seven - music

the art of music

- - -

"Do them chords again."

Sacha's hand glided across the neck of the guitar, fingers pressing down in the relevant areas as I tried to relax into the melody he was building.

I scribbled a few random ideas down into my notebook, considering how we could structure the lines to fit with the instrumentals. Sacha's drummer, Isaiah, had already perfected the drums to match the guitar and bass sections, so now all we needed was the lyrics.

There was nothing I hated more than building a song around the backing, having found little to no inspiration to write a rock track that Sacha had hit heart set on. It wouldn't be our first, when we eventually finished it, but most of those songs had been formed naturally, lyrics written a long time before the music came into play. This time, we were working backwards.

"Any ideas?" I asked my younger brother as he hummed the general sound, nodding his head along as he pulled up the recording he made again.

Sacha didn't often play on an acoustic guitar, given his usual distaste for anything other than bass guitar, but he'd digressed recently so we could build this song together. The other two members of Sacha's band were working at Dexter's with Hendrix while we brainstormed.

"It's too early for my brain to function," He complained, like he usually did. Luckily, I was prepared for this.

Rolling my eyes, I set my notebook aside and stood up. It didn't take long for me to locate the coffee that Hendrix had dropped off for my brother and the Hot Cocoa for me.

Sacha's eyes lit up when he noticed the cups in my hands and he held his hand out, "God, you're a lifesaver."

Songwriting 101: Always bring coffee.

Sacha and I had been writing songs together for years at this point. We'd written so many - most of which we couldn't stand to listen to now - and it just worked. Most people despised their siblings with a passion and, trust me, I did too at times. But Sacha was my best friend before he was my brother, and this was ours. Whether it was silly love songs that we'd written for past partners or songs about family, about trust and loyalty - we'd build this together. So many nights of ours were spent sleepless, with nothing but coffee and pizza carrying us into the AM as we worked towards finishing something incredible.

That's the one thing about Sacha's band that I never tire of. We wrote the songs so we controlled the sound. Sacha was so unapologetically brazen and bold, unafraid of diving into different genres as long as it was true to them.

He was still waiting for that phone call, one email away from the record deal of a lifetime, and I knew that he could do it. There's something so effortless about the three of them, and their raw adoration for performing wasn't lost to any witnesses.

We'd gotten to the second hour of our morning session without any rough drafts or even a verse written. This was the time we'd usually begin to get frustrated, because usually we'd have progressed past the beginning stage.

The recording was still playing, the bass line being the most prominent amongst the other instrumentals. I'd made Sacha his fifth cup of coffee not too long ago and he was taking a sip when he abruptly placed it down, pen in hand as he scribbled onto his scraps of paper.

He passed the pages over to me silently, his handwriting messy and stark in contrast to the white sheet.

*Why do we have to run away?

When we end up in the same place

It's like we're searching for the same thing

Do we really have to do this now?*

My eyes flickered across the words, shifting the placements and changing the wording slightly so it would flow easier.

Easier.

Picking up my own pen, I began to write down the words that'd come to mind. My mind went to Kareem, to Hendrix's support and to Jem's uneasiness. My doubts, my issues emerging from Emery. His desperate desire for me to change, to be who he wanted me to be.

*Is it easier to stay? Is it easier to go?

I know that I'm never gonna change

And you know you don't want me any other way*

The moment we started to fall into the rhythm, we just barely stopped ours. Sacha fell into the verses, while I focussed on building a chorus and a bridge.

By the end of the session, we'd built a rough draft that needed some editing. Once we'd all have time, the four of us would be meeting to go over the sound and make sure the lyrics matched the tone of the instrumentals.

"I like it," Sacha hummed, tracing the letters with his fingertips. "Very hard-rocky."

"What a description," I snarked, "Now I understand why your Lit teacher always phoned the parents."

"Let's not act as if she didn't proposition me on Graduation," Sacha kissed his teeth, laughing despite the fact she really did. "I thought Hendrix was going to kill her."

"She nearly did," I snorted, recalling the look on my best friend's face.

All of us had travelled back to my hometown for Sacha's graduation - our little family having accounted for most of the embarrassing cheers given Hendrix's love for noise and Jem's love for embarrassment. Sacha had been horrified but I had no regrets given our parent's absence.

Both Sacha and I had grown up in a small town in the outer regions of New York State with Jem, in the middle of nowhere relevant. Our Mom and Dad were well respected people in the area but did little for us, other than provide us shelter and basic human necessities. My Dad had paid for our College Tuition, gave us both a sum of money when we both turned eighteen nearly four years apart and left the contact there. Mom still phoned on occasion out of politeness but other than that, we just had each other. They hadn't come to my graduation and held the same standard for Sacha.

So, naturally, I brought the extended family down for a friendly visit.

"So when do I get to meet this guy then?"

I snapped out of my thoughts, looking up to meet my brother's inquisitive gaze. "Kareem?" I clarified, to which he nodded. "Whenever you want."

"What's he like?"

"Soft," I mumbled the first word that came to mind, fighting back a smile while thinking about him. We'd been texting non stop since our little date at the Diner. I'd forgotten how exhilarating this feeling was; the adrenaline coursing through your veins and butterflies encasing your stomach. "I think you'll like him. He has a younger sister around your age too."

