✿

CANON REESE

Just as we had arrived at the beach, I spotted Ron's silhouette from a distance. I noticed that he was carrying bags on each hand so I ran over to help.

"I got the coal," he beamed at me. I tried to reach out for the bags but he refused to let me carry anything, instantly pulling them away from my grasp. "It's fine, they're not heavy, anyway." I have texted him earlier, notifying him about the barbecue party and he asked if he could bring anything we needed.

"You just got off your shift?" I asked, noticing that he is still in his uniform. "You went to work so early, though?"

"I had to cover for a friend," he just shrugged nonchalantly, "It's cool." When we got to where the others were, the boys had already finished setting up the grill.

"Aeron!" Cassidy exclaimed as soon as her eyes landed on him.

"Cass!" He went in for a hug, dropping the bags he was carrying earlier on the sand. "I swung by earlier but Ree said you were still snoozing like a baby."

Cassidy snorted before nodding to my direction, "Yeah, all because she whined about going here like an even smaller baby."

"Hey!" I stomped on the ground, "Stop telling on me!"

Ron just chuckled at the exchange. He turned to Cassidy, while gesturing at me, "For some reason, I could imagine how the begging went down." The three of us just laughed it off before he went to load the coal into the grill. "Oh, hey, man. How'd the job application go?"

Jett, deemed as the best cook of the band, was standing right next to the grill, preparing to start the barbecue. "I got the job," he smiled. Ron congratulated him and patted his shoulder before they loaded the grill. "Thanks, man." When they got the fire started, Jett was left alone to do the cooking. The others asked if he needed help but he insisted.

Everyone laid down towels on the sand so we could sit around in a circle, surrounding the campfire Marx had set up with Nikon. While waiting for the barbecue, Crawford and I made the group a bunch of sandwiches. I would have done it myself but Crawford knows the band better than I do, he had their favorite choice of filling memorized. He even cut the crust off of Vinn's sandwich, knowing full well that he would tear it off, anyway. Instead, he handed the crusts to Nikon, who then fed it to his new pet chicken.

"How about at the cat cafe?" Ron turned to look around the group, pausing when he found Vinn. "Did it go well?"

"I start tomorrow," Vinn grinned, his cheeks all big and chubby as he still had them filled with bread. "There's this one kitty who's so beautiful and she liked me best."

"That's great, congrats!" Ron clapped vigorously at the news. "Did the others find jobs, too?"

Nikon gave him a small smile, "I got a fishing gig."

"Oh, wow, that's a pretty tough job," Ron acknowledged. Upon noticing Nikon tense up, he added, "I didn't mean to pressure you, I'm just really amazed at fisherfolk. Unlike working in a cafe or in a grocery store like me, it could be more physically demanding, you know?"

"Yeah, but I'll be fine," Nikon grinned sheepishly, scratching his nape, "I'm just glad Uncle Frank let me join him."

"Oh, he did?" Ron looked dubious, "I know Uncle Frank's nice but I just didn't think he'd be the type to hire a helper. How much is he paying you?"

"I'm paid with seafood," Nikon mentioned shyly. "Although, Marx doesn't eat seafood. Maybe I should have tried asking a farmer for a job instead? Maybe they'd offered eggs and milk? Oh, I like milk."

"Hold on, let me get this straight." Ron scratched his temple. "You're okay with jobs even if they don't pay good money. Like the seafood exchange, for example."

"Well, we still need to find a place to rent and we'd need money to pay for it," Marx pointed out. The harsh reality silenced everyone. All we could hear was the sound of the fire crackling in the grill and the meat sizzling on top of it. "I mean," Marx continued, "what Nikon did was great since it could cover our meals even if he doesn't get paid in cash but if Crawford and I get non-cash paying jobs as well, we might not even be able to afford living in this town."

He has a point. We got too focused on Vinn, Jett, and Nikon's successful hires but if they are not able to find a place to stay and money to cover the rent, the whole plan collapses right then and there.

"Wait," Ron turned to Cassidy and I, confused, "I thought they're staying at your place?"

"We're uh," I cleared my throat. I forgot that he was unaware of the agreement we had with my sister. I gestured towards her before continuing, "We're going back to the city in two days."

Ron was evidently taken aback while everyone else either looked down or shifted their gazes around the place. "Why are you leaving so soon?" His eyes met mine and I felt my guts churn when I sensed his grief. "We haven't seen each other in so long, Clyde's even coming home in a week." He turned to my sister this time, earnestly searching her eyes, "Can't you stay until then? It's the first time all four of us would be here after so many years."

