ROLEPLAY HQ - diary-of-jane

TW: Swearing, alcohol use, possible talk of drug use, possible sexual situations. More to come if needed

The Old Fremont Hotel was in the heart of downtown not to far from the City’s arena and convention center. The hotel was there long before many of the skyscrapers and it’s neighboring aging buildings. The original was built in 1886. A few decades later a fire caused it to be rebuilt and revamped in the 1920s. Most of the mosaic tile on the floor was original save for a few spots here and there. The rooms are posh and well designed with all the amenities anyone would want making it one of the best hotels in the city. Because of this, The Old Fremont saw many of the guests from the arena and convention center. Vera Jane Fremont was raised on bell boy carts, large laundry bins, and a knack for customer service. Her parents are the current owners of the hotel today. It had been a few years since she last visited and now she was living here after a failed marriage. Twenty-five and divorced after five years. What a waste of time. To busy herself, her parents hired her to play piano in the lounge until she got back on her feet. After a night of tickling the ivory’s with some nice lounge music at the bar, Vera made her way upstairs to the small penthouse reserved for family and family friends on the top floor. She was wearing a nice black cocktail dress, scrappy heels, and her hair was pulled back in a half up, half down pony tail. She was exhausted and by the time she got to the top floor she was annoyed, a group of guys were huddled around their door as they tried to use their magnetic key. Vera sighed and shook her head before she walked on past them.

"No no no, ya gotta turn it this way... Aha!" The lock on the door chirps as it finally unlocks. The four guys standing around it all quietly revel in their success. As the group enters the room, one lingers in the hallway to look back at the woman who just passed by. "Excuse me, miss?" As the words leave his mouth, his internal dialogue retorts. "Miss? Do people even say miss nowadays? Of course they do, don't want to be rude. Is it really being rude if you're famous? We are famous, right? Of course I am, I'm only reminded of it every time I'm recognized. Focus! "You were the one on the piano down in the lobby, yeah? I'm a musician myself and I gotta admit, listening to you was quite something. I'm Corey, Corey Watts." Nice and smooth. He thinks to himself as he finishes introducing himself. Brandishing his signature smirk. @wompwomp94

Vera would have stopped sooner if she was in the mood for customer service, but she wasn’t. She was tired and wanted to relax and hit the hay. Vera did pause when the piano was brought up. She looked back at the guy standing in-front of his door and raised a brow at him. “I’m glad you liked it…that’s why they hired me here.” She gave a light hearted scoff before she took a moment to regard him. “Just back from a rock club or something? See any one cool?”

@sniperterra

"Yeah, we were at the House of Blues. In fact, we were the ones performing!" He points a thumb to the half opened door, the other three already making themselves at home after the long ride. Corey has known them for years. Together, they have been performing and rocking the faces off their fans for almost three years now after making it into the industry. "We're booked for a few more shows in the area, so we got put up here for an extended stay." He says as he leans against the door frame, still presenting her with his signature smirk. @wompwomp94

“Oh you don’t say.” Her face became dead pan. The Fremont had a lot of glitzy and famous guests in its time. She pursed her lips and gave him a little nod “well, good luck with that.” Vera gave Corey a thumbs up before she turned on her heel to walk away. Vera didn’t mean to be rude but you meet one rock star you’ve met them all right? And didn’t this guy and his buddy get fawned over enough by men and women and people that enjoyed his music?

@sniperterra

"I- wha-? Hey hold on a sec! What's your name?" His voice was softer at the end, both bewilderment and curiosity in his voice now. She was interesting from the get-go, but to not recognize him or react at all for that matter? This was exciting! Corey and his buddies had been making waves in the music industry to the point Corey was getting sick of the attention. To suddenly be met with indifference was a surprise and a welcome one at that. "Like I said before, I listened to you play. We should play something together." He blinks as his mind reels. Did we just say that? More importantly, who is she?! @wompwomp94

Vera paused a few doors down and walked back to him. “Hey, keep your noise down, there are other guests here.” She paused a few feet away from him and pointed to a plaque on his door that read The Vera Suite. “My name is Vera. I’m named after the wife of the hotel’s founder.” She folded her arms and tilted her head to the side. “My parents own the hotel, I’m helping out for a bit.” She shrugged. “Now, keep it down or I’ll have to cal security.” She gave him a pursed lip look before she smirked. “Yeah, what are you going to play together? Some hotel jazz?”

