𝐂𝐎𝐑𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐄, damiano david

━━𝟎𝟖.𝐏𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐜

Hours later, I was sitting in my hotel room with Sophia. She had made herself comfortable in the armchair while I sat on the bed and leaned against the headboard.

I was holding my phone in my hand, reading the comments under the video Sophia had posted. Most of them were very positive.
There was some series on TV, but because it was in Dutch, neither Sophia nor I understood a word. We just laughed at the actors' facial expressions and guessed what they were talking about.

Earlier we had ordered food again because we had both been too lazy to get changed and go outside. Tomorrow the first rehearsals of the big five would take place in the arena, since we would be participating anyway. Everyone else still had to make it through the semi-finals.

Elle had talked to Jared about Måneskin on the drive back to the hotel, she had also told him about my past in Italy, with my permission of course.

"Do you think Elle will really keep her mouth shut?", Sophia asked me out of nowhere and I looked up from my phone.
"Why wouldn't she, she promised?", I asked frowning and Sophia shrugged, "I don't know, she was just so excited by the headlines," she mimicked Elle's tone and I grinned.

"Elle has worked with me for almost two years, she won't say anything," I said but Sophia didn't look convinced.
"Honestly, don't worry, she's professional".
"If you say so"

"Oh look, the show's on" Sophia straightened up and pointed at the TV on the opposite wall. I put my phone aside and watched the screen.

"I'm so bored," Sophia complained after a few minutes. "Me too," I agreed and looked out the window into the dark evening, "Maybe we should go to bed early tonight."
"No way, I'm not tired at all," Sophia protested immediately."Neither am I, actually", after we had come back from the arena I had slept for two hours.

"Can't we go outside? Nothing exciting is happening in here," Sophia asked me with a pleading look.
"And what do you want to do outside, let creepy guys talk to you?" I didn't feel like going out so late at night.

"Don't be so negative all the time," Sophia snapped and I straightened up in bed, "Then tell me what you want to do," I demanded.
"Well, we could ask the others for example-" Sophia began, but I interrupted her, "No no, not today", Damiano's presence would only upset me completely again and I already had enough emotional chaos because of him.

"Ugh," Sophia went on, propping her head on her hands, "Then let's at least go to the lobby, maybe there are cocktails at the bar," I settled for that.

Fifteen minutes later, Sophia and I took the lift down to the lobby, from which a door led outside to a terrace where there was a bar.

A few couples and groups of people were sitting at the tables, but it was not too crowded and the atmosphere was pleasant.
"Will you order us something?" I asked Sophia and she nodded quickly, then disappeared to the bar.

Only now did I notice that I had left my mobile phone upstairs, so I grabbed a napkin and scribbled on it with a pen that was lying on the table.
I thought of a melody for a song and went through it in my head until I was jolted out of my thoughts by a loud bang.

I flinched and immediately searched the terrace with my eyes, my heartbeat accelerated and my mouth went dry. My breathing was accelerated and my whole body felt numb.

Before my eyes I saw my father's face yelling at me and throwing a glass at me. He ran after me, grabbed me and pulled me to the ground.

I tried to shake the memories from my mind, turned around and then my eyes fell on a waiter who had dropped a glass.
Immediately my breathing slowed down again and I relaxed, I hadn't noticed how all my muscles had tensed.