The annoying sound of Dusk's beeping alarm awoke her out of a dead sleep. She was quite groggy, but today, she didn't press the snooze button like she typically did. She promptly got out of bed, turned off her alarm, and headed for the bathroom to take a shower.
While she got ready for the morning, Dusk's mind delved into the whimsy of all that could happen on their trip. She dreamt of becoming famous from the interview, having the music video elevate their career to the next level, and eventually, her mind drifted to having things like they were during the witches' timeline manipulation: being recognized out in public, having thousands of people scream her name…
"Dusk!"
Dusk had to shake herself out of her fantasy, because she could have sworn she heard somebody actually call her name while she was in the shower.
"Dusk?" the voice called again. Given she was actually paying attention this time, she realized the voice was coming from Thorn from behind the bathroom door.
"What? I'm in the shower!" Dusk called.
"Are you going to be out soon?" Thorn asked. "Luna and I need to shower, and you've already been in there for nearly 20 minutes now!"
"Oh…yeah. Sorry, just a minute!" Dusk apologized. She hadn't realized how long she'd been sitting in the shower fantasizing about fame, but she quickly finished washing her hair and got out of the shower. She hurried to dry off, quickly brushed her teeth and put on some makeup, and opened the door to allow one of the other girls in.
"Geez Dusk, you were in the shower for 20 minutes. Everything okay?" Luna inquired.
"Yes!" Dusk replied defensively. "The water took a while to warm up. Anyway, I'm so fucking excited about this trip! This is just the opportunity we've been waiting for to get our names out there."
"Waiting? We've only been not-famous for like a week." Thorn laughed. "I get what you mean, though, but I'm not getting my hopes up too much. It's just an interview and it might not lead to anything."
"Yeah, I guess that's true." Dusk shrugged. "You never know what might happen, though."
Dusk realized Thorn's mentality was also possible, although she was quick to discount it in her mind. She wanted to think positively about their incredibly exciting experience, so she was going to hope for only the absolute best.
The girls eagerly awaited their manager's arrival at their apartment, suitcases in hand. They were standing right outside the front door to their apartment complex, as a cold breeze blew across their faces. It was relatively warm for a November day, 65, but the wind still made it feel a bit chilly. Each of the girls donned coats as a result - Thorn wearing a black one and Luna wearing a purple one - whilst Dusk, who didn't get cold particularly easily, wore a gray sweatshirt.
"I wonder where Gus is." Luna remarked. "It's not like him to be late."
Thorn squinted so she could see all the way to the end of the apartment's driveway. Her eyes lit up for a moment before she spoke. "I think that's him now!"
"Nice! I can't wait to get this trip started." Dusk exclaimed.
"Is it just me or does Dusk seem a bit…umm…overeager?" Luna stuttered.
"I am not overeager. In fact, I think I'm just the right amount of eager." Dusk answered. "This is an exciting moment for the band!"
"You're not wrong, but…" Thorn began replying, before she trailed off. It appeared Thorn had stopped her train of thought just as Gus's vehicle had stopped in front of their apartment building. Dusk recognized the vehicle immediately: it was the same blue van they'd used for when they were touring. As Dusk loaded her suitcase in the trunk of the van, she was quite curious what exactly Thorn was going to say to her. She presumed Thorn would tell her once they'd all gotten settled in the van, but she wasn't entirely sure.
"Alright girls, all ready to go on our little adventure?" Gus inquired.
"Hell yeah!" Dusk exclaimed. She absolutely could not wait to have the whole experience that felt like a major highlight of her life all over again: the road trip to their destination, the interview, and performing their song. She just would have to hope the general public was as excited about their new single and interview as she was.
Dusk hummed along to Siouxsie and the Banshees' "Kiss Them for Me," which was quietly playing in the blue tour van as it passed a serene-looking woods. The song was the perfect atmosphere for the beautiful landscape they were driving by. Something about this particular song was so peaceful and pure to Dusk. It wasn't quite her favorite song on the Superstition album - that honor was reserved for "Fear of the Unknown," but it had a special place in her heart.
Thorn had never continued what she was going to say prior to leaving, but this song was making Dusk feel enough at ease to finally ask the question she'd had in the front of her mind for the five hours they'd been in the car.
"Hey, Thorn?" Dusk asked. "What were you going to say right before we left? You never finished your sentence."
Thorn looked at Dusk, then paused for a moment, with a blank stare on her face. "I don't remember, to be honest. Do you remember the context?"
