The Paladin VS The Pixie

PMM: So do you think now that you've joined Eleven.

MW: Who says I joined? They asked me to play in some sessions for their third album, and they paid me for them.

PMM: But you are on stage with them?

MW: Well, yes, until they can find someone my age to play the guitar parts I recorded.

PMM: [ during this interview El Hopper spent most of her time looking at her knees or the floor]

- Pop Music Magazine

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The look on El's face belied the sting of tears she felt. She'd never been talked to that way before. Most guys thought they were Romeo's and that she'd fall for them instantly. They were not prepared for her personality. She was frustrated. She was glad she told him to go screw himself. Served him right.

Mike seemed to be different. Not only did he not know who she was, it sounded like he didn't care who she was.

She didn't know what to think. How dare he. She was El Hopper!

She turned around an stomped back to her house and to her room.

She called Max right way.

"I hate him!"

"Hate who?" Max asked, there was concern in her voice and that's what El was looking for.

"Mike."

"Who's Mike?"

"The boy next door I told you about yesterday."

"The banjo-nose-picker? Isn't that the same guy that you called an idiot… to his face. And then I believe that was followed by a 'screw you'? That guy?"

El burst into tears.

"El what's wrong?"

"He doesn't like me. He basically told me I was ugly on the inside." El sniffed.

Max was silent.

"You're not saying anything Max, do you think he's right?" El had her second shock of the day.

"El… I'm going to tell you this as your best friend because you won't hear it from anyone else. You have a bad temper. And you have temper tantrums. Bad ones. And an abrasive personality."

El was quiet. "Why are you still my best friend if I'm such a bitch?"

"Because I know this isn't you El. This business has changed you. I don't want to say it's gone to your head, but that's what it looks like to everyone else."

"That doesn't give Mike any right to say I'm ugly."

"What? He said your ugly?"

"Well, no, he actually said I was really pretty," El felt an inner glow when she said that.

"But he said I wasn't so pretty on the inside. Those were his words."

"Did you apologize to him?"

"For what!"

"El, for calling him an idiot and telling him to screw off."

"Oh," El said in a small voice. "No, I didn't."

"Uh, El, wait a minute. You aren't falling for this guy are you? You won't see him at all when we start to record the next album t and we are touring again. Anyway, he may not even be interested in an apology. He'll be too mad. You hurt his feelings El. That's also not you."

"I know," El said, sullen.

She didn't want to talk about Mike anymore.

"So have you seen the latest Tiger Beat article about me? They keep calling my band 'Eleven' they don't use the numbers at all."

Max was silent.

"Max?"

"I'm here." She'd known Max long enough to know that she wasn't happy about something El said, but El didn't know what it was.

"Just correct them next time they ask for an interview."

"I"m not cutting my hair again until the next tour."

"Gonna go all hippie again. It's a cute hairstyle, I've always liked it on you."

"Maybe Mike will too?"

"El, at some point we need to talk about the songs for the new album. I know you don't like my songs, but we need to think about maybe adding another instrument… or expanding our style."

El did not want to talk about this. She wanted to go over to Mike's. She didn't have to wait for him to sit on the lawn with his guitar. She could knock on his door. But then if he yelled at her, it would be in front of his family.

She didn't want them to think she was not so pretty on the inside.

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For those of you living under a rock, 11 has now recorded three albums. The first was 011, and has the distinction of having every one of the ten songs on the album released as singles. The band became rich and famous overnight. The second album is called Hiding In Plain Sight. It only had three singles released off of it, but the album sold ten times the number of copies as the first album. But 11 is back on top with the release of their third album, Not So Pretty with the title track in the charts for a few weeks, and no signs of slowing down. As with all the 11 albums, the cover features a headshot of El Hopper but this time she is sporting a pixie cut that is a visual contrast to the song. El Hopper is a stunning young woman. The fan club is already rabid with the rumour that the song is an apology to Mike Wheeler, about an incident that the two still decline to comment on.

- Pop Music Magazine

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She looked out her window and saw Mike playing guitar in front of a little blonde girl, she was giggling and clapping her hands. A woman, probably Mike's mother opened the front door and called to them. The little girl kissed Mike on the cheek, and ran off to go inside.

He had a beautiful smile going that promptly disappeared when she walked up to him . He got up and turned around to leave.

"Don't you walk away from me!" She almost screeched she was so mad at him.

Mike turned back around and said ,"I'm sorry, I forgot you were," he put an index finger to his chin and pretended to be thinking… "don't tell me…. Hmmm, oh! The El Hopper."

El would never admit that when he said her name that way she felt the sting. She remembered her conversation with Max and tried to hold her temper and calm herself down. Mike would never need to know about her ability. Unfortunately that made her next question sound sarcastic.

"Do you even have a radio?"

He gave her a deadpan look.

"Why yes I do, the El Hopper. And we have electricity, and indoor plumbing and everything. I mean our toilet probably doesn't flush as good as the legend El Hopper's does. But, it does what it's supposed to."

His use of her name like that stung again. She flinched each time he said her name.

He walked away.

She couldn't help it and she hung her head. And then the tears started. She covered her face with her hands.

Soon after the heavier sobs started she felt a presence in front of her.

"Uh, listen, I'm sorry. Um, I didn't mean to make you cry."

That made her cry harder, and then she felt his arms around her. "Please don't cry. I'm sorry. You haven't been easy to talk to."

She looked up at him as he stepped back, he continued, "People won't like you or love you for what you do, well, maybe the shallow ones will. They will love you for what's in here."

He gently tapped on her heart.

"Pretty inside?" She gave him a small smile.

"That's what you want to be. Not what anybody says you need to be…. I have to go for dinner, I'll see you later… ok?"

But she never did see Mike later, that night she got a call from the recording studio to confirm booking a session.

And El Hopper had to be come the El Hopper again… but... she didn't want to be.

El's hair grew quickly. She thought that maybe she wouldn't cut it for the new album. She liked the pixie cut. It made her feel… prettier. On the outside anyway. She wanted to be that way on the inside… and she wanted Mike to know she was.

She hadn't seen him for a few weeks, and she knew that soon he'd be starting regular school, and she'd start with a tutor in the studio where they were still recording the new album...

The new album wasn't going well. Dustin and Max, and even their producer kept saying the songs were "missing something". Max had been thrilled when El asked if they could record one of the classically influenced songs that Max had written. But something was still missing.

The three of them sat around a small table. They had loose paper with lyrics scattered all over it.

"I can change my style of playing?" Dustin offered.

"It's not that, Dustin," El said.

"You know what it is don't you?" Max asked.

"Yeah, it's guitar. We need a guitar track."

"And you have an idea who to ask don't you?" Max winked at her.

"If he'll still talk to me, yeah."

"Ok, let's take a break for a week." Dustin said.

"El, you know this is a big step for you right?" Max said.

"Yes, and it scares me to death. I have to make a decision that will change our sound and could ruin our act."

What really scared El was that Mike wasn't interested, or would just say no outright… or… or… he just didn't like her music… no she corrected herself, I mean our music.

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PMM: Sorry to hear that you suffered a personal loss Mike, do you think that will make it into the music? What about you, El?

MW: [he is looking down, doesn't answer]

EH: I won't put words in his mouth [she looks over at Mike, there is love there, fans!] but Mike is free to express himself in our music. I would never want him to suppress the way he felt.

MW: [is still looking down, but nodding his thanks]

- Pop Music Magazine