CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
'THE REAL DEAL'

A/N: Fun fact, the place in the header picture - I've been there, I bought a pair of sunglasses in a shop on that street. It actually looks exactly same. Just some useless information there 😂

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WITH THE INITIAL EXCITEMENT OF THE BAND BEING SIGNED AND PLAYING AT THE MARQUEE CLUB IN DECEMBER HAVING ALMOST SUNK IN, the determination to work even harder than before seemed to kick up another gear as the boys rehearsed almost every night at De Lane Lea Studios in Soho to keep up the standard expected of - now - professional recording artists (even if they were only given access to the equipment when everyone else in Britain was asleep).

Roger wouldn't come home until all hours - some days he'd leave in the morning and I wouldn't see him again until the following one - but when he was home, he'd usually lock himself away in his room, penning down ideas for potential songs whenever inspiration struck. This meant the house was pretty quiet; not that I was complaining, of course. Not having to listen to him hammering away at that drum kit every evening was certainly a blessing. Although, I think I'd gotten used to him being around, creating commotion everywhere he went, as it was a bit strange when he wasn't. Then again it would be very hard not to notice the absence of his ego, though, wouldn't it?

Anyway, tonight, the band were to perform at a local medical college having been approached by the student's union after one of their members had seen them perform live before, their lasting impression obviously being a positive one. Eager to get their name out there further, they immediately accepted, although that didn't mean they weren't as nervous as ever when the night finally came around and last minute preparations were made before they were due to begin show.

'Stop pacing back and forth, you're making me nervous and I'm not even in the band.' I told Brian as he paced the length of the make-shift dressing room (probably an office or a staff room by day), whilst fiddling with the tuning pegs on his guitar for the thousandth time in the last five minutes.

All around us people were bustling around, most of them I hadn't a clue who they were, but they obviously had some important part to play in organising tonight's show.

'You're usually pretty calm and collected before a gig, what's troubling you?' I asked him.

He just shook his head, 'It's just that we have a reputation to uphold now, you know.? Our manager is here tonight, we need to be the best we can be and show him what we can do, but if it's a flop, well...that can only be bad, right?'

'Oh come on, Bri. You're overthinking things as usual. Trident's hardly gonna drop you if there's a little less people in the audience than expected,' I tried to assure him, 'Besides, I went and had a look outside earlier and saw a huge queue at the door so I don't think you have anything to worry about. Just do what you always do and blow them away. You'll be fine.'

Brian gave me the best smile he could without showing he was panicking, 'Thanks Heidi.'

Five minutes before 'showtime'. The tension in the room was definitely building up now as everyone seemed to be on tender hooks.

'How do I look, my darling, do I look like the real deal?' Freddie approached me and gave me a full view of the outfit he was wearing tonight, which consisted of nearly all satin apart from his platform boots.

'Like a Greek god, Freddie,' I told him with a smile as he tried to contain an excited squeal, suddenly grabbing my shoulders and giving me a huge kiss on the cheek, before prancing off out the room, ready to give the audience everything he had.

Laughing to myself, I made my way through the people still hanging about in the dressing room, saying good luck to Brian and John who I passed by in the midst of it, until I reached the benches at the far end of the room next to mirrors being used as dressing tables, where I found the drummer still primping himself in front of his reflection, even though he should be heading out towards the stage ready for his cue.

'Rog, you're on in a few minutes, what are you still doing here?' I asked him, as he just frowned at himself in the mirror.

'It's this bloody eye, no product I use seems to cover it up,' he tended to his wounded eye carefully, although I have to say it was nothing compared to what it was like a week ago.

'I can barely see it.'

'Yeah, but I can still see it, I know it's there,' the blonde whined like a child as I tried my best not to roll my eyes at him, 'I don't want to look like I was in a fucking boxing match.'

'Well, the fact you're not even blending the foundation in makes it look even worse than if you wore no makeup at all,' I told him, honestly, which received a less than grateful look from the drummer. I eventually gave in, 'For Christ's sake, there's no time for this, let me do it.'

Handing over the array of products he had around him, I sat down next to Roger on the bench as we both turned and faced each other, the first thing I did being wiping off the mess he'd managed to create around his eye with god knows what.

'Ow, ow, ow...'

'Shut up, you big wuss,' I murmured, as he snickered at my reaction.

