BONUS CHAPTER / the lucky one.
NEW TO TOWN WITH A MADE UP NAME IN THE ANGEL'S CITY CHASING FORTUNE AND FAME.
( SIDE A. YOU DON'T FEEL PRETTY, YOU JUST FEEL USED. RUBY MORGAN )
ruby tuesday / THE ROLLING STONES. the lucky one / TAYLOR SWIFT. would've, could've, should've / TAYLOR SWIFT. hold the girl / RINA SAWAYAMA. goodbye / MARINA.
( SIDE B. ALL ALONG THERE WAS SOME INVISIBLE STRING TYING YOU TO ME. RUBY AND WARREN )
enchanted / TAYLOR SWIFT. treacherous / TAYLOR SWIFT. long story short / TAYLOR SWIFT. sparks fly / TAYLOR SWIFT. willow / TAYLOR SWIFT.
( just a warning that this chapter mentions of sexual content, no sex scenes itself, but rather comments of a past sexual encounter(s) here and there. as well as sexual harassment and violent encounter(s) between ruby and another character. it can be quite heavy at times, so please proceed with caution, take breaks if needed. this is also a long chapter, not as long as the last, but lengthy so that is also a good reason to take breaks. )
"Try it again," Johnny Rand said from the sound booth.
Ruby Morgan couldn't help but sigh, adjusting the headphones over her ears slightly. She had been wearing them for God knows how long─ she had very much stopped looking at the clock after the fifth time that Johnny had asked them to restart. And she knew that she wasn't the only one who was slowly becoming more annoyed that the song didn't sound right. Every time, they were changing something and now the song had been completely stripped of everything Ruby had created, the only thing that was left were her lyrics but even then, they didn't feel right.
Looking at Johnny, she watched as he spoke with Lewis Landry briefly before returning to the microphone once more. "Actually, we're going to take a break," he announced and without hesitation, the headphones were off Ruby. "Fifteen minutes and then we'll come back to it."
Without saying anything, she grabbed her jacket─ well, not really hers, but he had given it to her knowing they'd never see each other again, she wasn't giving it back─ and was out the door, not stopping until she was outside, eyes closing once the Los Angles breeze kissed her skin.
She had been in LA for a few months, barely there for one when she had stumbled upon Jonathan Rand in a bar, someone who had heard her sing and had given her the one thing that she wanted. He had said that he was lucky to have found a talent like her before promising her that he would ensure that the world would know her name. It had been everything that she had wanted to hear, and so she had signed herself over to him.
But of course, the moment that she did, things started changing.
It started with her name. Ruby had sat down opposite him, eager to get started when he had told her that she would need to rebrand herself, present herself as a girl that little girls would want to grow up to be, innocent and sweet; "you need a name that reflects that, one that'll catch people's attention." She had suggested dropping her last name, just going by the first, but he had brushed off her idea, instead turning to his partner and the two of them began to bounce off ideas before coming up with Ruby Tuesday. Not once did the two men ask her what she thought, the second they agreed, the name had been decided.
It continued with her music. Her music had always been personal to her, something that was originally kept under lock and key and only for her eyes to see, only for that to change when she found the courage to perform on stage. Now, it was something that no longer belonged to her, she had delt with Johnny making changes─ changing a few lyrics, thankfully not a lot that they no longer felt like hers, changing the melody, changing the sound completely. That was what caused her to feel like her music was no longer hers.
And part of her wanted to say something, but silently she'd remind herself that this was what she wanted, she had just to deal with everything behind closed doors. She was making a fucking album, why was she complaining?
The door suddenly open, startling Ruby and causing her to turn to face the person who stepped inside. She just didn't expect it to be Warren Rojas, the very person whose jacket was hanging off her shoulders. But then again, why should she have been surprised? Ruby knew that he lived in LA, made music, they met when he was on tour, really, they were bound see each other at some point or another. And yet it didn't stop her from wishing that they hadn't, not when he was smiling at her the way that he was.
The woman that he had met those years ago was a very different person. Back then she had been someone who got what she wanted, unafraid to speak her mind, not caring about who she pissed off in doing so. That had been what drew Warren to her.
After getting fired from her job working at the hotel that The Six were staying at for doing something that she hadn't even done (what need did she have for towels?), Ruby decided to do what she had been accused of doing, but instead stealing an expensive bottle of vodka from the rooftop bar. Yet getting out had been a difficult task, not when she did everything that she could to avoid the elevator knowing that it was the best way to get caught, she stuck to the stairwell. When she had heard one of her ex-coworkers voices, she slipped onto the floor that Warren was staying on, admittedly, doing so had been a mistake, and through her panic, she had grabbed Warren by the collar of his jacket and pulled him into an alcove in the hallway before pressing her lips to his.
At the time, it hadn't been her proudest moment, only doing so until the hallway was clear from anyone who'd turn her in for lingering. But the thing about Warren Rojas, was that once she had a taste of him, she couldn't get enough. Allowing him to drag her to his room where she began to pull him apart─ clothes being thrown about the floor without a care, his body pressed underneath hers as their hands roamed and lips were placing kisses anywhere that they could; Ruby had lost count of the red lip stick stains that painted his skin.
Sex wasn't all that happened that night, but it happened more than they talked.
And then in the early hours of the morning, she had gotten dressed, trying their hardest to keep their hands off each other. But it hadn't stopped Warren from handing her his jacket.
"You do realise this is it for us, right? You're never getting this back," she had said to him.
Warren had shrugged. "Something to remember me by."
And it had worked of course, every time she looked at it, she remembered that night, every detail immortalised within her mind. It didn't help that there was no one that seemed to compare to Warren. Sure, there were other men, some women here and there when Ruby dared, but specifically with the men she had slept with, never once did they allow her to take control the way that he had. Ruby wouldn't be exaggerating if she were to say that he had been the best she ever had.
Now, seeing him standing in front of her, she worried that he wanted that person back. Someone who died the moment she became Ruby Tuesday.
"So, you managed to make it, huh, cariño?"
The moment that he spoke, it was clear to her that he hadn't changed much, really, the only thing that had, was the moustache he had grown, something that suited him, and his curls were a little longer─ she couldn't help but remember the way his hair felt underneath her fingertips, how she couldn't get enough of running her hands through his hair. But he was still the same man despite how much time had passed.
She swallowed, wrapping her arms around herself as she nodded. "Small world."
Somehow, his smile only grew as he approached, hand reaching out to adjust the collar. "Nice jacket."
Ruby rolled her eyes, the ghost of a smile on her lips. "Yeah, I might've stolen in from some rockstar."
He laughed.
Yet the moment was broken when the door once more opened, this time Johnny stepped outside. The expression on his face was enough for her to take a few steps back from Warren, knowing that Warren watched her do so.
"Time's up, Ruby."
She nodded and without saying anything, despite the fact that Ruby knew it had barely been fifteen minutes, instead, she rushed back inside. But before she could get too far, Johnny grabbed her by the arm, pulling her back.
"Who was that?" He asked, almost sounding demanding.
She tugged her arm out of his hold, only her attempts were useless. "Just an old friend," she replied, knowing that it was better than admitting the truth or lying and proclaiming they were strangers.
His hand tightened around hers. "Listen, it's probably best that you avoid any. . . Distractions, you have an album to record."
She nodded and allowed him to take her back to the recording booth. It was only when she needed to stand in front of the microphone that he finally let go.
