As much as Kai loved James, she couldn't stand to be around him at the moment.
He was trying to fix what he'd done, trying to make sure that they won the bet at all costs, and she appreciated that, but he'd taken to pestering her about writing new songs on the five hour drive to the venue, then complaining about whatever she came up with. The pressure was a little too much for her, and as soon as they arrived at the first venue, she announced she was going out alone.
"I'll go with you!" James jumped up with a broad grin.
"James, alone means I don't want to see you." She snapped, then felt guilty when he shrunk away from her. Sighing, she eased off. "I'll write some lyrics while I'm out, I swear. I'll have something before soundcheck."
With that she set out in search of the nearest coffee shop.
Settling into her armchair with some fancy, five dollar iced coffee on the small table beside her, Kai reached into her bag and pulled out a notebook and a pen and flipped open to a blank page. She'd always written best in coffee shops. Something about watching the people and wondering what they were doing always inspired her for some reason.
"Writing?" A vaguely familiar, thickly accented voice said above her.
Looking up she met the dark eyes of a member of The Beatles, whose name she'd suddenly forgotten. She recognized his face, and the fact that he was the same age as her, if not just a year older, but his name just wasn't coming to her.
"Uh, yeah." She replied, not sure she should be talking to him. James would probably explode, regenerate, then rant about how she was "fraternizing with the enemy" until he exploded again. "I was gonna, I guess."
"Let me guess, Kalivas and Park are trying to "get ahead of the competition?"" He used air quotes, causing her to crack a smile.
"Let me guess, Lennon and McCartney are doing the same?"
He snorted. "They're going mad and driving everyone else up the wall with them. Can I sit?"
"Do so at your own risk." She said with a wry smile.
"Damned if I do, damned if I don't." He shrugged, sitting in the armchair next to hers. "I take it you wanted some peace for a minute too, then?"
She nodded. "James is a good guy, I've known him for a while. He just makes stupid decisions. He's been annoying me, trying to get me to write something new, something we've never done before, something fresh to bring to the table, but every time I try a new style he scraps it and tells me that's not how songs are supposed to be written."
She knew she was starting to rant, and that she probably shouldn't be sharing this information with him, but she'd been so frustrated that it felt really good to finally vent about it. He listened tentatively as she voiced her irritation, his eyes locked on hers, nodding occasionally. She actually wanted to laugh a couple times because his expression was so serious that it was kind of funny.
"What I think, if you don't mind me giving input," he started, only continuing after she nodded. "Is that you should do what you want. Writing, in any form, is art. Art should never be constricted, refrained, bound to "rules". If we put rules on art, then it would all be the same. It's an expression, a way to express our individuality. It's not meant to be confined to rules."
Kai was so grateful she nearly hugged him. "Thank you…"
He smiled at her, an expression that light up his eyes and carved two dimples in his cheeks. "Screw what Kalivas says. He wanted you to write a song, right? Write it the way you want to write it. If he tells you it's wrong, who cares? You like it, why should anyone else care."
"You're my new best friend," She said, making him laugh. "Seriously, you're, like, the best person ever."
"Do so at your own risk." He quoted her teasingly.
"Damned if I do, damned if I don't." She shot back, causing him to laugh again.
"Y'know, Star Kid, you're not so bad."
"Call me Kai." She told him, hoping he'd give her his name in return.
"I don't have a cool stage name like yours, so you'll just have to stick with George."
George Harrison. Right. That was his name. "I can do that." She said, checking the time before muttering a curse. "I have to be back for sound check soon, and I told James I'd have something written by the time I got back." She frowned at him apologetically, but he held up his hands.
"Hey, I got it. I'll see you around, Kai." He shot her one last smile before leaving. "Good luck with your song."
She smiled back. "Thanks, George."
She watched his retreating figure for a moment before turning to her notebook and writing down what she'd started to write earlier that James hadn't liked.
She works for the weekend
Mix tapes of her favorite bands
Tearin' up the radio
Lost in the stereo sound...
A/N: I actually vented a lot of personal frustration through this chapter, so it felt really good to write! As much as I'd like to thank you guys for the reviews that you gave me, I can't actually view them for some reason! Anyone else having the same problem? Sorry if this chapter was boring, I just sort of wanted to bring to light to the fact that the rivalry only really exists between half of each band. Even though I can't see your reviews, leave me one to tell me how I'm doing! Who knows, I might be able to see it one day, haha! Thanks for reading!
The song that Kai is writing is All Time Low's "Lost in Stereo" I do not own this song or it's lyrics, but I do recommend you check it out if you've never heard it, it's really great!