A Song for the Season

All in the Details

At school the next morning, the day after Belle’s concert, Holliday’s eyes go wide the moment Tenney mentions the tour. Jaya squeals and pulls Tenney into a hug before she can even finish explaining that nothing is decided yet. On the way to class, Jaya asks about tour posters and T-shirts, while Holliday imagines a bus like Belle Starr’s, with a kitchen and bathtub. By the time the three reach the classroom door, Jaya and Holliday are already picturing a bus with their names painted across the side and shows at the biggest venues around. Tenney reminds them it’s only a possibility, but the idea already feels like a victory worth sharing with her closest friends.

Alone at her desk afterward, a colder thought creeps in. What if Zane can’t make the deal happen? What if her parents decide she can’t go at all?

Tenney gets her answer a few days later. On Wednesday, her parents drive her to the Mockingbird Records office on Music Row, where Zane’s niece, Ellie Cale, greets the group in the lobby. Ellie, Mockingbird’s talent scout, discovered Tenney playing at Dad’s instrument shop last year. As she guides everyone back to Zane’s office, she mentions that videos of Tenney and Logan’s opening set have each racked up about 20,000 views, with inquiries about booking the pair still pouring in. Inside, Logan and his mom, Mrs. Everett, are already seated on Zane’s leather couches, Logan’s knee bouncing.

Zane glances at his notes and gets right to it. Belle’s fans alone have posted about a dozen videos of the encore, and ever since the Ryman show, he and Ellie have fielded call after call from parents and venues alike. He wants Tenney and Logan to build on that momentum before it fades. Then comes the news: they’re going on tour.

Tenney lets out a squeal loud enough that Logan clamps a hand over his ear, laughing, and teases her to warn him next time. The tour will launch in about six weeks, right after winter break starts, with five to seven shows booked around Tennessee. The whole trip will last less than a week. Zane promises a relieved Mrs. Everett that the pair will be home in plenty of time for Christmas Eve. But there won’t be time to record a full album from scratch. Instead, Zane plans to stitch together an EP, an extended play of just a few tracks, from Tenney and Logan’s best live recordings, including their encore with Belle, to sell along the way.

Between now and departure, the two will rehearse regularly with Portia Burns, their vocal coach and mentor, building a tight set that blends holiday classics with their own songs. Tenney realizes the timing means missing some of her favorite traditions, like gift shopping with Jaya, the Howl-iday Ramble with her brother, Mason, and caroling with Aubrey. But at least Dad will be with Tenney the whole time and they’ll both be home for Christmas.

Once the meeting wraps, Zane rounds his desk to clap Logan and Tenney on the back, and the room erupts into handshakes and congratulations. Ellie and Zane discuss more details with Tenney’s parents and Mrs. Everett while Tenney throws her arms around Logan. She’ll miss out on plenty of holiday fun, but if the tour succeeds, it might turn her biggest dream into something real.