LOA

Hey all!

I'm out of town for a few days with little Internet access. Look for a new chapter this week! Things are starting to look up for Baron... And here's a teaser... The stork is on his way ;)

Check back soon!

-J

A Quick Update

Hello, there! Another week, another blog post! Yay!

Between college, work, homework, friends, and family, it can be difficult to find time to post here every day. My goal is to post a new chapter once a week... I do not plan on letting this blog disappear or fade away into the list of the abandoned legacies. I'm counting on my readers to help keep me motivated! If you like something, comment on it! I love feedback, and I'd love to see what y'all think of the story. Don't be afraid to share thoughts and opinions... I will, however, block anything that is obscene or derogatory in nature. There's no reason for that, here :)

Also, I updated the blog's appearance a bit! I'm still tweaking it here and there, but the most handy thing I've added is a "Chapters List" on the right-hand side of the page. Now, instead of scrolling through or using the post-archive to find what part of the story you want, you can just click the link to the chapter. Nifty, huh?

I plan on posting some character bios here too, mug shots and all, in the near future.

Again, I appreciate comments and feedback! This story means a lot to me, and I can't wait to share more with you!

Thanks for reading!

-J

Chapter Four: Once More

After reality slapped him in the face, Cooper began to re-formulate his life.

He had priorities. He had goals. Though he longed for companionship, his last attempt at love had failed... and now he knew his career had to come first.

...But, at least once a month, he made time to call Elenna and see how she was doing. Though it seemed unlikely Cooper could ever become more than a friend to her, he wanted to make sure that he was at least that.

They continued to talk about pretty much everything... they were close friends, and they knew their boundaries. Cooper danced as close to the metaphorical boundary line as he could, though... there was nothing Elenna could say that couldn't make him smile or laugh. Talking to her was always a mood booster; It was his drug of choice after a hard day's work. They didn't speak as often as he would have liked, but that made him all the more excited for the next time he called her.

For the next year, Cooper settled into his home and focused on learning skills he couldn't learn at the boarding school. He improved his cooking, cleaned like a fiend, and became quite the handyman fixing all of his old appliances. His talk time with Elenna slowly decreased. She seemed to have become much more busy and involved in her married life, so Cooper decided to take a step back on communicating with her. He thought of her every day, but knew that if it was meant to be, she'd come talk to him again someday.

He no longer burns his waffles! Good job, Coop.

Mmmm, golden.

He spent all of his free time studying the vast topic of music theory. He studied, read books about music, and researched the fine details that went into creating orchestras and concerts. He gradually earned a few promotions along the way... after a year, he was officially signed as a stagehand at the concert hall, and was working his way up to being a band manager. Everyone at the hall loved him and his playful personality, and he finally felt like he was fitting in.

His guitar skills improved dramatically over the year. He became a regular entertainer for a chic outdoor restaurant in the middle of the city... the guests loved his music, and they tipped him well to prove it. It was an excellent side job. He loved making people smile with his musical talents.

One cool summer night, he walked into the restaurant to suit up for that night's gig.

He put on his finest tux and mingled with some of the guests, getting a feel for what type of music they'd be interested in hearing from him that night.

Not long after, he began to play. The crowd swayed and clapped and hummed along with his tunes as they ate, smiling wide at the classy ambiance. It was a show Cooper always loved to put on, and the guests could feel his love for the guitar with every fret he played.

Some even stayed long after they had finished eating to listen to his music. It was charming, enchanting, and just the kind of night people liked to have after a long day.

As Cooper was playing, something caught his eye. The delicate shimmer of a girl's sun-kissed hair danced in the candlelight as she sat, stealing Cooper's glances as he strummed.

"Could it be her...?" he wondered to himself.

Within moments, he was sure it was Elenna. He was so excited, so overwhelmed with emotion. It had been nearly two years now since he had physically seen her, and about a year since they'd talked.

He waited until 11pm. He wrapped up his performance and received a standing ovation... People crowded him with compliments and questions as he packed up his guitar, and although any other night he would welcome the attention, his mind was on one person, and one person only.

The crowd dissipated as people took to their cars for the night. Cooper walked over to a table adjacent to Elenna's, pulled out a chair, and sat down quietly. She looked up from her book. Their eyes met.

Cooper was smiling, and so was she.

They stopped and stared for a short bit, taking solace in each other's eyes. Cooper stood and took a few steps toward her table. She stood up as well, and he was so excited, he almost didn't notice: she was very, visibly pregnant.

