All I Want Is Everything

The business of the beauty

Asked a girl what she wanted to be
She said,  "Baby, can't you see
I wanna be famous, a star of the screen
But you can do something in between."

The Beatles, Drive My Car

  Wearily, Ella waited on the stoop with Bucky as Steve unlocked the door to the house. They trooped inside silently; even Bucky's prodigious energy was running low. The last few days, the last few gigs and the traveling, had been grueling. Performing was always fun but tiring, and their rental van wasn't the most comfortable. She prayed that their album would do well enough so they could upgrade their transportation for next time.

"Night," Steve yawned, and he and Bucky headed for the stairs. Ella checked the thermostat, boosting it a bit so they wouldn't be freezing when they woke up, then detoured to the kitchen for some water. She left her guitar on the main floor and slogged up to the attic with her personal bag, cursing the extra steps. She closed the door to the final set of stairs behind her, dragged up the last twelve, dropped her bag and toed off her shoes on the way back to the bed. She was awake enough to remember to set the alarm; they had to be at the label in the afternoon. It was especially cold up here, and she shivered as she shed her leather jacket and her 501s, setting the water down on the nightstand and diving under the covers. She was asleep before she warmed up.

She was groggy when the alarm rang and it took a couple of minutes for her to remember that she was home, in the bedroom she'd moved to when her little brother died. It was still the pale blue he and Steve had painted when their parents had allowed him to move out of their shared bedroom. Their dad had helped put up the drywall in this end, particleboard for the flooring. Chris still hadn't made a choice of carpet when... well. Moving up here had been a way to keep him with her a little longer.

She stretched luxuriously--still tired but grateful for a good sleep in her own bed--got up and shed her clothes, wrapping up in a robe and going down to the second floor for her shower. Bucky had moved in with them in college after the accident; Steve had moved into the master bedroom and she'd insisted that the two boys share a bathroom because he had the better bedroom. It was nice not to have to share a bathroom; she kept it spotless. Out of sheer niceness, she didn't empty the hot water tank, then went downstairs to cautiously bump up the heat and make some coffee. They didn't have anything perishable and she was contemplating whether to make oatmeal or grab something on the way to the label when the phone rang.

"I have nothing to eat except an expired granola bar," Nat said, and yawned.

"I was looking at a packet of oatmeal."

"You want to meet up for lunch? Are the guys up?"

"Yes and no. I'll wake them up on my way upstairs, tell them where we're going."

"Make sure they're upright," Nat sighed. "Otherwise they'll just roll over and they'll miss the meeting. We all have to be there, Thor said. Mr Pierce is going to be attending."

"Wow." Pierce was the president of SSR, their label. He was nice to them, but Ella felt cold around him the time they'd met, when Shield was signing their contracts. "Meet you there in 45?" This was agreed to; it gave Ella enough time to dress for the meeting if she hurried--Thor had advised nice clothing and 'suitable' makeup. Nice and restrained, he meant. Upstairs, Ella rolled her eyes and turned on the blow dryer.

She banged on the door of Steve's old room on the way down, and kept pounding until Buck opened the door, snarling just a little. "You guys gotta get up, the meeting's in an hour and a half. Nat and I are going for lunch at our spot first, if you get going you can join us. There's coffee made, and the hot water should be refilled by now."

"Uh," Bucky said intelligently. "Ok. Thanks. You smell good."

"Yeah, it's amazing how getting rid of stale cigarette smoke improves things," she said flippantly, warmed by the little compliment. "I'll wake up Steve, then you two are on your own." Bucky nodded and closed his door. He caught up to her when she was banging on the door of the master. Steve squinted judgmentally at her, then staggered to the side as Bucky pushed past him on the way to the bathroom. There was something wrong with the hinge on the hall door and they hadn't fixed it before going out on the road. She put on her dress coat on the way out.