Disclaimer: I own all the characters that aren't in Austin & Ally.
Songs: No One Like You – Barlow Girl, Better Together – Ross Lynch
Bandin' Together
Chapter 2
Austin POV
White Records Florida building was six stories high and painted a snowy color. It was clearly washed of muck often because it blindingly reflected the light. As one, my friends and I breathed out exclamations of surprise. We walked inside to find the lobby even more impressive and sparkling. There were sofas lining one wall, and televisions screens playing MVs on a continuous loop on the other. Trish sauntered up to the receptionist sitting behind a high desk and announced our arrival.
"Moon," she drawled, scanning her computer screen. "Here it is. Fourth floor, Conference Room B. Go on up."
"Thanks," Trish said, forcing a smile, which was wiped the second she turned around.
The elevator ride was relatively quick, and there was only one hallway when we got off, so finding Conference Room B was a cinch. Inside, we saw White talking with three other teenage boys, and Ally grew tense. I figured she just thought one of them was attractive. Good for her, I thought, then I took a closer look at them. All three had short, dark hair, but that was where the similarities ended. The tallest was wearing a leather jacket, ripped jeans, motorcycle boots, and what seemed to be an eternal scowl, though he eyed our little group with interest. Beside him, one of the other boy's was wearing something more normal: a light blue t-shirt, plaid dress shirt covering it, and Levi's. I hoped that he was the singer instead of the brooder. Farther away from those two, the last boy stood in a sweater vest and had a preppy haircut.
"Ah, Austin," White said, welcoming us into the room. "Let me introduce you to two of your band mates. This," he continued, motioning to Sweater Vest, "is Neil Battery."
"Nice to meet you," Neil replied in a thick Southern drawl. "I look forward to working with you."
"And this," White moved his arm to point at Leather Jacket, "is Beck Grayson, and his brother Kyle. Kyle is a songwriter and will be assisting Ally in her duties."
Kyle waved slightly. "Pleasure," he said, taking Ally's hand. "I look forward to working with you."
"M-m-me too," Ally stuttered, attempting to smile, but it didn't work out so well. She seemed a little more nervous than usual; though, she looked normal, thank goodness.
"Nice to meet you guys," I said, approaching Neil and Beck. Beck nodded in response, and Neil started talking non-stop. Couldn't understand a word he said though. His accent was too hard for me to decipher at the speed he was talking. On the plus side, Dez could understand every word, so they were able to have a lively conversation. I looked up and saw Ally sitting beside Kyle, scribbling away in her notebook, Trish was talking with White, probably trying to figure out what she'd be doing in this new situation, and Beck was still standing stoically. I noticed, however, that his gaze kept straying to his brother. Must be protective of him.
Eventually, a boy in baggy clothing, his blond hair hidden beneath a beanie, joined us. His name was Chase Conners, our last band mate. "Now that we're all here," Kyle cut in, before I could start a conversation with Chase. "We really need to know how you guys sound, both alone and together so that we can write the songs right the first time."
"All right," I smiled.
White had a keyboard, an acoustic guitar, and a small drum set brought in for us to use. "What? No bass?" Chase jibbed, which started the entire group on a course of laughter. It took a few minutes for us to calm down enough to concentrate.
Ally announced that we were going to use a song that she'd just written for herself because it was the only finished one they had between them, so I grabbed the guitar and took a seat beside her on the piano bench. This enabled me to see the music easily. Ally produced a second lyrics sheet for the other three to see. I scanned the words and found that I was semi grateful that she hadn't written it for me, though the message was good.
Kyle started in on the drums, and I took the first line. "You are more. Beautiful. Than anyone. Ever."
Neil jumped in and sang the next line. His voice was rougher than I expected it to be. "Every day. Feel the same. You never change. No never."
Chase took over, moving slightly to fit with the beat. "How could you be so good?" He skipped a few lines, but it worked anyway.
We all had to jump in for the chorus to sound right, though we weren't able to harmonize well. No matter, we'd get it next time. Beck took the first line of the second chorus begrudgingly. "Everywhere. You are there. Earth or air. Surrounding." He didn't seem to have much range, but it was hard to tell with this song. Most of it was pretty monotone anyway. In my opinion, a poor choice to judge our voices; I would have chosen something else.
And so it went. We sang the song one more time, perfecting our harmonization on it, then we sang one of my songs that Ally had on her at the time. Better Together. I really liked the message that it had, and all the chances to practice harmonizing again, so we split the song, just like before. This time, however, Chase started us off. "Sometimes, I get in my own way…"
And that's all for now folks. Let me know what you think the band should be called!
QOTD: What do you think of Austin's new band members?
Review!
-LeAcH