Sing It for the World
Chapter Six
They stayed in Nashville for a week, and then two weeks. Aurelia had found the time to turn the small, two-bedroom apartment into more of a home, finding little thrift shops around the city that she could buy cheap accents at to make the place feel less confining. The beds now had sheets. Since they didn’t have a dining room table, they had bought a mattress for Ray to sleep on, and Aurelia had gotten sheets and blankets for that as well so that it looked more like a bed than just a mattress. Frank had gotten a job as a cashier at one of the grocery stores in the center of Nashville, and Gerard was in the middle of making a short-term contract to do some graphics for an indie country label. Ray spent his days and a good portion of his nights on the street corners, earning tips with his guitar skills. He hadn’t said it to any of them, but he was hoping that someone would notice him. He wanted more than anything to become known for something, and he wanted that something to be his guitar. Mikey hadn’t yet found a job, and he spent his days staying at the apartment keeping Aurelia company. As a result, she had made a closer friend out of him, which helped her feel more cheerful sometimes while Frank was at the grocery store.
She was still trying to figure out what it was that spoke to her about the Music City. She didn’t have any particular talent. She knew that she could do a decent job at writing, but that wasn’t what spoke to her. It didn’t ignite that flame inside her heart like a real passion would. She could take pretty pictures as well, but that didn’t speak to her, either. She was at a loss for what she was meant to find, and sometimes, she wondered why it was that she was here with Frank and the others when they were so clearly on their way to self discovery.
At night, Frank told her of all that he wanted to accomplish in life. He could play guitar, like Ray could, but he hadn’t had time to grab his guitar and bring it along with them when they’d left Belleview. He wanted to someday get the money together to buy another guitar; one better than his old one, so that he could somehow, someway, figure out how to make something out of the notes that came from his fingertips. When he talked about the music, Aurelia could see that light in his eyes that only one other thing could give him—her. She loved the way he talked about it, and oftentimes, it was enough to lull her into a comfortable sleep.
On the rare occasion that he would ask her what she loved to do, she had no answer. She didn’t know what it was, yet. Frank understood, and he never pushed her for more information than she could give. They would fall asleep in one another’s arms, oblivious to the fact some eight hundred miles away, her parents had called the state police. Neither of them had any idea that she was listed as kidnapped, or that Frank, Gerard, Mikey, and Ray were listed as her kidnappers.
“I think Frank is home, ‘Rel,” Mikey said from the couch in the living room, looking up to give her a small smile. Aurelia’s face immediately lit up, and she set the knife she’d been using to chop up some meat for dinner back on the counter before walking over to the door of the apartment to greet him the same way she did every time he came home. She gave him a curious look when she saw him holding a little, white bundle in his arms, and she looked up at his face.
“What’s this, baby?” she asked him, taking another look down at the white bundle. Frank gave her a sad look before moving towards the bathroom. “Someone fuckin’ sideswiped him and didn’t bother to stop,” he muttered under his breath, obviously upset. Aurelia gave Mikey a curious look, but he just shrugged before going back to reading his book. She decided to find out for himself what was wrong, and she walked into the bathroom to see him putting the bundle into the bathtub, running some warm water.
The bundle was a scared, shivering white dog. There was a small red patch on the hind leg, and the animal was so frightened that it didn’t seem to realize that it had been placed into a bathtub. Frank tried several times to get the dog to calm down enough so that he could clean the wound, but when the dog finally snapped at his hand, Aurelia intervened and put her hand on his shoulder softly.
“Let me try,” she said quietly, before she kneeled next to the bathtub. She smiled at the dog calmly before she pet its head softly, trying to calm it down. The dog’s demeanor relaxed, and she slowly moved her hands towards the hind leg to see how bad the wound was. “Frank, can you get me some peroxide and a roll of gauze? I think you’ll need to run to the pharmacy for the gauze, but I know we have the peroxide,” she said calmly, keeping eye contact with the dog. In those few seconds, she had finally figured out what was calling to her.
She might not have the raw talent to be a writer or an artist, but she could take care of this animal. And though it was nothing glamorous like Ray and Frank’s rock star dreams, or Gerard’s amazing talent for art, it was important. This dog was a living being, and Aurelia could take care of him. Frank moved quickly, stunned that she had gotten the dog to relax so quickly. He handed her the peroxide and told her that he’d be back in a few minutes from the pharmacy. She nodded, and set about cleaning out the wound. The dog struggled a little as she poured the stinging alcohol into the wound, but he let her take care of him as she started to get the bits of dirt and gravel out of his fur. She didn’t know what breed he was, but he wasn’t big enough to be any more than twenty to thirty pounds. His frightened dark eyes stayed on her the entire time, tongue hanging out of his mouth and small yelps sounding every so often when she’d touch a tender part of skin.
Frank returned a few minutes later, and she smiled as he handed her the gauze. She moved out of the way to let Frank pick the dog up, and then she quickly wrapped a towel around him before drying him off completely as Frank carried the dog into their bedroom. He set the animal down on the bed, and Aurelia moved to sit down as she looked up at Frank.