"You were saying 'you're not wrong, but' and then you trailed off when Gus showed up." Dusk answered.
"Oh! I was saying I feel that you're putting a bit too much pressure on this being an experience of a lifetime. I don't disagree with you that this is an amazing experience, but we don't know whether or not this interview is going to lead to anything." Thorn said.
"She's quite right, you know." Gus replied. "In fact, I'd be quite surprised if this interview immediately led to anything."
"Then what the hell is the point of doing it?" Dusk's tone was short.
"Well, plenty of people do interviews about terrible songs, and they don't go anywhere." Gus chuckled. "Girls, let me give you a piece of insight from my years in the industry. No song in history has ever become famous from an interview alone. It's about whether the song connects with people, and the promotion you put into the song as a whole. This is just one step in the process to plant a seed, and get the word out about your song. These things often take time, and you should never expect a song to instantly become popular. It's fabulous if it does, but expecting instant popularity is only setting yourself up to be let down."
"I'm a little nervous to bring up this conversation again, but Dusk, it feels like you're getting dangerously close to putting too much pressure on fame." Luna said, her voice meek and anxious.
Dusk sighed. She wanted so desperately to defend her ego, but she knew there was really no defense. Luna was right. She was getting too caught up in this interview being the end-all, be-all, and that wasn't realistic.
"Ugh, I'm sorry." Dusk harrumphed. "It's just not fair. We were famous and up in front of thousands of people every night, living the high life, and now, it's just all taken away from us. I know many artists have a good era and then aren't successful, but we didn't even get to do the full tour. We had a week. I just want to do anything we can to be successful again."
"You're right, it's not fair." Gus said, his voice a bit firm, yet understanding. "As hard of a realization as it is, life isn't always fair, and you shouldn't expect it to be. You just have to be thankful for what you have. If you spend your life thinking about everything you don't have, you'd be miserable."
Dusk admittedly felt guilty for being selfish after that realization. Gus was right. She did have a lot to be thankful for. She was in a band with the two best friends she'd ever had, and she had a great manager. She had a single that made the top 30 on the contemporary hit radio chart. Yes, they were supposed to be performing a sold-out show in Colorado tonight (yes, Dusk still looked at the schedule for the tour they were going to have, as pitiful as it was), but now, they were going to have a different adventure in Ohio. She just wished that it was as easy to internalize as her mind felt it should be.
It had been close to nine hours in the car. They still had about two hours to go to Crystal Cove. Luna had just woken up from a nap in the front seat, whereas Thorn was currently closing her eyes and putting her hands together.
"Still doing that Wicca stuff, Thorn?" Dusk inquired.
"Yeah. I figure that it's good to have an additional focus besides music and work, so I've been reading a bit more about Wicca and trying to get into it." Thorn responded.
Thorn's point about having another focus was an interesting one. Come to think of it, Dusk didn't really have another focus besides music and work at the moment. Perhaps that's why she was so miserable right now. She hadn't been reading lately or listening to much music, nor had she been writing poetry or going for walks outdoors in the past week. Come to think of it, she'd neglected most of her hobbies. She'd been so down and depressed that most of the thought in her spare time went to wishing she were still touring and exploring the country. When they returned to Oakhaven, perhaps this was something to give some further thought to.
"Would you like to stop for some coffee, girls?" Gus inquired. "I see we're passing a Starbucks."
"Can we afford it? That place is pretty expensive." Dusk tried to be more sensitive this time, remembering her embarrassing soliloquy during the previous trip to Starbucks, in which she boasted that "big time musicians deserve real quality." Dusk had to hold back the oncoming cringe just thinking about that stupid comment she'd made.
"With Starbucks' prices, I'm afraid the answer is probably not." Gus joked. "I think you girls deserve a treat, though. I'll be happy to pay."
"Thanks so much, Gus!" Luna appreciated as the van pulled into the drive thru. "I'll take a raspberry white mocha."
Thorn glanced at the drive-thru's menu. "Ooh. That new drink they're advertising looks good. I'll try the cookie butter latte."
Dusk couldn't help but roll her eyes. It seemed coffeehouses and malt shops were becoming more and more similar every day, or at least it felt like it with how extravagant some of the coffee drinks were. She'd tried the mocha with whipped cream and chocolate drizzle when they were in Nashville, but coffee that tasted like a cookie took it a step even further. Dusk retained her view that coffee should be coffee, rather than a glorified milkshake with a drop of caffeine in it, even if she had enjoyed the blended mocha.