Rolling her shoulders, she placed the headphones back over her ears, waiting for her cue to begin singing the very song she had written about Warren.
"There was I again tonight, forcing laughter, faking smiles. . ."
After that, she heard him more than she saw him, something that had been purposeful after the way that Johnny had reacted after seeing them together. It scared her to no end, she already was worried about doing the wrong thing, and now it somehow had become worse, especially when she noticed the hunger in his eyes that was there whenever he looked at her. But it was something that she couldn't quite understand, not knowing if it came from greed of needing her to be successful or from a place of possessiveness, that when she had signed her contract, in every way, she belonged to him. She wanted to believe that it was the latter, but Ruby felt stupid for hoping that.
It made recording her album harder, watching as her music was pulled away from her and turned into Frankenstein's monster at Johnny's hands. Some songs were replaced, forcing her to spend hours writing new music in the confines of her small apartment─ never once did she bother with pulling out her guitar for it, knowing that whatever she'd come up with would only get changed. Ruby kept reminding herself that at least she had her words, knowing that the moment he'd hire a songwriter, it would break her completely.
She tried her hardest to keep it together, but with every day she spent in the studio, the more tired she became of Johnny controlling everything.
There had been a moment when she opted to stay late, forced to work on another song and wanting to use the studio space─ something that she had to pay for as Johnny wasn't willing to. The second she was alone, she broke down completely, tears ruining her makeup and struggling to calm herself down.
After a point, Ruby did, forcing herself onto her feet and heading to the bathroom to pull herself together. And it was a good thing for when she looked at herself in the mirror, mascara was running down her face that she scrubbed away, and her hair was messy that she found herself throwing it into a messy braid, not caring if it didn't look perfect. Nothing could rid herself of her bloodshot eyes, but she did enough.
Yet it didn't seem like enough when she took a few steps into the hallway and instantly walked into Warren. When his hands were on her, she instantly pulled herself out of his hold.
"You okay?"
Ruby shrugged, rubbing at her arms. "Just tired," she replied, hoping that the excuse was believable, and he wouldn't realise that she had just cried her eyes out minutes prior. "You know how this shit can get."
He chuckled, rubbing at the back of his neck. "You get used to the late nights. Anything you need help with?"
"Don't you have your own album to be working on?" She asked.
"Eh, I'm not needed right now, they're messing around with the guitar solo right now."
She wasn't convinced, but it didn't mean that she wanted to reject his offer. If only Johnny hadn't decided to make an appearance, Ruby catching him from over Warren's shoulder.
Ruby cleared her throat. "Thank you for the offer, but I should be fine. I'll see you later."
Johnny was there the moment that she stepped back into the studio, Ruby wanting nothing more than to run. But she didn't get a chance to, not when his hands were on her, grip tight enough that she was worried that it would leave behind bruises.
"I don't think you understood my warning, Ruby. When you signed that contract, you became something that I owned─ your name, your music, you are mine. And now, what I've been asking of you has been pretty limited. . ." His hand began to stroke her cheek. "I'm going to be wanting more from you the more we work together, and that can't happen with distractions floating around."
She frantically nodded. "Of course. I uh. . . I know I said that I was going to stay, but I'm tired, you know. . . Been here since the early hours of the morning. I was thinking about heading home instead, get some sleep and spend my day off working on that song."
His hand continued grazing her cheek. "That's probably for the best, no distractions at home."
"Right."
When he let her go, Ruby couldn't leave the studio fast enough. Unable to breath until she was in the comfort of her own home.
To make matters worse, she couldn't sleep, tossing and turning before giving up and grabbing her song book and scribbling lyrics down as the sun began to rise. She poured her frustrations out, disguising it as a song about being in love, not wanting to go against the image that Johnny had created for her. But she knew what lingered underneath.
You, with your words like knives
And swords and weapons that you use against me.
You have knocked me off my feet again,
Got me feeling like I'm nothing.
He scowled her at after she had finished singing for him the next day, arms crossed in a way that se already knew what he was going to say that before he even said them. Ruby had thought that she had done enough to disguise her true intentions behind the song Mean, pitching it as something she had written remembering all the words that those in her hometown had said to her and wanting nothing more than to prove them wrong. But no matter what, it was the wrong move in his eyes, didn't match the theme of love that they were going for.
It was only when she pulled out When Emma Falls in Love─ something she had written back in high school that whatever was brewing within his mind had ceased completely and he was satisfied. Placing her hand on his cheek, he praised her, but it flew over her head when his touch felt like it was burning her skin.
She tried to wash herself of it as they worked on the song, knowing that once it was done, the album was done. But every time her eyes drifted to Johnny who was sitting in the sound booth, and every time she did, she noticed the way that he was looking at her. The distance and the glass between them were nothing to hide the predatory look that lingered within his eyes.
"When Emma falls in love, she paces the floor. . ."
Once the song was recorded, and the album was finished aside from a few possible edits here and there, an offer to go out to drinks to celebrate had been rejected by Ruby. Seeing their dejected faces made her feel guilty, and it wasn't as if she didn't dislike them, Ruby had grown rather fond of them, but going out no longer seemed appealing to her, regardless for the reason. But especially not when all she wanted to do was listen to all the songs that had been recorded, to hear all her heard work.
Yet when she finally found herself sitting in the booth alone, feet pulled up onto the chair with her chin resting on her knees, Ruby wasn't exactly sure how to feel about what she was listening to. Maybe it was due to the fact that it no longer felt like hers with Johnny staining every word that slipped from her lips. Something felt wrong and Ruby felt numb.
"I run my fingers through your hair,
And watch the lights go wild."
Someone whistled and Ruby's feet dropped to the ground. Upon seeing Warren standing there, arms crossed as he leaned against the doorway. Ruby could not have stopped the music quick enough.
"Don't you have an album to record?" She asked, trying her best to get him to go away without saying it outright.
He shrugged, stepping into the room and grabbing one of the empty chairs where he proceeded to sit backwards on it, resting his arms against the top of the back of the chair. "We stopped to get some food and considering Eddie's not girlfriend brought us food, we're not going to get back into it for a while."
"Not girlfriend?"
"They're complicated."
She nodded slowly. "Right."
Warren wheeled the chair closer to her, propping his chin on his forearms. "So. . ."
"So?" She repeated, arching a brow as she stared at him.
But he said nothing, instead reaching over to play the music once more.
"Just keep on keeping your eyes on me,
It's just wrong enough to make it feel right."
Ruby found herself unable to look over at him, instead picking at the bottom of her shirt. Her greatest worry wasn't what he thought, whether or not he hated her music because really, she knew that it wasn't going to always be what people liked. But no, she worried he'd hear her words and know they were written about him. About that night.
"And lead me up the staircase,
Won't you whisper soft and slow.
I'm captivated by you, baby,
Like a fireworks show."
"Fuck cariño," he breathed out.
"Is that a good reaction?" Ruby asked, peaking at him through her bangs.
"Good? I know you were talking yourself up back in Philly but. . . You're something else," he admitted, grinning at her.
"'Cause I see sparks fly whenever you smile."
Fuck, how those words hadn't changed, making her pinkened cheeks turn a deeper shade of red.
"You've barely heard one song."
"Good thing I've got time."
She opened her mouth to say something, but Ruby should've known that their moment wouldn't last long. The second that the door opened, Ruby thought the worse. They were barely sitting close, but she could only do everything that she could to ensure that what they were doing couldn't be questioned.
