Liam checked the levels on his screen and smiled. "That’s the beauty of it. The natural acoustics of this valley are insane at night. No traffic, no city hum. Just us and the music. Ready to record?"

Maya leaned her head on his shoulder, letting out a long, satisfied sigh. "Play it back. I want to see how the woods sound."

Maya nodded, taking a deep breath. Liam tapped the bright red circle on the screen. The file name generated automatically at the top of the display: Bf Gf Recording _ Session Outsidemp4 .

Liam adjusted the heavy condenser microphone clipped to the passenger side sun visor. He turned to Maya, who was cradling an acoustic guitar in her lap, her eyes reflecting the glow of his smartphone mounted on the dashboard.