I woke up in the morning around nine, feeling completly beat from work yesterday, but I was ready to do this. Cole and Sophie were gone when I woke up, and I kicked Dalton awake before I hopped into the shower. When I got out, I dressed in a pair of skinny jeans and my IM5 t-shirt, along with Cole's blazer. I slid my combat boots on and zipped them up before I put on my beanie and went into the kitchen. Gabe and Will had gone home already, and Dana confirmed that he had dropped Kylie off at school this morning. Dalton, Sophie, and Cole were making pancakes while Dana played video games. I couldn't help but pick on him. "Are you every going to go home?" He paused his game long enough to turn around and stuck his tongue out at me.
Sophie fixed me a cup of coffee and set a few pieces of bacon in front of me. While I sipped, my maternal instincts kicked in. "Don't forget that you have to be at the studio by one. Cole, the trash needs to go out if you can." The three boys nodded and I glanced at the clock. "You coming with me today, Soph?" The girl nodded and set her plate in the sink while I gave Cole a peck on the lips. "Thank you, Cole, for all of your help." He smiled and gave me a squeeze.
"It's not a problem at all, babe. Now go kill that recording session." He gave me another quick kiss, then Sophie and I were out of the door and into the car.
"So, you and Cole are back together?" She waited to speak until we were in the elevator, on our way to the floor with my recording studio.
"Yeah." I shifted under her gaze. "I really missed him, so I gave him a second chance. I already threatened to feed him to your brother if he fucks up this time." Sophie had to laugh at that as we got off of the elevator. We found the door that said 'XIX Records' and grinned as we pished it open.
Eben was already there, along with some guy I didn't recognize. "Charlie! Right on time!" Eben greeted Sophie and I with hugs, before he introduced us to my new producer. "Girls, this is Derrick. He's been with XIX longer than I have, and he really knows his stuff."
Derrick stood and shook my head, nodding a greeting to Sophie. "Eben sent me your list. We have all of the tracks ready for you. Let's see what you can do, yeah?" I nodded and went back into the booth, picking up the headphones to fit them over my ears. There were sheets in front of me, just in case of lyrical mishap. "The sheets are all in order, so just let me know when you're ready." I gave a nod, shook out my nerves, and gave him a thumbs up.
The mysic for 'Still Into You' filled my ears, and I lost myself in the music, which had been adjusted and tweaked to fit my voice and style. I waited patiently for my cue, then sang my little heart out. As soon as the song ended, I looked through the glass at everyone. Eben and Sophie gave me a thumbs up, but Derrick looked stoic, until he pressed the intercom button. "Eben was right. You're amazing. Let's run it again, watch your pitch at the chorus." I couldn't help but smile. I centered myself once again and gave the thumbs up.
Three hours later, we had the rough cut of all five songs. Derrick was impressed that we didn't have to do countless takes for each song. He informed me that the EP would be finished by the end of the week, and I was more than a little excited. My music would be sold in stores and online, I was in heaven. After signing all of the legal documents, I was officially signed to XIX records. With the recording and legal work done, we were onto the next order of business. Derrick had lined up multiple musicians from all over L.A. I got to form my band.
That process took another two hours or so. When we were finished, I had a full band. Alec and Kellan, lead and backup guitar. Bella, the bassist, and Danny, the drummer. We were a crazy bunch, but we fit well together. We all had the same style, attitude, and sense of humor, not to mention or passion for music. During my writing session, I got to know everyone a little bit better. Yes, we were going to get along just fine.
The boys came in around five, and we ended up goofing around until Dana went to pick up Kylie from work. I took that time to take everyone but Cole back home. Since they thought my recording would take a full week, I was free to work more hours at the bakery. At least until my show on Thursday. As soon as we dropped off Sophie and Dalton, Cole and I swung by the bakery to tell Ava. She was overjoyed. They were getting crazy, and needed the extra hands. She was a bit dissapointed that Cole wouldn't be able to join me all week, since the boys had a brutal rehearsal schedule, not to mention planning. The boys were performing in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York next month, so they had to be ready and at the top of their game.
We talked for a few more minutes before we headed home. Before we even opened the door, we could smell the pizza. I was expecting to see Kylie and Dana pigging out and watching a movie, not what I walked in on. There were boxes stacked in a barren corner of the apartment, an air mattress blown up and made in front of the couch. Also, there was a third person in my kitchen, one I knew all too well. "Clover! You're like...Two weeks early!" I screamed and ran to here, clinging tightly.
"I know! I got everything set in a few days!" We laughed for a moment before she asked another question. "So, what's this I hear about a house?" I gave a huge grin before I turned to Cole.
"Babe, call the realtor. Set up a tour for tomorrow. I'll call Ava when you're done." Cole got right to it, and I turned back to my sister. "I got a job in a bakery at CityWalk, by the way. Ava's looking for more street runners if you want a job right off the bat. And before you ask, that means you go up and down CityWalk with samples and fliers." She considered it for a moment before she nodded. She couldn't pass up an opporunity like that.
"Alright. We have a meeting at the house at 5. Kylie, call your boss, see if you can get off early tomorrow night." Kylie nodded, and I couldn't help but smile. He was just a kid, but Cole was already starting to act like the father figure in our crazy little family. Kylie got right on the phone, and I got on mine, calling up Ava.
"Okay. Clover, she wants you in tomorrow. Cole, she wants you for night runs tomorrow after the tour and rehearsal. Oh, and Clover, she's going to be training you for the front for the night shift. We'll get our schedules for the week when we get there." Finally, everyone was all set. We sat down at the island and munched on our pizza while we caught up with Clover and gushed about the new house.
Everyone went to sleep fairly early that night. Tomorrow would be one hell of a day.
----------
Oh look! Another update! This one was a little crazy. I promise I'll try to make them better. I REALLY would like your feedback. Give me suggestions, tell me what I can go differently. It would mean so much to me.
<3 Charlie <3
