Jace stayed quiet as he listened to their conversation. He couldn't exactly not, considering how loud Isaac was being. Jace frowned at the phone. He didn't like hearing someone be so aggressive towards Embry.
He wanted to take the phone from her and speak to Isaac himself, but he refrained from doing so. This was Embry's friend, her ex, her band member. She needed to stick up for herself, like Jace had done against Jasper.
He tightened his arms around her to let her know that he was here for her.
Embry brought herself to half smile, thankfully, at Jace.
"Would you shut up and just listen to me for a minute?"
"Why the HELL should I do that? You didn't bother consulting us before you decided to go fucking around with lover-boy.How could you?"
"Because...I love him. And he feels the same about me."
"I don't buy it. And I don't approve. But when you come bitching to us, don't expect any sympathy."
Embry snorted, more frustrated than ever now."I don't need your fucking approval and I don't need your sympathy either. So, you can go eat dog shit you scathing bastard!"
"Excuse m-"
She hung up, huffing and immediatly shut down her phone to reject any further calls.
Jace rubbed her sides when she hung up, before looping his arms around her shoulders. "You did good," he told her, kissing her on the cheek. He wished she hadn't have said such terrible things to Isaac -- he didn't want her to lose her band members -- but he was still proud of her. So, so proud.
Jace turned off his own phone and stood up. "We should do something fun," he decided. "We've had enough drama already today and it's only eleven in the morning."
Embry mellowed at the idea of doing something pleasurable. It would, without a doubt, keep her from thinking about her previous conversation that frustrated too much. There was no reason a person should be getting so worked at this time or earlier and yell at a person through a phone.
"Okay." She instantly agreed, rising from her seat."Do you have anything particular in mind or?"
Embry would be content with anything at this moment. And it didn't matter so much about the activity, but who you did it with that , if not increase the joy, makes it enjoyable. And she was currently with her most beloved person.
Jace considered their options for a moment. They could go skateboarding, since she had taught him how to ice skate the day before. They could go get food without feeling the need to stay hidden, because they were now officially out. They could just peruse Los Angeles for the sake of it, and troll the paparazzi.
Or they could jump on the first plane out of Los Angeles and holiday there for a few days. Wherever it took them. Jace had always wanted to try doing that.
But, no, they had careers.
Jace's eyes fell on the door to his music room, and he got an idea.
"That sounds very ideal." Embry breathed softly, greatly approving. "I'd love to."
She hadn't forgotten the tiniest bit about the collab they were supposed to write. There was nothing more she'd enjoy more than that right now. Something about writing songs wasn't only fun, but extraordinary.
Grabbing his hand, she laid his arm over her shoulder and smiled some. "Where's your music room?"
Jace put an arm around her waist and lead her to the door beside the hallway. Jace lived in a house, a large one, and he had converted the basement into his music room for a variety of reasons. Mainly because the basement was soundproof and he didn't want to bother his neighbours. Dylan O'Brien got annoyed when he played too loudly.
The room was spacious and comfortable. The floor was a light, polished wood and the walls were light grey. There was two microphones plugged into a soundboard, in conjunction with a keyboard, a grand piano, a drum kit and a selection of normal and bass guitars that were hanging off the wall. There was also a shelf which contained cases with violins and saxophones in them.
Beautiful Pain didn't record their songs in here, but they practiced in here. That was obvious; there was a minifridge and a collection of beanbags near the instruments. Jace sat down at the grand piano and fluttered his fingers over the keys.
"I wanted to do something different," he said as he played some Debussy. Clair de Lune, to be exact. "Something softer. Calmer, if that makes sense. Preferably just piano, so it sounds different than any Beautiful Pain or Insanity Not Sound album."
So, this was the room they had practiced and perhaps even composed even composed in. Embry had absorbed the sight in front of her before making her way to join Jace, seated on the other end of the stool. Her eyes were stuck to the shelves, where the cases were held, longer than anything else.
The wooden string instruments, the violins, reminded her of her mother. And him playing Debussy only proceeded to think of both her parents. It only made sense with the two of them being classical virtuoso. They had practically drilled almost every piece into her head from Beethoven to Tchaikovsky to all the greats.
But, she managed to sober up and continue to focus on the current work. "Just piano. We can do that. Though, I've never done a song with only piano before. It'll definitely be different."
"Neither have I," said Jace. "Wait, that's a filthy fucking lie. The This is Gospel piano version." Jace lightly slapped himself on the side of the face. "Bad Jace."
He shifted from Debussy to This is Gospel as he frowned at the blank sheet of music paper that was on the stand of the grand piano. Where was his inspiration? Where was his muse? Why couldn't he think of anything to write?
He looked to his left, and saw his inspiration. Embry.
"My lover's got humour. She's the giggle at a funeral," he sang. He sang it without music first, and then pressed down on the same few chords for both lines.
Embry's gaze feel from Jace to the keys of the piano as he sang the two lines. She listened closely with an open mind and heart. It was easy to interpret what his stimulus was. And because of that, it was just as easy to follow.
