Layla: Rhythm and the Beats

Disclaimer: All characters and events depicted below are purely fictional. Any resemblance to a real person, living or dead is purely coincidental. Check out Layla: Butterflies (Click here), Layla: Untold Story (Click here), Layla: Reunion (Click here) and Layla: The Conversation (Click here) before proceeding any further.

 

Present day:

It’s the annual cultural event at the Ignited minds.

He is chilling out in the food court sipping his cup of coffee, with his gang, staring at a smoking hot chick sitting on the other side of the table. One of his friends shouts from behind “Dude, you are on stage next.”

————————————————————-

2 years ago:

(They laughed, said goodbye to their friend and came out.)

He: What would have happened if I would have chased you? Do you the think the outcome would have been any different?

She: Maybe!

He: Haha, what, really! Did you even love me?

She: Maybe! Why do you wanna know?

He: Aah, come on. Please, don’t fuck with me.

She: Listen, let’s not get into that now, okay!

He: So that was a, Yes. OMG, I was an idiot.

She: Yes, you were.

He: Then why you didn’t tell me

She: I had to be in my character, I had a reputation to maintain

He: Haha, but at least you could’ve given me a hint

She: I thought, I did.

He: Oh yeah, “But I just see you as a friend”, that’s one heck of a hint (*slow claps*). Anyway, what’s done is done!

She: So you don’t feel the same for me now?

He: It’s been more than 3 years, what do you expect!

She: You asshole!

He: Haha, you are really bad at giving hints. You could have just told me.

She: I knew you would fight the whole world for me but I couldn’t do it.

He: It’s okay. Let’s leave our past behind and have a fresh beginning, what do you say?

She: Haha, okay! As you say, Sire!

He: Anyway, you remember the day I proposed you? I wanted to play guitar and sing a song for you.

She: (laughs out loud) do you even know how to sing or play a GUITAR?

He: Haha, you will see. I am planning to perform at the corporate events from now on.

She: Ahaan, we will see!

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Present day:

She is home alone slumped in a corner of the sofa, a sweater draped over her shoulders, sipping her cup of tea. All of a sudden, she picks up the teacup and throws, calling him an asshole.

Meanwhile, the lights go mild on the stage; he is sitting on a chair with his head bogged down with a guitar in his hand.

She’s blotting her swollen eyes with tissues. She weeps until she can’t catch her breath.

 

He sings:

Well this heart of mine has been hardened like a stone

It might take some time to get back what is gone

But I’m moving on and you don’t haunt my dreams

Like you did before oh when I would curse your name

 

Well I heard the news that you were back in town

Just passing through to claim you’re lost and found

But I’m over you and there ain’t nothing that

You could say or do to take what you did back

Well you got nerve to waltz right in

And think what’s mine is yours again

 

Cause I’ve been doing fine without you

Forgetting all the love we once knew

And girl I ain’t the one who slammed that door

But now you say you’ve changed your thinking

But I ain’t got a heart for breaking

So go and pick your bags up off my floor

Oh cause love don’t live here anymore

 

Well, baby, you can try to tell me how it is

And try to justify everything you did

But honey I’m no fool and oh I’ve been down this road

Too many times with you I think its best you go

Well I got one thing left to say

Is you can lay in the bed you’ve made

 

Oh no that love don’t live here anymore

Oh no, no

Sugar no, no

And you don’t live here anymore

Love don’t live here anymore

And since you walked out of my door

Love don’t live here

Love don’t live here girl

Oh love don’t live here anymore

 

The lights come up and the audience claps and applauds “once more, once more”. He smiles and gets up and bangs the guitar right onto the floor and screams. The cheer stops, the audience goes quiet. He sits on the chair, with elbows on his knees, staring at his folded hands.

He knows he should go to her, but he’s frozen with anger and shame. He apologizes profusely. In that moment he understands that time will heal some wounds, but also that in other ways time will make no difference.

At the same time, she is sitting on the couch reading, but she’s been on the same page for an hour.

 

P.S. Thanks a lot for checking it out, I hope you enjoyed it. And as you rightly guessed, the song is not written by me. It’s one of my favorite performed by Lady Antebellum – Love Don’t Live Here, enjoy \m/