by Val Love
She followed close behind with a huff. “Answer me, please.”
When they got to the stairwell, where it was dark, he turned around, and she almost walked right into his arms. She stayed back, staring up. It wasn’t fair that he was on a higher step. He already dwarfed her, now she needed to strain her neck to look at his commanding presence. Intense eyes flashing over her, it was clear to see how he could intimidate others to get to the top of the game.
“No, I’m not messing with you. It’s not my problem you don’t have the ears to go along with that beauty of a voice of yours. I happen to be able to hear just fine. Do you want my help or not?”
“Y-Yes. I want your help.”
He smiled again. His words had passed over her quickly, leaving her stunned. He could turn off and on so fast, going from calm to intense, but it wasn’t an anger, he just had a strong presence about him when he turned. It still could leave a person shaken. She followed close behind, and he pointed to her apartment, “Yours?”
“That’s it. Or what’s left of it.”
He grabbed the next box, heaving it into his arms like it was nothing. She was suddenly glad he arrived. Not planning much of the move, it had recently dawned on her that it would need to actually be done.
“Where’s the new place at?”
Trying to keep cool, she didn’t know if she was successful. How to tell him that she didn’t have a new place? She had just met him, but still...it wasn’t an easy thing to say.
“Trying to get to my new address already?”
“I found this one out, didn’t I? By the way, you’re a defensive girl, aren’t you?”
Cora shrugged. They left the room, and she grunted, “Sorry, I’m not exactly happy about the move. You got me at the wrong time.”
Luckily, he didn’t continue the conversation until they dropped the boxes off at the car.
“You going to tell me where you’re headed? I can help you unload.”
“Just down the road.”
She stopped, staring him down. Cora could be intimidating as well, when she wanted to be. It was difficult to do it to Tyrell, who had that star shock effect on her still, even though he was helping her with the mundane task of moving boxes.
“Look,” she said, “I’m not exactly sure what you’re doing here. I don’t need your help or your pity. I don’t know if you come into normal people’s lives like this and expect them to serve you hand and feet, but that’s not the way I am. I suggest you tell me what you want, because I think you want something, but I don’t know what.”
“I want to help.”
“And?”
“And...I want your help. I want you to come to my studio and record.”
“You can’t be serious. You’re fucking with me, right?”
“No, I can’t say it again. I’m serious. You’re an amazing singer, from what I’ve heard, and that was in a bar packed with people. Imagine what you sound like in a studio. Come try a song. One song. That’s all. If you don’t enjoy it, you don’t gotta commit.”
She let herself smile.
For awhile now, she had been guarded. She could see that now.
“I knew you wanted something,” she said, hands on her hips, smiling at him.
It felt good to have him compliment her. It felt even better to know that she was being offered a chance to sing at a major record producer’s studio, a dream that she had always strived for. Cora couldn’t get over it, yet there was a part of her that still stung from his offer.
She had thought that he was hitting on her.
What he really wanted was her voice…
I can still be happy about that, she thought, and then she asked him when and where.
***
Cora listened closely for the backing track. Two of Tyrell’s friends, producers, who she had never heard of, but had impressive resumes that he wasn’t afraid to share with her, sat next to him in the booth and watched.
When she glanced towards Tyrell, it broke her concentration. Nervousness pent up in her gut instead. Shaking it off, breaking eye contact with him, she thought to herself, I’ve never been this nervous singing before.
In her younger years, there were many recitals. Recitals in front of hundreds of people, and it still wasn’t this much pressure. It felt like her first performance all over again. It beat her nerves at her high school talent show when she belted out a Mariah Carey song to her peers. It was only terrible because she knew all those faces staring back at her.
But still, not as bad as that one face staring at her in that recording booth. He nodded approvingly, and she took the cue that the music would begin in seconds.
When the music started, she let go.
Her passion for signing took over.
She was thankful for it, but she knew it would eventually come, erasing all that fear. She had been wanting to sing, to let go, for such a long time. Singing would only be possible for Cora in her shower before work, and even then, she had to hurry. She didn’t have time to herself, but when the music struck, it all flooded back.
It broke through, and she let her voice ring through the record booth.
She knew she couldn’t look towards the producers. If she did, she might crack. Instead, she kept her eyes down or closed the entire time.
She lost track of time. She just let her voice flow, let it take over her like she was used to. Even though it felt magical, Cora knew better. She had been practicing all her life. Years ago, she had worked so hard she thought she couldn’t do anything else in life. This was it. If she didn’t succeed as a singer, she wouldn’t do anything else.
How things had changed….
Now she was homeless, and without a job.
But Cora could still sing.
When the music stopped, her thoughts were still thrumming in her head. She felt numb, her fingertips tingling. Opening her eyes, she looked toward the recording room, but it was hazy.
She didn’t sound terrible, did she?
She couldn’t see. Cora didn’t realize what was happening until the warmth crossed her cheeks. Sometime during the song, she started to cry. It must have been all the emotions she was going through lately, all of the pressure, it had all been set free.