"Oh boy. I'll just have a black coffee with sugar." Dusk ordered.
Gus repeated their orders for the barista over the intercom.
"That'll be $9.22. Please pull ahead to the next window!" the barista instructed.
"$9.22 actually isn't terrible. I'd say we came out pretty good." Gus cheerfully realized.
"What'd you get, Gus?" Dusk inquired.
"Well, you won't like it, but I'm afraid I also got the cookie butter latte." Gus chuckled. "I must say, the whipped cream and crushed oreo on top looked quite delectable."
"I have no issue with you getting that drink, just as long as you know it's not real coffee." Dusk playfully teased.
Daylight Savings Time had happened a few weeks ago, so it had been getting dark obnoxiously early lately. The sun was just going down as they arrived in Crystal Cove…or at least, that's where Dusk thought they were arriving. She was quite confused when she saw a sign that read that they were now entering some place called Coolsville, wherever the hell that was.
"Coolsville? I thought you said we were in Crystal Cove." Luna asked.
"Crystal Cove and Coolsville are connected cities." Gus explained. "To make matters even more confusing, the hotel I found us is in the town of Parkersburg, West Virginia."
"West Virginia?" Dusk exclaimed. "Just how far away is this hotel?"
"Don't worry, it's only about 15 minutes away. It's right on the state line. There were lots of chain hotels and motels around, but I tried to pick out somewhere fun and historic, so it would be reminiscent of…" Gus paused, which Dusk found a bit curious. "You know…your touring days."
Although Dusk felt bad that Gus was apparently in a weird emotional place about their adventure in the alternate timeline, it was oddly comforting to her that she wasn't alone in feeling super strange about this huge thing happening, and now suddenly being erased from existence.
"Are you going to do the history tidbit about the hotel we're staying in again, Gus?" Luna asked. "Even with all the anxiety I had around our tour, I admittedly kinda liked learning about the history of where we were staying. It'd feel kinda empty if we didn't do that routine."
"I'm glad you asked." Gus smiled. "We'll be staying at the Hotel Blennerhassett, which was named after a famous Irish aristocrat. It was built in 1889, and it's believed to be the first place in town to have electricity. A fire nearly burned down the hotel in 1979, and prompted many renovations to be made at the hotel. It's one of the most famous buildings in the area, due to its age and how it has stood the test of time. It also became famous as John F. Kennedy stayed in the hotel for a night during his presidential campaign in 1960. The hotel also has its very own restaurant featuring a world-class brunch."
"That's so cool!" Thorn exclaimed. "I don't know if I ever said it during our tour, but thanks for always doing the research on these places. It's super neat to know the history behind where we're staying."
"Of course. In addition to being a music fan, I'm a bit of a history buff, so researching all the historical facts behind places is fascinating to me." Gus answered. "I think we're just about there. We may want to just relax the rest of the night, as we'll need to be up bright and early tomorrow. The interview is at 8:00am."
Dusk glanced out the window and saw a pristine looking red-painted building, with five floors and picturesque windows of all different sizes. Some were rectangular, and others were more circular picture windows. The hotel was outlined by a beautiful white trim, and a breathtaking roof with a jewel-like decorative ball affixed to the highest point. It almost looked more like a doll playset than a real building.
"That's the hotel, girls." Gus pointed. A sense of delight beamed through his tone, as if he already knew the girls would love it. "What do you think?"
"Woah." Thorn gasped.
"Is this place even real?" Luna's jaw dropped.
"This is breathtaking!" Dusk added. Even if this interview wasn't going to get the girls famous again, Dusk was on cloud nine just looking at the place they'd be spending the night. Getting to travel to a lavish place like this again gave her a great sense of comfort and thrill. Even though thousands of fans and worldwide fame would be nice, in this very moment, Dusk was satisfied with basking in the glory of a hidden gem of a place like this.
Dusk slept wonderfully the previous night. The queen-size beds were extremely comfortable and cushy. There were only two beds, but Thorn and Luna decided to be the two that shared a bed, which meant Dusk got a bed all to herself. She felt like royalty just staying at this beautiful hotel. This was a feeling that only increased when she got to the hotel's restaurant and tasted their breakfast.
