Well, here is a nother one=) Hope you like it. The song is Steer by amazing Missy Higgins
Chapter 16: Steer
It was crazy of me, coming to Seattle to find Bella. But I had to. I sill considered her to be something between my best friend in the whole world and a sister, and even if Edward wanted to delude himself into believing that fame and fortune was everything she needed to happy, I did not. I had read on a blog somewhere that the whole band had gone back to Seattle after the premier of Sallys' Choice, and after a quick phone call to Charlie and a couple of assurances that I was the only one form the Cullen family that was coming to visit, I had gotten a hold of the address to North Star Records.
How could I have known Bella as well as I had know her, as I knew her, and not even suspect that she had this side to her? I hadn't gotten around to watch her movie yet, I had driven non stop from New York to Seattle. It was two days since her TV- appearance, and the latest vision I'd had of her, was of her in a studio singing into a microphone. I could hear the music, but not the lyrics. Guess she wasn't finished with it them. The most annoying thing was that I couldn't see her reaction to seeing me again. It was my own fault, I hadn't made up my mind about if I was going to just spy on her or approach her. What if Edward was right after all?
I shook that thought out of my head at once. I had stopped trust his judgment the day he decided to leave Bella.
My mind still not completely made up, I got out of Carlisles car and started to walk down the street. At the end of the it, I turned right, on to the street where North Star Records had their studio.
It was a nice place, calming and welcoming. Funny, I couldn't picture Bella in the world of over luxurious, high profiled record studios where everything was stressing and hurried. But this, this was more like coming into someones home. As I stood in the middle of the nice reception, I could hear faint music filtering through the sound-proof walls, too faint for human ears. I took a deep breath, and I could faintly smell the familiar sent Bella. I was really going to do this...
Charlie had told me that Bella lived on the top most floor of the studio, but a vision showed me that if I went that way, I wouldn't find here. No, she was somewhere else...
"Excuse me miss, can I help you?"
I opened my eyes, and saw a black-haired, fair skinned young woman looking at me from a door on the far side of the reception, the one that had claimed it led to the studios. She seamed nice, and suddenly I remembered that she had been the base player in Bellas band. Well, she probably knew where Bella was. I put on one of my most dazzling smiles, and walked over to her.
"Hi, yes," I said in a bright and warm tone, and I could she that the woman instantly relaxed. "My name is Alice, and I'm an old friend of Bella." I watched as her face first turned into confusion, and the sudden comprehension. Had Bella told her about me? About us? I hoped so, that would make it so much easier to find her.
"Oh yes, Alice. Blonde has told me so much about you!" she said, taking a step forward and closing the door behind her. Blonde? That had to be a nick-name for Bella or something. I could feel my temper slowly rising when I thought of the fact that Bella was now BLOND. One thing was for sure, if she didn't completely hated me now, I was going to make her color her hair back to that beautiful, mahogany-brown hair that was her natural hair color.
"I'm Amanda," the woman, Amanda said, and offered me her hand, which I shook briefly. "I'm in Blondes band." Then her brows furrowed.
"She didn't tell me you were visiting. Did you arrange to meet, because she has an hour or so left in the studio, we just wrote a new song, and it's tradition not leave the studio until it's finished," she said apologeticly, looking down at her writs-watch. So she was in the studio. That was good news, at least she was here, and not off somewhere far away. I laughed a little as I shook my head.
"No, I didn't tell her. We have kind of been out of touch for half a year or so, and I was just in town for a brief visit, so I thought I'd stop by and se how she was doing," I lied, though it had some truths in it. That was the key to a good lie, I had learned many years ago. Keep to the as close to the real story as possible.
Amanda nodded, Bella had probably told her that much. Then, her eyes lit up, a grin curling her lips and showing of a row of perfect, white teeth.
"Hey, have you ever heard Blonde sing before? Live I mean?" she asked, and as she said it, I had a vision of standing in a sound booth, looking at a blond Bella through a thick glass window, her singing into a microphone. She was going to take me to the sound boot.
