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/ December, 2017 /
Life, it seemed, had picked up in the way that fallen leaves are swept into a gust of wind and carried in a frenzy down the sidewalk. Greta Van Fleet had released another EP, joined with their first, and the music was catching like a wildfire. Jake and the others were constantly on the road with barely enough time to think, let alone rest, and when they did have down time, they were spending it working on writing their first full album. Avery had been spun into a frenzy of her own, it seemed. "Arizona" was being streamed as a single like crazy and getting just as much radio airtime, which had brought a certain light down on Avery, albeit still fairly faint. Greta Van Fleet's label's interest peaked when they picked up on how much fans loved the collaboration, but any further work together with the guys had fizzled away in the sea of touring. Instead, the label set up a short-term contract to record an EP, finagled a band of misfits to back Avery up in the studio, and was pressing her to write more songs like "Arizona" before the New Year. She was stressed, to say the least, but buzzing with excitement that her music career seemed like it might be starting up. She and Jake hardly saw each other while he was on the road, but they texted every single day, and tried to talk on the phone when they could. Avery always felt like she had so much to tell him, and Jake always felt like he had so much to update her on. They had become somewhat impossibly inseparable though they were rarely even in the same state. Neither of them ever spoke about the moment they shared before that very first show together, and neither of them ever stopped thinking about it. It was like a ghost that hung between the two of them, and everyone around them could feel it too, in some way or another. At times, it drove Josh crazy that Jake was so insistent on keeping up with Avery, mostly because it seemed to distract him often. Usually, however, he and the other guys were happy to hear her voice through Jake's speakerphone, and Josh had grown rather fond of the girl too. Alex was just happy that Avery had a friend... a real, genuine friend who seemed to care about her and her dreams. That's all Alex had ever wanted for his twin, and she was finally getting to chase those dreams because of Jake.
Michigan was chilled to the bone at that time of year, though not nearly as brutal as it would get come January and February. Avery was bouncing her right knee up and down as she sat in the passenger seat of Alex's car. She was wearing a pair of leggings with an oversized knit sweater that she had stuffed her fists into the sleeves of to keep herself from biting her nails in anticipation. They were on the way to Frankenmuth. The guys were finally home for Christmas, and Jake had immediately texted Avery and invited she and Alex to their house for the weekend. She was anxious to get there, the car ride seemed like hours more than it really had been, and Alex was driving her crazy with questions. He had become a huge help in managing Avery's music schedule, but all of the practical talk got boring after a while for Avery.
"When we get back to the city, you have to be at the studio at eight Monday morning to meet with the band and show them what you have so far... Ave..." Alex kept glancing sideways at his sister who was barely paying attention. Her head snapped towards him at the sound of her name.
