chapter two | tour bus chat

THE SLIGHT BREEZE to chill the hot summer day touched upon Mila's skin as she walked along the lot. She glanced at each bus she passed, hoping to find the one she would be living on soon.

She looked around for Gracie's manager with whom she'd had meetings until now. Her name was Jordan, she was the type that you knew wouldn't take shit from anyone. She stood on business. In the simplest of terms, she was very bossy.

Mila respected her for that though.

She passed a few more buses until she saw the blonde she had met with on a few occasions over the past few weeks. "Mila, I'm glad to have you joining us. Let's get you settled on the bus." With that, Jordan stepped inside, revealing the living area. There was a couch and built-in table on one wall, a TV mounted across from it, and the faint smell of cheap coffee and lavender-scented candles.

Once Mila walked in, she spotted the brown-eyed and brown-haired woman she met a few weeks ago. She was sat on the sofa, a notepad in front of her and a guitar on her lap. She was writing new songs.

She looked peaceful in this environment, Mila couldn't risk ruining that, so she kept to herself.

"This is the living area, a place to relax and hang out," Jordan spoke, her tone just as monotone as she remembered. It was a dimly lit area, a place that got most of its light from the sun outside. "The kitchenette is over there," She continued and pointed toward the small kitchenette that consisted of a mini-fridge, microwave, single-burner stove, and a sink. The cabinets were stocked with the artists' favorite snacks and the fridge with drinks, everything was catered to them.

After she finished showing those two sections of the bus, Gracie's head poked up, and she waved once she saw Mila. "Welcome to the chaos, I hope you enjoy your stay." Gracie joked, letting out a laugh and standing up after setting down her guitar. "I got it from here, Jordan." She added, taking Mila's hand and dragging her to the bunk area. Six bunks lined the walls, two on top of each other and three in a line. "This is where we sleep, your bunk is here and mine is right there." She spoke, pointing to their bunks.

Gracie's was on the left side, and Mila's was right next to hers. That worked out better than she thought.

From there, Gracie continued the small tour before she sat with her on the couch. The two began to talk, getting to better know each other.

After a few seconds, the bus began to move.

Mila looked out the window, watching as the scenery passed by. Gracie was in the living area, chatting with her team and continuing to write what she was working on earlier that day. Mila should have been setting up her set for the shows, but the thought of just being on the bus was enough to distract her.

She pulled her attention away from the window, focusing on the empty note displayed on her phone.

"Think, Mila. Think." Mila thought to herself. From there, she started going through the list of songs that she's written.

After a moment, the list finally came to her. She began to type out her list: Hollow House, Bluefire, Paper Wings, Somewhere Soft, the list continued until she had reached eight different songs.

"Going with all the fan favorites I see." She heard a voice from behind her.

Mila looked over her shoulder to see Gracie leaning against the wall, looking directly at her. "Oh yeah, I wouldn't want them to hear songs they don't know. They don't know them anyway." Mila spoke, the last part coming out quietly to keep it to herself. "Anyway, how's the songwriting going in there?" She asked, turning to look at her.

"It's going. There's a new album I'm working on."

"No way, so am I...no I'm not." Gracie laughed at Mila's comment, only making her laugh along.

The two carried on with their laughter until they were rudely interrupted by Gracie's manager. "Gracie, let's go. The faster this gets worked on, the faster you can goof off until we get to the hotel.

Gracie let out a sigh before she flashed her an apologetic smile. She walked off with her manager, leaving Mila alone with the silence and her thoughts.

"Great first impression, Mila. Best one you've ever had." She thought to herself with a sarcastic tone. A sigh escaped her lips and then she went back to working on her set list for the tour.

She hoped to get Gracie's team to like her before the tour was over.

Grey's Anatomy was displayed on the screen as Mila scrolled through her phone. She was trying to catch up with the newest episode. Any time Millin or Yasuda was on the screen, she peeled her attention away from her phone to watch the scene going on.

Just as a laugh escaped her lips, she felt a dip in the couch in the spot next to her.

"I never understood the hype with this show." A voice spoke honestly. Mila glanced over to see Gracie, soon turning her attention back to the screen. "I'm sure it's great and everything, but I just don't get it." She continued, trying to get Mila's attention.

After letting out a sigh, Mila paused the show to give Gracie her full attention. "Honestly, after season ten or eleven it wasn't as good," Mila responded with an honest tone. Gracie nodded with understanding, knowing how she felt. Plenty of shows were like that, it seemed that things wouldn't change. "It's gotten a little better since then, seasons twenty and twenty-one are pretty good so far. The new interns are amazing."

"I can tell, I can see you drooling over those two female interns from the beds." Gracie teased, soon letting out a chuckle.

Mila just shot her a death glare which caused Gracie to laugh harder. "Haven't even known each other that long and you're already cracking jokes? That's just fantastic, thanks, Gracie." Mila spoke sarcastically, letting out a laugh that she struggled to hold in. "I see how this friendship is going to be." She continued, starting to calm down from her laughing fit.

Gracie followed suit, her breathing starting to calm down, signaling that she was finished laughing too. There was a silence between the two until Gracie was able to speak once again. "If I didn't think I could be comfortable around you, then I wouldn't joke with you." She admitted. Mila was pleasantly surprised by that statement. Other than her friends and family, she hasn't heard that statement very often. "I'm not sure what it is, but it just feels like we've known each other for a long time when we haven't. It's like we knew each other in a past life."

The last time she heard it was from her ex, Tessa Carmichael. That was someone she hoped to forget, unfortunately, she hasn't yet.

"I guess it does feel that way a little bit." Mila agreed, quickly earning a grin from her new friend. It was like a breath of fresh air, she didn't have to put on a whole new persona. She could just be herself, she could be Mila. "I heard there was a pretty good coffee shop near our hotel in Portland, we should go in the morning and get to know each other." She suggested, returning the smile Gracie had given her just moments ago. "I need my coffee in the morning anyway."

"I'd like that a lot, we should do that. I could pick you up from your room at like seven?"

"That sounds perfect, it's a date," Mila responded with a grin that never faded. She quickly noticed what she had said and started explaining herself. "I meant like it was a plan, not an actual date!" She explained, her speaking getting faster from panic.

Gracie started to laugh once again before cutting her off. "I know what you meant, it's okay." She reassured through a breathy laugh. "Now, unpause the show, I'm curious to see what this is."

With that, the two new friends sat in silence as Mila unpaused her favorite show. They watched it together, laughing and crying when it was appropriate. This was the start of a great friendship and potential mentorship with making music, she was excited to see how it goes.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE!

i love this story so much

guys. it's probably my

favorite thing that i've

ever written. anyway,

i hope you enjoyed and

i hope there's no mistakes!