"Ho.ly sh*t." Tim whispers as he peeks out from behind the curtain.

The bar was packed!! His anxiety was through the roof. It had been a while since he had performed on stage. What was this crowd expecting to see tonight? Would they accept him as the new singer? Would they like his music?

He bit at his fingernails as his eyes scan the crowd for his friends and family. He needed their support more now than ever. He spots the gang with his mom and sister sitting at a large table near the stage. But, no Adam yet.

"There's no reason for you to be so nervous, Tim." Chris says as he tunes his guitar.

"Oh. Really?" Tim replies in a sarcastic manner as he steps away from the curtain.

"Yes, really." Chris chuckles. "They're gonna love you."

"Orrr, they could chew me up and spit me out." Tim says, nervously running a hand through his hair.

"How you guys doing?" Reba asks as she enters the backstage area.

"Oh, we're doing fine but can't say the same for our singer." Brian chuckles.

"A little nervous, Timmy?" Reba asks with a smile.

"A LOT nervous, Reba." Tim answers as he paces the floor.

"Hun, this crowd is just a bunch of old country folk that loves good music." Reba says as she takes him by the arm to stop his pacing and begins to straighten the collar of his jacket. "And they're gonna get exactly what they came to hear. Great music."

"It's just that it's been a while since I've performed." Tim says as he takes a calming breath.

"Just like riding a bike, Sweetie." Reba smiles as she gently pats him on the cheek. "Oh, by the way, I just saw a very handsome blonde come running in." She adds with a smirk on her lips.

"Good." Tim nods with a smile. "I was hoping he'd make it on time."

"You boys have five minutes before showtime." Reba says before turning to leave. "Break a leg."

~~

"HOW Y'ALL DOING TONIGHT!!??" Reba yells over the cheering of the rowdy crowd. "BOY, DO WE HAVE A TREAT FOR YOU TONIGHT!! WE ARE DEBUTING OUR NEW LEAD SINGER!! I'VE HEARD THIS MAN SING AND I KNOW Y'ALL ARE GOING TO LOVE HIM!! HE'S MOVED HERE ALL THE WAY FROM SOUTHEAST TEXAS!! SO I WANT ALL YOU GUYS TO SHOW HIM THAT WE NEVADIANS CAN MAKE JUST AS MUCH NOISE AS THOSE TEXANS!! RIGHT??"

The crowd cheers even louder.

"LADIES? NOT ONLY CAN THIS MAN SING BUT HE'S ALSO VERY PLEASING TO THE EYES!" Reba smiles and nods as the ladies begin to whoop and holler.

"My heart is beating out of my chest." Adam chuckles as he leans over and speaks to Dena.

"Mine too." Dena nods with a giggle.

"NOW, HE IS A LITTLE NERVOUS SO I WANT YOU ALL TO MAKE HIM FEEL WELCOME!!" Reba says. "IT'S MY PLEASURE TO INTRODUCE TO YOU, TIM FOUST AND THE SOURDOUGH BAND!!"

Tim takes a deep breath before he and the band walk out on the stage. The crowds cheering and clapping were deafening. He sits down at his keyboard and glances nervously around at the crowd while the band gets set up.

"How y'all doing?" Tim asks with a smile. Purposely dropping his voice to a lower tone.

The crowd goes wild.

Tim glances down at his lover as he lays his hands on the keyboard. Adam smiles sweetly up at him and gives him a supporting nod.

"You guys ready?" Tim asks, glancing over his shoulder.

With a nod from Chris and Brian, Tim begins.

The minute Tim begins to play and sing the crowd begins to cheer and clap. The covers that he did, they would sing along. His originals, they would quieten down a bit to listen to the words of the song. Then afterward, the bar was filled with the cheers of approval.

"Thank you so much." Tim smiles as he stands from his keyboard and stands his mich up to match his height. He then waits a few seconds until the crowd quietens so he could talk. "As Reba said, I am from Southeast Texas. A little town called Nederland. And truthfully, my life was not a bed of roses. I was struggling as a singer and songwriter, just barely making enough to survive. But I was living the wild life. Drinking, partying, and hopping from one bed to another. But then, something happened that almost ended my life. During that time, I met someone. Someone that turned my life around. The moment I met him, I knew he was my savior. And, no, I'm not talking about Jesus. (Tim chuckles softly). I'm talking about my boyfriend, Adam. His blue eyes and that sweet smile captivated me. No matter how hard things got, as long as I saw that smile, I knew that everything was going to be okay.
A few days ago, I wrote a song. I got Chris to help me out on guitar. I'd like to sing it for you now. It's called 'Smile', I hope you like it."

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

**a/n: This video was taken by ObsessedwithTidam at Tim's Birthday Bash. Big thanks to her for letting me post it. It's a Tim Foust original!!!!

Tears came to Adam's eyes as he listened to the words of the song. Dena smiles as she reaches over and takes his hand. The same love that she had seen in her son's eyes as he listened to the blonde's voice on the radio, was in his blue eyes as he stares up at his lover.

The bar was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Each person was hanging to every word. As he finishes the song, the crowd explodes with a standing ovation.

The crowd was still standing as Tim and the band sings their final song, 'Ring of Fire'.

As they were taking their final bows, Tim glances over at Reba standing at the bar. She was going nuts, whistling and cheering. With a huge grin on her face, she gives him a thumbs-up.

"MAN!! THAT WAS AWESOME!!!" Henry shouts as they head backstage. "I have NEVER seen that crowd react like that before!"

"They went crazy!!" Brian adds as he put his guitar away.

"So that's a good thing, right?" Tim chuckles nervously.

"Hell, yeah." Chris laughs. "They loved you, man!"

"That makes me feel one-hundred percent better. I'm going to go have a drink with my family." Tim says as they head to the side steps leading from the stage area.

"Have fun. We'll see you tomorrow night." Brian says as he waves.

As Tim walks out into the bar, several people had gathered to meet him and shake his hand. Some even wanted selfies with him. It was completely blowing his mind.

With the help of Reba, he finally managed to slip away from the crowd. Reba knew them all so she just flatly told them to let him go spend time with his family who had come all the way from Texas to see him.

As Tim nears the table, Adam jumps up and runs to him, throwing his arms around his neck and hugging him tightly.

Everyone at the table remains quiet. They were giving the lovers their moment as the couple held on to one another, whispering softly to each other.

After a few sweet kisses, they turn to head to the table where the others were waiting.

"Dude! That was awesome!" Austin says.

"Man, you knocked it out of the park!" Chance says.

"See? I told you that you still had it!" Jenika smiles.

"Holy moly! You blew them away!!" Avi says.

"That was so amaaaazing!!" Emily says as she gives her big brother a quick hug.

Dena stands up to hug her son. Tim leans down wrapping his arms around the much shorter lady.

"I am soooo proud of you." Dena says softly as she kisses his cheek.

"Thank you, Momma." Tim smiles. Those words meant the world to him.

Tim plops down in a chair and lets go of a breath that he thinks he had been holding all night. Adam sits down next to him and snuggles closely.

Reba sends over a round of drinks to everyone at the table.

"I think this deserves a toast." Adam says as he holds up his glass, joined by the others. "To Tim!" The blonde smiles as he looks around at his lover.

"There's that smile that I've been needing." Tim says before leaning in and kissing his savior.

*******

Until next time .... ✌️