"Oh, sorry," Johnny apologised, holding a cup of coffee in his hand that Ruby could only assume was for her.
Shaking his head, Warren stood up. "I should get back to it," he said. He turned back to Ruby and she almost told him to stay. "I'll see you later."
All she could do was nod before he left her along with Johnny.
The older man sighed, shaking his head as he set down the coffee in a place where it would spill over any equipment. "Ruby, we talked about this."
She frowned. "But I've finished─"
"What? One album?" He questioned, cocking his head to the side. "You're still tied to me whether you want to be or not. But. . ." Johnny approached, crouching down in front of her. "If you don't want this as much as you once did when you practically threw yourself at me" ─ she didn't, but she was far too scared to correct him ─ "Then say the word and I can let you go. You can go back home to your mother and your music won't be released."
Ruby hated how tempting the offer was. This was everything that she wanted and now she wasn't sure that it was worth it anymore thanks to the man who was in front of her. But Ruby also knew that everything he had done to her would've been for nothing.
"No," she said. "I want this."
With the way that he looked at her, she might've thought that she proclaimed her desire for him.
One more album became a mantra. No longer being in the studio with Johnny meant that she could do things without looking over her shoulder, slowly growing comfortable in her skin.
Yet if there were one thing that she knew, it was that things didn't always last, not when they had an album cover to shoot and that predatory stare she had grown accustomed to was ever-present. As she stood with the stylist as they were discussing outfits choices. Ruby lost track of how many dresses she had tried on, and with everyone of them, Johnny's predatory stare kept her trapped, now added with wandering hands. By the time it was over, and Ruby found herself in her shitty apartment, she stripped herself and scrubbed herself until she felt clean. Ruby just wished that it was enough.
Constantly, she found herself reminding herself that she owed him two albums before her contract was gone with. Enchanted was the first, and once it was released, it almost eased her mind, but not enough, knowing that she would have to go through it all over again.
Ruby tried to focus on something else. But it was hard.
Ruby had no friends, she had tried with her band, but after a point she stopped trying out of fear, worried about what Johnny would do if she so much looked in their direction. Writing music seemed harder, she tried but the pages became nothing more than ripped paper thrown around her apartment.
She needed to get out, unable to remember the last time she had actually left the apartment that wasn't for food.
Stepping into the record store, pulling off her glasses she saw herself amongst the rows of records, but she found herself unable to go near it. Ruby had barely even listened to it, there had been once, when she had sat down with Johnny and Lewis and a few other people, but the songs fell upon deaf ears, especially when every praise that came out of someone's mouth was directed at Johnny. The lyrics, the sound─ everything. It didn't matter who's voice it was or who wrote the lyrics, she was just money and a face to them.
Sighing, she tore her eyes away from her album─ was it even that at this point? ─ and convinced herself that she needed a new guitar. Ruby knew that she didn't, but she wanted to do something for herself, try to celebrate.
"If I buy your album, would you sign it for me?" Someone asked, his voice causing Ruby to jump, but relax when she realised it was just Warren.
"I don't think it's your taste," she replied. "It's not exactly rock and roll."
He shrugged. "Didn't stop me from buying it a few days ago."
Her eyes widened at that, finding herself embarrassed over the fact that he had heard the lyrics that she had written with him in mind. Not every love song on that album was written about him directly─ not like Enchanted─ but every time she had sung Sparks Fly and Last Kiss she couldn't help but think of him. Fuck, maybe she did write it about him without realising it.
"You. . . You listened to it?" She asked in disbelief.
"Of course, I did," he replied. "How could I not after that little preview I got a few weeks ago."
Ruby couldn't help but frown as she dropped her gaze to the floor. "Did. . . Was it good?" Lifting her head, she saw the way that his expression softened, almost shocked that she had dared to ask.
"Fuck, cariño, was it good?" He scoffed, and it worried Ruby. "Of course, it was. I'm jealous of the guy those lyrics were about."
She didn't mean to, really, she didn't. But the laugh slipped out as she registered what he said. Ruby knew that he had no idea what she was laughing about, especially in an unattractive manner─ one that was loud and had her covering her mouth with her hand to stifle it down. Embarrassment quickly filled her body, but she couldn't stop laughing. If she were braver, she'd admit that the only person he was jealous of was himself. But Ruby wasn't. Instead, she found herself resting her forehead against his shoulder, finally managing to put an end to her laughter, and doing so out of embarrassment.
"What's so funny?" He asked, his own laughter escaping him.
Lifting her head up, Warren's hand as placed upon her back, and when she noticed it was there, she too noticed how close they were standing. It was as if they were standing in that hotel hallway away, catching their breaths before he pulled her back in again for another kiss. She wanted to chase that feeling again. To know if he would still kiss her the same way.
But Johnny's words invaded her mind, and suddenly, Warren's gentle touch was replaced with the harsh one that belonged to Johnny. It was enough for her to pull back from him, his touch suddenly burning her skin.
"I'm sorry," she blurted out and nothing he could say could stop her from leaving the store in a hurry.
Ruby hated feeling that way, wanting nothing more than to shed herself of her skin and make way for a new layer that hadn't been touched by him. But it was made worse with the guilt that someone who had once ignited sparks with every brush of his hand, no longer made her feel that way all thanks to someone else.
Suddenly, making music wasn't something that she wanted anymore. Ruby just wanted to pack her things and disappear, go somewhere where no one would know her name and Ruby Tuesday would be pulled into obscurity. Everyone would question what happened to her.
But she knew that it wouldn't happen. The only way she'd be free was once that second album was done and released.
It was enough to get her writing.
But the bubble she had forced herself into didn't last long, not when Johnny had to come along and pop it with a single phone call. It was how she found herself sitting at a table with Johnny, Teddy Price, Rod Reyes and Daisy Jones and The Six.
She was trying everything that she could to remain calm, ignoring how Warren's eyes would constantly drift to her, ignoring how closely Johnny was sitting to her. Ruby felt like she couldn't fucking breathe, and yet she was stuck. Every word that was spoken are words that she barely hung onto, knowing the basics, that Daisy Jones and the Six were going on tour and somehow Ruby Tuesday had been picked as their opener. Admittedly, it almost made her laugh, feeling like the world was playing some cruel trick on her. But it wasn't.
"Look," Billy Dunne spoke up. "I don't think she's the right fit to open for us."
The blonde scoffed. "You've only heard one song, how is that any indication that she isn't the right fit?" She asked, staring Billy blankly in the eyes.
She shook her head. "None taken." Ruby then found herself sitting up straight. "Look, I know that I'm the complete opposite of sex, drugs and rock and roll, but it doesn't mean that I can't do this. I have songs that can be altered─"
"That won't be necessary," Johnny interrupted, hand placed on her thigh.
Had his words not stopped her from speaking, his hand placement would have. Ruby tried everything that she could to not show that it was affecting her in any way. But when his hand squeezed her thigh as he continued talking, robbing her of choosing what songs she wanted to perform, her body tensed and she curled into herself, hugging her body as she forced herself not to pick at her nails. As the conversation continued, Ruby not speaking and given the fact that no one aside from Warren and the blonde women even looked in her direction the entire time, she knew that her voice wasn't needed. Really, all she wanted was to leave.
And when they finally were dismissed, Ruby couldn't have gotten out of there fast enough, hoping that it wasn't obvious what she was doing.
"Ruby!"
