Chapter 2: The Song that Everyone Sings
Tomorrow I'll be quicker
I'll stare into the strobe light flicker
And afloat I'll stay
But I'm quite alright hiding today
Hiding Tonight by Alex Turner
Unpacking.
Rosie hated this technicality of moving the most; especially when it came to her recording equipment and instruments. It took her three hours the next morning to set it all up.
"Wow, that's a lot of stuff," Carol told her from her bedroom doorframe.
"I've always had this much equipment, Mom," Rosie reminded her as she tuned her guitar. "It was all in my closet last time. I had a bigger closet in Portland."
"Speaking of which, do you think you could find a different space to set this all up?"
Rosie immediately glanced up from the instrument. Her heart fell. "What do you mean?"
Carol shrugged. "It might be kind of loud if you record up here."
"I'm in the attic," Rosie told her nervously, hoping upon hoping that she wouldn't have to disassemble her hard work. "Your room is on the ground floor."
"Right, but Will's is just below yours. He's going to need his sleep when basketball starts and with all your racket up here…" Carol replied quickly.
Rosie sighed. "Mom, I promise I'll record quietly and…and I'll set a music curfew! No singing or playing after ten!"
Carol crossed her arms. "That just won't work. You'll have to find another space. Clean this up."
"But, Mom, please -;"
"No buts. Just do it."
"Mom this is really unreasonable."
Her mother scoffed. "Unreasonable? It's unreasonable for your younger brother to get a good night's rest?"
"No, it's unreasonable for you to ask me to move my recording stuff after three hours of setting it up and making sure I have the acoustics right and – come on, Mom. You can't be serious?" Rosie defended herself.
"I am totally and completely serious, Rosemary," said Carol firmly. "And don't question my logic. I am your mother, and I know what's best for your brother and for you. Now find a place for your junk, okay?"
And before Rosie could get another word in edgewise, Carol stomped down the stairs, her tiny espresso shot coffee dangerously close to spilling.
Rosie carefully set down her guitar and groaned. She dreaded having to pack everything back up and find a place somewhere in their house to record. And to set it all back up again?
She grabbed a throw pillow and screamed into the soft cushiness. Her family was so inconsiderate sometimes, it hurt.
But she did as her mother asked, even if she was bitter about it.
It took her another three hours to put everything back into their boxes and cases.
She was standing there, wondering how and where she would record her covers and original songs. She had been pushing back a cover of Green Light by Lorde for at least a month and was itching to get her voice out there on SoundCloud again.
She heard her text ringtone go off on her nightstand.
Her eyebrows scrunched. She didn't recognize the number.
Hey, Rosie! It's Archie. I have a few song ideas but need some help with lyrics. Are you interested?
She grinned and immediately typed a message back.
Hi! Yeah, of course! I'm always up for helping with lyrics. When do you want to meet up?
Archie's response was instantaneous.
Awesome! :) Does tonight work? Around 7?
Rosie glanced at the time on her phone. It was already three. She looked down in dismay at her boxes of equipment and her cases of instruments. She had time to find at least a temporary home for them until then.
Yeah, 7 works! Where at?
Archie didn't reply for a minute or two.
We can meet at my place if you want. I've got pretty basic recording stuff if we need it.
Rosie's eyebrows raised in optimism.
I've got some really dependable equipment, but I've got nowhere to set up. If I find a place within the next four hours, then we could get your song recorded and partly produced. But my parents don't want my "junk" here.
The ginger replied immediately.
I've got an empty garage that's never used. If you wanted, we could set up there. You'd be able to use it whenever.
Rosie smiled widely.
That would be spectacular! Is that okay?
Well, yeah! I'll come pick you up in my dad's truck and we can get everything loaded and set up tonight!
You are the best! Seriously – I can't thank you enough. This means so much. :D
Hey, I've got your back. What are friends for?
Rosie adjusted her glasses and grinned.
Yes, yes, yes! she thought, elated.
She instantly started carrying everything downstairs, stacking it up on the front lawn near the driveway for easy pickup truck access.
Will was outside playing basketball the entire time, not once offering to assist his older sister with the heavy gear.
"What is all that crap?" he questioned her as she lugged the last box down the front porch steps.
"Recording equipment," she replied, voice strained.
She finally set it on the pavement and shoved it over to the driveway. "I'm keeping my guitar and ukulele here, but I'm sending my piano with Archie."
Will rolled his eyes. "That redhaired guy from dad's work?"
"Archie Andrews? Yeah," nodded Rosie.