Gus had gotten the Eggs Blennerhassett, which included eggs, vegetables, salmon and hollandaise sauce. Thorn had gotten a three-egg omelet including ham, tomatoes, green peppers, olives, onions and cheese. However, she wasn't able to eat it all, due to its enormous size. Luna had also gotten an omelet, but stuck with only ham, cheese, tomatoes and peppers. Dusk got the Monte Cristo Breakfast Sandwich, which was an egg, cheese and a slice of salami on a buttered biscuit. The sandwich was absolutely delicious, in fact, so much so that it made Dusk feel like a peasant for her regular breakfast, which consisted of a bowl of cereal.
"This breakfast is amazing, Gus. Thank you so much for paying for this!" Thorn appreciated.
"Don't thank me, thank the label. They're the one paying for this trip, and they did say meals were included." Gus chuckled. "Anyways, we should get going pretty quick here. It's 7:10, and I'm not sure it would be a good look to burst into the station right when the program starts at 8."
"Oh, right. I forgot we're 20 minutes away from the station." Luna said, before shoveling down her last couple bites of omelet. Dusk promptly did the same with her breakfast sandwich. "We better get moving."
"Oh crap, you're right. We better get all our stuff from our room." Dusk gasped, as she ate her last bite of sandwich and prepared to bring her suitcase down from the girls' room.
When the girls arrived at the TV station, Dusk was admittedly surprised that she didn't feel nervous walking in the building like she had when the girls had done their interview in Milwaukee. It felt a bit small town-ish, which made it feel a bit less intimidating. The station was a two-story brick building with several large antennas and satellites. Some were affixed to the top of the building, and there were also a couple of large free-standing antennas next to the building. The building looked relatively old, but not in a dusty, unkempt way. Rather, the station looked quite historic and quaint, and almost looked like it may someday be a tourist destination.
The girls were all currently lugging their instruments into the building with them, as they knew they'd be doing a performance directly after the interview. Although the thought was silly, Dusk wished Gus would have hired somebody to carry in their instruments for them, as they were ridiculously heavy.
"Are you girls nervous?" Gus checked in.
"Actually, no." Thorn shrugged. "The place looks quite inviting."
"I'm with Thorn. Compared to Milwaukee, this will be a breeze." Dusk added.
"I wish I could say the same." Luna nervously chuckled. It was clear that she was indeed quite anxious. Dusk admittedly wasn't too surprised that her friend was a bundle of nerves; that was pretty usual for Luna in a situation like this.
"You'll be fine, girls. You did that Milwaukee interview flawlessly, so I'm sure this one will turn out just as wonderful." Gus encouraged.
Luna opened her mouth to respond again, but she was quickly cut off by a blond woman wearing a t-shirt with the ZPOP station logo and blue jeans.
"Good morning! We're so excited to have you here!" the woman from the station said. "My name's Isabel and I'm the owner of the station. I'll be showing you to our newsroom."
"It's great to meet you, Isabel!" Gus smiled. "My name's Gus Boggs and I'm the girls' manager. And I'm sure you know Thorn, Dusk and Luna."
"Of course! I loved your song "Hex Girl" when it was on the radio!" Isabel chirped. "I heard you guys are announcing your next single on the show today!
"Thank you!" Thorn smiled. "Yeah, we're going to announce that our second single is "Earth, Wind, Fire and Air" today."
"It's from our album, so you may have already heard it." Dusk brought up.
"Oh, I didn't realize you girls had an album out. I'll have to check that out!" Isabel exclaimed.
"That might be a good thing to bring up in the interview today." Dusk whispered to Luna. "I bet a lot of people don't realize we released an album."
"Good idea." Luna quietly responded back.
"Right in here!" Isabel said, as she led them through a long brick hallway. There were a few pieces of artwork on the wall, but all of them appeared abstract, and Dusk paid little attention to them as she didn't really understand that type of shit.
Isabel led them into a room that looked to be a large recording studio for the news. The room had a bunch of cameras and audio equipment on both the left and right sides, but front and center was a huge anchor desk. Behind the desk was a green screen backdrop featuring an image that appeared to be an overlook of the city during sunrise. A man with brown hair wearing a gray suit sat at the desk, and there were two desk chairs on either side of him.
"This is the place!" Isabel exclaimed. "Feel free to have a seat. We'll be live again in about ten minutes!"
"Hey, girls!" the man at the anchor desk greeted. "My name's Nick. It's great to meet you all! We've got a chance to talk for a moment, as we're not live again for another 10 minutes."
"Good to meet you!" Thorn responded, as Luna said a slight variation on her friend's greeting and Dusk said "likewise" simultaneously.
"It's been a while, Nick!" Gus smiled, as he walked up to the anchor desk and gave his friend a hug.
