Band vs Band: Second Edition

First Day Of 'Work'

Chloe's P.O.V
I woke up to the shimmering light shining through the transparent silky curtains. I nuzzled my head into my pillow, wanting to bask in my room filled with cold air from the A.C. Then, it hit me. Today was my first day of working with the girls. I groaned and buried my head into the pillow.

I sat up and brushed my hair out of my face and hopped out of bed. Max's ears seemed to perk up as he trotted over to me and rested his head on my lap. I ran my hands along his smooth black and tan coat. "Sorry baby, not today. I've gotta go to hell, I mean work" I sighed. As I stood up, I heard him let out a squeaky whimper. I knelt down and kissed his forehead. "Hey come on, we can go for a walk after work, how about that," I said, trying to bring up his mood. He finally stuck his tongue out and panted, meaning he was happy. I smiled.

Max wasn't just a dog. To me, he was the only thing that made me deny the fact that I needed a therapist. He was always there for me. Always there to listen to my problems and comfort me when no one else could. When I first got him a few months back, he was so attached to me that I just couldn't go anywhere without him following along. Of course, the first time getting a dog, I was repulsed by him.

Most importantly, he was super protective of me. Max is super intelligent and he knows exactly when someone irritates me or makes me uncomfortable and they'd be dead or bitten within minutes. Not that he'd ever kill anyone. Max is still that sweet little puppy that I knew just a few months ago and that's how he is now. But he'd make sure they knew to back off.

I put on a black long-sleeved button-down shirt with black jeans. What can I say, I have a taste for the most tasteless colors. I hugged Max goodbye and left off for work.

At The Studio
When I arrived at the studio, the girls were doing a soundcheck before they would do their performance. I will admit, it was kind of nerve-wracking for me. On the first day itself, Simon wanted us to sing in front of Little Mix! That's like having an exam on the first day of school!

Already knowing Leigh-Anne's personality, she'd probably never let me forget it if I messed up our performance. I looked over at the boys and they seemed to be thinking about the same exact thing I was thinking about. "Guys, are you nervous?" I asked. They all nodded in unison. Jeremy fiddled and fidgeted with his hands. Preston bit his nails and Gavin gripped onto the chair for dear life.

The girls were up first.

I don't know why but there's just something super nerve-wracking about waiting your turn for a performance. Especially when you know whoever you're up against is 10x better than you. As sweat trickled down my forehead, my breathing became ragged and my uneasiness made me queasy. My posture was rigid and I looked over to Simon. He looked over at the girls with adoration. Of course, who else would pay his bills?

I just tried to enjoy the performance before we were up. The girls were singing the acoustic version of 'Shout Out To My Ex'. As they were singing, I noticed Leigh Anne looking right into my eyes as she sang 'I'm all the way up I swear you'll never bring me down'. I just forced a smile. I couldn't believe how long she'd hold a grudge against me. I made sure there wasn't any bad blood between us when we congratulated them after we won the award.

"Okay girls, thank you for that performance. Kids, you're on" I held my breath.

Kids? That somehow seemed to belittle me even more.

As the girls passed us to take a seat, Leigh Anne smirked and wished us luck. I knew she didn't mean it. Jade, however, smiled sincerely and nodded. It was oddly comforting.

The boys shuffled towards their respective mic stands. My shaky hands grasped the mic and held it tight.

"Alright guys, whenever you're ready" Benny whispered from the side of the platform. He gave me a thumbs up and nodded.

I closed my eyes and pretended I was in an empty stadium. All alone. It was just me and my vocals. Not even the boys were around. Deep breaths, okay Chloe, you can do this!

I started off the performance with Midnight Memories by One Direction. 

"Straight off the plane to a new hotel"

"Just touched down, you could never tell" The guitarist strummed along as I sang.

As our performance went on, the girls looked unimpressed. Everyone except Jade. She had a wide smile on her face and she was vibing to the music. I watched Perrie as she squirmed and looked uneasy. Leigh-Anne just didn't give a damn and Jesy eyes were glued onto her phone. 

As the song reached the outro, Simon pointed his finger upwards meaning I should raise my voice. I did Zayn's falsetto on the last note and that got Leigh-Anne's attention. She looked surprised as to how an inexperienced little kid like me could hit that note.

Surely a lively, energetic performance like ours would be way better than their sit-down lame little performance, right? 

As we finished, Simon nodded. "Amazing performance, guys." Simon congratulated, clapping. He encouraged the girls to clap too, Jade did so willingly but Leigh-Anne hesitantly clapped like she couldn't care less. 

"Okay, you all have proven yourselves and your vocal talent today. I am impressed and I will see to it that you guys can work together as soon as possible. I hope you all are looking forward to it." Simon announced.

"Oh, we're looking forward to it," Leigh-Anne said with a smirk that made my heart slowly sink.

"Y' know what, you guys can start today, actually" Simon corrected.

"Damn it, Simon" Gavin muttered.

Leigh-Anne gave a surprised look and smiled. "Looking forward to working with you guys...real soon" 

Gulp.