-Edward POV-
I placed Lily inside her crib in the nursery after she had been sleeping in my arms for a while. Alex and Haley joined me, and they were shocked when they saw the mural on Lily's nursery wall. We went back outside to the living room and had dinner together.
For the song, Cam wanted to wait until Lily had woken up before he wanted me to play the song so that she could join the fun.
"I don't think any of my songs were suitable for this occasion though." I muttered as I tried to complete Cam's request.
Mitchell saw me being troubled and thinking hard as I saw on the sofa, playing various tunes with my guitar to try and figure out a perfect song to play on this occasion.
He peeked from the passageway, wondering if he should go and ask me not to stress myself and can reject if I wanted to.
The other adults had moved the party to the dining table, leaving only the kids in the living room.
"Why don't you play a ready-made song?" Manny asked and then he tried to comfort me. "I think Cam was saying to do that, not to create a song of your own."
I turned to Manny, and my fingers automatically started to play the song from Tarzan.
"Like this?" I asked and started to sing Phil Collins -You'll be in my heart.
"♪ Come stop your crying. It will be alright.
Just take my hand. Hold it tight.
I will protect you. From all around you.
I will be here. Don't you cry.♪ "
"That's good." Manny exclaimed in agreement.
I continued singing as I immersed myself in the music. Haley, who had been texting urgently, raised her head from the phone and turned to look at me. Alex and Luke were humming along to the song.
♪For one so small.You seem so strong
My arms will hold you. Keep you safe and warm
This bond between us. Can't be broken.
I will be here don't you cry♪
"Everyone together." I said to the crowd.
Together: 'Cause you'll be in my heart. Yes, you'll be in my heart. From this day on…
Now and forever more…♪
I strum the guitar string and end the song at the one minute mark of the song. Mitchell smiled softly as he watched the performance secretly.
"It's great, but I don't want to give Jay the ammunition of saying Mitch and Cam were the gorilla in the movie." I said. Mitchell, who was sipping his wine, almost choked on his drink as he heard my remarks.
"How about Baby Mine?" Alex asked. "That song always makes mom cry."
"From Dumbo?" I said, trying to figure out the notes to the song. "Sing the first part." I asked Alex. Although stunned, Alex catched the timing of the notes, and started to sing too.
-3rd Person Pov (before Phil Collins song)-
"I'm going to go check on Lily. I'll be right back." Cam said after he talked about his trip to Vietnam to the adults. "Ayy, I want to look too." Gloria said and followed Cam from behind giddily, leaving only Claire, Phil and Jay left on the table. Phil wiped down his mouth with a napkin and shot a look at Claire.
"Just go." Claire said.
"Thank you hun." Phil said and followed Cam and Gloria from behind.
"So, dad. Something interesting happened today." Claire said.
"What?" Jay turned his eyes at Claire while eating and asked.
"I got a job offer." Claire said.
"Really? Will you take it?" Jay asked with a tone in disbelief.
"Why dad? Don't you think I can't do it? T-that I'm just a stay at home mom who doesn't know how to do anything?" Claire got defensive at her dad's tone of voice. However, her sentence showed more of her own insecurities rather than what her dad thought of her.
"I'm just saying, it's been a while since you started something… outside of your house. I thought you quit your job to take care of your family?"
Claire nodded, a little agitated by her own words being thrown back at her, "Technically…I will be doing the job from home."
"What? How can you even work like that?!" Jay asked in confusion.
But before Jay could ask more, he heard the sound of music coming from the living room as all the kids were singing together at this moment.
"What's that? Is that from Tarzan?" Claire said and stood up from the table. Part of her wanted some advice from Jay about the matter, while another part of her didn't want her father's opinion to impact the things she wanted to do, so Claire was being a bit weird now.
Jay sighed and walked behind Claire to see what was going on. They stood behind Mitchell, but Mitchell didn't notice them yet. Luckily for Edward, Jay didn't hear about the gorilla remark he had made before.
-Edward POV-
Alex started to sing as I played the melody of the song.
[Baby Mine by Arcade Fire]
Alex: "♪Baby mine, don't you cry… Baby mine, dry your eyes.Rest your head close to my heart. Never to part, baby of mine.♪"
"Nice job Alex." I said as I looked at her as I continued to play the melody. Alex blushed a little and said meekly, "Thanks."
Claire who was watching from the dark corner muttered as she saw Alex's reaction, "I don't like that. Not one bit."
"OH JESUS When did you guys come here?!" Mitchell was surprised by the duo, and his shout finally revealed the adults to the children.
I didn't mind them and continued singing.
Edward: ♪Little one, when you play…Don't you mind what they say… Let your eyes sparkle and shine. Never a tear, baby of mine.♪
Claire's eyes started to get glassy and she covered her mouth with her hand as she immersed herself in the memories of her children.
Edward:" ♪ If they knew all about you… They'd end up loving you, too…All those same people who scold you… What they'd give just for the right to hold you…♪"
"Alex, together with me." I said, inviting Alex for a duet.
