Not So Picture Perfect

Chapter 18

Hayden's POV

Chase is staying with us, he's actually staying with us. I say over and over as I pace around my room. I don't know how i'm going to finish this song with him here. That was the whole point of 'isolation'.

It was supposed to be just me, and occasionally Shawn, no one else. My mind is in a million places, my stomach feels like a heard of elephants. This is not good. Not good at all. 

How can I write the bridge with this distraction, with all of these thoughts pulsing in my brain? I want to talk to Shawn about it, but i'm scared of what he'll tell me. He's told me before not to write about something personal when you're under a time crunch. It's too much pressure. 

"Come up with a story, put yourself in the eyes of one of the characters. But make their story memorable, make it mean something", that's what he told me on the first day he let me into this beautiful little studio on the top of this beautiful hill, with this beautiful view. 

I chose not to take his advice at first though. Why?, I'm not entirely sure. Maybe I just thought that I could beat this pressure, pretty stupid of me I know. 

Shawn looked uncomfortable when Chase basically said he was staying for my last night of writing. I know he wasn't expecting it. 

I wasn't even expecting it, thats the weird part. And you'd think i'd be happy that my boyfriend was staying with me during one of the most stressful times of my life, but oddly enough, i'm just not. 

My stress level is through the roof, all that's left is the bridge of the song, the first two verses and the chorus are done, I have twenty four hours to finish writing and to record a demo. 

After breakfast with Shawn and Chase I walked straight into the studio and locked the door. 

I like playing with beats and chords but I know that's not what I need to be doing, I only have one line of the bridge done. Three more to go.

A quiet knock interrupts my, nothing really, I'm just kinda sitting here in the quiet. 

"Come in", I say absentmindedly

"Uh, Hayden. It's locked.", Shawn says with a chuckle.

I sigh, my cheeks going red even though I know he can't see me. 

"Oops, I'm sorry", I reply, getting up to unlock the door for him. 

"It's already three, and you haven't eaten anything except half of a donut all day"

I look up at him, into those eyes that I love and I smile. 

"Is it really?"

He nod's and passes me a In-N-Out bag and a banana. 

"Thank's for taking care of me Mendes", I say.

"Anytime Miss, March", he says back.

"So how's the bridge coming along?", He asks. 

I bite my lip and spin around in the chair, that i've been sitting in.

"Well, I have one line done", I reply cringing. 

"Out of?"

"Four"

He sighs, "Hayden, our meeting is at noon tomorrow"

"I know, I know. I can make this work", I reply trying to swallow the growing lump in my throat. Never in my life, would I have thought that his disappointment in me would hurt so much.

"Do you want some help?", he asks

I shake my head immediately. 

"Is this because Chase is here, because that's totally my fault", he says quickly.