Epilogue
The music from downstairs swelled as Jay sat in his office and answered one last email.
He was supposed to make an appearance fifteen minutes ago, but a scheduling conflict had come up with an artist coming to record next week.
Dealing with that led to him checking the rest of his inbox, and he suddenly forgot he was throwing a party.
One thing he didn’t realize when he decided to open his own label was how many damn emails he’d receive in a day. He’d blink and there would be eight more to attend to.
Ari poked his head in, curls pulled back in a sleek bun. The top button of his shirt was already undone, and he was gripping a water bottle.
“The fuck you doing hiding up here?”
Ari strolled in, his gait smooth though he still crossed the threshold favoring his left side.
He plopped onto the desk, crunching an unfiled contract under his jeans.
Jay grimaced and pulled it out from under his ass with a dramatic flourish.
He held the papers toward Ari before setting them off to the side, emphasizing his brother was being his usual thoughtless self.
“Got busy. All Day Tonight can’t make it next Thursday, so I’m trying to see when I can fit them in.”
“Didn’t we agree no work today?” Ari nudged him with the water bottle. “Here. I brought this because you were supposed to make your big speech already. Wet your whistle.”
Jay turned in his chair to properly face his brother and laughed. “Did you just tell me to wet my whistle?”
Ari grinned, shrugging. “Pop told me earlier the water was wetting his whistle. I’ve officially added that phrase into my everyday vocabulary.”
“Sounds like you’re talking about something else,” Jay mused, opening the bottle and taking a sip of water.
Ari’s eyes lit up. “Exactly! I’m being completely innocent, but it sounds like a dick joke. We should all say it more.”
“You’re ridiculous.”
“And you’re jealous you didn’t think of it first.”
Jay huffed out another laugh and leaned back, listening to the music getting louder and louder downstairs. The opening riffs of a Bring Me The Horizon song blared, and he groaned.
“Who gave Mira the aux?”
Ari snatched the water bottle back, taking a swig. “I left her in charge of the playlist. Let her have her fun.”
“I’m just worried we’ll get a noise complaint from the neighbors.”
“You’re the one that chose the building surrounded by law firms,” Ari chided, pointing a finger that stayed perfectly still in the air. “Though Nik texted from his office earlier saying they don’t mind the music. Actually asked if he could stop by after work.”
Jay raised an eyebrow. “Nik? Maya’s brother Nik? He works next door?”
“Yeah. He’s a big shot. Just bought the firm.” Ari’s voice was carefully casual, but Jay caught the flush creeping up his neck. “We’ve been talking. Ran into him outside a couple of weeks ago, and he asked me to catch up over lunch.”
“Ah, I see,” Jay teased. “You gonna go?”
“Nah.” Ari’s gaze drifted to the window. He rubbed his right thigh unconsciously, a habit he’d developed whenever he’d been on his feet too long. “I’m still not all myself, and Heather…”
Jay now knew all about about Ari and Heather’s on-and-off-again dynamic, but he also remembered how hard Ari had fallen for Nik back in high school before Nik had moved away for college.
“Do what feels right,” Jay said. “Lunch doesn’t mean a wedding.”
This made Ari smirk. “Speaking of, have you bought a ring yet? Ma was downstairs grilling me about why you and Ava aren’t engaged yet.”
Jay groaned and sank into his seat. He and Ava already talked about their future and how they were in no rush to go to the next step.
Ava had a year to go with her residency, Jay was starting his own business with Ari, and after about two decades of being together, they didn’t feel like a piece of paper made a big difference.
Ari just laughed. “I told her you guys were waiting for the right time.”
“And did that work?”
“Of course not, but hey, you know I’m on your side.
” Ari jumped off the desk, landing with a solid, balanced thud that would have made his physical therapist proud.
He held his hands out and motioned for Jay to get up.
“Come on. We’ve got a record label to celebrate, dude.
It’s our party down there, and we’re both in here away from everyone. ”
“Yeah, yeah.”
Jay stood, stretching too. He and Ari wore matching black jeans and collared shirts, though Ari’s navy satin shirt was tucked in with a sleek belt, while Jay’s black button-up hung open over a plain navy tee.
They stepped through the door, the music hitting them full force. Friends from old tours clapped their backs near the restroom line. The creaky stairs, barely audible over the pounding music and lively chatter, led them to the lobby—an old living room buzzing with celebration.
Wyler Records found its home on Music Row, a 1920s two-story house they’d remodeled into a functioning record label and recording studio.
It took months of demolition, replacing floors, retrofitting equipment, and picking out paint colors to get it to where it was ready for business.
Ava and Mira, at least, enjoyed the decoration aspect of it all while Ari and Jay pored over designs and specs of the studio.
“Hey!” someone shouted as Jay and Ari descended the stairs. “This place looks incredible!”
A familiar face, one of Wicked Smile’s old techs, blocked their path. “Ari, Jay—where’ve you been?”
Before they could respond, Mira swooped in, her purple hair flipping as she grabbed their forearms and tugged them toward the sound system. “Everyone keeps asking where you two are, so I told them you had the runs.”
“Gee, thanks,” Ari laughed.
“What? I was tired of covering for you.”
