--chapter two - page two--
Alone in the elevator, away from ears which could eventually leak news to the press, Steven Ross, deemed it safe enough to talk to Malu. She was hardly paying attention when he opened his mouth to speak. The red velvet interior of the elevator seemed fascinating, as Malu carefully traced her name with the tip of her acrylic nail. “So I’d like to plan a meeting between Nick, yourself and I within the next couple of days.”
“What for?” Asked Malu, with a carefree smack of her chewing gum. Juicy Fruit, the only kind she’d ever chew.
“Think of it as a prep session for all the press you’ll be doing. We’ll just go over the kind of questions they’ll probably ask you and hammer out your story. Make sure its fool-proof.”
Malu nodded. Steven as the first person in Nick’s management crew to really listen to what she had to say. She appreciated that, and it wasn’t hard to for her to agree to near anything he suggested.
“So have you ever seen Nick in the studio before?” Steven asked. The elevator had opened and they found themselves in a long hall filled with gold and platinum records. Malu shook her head in response to the question.
“It’s a trip. I think you’ll like it.” Steven said in an encouraging tone. “Why don’t you press that intercom there and let Nick know we’re here.”
They’d reached the end of the long hall and stood in front of a mahogany door. Malu reached out and pressed a buzzer. A moment later, Nick’s voice filled the hall. “Who’s this?”
“Its me, Malu, and Steven.”
“Hey! Where have you two been all day?”
“Out on the town,” Malu responded. “I have a surprise for you.”
“Be right there.” Malu shifted her weight impatiently. She felt like Dorothy, standing outside of the Emerald City, waiting to see the wizard. She was anxious to see Nick’s response to her surprise, and didn’t like the “waiting” factor. Luckily, it didn’t last long. Moments later, the big mahogany doors opened. The second Nick laid eyes upon Malu, his mouth dropped.
“Surprise!!!” Malu exclaimed. She pushed past Nick, doing her best impression of a runway walk. She felt the eyes of everyone in the room staring at her, and frankly, Malu liked the sensation. Halfway into the recording studio, she turned around on her heel. Stopping dead in her tracks, Malu looked Nick straight in the eyes. “How do you like my makeover?”
“You’re beautiful,” Nick breathed, without a beat. It wasn’t a line. He was truly amazed by how much Malu had transformed within a few short hours. “Fuck you,” Malu replied. “I was always beautiful.”
“That’s true,” Nick agreed. The others in the room, those who didn’t know Malu and those who did, couldn’t help but laugh. That was just the kind of girl Malu was, always eliciting a reaction along those lines. “But you look so much older now.”
“That was our hope,” Steven interjected. “We wanted to differentiate Malu from your fans, Nick.”
“In other words, we didn’t want me looking like jailbait.” Malu explained what everyone in the room had already been thinking. Eagerly, she asked: “So do you really think I look older?”
“Absolutely,” Nick nodded his head solemnly. “You could almost pass for 21.” “Really?” Malu’s eyes shone in excitement.
“ALMOST,” Nick repeated, emphasizing the word more distinctly.
Malu shrugged her shoulders. “Oh well. I can’t drink with a baby on the way… so I guess it doesn’t really make that much of a difference.”
“Where’d you get the idea for your hair?” Nick was curious to find out. Though he usually let Malu initiate any physical contact between one another, this time Nick couldn’t help himself. He reached out and fingered her hair. The jet black hair, which only a few hours before had grazed Malu’s ribcage, now hovered above her shoulders. Short layers, starting at the chin, were flipped out and framing Malu’s face. Chunky, midnight-blue highlights sporadically covered Malu’s head.
“Sarah Michelle Gellar sported this hairdo a couple of months back. I remember catching a few moments of Buffy and thinking how cute she looked. But the highlights were Steven’s idea. I was kinda wary at first, but now I really like it.” Normally Malu would have flinched under Nick’s touch and close examination. He had made it very clear early on that any sort of physical contact would be avoided at all costs. But something about this moment was different. The close proximity to Nick’s body made Malu feel warm and giddy all over.
It was the first time Nick had seen Malu genuinely excited about something. The expression on her face was warm and endearing. And catchy. Nick couldn’t help but smile back in return. He hoped this wouldn’t be the last time he saw that face.
“Your make-up looks different too,” Nick noted.
“Quite the observant young male, aren’t you?” Malu doted on Nick by patting the top of his head affectionately.
“I have sisters. I know a thing or two about make-up.”
“Oh really?” Malu commented skeptically. “Tell me- what did we change?”
“Well, you used to wear really black liner,” Nick began describing the transformation. “That’s gone, and now you’re wearing a new color eye shadow. Kind of a crimson, no?”
