Last Train to London

TBH+C

//tbhc album references!

The next day, mum came to visit. She had not been to the house yet, and actually it would be the second time her and Alex met in person. It was difficult to see her often, as she lived on the other side of the world, and both your schedules changed so frequently, making it harder to get some free time to see eachother. She came over and stayed for a day, at around 1pm.

"Happy Birthday my love!" she said, hugging you. She reacted when she entered the house for the first time, the same as you did when you first came. "I sometimes forget Alex is a a famous guy" she said and you laughed. "Hello Vera!" Alex said, hugging her. "No beard? You look great. Both of you do" she said, leading her into the sitting room.

Mum was admiring all the posters and the jukebox. "Oh my goodness - there's the beauty! y/n, where's my jukebox?" she said and you rolled your eyes. "It's got one of your favourite songs on there, find it" you said, bringing over drinks. Mum turned it on and pressed a button, then it started to play.

You, my brown-eyed girl... the thing sang. Mum was dancing. You giggled and kissed his cheek, going to the kitchen to bring a drink. As you prepared it, you heard Alex talking to mum.

"Your daughter is the most wonderful, Vera... I'm so thankful for her" he said and you almost wanted to start crying. You came over to the sitting room with a drink and sat with Alex. "How was your birthday darling?" she asked you. You told her about the Arctic Beatles and meeting his other friends. "Miles you said? He sounds wonderful" she said. "Oh he's a copy of Alex, but goofier" you said and Alex grinned. "So I'm not goofy?" he teased and you smiled. "Of course you are" you winked.

Mum could see you were so happy. She kept saying for you and Alex to come over to New York soon to visit her. You had not been yet either, and promised to come to her soon. "Mum do you keep forgetting Alex is not always free. He's about to embark on a tour" you said and he explained to her. "I know love, someday... Really! Congratulations in advance! Coming to New York then!" she said, finishing her drink. A bit later, said your goodbyes to her and she was off again. She left you a gift in the sitting room. After she left, you opened it and saw a beautiful pair of gold heart earrings. "Oh mum, you are too kind" you said aloud and Alex came over. "those are gorgeous!" he said, helping you put them on. He pushed your hair back and smiled at you. "My darling, you are stunning" he said, kissing your forehead.

The rest of March was quiet actually. You worked most days, Alex in the studio a few times a week and in between you spent most of the time in the house. You both preferred staying in and having dinner and watching movies together anyways. You always played music or brought it somehow into the day, filling the house with sounds. He spent most of his work planning the tour. You could tell it was going to be a lengthy but great tour. You saw the list for the first few months of shows - starting in North America, followed by some European shows. You knew Alex had a house in LA, but he didn't mention it much, being his secondary place to stay when he's in town. His main place to be, with his instruments and most friends, was in London - the house you shared. Next month, the band was releasing the album release date - for May. You already read about fans freaking out about it all.
-
It was now the end of March. "Babe, have you seen my notepad?" he asked you, as you were sat drawing by the window. You looked up at him and winked. You were sketching a picture of him in his notepad. He laughed and walked over to you. "Whatcha got there?" he teased. You closed it and gave it back to him. "Not your notepad..." you replied, walking over to the kitchen. "Love, this is a really good drawing..." he grinned. His beard had grown back, which you very much preferred and drew a photo of him with his sunglasses on. "Because you do look good, duh" you said, eating a piece of cake.

"Right, I've got a surprise for you. Don't be too excited" he teased, holding the album. "Are we- or I, going to listen to it to the album!?" you said, already losing your shit and put the cake away. He nodded and put the vinyl in the the record player. You sat down on the floor and he sat on the armchair, looking at you the whole time. You took a deep breath and turned it on. "Oh my gosh, okay here we go" you said, already freaking out.

I just wanted to be one of The Strokes... his voice sang, and you were already grinning. You quickly stopped and listened to the rest of the song. He told you the name of each song before it started to play. You already loved the album. The way he sang was different to the previous works that the Monkeys had put out in the past. The layering of instruments and the slight echoey tone to his voice added a whole new feel, and you closed your eyes to listen to it. "One Point Perpective" he said and it started playing. You got excited, having already heard the guitar solo months ago. "Wow.. it sounds even better" you whispered, mouth wide open, listening to the solo. He grinned.

"American Sports" he said and you sat and listened to that one, having not heard anything about it before. "Interesting" you just said and the next song started. "You know this one" he smiled and you nodded. "Title track!" you said, as the keyboard started the song. You put your hand to your head, making a phone sign and sang along. "Mark speaking..." you said, Alex grinning. "This just has to be on the setlist!" you said and the next song played. "Golden Trunks" he said and you just listened to that one. I fantasize about you too... his voice sang, and you smirked. You turned the vinyl over to play the next side.

"Another one you know" he said, and Four out of Five played. "I love this one" you said, swaying along to the beat. You already knew some of the words, him having sung it a few weeks to you. "Looks like you are ready to sing on stage with me then?" he grinned and you you shook your head. "Oh no, I will never do such a thing" you laughed. The next song played, a bit more mellow, but the lyrics as interesting at the composition of the instruments. "Oh my..." you said, realizing what the song's reference was. He laughed, finally seeing you realize what it was. "The video isn't it?" you said and you both laughed. "The dickhead part, I love it" you said smiling. "That was: She looks like fun" he said. The song ended, and you laughed. "Right, that was an interesting one. Was not excpecting that" you said, picking up the references he made here and there. "Science Fiction" he said and you got up to dance to it. "Oh love this" you said. "I like this one, it's: Batphone" he said and you sat down again. This time you listened carefully to the lyrics, as you could hear his voice's power. He was right, was a great one.

"Okay final song. The Ultracheese" he said and you walked over to sit on his lap. You had also heard that one before, but not the final version. It had the essence of maturity, honesty, memories and personality - the whole album had reflected those qualities. You could tell he was very proud of it and made sure it showed all the things he had interest about in his life. The song ended, the record player stopped and you looked at him a bit speechless.

"What did you think darling?" he said, beaming at you like he just handed his most prized possesion to you. You held his head in your hands.

"It's so beautiful. You are an true genius Alex Turner - you've created a masterpiece. I am amazed, truly" you replied wholeheartedly. "I put many references in there, did you notice them?" he asked and you nodded. "I think so, but I'll eventually decode them later. I'm just so happy about the whole album right now!" you said.

"I could not have done a lot of it without you my love. You brought my inspiration back, and other qualities in life I thought I had lost and never knew I could have. I thank you, immensely" he said. "I will always support you, be there for you... and hold your notepad when you need to use the bathroom when we go out" you said, making him laugh. "I love you so much" he said and you pulled him closer. "Not as much as I love you my angel" you said softly, hugging for a bit. You sat up and got excited. "Oh my god, I can't wait until everyone hears it. I can't wait to hear the crowd sing the songs back to you! Oh my- I'm too excited now" you said, getting up and bringing the wine bottle over without glasses. You took a sip and gave it to him. "To you, Alexander. The love of my life and an absolute genius..." you said and he grinned, taking a sip.

Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino with Alex as the man on the moon... bound to be an amazing album. Dare you say... out of this world ❤️