Together: "♪ From your head to your toes..You're not much, heaven knows..But you're so precious to me..Sweet as can be, baby of mine…♪"
Edward: "♪Oh, baby of mine..Oh, baby of mine..Oh, baby of mine♪"
Claire still managed to stop herself from breaking down after hearing the song even though it was her favourite movie. Even though the Pritchet's was touched, they didn't react much after hearing it.
Their partners however…
"Oh my god. That's so(voice crack) beautiful." Cam had already started to cry as he heard the song. Phil also couldn't stop himself from crying, and Gloria went to go hug Manny.
A sudden camera flash almost blinded me as Cam suddenly snapped a photo of the living room with his camera.
"Urgh. Uncle Cam!" Alex groaned as the sudden burst of light hurt her eyes.
"Sorry. I can't help myself. This…This is…" Cam pointed at all of us, "...Is what I wanted to happen when I ask Eddy to bring his guitar today." Cam said in a calm and touched voice.
[Cam's commentary]
Sitting alone in the chair was a dissatisfied Cameron that had a sour expression in his face.
"I wanted to sing to Elton John and needed a backup guitarist." Cam confessed. "But…he was so good…that I forgot what I was planning to do."
[Mitchell Commentary]
"I know Cam is feeling dejected that the spotlight has been taken away from him. But after he ambushed me today with the baby announcement, I'm….kinda glad that Edward is in the spotlight…"
Mitchell smiled mischievously as he thought of Cam's expression when he tried to seem okay. "So…So glad. Haaaa.." He breathed in relief before he crossed his legs while sitting on the chair.
[Commentary ends]
"Cam, I had to think hard about it, but I don't think I can convey a parent's view in the song…you know…cause I'm a kid." I said in defeat.
Cam hurriedly said, "No no. You misunderstand me. You don't need to make a song for the baby. Pepper told me about the other songs you had made other than 7 years and Amnesia. So I was thinking…"
"Ah I see…But seriously, the songs are not suitable for the atmosphere." I said to convince Cam. "If you really wanted me to play them…I would…"
"Gosh. No need Edward." Mitchell stepped up and controlled Cameron before he could reply. "You will have a show on your own sooner or later. We can just go there to hear it. You don't have to feel pressured to do it."
"Yeah. Don't feel pressured." Phil said as he sat nearby Haley and pulled her into his embrace, finally calming down himself from the song before.
"Dad!" Haley said in embarrassment.
"I remember when you're a baby, how small you were at that time. I was afraid that you would break when I picked you up."
Claire joined in and sat next to Alex and Luke, "Remember? How hard did we try to take a picture of them standing still?"
She turned to Mitchell and said, "Now, you're going to get to experience that. How even when they were there with you, you will feel like you're still missing them. You wanted to put them into your arms all the time, never to let them go." She hugged Luke and Alex suddenly, causing them to laugh as they became ticklish.
"When I feel sad, sometimes I just open up their baby photos and just remember the good times we had together." Claire said.
"Me too." Jay said. "And a bottle of scotch."
Claire rolled her eyes at Jay's remark.
"Yeah. I saw the pictures on the staircase." I said. I turned to Gloria and asked, "Did you keep pictures of Manny too?"
"Any chance that I can get." Gloria said. "We didn't have much at that time, so… I will bring Manny to one of the free…studio pictures…and we got our picture taken by the camera. I still keep the pictures until today."
Manny interjected, "It was one of the things we sent to our family in Colombia."
Claire's expression toward Gloria eased a bit after she heard that.
"I see. So that's…from the parent's point of view huh." I said as a song popped into my head.
"I think I can play you something. Can you let me try?" I asked.
"Sure kiddo." Phil said in excitement.
"Wait!" Cam suddenly stopped everyone. "I heard some babbling. I think…Lily is awake now." Cam said and ran toward the nursery.
As he assumed, Lily had woken up from her nap and was on the brink of crying before he walked in. She brightened up as she saw him, and Cam pulled her into his arms. He brought her outside to join in the fun.
"Okay. This song can be either from a child's or a parent's experience in the family." I said before I started to strum the melody to Ed Sheeran - Photograph.
Phil couldn't sit still and said, "I'm so excited!"
♪ ♪ ♪
Ed: ♪ Loving can hurt, loving can hurt sometimes.. But it's the only thing that I know..♪
"Is this a new song?" Cam widened his eyes as he never heard a song like this before. "Shh!" Gloria shushed Cam. He made a zipping gesture at his mouth and waited patiently to comment.
Ed: ♪ When it gets hard, you know it can get hard sometimes. It is the only thing… that makes us feel alive.♪
I turned to Phil and Claire who had been immersed in the song.
Ed: ♪ We keep this love in a photograph. We made these memories for ourselves. Where our eyes are never closing…Hearts are never broken…And time's forever frozen, still..♪
Phil and Claire widened their eyes as the song was based on the topic they just talked about before.