Whilst I got to work covering up what was still visible of the drummer's war wound, I asked him;

'So, you nervous for tonight?'

He scoffed, 'Please, I've done this for years. Do you think I'd still be nervous about performing after doing it for so long?'

I shrugged, 'Well, Brian was almost having a nervous breakdown earlier, and he hardly shows any anxiousness before a show. You can drop the hard-man attitude, I know you're bricking it.'

'Alright, I suppose I am a bit nervous,' Roger admitted, 'Only because our manager is in the audience, judging our every move. He's never seen us perform with an audience before, so what happens tonight could change everything. We need to be perfect.'

'God, you lot are so paranoid, of course you will be, you'll be nothing but perfect. Besides, you're talented, determined, good-looking. Everything these people want in their clients. Honestly, you've got nothing to worry about.'

'Good-looking, eh? Can't say I can disagree with that.' Roger smirked at me.

Shaking my head and trying to suppress a laugh at his unsurprising comment, I applied the finishing touches to his makeup. I put the powder I was using down, 'That's you done. Happy now, Princess?'

Turning to inspect my work in the mirror, he touched his eye carefully, 'Wow...you wouldn't even know it was there.'

'Well, that was the point I was trying to make in the first place before the makeup went on but, hey ho.'

He looked at me again, 'Thank you, Heidi. Like, seriously, you're amazing.'

I shrugged, ''Hardly. I was just saving you from going out there looking like a clown. No need to thank me.'

He chuckled, 'You're just too modest for your own good.'

There was a short silence between us as we just sort of sat there looking at each other, lost in our own little world. It was a strange experience, neither of us said a word or moved a muscle. However, just as Rog opened his mouth to say something, the dressing room door flew open and in came John looking extremely flustered, bringing the drummer and I back into reality.

'There you are! Rog, we're on in 30 seconds, get your backside out here!' he exclaimed.

'Alright, I'll be there in a second,' the blonde told the bassist, who rolled his eyes and ran out the room. He then turned to me again, that transfixed look in his eyes still present.

'You'd better head on out there, can't keep the audience waiting.' I reminded him.

'Yeah, yeah you're right,' he cleared his throat awkwardly before grabbing the set of drumsticks on the table and getting up, heading to the door. Before he left he asked, 'You are gonna watch the show tonight, right?'

'Of course I am, I'll be in the wings cheering you guys on.'

This news seemed to make him smile, 'Good.'

Just as he was about to disappear out the door I stopped him.

'Roger?'

'Yeah?'

I smiled, 'Good luck. Not that you need it.'

He just smiled back at me, 'Thank you, love.'

And with that, he disappeared out the door to begin the show, whilst I sat there for a bit longer, a strange fluttering feeling taking over me momentarily, before eventually brushing it off and heading outside to watch the action.

* * *

The room was hot and the hall was jumping as the concert was in full swing, everyone dancing and singing along to the band's cover of Jailhouse Rock, turning the place into complete chaos. Freddie bounded about the stage like a crazed gazelle as he always did, the audience, who were all crammed into the relatively small room were eating out the palm of his hand, and the rest of the group were just as spectacular as they effortlessly played along to the beat. Brian never ceased to amaze me when it came to his guitar playing, every time I saw him I was more blown away than the last time. John did his thing too, hitting every bass note perfectly on time and swaying side to side in a little dance, totally immersed in what he was doing. And Roger, well, he sat at his drum kit keeping everyone in time and not missing a single beat (it was only now when I wasn't listening through the walls of the house that I realised how impressive a drummer he was). How he made it look so easy was mesmerising, it was hard to take your eyes off him.

But then again, my attention kept wandering back to the blonde quite frequently throughout the show for some reason. They were subtle glances every so often mainly, but eventually he caught me when looking to the side of the stage and our eyes met. In return, he sent a cheeky smile and wink in my direction, earning an eye roll and an embarrassed look from me, as he carried on playing. Ever the charmer, I thought to myself.

And it was then and there, after so long trying to deny it, that I had to admit to myself something within me had changed. Just a few months ago, I could barely look at Roger without wanting to wipe off that smug grin that seemed to be permanently plastered on his face. But now, despite all the arguments, snippy comments, and the general personality clash of two very different people living under the same roof, I'd actually grown to, I dunno, kinda like Roger. Spending so much time around one another definitely helped us get over our differences; I don't think I realised how dull it was living in that big old house all by myself until now.

