Mwahaha, ALSO one comment!
The problem with not bringing it up, was that through the rest of the conversation, the unspoken issue sat restlessly behind the scenes. It made the things increasingly tense and it simply didn't go away until it was dealt with. Great lessons learned from long-term relationships, that was. And he didn't think it was just him. It had to have occurred to her at least once, otherwise that brief moment of awkwardness that had occurred downstairs wouldn't have happened. That was evidence enough that it needed talking about. And well... better sooner rather than later, at least in his opinion.
His father's death wasn't really something he ever got over. He didn't really think it was something that could be gotten over in the first place. It sneaked up on him sometimes, where he'd stumble over a photograph or he'd be watching a football game and be struck with the memory of his dad scoffing at a referee's call. It was always just little things, and up until two or three years ago, it had really tanked his mood. These days, it was a little easier to deal with. And that's all he was doing — dealing with it. He thought that was all you could really do when losing someone so close. It got easier over time, yes, but he'd come to realize that it never really stopped hurting.
Determined to make people think, James was probably the most well-read musician in the last decade (or at least he liked to think so). The artwork for the single and the preliminary bits that he saw of the album actually didn't include lots of photographs of him. And that had been his decision. They were covered in quotes by great thinkers, authors, and politicians. And then of course, the songs themselves were full of literary and historical references. One simply couldn't fully understand the songs without having to find out more. And that was all he was trying to do. So he read nearly everything he could get his hands on. There had been a period of time the year before where he'd go through five books a week. It was those sorts of things that allowed him to reference a third-world agrarian method in a song and then twist it to propose it as a way of rebuilding western society.
James couldn't help but smile, almost in relief as she confirmed that at least it wasn't absolute shite. Fantastic even. That was something, especially coming from her. He set the case on the floor, more aware than he should be that both of them were sitting on his bed. But he decided to ignore it — mostly — for now. At her question, he shook his head. “No, the single will have You Love Us, which will be on the album and a couple other of mine that will probably end up as B-sides. And then we're going to clean up a live recording of when I did a cover of It's So Easy....” He paused, and then added, before she could ask, “Guns N' Roses.”
He shifted, on the bed, curling a leg under him to get more comfortable. And now he was facing her a bit more, which certainly couldn't be a bad thing. “It might be released as a second single later, though.” A smile crept onto his face. “And you better be able to listen to the album version. It'll be loads better with all the parts, all mixed and stuff. See if I ever give you another sneak peak at an album.” Now he was just teasing back, and the smile lingered on his face.
Slowly though, it melted off, and he turned his gaze downwards again. When he looked back up at her, he appeared quite serious. Time to get down to business, the look seemed to say. “So, um,” he paused, suddenly feeling a little twitchy. “Look, I didn't want to ask you downstairs but, um...” he ran a hand through his hair and then the backs of his fingers across the dark stubble covering his jaw. “That.. last day on the train,” he started hesitantly. “Did you... I mean, do you still...” Fuck, he swore at himself. “I mean,” he sighed and dropped his gaze for a second. Why was this so hard all of a sudden? This wasn't how he dealt with things. “Look, I haven't ever been able to get you.... or it out of my head, well, ever.” So there it was. He'd said it. And fuck if he didn't want another drink all of a sudden.