It was weird for Alex, having to live alone while he was in LA. Every morning he had to remind himself where he was and why Luna wasn't next to him. It was a feeling he did not want to get used to. He texted her that he was awake and did his normal routine of showering and getting ready.
When he stepped out of the shower, he saw his phone light up and realised Luna had called him. He quickly called her back and put it on speaker so he could get ready and talk at the same time.
"Hey." Her voice rang through the phone. "Did you just wake up?" She asked.
"Yeah. I have an interview today with Alexandra since her albums out in a few. It's been mixed and everything so it's very exciting." He told her as he pulled on some jeans.
"And then it's our anniversary on Sunday." She reminded him. Alex stopped getting ready and broke into a grin.
"God, what's it been now like six years?" He teased, practically envisioning her rolling her eyes at him.
"Will you be back by then?" She ignored his joke. There was a silence on his end which undoubtedly gave her her answer. That was one sacrifice Luna knew she had to make with Alex, the fact that he might not be there for birthdays or anniversary's.
"I'm sorry babe." He sighed, knowing she would be let down.
"It's fine. I get it. We'll do something when you get back." She tried to sound like she wasn't bothered but she couldn't help. They had been together for a couple of her birthdays now and he hadn't been there for the majority. She was lucky he made it to their one year.
"I'm going to wine and dine you so good baby." He tried to make up for it.
"Well I'd hope so." Alex put her on the dresser and started to do his hair. "Al, I have to go. I have a meeting with the contractors." She told him.
"Okay. I miss you." He said to the phone.
"I miss you too and..." she paused dramatically. He raised his eyebrows waiting for what she was about to say. "I love you." She sighed as if she had never told him before. He chuckled at her delivery.
"I love you too. See you soon." He answered before hanging up.
Walking downstairs, he realised how quiet the house was. How had he lived alone for so long? It felt wrong that he couldn't yell out a question and it be answered immediately by a voice in the house somewhere. He needed to get home as soon as possible.
Stepping out of house, a strong gust of heat hit him in the face. That's why he had stayed here so long before, the weather had always been his source of happiness. The sun always put him in a good mood regardless of what was going on his life.
He drove to meet Alexandra a good half an hour before the interview as they had agreed so they could talk about what they were going to say and Alex could practically beg her to answer most of the questions.
He hummed to himself and tapped the steering wheel, looking at himself in the rear view mirror and realising his beard was starting to grow quite significantly. How could he have forgotten to shave?
"Hello." He grinned a Alexandra as he got out of his car to her standing on the pavement. They hugged before entering the cafe together. "How are you feeling?" He wondered.
"Nervous but i have faith that you wouldn't produce shit" she spoke candidly which Alex appreciates.
"I try not to." They got a coffee each and sat down by a window. "So, who's doing this interview?" He asked.
They discussed how they would phrase things. Alexandra agreed to do most of the speaking but warned Alex that they would probably ask questions directly at him which he knew.
"You know, I'm going to miss you when I go back to London." He confessed, meaning it with every ounce. There were things he never thought he would be able to express to people that weren't Miles or Luna but Alexandra had proved him wrong. She meant a great deal to him now. "Don't tell anyone I said that, I'm trying to maintain the cool and aloof aesthetic." He added, making her laugh.
"No one thinks your aloof, Al." she pointed out. He just shrugged in response and they made their way to the interview.
It was a full set up with lights and a camera, just a sofa to make it seem casual but it didn't feel like they cared too much about making their guests comfortable. Alexandra and Alex's team were both there, some of which hadn't seen Alex in a while and so proceeded to congratulate him on the engagement. His heart ached at the thought of Luna thousands of miles away.
The two of them sat down across from the male reporter. Alex was not at all ready, he hated interviews and talking about himself. Besides, this wasn't even his album so why did he need to be here.
"Welcome, Alex and Alex." The man said. Alexandra laughed politely while Alex barely cracked a smile. He could see his publicist dying inside behind the scenes, that amused him more. "I'm Greg." He introduced himself. They both nodded.
"Great to meet you, Greg." Alex nodded.
"Can I start off by congratulating you, Alex, on your recent engagement." He nodded to Alex, who licked his lips and nodded.
"Thank you, Greg." He smiled at the thought of Luna. Alexandra looked at him, knowing this was what he didn't want to discuss.
