from me to u... (book three - dalton)

chapter thirty-five: london night four (part 2)

"when raindrops fell... down from the sky..."

her emotions was ready to betray her. they were ready to seal her throat shut and muffle the words coming out of her lips. but ariana pushed through - as best she could. she wasn't going to show any weakness.

in the meantime, dalton had been watching the show from the screens backstage. he was to join dakota in the pit after the second act, but for now... his eyes were fixated on the tiny pop star who commanded the stage with every move she made and with every note she sang. her confidence and presence weren't wavered.

"hey, dalton!" a familiar voice peered from behind him. after turning around, dalton's eyes were met with doug approaching him. "did ariana tell you anything about how she was feeling?"

dalton shook his head, his expression reflecting concern. "after she told me what had happened, she left... and i didn't see her after that." dalton sighed, shoving his hands in his jean pockets. "i know you know i was lying about the walk."

doug nodded, offering a gentle smile. "i know you couldn't have said a damn thing to stop her from changing the set list."

dalton let out a hearty chuckle before turning his face to the monitors. ariana had just began performing bad idea, and as usual, her command never swayed. she wasn't letting her emotions get the better of her tonight. "i just want to punch the shit out of that guy."

"you and me both." doug said, with a voice laced with frustration. a few moments of silence passed by while the two mutual friends watched ariana perform in silence - admiring her presence and confidence, but also frustrated knowing the condition she was performing in. "court told everybody to lay back for now. ariana will have her word with him after the show... and if we interfere, we might make things worse." doug put a hand on dalton's shoulder. "we're all going to have to be there for her after."

dalton nodded. "of course. i'll be there for her whenever she needs or wants me to be there."

...

"i honest to god cannot even begin to believe i'm here right now!" paddy holland shrieked in excitement, watching ariana perform side to side from the vip corner of the O2 Arena. he had been a massive fan of ariana - long before tom even begun to take a genuine notice of her. "she sounds so much better live!"

"she really is extraordinary." nikki holland commented, looking at Tom - who's eyes were fixated on the stage. "this might be the first time i approve of a girl for you - not that you've ever concerned yourself over my opinions to begin with."

"oh come now, mum!" tom said, his face turning into the colour of a tomato. "i care what you think."

nikki chuckled while ruffling her son's hair, while her eyes averted to zendaya and her two other boys - harry and sam - dancing their minds off the moment the chorus of 7 rings blasted through the speakers. "you're not going to dance?"

"i would, but i'm going to tire myself out really quickly, and -

"tom, what the fuck."

both nikki and tom were taken aback at the foul language that was used by Paddy, who was staring at his phone with eyes full of disbelief. "young man, i raised you better than to -

"you raised me to not be a goddamn two-timer." paddy barked back, holding his cellphone up for the both of them to see what he had just read. "what the hell is wrong with you?!"