Karaoke
1826 Words
*Aiden*
We have all started relaxing more, honestly Tabitha really is a nice girl and she acts totally natural and relaxed, which is always nice.
Danny is clearly crazy about her and I honestly wish she would turn her attention to him, they would be a cute couple and he is a much better age for her.
“Oh god”. Daniel groans, when another man walks up on the stage to sing. “This is pure t*****e”.
Danny nods. “I have to agree, sorry Tabby, but singing in french kind of sounds like someone pulling a cat's tail”.
“No need to apologise Danny boy”. She giggles. “I am British ... at least by birth”.
“Another thing we have in common”. Danny says, giving her what I guess is supposed to be a cheeky wink.
I take a sip of my tequila, it is only the second one, as I have no desire to get drunk. “You know some french Daniel and you can sing ... get up there and show them how it is done”.
“You are the singer here, you go show them”. He says, c*****g one eyebrow at me.
“But I don't know any words in french”. I chuckle. “Or well I know a few, but none fit to say on a stage”.
Danny takes a long sip of his beer. “Come on guys, we are here to do karaoke aren’t we ... then let's do it”.
I look at Daniel, who shrugs and Tabitha claps her hands. “Oh you should, and I know just the song for you”.
“You can pick then”. Danny says happily, before me or Daniel get a chance. But how much does it matter anyway if they only have french songs ?
We go up on stage and Tabitha picks the song. Luckily the words have three different colours, so we know when to sing. But to be honest, it is a disaster of epic proportions. I am so focused on trying to read that I can’t follow the music at all. Daniel seems to have somewhat the same problems, his voice breaking oddly.
Danny is failing completely, but then he seem to decide that it doesn’t matter, and he give it his all, just singing the first french sounding word that comes to mind, making his song be something with croissants, the Eiffel tower and voulez vous ... but he does it with such enthusiasm that he has people on their feet klapping to the beat.
I have to admit that I am happy when I can jump down from the scene, hoping no one filmed what has to be my worst singing performance ever.
“You were great”. Tabitha says, running up to me, coming in way too close. “You have a wonderful voice Aiden”.
I look down at her hand resting on my chest. “Tabitha ... you are a very sweet girl, but you could be my daughter ... I am way too old for you sweetie, you need to accept that”.
“But ... I really like you”. She bites her lip. “I never met anyone like you, does my age really matter that much ?”
“Yeah ... back home I could go to jail if I touched you, sorry sweetie, but to me you are a kid”. I brush a lock of her hair behind her ear. “What would a pretty young thing like you want with an old fart like me anyway ? You need someone young like yourself”.
She gives me a small smile. “You are not old ... at all ... and the boys my age are so immature”.
“You’ll find someone. Maybe sooner than you think”. I give her a smile. “Someone closer to your age. I mean you don’t have to go for a teenager, just please stay below ... like 25 okay ?”
“Thank you Aiden”. She leans in, pressing a kiss to my cheek. “I’d better run to the little girls room”.
I watch her go, hoping that this will be enough, that she will get it and maybe move her attention to Danny, who is clearly totally lost in her and has lost any interest in all the french honeys he was talking about.
Just as I turn I kinda slam into someone. “Oh sorry there, I didn’t see you there”.
But to my surprise the person grabs my shirt, then a woman is in my face. “What the hell do you think you are doing you freaking p*****t ?”
“Sorry ... what ?” I hold up my hands in surrender. Then I notice the hair, the eyes and the mouth. “You are Tabitha’s mom, Maisie right ?”
“I bet you I am”. She is glaring at me. “And my daughter is a minor ... so what the hell are you doing with her, you are my f*****g age, at least”.
Seriously, this is the thanks I get for being a decent guy ? “I know, why do you think I just told her that I am way too old for her ?”
“You really want me to believe that ? A man turning away a young pretty girl offering herself up ... I know how men think ... you all just want one thing”. She is right in my face with a jabbing finger.
“What is happening here ?” Daniel suddenly shows up. “Maisie, what is the problem ?”
She glances at him. “This bastard with his hands all over my daughter”.
“I know Aiden and I am sure it’s a misunderstanding”. He looks at me and I nod. “Aiden is well aware of Tabitha’s age and would never do anything inappropriate ... come let's sit down and talk about what actually happened”.
*Maisie*
I let Daniel lead me to a table, I still don’t trust Aiden, I do not like the way he was touching my daughter. I mean the guy looks close to forty, he just needs to keep his paws off her. But I do ... somewhat at least, trust Daniel. I have talked to him a bit these last few days and he seems genuine.
“Here you go darling”. Daniel pulls out a chair for me and I sit down. Before sitting down too, Aiden sits down on the other side of the table.
“So please explain why I should not serve him his balls on a plate”. I lean back and cross my arms on my chest.
Aiden looks slightly annoyed but honestly I don’t care about his feelings. Daniel bite his lip. “Listen Maisie, I need you to stay with me here and maybe keep a bit of an open mind on this.. can you do that ?”
“I can try”. I breathe in deeply, but before Daniel can begin explaining a much younger man shows up with drinks, putting them on the table.
He looks at me, smiling warmly. “Hi ... and who do we have here ?”
“Danny, this is Maisie … Tabitha’s mother”. Daniel says, then he looks at me. “Maisie, meet Danny ... he is a good kid”.
Danny gives him a glare. “I am not a kid Daniel”. Then he smiles at me, taking my hand. “A pleasure meeting you Maisie, I can see where Tabitha got her stunning beauty from”.
Daniel looks about to groan and Aiden rolls his eyes. I smile at the kid. “Thank you, Danny”.
“Can I get you a drink ?” He asks enthusiastically.
“A glass of white wine would be nice, thanks”. I give him another small smile and he disappears, then I look at Daniel. “So does every guy here want to bang my teenage daughter ?”
Aiden pushes his chair back a bit. “Hey ... now listen ...”.
Daniel holds up his hand stopping him. “Maisie, I promise you that Aiden has no such desire, as for the kid ... he seems to have a crush on Tabitha, but so far she isn’t seeing him”.
“So why was his hands on her then ?” I gesture towards Aiden.
“I know you won’t like it Maisie”. Daniel breathes in slowly. “But Tabitha seems to have ... focused her affection on Aiden here, he has kindly made it clear to her that she is way too young and that he has no such interest in her ... he was simply turning her advances down gently”.
I look at Aiden, measuring him up. “Why would she ...”. I take a deep breath. “Was that what happened ?”
“Yes”. He looks into my eyes without wavering, and looking closer I have to admit, he is actually quite handsome, in that tall, dark and mysterious way. “Believe me, I have no inappropriate intentions towards your daughter”.
I breathe in, I know my daughter ... She is a good girl, but she has also very much missed a father in her life and I know she feels drawn to older men, I just didn’t think it would go this far. “Okay ... sorry for my reaction then, It’s just ... I have had some bad experiences with men and younger women ... not your fault of course”.
He holds up his hand stopping me. “It’s okay ... and Tabitha is a great kid, she just needs to find someone her own age”.
“Or forget boys and focus on her studies”. I say.
“Mom !” Tabitha shows up, looking shocked to see me there. “What are you doing here ?”
I look at her. “A better question would be: what are you wearing, young lady ?”
“Here is your wine”. Danny pops up, before she can answer me, placing a glass carefully in front of me.
Daniel smiles at me. “Why don’t you join us Maisie ? To keep eyes on things and relax a bit”.
I think for a second. “Okay then ... sounds like fun”.
- Writer
