We present an extract from Our Song, the new novel by Anna Carey.
Laura used to have big dreams, but she gave them up - because that's what grown-ups do. Trying to turn her love of music into a career would have been absolutely ridiculous. But when she hears one of Tadhg's songs on the radio, she isn't so sure.
Tadhg and Laura used to be in a band together.They used to be a lot of things. Now he's a superstar, touring the world with his songs, making Laura feel like a failure and reminding her of what might have been. Then she gets an email that could change everything...
Prologue: 2017
This is what I want.
Not right now, obviously, I think, as I look around the function room of the hotel where my mother's retirement party is in full swing. But eventually. Some day. I want to be able to look back at my life with this sort of happiness. I can see myself in thirty years, laughing with my future husband and children and my friends and family, popping open a bottle of champagne, celebrating a career I loved and a life well lived, looking forward to future adventures. It’s the best sort of dream – lovely, yet achievable.
Although hopefully my celebrations will take place somewhere a bit more glamorous than a hotel in the north Dublin suburb of Drumcondra, where my fiancé (it still feels so weird to call him that) Dave is currently singing my praises to my extended family.
'You know Laura used to be in a band?’ he says proudly.
‘Is that true, Laura?’ My aunt Mary can’t hide her surprise as she turns to me.
‘Oh, it’s true,’ I say. ‘But it was a long time ago. In college.’
‘I’m sure I mentioned it at the time, Mary,’ says my mam.
I roll my eyes and smile at Dave, who winks back at me.
‘And you didn’t keep it up?’ says my uncle Gerry. ‘The music?’
‘Oh no.’ I take a sip of wine. ‘The band split up when we left college.’
‘Before my time,’ says Dave in mock sadness. He notices my mother’s wine glass is empty and refills it.
‘Thank you, David,’ says Mam fondly. She turns to me. ‘I always thought you’d find another band, Laurie. You were so devoted to your music.’
Well, she’s changed her tune from the days of ‘Shouldn’t you be studying for your finals, Laura?’. But I’m not going to mention that now.
No, I am. ‘In fairness, Mam, at the time you were delighted I was more focused on my first proper job than faffing around on the guitar.’
‘Speaking of proper jobs,’ says my dad, clearly keen not to revive those old arguments, ‘Laura’s ad agency just got bought by Zenith, the big consultancy company! She’s going to get a promotion.’
‘Visions isn’t my agency!’ I protest. ‘I just work there. And I might not get a promotion.’
My mother ignores this. ‘You know that funny TV ad about the ethical pensions?’ she says. ‘The animated one?’
The aunts and uncles all know it. It’s on all the time. Not exactly the sort of fame you dream of, perhaps, but my friend Aoife and I did win an award for it.
‘Well, Laura wrote that!’ says Mam. Everyone is suitably impressed.
‘You’re doing very well for yourself, Laura,’ says an aunt.
‘Ah, thanks, I’m doing all right,’ I say. ‘Now, shouldn’t the food have been brought out already—?’
‘But you never thought of doing the music professionally?’ says Gerry.
I shake my head. ‘Oh God, no.’
This is a lie, of course. I thought about it a lot, once upon a time.
Dave laughs at the very idea. ‘Being in a college band is like playing five-a-side football, Gerry,’ he says. ‘You do it for fun, but you know you’re never going to play for Real Madrid.’
I feel myself bristle at this, just a tiny bit. Which is stupid, because he’s right, I know he’s right. But ...
Then an unexpected voice behind me says, ‘Laura’s band was really good, David.’
‘Oh yeah, I’m sure they were!’ says Dave hastily. ‘I didn’t mean—’
‘They were seriously good,’ says my younger sister Annie, pulling out a chair next to me and sitting down. She lives in London but she’s come home for the weekend to celebrate Mam’s retirement.
‘How do you know?’ says Dad. ‘You were still in school back then!’
‘Laura sneaked me into one of their gigs,’ says Annie. ‘I thought they’d be terrible.’
‘Wow, thanks,’ I say.
Annie turns back to Dave. ‘But you should have seen Laura on stage. She was incredible.’
‘I’m sure she was!’ says Dave. ‘I only meant that loads of people are in bands in college and they don’t make a career out of it. It wasn’t an insult!’
And Annie says, ‘Well, Laura’s bandmate has made a pretty good career out of it.’
Oh shit.
I try to subtly give her a ‘please change the subject’ look but it’s too late because Dave is saying, ‘What do you mean?’
‘She was in a band with Tadhg Hennessy,’ says Annie. Her eyes widen in gleeful disbelief. ‘Oh my God, didn’t you know?’
I never knew what a stunned silence felt like until this moment. Everyone at the table – and some of my mother’s friends who are standing nearby – are staring at me. I think at least one mouth has literally dropped open.
‘What?’ says Dave.
‘Tadhg Hennessy?’ says Dad. ‘Who sings ‘Winter Without You’?’
‘Your cousin Cass saw him play the 3Arena!’ says an aunt.
‘Annie, don’t be ridiculous!’ says Mam. ‘Laura wasn’t in a band with Tadhg Hennessy!’
‘Yes, she was!’ says Annie. ‘Tell them, Laura.’
The only other people who know I was in a band with Tadhg Hennessy in college are my friends who were around at the time. I’ve never told anyone since. But maybe it was ridiculous to think I could keep it a secret forever.
‘It is true,’ I say reluctantly. I meet Dave’s eye and he raises his eyebrows in exaggerated shock, which I hope means he’s not too freaked by this revelation. ‘But it wasn’t a big deal.’
Well, that’s another lie.
‘What was he like?’ says Mary. ‘He seemed very nice on the Late Late Show.’
‘Was he always that good at singing?’ says Gerry.
‘He was the best-looking man I’ve ever seen in real life,’ says Annie unhelpfully.
To my relief, I can see waiters bearing down on us with large platters of triangular sandwiches.
‘He was just my bandmate,’ I say.
And there’s one more lie.
Our Song is published by Hachette Books Ireland