"Is she hot?"

"Don't even think about it." I warned, with narrowed eyes. "He's also ex-army, which means he will punch you if you touch her, regardless of how nice he is. That's if Hendrix and I don't get you first."

"Wow," He whined, extending the syllables deliberately. "You're no fun!"

"Okay, then leave."

"Maybe I should just move in with Jem. They would never treat me like this." He said matter-of-factly. I rolled my eyes, Jem was the only person who could put up with Sacha's shit without reacting.

"Go live with them and Hendrix then," I shrugged, gesturing towards the door. "Bye."

"You're awful. I'm practically a child."

"Okay?" I deadpanned, eyebrows furrowing as he stared at me with his mouth agape. I knew wholeheartedly that he was bluffing but I liked annoying him.

"Is everything okay, though?" He asked after a minute, carefully. "You're totally good with him?"

My lips tugged up at my brother's concern. It was endearing to me that, despite the carefree relationship between us, he still cared unconditionally. "I think so."

"I'm sure Hendrix could take him," Sach joked, "As long as you're happy; that's all I care about."

"Thanks, kid." I ruffled his hair, making him shout. "Have you picked the songs for your EP yet?"

"Yep. I'll show you the first drafts, but there's a few I'm unsure about."

I raised my eyebrows, "Hendrix?"

"Hendrix."

"You need to sing better."

"That's Bodhi."

"He's incredible. What a beautiful voice." Hendrix grinned at Sacha's glare. "Ask him to cover some Taylor Swift for me. He sounds like an angel."

"I don't think I'll ever be able to articulate how much I despise you."

"Wow! A four syllable word. Someone get this child a medal." Hendrix sniggered, snuggling into Aaliyah's side as Jem burst out laughing.

We'd retreated to Hendrix and Jem's apartment for their advice on Sacha's EP songs. The band had narrowed it down to six options but were unsure about their seventh. Hendrix was always blunt with her opinions, so Sacha knew she wouldn't give him a bullshit answer.

Sacha sighed, shaking his head before turning the demo off. "Yes or no? This is the last song we need to make a decision on."

Hendrix sobered up, rolling her eyes. "I like it. It'll go well with the others."

"Are you sure you won't play drums on 'More'?"

"Not happening," She gave the same answer as usual. He'd asked a few times by this point, but she wasn't giving in. "Look, Isaiah's crazy talented. I know he's still learning his sound but you need to give him time. Just keep practising."

"Yeah, but I want to record it now." Sacha complained.

"So?" Hendrix countered easily, "You're a band, which means you're a team. You're not going to work if you don't allow each other time to get better."

"Hendrix's right, you've just gotta keep going with it." Ali added. She ran her hand through Hendrix's hair, but focused on Sacha's miserable face. "Anyway, Hendrix is too busy with the bakery to worry about recording some dumb demo."

Sacha's entire expression dropped at that and even Hendrix's brows furrowed. Some dumb demo?

I'm fine with my friends having a joke with my brother, but Aaliyah didn't sound like she was joking.

No one is making my little brother feel bad about his ambitions.

"Yeah, we're not going to say that, thank you." I said in the most condensing tone possible, eyes narrowed. My brother looked too disheartened for me to just ignore it. "They've been working really hard for this. Hendrix doesn't need to do anything she doesn't want to, but you don't have any right to try and tear down what they've worked for and pass it off as something 'dumb'."

"Well, I didn't mean it like that. Calm down." Aaliyah widened her eyes, with a laugh, as if I was being overdramatic. I gritted my teeth. "I just mean that he shouldn't expect Hendrix to do anything like that."

"Well," I repeated her emphasis with just a sprinkle of a jeer. "It's a good thing that he asked Drix, rather than expecting her to just do what he said, isn't it?" I shot back, adding extra emphasis on Drix because it hadn't escaped my notice how Ali solely used her full name, rather than any of the nicknames that we'd created for her.

I didn't mind Ali most of the time, in fact I even considered her a friend. But times like these make me want to start an argument with her that would result in her permanent exclusion from my life, but that would mean an issue with Hendrix.

I understood that, given the fact Hendrix had been with her for three years and completely adored her, but I couldn't help but have a bad feeling about her. Maybe it was the fact she tended to belittle my brother, maybe it was the offhanded little comments that she sent to Hendrix, or maybe it was the fact she misgendered Jem for around a year after meeting them.

"Let's just drop it, yeah?" Jem cut in, despite not owing her anything. I didn't say anything, not wanting to draw up tensions between myself and Hendrix. Jem was in a similar situation. They were never one to run from conflict but this was more personal. Our friendship with Hendrix was worth more than getting even.

Sacha jumped back into a music discussion with Hendrix, with Jem chiming in ever so often with a thought of their own. Aaliyah remained silent and so did I.

I couldn't help but feel that a storm was rising when it came to Aaliyah. The distinctive gut feeling that everything was about to erupt was looming, and I couldn't help but worry about who would be affected by the aftershock.

A/N

feel like shit, just want kareem back :)

filler chapters are a bitch but i love sacha and hendrix

*all credits go to 5 seconds of summer and the writers on 'easier' for the half-assed, slightly altered version of the lyrics (it's how i imagine first drafted songs are like). what a epic bassline that song has