“You take forever!” Darren said as he nervously sat in his dressing room
waiting for his manager, Leonie, to find him an outfit that looked and felt
comfortable. She came running in holding a faded pair of blue jeans, a white
tee, and a denim jacket that matched the jeans.
“For once, can we agree on something?” she asked, throwing the clothing
at him.
“Yes,” he answered with a smirk.
“And everything is ready for the performance. The producers and director
know what you’re doing, so don’t worry about it,” Leonie said as she walked
out of the room and towards the stage.
Alanna quietly hobbled into the dressing room and watched Darren as he
switched from his suit and tie to the denim outfit. He turned around and was
startled by her presence. “Hey, what are you doing in here? Get back out in
the audience. You shouldn’t be moving around too much anyway,” Darren said as
he walked over to her and wrapped her arm around her waist.
“I just wanted to see you, that’s all,” Alanna replied with a smile.
“You’ll see me again, in a few minutes. Don’t worry,” he answered back,
placing a soft kiss on her forehead.
“The last time one of us said that, you got kidnapped,” she retorted.
“You’re paranoid, now go before you make me paranoid,” Darren replied
as he handed her off to Leonie.
“Is he always this nervous before a show?” Alanna asked her.
Leonie hesitated. “Yeah, I guess. I’ve just never had time to notice
it,” she lied. She took Alanna back to her seat in at the front row of the audience
and disappeared backstage.
It had only been a week after Alanna’s stabbing, but the resilient 26
year old was already on her feet ready to take on whatever challenges the world
threw her way. Yet, with Darren around, she seemed to spend less and less time
on her feet and more time sitting in bed watching TV or eating.
‘I must have gained at least five pounds since I officially moved in
with him,’ she thought. ‘If only he wasn’t so protective, that weight would
be gone and my pants would start fitting again, but as the doctor said, I should
be sitting on my ass and gaining weight. After all, I am eating for two.’ She
rubbed her belly and smiled. In another nine months, she’d be expecting her
first child. ‘Things happened so fast. But I like it.’
“Thirty seconds everyone. Thirty seconds!” one of the producers yelled
as he walked onto the stage.
Alanna looked to her left and saw Dmitri, Daniel, and Destiny sitting
beside her. They all smiled back at her, not knowing what the day would bring.
They didn’t even know she was pregnant, and neither did Darren. And what would
be better than telling him on national television. Boy, that was the stupidest
decision she had ever made. ‘I’ll tell him after the performance,’ she told
herself.
“And we’re on in five… four… three…” the producer began to count down.
Once he reached two, he raised his fingers and shut his mouth. After counting
down to one, the show began.
“I am Carson Daily, and welcome to TRL this wonderful Friday afternoon
here in Times Square. We have a great show planned today. Our guests include
Seth Greene, Mandy Moore, and Darren Hayes, who will perform his smash hit single,
‘Insatiable.’ Now, onto the countdown,” Carson said as all cameras focused on
him. “Number ten comes to you from Unwritten Law. Here’s ‘Seein’ Red,’ on TRL.”
Alanna sat patiently in her seat through most of the show, her nervous
not coming into play until Carson announced that Darren would be performing
the song after the third most requested video. She could feel the butterflies
building in her stomach as she waited for him to walk out on stage and perform
the song she had been waiting to hear since Darren told her about it.
“Welcome to the show, Darren Hayes!” Carson said, startling Alanna out
of her thoughts. She began clapping as he walked out on stage and stood beside
Carson. He gave her a little wave and turned his attention to the short interview
that preceded the song.
“Welcome to TRL. This is your first time on the show alone, right?” Carson
asked.
“Yeah, first time without Daniel,” Darren replied.
“Weird, huh?”
“Yeah, just a little.”
“So after Savage Garden broke up, you decided to go solo?”
“Yeah, and it turned out to be a good decision. My album went gold in
Australia and is climbing the charts here in the States.”
