More songs, more feelings

Jason hates it that Katie takes the blame, but he's too tired to argue. He's just tired of fighting altogether. Where once anger had burned so bright, now was just a dull ache that resisted the conflicts around him.

Lifting an eyebrow, he takes another bite of his apple and studies the exposed core for a moment or two. He really didn't want to go to the bonfire. But if he didn't, Katie would just feel worse, and she probably wouldn't let him get away with not going anyway. He wasn't sure how all this figured into the fact that Scott was out there, but along with being tired of fighting, he was tired of trying so hard to figure things out. It was slowly turning into apathy.

"Yeah, I'm coming." He spins the apple around to start in on the other side, finally ending up with just the core. Twirling it by the stem, he stands up and stretches tall. Gesturing to the back door, he nods. "Ladies first."


As the song is sung around the fire, eyes wander to the distance, or to the ones they love, ears listening...hearts receiving. The words were so true...they struck each and everyone here.
Tears come to Cindy's eyes and she moves in close to Wes as if afraid she will lose him if she lets him walk away too far from her.
Mick looks up to Rosetta as she sings, and he locks eyes with her for a moment, returning the same emotions. The same thoughts. Though he hadn't spoken too much of tomorrow, he was worried, and struggling to hand it over to God like everyone else was struggling as well.
Luke gives Angel's hand a squeeze, turning to kiss her head lightly as she rests against him. Soon....soon it would be over...it had to be.

As the melody slowly fades away, it's so quiet....but gradually the gaiety returns, providing the upswing of moods once again. It's a night to have fun and a night to reflect. Like a rollercoaster, the atmosphere would rise and dive as the emotions flowed.

A short break in singing provides ample opportunity to get up and move around if anyone wanted, the chatter and banter continuing. Several people get up to get treats of cookies and lemonade, chatter starting up again. Jeff grabs two cookies and stuffs half a one in his mouth. As he turns back to the fire, he sees that Con has left Jamie for a moment to sit on the log by herself, and he grins mischievously. Stealing Con's place, he elbows Jamie. "Hey, good lookin'. You better teach your man not to leave you out in the open like this. Guys like me are liable to come pick on you."

"Oh, really?"

Jeff looks up, suddenly realizing that Con had been right behind him. He gives the taller man a cheesy grin. "That's right."

"Well you better teach yourself not to pick on good lookin' girls like this. Guys like me are liable to take offense."

"Aw, now, you wouldn't take offense at me, would you? Con, ol' buddy, ol pal?"

Con crosses his arms in mock defiance, and steps forward. Turning around, he doesn't give Jeff a chance to move before sitting down right on top of him.

"Oh, help!" Jeff cries, slapping Con's shoulder.

Con doesn't move, but acts as though everything is normal. He glances to his side at Jamie. "Did you hear something."

"You weigh a ton, you big tank!"

Con taps his good ear. "I could have sworn I heard some guy calling for help."

Jeff's squirming finally results in him losing is balance off the back of the log. It's enough movement for Con to lose his balance as well, and before they can stop it, both have rolled off backward in a heap.

"Aw man!" Jeff groans as Con lands on top of him. "I give, I give!"

Con lies still, sprawled across Jeff and knowing that he was squishing the poor guy. "What? I haven't even started yet!"

"I don't care! I can't even breathe!"

"Oh...why didn't you say so?" Con crawls back up over the log, ignoring Jeff who's struggling to stand, and gets his seat back next to Jamie.

Jeff finally stands up and staggers just a little bit, stepping back over the log to figure out where he'd been sitting earlier. Con nonchalantly sticks out his foot right in his path. Not seeing it, Jeff's brought down again, landing in the dirt.

Con's eyes widen. "You okay there, Jeffrey? Need help?"

Jeff rolls over, his eyes narrowing at Con. "No, I don't need any help, thank you very much."


Jason ambles behind Katie to the fire, hearing the chatter and laughing. For a moment he was taken back to when he'd been here before. It felt like a lifetime ago.

Nearing the group, Jason spots Scott over to one side, and he glances to Katie. Giving her a nod and a little smile, he lets her know that he'll stick around, but that he's heading to sit near Clint and Ty. Separating himself from her, Jason makes his way to the other side of the fire.

Scott looks up a smile creasing his lips as he sees Katie. A part of him is glad to see Jason too. Despite their difference, Scott didn't like seeing Jason so down, and was glad that he'd come...he knew that Katie had probably convinced him of such.
Scooting over a little on the ground beside the log, Scott makes a spot for Katie to sit.


"Hey, it's Jason!" Clint waves him over. "Wondered where you were. You've been missing all the fun!"

Jason is barely seated, when Sparky spots him too. "Oooh, now here's a singer for us. How about gracing us with a song, Jason."

Jason raises his eyebrows. He'd expected just to come, sit, and hardly be noticed. "Uh...I don't think so, Sparky."

"Come on. I heard you're the lead singer in a band. You can't tell me you're not qualified." Sparky even holds out his guitar.

Jason really hadn't planned on this. His eyes rove to his mother who gives him a slight nod, then to Katie, then back to Sparky. He could feel the eyes of others on him as well as they awaited his response. Knowing it would be worse off if he refused, he finally accepts. "Alright..." He reaches over to take Sparky's guitar and sits up straighter, plucking at a few strings to get the feel of the instrument. "What do you want?"

"Whatever you want," Sparky prompts. "We've run the scale tonight, so it's all yours."

Jason rolls his eyes. That was a lot of help. The chatter continues around him, and he's glad he's not quite the center of attention. It felt weird singing apart from JetStream. Looking around the others at the fire though, new words begin to drift into his mind, a tune following. Despite his own depression, he knew how the others were feeling, and could slip into this role if he really wanted to.

Finally he starts to strum the guitar strings, finding a new melody, eventually starting to sing.

Heavy hearts,
Burdened minds.
We sit in silence,
Surrounded…
By family and friends.
What’s better than…
Family and friends.

The future doesn’t look so bright,
Unknowns haunt our dreams.
We hold each other’s hands tonight,
Just waiting out the time.

Jason's voice has grown stronger since he was here last, and as he sings, it draws people's attention, captivating them. The sweet notes are sang so naturally and so smoothly, one would think he'd practiced this song for hours ahead of time.

Heavy hearts,
Burdened minds.
We sit in silence,
Surrounded…
By family and friends.
What’s better than…
Family and friends.

We gather all together now,
Time pressing on our hearts.
The distance can be all but shown,
Not knowing, we hold our breath.

Jason's eyes are closed as he continues to sing and play, not seeing that the others are looking at him, entranced by the song. Cindy watches her son with pride. He'd never let her watch him sing before, and this was more than a treat for her.

Heavy hearts,
Burdened minds.
We sit in silence,
Surrounded…
By family and friends.
What’s better than…
Family and friends.

Mmm…family and friends…
Yeah hearts are lifted…
Family and friends…
Family and friends.

As it dies away, the notes drift into the night, lifted up high like the smoke rising from the fire, dispersing to scatter beyond reach.

Opening his eyes, Jason realizes that everyone has grown quiet, and color comes to his face. For a moment, he'd been lost in another world, alone with his thoughts. He'd taken on the role of performer once again, even without a stage.

Before anyone can respond though, he clears his throat, wanting to get the chatter and laughter back. "Alright, Clint, you're helping me out with this next one," he instructs.

Clint's eyes widen. "I can't sing!"

"It's just one word," Jason insists. He starts to play an upbeat tune, starting to grin a little as he remains in performance mode. A few chords later he starts up singing Bullfrog, and by the time it's done, everybody is smiling and laughing again.