"Clyde's coming?" Cassidy's eyes grew wide. I was not able to tell her about it since I did not know how I could make it sound less like a reason I came up with just to stay a while longer with the band.

"Yeah, we keep in touch," Ron fished his phone out of his pocket. He browsed through his gallery and showed us pictures of him and Clyde. "See? This is when he went to my audition at the dance academy." When he pocketed his phone once again, I heard him mumbling to himself, "Although I wish you, two, were there, too."

Perhaps Cassidy heard it as well because the next thing I knew, she was patting Ron's back. "Sorry, Aeron." There was a long pause before she looked me in the eye, "What do you think? Is it okay if we wait for Clyde a bit?"

I almost choked on my own spit. "You're asking me if it's okay?" I am probably wearing the stupidest grin on my face right now. "You're asking the girl with this big smile on her face if it's," I made air quotes as I continued, "okay?"

"Okay, so we'll stay for a week," Cassidy told Ron who instantly pounced on her like an overexcited puppy. "Alright, alright, calm down." As he settled down, Cassidy turned towards the band, "The boys can stay with us until then but they'd still need someplace else for when we leave."

"Thank you!" Nikon immediately exclaimed. He must have been so stressed about having to find a job and a home in just two days. The surge of relief was apparent on all of the boys' faces. At least they would not need to worry about having a roof above their heads for a week more.

"Ah, the atmosphere's gotten serious back there. Let's lighten it up a bit, yeah?" Ron got up, pulled out a mini speaker from his pocket and connected it to his phone.

"Alright, show us some of your moves," I cheered him on, just like in the good old days. Even the band was looking forward to his performance.

"Okay, okay." Ron chuckled as he scrolled through his playlist.  "Oh, I really like dancing to this one," he said as he selected a song.

My smile was immediately wiped off my face as the familiar melody played. The rest of the group fell silent as well.

Ron stepped up and performed gracefully. It was different from his previous dance routines that I remember. He was more inclined to doing powerful moves back then and yet here he is now with a ballad, being one with the music.

As breathtaking as it was, I could hear my heart pounding in my ears but no matter how loud it was, it failed to mask the song playing through the speaker.

It is one of the band's songs.

How could Ron possibly play their music yet act like he does not recognize the band who made it?

✿

Ron wiped the sand off his pants as he finished off his dance routine knelt down. He reached for his phone to pause the song from playing on loop.

"What, was I that bad?" He asked, watching my facial expression. He settled back down on his spot and added, "I know it ain't my usual genre but my friends at the academy said I vibe well with this band so they sent me their songs." He scrunched his nose and let out a soft chuckle, "I guess not. Or maybe I'm better suited with a more hyped song of theirs." He scrolled through his phone once more and selected a more upbeat composition of the band. Having jumped back up on his feet, Ron hit every beat. There was some freestyle popping, locking, and a little bit of krumping.

I wanted to commend him so much on how well he has improved but I am overwhelmed with confusion.

"Still no?" Ron asked, pausing the music right after he finished dancing to the chorus. I was unable to formulate any response so he turned to my sister.

"I think that does suit you better," she clapped and smiled genuinely. "The first one was already good but I've always thought you were better paired with bright songs than mellow ones. Well, it's not like I know anything about modern dance to sound credible," she let out a small snort, "all I have in my playlist is Mozart."

Ron seemed satisfied with the commentary he had just received. Now that I think about it, it is very likely that Cassidy is not even aware that the songs that were played just now were by the band. I found Nikon shifting his gaze around his co-band members before meeting mine.

It felt like he was searching for answers. Whether I was aware that Ron knew the band or not. Perhaps the confusion on my face and the light shrug I unconsciously did was enough to answer his question. Cassidy and Ron were still chatting about their musical preferences, completely unaware of the tension between the band.

"Mozart? What happened to your boy, Beethoven?" Ron shook his head teasingly. I am surprised he still remembered Cassidy liked listening to Beethoven while she read books when we were younger.

"I grew out of him," Cassidy just shrugged at the comment, "I'm more of a Mozart girl now. Beethoven's just my side chick."

"No, no, that's a different type of chick." I caught Nikon whispering towards his pet chicken as he stroked its back.

"For real, though, you all have to give this band a listen," Ron went back to scrolling through his playlist. "I mean, they're no Mozart," he side-eyed Cassidy before looking back down on his phone, "but they really do sound great. Plus, their lyrics?" He did this little chef's kiss gesture with his fingers. "Amazing!" He finally selected another song of the band. The music partially drowned his voice when he added, "They honestly got me through a slump back then." 

My heart beat faster. I immediately glanced towards the band's direction, wondering if they heard the last part of his statement and, sure enough, it looked like they did.