@sniperterra

"Of course, sorry." He rubs the back of his head as he apologizes. "Yeah, Jazz is fun. You take lead and I follow along with some rhythm." He strums his hands in the air in front of him as if playing a guitar. One of the guys in the room call for Corey, asking what he's doing. "Anyways, it's been a long day, time to snooze." He turns to enter the room but looks back to the woman. "Oh, and even if you don't share in the sentiment, it's a pleasure to meet you, Vera." Corey gives her a more genuine smile and a wink before disappearing into the room and carefully closing the door behind him. What was THAT? Woah woah woah, did my heart just skip a beat? "Yo Corey, what was that about? Who were you talking to?" Brian asks, spinning a drumstick between his fingers. "Probably passed someone from the gig." Responds Jacob, whos treating his hands with lotion. Being a bassist can take a toll on the fingertips. "Hell, they wouldn't even have to be at the show to recognize us. Ain't that right, Corey?" Follows up Shane, Lead guitarist and jam session extraordinaire. "Nah, just catching a breath of fresh air is all" Corey says dismissively as he unzips his luggage to settle in for the night. @wompwomp94

Vera was up the next morning what she hoped would be too early for her rock neighbor to be up. Hopefully they partied a little too hard and she could enjoy a nice morning breakfast downstairs with our running into him. But Vera’s luck hadn’t been very good this year. She brushed her long brown hair out of her face and up into a pony tail for the day. She was wearing a simple cozy large cable knit sweater that was a pale yellow and jeans. She slipped on some sneakers before heading down stairs. So far the coast was clear, she just needed to make it to the elevator. Vera tip toed past the Vera Suite. She paused to see if she could hear snoring but she heard nothing. She picked up the pace past the door and sped walked to the elevator. @sniperterra

Vera's luck proves to be as reliable as ever, once she reaches the café area, she is greeted by the sight of the four rockers quietly conducting their morning business. Schedules, set lists, a box of merchandise awaiting signature. They didn't have the luxury of partying or sleeping in. Corey is finishing prepping multiple mugs of coffee as Vera enters his view. He briefly locks eyes with her for a moment, giving her a wink before carefully carrying the mugs, two in each hand, over to the table they have set up at. "...so we'll do half and half between our two albums plus a cover for each of the two last two concerts." "Where are we at in writing for the next single?" "Somewhere between getting done and finished. Just need to reword the bridge." Replies Corey and he sets out the mugs and takes his seat. Giving Vera another glance before turning his attention to the work and his breakfast. @wompwomp94

The breakfast area is busy this morning. But the rockers are keeping to no themselves aside from Corey eyeing her from time to time. Vera wasn’t used to the attention. It had been a while since she had been eyed at like that. The brunette gave him a nod to acknowledge him politely before she skirted off to the kitchen. Her mother Adelaide was in the kitchen taking stick of the breakfast preparations and greeting the staff. “Oh, Vera, good morning.” She smiled at her daughter and gave her a warm side hug. “Did you see we have some special guest?” She whispered in Vera’s ear. “I met them last night. They seem to think they’re pretty special.” Vera shrugged @sniperterra

Corey sits autographing merch to be mailed out as other guests trickle into the room. It didn't take long for the all to familiar sound of excited recognition to pierce the room as a pair of fans makes their way over to the band's table. "Oh my gosh! It's really you!" The young women are uncomfortably loud for the time of morning, nevermind their surroundings. Corey does his best to greet them while trying to get them to lower to a respectful volume. "You two were there for us at the House of Blues, yeah? That's awesome, thanks. I hope you enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed performing." He puts on a friendly face well, but deep down he would do anything to get better control of the situation. @wompwomp94

(( @sniperterra @wompwomp94 Hey there! - Looks like it's been a while since this has been posted in. So I'm checking in to see if you would like to continue or if you would like to archive it. Please let me know either way and I'd be happy to help!

