First Step

Stacey watched as Kane fell into deep thought. She decided not to disturb him anymore as she laid at the edge of the bed watching him work. He started off by writing a few lines before making notations on those lines. His serious side profile made Stacey smile. She felt she could watch him doing this for days. However, thoughts and reality proved to be different as her eyes grew heavy, and she slowly fell asleep.

Kane was immersed in his writing. He picked up his guitar and plucked a few cords here and there before going back to writing. This process repeated itself for a while before he finally came up with a small tune and a few lines for a song.

It started off slowly….
~~~

Everyday….

I would see you smile.

Everyday….

I would follow your lead.

Everyday….

You gave me everything I needed~

~~~~

A pause between as Kane strummed the strings of his guitar, his expression slowly turning sad.

~~~~

You taught me everything I know~

You taught me how I should be~

You taught me  eee eee eeee ee~

You taught me so much~

But here I am…..

Here I am, looking up at the sky….

Why did you leave?

Why did you have to go?

~~~~

Stacey had long woken up when Kane started playing the guitar. She stared at Kane, who was singing and could not stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks. She could sense the pain in his voice as he sang this song which meant this song held a lot of meaning to him. As Kane finished singing, she moved over and slipped her arms around his neck, and hugged him while pressing her forehead against the back of his head. She did not say anything. She felt, at this time, this was what Kane needed most.

Kane smiled softly as he took a deep breath. This song was about his parents. They left early, but he still remembers everything they had taught him and had been holding it dear to him. This was all he had left to remember them by. These lessons he had been taught early on had really allowed him to grow into the person he was today.

He looked down at the small hands draped over his shoulders and smiled. He reached up and patted them. “Thanks,” Kane spoke softly. 

“I will be here for you,” Stacey replied. Her eyes were still red. Kane might not have cried, but she did. The song he sang just now resonated deep in her soul. She could feel the emotion that was so thick that it made her think about her mother.  

“This song is for my parents. I want the first song I write and produce for everyone to hear to be dedicated to them and express my thanks for teaching me and allowing me to grow into the person I am today.” Kane opened up. He felt very relaxed around Stacey. Unguarded like he could express any and all emotions to her.

Stacey hugged Kane tighter as she whispered. “You had good parents.”

The small moment was interrupted when a knock came at the door. “Kane, can I come in?”

“Yeah, it’s open.” Kane smiled as he set aside his guitar. 

His grandmother walked in and smiled when she saw Stacey hugging her grandson. “Stacey’s mother just called. We talked, and Stacey will stay here for a while. After she talked to you, she got a call from her work and was told that she could work twelve hour shifts for the next month. She said she planned to quit one or two of her jobs. Because her boss said that she could take the overnight if things worked out. 

“As such, Stacey can move in here for the time being. But make sure you spend time with your mother.” Kane’s grandmother paused. She looked at the girl half covered in blankets and nodded. “You can just sleep in here. I trust that you two will not cross the line.” 

In fact, she would not mind if they did. She was waiting for a grandbaby anyway. She knew Kane was not one to shrug off any responsibility. So she was not worried about him making Stacey unhappy.

Stacey was happy that she could stay, but she also felt some anger and worry. “Kane, can we go to my house?”

“Mmm. I was thinking the same. It would be good to talk to your mother.” Kane sighed. He felt that Stacey’s mother was really trying to work herself into an early grave. 

The two left soon after. When they arrived at the apartment, Stacey’s mother was still up. Even Kane could not help but grow slightly mad. “Miss Norland, you really should be sleeping.”

“Huh? Kane? Stacey?” Helen, Stacey’s mother, who was going over bills, looked up in surprise. She was engrossed in what she was doing and did not even hear them come in.

“Mom, why are you not sleeping?” Stacey asked. One could tell she was very worried.

    “I tried….” Helen sighed as she put the bills down. “But it is not easy to suddenly change sleep patterns. I will just stay up today and then sleep in the morning. I have already called my other job. The pay from overnights and this month of double shifts will allow me to quit two of my jobs which will give me more time. But I will be out of it for the next month or two until I get into a normal routine. So, Kane, I will trouble you to take care of Stacey for the next month or two.”

Stacey clenched her fists. She wanted to tell her mom that she would just drop out of school and work so she could rest more, but she knew this would just stress her mother out more. Her eyes were growing red. Her mother may seem normal, but she knew from the stack of bills with red markings that she was barely making ends meet. She had tried to give her mother her paychecks, but she refused to take them. She had saved every dime and had not spent a cent of it since she started working.

“Miss Norland, I think you should go lie down. Even if you are only resting with your eyes closed, it would be better than this. At this point, you will just collapse.” Kane’s words were not as respectful as before. He was very stern in how he talked. He held Stacey’s hand and could feel her slightly trembling.

Helen looked at Kane in surprise. She had never seen him like this. She then looked at her daughter and froze. She could tell her daughter was on the verge of tears. “Alright…. I will go lie down. Stacey, go pack a bag with clothes. You will be staying with Kane for a while.”

“Okay…” Stacey nodded before turning and walking toward her room. Just before opening the door, she paused and looked over at her mother, who was tidying things up. She bit her lip and walked into her room.

Kane stood there staring at Helen before sighing. “Miss Norland, it might not be my place, but I think you should accept some of your daughter’s help. Stacey works hard to try to help you with the bills so you can work less. She has told me she has never spent any of the money she has earned in hopes of giving it to you one day. Do you know how many weeks of checks that is?”

Helen looked at Kane and then at her bills and let out a long sigh. “I just want her to forget about these adult things….”

“She is already an adult, just not legally. Think about it. How many kids would go out of their way to try to help their families in this day and age? Your daughter has grown faster than others. She has matured at a faster rate. She is more worried about you than anything else. If you want her to live well and do things her age, then first, you should stop worrying about her so much. Don’t work as hard. Take the help she is offering. Then she can finally relax, and so can you.” Kane’s words entered Helen’s ears, and she felt he made a lot of sense. She hated to admit it, but this young man was right!

“I will talk to her this week about it. I want to think more.” Helen gave in. She would not accept it right away. She wanted to think more before finally deciding.

“Good. Go rest. I will stay here with Stacey until it is time for you to get up. We will make sure you are not late.” Kane wanted to make sure that Helen did not get back up after they left. She had to rest no matter what.