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“Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that there’s a lot of inspiration out here.”
It was a bit of an escape hatch out of my original train of thought, but it was still true.
“Is this why you prefer riding a bus over a private jet while touring?” Thalia was still giving me that look, and it made me feel unsettled all over. I stood and started to pace, but stopped myself.
“As I said, private jets are bad for the environment and that’s a good enough reason. Now, you’re here as my studio assistant, not on a free tour of the western U.S., so let’s get to work.”
Thalia gave me one more long look and stood up to move toward the back of the bus and the small recording setup. I figured the whole area was about four steps, so there was really zero room between me and Thalia. Our process was a little clumsy at first, but not without its charm as I watched her stumble around.
“Sorry,” Thalia muttered as she connected different wires to the laptop based on the instructions Jackson had left. “I never actually thought professional musicians just used common things, like a laptop, to make their songs.”
She finally got Jackson’s track playing in my headphones. I tried to stop watching her and get into my zone.
“I wrote most of my third album here, you know. I know you weren’t a fan of it.” I quirked an eyebrow at her and she ducked down in a blush, remembering the day in my office. “But it was just this small space, drive-through coffee, and a show to perform in six hours with no sleep.”
“Doesn’t sound like a healthy way to live.” Thalia was matter-of-fact with no judgment. This close, I could see the small amount of freckles bursting across her face. It felt like we were just two old friends chatting. “You ready?” She pulled on her own pair of headphones and I nodded.
With a thumbs up, Thalia pressed play on the laptop, and the backing track filled the small recording booth.
“Oh, my days, they pass me by. Just me fleeting, inside your violet sky,”I began to sing, focusing intently on how I project the emotions into the words.“Oh, a thousand steps but you’re right here. My voice was screaming, but no one could hear.”
The instrumental of the song continued, and I hummed melodically to some parts for ad-libs. The song eventually faded out, and I was trying to gather how I felt about it, but I just couldn’t…put a finger on my thoughts.
"Any thoughts?” I asked Thalia, feeling completely lost.
Thalia removed her headphones, putting a finger to her soft-looking pink lips as she looked down at the ground.
“It’s interesting, I guess. There was a yearning there, and I think a lot of people could relate to the lyrics,” she commented, looking at me directly. I hadn’t noticed just how long and thick her lashes were before, how they perfectly framed her eyes.
“Was there a reason you wrote these particular lyrics? Is there a story behind them?”
Her question lingered in the small space between us as I continued to be taken in by the delicate features of her face.
But when I registered what she asked, I just shook my head, thinking about all the more truthful ways I could answer that question.
“I’m pretty sure people miss people every day. Wouldn’t you say so?”
A flicker of something flashed across Thalia’s face, her eyebrows pulling together as if she were holding on to an unpleasant memory. Missing her daughter maybe?
“I mean, yeah, sure, but – Whoa!” Thalia yelped as a sudden bump in the road shook the motorcoach. She clutched the laptop to her body as it almost bounced on the floor.
I stood there, unfazed, still used to the sudden movements, even after being grounded for a few months.
“You’ll get used to that,” I said as I walked away. “That’s it for today. I’m gonna get some rest. You should, too. Once we get to Phoenix, it’ll be chaos.”
“What? That’s it? We’re not gonna record again? We could work on it a little bit more. I mean, if you want to.”
There was a vulnerability in her eyes that made me pause. It made me want to scoop her in my arms and make her feel safe. I didn’t usually go for the sweet, girl-next-door type, but Thalia seemed to be an exception. The more time - real time that I spent with her, the more I felt myself getting swept up by her. And that was…terrifying.
I shook my head, trying to clear away the thoughts.
“I like your enthusiasm, but I’m just really tired.”
With that and a heroic effort, I left Thalia to her own devices and made my way to my small bedroom. There wasn’t really anything to it, just a bed and my own bathroom. It was enough for on-the-road, so I simply threw myself on the soft sheets and fell asleep immediately, dreaming about freckles and soft, pink lips.
When I woke up a few hours later, the sun was shining brightly across Phoenix.
I wasn’t sure if Thalia would be ready for this part or not. I walked out of my bedroom and into the lounge where Thalia was perched on a couch, looking out the window and at the imposing stadium we were driving up to. My gigantic face was plastered to the side, advertising the night’s show.