♪ So you can keep me…Inside the pocket of your ripped jeans…Holding me closer 'til our eyes meet…You won't ever be alone, wait for me to come home…"
"Oh my god. It is a new song. And he made it on the spot…" Haley muttered underneath her breath, extremely shocked by the song. She recorded the video of the song with her phone without thinking much.
Ed: ♪ Loving can heal, loving can mend your soul. And it's the only thing that I know, know. I swear it will get easier. Remember that with every piece of ya..♪
♪ Hmm, and it's the only thing we take with us when we die. Hmm, we keep this love in a photograph. We made these memories for ourselves…Where our eyes are never closing. Hearts were never broken, And time's forever frozen, still… ♪
Luke whispered to Manny, "What is this song about?"
Manny replied back with a whisper, " It's a metaphor about how fast time will pass by for a parent and their love."
Luke was confused, "What? I thought it's about taking pictures."
Gloria was swaying her entire body to the rhythm, not realising the exchange of words between the two 10 years olds.
Ed: ♪ So you can keep me
Inside the pocket of your ripped jeans
Holding me closer 'til our eyes meet
You won't ever be alone♪
♪ And if you hurt me
That's okay, baby, only words bleed
Inside these pages, you just hold me
And I won't ever let you go♪
♪ Wait for me to come home
Wait for me to come home
Wait for me to come home
Wait for me to come home…♪
I stopped the music early and stopped before the final part of the song as the song was quite long.
Before I could open my mouth, Cam yelled, "What in the name of Amodeus Mozart that just happened?!"
"Ed?! Did you really make this song on the spot!" Claire asked hurriedly like Dumbledore asking Harry calmly if he put his name in the goblet of fire.
"A CAMERA! No. A RECORDER! SOMEONE! TELL ME SOMEONE RECORDED IT!" Cam screamed hysterically and tried to prove that the song he just heard wasn't a figment of his own imagination.
…
After the whole song situation calmed down, the conversation continued, and it's now almost 9 pm. Cam and Mitchell had thanked me about the songs, and everything else. Lily continued reaching out to me, making Cam and Mitch a bit jealous.
Before the night ended, I had a useful discussion with the rest of the adults about my current project.
"Hey. Claire tells me you made a website?" Jay asked after he had a conversation with Claire about her new job offer. He was sceptical at first, but after Claire explained the work in detail, he was…still sceptical, but he was sure Claire could handle the job now.
"Yeah. It's not launched yet as I still need to make a few tweaks." I replied.
"Can I see it?" Jay asked. "Sure. My laptop bag is in the car. I will go take it." I said and walked outside to Dunphy's minivan. Jay, Gloria, Mitchell and Cameron took a look at the website together and gave me their opinions on the matter.
[Jay's commentary]
"The website is even better than the one my company used. (sigh) Now…I need to make a hard decision about firing my tech guy.."
[Commentary ends]
"If I don't use the website, can I call someone and talk to them to book the ship? Will the call then be linked to the booking system on the website?" Jay asked a critical question.
"Yes. Any call booking will automatically be set in the website after about an hour of confirmation. The system in the pier and the website will be linked together after I finish my program." I explained.
Jay nodded, and he advised me about a few things on the business before it was Mitch and Cam's turn.
"You know, if there's pictures of celebrities using the ships, or a party on the ship, I know I will be more inclined to book it." Cam said.
"That's true…For me, I need to know about the route the ship will take in the seas. It says here about dancing in the moonlight…so can you guarantee that? You may need a disclaimer in that, so people cannot sue you." Mitchell said as a lawyer.
"How many people can ride the boat?" Gloria asked. "I don't want to bring many people there…and then at the last minute I'm being told to drop a few because of the extra weight."
I noted all of the feedback and I would discuss with my dad on how to solve the issues.
"Here. Take it." Gloria said as she gave me the hat Jay had worn before. "He won't ever wear it again. He wouldn't even know that it's gone."
I hitched a ride home with the Dunphy's after the dinner party was over. It's almost 10.30 pm now.
"Hey. Ed. I need to talk to you about something." Haley said. She pulled away from the rest of her family, and told me about the picture she had posted.
"Ahh. That's why you're being so weird." I said.
"You're not mad?" Haley asked meekly.
"Nah. I'm alright. I'm not on Facebook, so I kinda don't care about what happens. You already explained to them about my visit, right? That's enough. "
Haley breathed in relief and said, "Okay. But I'm going to warn you, if anything happens, call me quickly. Okay?!" She snatched my phone and called her phone – so that she would know my number. Now, she had become the 6th person I had saved in my phone book.
Dad, Grandma and Grandpa, Abby, Alex, Potato Bitch, and Haley.
"What would happen?" I asked.
"You know, if some people are being idiotic." Haley said in concern. "Make sure to call me."
After waving goodbye to the family, I walked home alone, only to find Brian and Dylan waiting for me to return to the route near my house.
"Oh. The idiots huh." I muttered as I stood face to face with them.