The middle of November still delivered a foreign warmth against Trystan's back. Her Adidas tennis shoes beat against the gravel of the empty road as she jogged about the hidden countryside. Bella trotted along beside her, surprisingly keeping up with Trystan's pace gleefully. Though Trystan had to halt her exercise to accommodate the little piglet's incessant need to nip at grasshoppers in the roadside grass, Bella gave her little problems. If Trystan were to get the animal's energy out now, a bath and a warm bottle of milk would surely put her out until the evening. "Come on, Bella." Trystan tugged at the leash clipped onto the pig's collar, and she sided Trystan's leg obediently.
Trystan felt unapologetically blithe since the day they'd finally gotten Elle Marie, the singer of their composition, into the studio. To all of their surprise, the songstress with the less-than-admirable vocals had blown them all away when she cantillated the ballad style of the song rather than its original pop-inspired beat. If Peter's arrangement hadn't been the binding factor, Elle's voice certainly had been.
"Told you so," Trystan had whispered to Peter when Elle belted a note on the tenth chord, executing the transition beautifully. Whether or not Peter realized Trystan had also been referring to his composition in all was unbeknownst to her, but there was no confusing the smile she saw on Peter's face when he told the artist, "And that's a take."
That's what Trystan did it for—the breath of relief and satisfaction when songs came alive. Production and songwriting was Trystan's expertise, and there was no greater feeling than seeing that skill crossover through artist who could expand her creations. That made it worth every frustration.
Trystan smiled as she approached her temporary home. Bella scampered inside once she opened the door, surely hungry from the run. Knowing exactly where her bottles of milk were, she oinked at the refrigerator. "Nope. Bath first." Trystan scooped the piglet into her arm, much to the animal's divergence. She squealed and squealed until Trystan placed her in a tin tub full of lukewarm water and lavender oil. Bella instantly quieted, soothed by the bath.
Trystan left the little pig playing around in the water and went back to the kitchen to prepare a post-exercise snack.
"You were a nightmare that turned into a fantasy. Now I can't bare not seeing you in my dreams," Trystan sang softly Elle Marie's song as she chopped a variety of fruits on a cutting board. "They say love can turn smart girls into fools. That must be right, because suddenly I was falling for you."
The trill of her cell phone halted her from continuing into the pre-chorus of the song. She surveyed the lock screen and saw that it was her boss, Mr. Stevens."
"Hey, Steve!" she answered by his preferred appellation. "What's up?"
"What's up with you? You barely contact me for two weeks and then I get a call from Lance saying you might have a hit record on your hands?" Trystan knew the elder wasn't truly upset with her. His jovial nature was one of the reasons everyone at Espresso loved him so much.
She giggled, "I'm sorry. I just got really caught up in the studio, but Lance tells you, right; I think we all came up with a number one. Fingers crossed, of course."
"Well, keep those fingers crossed, because I've got some news for you."
"Good or bad?"
"One could be great, and the other has potential."
"So good?"
"Maybe. Are you available to Skype? I'm with Lance right now in PA going over some business endeavors and we'd both like to speak with you."
Trystan's stomach instantly turned to knots, and she wished she had a pen to click. She couldn't help but to get nervous before any type of meeting. Sometimes she wished she could tell the future, just to know what to expect.
"Uh, sure. Give me a couple minutes and I'll sign right on."
"Alright."
Trystan ended the call, heart thumping, and went back to Bella, who'd began her "Alright, I wanna get out now," squealing.
"Alright, alright. Hush it up," she admonished as she dried the slick pig with a towel. She set her onto the floor and she scampered off into the kitchen, stopping by the refrigerator. She looked at Trystan, her tail wagging expectantly. "You are something else." Trystan laughingly shook her head as she retrieved the bottle of milk from off the fridge's shelf. As she warmed it in the microwave, Bella watching intently, Trystan hoped she had her nerves together as she set up the skype conversation.
She took a deep breath to alleviate the ragged beating in her chest as both Steve and Lance appeared on her computer screen.