Stopping in her tracks, she clenched her eyes shut as she heard Warren's footsteps. Sucking in a deep breath, she turned to face him. "Listen, I can't talk─"
"I just wanted to ask if you were okay," he said, words coming out in a hurry that Ruby almost didn't understand them.
She stood up straight. "I'm fine."
He nodded, but she knew it wasn't because he was convinced that she was. "So, someone of us were going to get some lunch and I was wondering─"
"Thank you but I can't."
Her heart shattered as she left him standing there. But she knew that it would be for the better. If he felt anything for her, it was towards a person that no longer existed, and she wouldn't allow him to hold onto that.
She did know that of course things would get complicated when they went on tour, but that was a problem for the future.
If only time would move slowly enough that it didn't happen within the blink of an eye. The weeks passed by and it didn't take long before she was thrown into rehearsals.
Daisy Jones's absence had been a point of tension between the band, Billy practically breathing down the bassist's─ Eddie's─ throat by demanding he ask his girlfriend for answers about her whereabouts. A red head did end up in the studio that day, but not the one they were looking for, and whatever news she had come back with, it was clear that the band didn't like it.
And yet despite everything, they still rehearsed, Ruby stepping up to help them by doing Daisy's vocals, knowing that they needed a female singer and while Karen Sirko was perfectly capable of the job herself, it meant that they wouldn't be working with her backing vocals. It didn't take long for Ruby to regret it, her sticking around longer during rehearsals meant that Johnny did also to keep an eye on his talent, and it made it harder to be in the same room as Warren.
Ruby was thankful when Daisy returned, but it meant she became aware of the fact that Daisy Jones and The Six were a mess. She was present when Daisy began to make demands of the setlist with Billy arguing with her at every suggestion. She overheard Eddie and Warren talking about how Billy and Daisy couldn't stand to be in the same room together before the two of them began to question what was the argument that happened between Billy and Daisy that led to her sudden disappearance to Greece, as well as them complaining about Daisy's husband. And yet Ruby couldn't find it in herself to dislike what was going on─ two tour buses meant that she didn't have to be in a tour bus with Warren, and Nicky's husband started getting along with Johnny that her manager and producer's focus was no longer on her.
It still wasn't enough to keep her at ease and it was why she found herself sitting at a table with Rod Reyes sitting opposite her.
"I need to ask you something, but I would prefer this conversation remain between us."
"Don't worry, I'd be a pretty shitty tour manager if I spilled everyone's secrets," he reassured her.
She nodded. "How much of what happens on tour do you report to the performer's manager?"
Sitting up straight, it was clear Rod wasn't expecting her to ask that. "It always depends. Johnny did ask me to keep an eye on you, but I can ignore that request."
"Look, I don't plan on doing anything─ I'm not the kind of person to get high or. . . I don't know, fucking go streaking in front of everyone but. . . I want to be able to do anything without feeling like he's breathing down my neck."
Something washed over Rod's face and Ruby couldn't help but fidget in her seat. "If there's something going on─"
"Please. . . I just. . ." Her words were caught in her throat.
"I can do that," Rod finally replied. "It's actually the easiest request someone's asked of me."
"Thank you."
Despite Rod's promise to her, it didn't stop Johnny from showing up when it was time to leave for the tour. No matter how hard Ruby tried to keep away from him, it caught her in the end. With his hand on her arm, Ruby could only listen as talked to her, telling her not to get into trouble─ it was another situation where most of what he was saying completely flew over her head.
It was Rod that stepped in, letting her know that it was better she put her suitcases on the bus. Ruby couldn't be more thankful, gently squeezing his arm as a thank you. She was even more thankful that Johnny didn't do anything, not when Rod distracted him enough for Ruby to get her things on the bus before getting on herself.
Ruby felt more at ease being on the road, driving further and further away, it helped that she was instantly roped into conversation with her band members. But there was still this underlying fear about actually going on stage. While she had performed before, it felt different, being under the light, seeing the crowd of thousands in front of her. No one would be there for her, they were there for Daisy Jones and The Six, but she was the opener after all, they would have to sit through her performance before theirs.
The anxiety worsened the closer they got to the show. During the soundcheck, she had fumbled her words during The Story of Us and while it had been minor, something that barely anyone had noticed─ although if you were to ask Ruby, she felt like people were just saying that because it was apparent, she was panicking. Everyone was trying to calm her down, there had been a few offers of drugs to help her, but they were quickly rejected.
"Here," Rod said, holding out a flask for her.
"What's in it?"
"Whisky."
Rolling her eyes, she took the flask and took a long sip. Ruby regretting it almost immediately feeling it burn her throat and she couldn't stop the cough that escaped her. "That's fucking foul. I can never understand how people willingly drink that shit," she said, passing the flask back to Rod.
"If you tell me what you drink, I can have it on standby."
She shook her head. "I don't want to be one of those people who rely on drugs and alcohol to get through a show. It's just nerves for the first show."
"You get used to it," Rod told her. "Just pretend there's no one out there."
"Easier said than done," she grumbled underneath her breath.
"Could picture them naked."
"Oh my god. . ."
"How about this, you sing those little love songs, then just sing to that person, or make one up. But you've got five minutes."
Once alone, Ruby found herself looking over at where Warren stood with his bandmates. They hadn't talked since she had brushed him off two months ago. There had been moments, their eyes would meet across the room, and it was a matter as to who would look away first─ most often it was Ruby, but it didn't mean she wouldn't look back the moment she felt his gaze shift from her. But there hadn't been any words spoken between the two, they had gotten close to having a conversation after Ruby had left the dressing room and walked straight into him. Both of them had apologised and that typical awkward laugh had escaped them both.
"You look good, Ruby," he had told her.
Ruby had barely managed a thank you before Warren's attention was pulled elsewhere.
She knew that she couldn't complain about how things were, after all, it was a situation of her own making. Constantly she kept getting scared of what Johnny might do to her, scared of him taking that step she deeply feared, that as a consequence, she pushed him away for her own safety. There were many things that one might say to that, but no matter how she craved him, wanted him to take her in his arms and kiss her before burying himself inside of her until she forgot her own name.
As she walked on stage, her purple dress flowing in the wind with every step, Ruby rolled her shoulders back, taking a deep breath, she was going to fucking perform.
"Hey Albuquerque!"
Getting the crowd railed up was easy enough, she had dreamed of this moment time and time again that the words came easy to her. It made her feel a little stupid for freaking out backstage, but the idea of performing in front of a crowd of so many people for the first time, Ruby couldn't properly feel embarrassed for it.
From the wings, she could see the others standing there watching, but her mind only lingered on Warren. He was there with when sung Sparks Fly, whenever Ruby would move in a way that gave her the perfect angle of him. It was hard to look anyone but him, but she managed to do so.
But taking Rod's advice, singing to Warren, it gave Story of Us a new meaning.
"And we're not speaking and I'm dying to know,
Is it killing you like it's killing me? Yeah.
I don't know what to say since the twist of fate,
Cause we're going down.
And the story of us looks a lot like a tragedy now.
The end."
The moment she was offstage, her band pulled her into a hug, practically pulling her off her feet as they danced around backstage.
After the first performance, every other got easier.
The tour got easier in certain ways. Ruby found herself conversing with her band members, properly getting to know them better than she would have with Johnny breathing down her neck. She had a few conversations with Daisy Jones and The Six, but they were nothing substantial, only praising her performance each night and vice versa.
