Connected: Part 4 of the On The Edge Series

Chapter 34

"You have kids," she continued after an empty pause.

"I do," Billy snapped back to reality.

"Do they share your passion for music?"

"Sure, you know they are still figuring things out, so they're interested in all sorts of things, but music is certainly on the list," Billy easily spoke. He wasn't finding this line of questioning as obnoxious as the previous interview, and it showed.

"You have been pretty open about your influences and the music you love. What do you share with them?"

Billy's instinctive reaction was a shrug. "You know music is different for everyone. The happiest song for me could be the saddest song for someone else. It's fun to share everything with them and relive it through their eyes. When they were little, they loved those great novelty songs like Monster Mash and Rubber Ball. Now that they're older, they're into heavier stuff. They also remind me of songs I haven't listened to in a long time. My son was listening to Donovan the other day. It just tucks back into the mind and almost influences me all over."

"Very cool. What album?"

"Fairytale," Billy dipped his face, and for a split second, his dimples appeared before he dashed them away.

"Great album; I love The Summer Day Reflection Song." Her comment came absently as she reviewed her notes to get back on track. If she had kept her gaze trained on Billy, she would have seen that for the first time he was inspecting her.

"I still think the absence of Oh Deed I Do is a challenge," Billy challenged. She didn't realize it, but she was now being quizzed.

"Yeah," she spoke absently as she crossed something off in her notebook and then returned her gaze to Billy. "But Hey Gyp is a great pickup."

Unbeknownst to her, she was the first reporter of the day that was actually going to get real answers from him.

"Do they listen to your work, your kids?" She continued.

"Of course, I make them. They're some of my best critics. Kids are great like that. They're getting a little older now, so they're finessing their feedback a bit more, but I could see the raw response when they were young."

"Kids can be brutal," the reporter agreed.

"There's a beauty in genuine brutality. Most adults forget that. We're not as resilient as kids, so we run from it, you know? In life and reality, kids haven't been stung, so they don't fear it or avoid it. I find myself seeking shelter in their blindness sometimes, but that's no good. My girl recently reminded me that love isn't always sweet and gentle; sometimes, it slaps you in the face. But that's passion. A lot of people don't want to foster passion; they want to walk around in a bubble pretending to be perpetually blissful. I don't know what that is, but it's not life."

The young woman stared at him for a minute, uncertain where to go next.

"I think that's all the time we have," Tess interjected.

The reporter looked down at her watch. "Oh yeah, well, thank you for your time, Mr. Collins."

"Pleasure," Billy smiled as he extended a hand.

They briefly shook before the woman paced quickly from the room, seeming to be just as eager to escape as Billy.

"Dark, Billy, real dark. She probably thinks you're some S&M fan," Tess chided.

"What?" Billy and I said in unison.

"Brutal love? You two deserve each other," Tess sighed before leaving the room.