I haven't written too much about this project, but then, I haven't been working on it for very long. Now that the first third has been worked out, I'm ready to share a little chunk from the rocker project I've been working on. Tentatively titled: Letters to the Sky Gods, this is a story of a rebuilt band and the love its founding members discover along the way.
The first breath of fresh air after the long car ride up to Hawk’s
place left Aaron leaning against the bumper of his truck, half doubled over and
coughing because his lungs weren’t used to anything this pure. There were more
stars out here too, a ring of towering treetops creating a fringed frame for
this slice of sky.
Shrill wails broke the silence of the night, growing louder
the closer he got to the door. The sight that greeted Aaron when Hawk finally
answered the bell, was something that had to be seen to be believed. A glob of something
that resembled orange mashed potatoes clung to the gray t-shirt Hawk wore, several
other stains forming an impressive collection on the worn cloth. There was something
caught in his hair that looked an awful lot like a chunk of green bean, and a
juice stain in the shape of a tiny handprint on the right side of his neck. The
toddler kicking and rocking against Hawk’s shoulder brought back memories of
loony tunes cartoons and the Tasmanian devil. All that was missing was froth
and gnashing teeth to round out the image.
“Sorry,” Hawk shouted over the tantrum. “Kid’s having a
complete meltdown tonight. Nothing I say, do, or attempt to feed her has done
anything but piss her off more. I’m at my whit’s end here.”
“Then it’s a good thing uncle Aaron’s here for the weekend,”
Aaron replied, reaching for Dani.
“You can’t seriously want to take her right now.”
“Why not. Looks like you need a break.”
“It’s your funeral,” Hawk remarked, passing the hollering
bundle of pigtails and bad temper.
She managed to kick him a couple times before he got one arm
behind her knees, holding her tight enough to insure she didn’t flail out of
his arms and onto the hardwood floor.
“Now, what’s got you so riled up tonight princess?”
Instead of yelling over the noise, he lowered his voice,
murmuring into her ear low enough that she’d have to stop screaming if she
really wanted to hear anything. Too bad listening didn’t seem to be high on her
list of priorities right now.
“Sounds like you’re so upset you don’t even know why you’re
crying,” Aaron cooed. “And that’s okay. It happens to all of us sometimes, especially
when it’s a whole bunch of things all rolled up together. Is that what happened
or did you refuse to take your nap again.”
“Both,” Hawk grumbled, securing the door behind them as
Aaron carried Dani towards the living room.
“Where are the other two?”
“Playing in Liam’s room out of protest against all the
noise.”
“How long has she been at it?”
“On and off all day. I have literally tried everything,
including several attempts at a bribe.”
“How’d that work out for you?”
“She’s eaten one bowl of ice cream with sprinkles, one cup
of pudding with sprinkles, exactly one forth of a peanut butter sandwich that I
refused to put sprinkles on, which caused the third meltdown of the day, oh,
and she found a brand-new hiding spot and scared me half to death went I
couldn’t find her after the first time I tried putting her down for a nap.”
Given the circumstances, it shouldn’t be funny, but as Aaron
swayed, turning with a still ranging Dani in his arms, he caught sight of a
dusting of sprinkles in a smear of dried ice cream on Hawk’s jeans.
“Man, she made a mess outta you.”