If anything, the one member of the band that she spent most of her time with was Billy and it was mostly spent in silence. With Ruby being someone who often avoided going to any of the after-show parties, she found it easier to sleep in what was proclaimed the sober bus to avoid all of that, which meant that Billy was there as often as she was. Few times he had tried to talk with her, asking her about the music she was writing, but it was always the wrong conversation starter, if there were a few things Ruby wouldn't tell anyone about, her music was at the very top, especially when she was in the middle of writing and while she had lyrics written down, there were nothing that formed any songs. It was something she wouldn't show her mother, let alone someone she considered a stranger. Thankfully, after a point Billy stopped bothering her, only asking her if she wanted to watch a movie with him, she always did, but she spent more time writing than paying attention.
Dallas was when a wretch was thrown into everything.
The night before their Dallas show, Ruby wasn't surprised when she found herself unable to sleep. Nerves always hit her the night before and left her tossing and turning before eventually giving up. Sleeping in a hotel made it easier for her to sneak out of her room with her guitar case in hand and songbook in the other.
Ruby wasn't exactly sure how long she had been sitting there, messing around with certain cords, reworking lyrics that didn't flow right, but at some point she heard someone step outside. At first, she thought that it was someone else and Ruby paid no attention to them.
Until Warren laid down in the pool chair next to her, stretching his legs out in front of him and practically melting into the seat.
"Rough night partying?" Ruby found herself asking, referring to the fact that Warren was dressed in everything aside from a shirt─ something that Ruby found herself extremely distracted over. But looking at him, she knew that he was intoxicated in every sense, why else would he sit with her?
"I don't get you," he admitted, words slurred.
Ruby griped her guitar tighter. "I know you don't, and it's because you're holding onto someone who doesn't exist anymore."
"Then who are you?"
She didn't get the chance to answer, not when Eddie came along─ far more sober than Warren was─ and managed to coax Warren back inside, but not without shooting Ruby an apologetic look.
When she finally made her way back to her room, Warren's question was playing on repeat on her mind simply because she couldn't find any answer. She could tell you who Ruby Tuesday was; a rising star who had everyone wanting more, people were now screaming her name. But Ruby Morgan had gotten lost in the process.
Your lover in the foyer doesn't even know you.
After that night, despite how much she hated it, The Lucky One continued to form as the days went on. It was a situation of once the words began, they couldn't stop. And they didn't, even when the song had been written, more came after. If only the key to get her comfortable with writing again didn't come at the cost of such a question.
To make everything worse, she and Warren went back to not speaking after that.
They began to exist on parallel lines, always so close together─ passing each other backstage, her hand accidentally brushing against his as she'd leave the stage as he would step onto it. Ruby always catching him doing stupid things, being present for the time that Warren tried to climb on top of the tour bus only to fail barely halfway up and fall into Eddie's waiting arms. And Warren returning to his hotel room whenever Ruby would leave to get some air on nights when she couldn't sleep.
Warren Rojas pushed Jonathan Rand to the back of her mind, and it felt like a slap in the face when his existence made itself known.
It wasn't in person, but it was still bad enough.
The flowers that were delivered to her hotel room had been something she thought nothing of. But then she read the note.
See you tomorrow, sweetheart, JR.
The flowers were on the ground the second that the panic seeped in. Ruby had been stupid to forget about him, allowing herself to grow comfortable simply because he wasn't around. She could only ask herself what his intentions were. Was her time finally up and now she had gotten what she wanted, an album and the opportunity to perform on stage night after night that he was finally wanting more from her. The idea of sleeping with him made her sick to her stomach.
Without shutting her door, she headed to the bathroom, finding herself headfirst in the toilet as she emptied her stomach. All through it, she cried. It took a lot within her to calm herself down, pulling herself up off the floor, the tears didn't stop, even as she wiped her face with toilet paper, they wouldn't stop.
Eventually they did upon Ruby tiring herself out, but she still had a take a few deep breaths before she could find it in herself to do anything. Yet even then, she was numb with everything, as she brushed her teeth to feel clean, her eyes were dead as they stared back at her.
Ruby couldn't recognize the person staring back at her.
Was this the cost of fame, not knowing how she was? If it was, she was beginning to hate it, craving for the days when she was so sure of herself and not second guessing everything.
Rubbing a hand over her face, she headed back into the bedroom but instantly stopped when she saw Warren in the doorway with the bouquet in his hand.
"You got an admirer, huh?"
She knew that his words were innocent, nothing more than a joke. But the words stung because she didn't fucking ask for Johnny to have this infatuation or obsession with her, or maybe he just wanted sexual payment for everything he had done for her. Regardless of Johnny's thought process behind it all, Ruby asked for none of it.
Grabbing the flowers from his grasp, Ruby passed him and headed out into the hallway. At the end, was a maid's cart that Ruby didn't hesitate to throw the flowers in a trash bag.
"So. . . Not from an admirer?"
"They were from my manager. . ." She admitted, arms moving to hug her body.
"Oh. . ."
She shook her head. "Whatever you're thinking, we're not. . ."
"But something is happening, isn't it?"
Ruby hated the way that he looked at her, eyebrows downturned in a way that enhanced the concern in his eyes. It was enough for her to break down again. When she did, Warren didn't hesitate to gently grab her and pull them into an alcove of the hallway.
He hesitated in doing anything else, as if he remembered the way in which she had flinched away from him the last time they stood so close together. But eventually he brought his hands up to her cheeks and began to wipe away her tears.
She didn't know what compelled her to tell him everything in the hotel hallway. Perhaps it was because of his featherlight touch that allowed her to feel comfortable. Or perhaps it was because Warren deserved an answer for the reason as to why she had been treating him. Regardless of the reason, she told him everything.
"So just leave."
She shook her head, tightening her hold on her own body. Ruby wanted nothing more than to hold onto him, but wasn't sure that was something she'd be allowed to do.
"I can't Warren, I signed a contract with him, and I owe him two albums," she replied. "I don't think he'll leave me alone until I do that. And it's not something I can fight. He's a powerful man. . . I don't think people would believe me. . ."
"So, what, you're just going to stay?"
"I told you that night that we met that this was everything I wanted. . . It might not be what I imagined, but I can't give this up." She sighed, leaning back against the wall behind her, Warren moving with her. With him doing so, she placed her hands on his chest, fingers fiddling with the fur of his jacket.
"Then you're not doing it alone."
Ruby stopped what she was doing and lifted her head slightly to look him in the eyes. "What?"
"What? You think I'm going to just let to deal with this alone?" He asked, poking her cheek. "Even if we're friends in secret."
"You know that's going to be extremely hard, right?"
Warren shrugged lazily, his hands moving down to her waist. "I think it'll be fun sneaking around."
"The friends part," she clarified. "You said that you were jealous of the guy I wrote those songs about, I laughed because you're jealous of yourself, Rojas. The second I got home; I wrote Enchanted about you." Ruby curled her fists into his jacket and pulled him in closer. "Whenever I'm on stage, I sing Sparks Fly to you."
"Fuck, cariño."
Warren said it so breathlessly, but Ruby still winced at his words.
"Sorry. . . That was probably unfair for me to admit right now," she said. "I want you, so goddamn much, I'm just scared of what might happen if he finds out." She bit her lip before continuing. "But. . . If things work out, that album might be done by the end of tour."
"Yeah?" He asked, a soft smile on his face. "You need help with that?"