Malu nodded her head slowly, not really believing what she was hearing. She couldn’t believe that a guy she was (sort of) involved with was noticing such miniscule, and girly, details. All her ex-boyfriends cared about was how tight her jeans fit. Nick didn’t seem to notice Malu’s wonderment. “And you used to wear dark lipstick. But your whole face has been lightened up with make-up in the pink and purple color schemes.”
“You’re a little TOO good at this,” Malu noted by shaking her head. “I’m beginning to wonder why you’re so scarily in touch with your feminine side.”
“Just wait until you go to a Backstreet concert, Malu.” Steven advised. “20,000 screaming girls, times 200 days a year. Anybody living that kind of lifestyle would be more observant about girl shit than the average Joe.”
“Oh, so now its girl shit, is it?”
“That’s not what I meant-“
Before Malu could pick another fight, someone outside the circle spoke up. “Hey Nick- I know you miss your girlfriend and all, but this studio is costing the label an assload of money. You may not want to waste your time in here.”
“Oh shit,” Nick realized. As soon as Malu, and her new look, had waltzed into the room, Nick had completely forgot about what he had been previously doing. “Malu, this is John and Jack. John and Jack, this is my girlfriend Malu. John and Jack are my producers.”
Small pleasantries were exchanged for a few moments, until John began to get on Nick’s case again. “Nick, we need you to go into the studio and do that last cut again. See what you think.”
“Can I bring Malu with me?” Nick asked.
“It’s not really procedure…”
“I wanted to sing to the baby,” Nick explained. The room filled with warm smiles. How could anyone say no to the anxiously expecting father?
Soon thereafter, Malu and Nick were comfortably situated inside the recording booth. Nick sat on a stool, placed in front of a microphone that hung from the ceiling. Malu, in platform sandals, stood on a footstool beside Nick. From her added height, her ribcage was in line with Nick’s mouth. Both were wearing headphones.
“Ready for playback?” Jack’s voice asked over the headphones.
“Ready,” Nick replied. Almost instantly, a melody played through the mini-speakers. A poppy sound no doubt, but intermixed with more guitars and a harder drum beat than normal. Taking the microphone in one hand, Nick turned his body so he faced Malu and her stomach.
Malu had heard Nick sing before- on Lalaine’s CD, on MTV and in concert with Aaron just a few days before. But listening to him now, as he sang to his baby, his voice was filled with more depth and passion then she had ever before heard. It stirred something within Malu, something incredibly emotional.
Overcome by her feelings, Malu reached for the bottom of her shirt. She’d worn a denim shirt which zipped up the front from both the top and the bottom. Seeing Nick sing had inspired Malu. She slowly unzipped her shirt from her navel to just below her bra line. She pushed back the sides of the shirt, exposing her bare stomach. Still so early along in pregnancy, her stomach looked more reminiscent of a small beer belly, rather than that of a mother carrying child. Taking Nick’s free hand, Malu placed it on her lower belly. Now he really was singing to his child.
The time it took for the song to lapse seemed like an eternity, or an instant. Nick couldn’t really decide which. But somehow he found himself shaking away from the intensely emotional and physical lock with Malu and taking the headphones off. There was only one thing he was then concerned about.
“How’d you like the song?” Nick asked Malu. He was almost afraid to hear what she had to say.
“You’re voice sounded wonderful,” she replied honestly.
“But the song…?”
Malu couldn’t lie. “You know I don’t like this pop rock shit.”
“So you’d prefer I’d sing something with a little more…soul?” Nick asked, a cocky grin playing across his lips.
Malu laughed. “Like you know any songs worth singing, white boy.”
Nick stood up abruptly, and swept Malu into his arms. She squirmed for a minute, obviously uncomfortable and not sure of what to do with herself. But Nick persisted. Staring deep into her eyes, he began to sing at the top of his lungs.
Ooh, now let's get down tonight
Baby I'm hot just like an oven
I need some lovin'
And baby, I can't hold it much longer
It's getting stronger and stronger
And when I get that feeling
I want Sexual Healing
Sexual Healing, oh baby
Makes me feel so fine
Helps to relieve my mind
Sexual Healing baby, is good for me
Sexual Healing is something that's good for me
Nick sat Malu back down on the stool he’d been sitting on moments before. He stepped back, his hands on his hips and a proud smile on his face. “Now how was that?”
Malu couldn’t help but smile at the goofy guy. “You know, no one should sing a Marvin Gaye song except Marvin Gaye. But since I didn’t let you know that before hand, I’d have to say you did pretty good. It’s a definite improvement, to say the least.”
Nick maintained eye contact with Malu, the smile on her face mirroring his own. Though their situation was completely bizarre, though they barely knew each other and butted heads often, Nick could swear that he and Malu were almost beginning to befriend each other. Almost.
...to be continued...
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