"It sure has!" Nick responded. "How's the record label business been?"
"It's been wonderful. I've gotten to work with a number of different bands and artists, and it's so rewarding to see them succeed. That's what inspired me to reach out to you about this interview. These girls are among the most talented group I've ever met, and I thought having them do an interview in another state would be a great opportunity to get their names out there." Gus explained.
"I think that's a wonderful idea! We've had pretty high ratings here lately, so hopefully this should spread the word about you girls releasing your next single." Nick remarked.
"So how do you two know each other?" Luna inquired.
"We were roommates in college." Gus explained. "Nick majored in Communication and Journalism, and I was initially considering the same path. However, once I realized my love for music, I decided I wanted to change my major to music, but we remained roommates and still keep in touch to this day."
"Not as often as we'd like, though." Nick admitted. "Anyway, we're about to get started with the interview. I'm just planning on asking you girls some questions, but it's going to be a pretty laid back interview. If you don't want to answer something I ask, that's totally fine."
"Alright, places everybody!" a cameraman wearing a red baseball cap with the station logo exclaimed, prompting Gus to scurry to the side.
"Good morning Crystal Cove! My name is Nick, and today on ZPOP, we have very special guests in the studio with us to start off your morning. Those guests are Thorn, Dusk and Luna, whom you may recognize as The Hex Girls. They recently had a top 30 hit on pop radio called "Hex Girl," but now, they're here today to make another exciting announcement to the world, which we'll get to later in the interview! First, let's get to know these girls a little better. How'd you get started as a band?"
"Well, Dusk and I were childhood friends. Our parents sent us to a band camp when we were 14, and that's when we met Luna. We all became close in high school, and we wrote a song together for a class project." Thorn explained.
"What was the name of that song you wrote in high school?" Nick questioned.
"It was "Hex Girl." Luna answered.
"Woah!" Nick's jaw dropped a little. "Hex Girl was the one you wrote in high school? That's wild! Well, for a high school project, that was an amazing song."
Dusk was at first confused, because she was positive they'd told people about that class project before. However, she promptly remembered that they had mentioned that in the Milwaukee interview, which had never happened thanks to those damn witches and their timeline manipulation.
"After we graduated from high school, we all moved in together and realized music was our passion. We grew up with stuff like Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure, and Bauhaus, so the band's music style is inspired quite a bit by all of them." Thorn finished answering Nick's question.
"That's a really heartwarming story." Nick smiled. "And as we all know, it turned out very well for the girls, as they got a top 30 hit with that class project. Now, the world is dying to know, what's next for you girls?"
"I'm glad you asked that, Nick." Dusk replied. "We have an announcement to make to everybody. As many of you may know, we recently released our first album, which is called Hex Girl. We are so excited to share that we're now releasing our song "Earth, Wind, Fire and Air" as the second single!"
"That's so exciting, girls!" Nick replied. "I have to say, I listened to your album to prepare for this interview today, and I absolutely loved it. "Hex Girl" was one of my favorite songs when it was on the radio a couple months back, so I can't wait to see what "Earth, Wind, Fire and Air" does. Anything else coming down the pipeline for you girls?"
"We also are proud to share that we've got a music video for the song coming out soon!" Luna added.
"That's amazing! I can't wait to see it, and I'm sure all your fans can't either. What's been your reaction to the success of "Hex Girl"?" Nick inquired.
Dusk found Nick's question interesting, as she remembered being asked pretty much the same question at the interview in Milwaukee. However, this time, they'd have to give a very different answer, as the song and album wasn't nearly as successful as it was when they did that interview.
"We've been honored that the song has been getting played on the radio." Thorn humbly replied.
"We hope this next one is even more successful." Dusk remarked, before blushing a little bit and adding a caveat. "...and that a lot of people feel they can relate to the song."
Dusk hoped she'd covered up that idiotic remark well, but she admittedly was worried that people would judge her or be offended by the comment. She hadn't really thought her remark through all that much before saying it, which she should have.
"This is our last question before we go to commercials, but if you could pick one song from your album to listen to for the rest of your life, what would you choose?" Nick inquired.
"I think my favorite is "Earth, Wind, Fire and Air," so I've gotta go with that one." Luna responded.
"Yeah, same for me. We wrote the song about our love for the environment, as well as explaining why we believe it's so important to view nature as a beautiful gift and treat it with respect. It's a really special song to us, and we hope all the fans love it as much as we do." Thorn added.