She paused for split second, pondering on what words to use and convey her lines. Licking her bottom lip, she reached over and played the very same chords as she sung.
"Knows everybody's disapproval. I should've worshiped her sooner."
The line she contributed was perfect, and suited them well. It was almost uncanny how it fit the situation. Jace picked up a pencil and wrote on the sheet of music paper the notes he had written, and titled the song 'Embry'.
"If the heavens ever did speak, she's the last true mouthpiece." Jace wasn't religious and he didn't think that Embry was, either, but the lyric fit because anything that came out of her mouth was like gospel to him. Especially the lyrics she was contributing.
Jace wrote down the lyrics they had come up with so far and then returned his fingers to the piano. "This is gonna end up sounding culty," he told her, "but considering my music videos, I'm honestly fine with that."
"I was going to say that was your thing anyway." The corner of her lips curved into a wry smile.
She hummed the soulful tune of the lyrics they had written so far and swayed to the side a little. Sitting there, freestyle singing along to piano, it was undeniably delectable. And the lines came out poignant, it was still about her, about him, about them. So when she sang her voice dripped with emotion.
"Every Sunday's getting more bleak. A fresh poison each week."
They could sit here writing this song for hours and it would never ending. Alas, all good things came to end. Especial my songs, they always started and ended.
Soon enough Jace and Embry had a verse and a chorus written and nearly perfected. Jace was incredibly happy with their progress. It would be easy to get this song released, too, as it said in their contracts that they could release individual music as long as they did so with their record label. Luckily for Jace and Embry, they were signed to the same record label.
"This is coming together really well," said Jace with a smile. "I think for the next verse it should be a bit more dynamic. Dramatic, if you know what I mean." He played the chords and put as much passion and life into them as possible.
"On a scale of fifteen to seventy-nine, how pissed is Isaac gonna be?"
"Try on a scale of seventy to one hundred. Then we'll talk." Embry said lightly, folding her hands and lying them in her lap. "He'll be livid. But can't really do anything about."
"You know, he's not really that bad. Sure he can be a huge motherfuckin' asshole like he was earlier, but that's not who he is." If it was who he was, she wouldn't have ever gone out with him. Of course, he was less rough around the edges back then. He had only became that way some time after he dumped her, which they told the public it was 'a mutual decision' because for some reason he really thought it was.
Jace decided that it was break time. He brought out two bottles of lemonade from the minifridge and pulled Embry onto a beanbag with him, holding her to his chest with one arm.
"He should calm his tits," Jace suggested. "Have you taken the liberty of telling him that I'm not actually Satan, and the Emperor's New Clothes video was just fun?"
He knew there was more to it, but Jace didn't know what to say. He didn't like coming between Embry and her band members.
"Probably not, but to be fair, neither did I up until now."
She smirked and opened up her lemonade."We all have so much history together. Like Beautiful Pain. That's why I tried being nice to Jasper. I can't imagine what it feels like to have your best friend leave you for others." Again, she tried, but it was hard to treat a person kindly when they weren't doing the same in return. Still, she didn't wish any ill will on him. She just wanted him to reconcile with Orion, but both parties weren't thinking about that the least.
And to add to the list of upsetting problems, he was now quarreling with Jace. Because of her. Maybe she should have felt guilty about not giving him up to keep the barely stable peace, but she couldn't.
Jace shrugged. His hand was lazily trailing up and down Embry's thigh. "Jasper will just have to get over it and stop being a little bitch," he told her, kissing her on the collarbone.
"He's very immature. He always has been, even when we were in school." He shrugged again. "If he was my real friend, he'd be happy for me."
"That's true. They all should be..." Embry said slowly, referring to both their friends and fans as well. If they truly cared, they all should be happy for them. That's what she believed anyway.
Yet, at the moment, she was more distracted by his touch. So, she set her legs across his lap and tilted her head up to plant a kiss on his jawline. "I know I'm happy."
"That's good to hear," Jace murmured absently. Slowly, his fingers were replaced by his entire hand and he was rubbing up and down her thigh in long, slow, hypnotic movements. Jace lazily raised his piercing blue eyes to her, his gaze catching hers.
In the same trance he had been when they had shared their first kiss, he kissed her again. It was a trance induced by his feelings for her and triggered by the intoxicating smell of her perfume, her skin. She was beautiful. She was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.
And he wanted to show her that. His kiss grew to be more passionate, his free hand reaching up to cup the side of her cheek.
In that moment - in that kiss, Embry felt more than beautiful. She felt loved. Because she knew that it was real, genuine love. And with knowing that, along with the knowledge that someone - Jace felt so strongly about her, it didn't only want to make her bask in the warm, delectable, feeling, but to reciprocate it too.
How had she thought she ever known love until now?
Embry leaned in, her chest pressing against his, closing the already small space between them, and returned the hot-blooded, pulse-ponding kiss. While she did so, almost unconsciously her arms snaked their way around his waist. And she couldn't help but open her mouth a little in a quiet moan.