Mira released them by the speakers, and Jay felt a gentle touch on his elbow.
He turned to find Ava, radiant in a deep blue dress that hugged her hourglass figure, a mid-thigh slit making his hand twitch at the thought of running beneath it.
The day’s chaos had kept them apart, and he ached for a moment alone with her.
“Hey,” she breathed into his ear, coming close so he could hear over the speakers.
“Hey.” He pecked her lips and raised his voice, “How’s the party been?”
“Hors d’oeuvres are a hit, and no one’s griping about the no-alcohol rule.” She winked. “Told you they wouldn’t care.”
He looked over to see Ari helping Mira figure out how to connect the microphone to the sound system. He couldn’t hear them but could tell from their expressions they were already arguing about who was right.
Jay wrapped his arm around Ava and looked around the room.
His siblings were being their usual selves to his left, and all around him were old friends and colleagues from the last decade of his career.
They somehow managed to shove a little over fifty people into the house, and it made him feel warm to see everyone under one roof.
Mira was suddenly at his side, the microphone in her hand.
Ari was behind her at the sound system, turning the volume down slowly, which made everyone shift their way.
Jay gave his brother one last look, and Ari shook his head.
Jay wanted him to say something with him, but Ari refused, wanting Jay to take all the credit since this was all his idea in the first place.
“How’s everyone feeling?” Mira’s voice boomed through the mic, met with cheers and raised drinks.
She grinned. “Good, good. If anyone’s having a bad time, take it up with Jayesh and Arihan Wyler—this is their business, not mine.
” Laughter rippled through the room, and Mira’s energy surged.
“But you didn’t come to hear me. Let’s give it up for Wyler Records Co-CEO, Jay Wyler! ”
Applause broke out as Mira handed the microphone over to Jay. He squeezed Ava into him, and she rested her arm around his waist. He could see her smiling up at him from the corner of his eye.
“Um, hey, y’all,” Jay said with an awkward laugh. “Thanks for coming out to celebrate with us tonight. I know I speak for Ari, too, when I say we appreciate each and every one of you and your support.”
A smaller round of applause broke out, and as it died out, Jay continued, “You may or may not know we’ve had, uh, a difficult last couple of years.
” Jay laughed again, slightly nervous. “We’re here now, though, and it’s honestly hard to put into words how lucky I feel to be able to say I’m opening a label with my brother.
This—this is the dream. Ari is going to be in charge of all the recording and producing.
I get to do the bulk of the paperwork.” He made a face at Ari then, which got a laugh from the crowd. “And we’re both fucking CEOs!”
He laughed again, shuffling on his feet. Ava’s hand sank down to rest in his back pocket. It felt so good to have her with him as support.
“It’s more than that, though. All of us in this room, in one way or another, have dealt with the shit side of the music industry.
We’ve watched it suck the soul out of art—out of artists.
We’ve watched talented folks lose themselves to rigid contracts and impossible expectations that ignore real life.
“Wyler Records isn’t a vanity project for us. We want this label to represent and support the artists we sign in the most genuine ways we can. Neither of us want any of our artists to feel the kind of pressure we felt. That isn’t what music is about, and it never has been.”
The room was silent, hanging on his words. Jay took a shaky breath, emotions swelling. “The IRS might call us a corporation, but we see this as a community. To our new employees here, we’re thrilled to build this with you—even if you’re mostly helping with legal stuff and taxes.”
Scattered laughter broke the tension, and Jay glanced at Ava, her eyes glistening. He smiled, squeezing her closer.
“I’ll wrap it up with this,” Jay said, lifting his gaze to the crowd.
“I want to quickly thank my siblings, Samira and Arihan, for putting up with my shit all these years and still loving me enough to go on this venture with me.” He turned back to see Ari smiling at him and Mira smirking.
He then turned to find Ava’s parents in the crowd.
Ma was crying and Pop wore his toothy grin.
Finally, he looked at Ava. “And to the love of my life, Ava Davenport, you have shaped me into the man I am today, and I am forever thankful for the day I met you. I wouldn’t be standing here without you. ”
She reached up to kiss him, tears falling now, and the crowd whooped and hollered.
“Get that man some sparkling cider!” he heard David shout over the crowd, which sparked a wave of laughter.
Within moments, two flutes of sparkling apple cider appeared. Jay clinked his glass against Ava’s, raising it high. “To making it.”
The crowd raised their drinks, sipped, and applauded. Ari gradually turned up the music, and Mira snatched the microphone back.
Jay turned to Ava, downing the rest of his cider and setting the glass precariously on a speaker to their left. He swayed to the Queen song blaring through the speakers. His hands found Ava’s waist; she draped hers around his neck, holding her flute. Their foreheads touched, swaying to the rhythm.
“Think I nailed the speech, or should I stick to singing?”
Ava laughed lightly and pressed herself into him, her hips matching the beat and moving in sync with him. “I mean, I guess it was fine,” she teased, prompting an eye-roll that made her giggle.
“Glad you’re here to keep me humble, A.”
“It’s my specialty.” Her green eyes sparkled as they met his. “You already know I’m proud of you, Jay.”
He kissed her, the noise of the party fading.
And in that moment, everything felt exactly as it should.