Dusk had remembered previously saying that "Hex Girl" was her favorite song on the album to write, but she felt the need to say "Earth, Wind, Fire and Air" in hopes that the whole band believing so strongly in this song would lead others to love it as well, even if it wasn't her actual favorite. The interview where she'd said it had been erased with the rest of the witches' manipulation and trickery, so nobody would ever know.
"Yeah, "Earth, Wind, Fire and Air" is my pick as well. I think the whole band agrees that this song is the one that best shows who we are and what we believe in, which is why we wanted to release the song as a single." Dusk explained.
"Wonderful, girls. I want to give a huge thank you to these girls for coming all the way here from Massachusetts today for this interview, and I want to encourage all you viewers to stay tuned for a live performance of the girls' new single right after these messages from our sponsors!" Nick said, before giving the cameraman the signal to turn off the camera.
"Thanks for having us, Nick. This was a great interview!" Thorn appreciated. "Where do you want us to set up?"
"Right in front of the news desk will work perfectly. We'll be on in two minutes." Nick informed, as the girls began setting up their instruments. The cameraman and Gus scurried over to help them.
Dusk turned her head to the right of the room, where a small screen was playing the sponsored message that was broadcasting live on TV.
"A new season of Math Is Dopetastical is coming." a deep, dramatic male announcer stated in the commercial. "And there's gonna be even doper rhymes."
The scene switched to the annoying red monster that Dusk had unfortunately seen so many times before.
"Uh, uh, uh, we stackin' twenty-six times thirty-six, we 'bout to get real nerdy, sis!" Stanglewoovius the red monster rapped.
"More intensely complex multiplication!" the announcer chimed in.
The scene once again switched, this time to the large gray elephant whom Dusk believed was named Mr. Trunksworth. "Dawg, ya got 4,006 times four then ya add 10 more, now my homies goin' up 'cuz that equals 16,034!"
"More raw social commentary!" the announcer's voice got increasingly intense.
"Mr. Trunksworth, why'd you have to bring that number up? That's only 1,263 away from what the average American owes on their student loans." Stanglewoovius said, as he hung his head.
"That is quite the discomforting factoid, Stanglewoovius." Mr. Trunksworth scolded.
"I swear, this show just gets weirder and weirder." Dusk shook her head in disbelief.
"I think we're all set." Thorn informed, once their instruments and microphones had been connected to the power outlets.
"Alright girls, in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1." the cameraman counted down.
"To love the Earth: it's our one desire!" Dusk shouted in unison with her other bandmates, as Thorn finished with a brief guitar solo.
"Ladies and gentlemen, that was the Hex Girls' brand new single "Earth, Wind, Fire and Air," which you can hear by going out and purchasing their debut album, Hex Girl. Thanks again for performing, girls! This is Nick with ZPOP news, and we'll be back with weather after commercials!"
"We're clear!" the cameraman informed.
"That was amazing!" Gus clapped.
"Yes, incredible performance, girls! Thanks so much again for coming in." Nick appreciated. "Any plans after this?"
"I believe we're going to search for a park." Gus informed. "Any recommendations? This is a bit of a secret, but we're wanting to film the music video for "Earth, Wind, Fire and Air" here."
"That's awesome!" Nick exclaimed. "The Crystal Cove Community Park and Walking Trail is about five minutes from here. There's a nice wooded area there, and I think it'd be a great place to film your video. Which direction did you come from?"
"We were staying at the Blennerhassett." Dusk responded.
"Oh, that'll be easy! All you do is drive back the way you came on Jones Avenue, and take a right about five miles down the road on Nettles Street. You can't miss it!" Nick provided directions.
"Thank you! I suppose you need to get on with your show, but it was great seeing you again, Nick!" Gus said, as he gave his friend a hug. "Thank you for letting us come on your show."
"Of course! All the best recording your video, girls, and I hope this single makes you as big as the Backstreet Boys! Also, let's not make it so long before we see each other next time, friend." Nick smiled and waved.
How ironic Nick's remark was. If only he knew that in an alternate timeline that he didn't remember, they were actually more famous than the Backstreet Boys!
Dusk felt like they fucking rocked that interview. She had anticipated being a tad nervous, but the interview was quite comfortable all throughout. Nick felt more like a friend than an overbearing TV host trying to get the juiciest details out of them. The interview having gone as well as it did invigorated Dusk to film this video.
The park was pretty beautiful in its autumnal glory. Each of the trees were covered in gorgeous red, yellow and orange leaves, and there was a peaceful-looking pond with a fountain in the middle, located in the center of the park. It looked like they'd chosen to film their video in the perfect place on the perfect day.
