You agreed to meet Steven the next day; one week before the big show. You're not sure why you agreed to let him help you, especially since you already had a plan, but nonetheless, you met Steven at his beach house to practice.
"Hey, you made it! Welcome!" Steven grinned as you walked through the screen door he had opened.
"Woah..." you muttered breathlessly. You'd never seen the inside of this place before. To your left was a big couch beside the stairs leading to a loft area, and to your right was the kitchen. Then, dead ahead, was some sort of... well you didn't know what it was. It almost looked like a stage? Only made out of some kind of gem material.
"So," Steven started, bringing you back to reality, "shall we get to it?" He plopped himself down on the couch.
Your eyes darted to the side. This was kind of awkward.
"Get to what?" You looked back at him.
"Your act! What have you got?"
"Well... I'm going to sing. I know that much" You replied tentatively.
"Oh, cool! Me too! What song?"
That, however, you didn't know.
"That is... a great question! I have no idea," you responded, earning a laugh from Steven.
"Well that's okay," he started, "we can figure that out, too." He paused to think. "Oh! We could write one!"
"What?" You said, surprised at his enthusiasm. You two just met and now he wants to write a song with you?
"We could write the perfect song for your performance!" Steven exclaimed with starry eyes.
"You... want to write a song... with me?" You asked, sitting beside him on the couch stiffly. "You don't even know me."
"Don't worry about that, it's all a part of the process" Steven said, getting up.
"Huh? What process?" You asked.
Steven snatched up a notebook from the kitchen island and held it up triumphantly.
"The SONGWRITING PROCESS!"
You got the feeling there was no turning back now. A song will be written today.
"Uhm... okay... so where do we start?" You say impatiently.
"Well, first things first, tell me about yourself," Steven said, walking upstairs.
You weren't sure if you were supposed to follow him, so you responded from the couch; "There's not much to tell. I've led a very, painfully, average life."
"Well what do you like to do?" Steven asked, rummaging about upstairs.
"I like music."
"Yeah, I should hope so! We're writing a song!" Steven jogged down the stairs with a guitar strapped to his back. He sat down on the couch beside you, opening his notebook. He clicked a pen.
"So," Steven began, suddenly serious, "who are you?"
Your eyes darted to the side. How on earth did you get to this point? You looked back at Steven- who was still staring at you. You took a deep breath. I guess we're doing this. You gazed at the ceiling and started from the beginning.
"Okay, well, I've lived in Beach City my whole life, I've got two very standard parents, I'm an only child, I graduated from Beach City High a few months back, I..."
You glance at Steven, who's scribbling away in his notebook. When he notices you stopped talking he looks up at you.
"Why'd you stop?" He asked.
"I..." You sighed, "is this really good song material? My life? I mean, I don't know what to say... nothing super exciting has ever happened to me."
"Well, what about the romance department? Have anyone special?" Steven asked, absentmindedly doodling above his notes.
A flush spread across your face thinking about... him. You shrank and looked away.
"See, I knew there was something," Steven said, noticing your body language. "Spill."
"I... don't really want to get into that right now..." you said, staring at the floor.
"Oh, sorry," Steven said, sitting up. "You don't have to. And I'm not going to push it, buuuut... a truly great song comes from the gut," Steven said. "You've got to take an experience and turn those feelings into poetry to create something really effective."
You still weren't into the idea, and Steven could tell.
"Here, like this," Steven said, flipping his guitar in front of him. He looked to you and began strumming a simple tune, before closing his eyes and singing;
"If I could begin to be
Half of what you think of me
I could do about anything
I could even learn how to love..."
You closed your eyes and began to relax, Steven's voice calming your anxiety. He looked up at you and smiled.
"When I see the way you act
Wondering when I'm coming back
I could do about anything
I could even learn how to love like you"
You thought about what the lyrics might mean; if it was about the gems, or one of his friends... you were lost in thought and began to sway slightly to the music.
"I always thought I might be bad
Now I'm sure that it's true
'Cause I think you're so good
And I'm nothing like you
Look at you go
I just adore you
I wish that I knew
What makes you think I'm so special"
Steven paused, and you waited with bated breath for the next verse, not knowing that Steven was staring at you.
"Do you see what I mean?" Steven said gently. You nodded and slowly opened your eyes.
"We could write a tacky pop song with an indistinguishable meaning, or we could dig deep and create something with soul," Steven said hopefully. You thought for a moment. Were you really going to spill your guts to a near stranger?
Yes. Yes you were.
"Okay," you took a deep breath as Steven put his guitar aside and picked up his notebook.
"We met at a party a few years back..." You began, thinking back to how it all happened.
(Flashback)
Parties... suck. You've been hogging the snack buffet since the moment your friend dragged you through the door. Sitting in the corner, pretending to do something on your phone, and gnawing on a vegetable platter, was your plan for the rest of the night until he approached you.
"Hey," the boy said, looking down to you. He was... the textbook definition of tall, dark, and handsome. He wore a simple shirt and jeans, but paired the outfit with an infinity scarf. His dark brown hair was messy and unkept from all his dancing, and his tan skin glistened with sweat.
"I'm Kevin," the boy said, "but I'm sure you already knew that."