“Can you hold his leg straight so the gauze won’t bunch up?” She asked him quietly. Frank nodded and did as she’d requested, watching as his girlfriend would wrap the gauze tightly, but not constrictively around the wound. A little red seeped through, but not enough for either of them to be worried as she finally finished off the gauze with a one loop of medical tape to keep it fastened so the dog couldn’t chew at it.
“What are we going to call him? We can’t just send him out there again,” Frank murmured as he sat down on the opposite side of the bed, looking at the dog. Aurelia sighed, knowing that Frank was right. Already, she had developed a bond with the animal. She would feel guilty if she just took him to a shelter now, especially if she wasn’t sure it was a no-kill shelter.
“We’re not going to call him anything,” she said softly, smiling at the white dog before patting its head. “He’s going to tell us his name, in his own time. We just have to let him find his voice,” she said, looking up at her boyfriend. Frank met her gaze, and nodded, a smile of his own forming on his own face. He could tell that she had finally found it; that she had finally found her calling. And that made him happier than anything else could have.
“I’ve got something to show you, now,” he whispered after a few moments of silence had passed between them. Aurelia gave him a strange look but nodded, leaning down to kiss the dog’s nose softly before scratching at his ears. The dog took this as a sign that they would be back and settled down, curling into a ball and falling asleep on the bottom of the bed while Frank and Aurelia walked out of the bedroom.
“We’re going for a drive, Mikes, is there anything you need us to pick up?” Frank asked his friend as they walked into the living room to let him know they were leaving. Mikey thought about it for a minute and then nodded.
“If you could find another book for me or something, that would be cool. I’m almost done with this one,” he told his friend before he looked at Aurelia, a grin on his face. “She knows what kind I read.”
Frank and Aurelia nodded, and she followed her boyfriend out of the apartment before he grabbed her hand in his as they walked down to the Trans Am. She didn’t know where he was taking her, but she was excited to know. They drove in silence, the only sound in the vehicle the sloppy guitars and shrill vocals of the punk music that Frank loved so much. Aurelia herself was learning to enjoy the music, and she didn’t complain as Frank drove.
He stopped about forty-five minutes later, pulling up in a parking lot of a shopping district in the middle of Nashville before he grabbed her hand when they walked over to the sidewalk. She was becoming more curious as the minutes passed, and she was unsure of why he had brought her here. Finally, he stopped in front of an instrument shop, looking in the display window with a huge grin on his face.
“See that guitar there?” He asked her, pointing at one of the guitars that was positioned in the corner of the display case. It looked beaten and forlorn compared to the other guitars, with a few scratches on the enamel and more than a few black spots on it as well. It was that reason alone that she could see what Frank saw in it. When he saw her looking at it, he gave her another confident smirk. “That guitar is going to get me where I want to be,” he told her softly before grabbing her hand as they walked away. She knew that he was right, and though she wasn’t sure how they’d get it, she was going to make sure that Frank had that guitar somehow, some way.
She was still trying to figure out what it was that spoke to her about the Music City. She didn’t have any particular talent. She knew that she could do a decent job at writing, but that wasn’t what spoke to her. It didn’t ignite that flame inside her heart like a real passion would. She could take pretty pictures as well, but that didn’t speak to her, either. She was at a loss for what she was meant to find, and sometimes, she wondered why it was that she was here with Frank and the others when they were so clearly on their way to self discovery.
At night, Frank told her of all that he wanted to accomplish in life. He could play guitar, like Ray could, but he hadn’t had time to grab his guitar and bring it along with them when they’d left Belleview. He wanted to someday get the money together to buy another guitar; one better than his old one, so that he could somehow, someway, figure out how to make something out of the notes that came from his fingertips. When he talked about the music, Aurelia could see that light in his eyes that only one other thing could give him—her. She loved the way he talked about it, and oftentimes, it was enough to lull her into a comfortable sleep.
On the rare occasion that he would ask her what she loved to do, she had no answer. She didn’t know what it was, yet. Frank understood, and he never pushed her for more information than she could give. They would fall asleep in one another’s arms, oblivious to the fact some eight hundred miles away, her parents had called the state police. Neither of them had any idea that she was listed as kidnapped, or that Frank, Gerard, Mikey, and Ray were listed as her kidnappers.
“I think Frank is home, ‘Rel,” Mikey said from the couch in the living room, looking up to give her a small smile. Aurelia’s face immediately lit up, and she set the knife she’d been using to chop up some meat for dinner back on the counter before walking over to the door of the apartment to greet him the same way she did every time he came home. She gave him a curious look when she saw him holding a little, white bundle in his arms, and she looked up at his face.
“What’s this, baby?” she asked him, taking another look down at the white bundle. Frank gave her a sad look before moving towards the bathroom. “Someone fuckin’ sideswiped him and didn’t bother to stop,” he muttered under his breath, obviously upset. Aurelia gave Mikey a curious look, but he just shrugged before going back to reading his book. She decided to find out for himself what was wrong, and she walked into the bathroom to see him putting the bundle into the bathtub, running some warm water.