"Wouldn't you prefer to be partying with everyone else?"
"Eh," was all he said, shrugging.
But Ruby sighed, taking her eyes off him and hand at her hands. "Not tonight. . . It's not that I don't want to, it's more that he's supposed to be seeing me tomorrow and─"
"I get it," he interrupted, causing her to nod. "Just as long as you don't go cold on me."
"I can't make any promises," she replied honestly.
At her words, he pulled her in closer, tucking her into his chest and Ruby couldn't help but melt into his hold. For the first time in months, she felt safe, and she wanted nothing more than to stay in his arms. But Ruby knew that she couldn't live within the moment forever.
But they couldn't, and it only took the sound of two people giggling for them to pull apart. Yet even then Warren held her hand as he escorted her back to her room─ "I am a gentleman, cariño," he had said to her and the nickname painted her cheeks pink─ it was difficult. He had lingered in her doorway before Ruby kissed his cheek and rushed inside her room.
She fell asleep dreaming of him.
Waking up the next morning, Ruby prepared herself for the storm she could sense brewing. What might happen, she wasn't sure, but she expected the worst.
Johnny showed up in the middle of her sound check, his voice echoing throughout the venue and interrupting her performance. From where he sat in the front vow with Eddie sitting next to him, Warren's anger wasn't subtle, leg bouncing up and down as he stared at the back of Johnny's head. Not that he wouldn't have deserved it, Ruby was worried that Warren going to get up from his seat and punch him.
Thankfully he didn't. Sound check went smoothly despite the small hiccup at the beginning. Yet the entire time Ruby was waiting for something to happen, tucked in between her bassist and drummer, her leg bounced up and down as she waited to leave. Except Rod seemed to have Johnny's entire attention, something Ruby wasn't sure was intentional or not, but then once everything was over, Rod winked at her as he loudly talked about somewhere they could go for lunch and catch up like old times. Ruby felt like she could breathe.
The storm hit when Ruby was backstage. A knock on the door pulled her from putting on her lipstick, being thankful that the sound had startled her that she smeared her lipstick over her face again. Seeing Johnny in the doorway, once more holding a bouquet of flowers─ fucking roses, God she hated them─, she wished that there was someone else in the room with her.
"You look good in green," he complimented, smiling at her as he stepped into the room.
Despite the fact that she had seen the dress a few times, she still couldn't help but look down at it. While it covered enough, Ruby somehow felt exposed. "Thank you."
He placed the flowers next to her. "I was hoping to stay more than a day, but unfortunately, I'm needed back in LA early tomorrow. I just wanted to cheek in on you, see how you were performing for myself. Rod's been giving me glowing reviews as to how you're doing."
She nodded. "It's been fun," Ruby admitted. "And I've been ensuring that I've been focusing on only my music, no distractions. I, um. . . I've been writing a lot, I might have the second album written by the time this tour is over."
He grinned at her and for a moment she believed that everything was going to be normal. But then his hand went under her chin, keeping her gaze on him, she found herself unable to move, especially when his thumb traced underneath her lip.
"Maybe when you get back, we can discuss things over dinner."
She didn't get the chance to answer, not when Eddie came swinging through the doorway. "Sorry to interrupt," he said, barely appearing apologetic. At his presence, Johnny's hand dropped from her chin. "They're looking for you, something about a pre-show tradition needing to be done."
There was no such thing, but Ruby wasn't going to question it, not when she was given an out.
She nodded. "Right, yes, can't forget about that." Ruby turned to Johnny. "I'll see you later," she said, hoping that she wouldn't.
Ruby tried to look like she wasn't making a hurried exit, shooting Eddie a thankful look before she disappeared to the wings, thankful she managed to get her makeup finished before Johnny made his appearance.
It was her worst show to date. While there were no mess ups, she hadn't tripped over her dress. The most that had happened was Ruby getting hair in her mouth, which wasn't that much of a big deal when she managed to keep singing despite it. She only deemed it her worst as she knew that he was watching her.
By the time she was backstage again, her hands couldn't stop shaking and her quick breathes didn't come from exhaustion. Rod took one look at her and told her to go back to the hotel, "get some sleep, I'll tell everyone that you came down with something."
Sleep was easier said than done, she tossed and turned. Part of her wanted to knock on Warren's door and ask him to hold her. But she had no idea if Johnny was still lurking and thus, she couldn't risk anything.
When Johnny wasn't there by the time everyone was packed and preparing to go onto the bus, Ruby found herself able to relax. It was enough that she asked if she could sit with him on the bus, he grinned at her which was enough of an answer for her, but then he said, "like you had to ask."
They didn't talk, in fact, Ruby spent most of the drive working on various lyrics, kicking Warren anytime that he tried to look over, and at some point, she had fallen asleep, waking up with her head resting on his chest and his arms around her.
Ruby wasn't sure what it was about that weekend, maybe it was opening up to Warren after keeping everything bottled up for so long, maybe it was the comfort that he brought her, maybe it was both, but things began changing. She found herself opening up more with everyone else, getting wrapped up into conversations with Eddie about music. She learned more about the girlfriend of his that she constantly heard about as well as his hatred for Billy that Ruby couldn't blame him for having, and in turn, Ruby opened up about Johnny─ not in full detail, but rather all the expectations Johnny shoved on her.
"Billy gave me shit for only singing about love and heartache, and he wasn't wrong. But Johnny refuses anything that isn't about that," she said.
"Your manager sounds like a dick," he replied.
Ruby sighed. "You have no idea," she said, rubbing her hands up and down her arms, sinking further into her chair as the two of them waited for everything to be set up for soundcheck. "Got angry at me once for having a one-minute-longer conversation with Warren. . . Warned me against certain distractions."
"Is that why─?"
She nodded. "Yeah. . ."
She and Warren become almost inseparable. On nights when they were staying in a hotel, often would he knock on her door and they'd spend the night in her room, him lying sprawled out on her bed with her on the floor as she messed around with lyrics and chords. Secretly, she'd admit that Warren wasn't helpful, not when he'd constantly get distracted just listening to her, so wrapped up in hearing her sing in a way that was rawer than when she was on stage, singing lyrics that were far more vulnerable than anything on Enchanted. She'd hate him getting distracted if the way he looked at her didn't make Ruby feel like she was falling in love with him.
It was a feeling that she knew was growing with every night they spent together.
Originally Ruby would drag him back to his own hotel room before he could fall asleep. But one night the two of them fell asleep before that could happen, and the next morning when she woke up in his arms─ managing to get the one thing she craved, not caring it being under different circumstances than what she wanted. After that, Ruby stopped letting him leave, Warren stopped leaving.
No one said anything when they realised Warren was no longer sleeping in his own hotel room, the most that was, had been Rod asking if they were needing separate rooms. The no slipped from Ruby's lips far too easily that had Warren not bashfully ducked his head down─ the same way he did whenever a compliment would slip from her lips─ she would've retracted her answer.
It did make it easier, but also harder at the same time. Not when Ruby couldn't stop falling for someone she couldn't have yet.
"Do you remember that night by the pool?" She found herself asking, looking at him from where he emerged from the bathroom.
Although her gaze was brief, not when he had completely forgone a shirt and his sweatpants were hanging low on his hips. It was far too domestic compared to other nights that Ruby couldn't handle it. But she swallowed it down.
He straightened at her question. "Please tell me I didn't say anything embarrassing."
