Monarchy of Roses

Chapter 4

The first sound they heard when they got home the next morning where the cats as they meowed happily at their arrival. John laughed as he bent down and three cats meowed in delight and jumped atop him. "Girls, calm down", he laughed.

"The cats were fine yesterday, they had dinner and their water", said their housekeeper Mildred.

"Thanks, Mildred", said John as one of the cats, an orange tabby with green eyes, gave him a look. "Yes, Gabi. We are going to be away from you in two weeks", he said softly. Gabi just gave him a look and slinked off.

Nika laughed and watched as the other cats, Chiara and Bianca, snuggled up to her legs. Chiara was an elegant black tuxedo cat with vivid green eyes, her slim build and sharp eyes giving a look of hauteur. Bianca was her opposite, a fluffy Persian with a round face and bright blue eyes which always seemed to have a placid expression. She went upstairs to her room and unpacked her overnight bag and placed the clarinet case on top of her desk, heading downstairs just as John put a kettle on the stove. "I put in extra water, Josh just texted me saying he's on his way", said John.

Nika just nodded but her hands suddenly felt cold and clammy and her mouth went dry. "Uh, okay", she mumbled.

"He sent me a vid of the riff he came up with, it sounds amazing. I got a song idea that I think would go good with it, maybe add something else if it'll go with the song", said John eagerly.

Nika willed her face not to turn red when she knew Josh would be there very soon. There was a knock on the door and she watched the kettle with a laser intensity as a thin plume of smoke emerged from the spout. "Hey man, that was quick", said John, clapping the younger man on the back.

"I got lucky and didn't hit any traffic, rare as hen's teeth in LA", laughed Josh as he took off his black beanie and his floppy brown hair stuck out.

Nika nearly jumped when she heard the kettle whistle and poured the boiling water into three cups. Josh entered the kitchen and while his expression was neutral, his brown eyes showed interest as the gawky teen girl he'd remembered seemed to have turned into a very pretty young woman. "Hi Nika, your dad and I are going to work on some songs. We won't be too loud", he said.

Nika just nodded as she couldn't bring herself to talk, drying the inside of the kettle and placing it back on the shelf. She caught a glimpses of Josh out of the corner of her eye and was glad that her long curly hair hid her face. Josh was just as tall and slim as she had remembered and should have looked silly with his brown hair sticking out after removing his beanie and his baggy cargo pants topped by a Pink Floyd t-shirt one size too big, but she thought he looked hot and hoped he stayed down in the studio and didn't see her face.

Nika finished brewing her tea and went upstairs to her room carrying the mug. Bianca watched her with soft blue eyes and padded downstairs to get some food. She entered the room and set the mug down on a coaster on her desk before walking over to one of her bookshelves. The room's walls were painted lavender purple and three of the walls were lined with bookshelves, the exception being the wall where her daybed rested. The bed itself was topped with a puffy lavender and white quilt and matching pillows, neatly made just before she had left yesterday. She opened one of her CD wallets resting on a bookshelf above her oaken desk. With a frown, she closed it and opened up her clarinet case. She checked the reed and saw the edges were starting to fray, opening the desk drawer and taking out a box of reeds. With a critical eye, she deduced she could play the current reed for a few more days.

Just as she put away the box of reeds, her phone rang and she saw it was John's studio phone number. "Nika, we think the song could use a clarinet part. Could you come down to the studio?", he asked.

Nika drained her tea in two gulps before grabbing her clarinet and heading downstairs to his studio. "Josh, wait until you hear my daughter play clarinet", said John proudly.

Nika giggled nervously and her cheeks flamed bright red. "Oh, Dad", she mumbled.

"I'm not familiar with clarinet playing, but John thought that the song could use a touch of woodwinds", said Josh with a kind smile.

"Uh okay, can I hear the track?", she asked.

John nodded as he pressed a button on the recording console and music came over the speakers. Nika listened intently as the song played on the speakers, closing her eyes to shut out all distractions. The song was some type of rock judging from the guitars and drums, but it had a soft, almost hazy tone with the guitars playing muted in the background. Immediately, she knew what to play as she motioned for him to turn it off. "I'm going to get a spare reed, this one is starting to get ragged and it might squeak", she said.

Nika was so anxious to get her new reed that she didn't realize Josh had been watching her react to the music, his features calm but his brown eyes intense as gold highlights glowed in them. A few minutes later she came back holding the reed as she quickly and efficiently removed the old and replaced it. "I think with this song, I'm not going to blow as hard so the tone won't be so high-pitched. More like a hazy, more creamy tone which I think will suit the song", she said.

Nika checked the buttons and placed the tip of the mouthpiece against her lips before playing a few notes to test out the reed. The first few notes were higher pitched so she gentled the blowing on the mouthpiece and adjusted her fingers so more of the holes were covered, the sound more mellow and akin to a full-throated bird singing sadly. She nodded at John and played the song back as she started playing along to the track.

"Amazing! What do you think, Josh?", he asked.

"You're right, the clarinet part is perfect for the song. Play it again, and we'll add the best take to the song", said Josh.

Nika took a deep breath and John led her to the microphone and nodded in satisfaction before hitting Play and then Record. She played the clarinet part again but adjusted her tone to give it a more delicate, ethereal sound than previously. The men watched quietly as she played and then John stopped the recording. "That was great, that's the take I want", he declared.

"Really? But don't you want to do more takes?", she asked in confusion.

"Too many takes make the music sterile. With the band, I expect we're going to do a lot of takes. I prefer a more organic sound in my other music", replied John.

Nika sat on a stool in the corner and reached for John's well-worn copy of Siddhartha and began to read. The two men spent the next few hours rehearsing and recording songs as the music made for a pleasant background sound. "That's a wrap, I'll send you a copy of the song when I master it", said John.

"Okay, that's cool. I had no idea your daughter played clarinet", said Josh.

"Yeah, she started playing as a kid but she doesn't perform in public, she's very shy", said John.

"Not everyone is an extrovert, you and I are both introverted as hell offstage", Josh reminded him.

"Yeah, the stage is the one place where we can go crazy", agreed John.

Josh nodded in agreement as he picked up his guitar case and headed towards the door. John was already checking texts on his phone and Nika was still reading so neither of them saw the appraising look Josh gave her. Her curly dark brown hair provided a startling contrast to her milky pale skin which was emphasized by her dark blue jeans and plain black t-shirt, which fitted her slim build perfectly. Her head lifted up from her book and her eyes widened in surprise as a pink blush formed on her cheeks, her eyes turning a vivid purplish-blue. "Goodbye, Nika", he said before heading out the door.