9 Gladys Alone: In Real Life

Gladys performs her song In Real Life and a very special person comes to hear
her sing it. will the very sensible side of Gladyss character win the day when an
film star shows a romantic interest in her?
Read by Natasha
Picture by Chiara Civati
Written by Bertie
By the way, you can hear Gladys in Spotify now.
Gladys goes it Alone, Chapter 9: In Real Life
Gladys spent her summer in Teddington. Much of the time, she sat at her desk
and looked out of the window, seeking inspiration. The parked cars grew hot in
the sun. Occasionally, a near tropical downpour would rinse the dust off them as
effectively as a car wash. The postman delivered gas bills and a boy shoved
fliers for pizza deliveries through letterboxes, but nobody was at home to pick
them off the doormat. A mangy fox sniffed around some empty dustbins. When
the bus stopped on the corner, two old age pensioners got on, and one old
man got off. Often Gladys thought, Is this how I am going to take the world by
storm? By looking out at an empty street?
Life came back to Teddington in the first week of September. Mostly it returned
on board a budget flight from Southern Europe, and sometimes in an overladen
estate car pulling a caravan back from Cornwall. School was starting up again,
but Gladys was staying at home. It felt strange to think that Sara, Jay-Jay, and
James would be stringing their sixth form ties around their collars. She thought of
the classroom, and her favourite teacher handing out dog-eared copies of
Othello to the smallish group who would be reading it for their English Lit A-Level.
She could almost smell processed sausages and beans in the school canteen
and feel the chill of the changing room, as she got ready for hockey. The only
thing she missed, quite frankly, was the company of her friends. Actually, there
was something else; there was the routine. There was the security of having your
day planned for you. You just had to listen, take notes, and do the homework
that was set for you. The conveyer belt would take you to your destination:
university. The only question was whether it would be a good university or a
second or third-rate one. Otherwise it was certain, and proven to work.
The life I have chosen is a confidence trick, she thought as she looked at her
Facebook page open on her computer, waiting for somebody new to like her or
leave a message. I have to convince myself that I can do it, even though there
is no sensible reason to believe that I can, I have to have faith in myself. Is that
foolish pride? Am I messing up my life, like everyone says?
Hours went by when she just sat and thought. She wasnt doing anything to
advance her cause because she had temporarily stopped believing. Then she
would force herself to sit down and start writing, and songs would appear in her
notebooks. Some were rubbish. Some were good. It was all material she could
use one day.
The standout song from this period in Gladyss creative career is In Real Life.
The seed of the idea came from the recording of Are We There Yet? at the
start of the summer. It was the first time that Gladys got a real live band together
for a session. They really made a difference, didnt they?
[Play up a bit.]
Up until then, Tim the producer had helped Gladys to fake it.
These days you dont even need musicians to put down a song. If your producer
can play the keyboard, he can be the band. He can be a trombone and a
string section if you want. Faking it has its advantages. You dont have to
rehearse the musicians. You dont have to record take after take until it is
perfect. Every beat is on the beat. Every note hits the right note. A solo starting-
out performer like Gladys can sound like she has the London Symphony
Orchestra at her beck and call but does it sound real? Does its heart beat or
bleep like a machine?
Arny, whose chest was still connected to all sorts of monitors and electrodes in
Kingston hospital also had two little white listening buds coming out of his ears.
He was assessing Gladys song, Ghost Girl, which was great, but had largely
been faked. He texted her with his verdict.
You cant beat live musicians Gladdy. They give it something extra.
Although Arny was old school, Gladys respected him and wanted to please her
mentor. So when she recorded, Are We There Yet? She asked Tim to find some
real musicians. The recording session took three times as long and cost more
than three times the price. Half an hour was gone just setting up the drums and
checking that each one was miked up properly. It was exciting to have a real
live guitarist walk into the studio and tune up his Stratocaster. He was, well, one
chilled out dude who did this twice a day for a living. He tried out a dozen
different riffs until Gladys and Tim said that was the one they wanted. By the end
of the session, Gladys could see that Tims computer had rows and rows of
different takes on it for each instrument a green wave of sound representing
each run-through. The cost of the musicians and the studio time was going to
eat into her savings. The result? Well youve heard the song. It was a whole step
up, dont you think?
She loved having a creative team come together, and this thought gave her
the title for her next song and her first album. When she wrote the words to In
Real Life, they turned into something a bit different. You see she was thinking
about her chance meeting with Darren Wolf, the Hollywood actor. Do you
remember that incident? How could you forget? Quite. He hung around in
Gladys thoughts too. Sometimes when she looked out at that suburban street,
she saw a cute little open top sports car pull up outside her house and Darren
got out but that was only in her imagination. Yet, if her best friend had asked
her about her feelings, she would probably have said she didnt fancy him at all.
