《The End + The Instant》Instant #19 - Production Values
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And these things are worth remembering.
Lark has always thought memory was important. It was why he took the photos, and as a child, even, he told himself at intervals to try and remember specific moments.
Now, the things that stay with him are strange and small. He remembers when he was only six years old, telling himself to remember his first piano recital. There's not much he can pull up from it besides the laminated wood flooring on a stage, like an indoor basketball court, and the feeling of being too small for the piano stool. Mostly, he remembers the remembering, the seeming importance of the act, all tied up with the imagined tragedy of forgetting.
The fragments he has from his school years are all shattered detail: construction-paper hearts hung up in his second-grade classroom, the metallic scattering of the walkman he dropped running for the bus, a hurricane downpour through the window of his deserted high school, driving to the shore and listening to the radio.
From Portland, he has a very particular memory of walking out of the recording studio in the blue twilight of early evening and feeling grateful for the life he was living. For the hi-fi recording of his work, for the kindness and talent of Jules, the hours he got to spend doing what he loved. The swell in his chest took him off guard and filled him with uncharacteristic optimism. He sang out loud in the parking lot, even, a melody that came to him already made.
He thought about that a lot, for a while, at work or when he walked in on Max and Dana making out in the living room. Think of how happy you are, he told himself.
It was only yesterday, only a week ago, a month, and now years and years in the past.
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Still, to this day, he sometimes tries to pull up that particular moment.
Looking at Oli next to him in the grass, he tries again.
It doesn't quite work. He's too tired, maybe.
Lark reaches out and touches Oli's hand with the back of his fingers. Oli doesn't pull away. Instead, he turns his palm around to catch Lark's hand in his.
Neither of them says anything.
Jules booked us some recording time at a local studio. It was a small place, comfortably used, the floors covered in layers of drum mats and worn out Persian rug imitations. Max and I laid down the basic tracks for a four-song EP in the egg-crated booth. Jules, working the mixing desk, could see us through a little window in our soundproof box. Max still rolled his eyes when they reprimanded him off for deviating from the click. Jules didn't say anything, just pressed their lips together, face ghostly white in the computer light.
We spent the better part of a day getting the whole thing tracked. It was a process I quite enjoyed: repetition and practice. Listening back to Jules' rough mix. Trying to fix things. It was more of a purgatorial experience for Max, who complained that he couldn't hear anything, couldn't feel the music. He blamed his vocal mix, the microphones, the headphones; he wanted a beer.
Jules prioritized getting Max's tracks done, and said placating things into my headphones while I listened. I spent the afternoon with my head on my arms, folded over my keyboards and soaking up the warmth from the electronics.
When his last vocal was down, Max asked if he could go. Jules shrugged, dazed and tired by the effort it took them not to start a fight. We both watched Max pack his guitar and pedals, go into Jules' to pack up his bag. It was quiet in the airless bubble of the recording booth. Neither Max nor Jules spoke. My heart jumped wildly, thinking of their icy silence.
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Even when Max was gone, Jules just sat in front of the mixer. The computer screen reflected in their glasses, and I couldn't see their eyes. They raked both hands slowly through their pastel hair; for the first time in our acquaintance, their roots were visibly dark.
Did you want Max to stay? I asked after a while.
Jules shook their head and said something I couldn't hear through the glass. Then their voice was in my headphones, saying: Not really. To be frank. But I expected him to.
We tracked the rest of my keyboard parts that evening, just the two of us. I had never recorded with anyone other than Max, never on studio time, and I felt very aware of every mistake, every time I had to go back and repeat a line. Jules spoke to me gently, their voice right in my ears, warm and draped in mic hiss. You're doing great, they said. Don't worry. You can take as much time as you want. They told me about other bands that could use a keyboardist and asked me about session work while I shook out my hands between takes.
There was still an hour of paid time left when we'd finished, and Jules convinced me to sing some accompaniments for each track.
Max won't like it, I warned them.
Max isn't here, they said. We can tweak it later anyway.
