“Thank you, Mr. Lynch. That means a lot.”
“We were wondering, would you mind if we played the video at the beginning of our home games before the team takes the field? We think it would really hype up the crowd.”
Colton shot a grin at Dean, and Dean mouthed an excited ‘Wow!’
“Oh my God, I would be honored! Thank you, sir.”
Colton gave Dean a high five.
“No, thank you for creating something so wonderful. I can’t wait for our fans to see it on Sunday, but I won’t keep you. You boys have fun. Colton, I’ll see you soon.”
“Oh. My. God!” Dean shrieked as he ended the call.
Colton punched his shoulder. “That’s fucking awesome! Congratulations.”
They were about to head back into the studio when Dean turned to Colton, a horrified look plastered on his face. ”Shit! Where are my manners? Can I get you something to drink? I’ve got water, tea, soda, wine, beer, liquor.”
Colton considered his options. “How about a beer?”
“Coming up! If I’m not careful, they’ll take away my southern card for not taking care of my guest!” Dean joked as he walked backward toward the kitchen.
Colton wandered into the studio and looked around the large space. He enjoyed playing guitar, but he never really thought that much about music, or how it was made. The vast array of knobs, buttons, and controls on the mixing board made his head spin.
He picked up a guitar off a stand, settled into a stool, and began to strum a few notes.
Dean returned from the kitchen with two beers.
“Oh no, no, no.” Dean tsked.
“What?”
“Your posture is terrible! You’re all hunched over.” Dean walked behind Colton, placed one hand on his lower back and pulled his shoulders back into a tall, upright position. “Sit up tall, like Baby inDirty Dancing. There! Better.”
Colton felt a tingle in his belly and a jolt up the back of his neck when Dean touched him, but he had no clue what Dean was talking about. “Huh? What do you mean ‘sit up tall, like baby’?”
Dean chuckled and poked his shoulder. “It’s from an old movie. You’re too serious for your own good. Try playing again.”
Colton began to play again, amazed at the improvement. “Wow! Just that one small change makes such a difference.”
“Yep. Poor posture can really affect your fingering and pick work. This should improve your overall execution. And your back will feel better.”
Dean grabbed another guitar and sat on the stool next to Colton. “Hey. Wanna work on a song together?”
Colton smiled with a little gasp. “That would be amazing! But I have no idea what to do. I just play random notes.”
Dean began strumming some chords. “Well, that’s how any song begins, really, just playing around until you land on something. So, let’s just riff and see what happens. But first, would you mind if we posted a pic on my socials?”
“I don’t mind, as long as you tag me,” Colton said as he felt himself smiling again with a nervous flip in his stomach. Geez, he was acting like a teenager. He really needed to reel it in.
Dean set up his phone on a tripod, set the timer for the photo, and rushed back to the stool next to Colton.
The picture came out great…both Dean and Colton strumming their guitars, side by side on stools, with soft ambient lighting.
Dean posted the pic on Instagram with the caption:
Jam sesh with @CM24
During short breaks in their messing around, Dean showed Colton the recording deck and how to use the DAW—Digital Audio Workstation—on his laptop.
