Finding My Voice

~13~

//A:N//: whatsssss upppppp???? i am rlly rlly bored so here i ammmmm. i dunno what else to sayyyyy so peace and love.

do you ever just get more energy by staying up later? x - s

...

"Guys. You have been doing fantastic. But this is your last rehearsal...Your performance is tomorrow. I need you guys to lock in. Just feel the music; you know your stuff, so don't question it. Okay?" Niall says to us after we have just sung our song in dress rehearsal.

I've been really stressed the past few days because I do not want to let Casey down. What if I'm just not good enough? This isn't really my forte, so I know she wouldn't blame me if I didn't make it through. But, I would blame myself. I have to do this. I have to do this for her.

Even with my one-on-one rehearsal with Niall on Sunday, I still don't know if I'm ready for this. Sure he was really helpful and gave me good tips, but I still can't get over it.

<fLaShBaCk>

"Hey Pyper there's no need to worry," Niall says to me,"You're one of the strongest singers on my team."

"Thank you, Niall, but I'm competing against four of your other strong singers, how am I supposed to win? I'm not a good solo singer, I just don't have the confidence for that." I respond.

Niall looks at me for a bit, contemplating. "Well, why do you think you're not a good solo singer?"

I sigh, "I don't know. I guess I just don't like all the attention being on me. It makes me uncomfortable, and I start shaking really bad."

"You seemed to do fine during the Blind Auditions."

I shake my head. "No, I was terrified. It felt wrong. Like I shouldn't have been there."

"So... you feel better singing with the group?" Niall asks.

I look up at him, then down at the ground before nodding slowly.

"Huh. Well, I guess right now just worry about this performance. Sing with the group, you should be fine with that right?" I nod. "Good, if you win this - and I'm not trying to give you false hope - we can figure out your fear when the time comes." He finishes.

I sigh before nodding once more, "Okay. Thank you, Niall."

He smiles. "Alright from the beginning. You got it, girl!"

<EOF>

"Pyper! That's you!" Someone shouts at me, bringing me back into reality.

I jump. "Huh? What?"

Everyone is looking at me. "Sorry, I got lost in thought. Where are we?" I say, trying to avoid eye contact, my face red.

"We're at our line, just before the first chorus starts." Alex quietly mutters.

"Right, sorry. I'm ready now."

After singing the song two more times, we sat down to let the other groups practice. Everyone else sat and immediately started talking amongst themselves. Well, except for Alex. That creepy guy just sat there. I feel someone sit next to me, and I look up to see Jamie.

"Hey, you feeling okay?" His green eyes filled with concern.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be okay?" I shrugged haughtily.

He furrowed his eyebrows and just looked at me for a bit. "I don't know, you just seem a bit off today. It's making me a little worried. Are you nervous for tomorrow?" He asks.

I shrug again. "Maybe a little."

He gives me a 'really?' look. "Okay, maybe a lot."

Jamie scoots a bit closer to me. "Why? You're super talented. There's no way you're not going to win."

I turn to look at him. "Do you want me to win? Would you be okay with me beating you?"

He looks away and is silent for a minute. I just watch him before he takes a breath. "I thought I would care a bit more, but now that I'm thinking about it...yeah." He turns back to look at me. "I would be fine with you beating us. I think you deserve it more."

His answer shocked me. Did he really mean that? He really wouldn't mind losing, just as long as it was to me. This guy is something else.

Not knowing what to say, I simply just nod. Looking back up to watch the other acts rehearse. Just sitting next to Jamie in silence, now toying with another thought in my brain.

"Are you...would you be okay with that?" He asks, causing me to turn my head back towards him.

I simply stare at him for a bit, thinking. "I'm not sure yet. I'll decide if it happens."

"Alright." He says with a little smile. "Let's just sit back and watch the show then. No more feelings, okay?" He scoots closer to me and puts an arm around me, pulling me into him.

I might have to disagree with him on that last statement...

"Okie dokie everyone! Good job today, you all did fantastic!" Niall clapped his hands. "Now just a reminder, be here by 4:30 in the afternoon at the latest. We will be starting setting up by 4:35 so, none of y'all better be late! Now I want everyone to go home and get some much-needed rest because I wanna blow the socks off the other judges and show off my amazing team!" He smirks.

We all laugh at that, causing Niall to smile and keep talking. "Alright, so the order of tomorrow's show is going to go like this. It'll start with the first pair from Kelly's team, then Blake's team, my team, and then Chance's. From then on, it'll continue in that order until the show is over. If you have any questions, just come and ask me or Chad." He gestures over to Ginger, who simply looks up and nods his head. I still don't like him. "Okay? You got this, guys!" Niall finishes, pumping his arms into the air.

Everybody else turns to leave, while I start walking up to Chad/Ginger. "Hey, do you mind telling me what order I will be going in?" I ask him.

He turns around and gives me a once over before looking down at his clipboard, "You and Almighty are Niall's last group. Huh. He specifically asked for you guys last," He seems unimpressed. "Favoritism shmavoritism." He mutters before walking away.

Jesus. What is up with this guy?

"Hey, Pyper!" Someone shouts.

I turn to see Claire standing by the doors, waving at me.

I wave back before she points outside and yells, "Your sister and her boyfriend are here to pick you up."

I give her a thumbs-up before rushing to get my bag. As I walk past her, I give her a quick side hug and tell her good luck. She just smiles and winks at me in acknowledgment.

I run over to Thomas' truck and climb in.

"Hey, how'd it go, kid?" Casey turns around in the passenger's seat to ask me.

I sigh.

"I'll tell you later. Just drive for now."

...