The Runaway [The Killers]

Battle Born

This is actually the chapters that gave this book life. From when this book was a thought, these chapters were the very root of the idea. The music behind Battle Born was so different for the band that I thought it told a much larger story. 

Brooklyn POV

The studio was one of the few places that made everyone feel like home. Granted the studio we found in Oregon was anything but the studio back home. I glanced around, a thin layer of dust coating everything and the owner who looked nearly hundred, chatting away to Stacey. I thanked god I made her my assistant in that moment.

"You see, uh, no one has used the place in quite awhile, but it all works." For the price I really didn't care how much worked. I flicked on the main board switch before yanking off the sheet that was covering the rest of the board. Stacey wrote the check and that was the beginning of the album Battle Born. Granted that would be the new name for my home that was turned into the studio in Nevada. The home we lost and gained so much in such a short time.

Staying at a nearby rental was going to be home for a little bit, and there was nothing like being stuck with musicians while they worked. A sigh escaped me as I rubbed my stomach, the nausea lately had me wondering, but I pushed it aside, not wanting to face such potential. Especially since the last time Brandon and I were together sexually was the tipsy night back at his parents home.    

Brandon laid out the various lyric sheets on the table, glancing to me now and then as he spoke to Dave, Ronnie, and Mark. Brandon got in the booth, Ronnie came to sit beside me, Stacey and Will on the other side.

"I think you should read this one." He handed me the copy of Brandon's handwritten lyrics, my chest tightening as he sung over the recorded instrument pieces. Brandon looked to me as he began to sing, to even having to reference the lyric sheet in front of him. 

"Blonde hair blowin' in the summer wind
A blue-eyed girl playing in the sand
I'd been on her trail for a little while
But that was the night that she broke down and held my hand
The teenage rush, she said, "Ain't we all just runaways, we got time"
Well that ain't much...
We can't wait 'til tomorrow
You gotta know that this is real, baby why you wanna fight it?
It's the one thing you can choose, oh!"

I watched him, the memories flooding into my mind of when we'd met in that bar, a saying he'd retained all these years about runaways. My eyes welled with tears as he kept going.

"We got engaged on a Friday night
I swore on the head of our unborn child that I could take care of the three of us
But I got the tendency to slip when the nights get wild.
It's in my blood
She says she might just runaway somewhere else, some place good
We can't wait 'til tomorrow
You gotta know that this is real, baby why you wanna fight it?
It's the one thing you can choose

We used to look at the stars and confess our dreams
Hold each other to the morning light
We used to laugh, now we only fight
Baby are you lonesome now?

At night I come home after they go to sleep
Like a stumbling ghost, I haunt these halls
There's a picture of us on our wedding day
I recognize the girl but I can't settle in these walls"

Perfection was the definition of my husband singing his heart out in the booth. Singing about the simple history of us. I brushed the tears from my eyes before taking a shaky yet deep breath. He came out of the booth and scooped me up, his iconic giggle against my ear. 

"Don't cry darlin' we're together again. We have a future. We have all the time in the world."

"I wish we'd never lost any time at all Bee." I mumbled, relaxing into his embrace. 

"A few of the songs are about us. That's why this album is so important to me." He smiled as he let me go, escorting us outside for some much needed fresh air. "There is this one song, I want you to be the actress in the music video."

"Me? I'm not an actress bee, I'm just me." A chuckle escaped him as we walked, his hand gripping my mine.

"Trust me, you'll do great. It's called Just Another Girl. I'm picturing you acting as me from all of our previous videos. Including the other singles we'll have. Since you couldn't be there with me back then." This was the thing about Brandon and his brain, he always thought about life as a story. He was always sure to make sure his characters made it into the scenes he liked. Even if it meant making a music video to act as a history book. A smile crossed my lips as he leaned against the building, pulling me into his arms. 

"You are too perfect you know that?" 

"No one is perfect darlin', you and I have fought our demons and won. It's our time to be happy." 

"Mmmm." My voice gave out for a moment as I fiddled with the collar of his shirt. "I think I might be pregnant Brandon." My eye lowered from his, yet he put his hand under my chin, gently forcing my gaze to his.

"You think or you know?"

"I remember how I felt the first time. The nausea the constant draw to have sex with you and the urge to inhale grapefruits by the pound. I'm scared and freaked out. What if it happens again? What if I lose you again?" I whispered, yet he brushed my cheek, a soft smile crossing his lips.

"Don't be Brook. I'm going to be right beside you the whole time. We'll be seeing our beautiful child this time. We're gonna do everything right, I promise. Just like I said the first time. I promise to take care of the three of us." It was a promise Brandon would never break. No matter what it involved.