#bergen_county

Piper evidently isn't put off by the smell and steps in. "Oh, no, I did say so... and we brought some snacks. This is my boyfriend, Adam. He's not into music, but he's good company anyways."

A grin over to him.

"Well, snacks after this is good timing" He says "It's... keeping me distracted, taking the edge off you know? So thanks." his clothes are worn through, and weed is hardly the only thing that smells but he seems less tense than before "Hi, Piper's boyfriend Adam. I'm Huxley"

"I like music! And weed."

"well, Stay off the opaids, I can tell you that much from experience," The man says "It wants ten times back what it gives"

"if you don't mind me asking... how'd you end up here?"

"I walked down the street, saw it was looking deserted, fiddled with the lock and it opened." He answers

Ask a dumb question... she thinks, and offers over the snacks. "Um, got some trail mix, and a sandwich... some bottled water too. What sort of music did you use to teach?"

"Oh, with the school funding it? Whatever was either in the public domain or cheap." he smiles "Hey, bottled water. Very trendy. It all sounds great." Then he goes on "I tried to get the kids into some Jazz and soul, but I kept it open ended. If some showed interest in a particular type I was not above leaning there to encourage. You know, young people are a lot more curious than you guys get credit for... but they want to learn about what they want to learn about, not what they feel checks boxes. At least, that was my view."

"Jazz and soul are great, but I'll play anything..." She comments.

"See, that's good... drives me nuts when I hear folks going 'the music 'today ' sucks... back in my day' blah blah.. there is some great music in any decade. You have to know where to look, where to listen, but it's there. You name a genre and there's probably at least one song or piece of music in it I like."

Adam enjoys the discussion and sound as it goes.

She leans against an old filing cabinet and unshoulders her guitar. Not playing anything specific, but she just strums gently. "I've not really tried my hand at making my own music, but I like playing with songs in different styles..."

"There's a limited number of chords ... there's a limited range humans can hear, and after a time hyou might feel it all sounds the same, but the heart you put into something can make it truly unique. Heck, I'll go as far to say that each time a song is sung it's going to be slightly different... you can play recordings, sure, but the human element, the performer..changes mood and mindset and might be just a bit better, just a bit worse... but differs... and how they affect those around them, the crowd's feedback, that influences the musician back and then .. that changes the performance... can I have that sandwich?"

She passes the sandwich over, along with the rest of the snacks. Thoughtfully modulating her chords to a different tune...

"Thanks.." He listens "Solid fingering position"

She shoots a grin at Adam.

She plays with the chords a bit, then plays an oldie, a John Prine hit that is suddenly more topical...

Ah but fortunately I have the key to escape reality
And you may see me tonight with an illegal smile
It don't cost very much, but it lasts a long while
Won't you please tell the man I didn't kill anyone
No I'm just tryin' to have me some fun...

Huxley nods and half closes his eyes..and once more a bit of glamour bubbles as he visualizes worlds to the notes

She finishes the verse, then plays just the tune without singing, encouraging the old man to add his words...

A glance over at Adam, kenning to see if he's currently enchanted...

Last time I checked my bankroll, it was gettin' thin
Sometimes it seems like the bottom
Is the only place I've been
Chased a rainbow down a one-way street, dead end
And all my friends turned out to be insurance salesmen

His own voice is rusty, a better teacher than singer, but there is talent there

And she softly modulates over to a different Prine song with similar tune, it's an easy transition.

So if you're walking down the street sometime
And spot some hollow ancient eyes
Please don't just pass 'em by and stare
As if you didn't care, say, "Hello in there, hello"

... and from there, she segues into a more upbeat song, an Alice Cooper ballad.

Hello! Hooray! Let the show begin
I've been ready
Hello! Hooray! Let the lights grow dim
I've been ready...

I've been waiting so long to sing my song
And I've been waiting so long for this thing to come...

And I can stand here strong and thin
And I can laugh when this thing begins

Quietly encouraging him to find inner strength.

God, I feel so strong, I feel so strong
I'm so strong, I feel so strong
I feel so strong, so strong
God, I feel so strong, I am so strong
So strong, I feel so strong, I feel so strong
I feel so strong, I feel so strong, I feel so strong
Yes I'm strong, feel so strong, feel so strong...

The old man straightens his back as he joins her in singing the song

A smile as she winds it down... "Thanks for giving me someone to play for. It's been awful lonely cooped up these days."

"I hear you, and I do worry you're taking chances , but I'm kind of glad you did. " he munches the sandwich "Mmm not sure if it's the pot talking, but this is delicious"

"I get the feeling that my Auntie understands the munchies."

" Would not be surprised, my compliments to the chef" he says talking a bit and the glamour from him flickers and lands on her nose. Sometimes it just get coaxed like that. That's about all he's good for today...

unless she wanted to crack him open and TAKE more

but that..well... she doesn't do that anymore, right?

She rubs at her nose, which twitches like she's fighting off a sneeze.

These days, there's not as many dreamers available as the swarms of partiers on the beaches... it would be a shame to cut open the golden goose looking for eggs. Or so she tells herself is her reasoning. A glance over at Adam, and she gives him a little smile, glad of his presence, even being silent and stalwart.

Yes, the moth is nearby, but it's nicer to look at Adam who is..well, he's not there ready to SPRING or judge or.. you know

"So tell me more about yourselves" Huxley says "Obviously you two are nice.. AND bored"

that last with humor

If they were alone, he could spring all he wanted... focus! She brings herself back to reality, softly twiddlings with strings. "I miss playing for crowds - even small crowds... more like just crowds of passersby who mostly ignored me... I'm a people person, and being cooped up makes me feel like the air is getting thin., like I'm... in a submarine, or a space station, or something, and I'm going to suffocate if I can't get out and breathe..."

"Ah, and just doing on line isn't the same... you want to see their faces light up, you want to see the music feel them, hear the pitch of their breathing as it reacts to the story of the song, catch the temp of bobbing heads..." Huxley nods "Nothing like a live performance..for performer and audience. Look, maybe I can't help you much, but if you don't mind a story or two about concerts I've been to..." and he begins to relate a tale of concerts he went to for himself, those he took classes to on field trips, and those wonderful moments where a performance caught him and everyone else off guard

he may drift to sleep if he talks too long... but Piper's imagination is strong, and his descriptions are good.. she can almost see it for herself.

She happily listens, though when he starts nodding, she nudges Adam, and will quietly take their leave and hopefully, leave the man to some more pleasant dreams.