Rose woke up from someone knocking on her car window.
She squinted, not realizing she had fallen asleep in the same spot in front of the coffee shop from last night.
She looked over, a familiar face greeting her.
She rolled down the window lightly.
"Fuck you doing sleeping out here?"
It was him.
"Shit—," Rose rubbed her eyes. "What're you doing out here?" She turned the question.
"Meeting someone for breakfast,"
Tyler took a few steps back as he looked at the car she was in.
"This is sick. It's yours?"
"No, my dad's." Rose opened the car door and shut it behind her while leaning back on it. She stretched a little, it was 8 am.
"I got the files last night, that one where you go, how could I love again...how could I ever ask for more..." He sang the hook as Rose smiled. "That one was...sheesh."
"It's my favorite—that i've ever written."
"You should come through the studio later. It's a song that I need vocals for," he adjusted his sunglasses. "The one I was telling you about last night."
Rose tried to act as nonchalant as possible, not wanting to show how excited she actually was.
"I'm gonna go clean up and you can just email me the address—,"
T laughed a little, eyeing the phone in her hand.
"You don't look like someone that'll fuck me over and expose my number so I'll just give it to you."
"Uh, yeah, okay," Rose passed him her phone as she unlocked it. He typed it in and texted himself. He pulled out his phone and gave her phone back to her.
He began to save her contact.
"Rose." He typed.
"That's me."
"I'll text you later then, be safe." He began to walk away.
She smiled back and stared down at the contact in her phone. She couldn't believe it.
Rose almost forgot she was living out of her car for a second.
...
"Have a nice day!" The gym receptionist smiled.
Rose faked a smile, making her way back to the car. She used the gym shower to clean herself up and get dressed.
She sighed, eating some fries she had in her car from the McDonald's breakfast this morning.
It was 2 pm and still no text from Tyler.
She began to get nervous.
Rose ignored the negative thoughts, sinking back into the seat as she watched fit people come in and out of the gym from the parking lot.
God, everyone seemed so full of themselves.
Realizing her tank was low, she made her way to the nearest gas station.
"Can I get 30 on pump 3?" She looked over at the cigarette container in front of her.
She's never tried cigarettes before, much less weed...or beer, any type of alcohol beverage in that case either—drugs, any type. If her parents were to find out she would've been on her death bed.
"And a pack of Marlboros please. Oh and a lighter."
Now, she had ultimate freedom to do whatever she wanted. It was freeing.
"Thanks." She made her way out to the pump, putting in gas as she leaned on the rear end of the car. She opened the pack and placed a stick between her lips.
Rose flicked the lighter on, moving her braids back. She placed it underneath the cigarette as she breathed in.
She coughed a little, and cringed when it burned her throat. It was awful. Something about it kept her smoking it though.
She held it in between her fingers as she took the pump out and made her way back into the car. Just then, a text lit up her phone.
6452 santa monica blvd. let me know when you here
-Tyler, 3:44 pm
She took a drag of the cigarette as she made her way there, her stomach filling up with butterflies knowing it would be her first time in a studio.
...
i'm outside
-Me, 4:03 pm
She parked her car in an empty space as T's text bubble came up.
come in, security guard knows i'm expecting someone
-Tyler, 4:05 pm
She got out, making her way inside.
"You Rose?" the security guard asked her. She nodded.
"That door down the hallway to the left."
"Thank you."
She made her way to the door, opening it as instructed.
Tyler had his back to her as he talked to someone on the phone, not realizing she'd gotten there. There was no one else in the room.
"Then go to the one across the street nigga...fuck, fine whatever's open—," He noticed Rose. "You hungry?"
"Uh, sure, whatever you're getting."
He nodded, turning back to the phone.
"Make that shit two Vil, aight, bye."
He put the phone down and immediately turned up the song he was working on; it rang across the speakers. He laid back into his chair nodding his head to the beat as he seemed to fall into a train of thought.
He turned to Rose, noticing she stood awkwardly by the door, looking around.
"Come sit down you fucking weirdo," he grinned.
Rose let out a laugh as she walked over, sitting in a rolling chair by him.
"It feels weird."
"What?"
"I've never been in a studio before," she looked at all the buttons and gadgets around her.
"Start getting used to it then."
Tyler kept playing with the beat as he sang small parts over it. Rose watched intently. She was taking everything in.
A few minutes went by before he finally spoke again. He was so in the zone he had barely said anything.
"Go get in that booth and just sing whatever the fuck comes to mind."
"What's the song about?"
"Whatever you want it to be. Just give me something to work with."
She nodded, biting her lip as she made her way inside. She put on the headphones and stared down at the mic. Rose wasn't sure what to sing at all. He was intimidating—and it didn't help that all she wanted to do was to impress him.
"Sing that shit," Tyler gave her an encouraging look.
She breathed out, deciding to sing a throwaway song that she wrote but never recorded.
Rose began to sing the lyrics, her voice a little shaky at the beginning. Once she got the hang of it, it was hard for her to stop. She was in a zone now.
Rose opened her eyes momentarily, looking over at Tyler for approval.
He nodded his head as he played around with the buttons on the dash.
"Now do some of those runs you do!" He yelled over the beat.
Rose hummed some notes, they meshed perfectly with the rest of the song. She was in the booth for about ten minutes.
"How was that?" Rose shut the glass door behind her and made her way over to Tyler.
"Fucking sick," he turned up the speaker as he mixed the vocals into the beat.
Tyler was in it again, stopping every now and then as he sat back into the chair and listened to what he could fix, fine tune or adjust. He was amazing at producing.
Soon, a six foot something man walked in with two In N Out bags.
"Here, line was long as shit," the man sat the bags on the table next to Tyler.
"Oh! Rose that's Vil."
"I'm his security guard. Nice to meet you," Vil shook her hand.
"Nice meeting you too," Rose took some fries from the bag, "and thanks for the food."
He nodded, making his way out.
"Damn nigga, you was hungry," Tyler noticed Rose was near done with her meal.
"I didn't have time to eat," she laughed.
"How come I've never seen you around?" he took a sip of his milkshake.
"I'm not from here," she sighed, "moved here from Texas that same night we met."
Tyler's eyes widened.
"The fuck? by yourself?"
"Mhmm," she laughed at his reaction.
"You not sleeping in the car are you?"
"No, I'm staying with uh, a friend."
Tyler nodded.
"Good," He took some fries in his mouth, "I respect that. That's sick, a lot of people stay stuck and don't wanna chase that thing they're into."
She nodded, agreeing.
They worked in the studio for about an hour more before calling it quits. It was getting late.
Tyler began to clean up and Rose helped.
They locked up and Rose followed behind him.
"You always work alone in the studio?"
"Sometimes. I had some niggas over but they left before you got here. You'll meet 'em next time."
Next time?
She chewed on her lip.
She had parked next to Tyler's Tesla.
"Uh, goodnight?" he laughed, getting into his.
"Night."
"You down again tomorrow?"
"Mhmm. It's not like I have anything better to do."
He chuckled.
"Drive safe."
"You too."