They continued fiddling with the mix while I loaded my synthesizers and pedals into their cases, lugged them back to the door.
Come have a listen, Jules said and passed me their headphones. I stood behind them, so I could watch the track scroll across the screen, the crystalline bleeps visible in colored waveforms. We sounded as good as we'd ever sounded: the electronics like arcade music in a codeine dream, their programmed complexity cleanly rendered. My voice, doubled behind Max's, was an alien echo.
Jules leaned back in the studio chair, and their head came to rest against my stomach. I felt very aware of my body, tense, and twitching at the contact. Still, I put my hands gently on their shoulders and rubbed my thumbs over the knot of muscle at the base of their neck.
Jules' eyes were closed. With their glasses off, they looked soft and accessible, thin-skinned.
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Against the heavens.
A boy gazes upon the seemingly endless ocean stretching out in front of him, gazes at the endless world ripe for exploration and adventure. But when he closes his eyes, the only thing he can see is a pair of disembodied eyes, blurry and indistinct voices whispering to him from the darkness. Is he haunted or just delusional, exactly what lies behind the things Li Yang sees when he closes his eyes? And exactly what is the Seed of Creation?
8 159One Man's Journey (2nd Draft)
Adam's life was normal; he teased his sister, daydreamed of becoming a powerful spiritualist and slaying evil dragons, and absolutely loved staring at the colorful night sky. All of that changed on one nightmarish night. AN: Hello once again! This is the second draft of my work that makes many changes tothe first. It's not just an edit, but an entire rewrite! Hopefully I am fixing some of the issues both I and others perceived with the first draft as well as improve the overall quality with everything I learned from writing the first draft. I hope you enjoy my work ^_^ Current cover by ChaosPenguin
8 120War Games
One day, Sam and Xander wake up to find themselves in a different world. They find out that the place they were in is called Origin and they became Warlords. They then get set along to a different world, one that might not be able to handle the massive change that they bring with them. The goal of Sam and Xander is to establish themselves in their world before two years since that was when the War Games are taking place. Sam and Xander would be put against other warlords of a different world. As both of the armies clashed, one might lose everything while the other gets stronger. My goal is 6 chapters a week. The story will include kingdom-building, war, and military strategy. The story is a working progress so any feedback is appreciated. If you find an error, please point it out in the comments and I will correct it as soon as I can.
8 269The Ultimate Combo
Tristan or known as “Garyx” is a very skilled player and in every online game he played he always made it to the top and became the strongest with his sister Cathy/Jade who is his partner in every online game they played and they became known as “The Ultimate Combo”, one day they woke up in a entirely different world called “Arnos”.
8 199Tutu (an apocalyptic story)
Lakeview, Canada. In this avarage town, Danny, an university student that outwardly appears to be no different than his peers, had just started his university life. Despite outwardly looks, Danny's story is anything but ordinary. As he goes about an apparently normal daily life, our protagonist carries a dark secret from the past, hiding it from the world and those around him. However, unbeknownst to him, everything is about to change. When Danny receives an offer from an unexpected source, he becomes aware of a terrible fate. Soon, civilization itself will face an existential crisis and Danny must quickly prepare himself the best way he can in order to survive the upheveal. Though future is bleak and marred with uncertainty, change brings with it unforseen opportunities. Follow Danny as he struggles with both past and future in a world thrown into chaos. (TLDR: A guy with a troublesome past faces an apocalyptic situation) Tutu is a low-fantasy novel that focus heavily on character development and introspection. The story features gore, zombies, monsters, demons, action, mystery, some light horror and will eventually include many more things. Things you will not find here: plot armor, heaven-defying luck and two-dimensional characters. This is my first ever shared novel, I hope you guys have fun and enjoy the ride. Also do point out any mistakes you find, and contructive criticism is ALWAYS welcome. Avarage chapter length: 1.9k words as of chapter 54 (minimum of 1.5k per chapter) Releases: 3 chapters/week
8 170Loving an asshole
Whelp never thought I would do this shit!any who want to know about my story read it!!!!!(*≧▽≦) (≧∇≦)/
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