“That’s cool. And you’ll be singing ‘Insatiable’ today, aren’t you?”
“Actually, I’m supposed to be singing ‘Insatiable,’ but I’ve planned
a little surprise for everyone today. Instead of ‘Insatiable,’ I’ll be singing
another song off the album called ‘I Can’t Ever Get Enough Of You.’”
“Is that going to be your next single or is there another reason you’re
singing it?” Carson questioned with a quizzical look on his face.
“There’s another reason,” Darren coyly replied. “But first, I need a
volunteer from the audience.” Almost every single girl in the room raised her
hand, except for Alanna. He pointed to her and said, “You, the pretty one with
the purple hair in the front row. Come on up.” She blushed and slowly stood
up, careful not to move too quickly and accidentally rip a few of her stitches
out. Darren took her hand and led her to a stool near the band.
She sat down and Carson asked, “What’s your name?”
“Alanna,” she shyly replied.
“Do you have any idea what he has planned today?” Carson said as he pointed
to Darren.
“No,” Alanna laughed as she tried to hide her bright red cheeks.
“I’ll guess we’ll just have to find out right now,” he replied as Darren
grabbed the microphone off the stand in front of him and pulled Alanna up off
the chair again.
The band began to play the opening notes of the song as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in tight. He smiled down at her as he began to sing, “I know that I have only ever held your hand, but just one touch is more than enough to understand there’s a master plan. And although I know I don’t believe in destiny maybe it found me.” Looking deep into her eyes, Darren continued, “Now my world is filled with so many things, but nothing compares to the touch of your skin. There’s a symphony and melody that plays whenever you’re around. I think I’ve been found.”
Alanna found herself smiling as if there was no tomorrow. Her face was beginning to hurt, but she didn’t care. This was the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for her, and she wasn’t about to let the moment slip away. She stared into the deep blue pools of his eyes as her heart burst and tears began to fall down her cheeks. “I can see the sun and I can feel the rain. I can hear the wind call your name. I can feel your love, but there’s one thing I can’t do… I can’t ever get enough of you… No I can’t get enough of you no, no,” Darren kept singing as he danced with Alanna on the small stage in front of the audience.
“Now I know that in the past I’ve been much too keen, but your eyes are the kindest that I’ve ever seen. I guess there’s some things you just know. There’s a voice inside telling me to hold on, and never let you go.”
Alanna placed her head on his shoulder as he continued to serenade her. “There’s a tune that plays, it’s a sacred sound. It’s a symphony I hear whenever you’re around. Now my world is filled with a whisper of love and a promise of tomorrow.
“And I can see the sun, and I can feel the rain. I can hear the wind call your name. I can feel your love but there’s one thing I can’t do… I can’t ever get enough of you.
“Cause when we make love, I lose track of time. I can’t count all the colors I see in your eyes. And while your heart beats in mine, it’s true; I can’t ever get enough of you.”
Darren’s lips fell on top of hers for a soft, delicate kiss before he began to sing again. Alanna smiled up at him as he pulled away and stared into her eyes again. “Now my world is filled with so many things, but nothing compares to the touch of your skin. There’s a symphony and melody that plays whenever you’re around. I think I’ve been found.
“I can see the sun and I can feel the rain. I can hear the wind call your name. I can feel your love, but there’s one thing I can’t do… I can’t ever get enough of you…
“I can see the sun and I can feel the rain. I can hear the wind call your name. I can feel your love, but there’s one thing I can’t do… I can’t ever get enough of you…
“I’ll never get enough of you. No matter what I do, I can’t ever get enough of you. No matter where I go. No matter what I do. The one thing that’s true baby, I can’t ever get enough of you.”
Alanna could feel her body trembled as Darren slipped his hands behind her neck and pulled her in for one of his deeper, more meaningful kisses. More tears streamed down her face as she felt herself get lost in his touch. He gently pulled away, the smile still lingering on his face. She felt weak in the knees as he led her back to the stool. Darren walked backstage as Carson stood beside her.
