love songs. It was because he had always been in love.

"...when theres a burning...in your heart...an endless yearning in your heart...build it bigger than the sun...let it grow, let it grow..."

"...when theres a burning in your heart..." *he smiles* "...don't be alarmed"

But this was Barrier Gate Station - And you never knew who would walk into your life on any given day...

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