Christopher Corn's Arc

Chapter 2 of 4

Christopher spends the next three days in the barn, playing until his fingers bleed and then playing some more. The sound is there now, real and heavy, shaking dust from the rafters. But a guitar alone isn't a band. He needs drums that hit like thunder. He needs bass that moves through your chest. He needs a voice that can rise above it all. He's walking past the greenhouse when he hears it. A woman singing quietly to herself, the melody drifting through the open door. Christopher stops. The voice is warm and rich, with a depth that could anchor any song he throws at it. He listens for a full minute before stepping inside. Mrs. Tomato stands among the plants, holding a watering can, her eyes closed as she sings. When she opens them and sees him, she stops mid-note. "Don't stop," Christopher says. He doesn't ask where she learned to sing or whether she's performed before. He just looks at her and says, "I need a backup singer. Someone who can hold the line when everything else goes loud. That's you." Mrs. Tomato sets down the watering can. Her hands shake. She nods once, then twice, faster. Tears start in her eyes but she's smiling so wide it looks like it hurts. Two days later, Fred finishes building a small house with a converted garage at the edge of the property. Inside, the walls are lined with foam and the air feels heavy and still. Christopher sets up a microphone on a stand in the center of the room, adjusts the height, and steps back. Mrs. Tomato walks in wearing a black shirt with LOUD GARDEN printed across the front in bright letters. She steps up to the microphone. Christopher counts off and hits the first chord. Her voice rises clean and strong, cutting through the wall of sound like it was born there. The band has its first member.