“I’ve never seen a kiss like that,” Carson commented as he handed a microphone to Alanna. “It seems to me that you two know each other. Who really are you, Alanna?”
“I’m his girlfriend,” she replied, blushing even a brighter shade of red.
“And how long have you two been going out?”
“A little while.”
The audience began to holler and cheer as Darren came back holding a super huge bouquet of red roses. Alanna turned around, her eyes widening as she saw the beautiful flowers in his arms. “Oh, my God!” she exclaimed as he handed them to her.
“I’m not done yet,” Darren whined. A puzzled look came over her face. He kneeled in front of her, taking her hand, and simply said, “Alanna, I love you. Will you marry me?”
Alanna looked out at the astonished audience to see the faces of her friends and family also in as much shock as she was in. ‘There must be a million people watching this,’ was the one thing that kept running through her head. Turning her attention back to Darren, she saw he had pulled the black velvet box out of his pocket and was opening it for her to see. Inside was the perfect platinum band with a one-carat diamond between two half-carat heart shaped studs. Alanna’s hand began to tremble as he slipped the ring onto her finger. He looked up at here and waited for her answer.
Worried that she wasn’t going to speak, Darren said, “Well, say something!”
Alanna felt her eyes roll to the back of her head as she fell off the chair into Darren’s arms. “Oh, shit!” he shrieked, instantly catching her. One of the stagehands ran out with a bottle of water and handed it to Darren. He gently poured out its contents on Alanna’s face and waited for her to wake up. She shot out of his arms and shook her head as water dripped down her face.
“What happened?” she asked, dazed and confused.
“Well, I asked you to marry me and you passed out,” Darren replied.
“Huh?” Alanna murmured as she looked down at her hand and saw the beautiful ring on her finger.
“You never answered me,” he said. “Will you marry me?”
A goofy smile came across her face as she finally whispered, “Yes.”
Darren wrapped his arms around Alanna and planted a long, soft kiss on her waiting lips. As he held her tighter, she could feel the throbbing pain in her side return. She pulled away abruptly and said, “Ow! Ow! Stab wound! Stab wound!”
“Oh, sorry,” Darren replied as he helped her up.
“And she said yes,” Carson reiterated for the audience inside and outside of the studio. “The first celebrity to propose on TRL, Darren Hayes.”
Darren was in another tight embrace with Alanna when the cameras focused on them again and Carson walked over to ask a few questions.
“Aw, look at these two. Aren’t they just the cutest couple?” he said. They turned around and looked at him with the biggest smiles on their faces. The crowd was already going wild and everything began to pass as a blur. “How does it feel to be proposed to in front of millions of viewers?”
“Oh, God! I wasn’t expecting it at all! I must have looked like an idiot passing out like I did,” Alanna joked as she wrapped her arm around Darren’s waist.
“Well, you’re not the first,” Carson replied. “So, how long have you two been going out?”
“A very short time,” Darren answered.
“How short?”
“About a week,” Alanna finally admitted.
“Wow! That’s pretty short. And you are ready to commit?”
“Yes,” Darren confidently replied.
“That’s great. Just great. Congratulations to both of you,” Carson said as he shook hands with them.
With one final kiss in the middle of the audience, Darren and Alanna headed backstage with their arms wrapped around each other.
“Darren, can I tell you something?” Alanna asked when they reached the privacy of the dressing room.
“Yeah, of course. You can tell me anything,” he said.
“How would feel about adding one more person to this proposal?” she replied.
“What do you mean?” Darren asked, confused.
“I mean, what would you say if I told you that in less than nine months, we’d be adding another member to the family?”
“What?” Darren’s eyes widened when he realized what she was saying. “You mean…” He stopped talking when she nodded with another wide smile appearing on her face. “I’d say you’ve made me the happiest man in the world,” he finally answered.
“Like you’ve made me the happiest girl in the world,” Alanna replied,
kissing him again.
The End