So, yeah, it was good having him around. And, no, not just because he helped pay the bills, but because I had not only a roommate, but I'd formed an, albeit unforeseen, friendship too. I hope Brian doesn't find out I said that, he'll be way too pleased that I finally admitted it.

Anyway, as I stood in total mesmerisation, someone came up behind me and grabbed my shoulders, sending a shock through my body.

'Boo!'

'Bloody hell!' I near jumped out of my skin as I turned around to face the bold Penny who was now in hysterics. Clasping my hand over my chest, I sighed, 'You need to stop scaring the shit out of me.'

'Sorry,' she giggled, 'I saw the perfect opportunity, it was just too hard to resist.'

'Well, you're lucky I didn't deck you,' I told her, laughing it off myself, 'What are you doing here, I wasn't expecting you to be here tonight?'

She shrugged, 'Oh, you know me. If there's anywhere with good booze and good music, I'll be there - well, that and I knew you'd be here too. Judging by the looks of things, I think I got here just in time, right?'

'Yeah, I think they're on their last couple of songs,' I told her, 'They're having an after party, though.'

'Oh, I'm sure.' she nodded as we stood and watched the band, who were in the middle of 'Liar', one of their own numbers which they played regularly at their gigs as it always seemed to be very well received by the audience.

After a few minutes, Penny asked, 'How are things between you and drummer boy? Have you called a truce or do you still hate each other's guts?

I shrugged, 'Well,...we've definitely turned a corner, I think. We get on much better than we used to, there's less bickering and we can actually have a civilised conversation. I'd say we're doing alright.'

'And, uh, Colin?' she mentioned his name apprehensively, 'Any encounters with him since the last time we saw him?'

I paused, 'Not yet, thankfully, apart from Roger hitting the roof when he spotted the bruise from where Colin had grabbed my arm. He went round to his house and the two of them had a scrap outside his front door. Roger came home looking like he'd been in the wars. God it was such a mess.'

'Oh my god, are you being serious?' Penny looked at me wide-eyed.

'Yeah,' I shook my head, 'I wished Rog had just left things alone, but what's done is done. The thing that I'm most worried about is Colin coming back, seeking revenge or something. Who knows what he's capable of?'

'Hey, come on now, you can't think like that,' Penny told me, laying a reassuring hand on my shoulder, 'You keep worrying, you'll make yourself ill. If that creep knows what's good for him, he'll stay well away, myself and Roger made that very clear to him. So I wouldn't think about it too much if I were you, alright?'

I sighed and nodded, 'You're probably right, I'm just being paranoid. There's no use going over and over it in my head.'

'Exactly.' Penny nodded.

Then, all of a sudden, the strumming of Brian's guitar and a final loud cymbal crash brought my attention back the stage.

'Thank you, thank you very much!' Freddie thanked the crowd who were still whistling and applauding the band, as they all approached the front of the stage to take their bows. I was so busy talking to Penny I didn't even realise the show had ended.

'Have a safe journey home!' the singer smiled as the four members waved farewell to their fans, before making their way off the stage and disappearing into the wings.

'My, my, Mr. Frontman is quite the looker, isn't he?' Penny suddenly piped up, referring to Freddie.

'Oh, yes, he's certainly easy on the eyes,' I agreed with her, 'C'mon, let's head back to the dressing room to meet them; I can introduce you properly.'

'Seriously?' she asked as I nodded and motioned Penny to follow me, 'Tbank you. Not gonna lie, I would like to get be on a first name basis with Mr. Frontman, if you know what I mean?' she smirked.

'Hey, what comes out of this has nothing to do with me, I'm merely introducing you to him,' I just laughed as the two of us navigated our way backstage, 'The rest, however, is none of my business.'

-

Hello again everyone!

Soooo, this chapter wasn't meant to be uploaded until another couple of days because originally it was much longer, however, in the spur of the moment I decided to split it in two because the part was just going to be way too long (that's why the ending might be a bit weird and abrupt because it wasn't meant to be there lol) and I'm sure you'd much rather have something to read now than wait even longer. More drama is to come soon, I promise, but for now I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I will see you all in the next instalment.

Thank you!

- Anna :-) x