"And why are you sending your piano with him?"
"He's got space for my recording stuff in his garage, so I'm going to set it up there. Mom doesn't want it in the house," she relayed. "Archie's into writing music, too, so I thought it was the perfect fit."
"Dang right it shouldn't be in the house. You sound like a dying raccoon when you record. Your stuff is so…sad," Will sneered.
"The word is melancholy, Dumbo," Rosie retorted. "And if you think I sound like a dying raccoon, then you obviously haven't heard your own voice before. You have the most annoying speaking voice in the entire world."
"You're lying," Will sniped.
"You wish I was lying," snapped Rosie. "At least I'm not trying to kiss the upper classmen's asses. I saw what you were attempting to do with Archie last night. You really are desperate to be cool, aren't you? Well here's the reality, William – being cool doesn't get you a career after high school."
"It's called being ambitious, Rosemary. You don't know crap about ambition. Can you even spell it?"
Rosie scowled. "Hey, leave my average English skills out of this!"
"Oh, I'm sorry, am I offending you?" mocked Will. "Can you spell onomatopoeia?"
"Can you find the square root of 75?" she shot back.
Will went silent, his eyes shooting daggers into her face. Rosie softened slightly. He was her brother, after all, and he was family. She felt slightly guilty for arguing over nothing. She sighed.
"Someday, you'll learn that what Mom and Dad praise you for won't get you anywhere, Will. Basketball is great, sure, but it doesn't last forever. Neither do four-point-ohs. Someday, you'll come to a crossroads in your life and you won't have anyone there to help you. I want to be there to help you. Please – I'm asking you now – drop the 'I'm better than you' act. We can be friends. I'll be there to help you when you get to that crossroads," she told him.
Will's facial expression changed immediately. Instead of getting mad or walking away, Will began to laugh. He sputtered and guffawed, almost rolling on the ground.
Rosie stood there, face blank. She had wanted him to soak it in – to at least consider what she was saying. He was her little brother. Wasn't she supposed to help him? To give him advice? The fact that he was basically throwing what she said back in her face like it was a joke hurt her. Her throat ached, as if tears were on their way.
Instead of letting him catch his breath to say something even more cruel, Rosie quickly walked back into the house. She left Will, still giggling, in the front yard.
She tore through the house, ignoring her mom (who just ignored her back, as usual). She stomped up to her new bedroom in the attic, slamming the door behind her.
She was always honest with people, but was more hesitant with her brother. Will had been put first by her parents ever since he was born, and Rosie was just about sick of them constantly raising him on the highest pedestal. Will's needs came before hers – always. True, he got more attention from others because of his handsome features, his athleticism, and success in academics, but that didn't mean Rosie wasn't unattractive, untalented, and ignorant…did it?
Rosie sunk down to the floor, grabbing her phone. She didn't want to be in her new house at that moment. She needed to play music and the only place she could do that was Archie Andrews' garage.
She checked the time. It was just after five. Archie would be done helping out his dad at the construction site by then. She only hoped he would be willing to hang out two hours earlier than planned.
She dialed his number and he answered.
"What's up, Rosie?" he greeted, seemingly slightly confused. "Is everything okay?"
Rosie sniffled. "Uh…that's a good question." She cleared her throat. "Hey, how would you feel moving the jam session up a couple hours to now? I just – my mom decided that I had to get my stuff out of the house and it's all just kind of…sitting in my driveway. You're done working, right?"
"Yeah, I'll head over now," he replied cheerily. She heard him call out to Mr. Andrews. "I'm going to pick up Rosie, Dad!" He addressed her once again. "What's your address?"
She told him where her new house was, then quickly hung up, snagged her ukulele and guitar, and rushed back downstairs to the front to wait for Archie.
Will was still outside playing basketball.
"Are you going to Archie's now?" he asked, almost as if he was genuinely curious.
Rosie did not feel like being civil in the slightest, but she managed to speak one whole sentence to her brother without going ham on his head with her guitar.
"Yep, just taking my recording equipment over, like I told you earlier."
Will did not engage again, thanks to Rosie's luck. However, her luck seemed to get even better when Archie pulled into their driveway not two minutes later.
He hopped out of the truck and shot her a smile. "Hey!" His eyes flickered down to the boxes, instrument cases, and bags. "Whoa."
Rosie shrugged. "I said it was a lot."
"And you weren't lying," chuckled Archie. "Let me open up the back and we can load it up."
"Sure," she smiled.
