Could It Be

It seemed like a joke, only that i couldn't figure out who would be large enough to play such a joke on me and about half the country's population. But i honestly didn't want to believe the words flashing on the electronic screen a few metres above my head:
NEWEST R & B SENSATION
DA RAYNE!!!
AT THE MUSON CENTRE, TONIGHT 9:00PM.
BE THERE !!!
I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to. I mean, she ran away several years ago, vowing never to come back. Why now, i thought. Why here ?
I slowly made my way thru the crowd towards the black BMW sedan sitting a few yards away on the sidewalk, thoughts of what had happened; thoughts of the past hurtling thru my head at breakneck speed. I really had fooled myself into thinking that i had gotten past her; that i had moved on.
yeah, and that's why you're still living alone, that sarcastic voice in my head said. Okay, i thought in reply. Don't start on me now. I opened the door and eased into the front sit.Closing the door, i sat for a moment in the silence as the soundproof panels shut out the hustle and bustle of The Tafawa Balewa Square, then i punched the power button on the Sony sound system.
Instantly the haunting strings of "Everything", a song i wrote and produced for Fiona filled the interior of the car.I smiled to myself, mentally giving props to Shawn for what had been a very smart move on his part. On signing her, he didn't touch the eight tracks on her demo, tracks i had mostly written and produced.Rather, he hooked her up with Tek and 'Ye, having them capture the sad neo-soul i had captured on pad and she created in the booth.The result became the 5-time grammy winning classic "the rayne is coming down". I had watched as she collected the numerous awards and billings, giving me nods as her career and everything else flourished.But all i had wanted was for her to get to where i believed she belonged. This wouldn't do, i told me as the sweet-bitterness of nostalgia flooded my memory banks.I hit the cd button, and started the engine as the humm of Psalmurai's "emotional" filled the car.
Bopping my head in time to the beat and 'rai's witty punchlines, i smiled as i backed the car into the island's 5:28pm traffic and zoomed towards the Third Mainland. This guy does kill me, i thought to myself as i recalled psalmurai's innocent-looking personality. But hey, he delivers the goods. 5yrs down and he's yet to make me eat my words of proclaiming him as "arguably the greatest emcee on this side of the world". It's all good.
My mind wandered right back to the coming show and i idly wondered how i got to miss it. I had been a bit uptight lately, avoiding work and refusing to pick my calls. It was as if i had a premonition of what was coming. Even mum had had a hard time of it convincing me to come over for some chit-chat and a bite. Well, i mused. It just meant another thing i'd have to chalk up on my board of over due accounts.
Rayne. How long has it been ? Eight years ?Damn baby! You sure took a man hard. I never meant to....
The insistent brrrr brrrr of my cellphone sliced into my reverie. I eased into the crash line, and slid open my phone panel: Ben. Smiling to myself, i took the call.
"Hey kid. What's up ?"
"Yo man. We getting ready for tonight's show, so we were thinking you'd...
"What the dealy? I didn't hear squat about this! Why ?"
"Chill son!", Ben voiced in exasperation. You have being mr. friendly neighbourhood yourself these days, so we felt it was a phase. You know you, dawg."
I sighed as my "conscience" snickered. Rubbing my brow with terse fingers, i switched the phone to my other hand and checked for time on my glow-screen kinetic Movado: 5:34pm.
"Okay. How do you want to play this?" i asked a laughing Ben. Obviously he was with his .......
"Your call man.But i did get us some backstage passes. I thought you'd want to avoid all the red carpet sh*t, that's if you wanted to go at all."
I smiled."Okay.Who you got with you? I hear some feminine voices."
"Yeah. You-know-who is hear, with Arin, Sam, Lola and Temi. They all dressed up and looking hmm-hmm."
"Cool.I'm on my way home, so you guys meet me in..." i glanced at my wrist again.."thirty minutes,okay ?"
"Aight. Ben out."
I cut the connection and sighed to myself. Such friends...
Moving back into the traffic, i wondered how it would feel seeing her again after so long. I drifted slowly, my mind taking me right back to to the day everything started falling apart. It was so clear it felt like yesterday...