))

@fiory - jump ((I want to continue but I haven't heard from Eddy in a while))

((Sorry! I haven’t been feeling too well! I also want to continue, I will get a reply out today

"Hey Brian, run and grab the acoustic, I'm gonna see if I can find our pianist." Corey nods his head to the side with a grin. Brian moves without hesitation, already on board with the plan. "We have a pianist?" Shane follows up, giving Corey a curious look. "Unofficially, we do now. She just doesn't know it yet!" Corey says with a relaxed excitement. As the three remaining members chat with their fans, Corey develops a plan that Vera could help him out with. @wompwomp94

Vera had a bagel hanging out of her mouth as she made her way out of the kitchen toward the lobby. Today shouldn’t be too busy, a few errands and loose ends to tie up before the start of the new week. She cocked a brow at Corey when she spotted him coming after her. Vera took the bagel out of her mouth, chewing thoughtfully as she half listened to Corey and half watched his band mates scrounge around for acoustics. She swallowed her breakfast and shook her head. “I don’t know any of your songs, I can’t play with you.” It was true, she couldn’t remember the last time she really listened to rock music. Maybe some 80s rock in her uncle’s garage, some emo music in middle school? @sniperterra

"He chuckles at her preemptive remarks. "That's not my aim, I was hoping if you could play Hotel California? My guy is coming back with a acoustic drum. The two of you can play while I sing. How does that sound?" A genuine smile sprawls across his face as he explains his plan. "Brian will be a moment getting the box from the bus, so you have time for warm up if you're in. I'd really appreciate this, Vera." What was he saying? His mind feels crowded with different thoughts. About her, about the fans, about the impromptu performance, about her. It was exciting and it made Corey smile even more. @wompwomp94

“I’ve heard of it. I could play some chords or something.” She took another bite of her bagel and followed him over to the lounge with the baby grande. She was used to performing, but the thought of performing with someone who actually had big fans in some sort of capacity was a little unsettling. The show must go on though. Vera sat down at the piano after tossing the last few bites of her bagel and got comfortable. She looked around for a moment as a crowd started to form as Corey and his band settled in nearby to the piano with the acoustic guitar. “Just tell me when you’re ready.”

18:22

@sniperterra

Brian gets back just in time, setting down a wooden box near the piano. Shane gives Vera a nod as he pulls up a chair. Corey stands a short distance away to the side of Vera, still smiling, as a small crowd gathers around. "A one, two..." Shane counts off before strumming the opening chords to the song they all knew by heart. Hotel California has been one of the many songs they have performed at almost every gig, before they got scooped up by a label. But this time, it was going to be different. They have never performed with an extra person before. Brian begins strumming his fingers across the smooth face of the box, producing a soft sound. They both give Vera room to contribute and improvise. Jacob, not having his bass guitar with him, opts to back Corey with acapella. Corey's singing voice was calm, much to Vera's surprise. While it did have a slightly rough edge to it, Corey was able to control his voice fairly well to fit the environment of the hotel lounge. @wompwomp94

Vera’s long slender hands glided across the keys as she joined in providing a smooth base line and harmonizing with Corey as he sang. She closed her eyes getting lost in the music for a moment. Corey’s voice was very nice to listen to. He was attractive as well so she understood his popularity when they first met. His singing? Well, the crowd growing was a large indicator to just how big they were getting and why. The energy in the air was infectious. Vera found herself backing up Corey’s vocals as well with the last chorus. @sniperterra

Corey's smile grew brighter as he heard Vera singing with him. She was getting into it and it honestly made him ecstatic, the enthusiasm showing in the last two verses of the song.

Mirrors on the ceiling The pink champagne on ice, and she said "We are all just prisoners here Of our own device" And in the master's chambers They gathered for the feast They stab it with their steely knives But they just can't kill the beast

As Corey sings, his hands are busy putting on a show. It was obvious that they have done this act many times before, but Corey performs as if he isn't tired of it in the slightest.

Last thing I remember, I was Running for the door I had to find the passage back To the place I was before "Relax," said the night man "We are programmed to receive You can check out any time you like But you can never leave!"

As he finished the final lyric, he spreads he arms, pointing in either direction to both Vera and Shane as the solo begins. Shane leads it off, strumming with more emphasis and passion. Corey looks back at Vera, giving her a wide smile, he's having the time of his life, fully engrossed in the moment. @wompwomp94

Performing with them was electric and fun. It had been a while since Vera had felt this way, genuinely excited for something. She smiled at Corey and let Shane have his moment before she began playing along with him. Vera put on a spectacular solo once it was her turn. She entertained scales with the chorus melody an octave higher than normal before she finally finished the song with Shane. The brunette stood up and gave a little bow to the crowd.

@sniperterra

As the finish the song, Corey claps and hypes up the crowd a bit to applaud Vera. The fans were eating it up but were now at a more respectful volume. "Alright! That was awesome, Vera! Thank you so much for that!" The other bandmates complement and thank her as well, they're also looking like they've enjoyed the performance. @wompwomp94