Coming Home (A Chaos MC story)

Chapter 30

Harper

             I was standing just behind the curtain listening to one of the final songs of the night. Thankfully the entire show had gone off without a hitch and the guests seemed to be enjoying themselves.

             When putting together the line up, I enlisted Aaron to help me organize what sequence the singers would go in based on what song they wanted to sing and how many they wanted to do. Thanks to his input the show is going better than I could have done on my own. Walking away from where I was standing, I moved through the back to make sure all of the kids were lined up and didn't have any last minute questions. 

            I made all the last minute changes to the order the kids were in just as I heard Aaron announcing us. "Hello again everyone. I hope all of you have enjoyed yourselves so far, we have been lucky so many talented people have made time to come out here and support these kids. Speaking of the kids, they have a special surprise for you. Along with Harper, hey have out together a performance to hopefully show who you will be helping with your money. So, without further ado, give it for Harper O'Connell and a group of these special kids." 

          Walking out to the crowd still clapping, I made my way to center stage and the microphone. When I first came up with this idea, I instantly wanted to do a song that I sung for the soundtrack of the movie, The Greatest Showman. This song (This Is Me)  was so inspirational and had such a great message that I thought would be good for the kids to learn and for the crowd to hear from them. 

         I stood at the microphone staring at the floor as I listened to the first few bars of the song. Reaching my que, I look up the crowd and begin to sing. As the song progressed, the kids came onto stage and joined me. As we continued singing and the choreography we came up with to go with the song, I looked into the crowd and saw the awe struck faces of everyone. I continues scanning the faces until I came to the one face I was searching for. Ryder was watching me like a look of pride and affection. I smiled to myself as we came to the final notes. 

         When the music stopped, we were met with silence for a few moments. Suddenly, everyone in the audience was on their feet applauding. I turned to the kids, waving them to take a step forward and take a bow. Their faces were worth all of the hard work that went into making this night a success. Children who were never given any positive attention  or affection were now being applauded by hundreds of people because of what they were able to do. It might not be having a family to love and support you at all times, but it was something that could show them they are capable of so much more than they think. All they have to do is have the courage and work ethic to go after it. 

         I gave them all hugs before they left the stage. I walked back to the microphone to address the audience one final time before the night ended. "I hope everyone enjoyed our performance. Those kids worked so incredibly hard to make that a success. Those were only a few of the dozens of kids that are at Head Start at any given time and all of them have talents of their own. Unfortunately, many of them have not yet had the chance to discover what their talent is or where their interest lay. But, at Head Start, they may be able to. Being surrounded by people who care, for most of them this is a first, they are able to find themselves and chose a path that leads them to a life of success and happiness. If you were not convinced early tonight to donate money, I hope our last song will inspire you too. These kids have been through so much and that does not make them less, they need a place to become confident in themselves and that everything they have been through makes them so strong and to never be afraid of scars life has has given them. Thank you all for your time tonight." 

         I walked in the back and was instantly swarmed by hugs from a few of the kids. Hugging all of them back, I took the time to speak with all 20 of them and talked about how they felt. Eventually, we all made our way to the main room to mingle for a few remaining minutes with everyone.