Now she couldn’t stop crying. She turned away, sobbing, knowing that she screwed up her one chance at singing. Underneath that fear were others; losing her apartment, not having money, getting fired, her loneliness…and then, crying in front of Tyrell. That was not only sad, but embarrassing.
She wiped a tear. Before she could muster her courage, anger coursed through her. How could she embarass herself life that? A hand fell on her shoulder.
“Are you OK?”
Tyrell.
He pulled her into his arms. His hug was strong. Comforting. She could fall asleep on that chest. Nuzzling against him, she stopped crying, instead, she tried to fight the need to stay in those arms, wrapped so tightly around her. His hand swerved over her back.
It felt too good.
She didn’t want it to abandon her, so she broke off first. Wiping a tear, she looked up at Tyrell.
“Sorry, I haven’t sang in such a long time. I got emotional.” It was a partial lie. Singing had brought out all those fears, but the true cause of her tears were much deeper.
“That was…”
Terrible? The worst thing he ever heard? Get the fuck out of here, what was I thinking, I was obviously drunk that night, kind of terrible?
“Unbelievable. I knew I made the right choice bringing you here.”
He hugged her again.
This time, the hug wasn’t for her, this time, he hugged her because he was so happy.
“I knew it,” he said, and then she noticed the two other producers in the background, smiling wide and popping a bottle of wine.
Was it time to celebrate already?
She stood there, shocked, trembling, realizing what this meant. She had just impressed one of the richest rappers in the world. It was not a joke. This was
truly happening.
Jumping and clapping, she hopped back into his arms. He lifted her up, and she screamed in happiness. He brought her back down, her world spinning.
“I think I need to sit down,” she said.
“Sit, do whatever you need to do. We’re going to keep recording though. We’re going to keep going for a long time.”
Cora could hardly contain her happiness. It seemed unreal that she was crying not moments ago.
She couldn’t wait to keep singing. She would keep singing until she couldn’t sing any longer, or until they told her to stop. She expected the former.
***
He walked her, still excited, to the front doors of his studio. After working on one song together, Tyrell told her that they would start work on a brand new track tomorrow. She still thought there might be a catch to all of it, but as he led her out to the street, and took her hand in hers, she only thought, how could I be so lucky?
“Thank you,” she told him, looking at him lovingly. “I hope you can understand why I was skeptical, but really, this has been so great. Thank you so much.”
He looked happy, but there was a sadness in there was well. He didn’t want to see her leave.
“We’ll work on the next track tomorrow?”
She nodded. Then Cora looked out into the parking lot, into the darkness of the city. It was still bustling, but only with traffic. Everyone else was asleep in Atlanta.
“It’s late. I didn’t even notice I was having all that fun.”
“Hey, that’s a good thing. I see great things happening in our future.”
“Really?”
“No doubt.”
She looked out into the parking lot again, this time, a sense of dread overwhelming her. She pulled her hand away from his.
Cora had no place to go.
“I better go,” she said, “It’s late.”
If Tyrell didn’t turn around and leave, he would know that she intended to sleep in her car for the night. What would he think of her then? Would he still want her, if he knew what a failure she was?
Besides, the feelings he gave her, how he made her feel special, that had been a long time coming for Cora. She didn’t want to mess that up. Even though they just met, she knew the potential was there.
“All right, have a good night. Be ready for tomorrow.”
“Oh, I will be.”
Cora strutted away. She felt sexy and fly as she did, until Tyrell locked up his studio and then headed toward his car. He took off, giving her a wave.
She headed into her car, then reclining in the seat, she tried to sleep.
There was a lot to look forward to.
Cora hoped they weren’t impossible dreams. If she could hang in there long enough, she could make something of herself.
She tossed over to the side, trying to get comfortable.
In the mean time, she would need to face the harsh reality. She was sleeping in her car. Things had gotten worse than she ever imagined they could be, and yet, there was still that glimmer of hope.
Cora tried to sleep, but not even exhaustion could take her away from the fear and excitement.
***
Samantha had always been there for her. She trusted her with anything. Yet Cora still couldn’t tell her the truth.
It would crush her.
It would make her feel even worse if she had to ask Samantha for a place to stay. She recently moved in with a wonderful guy from Atlanta. They were always best friends, except work had gotten in the way of them hanging out, then Samantha ended up moving to Atlanta, and she hadn’t seen her in a year.
Walking up to her apartment complex, Samantha swung open the door to greet her. She hugged her tight. It reminded her of how great Tyrell’s hug had been. This hug, though warm, only reminded her of that. It made her realize how hollow she still felt.
“I’m so glad to see you.”
Cora smiled at her. It was good to see her. Her smile should’ve been a lot more sincere, the problem was, she was exhausted.
“I’m glad you picked up. I didn’t think I’d be able to see you. How are you doing?”
“Great, you?”
“Doing well, just exhausted.”