She couldnt quite match up the dashing Darren she had seen on the screen,
and the slightly crumpled one she had met in real life.
Yes, she thought, Theres nothing special about stars. They have talent, but so
have loads of people who dont make it. Their number comes up in the lottery
of life. The entertainment industry showers money on them to make them look
perfect, and we see them up on the screen all shiny and glittering. Quite
honestly, it could be me. Yes, it could be if only
That was why she wrote her song, In Real Life It was inspired by Darren Wolf,
though probably not in a way that he would like.
Her own funds were running low. It was the last recording she could afford for
the time being, but it was worth it.
Then something happened in the real world that changed her luck. An email
dropped into her inbox from one of the clubs she had contacted at the start of
the summer.
We have a cancellation for Friday night. Can you fill in for us?
It was from The Spiral actually quite a snazzy venue just off Bond Street in
Central London.
She wrote back quickly before they could ask anyone else.
Always glad to help out. Fortunately, Im free. Ill do it. Then she thought and
added, By the way, how much do you pay?
She was surprised how swiftly the reply came back. Youre booked in for 9.30.
Fee is 60 pounds. You pay your own expenses. One free drink per musician.
She called Tim at the studio and told him the news. They would have to play for
next to nothing, but it would be fun.
This time it really was a great crowd; Gladys could say that and be sincere. The
clubbers had come out to dance and shake it down it in the first five or six rows.
She gave them something to move to, because her upbeat numbers were tight
and funky, thanks to the new drummer and bassist. For the first time she felt
glamorous up on stage, and was using her arms a like an Indian dancer,
swaying her hips, and smiling naturally. Her eyes flirted with the crowd. She
sensed that the musician enjoyed the whole togetherness of it, and were really
into the groove of her songs. Her music brought everyone together. It was an
ecstatic feeling. Yes, this was why she wanted to sing.
Then, at the end of one number, she sensed that a group in the crowd were
looking not at her, but at someone in their own ranks. Who was drawing their
attention? At last she caught sight of him. It was Darren Wolf. Yes, thought
Gladys. He kept his word. An A list Celebrity has turned out to see me!
But oh, for a moment she regretted that she was about sing her next number.
There was nothing to do but to go for it and giving it her all.
[Play Up In Real Life]
Perhaps it was the venue; perhaps it was having a famous person there to see
her. Most probably, it was the new musicians but this was by far Gladys best
performance yet. As she walked off the stage there was something waiting for
her on a chair just out of sight of the audience: a big bunch of roses. She had
seen them as she had come on, but had assumed they were for somebody else.
This time she took a closer look and saw that they were for her.
Oh my, she thought. I dont know if this is good or bad.
Darren found her backstage and gave her three kisses on the cheeks in the
French style. He told her that she was great and asked if she had any plans for
the evening.
Thank you for the beautiful roses, she said. Im sorry; I have to go back with
the band but She didnt quite know how she should finish the sentence.
Can I call you? He asked. He was very polite, but he obviously didnt expect
her to say, No.
Well Well why not? Thought Gladys. He did give come to see me, and he
sent me flowers. She gave him her number. It was the first time she had ever
given it to somebody who was probably going to use it to invite her out on a
date.
Gladys slid her guitar case into the hatchback of Tims car. He had parked on a
yellow line, and could leave it there for the rest of the evening. The backing
musicians were in an elated mood, and heading off to another club. In her
other hand she held the roses. She turned to her friends Sara and Jay-Jay and
said, Shall we go and get some tea? Although it was late, they found an
Italian place that was open. They ordered ice creams. Of course, there was one
topic that Sara and Jay-Jay wanted to discuss and it wasnt her performance
on stage. It was who had given her the flowers?
Well, said Gladys, Have you seen Bitten?
Of course we went with you, dont you remember? Exclaimed Sara.
Great film, said Jay-Jay, And that was one dishy vampire.
Funny you should say that, said Gladys, because these flowers are from
Darren Wolf.
No! Said Jay-Jay, in disbelief.
Youre kidding arent you? Demanded Sara. Both were giggling and
exclaiming so loudly that other people in the cafe were noticing.
Im deadly serious, said Gladys. No pun intended. But hes too old for me.
What do you mean hes too old for you? Hes famous!
Hes 26 and Im 16. I havent had a boyfriend. It cant be right.
You need to lighten up, said Sara.
Let me go on a date in your place, begged Jay-Jay.
Yeah tell him youve got two hot friends; Blonde and Brunette.
Gladys didnt smile. She was considering the situation. Well if he does call me,
perhaps I could ask if we could just be good friends.
The girls looked at her in wonder, not for the first time, as if she was from some
sort of far off and distant planet. What made Gladys tick? They had known her
for years, but they still didnt quite get what she was about. Well at least they
would have something to talk about at school on Monday morning.