"Their songs..." Nikon cleared his throat, warily scanning his brothers' expressions but they were just as dumbfounded as he is. "Their songs did that for you?"

"Yeah! Yeah, this band called... Fall Knights, was it?" Ron squinted at his phone screen to verify, seemingly unsure of the band's identity. "Ah, The Knights of Autumn! Don't you like their songs?" He even showed us his playlist, "Look, even their album covers are cool!"

I tried to maintain my composure when I saw the familiar images. The band's albums always had abstract art on the covers. I remember watching an old interview of theirs that they each create the imagery that they believe is best suited for the songs in that particular album. They wanted the audience to focus on the art instead of slamming pictures of themselves on the cover.

Perhaps that is why Ron acts normal around the boys. Maybe he does not even know that they are the very band he listens to. I turned to Nikon, wanting to signal him about my hypothesis and he looked at me at the same time. It was as if we communicated telepathically since he looked much more relieved upon seeing the abstract covers that Ron's been showing us on his phone. He probably shared the same guess as me.

"What?" Ron frowned, noticing that he has captured everyone's attention. "Why are you all looking at me right now?" 

"Uh, that band," I started, cautiously. "Have you seen them perform yet?"

"Ree, my dad only let me attend a dance academy in the city if I pay for it myself," he almost laughed at the thought, "I can't afford going to events like that."

"Not even on Youtube or anything?"

"Not really, I only watch dance videos on there," Ron shrugged nonchalantly, "Why?"

That confirms my suspicion. He might have known the band's songs but he never saw or heard about the members individually. No wonder he was acting indifferent towards the boys. I mean, I am not even sure how I am managing to keep my calm, being so close to the band myself. He would be so psyched if he knew.

"What song of theirs did you like best?" Nikon suddenly interjected.

"Ah, I think it's..." Ron cupped his chin and looked upwards as he thought hard. After a few seconds, he came up with an answer. "It's gotta be Mystic Shop, man. That got me crying in the dance studio all by myself, bro. Hold on, let me go play it—," he went to scroll through his playlist once more when Nikon cut him off.

His voice melted like honey as he sang the words to their song. Crawford even chimed in to do his verse. Tears welled up in my eyes as I had recollections of how this very song saved me two years ago. I never expected to hear it so close, so personal, yet here I was, sitting across the boys who reminded me that... on the days when I feel like I do not love myself, on the days when I just feel like I want to vanish into thin air, I could just create a door in my heart where they will be waiting to comfort me.

When the two finished singing their respective verses, I was still left in a frenzy of emotions but I made sure to watch Ron's reaction.

"Oh, cool, so you do know them," Ron clapped and gestured towards Nikon and Crawford while he turned to the rest of the group. "Finally, some men of culture." He gave him a thumbs-up before adding, "You, two, don't sound bad either. Maybe you should make a cover group or something."

You have got to be kidding me. The boys and I exchanged glances before we erupted into pits of laughter. Even Cassidy was able to catch on yet Ron still sat there, clueless.

From the looks of it, the team came to this unspoken agreement not to tell Ron their identities. I trust Ron, I really do. And it appears some of the boys do, too, considering how they tried giving him a clue by singing their own song. In the end, I guess we just collectively concluded that it simply does not matter. That is why they were here in the first place, so they could be treated just as any normal person would. Ron might find out one day but who said it had to be today? Everyone is content just sitting here, living in the moment.

"I'm serious, you might get casted or something. You could be famous, bro," Ron raved on and on but the band just chuckled at his antics.

"Nah, I don't think the spotlight's for us," Nikon replied with a small smile. He gently caressed the pretty bird in his arms, "I'm content with having a bonfire at the beach with my friends." He met his brothers' gazes and they collectively nodded at the thought. Then, his eyes met mine and we just shared a knowing look before he looked away with a smile.

"Alright, barbecue's done!" Jett yelled from behind the grill. "Looks like I missed the pre-dinner talent show, though."

"Don't worry, man. I got you covered!" Ron blasted more songs on his speaker, even dancing his way towards the grill to fetch himself some barbecue. Jett just laughed, not once commenting about how my friend was dancing to his music.

While everyone got up to dig into some food, I just sat there for a while longer, relishing the moment. It felt so warm, so comforting, so... familiar. I placed my hand gently on my chest.

I guess this is where the door in my heart opens up to.

✿

Author's Note:

Hi, you did well today.

No matter how big or small your accomplishment was, I'm proud of you.

✿

FEATURE OF THE DAY:

Magic Shop by BTS

https://youtu.be/Ox0eze9_71k

https://youtu.be/LNESJGyH9RE