They'd found a nice relaxing looking spot by the pond to begin filming. Gus had just set up the camera in a sturdy spot on the cobblestone path, and placed it on a tripod.
"Alright, girls, we're starting off with the scene of the old fogey who hates the environment, correct?" Gus inquired.
"Yup, and that old fogey will be played by you." Thorn replied.
"Excellent. Let me get into character." Dusk was confused for a moment as Gus reached into his camera bag when he finished his comment, and was shocked to see him pull out a gray wig which he put on his head.
"Where in the world did you get that?" Luna laughed.
"Just a little surprise I wanted to throw in." Gus chuckled. "I had it lying around from an old Halloween costume, and figured it'd be useful here. Given I was also the old fogey in your first video, I thought it would be good to differentiate between the two so that your fans don't wonder why this random chap keeps appearing all in your videos."
"You look great, Gus." Thorn let out a giggle at Gus's silly looking appearance. The wig made him look like a 60+ year old man with long gray hair, which Dusk also found quite amusing.
"Are we all set?" Dusk eagerly asked.
"I believe so." Gus said, as he hurried over to the camera. "Recording in 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1."
An old man was standing near a small pond. Sighing, he threw a penny from his pocket into the pond, as he looked out into the fountain in the middle. Perhaps this was a beautiful sight for some, but for the old man, it was a vision of the world he once knew that had left him behind.
"All these dumb hippies these days, trying to save the environment and make the world a better place. What happened to the days where an old gent could drive his turbo-powered diesel guzzlin' jalopy in peace?" the old man lamented.
"Hey, man. You better watch what you're saying about the environment!" Thorn snapped.
"Oh yeah? What's the environment done for you lately? Has it brought you a coffee or offered to rub your back after a long hard day at the toxic chemical plant? Cuz it hasn't done those things for me! Why would you even give a crap about nature?" the old man babbled.
"It's a gift that we even have beautiful trees like this, a pond with clean water, and all these beautiful surroundings in this park, yet you seem to think of nature as a trash can." Luna argued.
"Somebody's gotta teach this old geezer a thing or two about the environment!" Dusk sneered.
At that moment, Thorn began playing her guitar and belting "Earth, wind, fire and air!"
"We may look bad, but we don't care!" the other two girls sang loudly in unison.
"We ride the wind, we feel the fire!" Thorn sang, getting increasingly up in the old man's personal space to show him she meant business.
"To love the Earth, it's our one desire." Luna and Dusk echoed. "To love the Earth, it's our one desire."
"I'm sorry, but I think you ladies have mistaken me for somebody who gives a damn." the old man rebuked.
"Love the Earth, it's only fair! It's one big Earth that we must share!" Thorn informed by singing.
"Love the Earth with all your fire!" all three girls chimed in.
"It's in our souls, our one desire." Thorn sang, looking deep in the old man's eyes in a menacing way.
"Earth, wind, fire and air!" Thorn belted again.
"We may look bad, but we don't care!" the other two girls chimed in.
"We ride the wind, we feel the fire!" Thorn sang, again getting in the old man's face, much to his discomfort.
"To love the Earth, it's our one desire." Luna and Dusk echoed, also singing while directly giving a death stare to the old man. "To love the Earth, it's our one desire."
"Yeah, yeah. Love the Earth, I get it already!" the man harrumphed. "Why should anybody love the Earth? The only people that do that is tree huggin' hippies who are a little "woo-woo" in the head, right?"
"Nature is a precious gift, and it will make your spirits lift." Thorn's voice became a bit more warm and endearing as she sang the song, to emotionally compel the old man to see her point.
"Love the Earth with all your fire!" the girls chanted in unison.
"It's in your soul, your one desire." Thorn sang with a mischievous smirk on her face, before getting in the old man's face again for the final chorus. "Earth, wind, fire and air!"
"We may look bad but we don't care!" the other two girls chimed in.
"We ride the wind, we feel the fire!" Thorn sang.
"To love the Earth, it's our one desire." Luna and Dusk harmonized together.
"To love the Earth, it's our one desire." all three girls sang together, before Thorn did a guitar solo to conclude the song.
"Maybe you young ladies are right." the old man said, with a hopeful look in his eye. "This pond is pretty beautiful…and so is this park."
"Nature is a gift, not a trash can." Thorn said, looking directly into the camera at the audience. "Love the Earth with all your fire."