I should have refused. It wasn't fair to Bella for me to suddenly just be there. But I wanted to see it with my own eyes, I wanted to see how much she had changed. And I had an almost painful need to see her again.
"No, I haven't," I told her innocently, careful not to let any of my excitement show yet. Amanda smiled even more brightly than she had been, and I was glad that Bella had someone like her around.
"Come with me."
She opened the door behind her, and led me through narrow corridors. The music I had heard previously, grew stronger as we walked. Amanda stopped in front of two doors, one saying "Studio A", the other one saying "Sound Booth". She pressed one finger to her lips, indicating that I had to be quiet, then opened the door to the sound booth, and a heavy guitar riff bleared at me as we slipped inside. A man was sitting inside, his blue eyes focused on the artist standing in the studio, his long, smooth hands on literary a hand full of different buttons. He didn't show any signs of having noticed us entering, so Amanda and I leaned against the back wall, and for the firs time in months, I saw my best friend again.
Her blond hair was stuffed carelessly into a black, knitted hat, a pair of gigantic, black headphones on top of them. She was wearing faded skinny-jeans, red converses and a simple, loos-fitting, knee-length, grey t-shirt. My god, she was way to thin. Even under the loos t-shirt, I could see her shoulder bones poking out just a little bit to much, and she had lost some of that child-like roundness in her face. It hurt to see how skinny she had gotten.
Her eyes were closed, and it was obvious that she was listening to the same music we were. Drums, guitars and a bass in harmony. Then she leaned closer to the microphone, and opened her mouth.
So hold this feeling like a newborn
All the freedom surging through your veins
You have opened up a new door
So bring on the wind, fire and rain
It was always simple, not hidden hard
You've been played at a game
Called remembering your name
And you stuffed it up
But the search ends here
Where the night is totally clear
And your heart is fierce
So now you finally know
That you control where you go
You can steer
Oh
And now you finally know
That you control where you go
You can steer
'Cause you've been listening for answers
Oh but the city screams and all your dreams go unheard
But the search ends here
Where the night is totally clear
And your heart is fierce
So now you finally know
That you control where you go
You can steer
Oh
And get out of the box
And step into the clear
Oh
Cause now you finally know
That you can steer
She was good, there was no denying it. How unbelievable that our little, clumsy and shy Bella had such a strong, elegant and confident voice.
"OK Blonde, that's... actually perfect." The man at the sound board was holding down a button that was glowing orange and speaking into a little microphone in front of him. Bella smiled at him, that brilliant smile I had missed so much. It wasn't as free as it had been when I had seen her last, but it was her smile non the less.
"Naw Christopher, you have to stop being so hard on me," she joked back, her voice just a tiny bitt changed through the speakers. The man, Christopher, rolled his eyes at her, and I could feel Amanda chuckle to my left.
"Fine, if you want to do it one more time..." Bella interrupted him.
"You know what, after some consideration, I think that two hours is the limit of how long I can stay in a little box whit a man constantly chatting in my ears," she said hastily, desperation creeping up in her face. Amanda and I were standing in the shadows, so she didn't see us before Amanda took a step closer to the glass window and leaned over Christopher, her hands on his shoulders.
"I think you have endured enough torture for one day darling. Get your butt out of that studio, there is someone here to see you," she told Bella, a mischievous look on her face. Bella looked at her with confused eyes, and I saw the familiar look in her eyes, the look she always got when she was thinking hard. Amanda clicked of the glowing button, and I guessed she had turned of the connection between this room and Bellas headphones. Christopher turned around in his chair, looking over at me and clearly getting dazzled by my appearance. Vampires were good hunters.
"And you are...?" he said, gathering himself quickly. I was about to answer when the door behind me was opened, and a sent I could have picked out anywhere hit me with full power. I turned around, and looked into a brown pair of wide, shocked eyes.
"Alice?"
Oh, what will Bella do? Well, keep reading and I will tell you. Please Review!