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- The Venue ᴰᵉᵗʳᵒⁱᵗ, ᴹⁱᶜʰⁱᵍᵃⁿ
The short boy leads them into the venue, backstage to a private room where only his other two bandmates sat. There was no sign of Eli yet tonight. Anna found herself a bit nervous about this whole situation. A part of her couldn't even believe she was here right now. Would he be happy to see her?
The girls hugged and said hello to the other lads before sitting down on the brown leather couch to discuss a game plan.
"Well knowing Eli, he'd probably be most shocked if we surprised him after the gig!" Ryan suggests. Anna could feel the nerves growing inside her. Any second Eli could pop into the room, not knowing that Anna was there.
"You think so, Ryan?" Anna wipes the sweat off her palms, shaking her leg to try and get the nerves out. "Oh Anna, we know so! We can hide you guys in the crowd and as soon as the show's over, get a security guard to escort you backstage to surprise him." Bobby now says, adding to the conversation.
"Okay, that sounds great!" Suddenly a door opens revealing the boy's tour manager, who also happens to be in on the surprise. "Guys, Eli is coming this way." He peaks his head in through the door only to close it again.
"Quick! hide behind the couch!" Bobby quietly yells, all the boys rush the girls to crouch down behind the couch. "Bobby, I'm not wearing the right kind of bottoms to be crouched down like this!" Anna whisper yells as she looks up at the tall boy standing at the corner of the couch.
"Nothing I haven't seen befo-" Anna hits Bobby in the knee, quickly shuting him up.
"Ouc-" Just then a familiar brunette opens the door, causing all the boys to turn and look at him suspiciously. Josh puts his head in his hands, shaking his head in disapproval. Eli looks at the situation in front of him confusingly, Bobby is leaned up against the couch with a hand on his hips. Ryan is stood still in the other corner of the couch, hiding Beth's purse behind his back as he couldn't hand it to her in time.
"Uhh...are you guys okay?...It's ten minutes till show time.." Eli's eyes continue to scan the room until his eyes land on a single lipgloss lying on the coffee table in front of the couch. The pink tube reminding him of the same one Anna uses. Eli decides not to question the situation in front of him, instead closing the door and returning back to the room Grace was in.
"Phew! That was a close one!" Bobby wipes the invisible sweat off his face as Anna gets up and hits him in the arm. "Ow! What was that for?" Bobby dramatically rubs his elbow.
"mate..." is all Josh says as he and Ryan share a chuckle.
"You should know!" Anna walks from behind the couch to the coffee table, grabbing her tube of Sephora lip gloss. Beth and Anna both fix themselves up before heading into the crowd while the boys get ready for their show.
lujion starts playing through the speakers as the four boys walk out onto stage. Anna can feel time stop as she admires Eli, the way he walks, the way his hair falls, everything about him. The loud screams from the audience get even louder as they start their first song.
Anna and Beth jump up and down, singing every lyric. A bit of deja vu hits Anna, thinking of the first Inhaler concert she's ever been to. The night she met Eli. As they sang along to When It Breaks, Anna couldn't help but notice the smug look on Eli's face. A part of her wished she could march up on stage and kiss him.
A warm heat covers Anna's already blushed face as they jump around. Song after song, the girls sing their hearts out while jumping around like maniacs. Anna could've sworn she saw Rob look at them and crack a smile at their antics.
Security came to escort the girls to the back as the last song came to an end.
"It's gonna be okay..." Beth said grabbing Anna's hand to stop her shaking. She could tell that her best friend was still in her own head. One by one the boys left the stage, Bobby was the first to come down the steps, giving Anna and Beth a hug before moving on. Next was Ryan, who was covered in sweat from drumming so hard. Then was Josh, who waited nearby to see Eli's reaction.
Eli was the last to come down the small steps. However, instead of gravitating straight to Anna and the rest of the boys, Eli finds his way into Grace's arms. Hugging her tight with a bright smile on both of their faces as he lifts her off the ground. "Good Job!!" Anna can hear Grace giggle.
Less than 10 feet away stood Anna and the rest of the group, distraught as they saw the situation in front of them. "Oh..." is all Anna can say, causing Eli to let go of Grace and look Anna's way. A single tear drops down Anna's face as she pushes past the boys, Eli stood shocked for a second before running after her.
"Anna! Wait!" He took large strides toward her as she kept walking faster until she inevitably made it outside. "Go away Eli!" Anna yells back at him, covering her face so he can't see her cry as he nears closer.
"Anna, let me explain!" Eli was now standing right in front of the sad girl. "Why should I Eli?! I come all this way to surprise you, only to find out that you were with another girl this whole time!!" Anna pulls a pack of cigarettes out of her leather jacket, lighting one. Anna was never one to smoke often, only when she really needed it. And as of right now, she really needed it.
"It's not what it looks like Anna, I'm not dating Grace" Their faces are just inches apart as Eli pleads his case to Anna. She continues to smoke her cigarette, looking anywhere but at Eli. "Why should I believe you Eli?!" Anna screams back at Eli, he takes a couple of steps back noticing just how much his girl has changed in the weeks they've been apart. The last time he had seen her she'd seemed sad, helpless almost, but he didn't care because she was still the sweet Anna she'd always been.
Now, well now Anna just seemed mad. Mad at him. Maybe he deserved it, maybe not. Eli let out a breathy sigh before heading back inside, leaving Anna with just her cigarette. Unbeknownst to the duo, the rest of the group had been watching the whole interaction play out. They felt sad that the duo were having these issues and nominated Josh to talk to Anna.
Josh hesitantly walked outside toward the angry Anna. Josh had never seen Anna this angry before. Like she'd take a hit of her cigarette and blow out the fire instead of smoke. Still, he walked up to Anna, not saying a word for a few seconds before breaking the ice.
"you know, Eli would never do that to you." The two stood side by side as they stared at the building in front of them. Silence was followed by Anna taking a seat on the pavement, crushing the cigarette beneath her boot. "I'd like to believe that..." Josh could hear silent sniffles coming from beside him. He takes a seat beside her, wrapping his arm around her in a comforting manner.
"Grace is just his friend, that's all she's ever been to him.." Anna puts her head in her hands, not even worried about messing up her makeup. "ya know Anna, Eli really really really likes you."
"Oh God Josh! Did I just ruin everything?!" Anna says as she lifts her head out of her hands. Josh chuckles before continuing, "Just talk to him, Anna! And trust what he has to say!!"
