Classic Rock Imagines, Short Stories, and One-Shots

Far Away Eyes (Keith Richards Request)

Kat stepped onto the stage, her acoustic guitar in hand. Adjusting the microphone so it hung in front of her face, she quickly tuned the instrument. Then she took a deep breath and began her set, starting with a song from the Rolling Stones. 

Childhood living is easy to do 

The things you wanted, I bought them for you

Graceless lady, you know who I am

You know I can't let you slide through my hands

Wild horses couldn't drag me away

Wild, wild horses, couldn't drag me away

As she sang, Kat looked around the pub. It was busy that night. The tables were filled with people of all ages, from teenagers to old folks. Kat found herself grinning when she saw an old couple dancing to her singing next to their table. 

This is why I became a musician, she thought happily to herself.

Then, Kat's eyes scanned the bar area. She didn't see anything unusual, but one person in particular caught her eye. She could only see the back of his head, which was covered in a heap of black hair, but she couldn't help but think she had seen this man before.

Wild horses couldn't drag me away

Wild, wild horses, we'll ride them some day

Wild horses couldn't drag me away

Wild, wild horses, we'll ride them some day

Kat hit the last chord of the song and looked at her audience, who were applauding her. She looked toward the bar and saw that the man had turned around. Her eyes widened in surprise, for she now knew why the man looked familiar.

It was Keith Richards.

Kat stood frozen as Keith's dark brown eyes met hers. He nodded at her, as if he recognized that she had sang his song. She suddenly realized that she had stopped breathing, and looked away from him, taking a deep breath and preparing for her next song. 

***

Kat played the rest of her set, which lasted about an hour, and quickly packed up her guitar and left the stage. She needed a drink.

Walking over to the bar, she sat down and asked the bartender for a glass of water. He passed one to her relatively quickly, and she downed it in seconds.

"It's quite tiring to perform for that long, isn't it?" she heard a voice ask. Turning around, she saw Keith Richards standing behind her. 

"I-- yeah," she said, stumbling over her words. Keith must have noticed her nervousness, for he chuckled and smiled warmly at her. 

"There's no need to be nervous, Miss," he said. "I'm just a normal human being, same as you."

Kat's face reddened. "I'm sorry, Mr. Richards," she said.

"Oh, please call me Keith," he replied. "All this 'Mr. Richards' business makes me feel old."

Kat giggled. "I'm Kat," she told him, holding her hand out for a handshake. Keith shook it.

"Well, Kat, you did very good out there," he said. "I'm guessing you're a fan of ours?"

"What gave it away?" Kat asked, grinning sheepishly.

"Your entire set was made up of songs that Mick and I wrote," Keith replied. "But I can't complain, you just gave us more publicity." He winked at her and she laughed. 

"I'm glad I could be of service, then," she said. 

The two then fell into a comfortable silence, Kat avoiding his gaze. She could feel Keith's eyes looking at her. Finally, Keith's hand gently moved her head so that she was looking back at him. He began to lean forward. Kat's eyes widened as he pressed his lips against hers. He kissed her softly, and pulled away quickly. 

"I-- I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me," he stammered. Kat slowly stepped back. Keith noticed and reached out to touch her arm.

"Please wait," he said. "Let me buy you a drink."

Kat smiled and followed him to his seat, where they spent the night drinking and talking. From that moment on, Kat knew her life would never be the same again. 

All because of that one night at work.

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I was so sure of that one until the last few paragraphs...

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed!

Thank you for reading, voting, and commenting!

I am always open for requests! :)