"There's my little hit-maker!" Steve greeted, evoking Trystan's invisible blush. "Oh, stop it." She waved him off and giggled. "You'll have to excuse me; I just came from a run." Trystan gestured toward her workout attire.
"So, Trystan," Steve began, clasping his hands together. "Lance and I were discussing some things and as I said, we've got some news for you."
Trystan's stomach tightened. "What is it?"
"Well, one: Lance and I just listened to "Delusion," . . ."
Trystan didn't want to press, but couldn't help but to egg on, "And . . .?"
"We love it," Lance answered this time.
Trystan could have squealed as joyfully as Bella did when she was tickled, but composed, she replied, "I'm glad you both enjoy it. We went through a lot trying to perfect that song."
"Well, we're glad you went through what you did, because we're extending your stay in L.A. for another week so you can meet with Elle's manager and record label, Vivacity, for a listening session on Monday morning. If they love it as much as we do, it's a single."
"What if they don't like it?" Trystan couldn't help but to inquire. Vivacity was a label known for its brazenness when they were presented with something less-than-admirable. It prided itself on jump-starting new artists' careers, so backed nothing but the best. Anyone lucky enough to be promoted by Vivacity were sure to become legendary.
"If they don't for any reason, you'll be going back to New York with me," Steve answered honestly, giving her a sympathetic look. Trystan would rather him be realistic than set her standards too high. She accepted his candidness.
"However, that brings me into the other set of news I wanted to tell you. Cambridge, the head of Elle's record label, told me that if they like the song and it becomes a hit, they want you to be apart of their composition team here in Los Angeles."
Trystan's mouth dropped and it took everything in her from jumping off the stool she was settled on. "Are you serious?!"
Steve chuckled, "As a heart attack. Just like Lance here, many labels and production companies have been following you as of recent and are very impressed with your work. If this song is released and blows up as we expect it should, there are gonna be companies on top of companies wanting to get their hands on you, and Vivacity is one of them."
Trystan ran her palm against her forehead, unbelieving. "But wait, wait. What about you, Steve? Will I still be working for Espresso?"
"That's the "maybe" news I was telling you about." He gave Trystan a look, insinuating she may not like what he was about to reveal. "If you decide to take Vivacity's offer, you wouldn't be apart of Espresso's writing and production team anymore and would have to relocate."
Trystan's heart sank. "But, I've been with Espresso for three years now; you trained me to become the writer and producer I am today. You've never given me problems and have always been good to me. I don't want to leave you guys."
"Well, nothing's set in stone, Trystan," Steve eased, "but I don't want your connection with us to hold you back. We're more of a local company whereas Vivacity is global. If you were to be apart of something that big, who knows what it would do for Espresso. We'd be the jump-starting production corporation to Vivacity's jump-starting artistry corporation. Think of it as more of a connecting business venture."
Trystan still wasn't convinced, but took his words with consideration. "Aw, come on, Trystan. Don't look to sad. You possibly have a number-one hit on your hands!" Lance spoke up in attempt to brighten her disposition. He succeeded, a small smile forming on Trystan's face. "Like Steve here said; nothing's set in stone just yet, but this could be a great business position for all parties involved. Just think about it, alright?"
Trystan nodded, appreciating their support. Espresso was like family to her, but maybe greater things did lie ahead.
She ended the conversation bearing a debating heart. It was too much to think about in one sitting. Once she got her thoughts together, she was sure to spill to Angelique and her mother, who she knew would have opposing opinions, but would give her things to think about nonetheless. Trystan could either take a risk or play it safe, and the two combative parts of her nature threatened to give her a headache.
Trystan went back over to the microwave and saw Bella still sitting on the floor, patiently awaiting her bottle. She tried to climb up Trystan's leg once she retrieved it. Trystan chuckled softly and brought the piglet into her arms. Bella fed hungrily as Trystan ambled into the living room and plopped onto the couch.
"Be lucky you're only a pig and don't have to make hard, human decisions," Trystan told the little animal as she scratched behind her ears. Bella began to drowse, as Trystan expected, and for once, she didn't mind the piglet falling asleep on her. There were greater things to worry about.
. . .
Thanks for reading ^_^