They quietly said hello, and Cooper's eyes moved lower to her obviously growing belly. She addressed the situation right away; It was her husband Arlo's child, and-

...Wait, Arlo's child?...

It was very hard to disengage himself from what she was saying, but that name... it sounded so familiar.

As she was going on about her pregnancy and her plans for the baby, it hit him: Arlo was the man he had met outside of the music hall on his first day in town. He'd been so nice, so generous in offering whatever he could to help an up and coming musical artist. Cooper had since run into Arlo on numerous occasions over the past two years. Arlo was always excited to see him, and quick to ask how he was doing. To think he'd been going after his wife for the past two years...

Then again, Elenna never actually said who her husband was, or what his name was. And, most importantly, she never mentioned she was a 24 year old woman married to a 76 year old man.

He tried to let that thought slip his mind for a bit so he could focus on her. 

They talked throughout the night. She talked about how excited she was for the baby to come, and how equally excited she was to see Cooper.

They caught up on what they'd missed with each other for the past year. Elenna was now a stay-at-home wife, and Cooper went on about the music hall he was working at. He loved to make her laugh with tales of his attempts to fix things on set. 

It didn't take long before they were back to their old, flirtatious ways. Cooper pushed Arlo and the baby to the back of his mind, and let the night play out as it pleased. They talked about walks on the beach, sunset drives, romantic dinners, and what they would do as a pair if they were actually together...

It was quite obvious that Elenna wanted Cooper as much as he wanted her.

The thought of her having a child that wasn't his own hurt, but... she came back. Here she was, standing in front of him. And she was basically saying she loved him...

It had to be a sign.

It had been a year since he had been able to stare into her gorgeous blue eyes. He didn't want them to go away again...

He couldn't let them go away again.

The night was coming to an end, and Elenna was ready to go home.

"Elenna... please, don't go. I can't bear to be without you for another year... we both know what's going on here. It's quite obvious... we need to be together... I'm in love with you, Elenna. And I know you feel the same way... please, don't take that away from me..."

She smiled as he begged, and tears welled up in her eyes.

"I won't, Cooper.  I won't..."

Chapter Three: Hope in Devastation

A few weeks passed. Cooper was working hard at his new job, meeting new people, and though he'd rather be coming home to a wife and kids after those long days at work, he came home to an empty house and his guitar. He practiced and played and bought sheet music when expenses allowed for it. He was dropping in weight, living off of the bare essentials, paycheck to paycheck. He thought about selling the house and moving into something smaller, but he didn't have time to go through with a move. He was a hard working young man on a mission to achieve his goals, and at this rate, nothing could stop him.

...Except for, maybe, his cooking skills.

(Yeah, he put waffles in the oven... then burnt them.)

Or the lousy sink in the kitchen that broke down every other day...

...in turn flooding the kitchen...

...and the bedroom, and the bathroom. The bathroom sink didn't work, either. Unable to make room in the budget to pay for a repairman, Cooper had no choice but to attempt to fix everything in the house himself.

Poor Coop had a lot on his hands with the old house. He soon learned that chances are, if you buy something at a cheap price, it will act cheap, too. He was learning so much by the day, and although life seemed to treat him with a lot of tough love, he didn't mind. To him, it just made him stronger.

One night, after spending a day cleaning at the music hall and then cleaning his home, he decided he needed some fresh air. He walked out his front door and sat on a bench he had purchased, took a deep breath, and leaned back to watch the stars. It had now been a few months since he moved to Sunset Valley, and his mind began to drift off and think of how far he had already come.

He was deep in thought when a bright light in his flashed in eyes and snapped him to attention. He instinctively put a hand over his face to block it out, yet continued to try and find its' source. It was a car. A car he had only seen a handful of times since his first day in town. And it pulled into the driveway of the home across the street from his.

He rubbed his eyes and sat up straight, hastily brushing the dirt off his jeans with one hand and smoothing his hair back with another. That girl. That beautiful, beautiful girl. He hadn't met her yet, but their eyes met in passing once, and from that day he was hooked. She was never home when he knocked to introduce himself, and now here she was, pulling in to the driveway and unloading groceries. It was late at night, but she was awake, and now he was, too. If he didn't walk over now, he might never get to meet her.

He waited until she had gone inside before walking over. As he rang the doorbell, he found himself nervous... he wasn't sure why, but there was just something about this girl that made him feel... incredible. He had seen her around town, at stores or the gym or a coffee shop, but never long enough for him to say hi. This was it. His chance.

She opened the door after what seemed like ages.

