The Passenger by Jacqueline Druga (the giving tree read aloud TXT) 📗

to sing along with an organ player?”

“Beggars can’t be choosers.” She stepped into the church. The teenagers were sitting in the pews waiting. Bright and almost too bubbly, Haley called out. “Hey everyone, sorry I’m late. I’m surprised you haven’t …” she looked over to the organ. “Milly isn’t here yet either?”

One of the teen boys answered, “Not yet.”

“Well, no wonder you haven’t started singing. This …” she waved out her hand. “Is Chip, my friend, he’ll be joining us today. He’s running sound for the contemporary service now. And I thought …” Haley’s head turned at the long ring of a service bell. “That must be the delivery. Chip, can you take over?”

“What … what am I supposed to do?”

“I don’t know. Tell them about your accident. I’ll be right back.” She darted off.

Awkwardly, Jonas faced the group. “Well.”

A teenage girl raised her hand. “Are you the guy that survived the Broke Man’s curve crash?”

“I am. Yeah.”

Another girl raised her hand. “I heard Jesus was in the car with you.”

“There was someone in the car with me.”

Another spoke up, “So, you’re saying you don’t believe God was in the car with you?”

“That’s not what I’m saying, I am just …” Jonas looked around and he froze when he saw the acoustic guitar on the stand. The guitar player must have dropped it off ahead of rehearsal. Instantly, Jonas wondered why he would do that. He was drawn to it and walked over.

“Do you play?” someone asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t remember much about myself.” He lifted it. The moment he slung the strap over his head and the neck of the instrument rested in his left hand, it felt right.

Natural.

Without even thinking about it, without knowing why or how he would know to do it, Jonas immediately checked the tuning of the guitar. He pressed the low E string on the fifth fret, matching it to the open A string, repeating to make sure the tones matched up. He did it quickly, because the guitar was in tune and Jonas strummed a chord to finish.

“I guess I do,” he said and smiled. “How about that?”

“Play something.”

He couldn’t think of a single song he knew, if fact he wouldn’t know the chords or did he? Jonas just started playing. “I’m supposed to tell you about my accident ... somehow, I know this song. I don’t think I wrote it.” He joked. “Let’s see how this goes.”

“Right there, thank you,” Haley instructed the delivery driver on where to place the box. She had him set it right inside her Father’s office. She snuck a sip of her shake, set it down and took the clipboard he handed to her. “I appreciate you carrying them in.”

“Sure, no problem.”

She scribbled her signature under the ‘received line’ and as she handed it back to the driver, she caught the sound of music.

A guitar playing.

Singing.

The singing was soft and the bounce from the empty church added an effect that made who was singing and what hard to determine.

Her hand was paused in the middle of returning of the clipboard.

“Haley, are you okay?” he asked,

“Yes. Sorry.” She released it. “I wasn’t expecting music.”

“Sounds good. Love that song. Never heard a guy sing it.”

Haley was slightly dumbfounded. The delivery driver had great ears or something, but it took until he walked to the door and Haley closed the office until she heard it.

She inched closer to the church staying in the hall. She had an inkling of who it was, but she had to look. The words were modified, she recognized the song.

I was so scared, he sang, I threw my hands up in the air …

Not wanting to be seen, she peeked in.

Jesus take the wheel ...

Chip.

He stood on the stage where the contemporary band played, acoustic guitar in hand. He stood strumming, moving slightly in a pace, while singing. The teens from the group filed on stage, sitting down to watch.

It took her breath away, stumbling her back into the wall in shock.

I’m letting go, give me one more chance …

It wasn’t the surprise of him playing or singing, somehow, a part of her expected that. But to hear him not only playing and singing with emotions, but him showing those emotions was astonishing.

Keep going, she thought. I want to hear more.

He had to be on autopilot, he was obviously moved to play by some feeling inside of him.

For as much as she was in the moment, she was pulled out of it with the chattering voices of her father and the chief as they entered the hall.

“Haley, guess what the Chief got …”

“Shh.” She hushed him, crinkling her face.

At first her father was confused by her request, then his eyes widened, and he whispered as he pointed with surprise. “Is that Chip?”

“Yes.” She nodded. “Listen to him. Look at him.”

“Oh … wow.”

Haley’s head swayed side by side, eyes closed as she listened.

I know I have to change. From now on tonight …

As soon as he blasted again into the chorus, her hand went to her heart and the other lifted in praise.

“What a gift,” Pastor Rick said. “What a gift he didn’t know he had.”

“It’s unreal. It’s what we need and are missing.”

“No, Haley,” Her father placed his hand on her back. “It’s what he needed and was missing. Wow, we are learning something new about him every day.” He looked back at Russ. “Don’t we, Chief?”

“Yeah.” The chief had his phone pulled out and he was looking down to it. “Yeah, we do.”

SEVENTEEN

The apartment was a mess, not that Grant expected Jonas’ place to be any different. A studio style apartment, one of probably ten that were above a huge collectible store.

Clothes were strewn everywhere, dishes in the sink and on the coffee table. Empty little foil seasoning packets from Ramen noodles were all over the place.

The fact that it had been so long since the garbage had been taken out or the pizza boxes tossed, caused a moldy