The Fall of the Fainthearts

Track Five: She's The Muse

Axel: I knew I had one night and I had to make it count. There was no room for being embarrassed or feeling defeated because time just wasn't on my side. The seconds were tick tick ticking away no matter how many of them I used worrying over not getting shit done, so I had to put something into action.

My last resort. I went back to the last place I remembered really feeling something. Kian, Flo, the old drunk bastard. It was a starting point. Well, it had to be, it was all I had. I figured that was better than having nothing.

Florence: I invited him in, not that I had much of a choice. Either I left him on the doorstep, or I offered him a drink. He really looked like he could use one, so I got him sat at the bar and poured him a double whiskey and coke. After making sure I reminded him that I wasn't technically on duty so I was actually being very polite, of course. He smiled at that.

Axel: It was embarrassing, actually, trying to explain that I was a songwriter who couldn't write a decent song to save my life. And the one time when it actually mattered, too. Especially after she'd gone through finding Kian's napkin in the first place and now had her heart set on us getting this big break.

I felt like I was letting her down, and it bothered me much more than it should've, considering she was a stranger. We'd really connected when we shared that moment in the bar. I thought so, anyway. She'd given me the chance at a new start and I didn't want to mess it all up. The pressure was definitely on.

Florence: When Axel told me that he was here to write a song, I was just ecstatic that they might get the deal after all. The weight had slowly crept back on my shoulders as I waited and waited for one of them to come back and tell me it had all fallen into place.

Now I had Axel sitting at my bar in the dead of night, totally exhausted and necking his drink, telling me none of his material was good enough. It seemed like the final piece to the puzzle in a strange way. I hadn't quite finished making things right, but I was going to make damn sure it worked out in the end. So, I flicked all the lights back on, grabbed a handful of napkins and a pen and sat them on the bar in front of him. He was going to write an amazing song and I was going to make sure of it.

Axel: "What do you want to write about?" She asked me. The first thing that popped into my head, honestly, was 'you'. But everyone knows that your first thought is a load of nonsense, it's the second thought is what counts. I didn't pay much attention to it.

I rubbed my eyes and thought hard. What would knock Kian's socks off? What would I be able to sing about with enough conviction that would really impress him? What was relatable and believable?

Florence: He took too long to answer me at first so I started throwing ideas out there as I poured myself a drink. I asked him about family, what about potentially living life on the road without them? What about leaving everything behind to start again? What about the determination that got him there?

He turned his nose up at all of these. Well, I know they were a bit cliché but I'm hardly a songwriter. So I took one last stab in the dark and asked, "Any old skeletons in your closet? Any old flames come back to haunt you?"

Axel: Old flames... When you really think about it, they're what make a good love song. Not the current, soppy love where you stare into each other's eyes and go on long walks and you're actually happy. No, it's that old, burning love, at it's bitter end. That's what makes a good record.

All the best love songs are about what never worked out. They're about the longing to change history, to turn the clocks back and make things right again with hindsight on your side. And while I definitely wasn't going to be running back to my past relationships any time soon, the idea sparked something in me. That note.