“Come on in,” Samantha said, and the look she gave her told her that she looked exhausted too. Cora spent the whole night in the car, and it wouldn’t even be fair to say that the two hours she spent with her eyes closed had been sleep.
Her apartment looked gorgeous. It already looked like a home. She had it well furnished. It went from kitchen to dining room to two bedrooms. There was someone else in the living room watching TV. He sat up, waved to her, and then put his arm around Samantha.
“Nice to meet you, I’m Dave.”
“Nice to meet you. I’ve heard so many good things about you.”
“I’m sure they’re all true,” he said to Samantha with a smirk.
I need to collapse. I need to shut my eyes and disappear.
Cora was happy for Samantha, but seeing her apartment, and her happy relationship, made it harder for her to adjust to her life of...nothing.
“You said you were in town for a job?” Samantha asked.
“Yeah, sorry. Just got in town. It was a sudden call. I didn’t have enough time to get a hotel room. I hope you understand.”
“It’s no problem. What’s the special occasion?”
“Have you heard of Tyrell?’
“Tyrell?” They both asked. They looked to one another, trying to understand. “You mean, Tyrell, the rapper?”
“Yeah, that’s what I mean. I have a chance to record on his new album.”
Samantha held her scream in. Dave nodded, said, “damn”, and then turned to Samantha, waiting for her to burst. She screamed, letting loose an obnoxious wail. She looked happier than Cora, which was understandable at the moment.
“Are you serious? So you met him?”
“Yeah, I met him in a bar a couple days ago. I might have a chance, if I don’t mess it up. He hasn’t said anything specific yet.”
“Oh my God,” Samantha said, over and over. She looked at her differently now, a look that Cora wasn’t used to seeing. It was a look of envy. It was a look of admiration. “What time is your meeting?”
“Not long now.”
“Did you get any sleep?”
“None.”
“You can have whatever you’d like. Take the extra room. Get a good sleep, and then we’ll do you up. You gotta look your best if you’re going to meet Tyrell.”
Cora nodded, said, “thanks,” and then headed into the extra room.
She collapsed onto the bed. It took her away much sooner than she expected.
I can’t do this forever, she thought. If she did get the chance to sing backup vocals, she couldn’t keep showing up at Samantha’s.
I’m screwed, she thought, but sleep was too promising for her to care at the moment.
***
Cora forgot how dressing up could make her feel.
She felt sexy. She felt hot. Samantha had done her over like she said she would.
Cora wasn’t expecting all the makeup, and her hair getting done, to set her off, but it did. She strutted into the recording studio offices much more confidently. She was there to impress, and she wouldn’t hold anything back.
This was her dream.
And besides, Tyrell would be there.
Or T.
She liked calling him that. It made her feel like she was already part of their crew.
He opened up to her rather quickly, didn’t he? And the way he held her hand at the end of the night, that was more than being friendly. Of course, he might’ve been excited over the record he was producing. Tyrell was known to spend countless hours in the studio, every album coming out a masterpiece. He took as long as he needed. Only until he was satisfied did he come out from hiding…
And Tyrell was a hard man to satisfy.
She headed up to the top floor, wondering what his reaction would be w
hen he saw her. Cora wore a tight skirt over her curvy frame. She wore a top that showed off her cleavage, perfect to entice him as she sang, leaning over into the microphone. Her high heels would bring her up to his level, at least she hoped.
Staring off into the glass offices, she spotted him right away. He locked on. She hurried inside, brushing her worries away.
“You came prepared,” he said, eying her up.
“Thought I should get dressed up for my debut.”
“Already going for style over substance, huh?”
“No, never. I’ve got both.”
He nodded, liking her answer, then led her into the recording booth.
“I did catch you looking gorgeous, singing by yourself the first time I met you. I already knew you had both, otherwise, you wouldn’t be here.”
He handed her a pair of headphones.
“Now let’s get started.”
***
The others needed to take breaks, but Tyrell and Cora were on fire. When it was time to leave, they couldn’t. More needed to be done.
For Cora, it was because he was right next to her. He rapped, coming in with brilliant lyrics, bringing together the song that she practiced the day before.
She tried her best to impress. When she thought she hit a note at her highest, she tried to do it even better. A vocal coach stood by, and he had very little to say. When he heard her at first, he asked Tyrell where he found her, then scolded him for not finding her sooner.
For some reason, she already felt like she was Tyrell’s. He was good at keeping her close, comforting her, welcoming her into his scene. No one would touch her when he was around. They didn’t dare say a bad word about her.
Even though she was dressed up, and felt sexy, she knew that she wasn’t a Hollywood superstar. She wasn’t like all the skinny girls that were on top of the pop charts. She was older, and she was bigger. She wasn’t a teen princess. They could’ve knocked her down for that if they wanted to.
Of course, Tyrell would never stand for that.
Cora wouldn’t stand for it either, but in the back of her mind, she kept wondering about it.
Will they put me in the background?
Maybe get me to sing the tracks, then bring in someone prettier than me and say that she sang them?