Colors

The lights were dim except the ones above the stage where an explosion of colors swept away your senses. Crimson shined over Tate's cheeks, shoulders and arms while the teal wandered above the skin of his hands, eyes and mouth; from which a song that named the color blue again and again escaped from his lips.

Cassie was in the dark, barely illuminated by a row of low-hanging lights that glinted through the glasses and bottles at the bar. Admiring the spectrum of colors and enjoying the fact that Tate was having so much fun on stage, she thought he liked showing off his singing skills-and she sure liked listening to him while admiring his performance and stage presence.

When he got off the small stage, the few people in the audience applauded. Smiling, he sat down next to Cassie and ordered two drinks. While others got on stage to sing, Tate talked about Mac, Cheese, Lip, Titan and Lily, about school and his band. Pouring out of him, enthusiasm and happiness overflowed cascading with every word while the nearby lake waters reflected the sparkle in his as eyes as he spoke.

Piero once told her that she was born under the symbol of a white rose, so white was the color that best represented her...pure, strong, and confident. She wondered what Tate's color should be.

"Why don't you talk?" he asked nudging Cassie out of her hypnotic trance.

"Sorry...what?" she asked, leaning towards him. Cassie understood perfectly what he said and just used that as an excuse to get in closer to him.

"I like listening to you."

"Because you have no option, may I point out," Tate laughed.

Cassie laughed too and shook her head, then got back to her seat.

"It's your turn," he teased, shifting the spotlight back to her, and took a sip from a yellow drink.

"What would you suggest?"

"Whatever your heart desires."

"This was such a bad idea." Cassie crossed her arms on her chest and frowned, closing her eyes and shaking her head again.

"No...it's a great idea!" Tate placed his finger below her chin and lifted her head. "But it's okay if you don't want to."

Seconds passed as they stared at each other in silence, Tate pouted and Cassie couldn't resist, he looked adorable.

"Please come with me?"

Tate smiled and grabbed her hand, he couldn't believe how shy she was being over a little karaoke seeing as she's a ballerina who performs on stage and all.

"I thought you'd never ask!"

"Please promise me you won't leave me alone on stage."

"I'd never do that," he said satirically while dramatically placing his other hand on his heart. "What song you got in mind?"

Cassie's shy smile turned into a devilish grin. "Oh, you'll see." She grabbed his hand tighter and got up.

"This was such a bad idea." Tate whispered, quoting in fun what she'd said before.

Cassie left Tate on stage while she talked to the karaoke host. Tate saw her whisper something into his ear.

Suddenly the lights turned brighter and the music started. Cassie looked at him when the first few notes sounded, he giggled. He knew the funky '80s piano rhythm by heart.

"Can't believe you chose this!" he said while effortlessly grabbing a microphone from the tripod.

Cassie shrugged trying to pick up her microphone because its wires got tangled.

"Amateurs," Tate teased again while rolling his eyes. Cassie laughed and elbowed him.

After a minute they were both dancing and singing from the top of their lungs.

"Don't you want me baby?" they both sung to each other in the chorus.

Laughing caused Cassie to miss her cue a few times. When she sung, Tate made the audience clap so she wouldn't be so nervous, he also spun her around a few times to loosen her up. Truth was, Cassie's singing wasn't like her dancing, she had a soft high voice, almost a whisper, but he didn't care. They were both having fun. He ended up placing his arm around her waist and singing beside her.

The song ended, people applauded, and Cassie looked at him like she couldn't believe what she'd just done. Tate wrapped her in his arms as she buried her face on his chest, embarrassed by the entire situation.

To shake it off, she said, "I didn't know you could move your hips like that."

Cassie thought about how all of the colorful lights had lit them on the stage and how special that moment felt.

"I'm full of surprises, aren't I?"

"Full of mysteries in my opinion," the colors deepest inside he'd not yet shown her yet.

"That works too."

"I guess I'm not going to learn what those mysteries are today, am I?" she asked. Cassie was curious about his history beyond the band and Lily. What about his parents? A past lover? She wanted to know everything.

"Not so fast, Cassie-Cass."

"Well...are you finally going to tell me something about your past?"