"H..Hi... Can I help you with something?" she inquired, finding it odd that a stranger was at her door at 11pm on a Monday night. Cooper smiled wide, and tried... note, tried... to form sentences. What did he want to say to her anyway? He hadn't prepared a single thing to say.

"Hi!... uh... my name's... I'm Cooper. Cooper B... Baron."

She looked him over, staring at his sweaty, torn shirt and pants. He stared sheepishly at his feet, smiling and embarrassed. He realized he should have at least changed into clothes that didn't have holes in them, first. But it was too late for that. He looked back up, getting lost in her icy blue eyes. It was those eyes that had hooked him, and he knew he'd have to start talking soon before they went away.

"I'm new here. And I live across the street... I figured I'd... introduce myself. Y'know, since we're neighbors and all." He stuck out a hand, offering a shake. "I'm Cooper Baron."

She smiled a half-smile and let out a small laugh, confused but entertained.

"You said that already," she laughed again. They stood there for a moment in awkward silence, but smiles could be seen on both of their faces. "Well, come on in," she grinned, waving a hand inside. "What's your story?"

"My story?" Cooper repeated, confused. He was not prepared for that question. Well, any question. ...Who was he kidding? He wasn't prepared at all.

"Well, everyone has a story," she spoke intriguingly, raising an eyebrow and turning around to walk into her living room. Cooper followed her, captivated by this statement, wanting more of every word that left her lips.

The two talked well into the night about pretty much everything. Cooper loosened up and let his humorous, loving, friendly personality shine, and her care-free, almost hippy-like personality was enchanting and... well, not gonna lie, sexy.

Cooper had never met a girl like her, and his heart was beating so fast, he thought he might fall over. Maybe he didn't have to be such a hopeless romantic... at this point in time, there seemed to be hope!

It was the early morning hours before Cooper realized she hadn't talked much about herself just yet. Her name was Elenna, he got that much. She had moved to Sunset Valley about a year ago searching for a better job. Cooper divulged into most of his personal life, telling her why he was here, what he wanted to, and his hopes for the future. Whenever he asked her a question, she either took her time answering it, danced around the subject, or became defensive. When he asked who she lived with, that was it for the night.

"It's getting late. Maybe you should go home," she suggested, walking to the door and opening it. "It was nice meeting you."

Cooper left, confused. Why wouldn't she talk about herself? I mean... what was there to hide? She was beautiful, obviously. Tanned skin, blonde hair, ice blue eyes... and killer abs. He could tell she was rather athletic, and her personality seemed to be rather "go with the flow". He could tell that she generally does whatever makes her happy, and he liked that. She seemed to live by such a simple philosophy... something that attracted Cooper even more. 

He wasn't giving up.

A few weeks went by. They had flirted and talked every few days over the phone, and even once in passing at the local pool. He yearned for more, and one day, he found himself at her doorstep all over again. This time, he was dressed in clean, sharp clothes that showed off his physique... or lack thereof. At least he wasn't sweaty this time. He rang the doorbell, desperately hoping Elenna was home. This was the girl of his dreams... he just needed to get her to talk a little more.

She opened the door, surprised that he randomly showed up again.

"Cooper?" she questioned, looking him up and down with a small smirk. She opened the door a bit more, motioning for him to come in.

"Elenna..." he blushed, and the butterflies were there all over again.

"You clean up nice, Mr. Baron!", she jeered. "Quite the improvement."

They mingled for a bit, and things were going really well. Cooper knew that if he wanted to get to know her a little more, he'd have to ask her out.

"I was wondering... what are you doing Saturday night? I'd love to take you out to dinner... maybe get some drinks? There's this cool bistro downtown... I think you'd really like it."

He was feeling calm, cool, and confident. Ready to embrace the next step of their friendly relationship, and actually see her outside of her own environment.

Then he realized... she was hesitating.

"...Cooper... you're a nice guy. Really. But... I'm married..."

Cooper didn't know what to do. His face resembled that of a deer in headlights... He was frozen. Couldn't move. After a long pause, he managed to speak.

"I'm... I'm sorry...", he mumbled. For the first time since they had met, he couldn't look her in the eyes. He turned to walk out of the house. A million thoughts were running through his head. Why hadn't she said anything sooner? Where was her husband all this time? Why... why did she act as if she liked him back?...

"Cooper, wait... I'm sorry..."

He sensed the hurt in her voice... the shame. Knowing that should have made him feel better, but it just made him feel worse. The girl that he loved was hurt, and to him, that was more devastating than being turned down.