It was such a beautiful warm November day that the girls and Gus decided to take a walk around the park before they headed back home to Oakhaven. Dusk was really glad that Gus had suggested the walk, as the trees were at the peak of their seasonal beauty, and the slight breeze actually felt really nice after the workout they'd gotten dancing around whilst filming the video.
"I don't think we could have asked for a better day today, girls." Gus smiled. "You rocked your interview at ZPOP, then you filmed a wonderful music video, and you got to stay at a historic luxury hotel."
"Thanks again for setting this all up, Gus. I don't know what we'd do without an incredible manager like you." Luna appreciated.
"Yeah, this was amazing. It's a bummer it's over, but no one can say we didn't have a productive day." Thorn responded.
Dusk was rarely the touchy-feely type, so it surprised her when a wave of emotions washed over her. Was that regret? Nervousness? No. Wait. It was sadness. Dusk quickly realized that the fact that they were leaving had finally hit her. This whole trip had felt so nostalgic for her and reminiscent of what they had while touring, and now, it was gone. If their new song flopped, they may never get to have a trip like this again.
What was there left in sight to look forward to? Working every day at Jack's? Painstakingly trying to think of other ways to promote their new album?
Dusk tried to shove these terrible emotions down as quickly as she could. She wasn't used to experiencing any feelings like this; feelings were more of a Luna thing. She considered herself to be pretty tough and badass from making it through her unsatisfactory upbringing, so she hated feeling helpless and sad like this. She promptly tried to think of something to push these thoughts out of her brain.
"What's our plans for releasing the single to radio?" Dusk quickly asked. The comment was so random and out of nowhere that Gus looked a bit surprised when she first said it, but he quickly provided a response.
"Well, the next date for stations to report the songs they've added to their playlists for pop radio is Tuesday, so I'll send out a memo to our executives in charge of radio station promotion, and have them add "Earth, Wind, Fire and Air" to the list of songs that are being promoted to pop radio." Gus explained. "Oh, and we'll go over your music video footage as well, just to make sure everything looks good, before we make a plan for when to send it to TV networks to premiere it. We can do that at our meeting next Thursday at 2."
"Oh, okay." Dusk replied in a monotone voice. "Sounds like a good plan, I guess."
Dusk admittedly was feeling pretty empty now. She'd spent all of the last two days working up the excitement about the interview and music video in her head. Now that she had accomplished those things, it was almost like she didn't know what to do with herself. She had pretty much nothing to look forward to in the foreseeable future until something happened with her music career, but hopefully that would change as she got back home and adjusted to her new reality. She remembered how they'd all hoped for better days when they were performing in that dirty hellhole that was Lester's bar, and things had greatly improved since then. They had a manager, they had a top 30 single, and people at least knew they existed thanks to the radio playing them, so it wasn't quite as bad as it was before.
Still, even keeping those things in mind, the so-called "happiness" she was trying to make herself feel didn't seem real. It felt self-imposed and phony, because what the hell was there to be happy about, anyways? She couldn't help but fixate on the fact that this could potentially be the last trip like this that the band ever would have.
Author's note:
One of the aspects of Hexed that made it my favorite fanfic to write was researching each of the places where the girls were touring. It was fun looking into all the history behind various places and incorporating that history into the fanfic, so I really enjoyed incorporating that into this chapter again.
There isn't any city named Coolsville in Ohio, but there is a small town named Coolville. Going off of the canon I established in my first-ever fanfic Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake, Crystal Cove is a suburb of Coolsville. For the purposes of this fanfic, Crystal Cove is located in the real-life Coolville, Ohio.
The closest real-life hotel to Coolville that was not a chain hotel or motel was the Blennerhassett, which is a luxury hotel with a rich history. All of the factoids Gus shared with the girls about the hotel is actually the real-life history of the hotel. The real-life hotel has a restaurant, and what each of the girls and Gus ordered for breakfast were entrees that were on the real-life menu for the restaurant, which I was able to find online. Granted, since there were no archives of previous menus available to the public, I used the current menu for the restaurant, which I'm sure is different from the menu that the restaurant had in 2000 when this fanfic is set.
Those who have checked out another fanfic of mine, Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake, may have recognized many of the details about ZPOP, the station where the girls did their interview. For those who haven't read it, Nick and Isabel are supporting characters from Coast to Coast with Daphne Blake, and I view this fanfic as taking place about a year after Coast to Coast.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you have any feedback about the fic so far, please feel free to leave me a review, as I always enjoy reading them!
