Laura would make that sound all day if it meant he’d smile at her like that all the time. But it wouldn’t work, he’d grow tired of the sound, the spark would eventually wear off, she would have to keep finding new ones and this new world was ripe with new sounds for her. Sometimes too many; it was starting to give her a headache trying to process them all. She was eager at first to hear them, understand them, but then as they moved from Macroom to Galway the sounds intensified. Particularly last night. She felt exhausted by the interaction and she looks forward to returning to Cork. Wherever it is she’ll be staying, at least she’ll be spending time on the mountain, surrounded by familiar sounds.
Though no matter how many times people had sung their songs last night, the spark had never seemed to wear off them. She was hearing them for the first time and it was as though they were performing for the first time. Especially Solomon’s performance. He had brought the room alive. Laura’s heart had been in her throat the entire time at the sound of his singing voice, of the twenty things that made him so happy at seventeen.
Solomon’s concern has returned and she senses something. ‘The reason I ask whether you enjoyed performing last night is because Bo called me last night.’
Bo coming into their conversation has altered everything, the space widens between them. Who made that happen, her or him? She looks down at the sand, sees that her feet have moved from her footprints, as have his. They both have stepped away from each other.
‘She had a change of plan,’ he says, sounding strained, forced.
Laura’s heart thuds, hoping Bo won’t pull the plug on the documentary. She doesn’t care in the slightest about it, but she needs it. It’s the only bridge off her island. If she doesn’t have them, she doesn’t know what will become of her life.
‘She wants us to go to Dublin tonight. She’s lined up some interviews for the documentary there.’
Laura feels such relief that it’s still going ahead that she doesn’t care about not returning to her home. She tries to fight the grin from her face.
‘And she has a friend’ – his face darkens and his forehead bubbles – ‘who has a TV talent show, StarrQuest. They would like you to go on the show.’
He seems so conflicted, she’s unsure. The signal to understanding him is coming and going. He keeps talking while she tries to figure him out.
‘Bo showed footage of you to these TV people. Remember the coffee machine at breakfast yesterday?’
Laura makes the sound instantly as she recalls it.
‘Yeah, that one.’ His smile is tight.
‘They like that sound?’ She makes the sound again, listening to herself more carefully to see what was so special about it.
‘It’s unique, Laura. Nobody else makes that sound. Nothing other than … the coffee machine.’
‘Then that coffee machine would have a big chance of winning,’ she says, trying to ease his discomfort.
He laughs loudly and her joke seems to do what was intended.
‘I’ve heard about StarrQuest,’ she says. ‘I’ve read enough magazines to know who the winners are of every single reality TV show going, and heard about them and their songs on the radio. What do you think of me doing it?’
‘I’ll be honest …’ He puts his hands to his face.
She makes the stubble rubbing sound and he stops, stuffs his hands in the pockets of his jeans.
‘When Bo told me about it last night, I was not happy. I thought it was a bad idea. But then I saw you perform, I saw the looks on people’s faces. They were captivated. Maybe it’s wrong to deprive people of that experience, this experience of you that I’m having. Maybe I didn’t want to share you. But the documentary would have done that anyway. Maybe it’s wrong to deprive you of that experience, of that adulation, that celebration of your skills.’
She feels her cheeks glow pink because of his words. He didn’t want to share her. But she’s confused. ‘My skills?’
He’s not sure how to broach the sounds that she makes. He’s not even sure if she’s aware she makes them half the time.
‘Like what you did last night at the party. Did you enjoy it?’
She thinks of the serenity she felt in his parents’ home. The calm as she recalled the harp strings, the shared energy in the atmosphere. The explosive reaction gave her a fright, but she wasn’t expecting it. She felt alone, which she likes, but as though she was sharing being alone with others.
‘Yes,’ she says. ‘I did like it.’
He takes this in. He seems surprised by the reaction, perhaps disappointed. She’s confused. He’s not making this easy for her. He’s asking her to do something that she’s not entirely sure he wants her to do.
‘Why would you want me to do this show, exactly?’ she asks.
‘It’s not my idea,’ he says quickly. ‘It’s Bo’s idea. Her reasoning is that it would be good for the documentary. If you have a profile, then it will help the success of the documentary.’
Laura cannot lose doing the documentary. Without the documentary crew, she has nobody, she needs to cling to them as she would a life raft.
‘Doing the talent show to help the documentary seems like a great idea of Bo’s,’ she says.
He nods. ‘I suppose it is.’
She smiles. ‘You don’t always like Bo’s ideas.’
He looks relieved to be able to tell the truth. ‘No, I don’t. And, Laura, to be perfectly honest, I’m not sure about this one. This is completely your decision.’
‘What do you think of this talent show?’ she asks.