Wicked Harmony

Chapter 39 | Micah

Chapter 39

Micah

A couple of months after our final tour began, it’s finally time for us to wrap things up and take a bow.

The very last gig for Orpheus Underground. The end of a chapter of our lives.

I’m peering out at the audience, trying to catch a glimpse before everything kicks off and I hear a grunt. I turn toward the sound and the last thing I think I expected to see is Cal on his knees, sewing a huge tear in Dorian’s t-shirt was not it.

“Fucking hold still,” Cal grumbles. “If you wanted me to stab you, just say so.”

“Dude, just stick a safety pin in it or something. I just don’t want to flash my nips to the audience and risk them all swooning.”

“You’ll be bleeding properly in a minute if you don’t quit squirming. Thirty seconds and you’re done. Fuck, you’re worse than my nieces.”

I chuckle at the entire scene. And then the lights dim, the air filling with the screams of the excited crowd.

Excitement floods through my veins and I pull Sin in for one last desperate kiss before she has to hurry off and find her spot, ready to do her thing.

The sounds of the crowd fade to nothing as the members of Orpheus Underground take a moment, just the four of us. Gathering close together, Iri wraps his arms around mine and Dorian’s shoulders as Cal does the same on the other side of our makeshift circle.

Over a decade of gigging together, always on the move. Hundreds of nights just like this, with the air tasting of electricity and thousands of fans’ emotions flowing through me.

It’s still a heady rush.

“They’re ready for us,” Iri says. “Let’s fucking smash it.”

It’s short and sweet as pep talks go, but it’s all we need to hear.

And we do exactly that. We fucking smash it.

Sin’s creations are at work before the first note hits. The air fills with a confetti cloud which slowly cascades down from the sky, causing the crowd to go insane. When the confetti pieces reach them, they dissolve, dosing everyone they touch with a moment of sheer bliss.

I see the crowd closest to the stage closing their eyes and tilting their heads up with huge beaming smiles on their faces.

There’s one particular face I zone in on. A little half she-demon, wearing a bright pink wig and one of our tour t-shirts.

Elara.

She’s grinning widely with her eyes closed and then they open and I shoot her a little salute which she returns.

Front row tickets to tonight are the least we can do, since none of us will ever forget what she did for Sin in Meridian City.

The bliss on our audience’s faces fades as Iri and Cal start up a steady rhythm, pulling the crowd out of their heads and back into the room.

“Thanks for joining us tonight. We are Orpheus Underground,” I rasp into the mic. “We love you all. We appreciate you taking the time to be with us tonight. Now, let’s fucking go.”

The next couple of hours are a blur of sound and feeling. I alternate between slipping my cuff on and off, depending on whether I need to focus on the song or want to feel the rush of the crowd .

Sin’s creations are incredible. After our third song, there’s this kaleidoscope of color that seems to come from the front of the stage. It travels around the room, hitting each section of the crowd with a blast of sheer fucking joy that has people laughing in delight.

I glance at Dorian and he shoots me a massive grin as we watch the effects of Sin’s power hitting the thousands of people in the crowd.

My chest burns with pride over how incredible she is. How lucky we were to find her.

All those years of living by myself as a hermit and I never even dared to hope I’d find anything like this. A new family. A place where I feel like I fit so completely.

It used to be that gigs were where I felt like I belonged, but the crash once I left the stage was like dropping into an abyss I could barely crawl out of.

Then I met Sin and this sensation of joy and contentment carries into my life every day. It’s an absolute gift I don’t think she realizes she’s given.

I search her out in the crowd and can just make her out in the lighting booth, a massive smile on her face.

The slight tension in my shoulders drops.

She’s safe.

Happy.

Ours.

Safe to say the terror of that day in Meridian Square has taken a while for us to get over. But we’re moving forward. Together.

And holy hell, I’m in the middle of a song, but I’m getting emotional about how lucky we’ve gotten.

For Dorian, she sees him exactly as he is, instead of as the front he presents to the world.

With Cal, she accepts his protective instincts and every other part of him—no matter how frighteningly intimidating he might look on the outside. She’s never shied away from him because of who or what he is, and she’s driven to protect him when he needs it.

And for Iri, she’s there as someone equally competent and ready to take things on. She gives him a space where he doesn’t have to be the one taking care of everyone all the time.

She’s ours. Completely.

We rattle through our back catalog and I’m swept away on a cloud of endorphins. It’s almost like I leave my body for a couple of hours and am floating above it all, watching from on high.

Then, we break into our final number for the night and shards of light shoot down from the ceiling like fork lightning. I’m hit with three sensations in quick succession: joy, gratitude, and contentment so strong I’ve never felt anything like it.

There’s a sharp intake of breath all around us and the crowd quiets for just a moment.

“Thank you guys. For all your support over the years. This stage has felt like home for so long. But we’re gonna step off it and find our new home, and so will all of you.” My voice doesn’t waver until the last five words and then I find my throat going tight as my own feelings threaten to overwhelm me.

Dorian’s closest to me, and he throws his arm over my shoulder in a side hug. “Nice words, brother.”

And shit, my eyes go glassy. If he was trying to pull me back from the tears threatening me right now, he’s gone the wrong way about it.

The last light shard in the stadium fades and the stage dims for just a second as we all take a second to recalibrate and take a breath. I hug Dorian back, even though we’re both dripping with sweat by this point.

Then the lights flare bright. Iri starts a heavy rhythm on the bass as Dorian’s fingers work his guitar and Cal smacks the shit out of his drums with his legs and arms seeming to work independently .

I open my mouth for one final time tonight. And, as one, the crowd and I scream at each other and we break into our closing song. And it feels a lot like we’re right where we’re supposed to be.

It feels a lot like healing.