A laugh escaped her. "I don't think anything could be as bad as the time you tried to climb the tour bus."
"Eddie would say the raccoon was worse."
"Well, I wasn't there for that, so it doesn't count," she said. "But no. . . You, uh. . . Basically told me that you didn't get me. And after I told you that you were hanging onto someone that didn't exist, so you asked me who was I." He opened his mouth to speak but she continued. "That question drove me insane, especially because the more I thought about it, the more I couldn't find an answer. I could tell you who Ruby Tuesday is, but not Ruby Morgan. But. . . I wanted to give you an answer, or. . . If you don't want it, I at least want to show one person it. . . I don't think Johnny would agree to put this on the album. It's not really a love song."
As he sat down opposite her, he smiles at her. "Well, good thing I'm sticking around to give you more writing material."
She rolled her eyes and shoved his shoulder. "Yes, I very much know." And of course, they had been the two songs that she had first showed him, turning him into a blushing mess. Maybe if things were different, she would've kissed him that night. Ruby cleared her throat. "Okay, here we go."
He laughed her but she glared at him, causing him to shut his mouth.
"New to town with a made-up name. . ."
Ruby didn't look at him as she played, she never did. Not after she had stumbled through her words when she was playing Treacherous─ but perhaps that had been because it was about him. But he always made her nervous just by looking at her.
It wasn't until she finished playing and placed her guitar back in its case that she did and she regretted it immediately. Eddie had once told her after he figured out that she had written songs about Warren that Warren had this look that was solely for her.
"Romeo─ Odette's brother─"
"The Romeo Miller."
Eddie had nodded. "Yes, the Romeo Miller─ Jesus you better not have said that in front of him, it'll increase his ego, and no one needs that. But he once told me that Odette has this specific look for when she's looking at me, and when someone has a look for you, you know they're not going anywhere anytime soon."
She had frowned at him. "Should you be telling me this?"
He shrugged. "For the record, you have a look too. Not as obvious, but you have one. And I'm telling you this if you're worried about Warren getting tired of waiting, don't. I've spent enough time with him to know that he's gone for you, and given the shit you've written, I'm not wrong in saying that you feel the same."
"You're not." Without thinking, she found herself looking over at where Warren stood as he talked with Graham, absent mindedly spinning his drumsticks between his fingers. "But thank you. . ."
Now, as he sat in front of her, she knew more than ever that Eddie's words had been true.
One more fucking album, she reminded herself.
Pittsburgh put distance between them. While there had been offers for her to join them, she brushed them off, opting to instead spend most of her time in Pittsburgh holed up in her hotel room writing down new lyrics, reworking old ones─ the entire time there, she managed to write Nothing New, even going as far as to get chords down that out of all songs she had written, it was the first finished due to its simplicity.
However, despite that, it didn't mean that Ruby wasn't aware of the storm brewing once more, but this time over the heads of every member of Daisy Jones and The Six. She had been backstage when Eddie had been replaced during Two Against Three by Billy, something that caused the bassist to become heated to the point where his fiancé had to be pulled from her seat in the crowd and backstage as she was the only person who could calm him down. And even long before Pittsburgh, she, like the others, were aware of Daisy spiralling out of control with her drug usage that at some point during the tour, she had overdosed. But even long before they even went on tour, Ruby's opinion of the band was that they were a mess.
Really, Chicago didn't surprise her that much.
Ruby did feel bad for Warren and Karen who were the only two standing, no one else even showed up on the bus meaning that they had all left Chicago during the night. It was an awful situation on both ends; while she didn't know what was going on with everyone else, she had spent enough time talking with Eddie to know that he was slowly falling out of love being in the band, it was clear to her that Pittsburgh was his breaking point. But being with Warren and Karen, seeing their dejected looks that never went away even as they landed in the LA airport to return home, she felt especially sympathetic towards them.
"I'm sorry," Warren said to her, causing her to frown as she looked over at him.
"What for?"
"The tour being cancelled impacts you too," Karen replied for him.
Ruby shrugged. "Honestly, it was your tour, I was just the opener, it barely impacts me. Besides, means I get back into the studio." Despite everything, Warren managed a smile, understanding the underlying meaning behind the words. "And listen, I know this is probably the worst time ever due to everything, but I might need a drummer and keyboard player for it."
Warren laughed. "You still want me around, cariño?"
"Warren. . ." She said, glaring at him.
Karen smiled at them both. "Thank you for the offer, Ruby."
She nodded. "And uh, if you do manage to find Eddie and patch things up, extend the invitation to him."
There were hugs exchanged between herself and Karen─ something that admittedly shocked her as Ruby talked to her often, she didn't think they were that close─ and then she smirked before making an excuse about needing coffee before they left. Her exit meant that Ruby and Warren could talk alone.
"You sure it's a good idea for me to be your drummer?"
"Might not be but. . . I very much want to snatch you up before someone else does. Plus, if you somehow get Eddie on board, it'll be fine, I've seen him glare at the back of Billy's head─ sorry, was that an awful statement after everything?"
Instead of saying anything, he simply pulled her into a hug. "You better not be a stranger."
Ruby scoffed as she wrapped her arms around him. "You have my address and number, Rojas, you're probably going to show up at my door a lot."
"You can bet on it."
It did end up happening a day later, but it wasn't what Ruby was expecting. She was expecting Warren, yes, but seeing Eddie lingering behind him, it confused her for a moment.
At least until Warren titled his head to the side and said, "don't we have an album to record?"
She felt embarrassed at how quickly she burst into tears in front of them both.
Somehow, recording Red was both easier and harder than Enchanted. Ruby didn't miss the way that Johnny's jaw tightened when she admitted that thanks to her time touring with Daisy Jones and The Six, both Eddie and Warren had offered their services to her under the guise that they wanted to work with her─ which wasn't a lie, it was the truth, but Ruby knew it was more than that. That fact made her wonder out loud to them if that was why Johnny suddenly went from "oh, we'll get the studio booked as soon as possible" to fumbling over a booked and busy schedule within a matter of minutes. Her point was further proven when two months had passed and still, he continued to brush her off.
Although that was something she couldn't be too mad about, not when it was clear that everyone needed a break after the disastrous tour. And thanks to Ruby's newfound friendship with not only Eddie and Warren, but also with Ivy Dane─ someone who she managed to befriend during Daisy Jones and The Six's SNL appearance─ which led to her becoming friends with Eddie's fiancé, Odette along with her brother, Romeo fucking Miller and author James Hannigan, Ruby wasn't as lonely as she once was. No longer did she spend her days holed up in her apartment, but rather she was finally living her life. Although she quickly learned that even if she tried to stay home, there were too many people around her that would drag her out.
By the time they were in the studio, Ruby having implied that Eddie was scary enough to help her deal with Johnny had been in fact true. There had been moments when they'd be going over chords─ Eddie stepping up as guitarist─ and trying to work on making things sound right, Johnny would interject and try to say that it wasn't the sound they were going for, and always would Eddie turn to Ruby and say, "is this how you want it to sound?" And when she'd nod, Eddie would simply glare at Johnny until he backed down. And it wasn't as if Johnny could accuse anything happening between Eddie and Ruby considering Odette was always bringing everyone lunch whenever she could, and no one would dare accuse Eddie of cheating on her since it was obvious that even without the engagement ring on her finger that they were completely and utterly in love with each other.
It did cause Johnny to back down with the way he acted around Ruby, but she supposed it didn't help that either Eddie or Warren─ especially Warren─ would let Johnny have an opportunity to be alone with her.
