"This next song is one I wrote a long time ago, but it's always held a special place in my heart. It's called Mermaid's Kiss."
Alexis listened to the words of the ballad about a boy who meets a mermaid while out at sea and falls in love with her. He manages one kiss before she disappears beneath the waves, never to be seen again. The boy grows into a man and lives out the rest of his days, dreaming of the mermaid and their single kiss.
It was a stirring, wistful song and Alexis was amazed by the complexity of emotions Tyler could bring to a simple song like Mermaid's Kiss. He was even more talented than she'd first thought.
The patrons gave him a standing ovation at the end of it and Alexis thought that even Tyler looked a little teary-eyed.
"I don't know how he'll top that one," Alexis whispered to Patty.
Patty sighed. "He hasn't played that song in years. It's one of my favorites." She pressed a hand to her heart. "I've always been proud to have raised a son who's in touch with his emotions. I feel like I did something right."
"You did a lot of things right," Alexis told her as Tyler began his next song.
Alexis recognized the chords instantly. Yesterday by The Beatles. His soulful version of the song was so heartbreaking that Alexis found herself wiping away tears with her beverage napkin. Embarrassed by her response, she excused herself and went to the restroom.
Thankfully, no one was in there and Alexis closed herself inside a stall and cried in earnest. The tears cascaded down her cheeks and she grabbed a handful of toilet paper to wipe away the evidence. She cried for Mark; she cried for her unborn children. She cried for futures that would never be, hers included. She had been a wife and nearly a mother and now she was neither. Faint strands of the song still echoed in the stall and Alexis pressed her cheek to the cool wall and let the music engulf her. She stayed there until the song finished and she was sure that she could keep it together. She splashed cold water on her face and blew her nose one last time for good measure. Inspecting her face in the mirror, she could see flushed cheeks and pink eyes, but in the dim lights of Gatsby's, she'd probably get by. She reapplied her lipstick and practiced her smile before returning to the table.
"That was beautiful, wasn't it?" Alexis said to his parents as she seated herself.
Patty's hand clutched her heart. "I've never heard him sing that one before. It was amazing."