ʟɪʟʏ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴠᴀʟʟᴇʏ ! ʇɹɐǝɥ ɹǝɥ uᴉ lᴉʌǝp | GEORGE HARRISON

18| the star of the show

'woke up, fell out of bed
dragged a comb across my head
found my way downstairs/drank a cup
looking up i noticed i was late
found my coat/grabbed my hat
made the bus in seconds flat
found my way upstairs/had a smoke
somebody spoke/i went into a dream...
i read the news today, oh boy
four thousand holes in blackburn lancashire
and though the holes were rather small
they had to count them all
now they know how many holes it takes to fill albert hall
i'd love to turn you on'

roxie was horrified.

her entire body froze, rooted to the spot as her fingers curled around the edges of the paper, feeling the smooth ridges where the ink had been pressed against the paper. was this a joke? had he written this for her? john, a man with a wife and toddler at home. was this a test? maybe he had just jotted down lyrics and mistakenly put it somewhere and roxie thought was hers.

or did he mean something entirely different by writing this letter?

she didn't know, but she wanted to find out soon.

roxie hastily folded the paper, tucking it into her pocket before dashing out of her bedroom and down the stairs. as she rounded the corner into the kitchen, her gaze fell upon the calendar, and her heart skipped a beat.

"mum & dad visiting" was scrawled across the top, glaring at her with an accusatory tone. tomorrow. she had completely forgotten.

"shit," she muttered under her breath, a wave of panic washing over her.

without a second thought, roxie bolted out of the kitchen, her footsteps echoing on the stairs as she ascended to her room. she cursed, racing down the corridor until she reached her bedroom. she took a deep breath, trying to steady her racing thoughts before mustering the courage to call her parents.

the phone rang three times before her mother's familiar voice answered, tinged with a hint of impatience.

"hello?" her mother greeted, the tension palpable in her tone.

"mom!" roxie exclaimed, trying to inject some cheer into her voice. "how are you? sorry, i've just.. forgotten to call sooner. y'know, work has been crazy, and i lost track of—"

"you forgot, didn't you?" her mother interjected, her tone softening slightly as concern replaced impatience.

a pang of guilt was sent with that interruption, tugging at roxie's heartstrings. she knew she had let her parents down by forgetting their visit.

"i'm sorry, mum... i promise to make it up to you," roxie admitted earnestly. "i'll make sure everything is ready for your visit tomorrow. is there anything special you'd like me to prepare?" she anxiously played with the cord to the phone.

her mother sighed softly on the other end of the line. "just having you around is special enough, rox. but if you could whip up your famous lasagna, that would be wonderful."

a smile tugged at roxie's lips, relieved that her mother's disappointment seemed to dissipate. "dont worry, mum. i'll make sure it's the best lasagna you've ever had."

"we'll see you tomorrow, sweetheart." her mother replied warmly.

"love you," roxie whispered. the warmth of her mother's words lingering in the air. with a heavy sigh, she placed the phone back on the receiver, her thoughts drifting into the abyss of her mind.