Once the album was done and something that Ruby could listen to without feeling like it was no longer hers, and the cover photoshoot managed to happen without any problems, especially with Ivy being present as her stylist. And when Red hit stores, Ruby felt like she could finally wash her hands of Johnny Rand.
But of course, that didn't happen, not when he had been working behind the scenes and organising a tour that she couldn't say no to. It did make her especially guilty when its existence was the reason as to why Eddie and Odette had to postpone their wedding plans as it would overlap. Ruby couldn't apologise enough for the fact.
"Rue," Odette had said to her the day they left. "Stop saying sorry. I knew what I was walking into when I agreed to marry him─ sure, we didn't realise The Six would crash and burn the way it did, but I still knew. Besides, I can't be mad when Eddie loves working with you; unlike Billy fucking Dunne, you value his opinion, not to mention. . . It might be his last chance to perform before he steps back from it for a while."
This tour felt different, but Ruby knew that it was because it was hers, going from opener to headliner. Everyone was screaming out her name, singing or screaming along to her songs. Standing on stage the first night, Ruby Tuesday finally felt like she made it.
But by the time it was over, she couldn't hate the fact. Ruby hated being on the road the first time, this time was no different.
Yet it also marked changed.
All throughout everything; recording Red, touring and performing night after night, Warren was there throughout. Things had changed between them, when in LA, while they spent a lot of time together, often were they barely alone, there was always someone or a few people with them, and with Johnny still hanging over Ruby's shoulder, regardless of the fact that he hadn't done anything to her, Warren still kept his distance from her. While on tour, they ended up fitting into the same routine as they did with the Aurora tour, less song writing and more Ruby falling asleep in Warren's arms because was constantly exhausted the moment she'd get off stage.
Ruby knew that she had fallen in love with him long before then, now she was getting impatient.
A few days after her Red tour had ended, she found herself sitting in Teddy Price's office, leg moving up and down as he read over her contract. Once they had gotten back, Romeo had suggested that maybe Ruby go speak with someone else that worked with him to ensure that with everything done and dusted, she could move on from working with Johnny without issues, and then Odette had jumped up from Eddie's lap and called Teddy─ someone who apparently, she was still in contact with despite Daisy Jones and The Six had broken up.
That meeting, part of her wanted to tell him everything, but once she had sat down, Ruby couldn't do it. There might've been a chance that Teddy believed her, but it didn't guarantee that anything would happen to him. Really, Warren was the only person that knew everything─ Eddie knew pieces but not the full reality, and the others simply knew that Johnny was a little too controlling over her music. Ruby might've escaped his clutches enough that he hadn't made a move on her, but he was still a powerful man, and he still terrified her.
As far as Teddy was aware, Ruby wanted to move on and needed to know that there was nothing holding her back, and thankfully he accepted that answer.
"Well," he finally said, leaning back in his seat and place the contract on the desk in front of him. "You gave him two albums, really, you're contact ended when your second was released─"
"Wait. . . But what about the tour?"
"That is a grey area and unfortunately since you're not my client, it's not something I'm able to answer," he replied. "I can tell you that unless you sign a new one, Johnathan is no longer your manager."
It was the best news she had fucking heard in a long time.
Saying her goodbyes to Teddy and thanking him one too many times before Ruby left the building with one thing on her mind.
After the band broke up, Warren ended up taking the spare room and found himself living with Romeo, James and Ivy─ and that was the place in which she found herself going to. It's pouring down with rain by the time she got there, poorly parking in their driveway, although considering there were no cars parked, Ruby didn't think she'd be there long. It was a long shot that Warren was even home to begin with.
And it wasn't, that was clear after a few minutes of her knocking that no one was─ well, James and Romeo could've been, she knew about their relationship and knew that due to their living situation with having two roommates, they very much took advantage of having an empty house─ Ruby went to leave. But she barely turned around before someone called out to her.
Seeing Warren approached her, getting drenched by the rain, Ruby, despite being under cover, she found herself meeting him halfway.
"What are you doing here?"
"I just talked with Teddy to make sure my contact had ended."
"Yeah?"
She nodded, and instead of saying anything else, she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him in for a kiss. It was messy; hands grasping as each other, Ruby carding her fingers through his hair, his gripping at her lower back as he pulled her body in close, the rain didn't fucking help, making them pull apart a lot sooner than either of them wished.
"So, how about that date?"
AUTHOR'S NOTE / 🎸 so, i didn't write this into the chapter, but i did have this in my notes, so here are the tracklists for ruby's albums which are just the taylor swift albums with songs removed (i'm not creative enough to make up songs) (i'm also sorry for the fearless erasure, it was meant to be her first album but some of the songs weren't working. i do love fearless). these are also in no order and are only ruby's first three albums, we'd be here a while if i did this for all of them.
SPEAK NOW OR ENCHANTED IN THIS UNIVERSE (i have no excuse for changing the album name other than wanting to have one worded titles) / mine. sparks fly. speak now. the story of us. enchanted. last kiss. when emma falls in love. foolish one (this one made me giggle for reasons you all won't understand just yet and will probably forget by the time it's explained). timeless.
RED / holy ground (warren on the drums is all i have to say about this one). state of grace*. treacherous*. sad beautiful tragic. the lucky one. nothing new (in my heart this is a daisy jones feature but i don't know if it works in the timeline because daisy would've been in). i bet you think about me (probably with eddie as the ft. artist). forever winter. red.
*songs that ruby showed warren during their late night writing sessions.
EVERMORE / willow. gold rush. tolerate it (totally about her time under johnny's contract). happiness. dorothea (i imagined she lowkey wrote this about odette, and no this isn't me saying that because odette herself was inspired by that song, what are you talking about?). coney island. ivy (inspired by daisy and ivy). long story short. evermore. it's time to go.
🎸 i was 10k words into this chapter when i realised that maybe what i was writing was a little too similar to summertree, and if it does too much, with the whole waiting thing, i do apologise for that. i did consider changing it, but for one, i was far too deep into the chapter to consider doing that and also had no idea where to add the change in. and then i was going to change it again, but i had the ending in mind and given sparks fly is one of their songs,,,, i had to use it.
🎸 but this chapter was so fucking fun to write. ruby's story admittedly had been planned out far better than ivy's, and while some elements expanded into something different (like her plot line with johnny, it was originally tame but i wanted to explore something more with it), but it feels nice to actually write it. especially her and eddie's friendship, they were always going to have a bit of a sibling relationship in a way that mirrored odette and warren, and i hated barely exploring it in chapter 15.
🎸 and then there's ruby and warren who,, i was going to call a roller-coaster but compared to daisy and ivy, they're not, but they're great together. just two people, clearly in love with each other (far more obvious with it than summertree were before they got back together), unable to do anything about it because johnny rand fucking sucks. every fucking love song ruby wrote is about that man and honestly, fucking goals.
🎸 i do hope though that warren feels in character. i'll admit, i struggled writing him because he's always shown as a carefree guy, like even when he and eddie argue during the last episode, he was still a little chill. however, i also didn't rewatch the show for this chapter, i'm sorry, i've watched djats way too much of this fic that i still can't really be motivated to watch it again anytime soon. so yeah, if warren is out of character, i am so sorry about it.
🎸 anyways, i hope you all enjoyed this chapter, one more to go before i can finally close this book. don't forget to vote/comment.