A Love Stronger Than Time

Chapter 3

They stood in the back of the venue, hidden in the shadows so they wouldn't be seen. Tuomas already felt a knot of dread in the pit of his stomach and the concert hadn't even begun yet.

He kept checking his watch. 10 minutes.

8 minutes.

Time could not go any slower.

"You don't have to do this," the Doctor said gently, sensing his anxiety. "We can still go back."

"No," Tuomas said firmly, shaking his head. "I ... I have to."

The Doctor just nodded and they both stood in silence, waiting for the show to start.

All too soon, the familiar intro of She Is My Sin filled the room. The spotlight shined first on Jukka, and then on Emppu, Marco, and Tuomas. When Tarja came out, the crowd went wild and Tuomas felt his heart clench. She was so, so beautiful. He had almost forgotten the way she had looked back then, with her shoulder length hair and softer face. He closed his eyes as her angelic voice spread through the room.

It was so strange to see them in the past. This is what they had looked like 15 years ago. This is how they had sounded. They had come so far from this, but it was still so special, what they had had.

Tuomas was so wrapped up in these thoughts that over half the concert passed by, and he was jolted back to the problem at hand when Fantasmic began.

The Doctor saw how Tuomas immediately tensed, and knew that this must be the song.

For the first part of it, Tuomas just stared straight ahead with his hands in fists. Then, as the song slipped into an instrumental part, he started to tremble.

"No," he whispered. "No. I won't let this happen. Not again."

"Tuomas," the Doctor said, concern in his eyes.

"No," tears filled his eyes now as he stared unflinchingly at the stage.

Although the room was dark, there were lights flashing everywhere, and Tuomas and the Doctor were in the very back, they could both see the figure run onto the left of the stage and pull Tarja to the ground with him.

Tuomas lunged forward, a strangled cry escaping from his throat, but the Doctor grabbed his arm.

"Stop," he said. "You can't do anything yet. You can't fix this."

Tuomas took deep breaths to try and calm himself, and put his face in his hands.

When he looked up again, the guy was being pulled out of the building by security.

Pain gripped at his heart when he looked up at Tarja. She was still trying to sing even though tears were streaming down her face, and her voice was still so clear and pure.

"It's going to be okay," the Doctor said quietly. "I'll be waiting in the Tardis when you're done. Remember, don't let her see your face, don't let your past self see you, and don't leave the dressing room with her."

As soon as the show was over, Tuomas pushed his way through the huge crowd, shaking his hair over his face as he did so.

When he finally got to the backstage area, the security guards let him go through without a second glance, obviously thinking that it was the past him they were letting in.

He made his way over to the dressing rooms, his eyes scanning around him, making sure that no one would see him.

He could hear Tarja crying before he even got to her room. His heart shattered as he heard her sobs, and he couldn't believe he hadn't gone to her 15 years ago. The comfort would have mattered more than whether or not they had stopped playing. Why couldn't he have seen that?

But he would fix it now.

Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" came her shaky voice, deepening the crack in his heart.

"It's Tuomas. Can I come in?"

"Yeah."

He pushed the door open to find her curled up on the couch with her face hidden in a pillow.

"Oh, Tarja," he said softly.

He walked over to the couch and sat down on the other side.

Without hesitation, she flung herself into his arms. He just held her for a few minutes while she cried.

"I'm-I'm so sorry," she sobbed.

"Why are you sorry?" Tuomas asked, not having the faintest idea what she was talking about.

"I couldn't sing!" she cried.

"Oh, Tari, that's not your fault. You did the best you could. Your voice still sounded beautiful. I'm sorry. We should have stopped playing. I do
n't know what I was thinking. It all happened so fast. I feel awful about it. We should have ended the concert or at least taken a break."

"It's okay," she whispered. "You're here now."

She put her head on his chest and closed her eyes.

Tuomas heard murmurs outside and immediately realized what was going on.

"Marcelo, can you stay with her?" Sami's voice.

"You...you want me to stay with her?"

"Yes. If you could, that would be great."

"Um, okay."

Then there was the sound of footsteps. That was when he had walked away. Tuomas bit his lip, waiting.

Seconds later, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Tarja said, not lifting her head up.

Marcelo opened the door and did a double take when he saw Tuomas.

"But you were-you were just-I just saw you...you were out in the hall with the guys," he sputtered.

Tuomas smiled calmly. "You must be mistaken. I've been in here the whole time."

"Oh..well...I guess I must have just imagined it. I ... um, do you still need me to stay here, or..."

Tuomas shook his head, staring straight into the eyes of the man he despised more than anything in the world. "It's okay. I've got her."

He tightened his arms around Tarja protectively, and Marcelo just nodded and left the room.