"Maybe...what do you want to know?"

"Why do you live with Lily?" Cassie spat out as quickly as she could, without thinking, scared he would change his mind with a pause to think about opening up to her.

Tate's playful smile turned into a smirk. He took a sip of his drink and looked down.

"I'm sorry-" Cassie said, now feeling like she crossed a line.

"I escaped...from my home," Tate interrupted, "let's just say...my family wasn't the best-calling it dysfunctional would be kind."

He sighed, Cassie opened her eyes wide, he was finally confiding in her...about him. Something that would help Cassie rebuild the puzzle of jagged enigmatic pieces that made him up, to finally know what color runs deep inside him.

"I think I was around ten years old. My parents divorced when my mom got with another dude. I didn't like my stepfather. We argued all the time-bad fights, long lectures...he didn't like me. l. And I don't even blame him that much, I was a troubled kid back then, my grades weren't good, I wouldn't listen, wouldn't follow their rules. But he was mean to my mom as well. Then, we had a huge blowout one Friday night..."

He stopped and stared at his drink, the bubbles foaming at the top. He touched his jaw with his fingertips, as if there was a ghost of a wound that was always there. "I left home with Titan, and Lily was the only family member I knew who would take me in."

"What about your mother now?"

"She calls me every now and then, but I don't answer anymore-she used to visit also, so I don't know what's going on with her. Um-" Tate's voice broke and he pretended to cough. "She has a new job now; or that's what Lily told me. She sends Lily money so she can pay for my education and for food for both of us."

"Is she still with that guy?"

"Yes. I think that's why she doesn't visit anymore...he doesn't let her and she doesn't want me to go back there either, I just know it."

Cassie placed her hand on his, his past was gray of angry storm clouds, but that color didn't define him.

"I actually can love her unconditionally... but having had other mothers before, I've had plenty of practice... you know, babies aren't grown in the pods of plants. As Icarus I'm born into a different family each time."

"What about your previous family?"

"You mean the one I had before this one? They live in Belgium."

"That's not so far away..."

"I know what you're thinking...but I have this rule of not seeing the people I've met in other lives."

"Why?"

"Because it would be so sad."

"That makes sense," Cassie shrugged.

"Don't pity me though, I like being immortal"

"Do you?"

"Well--uh...not exactly but, there is a certain...I mean, they put the curse on me so I could end my life and be punished...but I don't live by their rules, and I don't want to die. As you might have guessed by now, I'm too proud to let them win."

"Are you scared of death?"

Tate frowned. The only person who ever asked him that was Pete, on a night when he was still in the band and they were writing songs on his balcony being all poetic and stuff.

Are you? Pete's voice echoed in his head.

No, he had answered him.

Was he scared of death itself? No. He was probably scared of disappearing and of being nothing-just the gray of colorless, lifeless ashes. Like Pete once told him, "Hic iacet pulvis, cinis et nihil." And that was what he was going to be if he decided to kill himself.

"Yes," he finally said to Cassie. He took a sip from his drink and took her hand. "No more questions...it's time for another song."

Both got up on the stage again. Cassie still thought about what his color should be, but then changed her mind, maybe he was not a hue at all, or a tint or a shade like her. Maybe it changed in every life he had, inspired by the colors of a rainbow. Though there wasn't a color that defined him, he had all of them churning inside him.

Either way, when they started singing all the secrets that Tate shared in the dark didn't matter anymore. They were together, and they were a kaleidoscope.

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Hello! Mad here, aaaaaaaaaah finally an update after a month! I'm so sorry for the delay but I enjoyed writing this chapter even though I don't know why but Tate's past was a hard thing to write.

As you can see, this chapter is a huge metaphor for colors, inspired by the song Colors by Halsey. I've been listening to that song all this week. amD WE HAVE THREE CHAPTERS LEFT TILL THE END OF PART 1 WHAAAA- Please vote if you liked this chapter and comment what you think!

Also, what color would represent you? I thought a lot about mine and I think royal blue would be my color.

xxMad

ps. "Hic iacet pulvis, cinis et nihil." means "Here lies dust, ashes and nothing" if you don't remember from previous chapterssss <3