chrysalism. n.
the amniotic tranquility of being indoors during a thunderstorm, listening to waves of rain pattering against the roof like an argument upstairs, whose muffled words are unintelligible but whose crackling release of built-up tension...
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New York, New York. June 5th, 2017. Bucky Barnes' Kitchen. 3:45 PM.
"What do you mean, you know? What do you know?" Bucky interrogated his long-time friend who sat across the table from him.
"I just know, man. You know what I'm talking about and you just won't admit it," Steve smiled, folding his hands in front of him. He knew it would take some pushing to get Bucky to admit that he had a crush on Malone.
"I legitimately have no clue what you're talking about."
"Oh, come on. You've been listening to classic rock nonstop for the last week. It's so loud I can hear it upstairs," Steve said. "And it's not just any classic rock," he paused, "I hear Malone's voice."
"What? They're a good band, I can't listen to their music?"
"In 10th grade, you had a crush on a girl named Edith. She told you her favorite author was George Orwell. You read every book he ever wrote in the span of a week, Buck."
"I enjoy reading."
"No, you enjoyed her. You hated 1984, yet you read it 4 times."
"I'm still not seeing your point."
"My point is, you're doing the same thing with Malone. Except now you have the internet and you can just listen to her sing all the time," Steve explained, staring deep into his friend's face.
"Okay, so I like her voice," Bucky shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "So, what?"
"You like her, Buck."
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Stark Studios. 4:00 PM.
Malone stood in the recording booth, headphones on, staring down the microphone in front of her. Tony had hired a sound engineer, called Peaches, and he was in the studio today to try and record the first vocal track of the session. "Look, I'm telling you, I don't want this on the album."
"It won't be on the album, Malone. Just record it," Kenny argued.
"Why am I recording it if it's not going on the album?"
"Just a test run," Ryan smiled innocently at her. She rolled her eyes and nodded at Peaches, telling him to start the track. Sounds of piano and soft acoustic guitar filled her ears and she stepped towards the microphone, singing the lyrics she wrote for Bucky last week. The truth was, unbeknownst to Malone, Steve Rogers had asked for a recording of the song. Ryan got drunk one night and told Steve all about Malone's crush on Bucky and how she wrote a song for him. Steve loved the sentiment and asked Ryan to get him a recording of the song, so Bucky could hear it. Steve had no idea that Bucky had already heard the song. After the take, Malone looked back at her bandmates.
"You do realize we should be practicing our set for tonight, right?" She huffed. Stark had planned yet another party, but this one had a theme. The theme was 80's Night, and the band curated a set of strictly 80's music. It was full of hair metal, techno-based beats, and no shame. Ryan looked at Peaches, who gave him a hidden thumbs up, which meant the take was great and ready to be mixed into the song.