Archie grinned back and walked around to the back of the vehicle, pulling down on the end of his truck bed. He locked it in place as Rosie began to pick up her equipment.
"So what's in all these?" he wondered as he took the box from her.
"I have two microphones, a couple amps, a switchboard for adjusting levels and such while recording, my laptop that's only got programs for recording and producing, a few pairs of headphones, my piano that is in several pieces at the moment, an electric drum kit, a Cajón, my guitar, my ukulele, and my guitar pedal. And lots of extra cords and wires for connecting things," she relayed.
Archie's thick, ginger eyebrows shot up. "And you paid for everything?"
"I've collected it up over the years from garage sales, vintage stores, craigslist, those kind of places," she nodded as they moved more things into his truck.
"Dude, you're ripped!"
Rosie stopped in her tracks and turned to her brother, a mystified expression on her face.
"What kind of comment is that?" she asked, puzzled.
"He's fine" Archie told her politely. He turned to Will. "Thanks, bro."
"How did you do that? Weightlifting?" Will continued in shock.
Archie chuckled slightly. "I've been working with my dad all summer at the construction sites."
"Dude, I should do that next summer," Will replied. "I'll get huge!"
"No you won't, Will," Rosie cut in. "The boys in our family aren't built like Archie, and that includes you. Trust me, I don't know if you remember, but Dad tried that when we were little and it just didn't work for him."
"Shut up, Rosie," Will countered snidely. "You don't know what you're talking about."
"Wait a second," Archie interrupted. "Dude, calm down. She's just making a comment about genetics. Every family is different. She's not attacking you."
"You don't understand," the younger boy shook his head. "She's always saying this kind of stuff to me."
"You mean the truth?" Rosie laughed darkly. "Sorry my honesty is such a burden on you."
Archie held up his hands in surrender. "Remind me to not get you mad."
"No, when I get truly angry, I can't speak," she replied.
"You can't talk?"
"I just end up sputtering and making angry noises."
"It's hilarious," Will interpolated.
Rosie just shook her head as she loaded the last box.
Archie could tell Will was not the nicest brother, nor was he fond of Rosie. Rosie seemed to do her best to get along, but Will really baited her. He knew how to push her buttons and he did it well. He was a jerk.
"Let's go," Archie announced, slamming the bed of the truck shut.
"Sounds good to me," Rosie cheered.
Will ignored them as they left.
Rosie sighed as Archie halted the truck at a stop sign.
"Are you okay?" he asked, concerned.
Rosie shook it off. "Yeah. I'll be fine."
"Does that happen a lot?" the redhead inquired.
"My brother making a complete ass of himself? Yeah."
Archie smiled. "I meant your brother picking on you."
"More than it should, but that's what brothers do," Rosie told him. "They're brats."
Rosie stared out the window. Archie glanced over at her, eyebrows raised and mouth set in a firm straight line. He wasn't convinced, but he wasn't going to say so.
His mind had been racing a lot lately. Geraldine Grundy filled his thoughts most of the time. He knew it wasn't healthy to think of a teacher in such a way, but after the previous summer's escapades, he couldn't help it. He hoped that spending time with Rosie writing music would distract him. A new girl in Riverdale would get the school talking about something else other than Jason Blossom's unfortunate death. Betty had even told him a girl from New York was going to be at Riverdale High this next week when school started, and two new girls in Riverdale was practically a record, especially when one new girl had a younger brother who was, obviously, going to play a large part in the sports community.
"What do you want to get started on?" she asked excitedly.
Rosie stood admiring her new setup in the Andrews' garage. Archie walked up and stopped next to her, crossing his arms. His eyes scanned the equipment, then he turned to his new friend.
"I have this song I've been working on, but I need another set of ears. You know, lyric-wise," he replied.
Rosie nodded. "I'd love to hear it."
Archie smiled slightly and went to exit the garage. "Let me grab my guitar!"
"Alright."
She went over to her laptop, which was resting on the keyboard, and sat down on a stool in front of it. If Archie wanted to record the song, then she needed to get the systems up and running so that they didn't have to wait for them to warm up.
Archie scurried back into the garage, carefully shutting the door behind him.
He pulled up another chair and sat down in front of her, tuning his guitar. "I hope you like it."
"I hope I do, too," she said. "What's it called?"
"The Song that Everyone Sings," he answered. "It's about -;"
Rosie stopped him. "No, don't tell me!"
Archie gave her a baffled look.
"I want to understand it as you sing," she explained. "I want to listen as if it's my first time hearing it on the radio."
