As they reached the bridge of the song, the harmonies swelled, their voices trembling with age yet stronger than ever. In the final verse, they left a pause where Thomas’ solo had once been, letting the silence say what words could not.
Tears welled in the audience’s eyes.
The last note echoed through the theater. Then, for a moment, stillness.
And then, the applause.
The five men bowed, wiping their eyes, as the entire auditorium rose to their feet. They hadn’t just sung a song—they had given a friend the encore he never got.
As they walked off the stage, hands clasped, Charles looked upward and whispered:
“We did it, Tom. We did it.”