Hallelujah

The small crowd began a polite applause for the enthusiastic blonde who had just belted out an almost painful version of some Taylor Swift hit. Open mic night was a chance for aspiring musicians to give the locals a taste of what they were all about, in most cases that meant mediocre guitar playing and out of tune lyrics that never really hit home the way they were intended to. The din ended the moment she stepped off of the tiny one man stage as the host for the evening greeted those who had not left mid performance.

"Without further ado, let's give a warm welcome to our next performer, David," the audience gave another polite clap as I stood. A few individuals who knew me as more than just the Wednesday night guitar guy threw in a few whistles for good measure.

I took my place on the rickety stool on the center of the stage and began adjusting the microphones. I pulled my ancient chestnut guitar onto my lap and looked out at the crowd. The same faces I saw every week smiled at me. I greeted the crowd with a smile and that is when I saw her.

Leaning up against the far wall in an over sized scarf she almost looked like a child. Eyes like a doe watched my every move and all I could think was thank God, how did he come up with you?
. I didn't want to sing the blues, I didn't want to sing some catchy chorus that was sure to get the crowd in a good mood, I wanted to sing about her. I wanted to spend my every breath letting the world know they needed to stop looking for perfection and start looking at her.

"I think I'll change it up this week," My voice was shaky as I slid the capo onto the bridge. "Everyone loves a classic?"

I took a deep breathe and tried to calm my new found nerves before beginning the slow plucking of the strings. The room was absolutely silent save for the gentle harmony I had begun. I couldn't think about what my hands were doing I could only think about how I wanted to spend every second of my life getting to know the gorgeous girl in the back of the room.

"Well I heard there was a secret chord
that David played and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?

Some members of the audience clapped in appreciation before letting the simple piece go on. She let a small smile creep onto her face, it started with the right side of her mouth before enveloping her whole. It was like staring at the sun, I had never seen something so perfect and brilliant.

"Well it goes like this:
The fourth, the fifth,
The minor fall and the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah"

I imagined finishing the piece and standing up, the audience clapped and smiled as I made my way to the back of the room. With everyone around me I could only see her, only see as she pulled down on the hem of her dress and pushed the stray oak colored hair out of her face. I could see the smile form on her delicate face again. I would smile back before asking if she wanted to go grab a coffee and a seat and finish watching the acts.

"Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you"

She would say yes and we would talk in between sets and before long all the acts would be over and the owner would be telling us to kindly find some other place to chat about absolutely nothing.

"She tied you to her kitchen chair
She broke your throne and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah"

We would leave the small shop and she would announce that she was absolutely craving a waffle. We would walk down the street and she would tell me about her parents. I would tell her about my family as we sat down at a Waffle House and over a very late night snack we would laugh about family holidays gone wrong.

"Baby I've been here before
I've seen this room and I've walked this floor (you know)
I used to live alone before I knew you"

She would almost fight me over who would pay the bill. When her hand would touch mine on the table we would both feel sparks that could only mean one thing. I would end up paying and she would let me walk her home and on the steps outside of her door she would let me kiss her.

"And I've seen your flag on the marble arch
and love is not a victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah"

And we would go on many dates. She would let me hold her when she needed a shoulder to cry on and she would pry out of me all the secrets I had held close.

"there was a time when you let me know
What's really going on below
But now you never show that to me, do you?"

She would sit with me in my favorite music writing spots and let me strum through chord progression after chord progression until I was satisfied.

"But remember when I moved in you
And the holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah"

One night I would have finished a piece I had kept secret, a piece for her. I would sit on the couch with her feet in my lap and I would begin and she would cry and kiss me and tell me she loved me.

"Maybe there's a God above
But all I've ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew you"

I could see her walking down the aisle, with every eye on her, she would be looking at me. Her incredible smile growing with every step she took closer towards me.

"And it's not a cry that you hear at night
It's not somebody who's seen the light
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah"

I let out a final breath and returned to the crowd. Many individuals had stolen tears creep down their faces. I smiled and stood and as I left the audience remembered they were suppose to clap. I could see her from a mile away as I made my way around small tables and plush chairs. She pushed her hair out of her face and pulled down on the hem of her dress. I could almost feel our lives together.

She turned away from me and the brilliant smile that made me question my life before her spread across her face. I followed her gaze. A boy who couldn't have been old enough to buy alcohol made his way towards her. He bent down to let her kiss his cheek and they clasped hands.

He made his way towards the door with her following close behind him, neither one of them letting go of the others hand.

She was a work of art, she was suppose to spend her life with me. She was my own hallelujah.

And now, she was gone.