He couldn't bear to be there a second longer. He walked home, head hung low, mind in a fog. At least there was one thing he could come home to that gave him unconditional love: his guitar.

It seemed that in his search for companionship, he had learned only this: Trying to forget how much you loved someone is like trying to remember someone you never knew.

He wasn't going down that easy.

Chapter Two: It's Just the Start

A new house, and new name, a few new clothes...Cooper was well on his way to beginning the life he dreamed of.

The house wasn't much, but it had the basics: A kitchen, bathroom, living room, bedroom, and a spare room. He was excited to have snagged a decent first time home for such a low cost, no matter what the inside looked like. The green and beige wasn't exactly his style, but it worked for now.

Again, humble and basic, but he didn't mind. It was better than boarding school, and he wasn't planning on being home much anyways... he needed a job, and needed one fast. He spent a night in his new home thinking of what he should do... he had no skills, had a basic schooling experience, and had no experience with a musical instrument outside of the xylophone he'd once loved at the daycare. How was he going to get a career  in music if he'd never even played an instrument? His dream was to compose, to work in theater... and that's when it hit him.

First thing in the morning, Cooper literally ran to the town's local theater and concert hall. He had no experience, never had a job, and didn't even have a resume or dress clothes, but he begged them for a job. Cooper's charming personality saved him, and he was able to sweet talk his way into a minimum wage job... as a fan of whoever plays at the theater. His duties were to watch who was playing and jazz the audience up a bit at the right times... and clean up after they're gone. It was something, at least, and he got to be around the music he had yearned for so much in his early life. 

He left the theater with a grin of satisfaction... a grin that said, "I know I can do this."

Upon leaving the theater, Cooper saw a few townspeople loitering outside. He decided to start introducing himself as the new guy in town. They'd know his name soon enough when he began to make it big in music, anyway... but he wasn't THAT cocky. He knew it'd be better to make his introductions friendly and outgoing, partially to get to know the people, and partially to increase his fan-base. The first person he decided to talk to was an older man that appeared to be in his 60's. He had just left a movie showing and seemed easy to talk to, and he was.

 Though it might have been considered bragging, Cooper instantly brought up his new job with the theater, and explained his intentions of making it big in the music industry. The man, who had introduced himself as Arlo Bunch, was very warm and welcoming. He seemed excited for Cooper, and told him that Sunset Valley's theater was a fine establishment to start his career.

 The two chatted for a bit before parting ways. Arlo was excited to see a fresh face in town and loved Cooper's outgoing and charming personality, and almost instantly deemed him a friend.

"If you need anything, chap, here's my number. Just give me a call. You'll make it well in this town, don't worry."

Cooper was more than happy to hear that.

As he turned around to head toward the music supply store to spend the last of his money on a new guitar, he bumped into a lady walking in to the theater.

Always a major fan of the ladies (he's a big hopeless romantic, you know), he absolutely had to stop and introduce himself. 

After going over the same schpeil about his new job, and attempting to drop a line here and there... she seemed rather uninterested, and explained she needed to head off to the grocery store. ...Wait, weren't you just going to the movies?

Better luck next time, Coop.

After spending an hour in the music store, Cooper left with a guitar and music book in hand. Not exactly ready to head home, he chose to visit the local park he had seen across from his new place of work.

He sat down and decided to thumb through his new book he had obtained from the music shop. Real music! Sheet music! Things he could actually look at and attempt to play! He couldn't wait to start attempting music on the guitar... so before he could even finish the first chapter, he got up and began to walk toward a picnic area full of locals.

He introduced himself to a few people... some were welcoming, and some were not. 

It doesn't help that you tend to flirt with any woman you meet, Cooper.

Stop flirting with them in front of their husbands, too, will ya?

Cooper got his head back on track and pulled out his guitar. He plucked a few strings, listened closely to the sounds of each string, and started playing.

And he was good! A natural musician! He had memorized so much music literature in the boarding school library, he was instantly a natural with the guitar. And people noticed! Slowly, a crowd began to form.

 Pretty soon, everyone in the park came to listen to his tunes. Though they were basic and it was his first time playing the guitar, no one seemed to mind. They all agreed he was outstanding, and nodded their heads happily along to the strumming.

He played well into the night, getting better and better with every minute that passed. People began to go home as the sun went down, but Cooper was lost in the music coming from his fingertips. Happiness consumed him from head to toe, and he stayed in the park until midnight playing his music.

If he could do this for the rest of his life, he was sure he'd be happy. And this was only the beginning!