Chapter 24: Homecoming

Dripping her bags in the entry hall of her cottage, an exhausted Julianna sighed. As much as she loved being in the city and working with the show, it was still a relief to get home. The two-plus weeks she had spent in the city felt more like two months. At least the apartment was ready for her; when the time came, she could move seamlessly to the city without any hassle.

Julianna was supposed to start rehearsals with the band – she still had to pinch herself over that one – this weekend. That gave her a couple of days to unwind and prepare. She hadn’t told anyone she was back – not her family, not her friends. She needed to get her voice prepared for a serious workout, and her mind prepared for the weekend.

Thumbing through the pile of mail that had accumulated during her trip, she stopped at a large manila envelope with her name scrawled across it. Curious, she poured herself a well-deserved glass of Chablis, and sat out on the deck to open it. Her heart skipped a beat when she pulled out a sheaf of sheet music. The song was finished! She read it through, humming the melody as she went. It was (of course) fantastic!

Her glass of wine forgotten, Julianna took the music into her bedroom and grabbed her Gibson from its place in the corner of the room. She played through the song a couple times to get the feel for it. She went through it a couple more times, this time singing the words. She was very excited – this was going to be perfect in the show. It was also going to be a hit on its own. Holy Hell, I’m gonna be on the radio!

“Time to go to work!” she said out loud, her earlier fatigue all but forgotten. Heading out to her studio, she planned out what she was going to do. To get a true feel for the song, she had to sing it to actual music, not just her strumming. She knew that’s what she was going to be doing on Saturday, but she couldn’t wait that long.

Once in the studio, Julianna turned on her recording equipment. Dashing up to the loft, she was humming. Oh! There was nothing like the feeling of starting a new creative project! She read through the music one more time, and sat at the piano. Running some scales to limber up her fingers, Julianna’s pulse was racing. She spoke loudly, so that the microphones would pick her up. “Finale, piano, one.”

Julianna closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. She opened her eyes, fully in the zone now, and counted in the song. She knew full well that Jon and the others already had planned what this was supposed to sound like; she just wanted to give it a shot. She played the song through three times. Soon, “finale, piano, two” and “finale, piano, three” were done. Julianna went back downstairs to listen to the tracks she had done. Picking the one she liked best, she loaded it to her MP3 player, and brought it with her upstairs.

Julianna smiled to herself as she plugged in her ice blue Strat. I can’t wait to hear Richie play this song, she thought to herself. Giving herself a shake, she spoke aloud. “Finale, strat, one”. Tuning into her piano track, she waited through the count in, and began to play. She did three versions as she had with the piano, then three on acoustic guitar, and three on sax. The one thing she couldn’t do was drums, so she let that be. Finally, she laid three versions of the vocal track.

Armed with her recordings, Julianna sat down at her control board to mix. She selected what she thought to be the best individual tracks, and put them together, agonizing over every detail. Listening to the final result, she had goose bumps. She may just have to call up to the house and let them know she was back. If her amateur attempt sounded this good, she couldn’t wait to do it for real! She stood to stretch, and noticed it was full-on dark outside. She looked at her watch – she had been working for hours, and missed dinner. On cue, her stomach rumbled.

Laughing to herself, she loaded the final track to her MP3, turned off all her equipment, and locked up the studio. She’d listen to the song again as she prepared dinner. As she was preparing a baked ziti casserole – I really have to learn to cook for one – and grooving to the finale in her kitchen, her cell phone rang. She answered it without looking at the display. “Hello!” she said, practically singing.

“Uh, Julianna?” It was Richie. He paused for a moment. “Where are you, and what is that in the background?”

Julianna hurried to turn off the music. “Hey, there! I’m home, just got in a couple of hours ago, and that was just something I was fooling around with – it’s nothing.”

“Huh. It kinda sounded like the song we’re doing for you. By the way, did you get the envelope with the music?”

“I did! Oh, Richie, it’s perfect! You guys really outdid yourselves this time. I absolutely love it.”

“Aw, shucks, ma’am; tweren’t nothin’,” Richie said with a fake southern accent, making Julianna giggle. “So, how was your trip? Did you get everything done that you wanted to? Did you miss me?”

Julianna laughed. “I missed you something awful. I’m making a late dinner – you interested? I can tell you all about my trip, and you can tell me all about the creative processes that were going on around here.”

“Interested doesn’t begin to cover it. Babe, give me half an hour, I’ll be there”

“Just come on in the kitchen door; I’ll leave it open for you.”

“I’ll see you soon,” Richie said. “I can’t wait to see you.” He disconnected before she could say anything more.