"Any thoughts on the wedding yet?" He asked, seemingly interested but not genuinely and everyone knew that.
"Not yet, maybe after the albums out." He answered bluntly. Greg nodded and sat back in his chair, realising Alex was not going to give him anything.
"So, you two wrote this album together. How did that process go down?" He asked. Alex immediately looked at Alexandra as if to say, you can answer this one.
"Well we would just be in the studio for hours, bouncing things off each other. I think, correct me if I'm wrong Al, that we have very different ways of approaching song writing so it was refreshing." She answered, looking at Alex who nodded.
"We taught each other a lot." He added in for good measure. Greg nodded.
"Like what?" He pushed, asking the question Alex hoped he wouldn't. Glancing at Alexandra, who was trying not to smile at the hole Alex had just thrown himself into.
"Well...Alexandra taught me to have patience with a song. I can't speak for her about what she learnt." He looked at her with a smirk.
"I learned that you don't have to have experienced that emotion necessarily to be able to write a song about it. Alex does that very well." She complimented, he tried not to react too much to what she was saying.
"So, how did this come about; the pairing?" Greg wondered. Alexandra shrugged.
"Very inorganically." She answered. "The label got in touch with Alex and asked if he would be able to help and then we met and talked." She elaborated.
"What did you think, Alex? When they first approached you?" He asked. Alex ran a hand through his hair and sighed.
"I thought it would be interesting to try and write for Alexandra. I'm always looking for something new to explore and writing for a young woman was certainly something I had never considered." His answer was more full, which Greg appreciated.
"And Alexandra? Were you nervous to work with Alex?" He asked. Alexandra suddenly felt like she was in therapy, asking how she felt at all times.
"I knew his presence in the industry was huge so I was somewhat intimidated before we met but then I realised he was an actual human so no, not nervous." She responded with a sweet smile.
"How would you feel this album reflects you?" Greg asked her directly. Alexandra looked at Alex, who was almost asleep at this point.
"It's my first album so it's a collection of many things I have felt over many years rather than say, if I had a prior album. There's also that male undertone that Alex brings to it that I feel like I have whenever people meet me, you know? So, I feel like it does reflect me quite largely really." She crossed her denim legs and sat back just as Alex had done.
"Are there any particular songs on the album that you are excited for people to hear?" He asked.
"I suppose, Bones, would be a good one because it was written purely by Alex and I think his fans would like it. There's also Girlie, that was one of the first ones we finished and one of my favourites. Alex?" She threw him under the bus but it was mainly just to wake him up. He sat up in his chair and cleared his throat.
"I'm just excited for people to hear Alexandra's voice. It's very compelling so I'm sure they will be happy to listen to it all once they've heard one." He complimented her with a nod.
"Have any songs about your fiancé slipped in there, Alex? I read somewhere that your discography is basically dedicated to her. Have any made their way to this one?" Greg really pushing for answers about Luna. Of course, talking about Luna was one of Alex's favourite things to do but not when the focus was meant to be on Alexandra.
"Maybe a few lyrics here and there." He answered with smirk. "It's hard not to sometimes." He added for good measure. Alexandra met his eyes and he gave an apologetic look but she wasn't bothered.
"So, what's next for you Alexandra?" Greg asked.
"Hopefully more music and touring a bit but the album will have to be released first." She laughed. Alex envied that she could speak so easily. It always took him an eternity to get out a sentence.
"I'm looking forward to it."
The interview progressed with Alex getting more and more bored. Alexandra brought light to the answers that Alex seemingly failed to get across and eventually it ended.
"I need a drink." He muttered to his publicist, who shook her head disapprovingly.
"You do make my job so hard, Alex" she scolded him.
"Well done, Al. You made it through." Alexandra complimented. "What are you up to now?" She wondered.
"Probably just go home. What time is it in London? I could call Luna maybe." He looked at his watch. Alexandra shook her with a light smile.
"That woman has you wrapped around her little finger." She chuckled. Alex grinned, knowing she was right.
"Since I was sixteen." He sighed. "Anyways, I'll see you at the release?" He asked.
"Anyways..." she thought for a moment. "Any luck with the song?" She wondered, ignoring his question.
"Not too sure if what I've got could be called progress. I might go and work on some stuff now." He scratched the back of his head. Alexandra nodded.
"Okay well, I'll see you at the release." She squeezed his arm and left the room. The cloud of words overtook Alex once again.