"Oh, sure, that's cool," Archie nodded. "I like it."
Rosie wasn't sure what kind of sounds to expect from her new friend, but she waited in anticipation. She was afraid he would be awful. But then he started picking the strings. He wasn't lying when said he'd been playing for a few years.
And then he started singing.
"Tales of the old, of the secrets we hold.
I want to be well.
I'm lucky to even feel love at all."
Rosie grinned. He was amazing – singing, guitar playing, and songwriting skills in all.
He started strumming the acoustic guitar instead of picking the strings.
"Words run like a race
And maybe I spoke too late.
You try and erase
Every memory, every shape.
But time holds them in place.
Tales of the old, of the secrets we hold.
I want to be well.
And maybe I'll never feel love at all.
It's the song that everyone sings.
It's the song that everyone sings.
It's the song that everyone sings."
Rosie felt her breath catch in her throat as he transitioned from the chorus to the bridge. His voice was absolutely incredible and the lyrics were spectacular.
"Where have I gone?
And where have you gone?
Take me back to summertime –
Endless love and endless wine.
I want you.
Take me back to summertime –
Endless love and endless wine.
I want you."
Rosie clapped and cheered as he finished. Archie just laughed.
"Was it okay?" he questioned nervously.
Rosie's jaw dropped. "You gave me chills, Archie. Honestly, that was amazing! It was so honest and – and I loved what you were saying in the song."
The redhead grinned widely. "Is it ready to record?"
The girl nodded vigorously. "Uh, yeah. Without a doubt!"
"Awesome!" Archie exclaimed. "What do we do first?"
Rosie pointed to his instrument. "Guitar." She spun around in her seat. "I'll create a blank track and the first layer will be your chords. Do you have the order of switching back from picking to strumming the way you want?"
"Yeah," Archie replied. "Where do you want me to sit?"
Rosie stood from her laptop. "Stay right there. Let me get that mic."
She moved the equipment over and grabbed two pairs of headphones, then took out her phone. "Okay – here's what we have to do. You have to follow a metronome just for technical purposes, so that you can play in a steady rhythm. You know – no drums yet. Don't sing yet, because it's important you focus on playing guitar for now."
She plugged a set of headphones into her phone and gave it to Archie.
"This feels so official," he joked as he stuck the earbuds in and started the metronome.
"It's not, trust me," she giggled. "This is anything but." She hit a few buttons on the keyboard. "Okay, I've already set it to the time signature you played your song at, so all you have to do is press that one – yeah, that one there – and the beat will start. I'll point to you when I start recording and you just go for it, okay?"
Archie nodded.
Rosie started the program, then gestured to the ginger.
They recorded the guitar part two times all the way through and then chose which one sounded the best. Then, it was time for Archie's vocals.
"…take me back to summertime –
Endless love and endless wine.
I want you."
Rosie and Archie sat listening to the song – on the computer. It was fully produced and finished.
Rosie had done some piano for the song, some rhythm, and layered some electronic bass over a few parts of the song. Archie wanted to do some extra harmonies over certain parts of the song, and Rosie even helped with a couple background vocal parts.
As the song ended, Rosie smiled hopefully. "What do you think, Arch?"
Archie's mouth slowly grew into a smile as his eyes flickered from the laptop to Rosie.
"I…I can't believe that those lyrics came from my head, that's what I think," he laughed. "I can't believe that it's actually my song that's playing. I mean, this is crazy!"
Rosie laughed. "It's pretty cool to hear, isn't it?"
"It's awesome!" he agreed, "And you did such a good job producing it. Thank you so much, Rosie, for letting me use your recording stuff."
"Thanks for letting me house it here in your garage," she replied quickly. "You wouldn't have been able to if you hadn't offered to let me place it here."
"Well, now that you're here, don't you have something to record?" Archie nodded.
Rosie's eyebrows raised as she checked the time on her phone. "You know it's eight thirty at night, right?"
"It's summer and it's Friday," Archie reasoned. "I don't have work tomorrow and school doesn't start until Wednesday. We have time."
The brunette wrapped her dark red and navy blue flannel around herself and crossed her arms. She had to admit, she was itching to record that cover of Green Light. So she gave in, ignoring the fact that her parents would freak if she wasn't home by eleven.
"Okay," she decided. "My turn."
Archie smiled.
Thanks for reading this second chapter! I know it's just kind of a filler, but I wanted to showcase more of what Rosie's relationship is like with her family and for Rosie and Archie's relationship to grow a little more. You'll understand once we get into the pilot chapters. ;)
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