The bundle was a scared, shivering white dog. There was a small red patch on the hind leg, and the animal was so frightened that it didn’t seem to realize that it had been placed into a bathtub. Frank tried several times to get the dog to calm down enough so that he could clean the wound, but when the dog finally snapped at his hand, Aurelia intervened and put her hand on his shoulder softly.
“Let me try,” she said quietly, before she kneeled next to the bathtub. She smiled at the dog calmly before she pet its head softly, trying to calm it down. The dog’s demeanor relaxed, and she slowly moved her hands towards the hind leg to see how bad the wound was. “Frank, can you get me some peroxide and a roll of gauze? I think you’ll need to run to the pharmacy for the gauze, but I know we have the peroxide,” she said calmly, keeping eye contact with the dog. In those few seconds, she had finally figured out what was calling to her.
She might not have the raw talent to be a writer or an artist, but she could take care of this animal. And though it was nothing glamorous like Ray and Frank’s rock star dreams, or Gerard’s amazing talent for art, it was important. This dog was a living being, and Aurelia could take care of him. Frank moved quickly, stunned that she had gotten the dog to relax so quickly. He handed her the peroxide and told her that he’d be back in a few minutes from the pharmacy. She nodded, and set about cleaning out the wound. The dog struggled a little as she poured the stinging alcohol into the wound, but he let her take care of him as she started to get the bits of dirt and gravel out of his fur. She didn’t know what breed he was, but he wasn’t big enough to be any more than twenty to thirty pounds. His frightened dark eyes stayed on her the entire time, tongue hanging out of his mouth and small yelps sounding every so often when she’d touch a tender part of skin.
Frank returned a few minutes later, and she smiled as he handed her the gauze. She moved out of the way to let Frank pick the dog up, and then she quickly wrapped a towel around him before drying him off completely as Frank carried the dog into their bedroom. He set the animal down on the bed, and Aurelia moved to sit down as she looked up at Frank.
“Can you hold his leg straight so the gauze won’t bunch up?” She asked him quietly. Frank nodded and did as she’d requested, watching as his girlfriend would wrap the gauze tightly, but not constrictively around the wound. A little red seeped through, but not enough for either of them to be worried as she finally finished off the gauze with a one loop of medical tape to keep it fastened so the dog couldn’t chew at it.
“What are we going to call him? We can’t just send him out there again,” Frank murmured as he sat down on the opposite side of the bed, looking at the dog. Aurelia sighed, knowing that Frank was right. Already, she had developed a bond with the animal. She would feel guilty if she just took him to a shelter now, especially if she wasn’t sure it was a no-kill shelter.
“We’re not going to call him anything,” she said softly, smiling at the white dog before patting its head. “He’s going to tell us his name, in his own time. We just have to let him find his voice,” she said, looking up at her boyfriend. Frank met her gaze, and nodded, a smile of his own forming on his own face. He could tell that she had finally found it; that she had finally found her calling. And that made him happier than anything else could have.
“I’ve got something to show you, now,” he whispered after a few moments of silence had passed between them. Aurelia gave him a strange look but nodded, leaning down to kiss the dog’s nose softly before scratching at his ears. The dog took this as a sign that they would be back and settled down, curling into a ball and falling asleep on the bottom of the bed while Frank and Aurelia walked out of the bedroom.
“We’re going for a drive, Mikes, is there anything you need us to pick up?” Frank asked his friend as they walked into the living room to let him know they were leaving. Mikey thought about it for a minute and then nodded.
“If you could find another book for me or something, that would be cool. I’m almost done with this one,” he told his friend before he looked at Aurelia, a grin on his face. “She knows what kind I read.”
Frank and Aurelia nodded, and she followed her boyfriend out of the apartment before he grabbed her hand in his as they walked down to the Trans Am. She didn’t know where he was taking her, but she was excited to know. They drove in silence, the only sound in the vehicle the sloppy guitars and shrill vocals of the punk music that Frank loved so much. Aurelia herself was learning to enjoy the music, and she didn’t complain as Frank drove.
He stopped about forty-five minutes later, pulling up in a parking lot of a shopping district in the middle of Nashville before he grabbed her hand when they walked over to the sidewalk. She was becoming more curious as the minutes passed, and she was unsure of why he had brought her here. Finally, he stopped in front of an instrument shop, looking in the display window with a huge grin on his face.
“See that guitar there?” He asked her, pointing at one of the guitars that was positioned in the corner of the display case. It looked beaten and forlorn compared to the other guitars, with a few scratches on the enamel and more than a few black spots on it as well. It was that reason alone that she could see what Frank saw in it. When he saw her looking at it, he gave her another confident smirk. “That guitar is going to get me where I want to be,” he told her softly before grabbing her hand as they walked away. She knew that he was right, and though she wasn’t sure how they’d get it, she was going to make sure that Frank had that guitar somehow, some way.