A Karat of Patience

Chapter Five

"Christine! Glad you could make it!"

"Er, yes. Hello, Lindsey." Christine cautiously accepted his warm hug, unsure of what to do with the unexpected excitement and friendliness.

He led her into his home recording studio where Christine greeted the rest of the band and met their producer, Mitchell Broom. Stevie moved a stack of writing notebooks off a leather couch close to the soundboard and motioned for Christine to sit.

"How are you?" Stevie asked her happily, bending down to give Christine a kiss on the cheek.

"Good! Thanks for inviting me." Christine touched Stevie's beautiful diamond crescent moon necklace dangling in front of her. "I've seen photos of you wearing this but it's even more gorgeous up close."

"I'll get you one!" Stevie exclaimed. "I've given the gold ones to people as a gift. But for you I want-"

"Can we start?" Lindsey interrupted Stevie loudly. "We're kind of on a deadline here."

Stevie pulled back from Christine and shot Lindsey a deadpan look. "Jesus, relax. You would think the world's gonna end or something," she muttered before gracefully dropping into a swivel chair next to him.

Christine sat back and drummed her fingers against the armrest, curious about what she was going to hear. She had listened to Say You Will; it oozed Buckingham Nicks sensuality and Christine anticipated this EP would capture the same tone. Lindsey and Stevie spoke about the record as if it was God's gift to music, so Christine had high expectations.

The first song, Sad Angel, played through the sound system, and Christine immediately readjusted her standards. It was frantic and jangly with Lindsey passionately singing about swords and falling to earth together—standard Lindsey and Stevie dramatics. Christine watched amusedly as Lindsey closed his eyes and listened to the fruits of his labour in a meditative state. She made eye contact with a bored John who rolled his eyes, and she quickly stifled a laugh. Christine had missed mucking around with him while Lindsey and Stevie took themselves too seriously.

The infamous duet, Without You, was a jam session that reminded Christine of their work from Behind The Mask. It was an ironic comparison given Lindsey wasn't even a part of that record. This howling duet was clearly written during a time when the pair were happy and madly in love. Christine could see echoes of their epic romance now. The scene before her was like a romantic Renaissance painting: Stevie had moved her chair closer to Lindsey's, her hair shrouding her face as she whispered something in his ear while he gazed intently at her. Their conversation was akin to making love, with hushed words and looks of intense longing replacing fingernails digging into sweaty skin and desperate, needy caresses. Christine's skin prickled uncomfortably as she stared at the display of raw intimacy right in front of her. She suddenly wished she were as far away from Lindsey and Stevie as humanly possible.

Christine remained in a despondent state through It Takes Time. Her mind jolted back into the room whenever Lindsey's jagged vocals pushed down on the bland and repetitive chord progressions like a manic fever dream. But Miss Fantasy sounded like something she and Lindsey might have collaborated on back in the day; it was hook-y, fun, and definitely her favourite song on the EP. It gave her a little bit of hope that she could fit in with the direction the band was heading.

"That was good!" Lindsey said when it ended. "I think this bodes well with what we wanted to achieve. I'd go as far as to say it's the best stuff we've done in a while."

"Yeah, you can tell they're very personal, y'know?" Stevie chipped in. "I always say, like, when I hear my songs played back to me, I want to feel the same way I felt when I was alone at my piano writing them for the first time. I felt all warm and fuzzy inside when I heard Without You. I just love that song."