He hated living in her songs. Each lyric cut too deep, making his life a chorus for strangers.

She called it love.

And then, as if the weight finally reached her hands, the guitar slipped out of tune.

Complete silence.

Perhaps she finally understood love wasn’t meant to be performed.

Ran Walker is the author of over 40 books, the most recent of which is Fragments of the Afroverse, releasing on October 1st. He teaches creative writing at Hampton University and lives with his wife and daughter in Virginia.