Limelight

Chapter Twenty-Eight

~~Spiritual Family~~

They spent the next few hours touring around the city.

          They walked through the Botanical Gardens in the Bronx and then went to lunch in this cute little Chinese restaurant nearby and ordered one of everything off the menu. They even performed some karaoke for the customers after the owner's daughter recognized the both of them. They even had the daughter sing along with them, which had her almost in tears when Xavier had his arm around the girl, Mei-hui, singing I want it that way. Just for the hospitality, or at least that's what Xavier explained, he left them a two hundred dollar tip.

          They ditched Xavier's car back at his apartment and took the subway, which was an experience in itself. A homeless man offered a few jokes in exchange for spare change, and surprisingly, he was hilarious and Xavier gave him fifty bucks for it. The man looked at Aaliyah and pulled a half-toothless grin and told her, "He's a keeper darlin', I'd hold onto him as tightly as you can."

          Aaliyah flushed slightly embarrassed. She had been receiving comments like this from people all day like she and Xavier were dating, and she wanted to make the correction, but she had a feeling that the awkwardness that would follow would be unpleasant so she tried to move past it, though it was getting annoying when she would look at Xavier seeming more amused by the situation if anything. Still, neither of them would openly talk about it for whatever reason. She wished she would, or least try and bring it up as a joke, at least then it would feel a little less weird, and a little less guilty about it when she would think about Jacks.

          There were also street dancers on the platform of the subway and Aaliyah couldn't help but think about Jacks who told her that it was on a subway platform in Brooklyn that West discovered him and introduced him to the dance warehouse and the rest of Light 'Em Up. She instantly felt incredibly guilty for ignoring all of his calls and decided to send a quick message to him telling him that she was sorry and that she would talk to him later, though nothing else, not knowing if there was anything else she could say to make him feel better.

          Despite her roiling guilt that kept surging up in her stomach like sharp acidic stabs, Xavier managed to be a good distraction. He was a great tour guide and managed to point out unremarkable sites across the city that he had been to growing up with his family and came up with hilarious stories of his experiences there. He made her laugh so hard, her cheeks and stomach were hurting from overuse. It was an impressive discovery, Aaliyah thought, finding out that Xavier had a sense of humor. She always felt that the perfect guy for her would be funny.

          Again. Guilt.

          Aaliyah also learned that music could literally be found anywhere. From the subway underground to the top of the Statue of Liberty where music was carried in the wind and in the whistle of the breeze or the hum of an engine or the snap of the train against its tracks. A violinist was playing in the botanical garden and a boy, who recognized them on the street and started playing on his makeshift drumkit out of steel pans and wooden spoons one of Xavier's songs, sweet tea, she thought. Aaliyah hummed along with the music and Xavier tossed his money everywhere he thought talent brewed. He said for talent to grow one needed to know that they were good enough.

          They also came up with lyrics and notes for around you everywhere they went and slowly it was coming together and Aaliyah couldn't help but smile when he would harmonize with her when they were coming up with lyrics. She could see just by how he smiled when he sang with her how much this song meant to him. She always found herself wanting to ask him about it, but she held her tongue. Maybe today was the day that she would learn more about the distant Xavier Adams, and she had no idea why that was, but she didn't want to push her luck.