The Last Note (Ricky Wilson)

Chapter Six - Sing

So, that was that. I, Elizabeth Hammond, was secretly dating Charles Richard Wilson. It wasn't so much that it had to be secret, it wasn't like that at all actually. We just wanted some time to adjust, and the less people that knew the better. It had been exactly a week since our trip to the guitar store meaning that today was the day that I sang my little heart out in front of whoever shows up. I felt sick to the stomach.

I knew that Ricky and the boys were going to be there, Mum and Uncle Carl. Apparently a few other locals that had popped in throughout the week we're going to make an appearance too. If anything, I was just glad that Uncle Carl was getting a little bit of business for the evening.

"You'll do fine.." Ricky whispered in to my hair as I leant against the headboard of his bed in his new apartment. He had moved in a few days ago, saying he needed a decent place to escape to for privacy once in a while. All the other boys had settled down with kids and he craved a little bit of that. Maybe, one day, someone would give it to him.

"I'm just nervous." I admitted turning my body towards his, craving the warmth he emitted on a regular basis. Kissing his cheek, I stood up and grabbed the guitar in the corner of his room. He still hadn't heard me sing. "Want a sneak peek?" I asked, smirking at his suddenly interested expression.

"Always!" Was his short but firm response as he readjusted his position to get a clearer view of my impromptu performance. I took a deep breath and adjusted the guitar strap to fit comfortably on my shoulder. The chords were finally feeling familiar.

'I'm not saying it was your fault,
Although you could have done more,
Oh you're so naive yeah so..'

I found myself becoming sort of comfortable in my own skin, performing like there was nobody watching and I loved it.

'I know, she knows
That I'm not fond of asking
True or false it may be
She's still out to get me..'

I finished my performance after the chorus and Ricky sat there with his mouth hanging open. I automatically reverted back to my normal self and blushed, turning away from him and busying myself with nothing.

"Why didn't you tell me how amazing you are?" He questioned me as his arms snaked around my waist from behind. I blushed again at the amount of attention I was receiving from him.

"I just lack that needed confidence." I admitted, finally relaxing in to his embrace. We stayed like this for a short while, just enjoying each others company before the moment was ruined by my phone alarm ringing and notifying me that I now had two hours before showtime. "I'll see you there.." I said, kissing him lightly before leaving through the front door as his eyes followed me the whole way.

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'...just don't let me downnnnnnn'

I finished the song I was prepared to play and the thirty people that filled the Cafe erupted in to applause and whistles. I didn't expect this many people to be here but honestly their reaction was quite humbling. As I stepped of the stage my mum hugged me tightly, mumbling something about how proud of me she was. Uncle Carl was beaming like a proud dad and Ricky actually had a tear in his eye. I had glanced at him recording me at multiple points of my performance.

Running over to the boys, it was actually Simon that was the first to greet me. "That was incredible" was what he whispered in to my ear as he put me back to ground level. I hugged the boys one by one and when I got to Ricky he kissed me there in front of everyone.

"I am so proud of you!" He said as our friends made snide 'I knew it' comments around us but I knew they meant no harm. I looked at all of their faces, but Simon looked...broken. "He's just split with his wife.." Ricky whispered by way of explanation and I accepted it. The poor bloke.

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Just over two hours later I was back home in my bedroom and logging in to my Twitter account. '99+ new notifications' my page alerted me and I almost died of shock. I was SO going to kill him later.

"Our gorgeous friend performing 'Naive' tonight. Give her a follow and watch the vid! @BethHammond3❤️ - R x" was Ricky's tweet, retweeted by all the lads and 376 other people. I had over a hundred new followers and many mentions congratulating me on my talent.

What had he done?!