Simon | yungblud

Song

Simon opened the case and pulled out the guitar. Ray's eyes widened.

"Dude, I'm so jealous right now, you have no idea."

"I'd be jealous of myself, too, honestly."

The smile plastered on Simon's face, hadn't left one second for the whole drive to our hotel, and even now, sitting on the floor in the hotel room, he grinned, face blushing with excitement.

"Where did he sign it?"

Leo moved his head directly in front of Simon and the item in his hands, making it impossible for Dan and me to get a glace at the guitar.

If he hadn't been blocking my view, I would've been able to watch Simon's fingers fly over the material, pointing out the black ink, which, I suppose, was Yungblud's signature.

Instead, I watched his face. His long eyelashes hid his gaze as he looked down at the guitar. He moved his hand to push hair out of his face. A simple gesture that I've seen him do so many times, yet, had never caused me to react the way I did right now.

My heartbeat increased, banging in my chest, making me push my hand against it in fear it would burst. My breath was shallow, and I failed with the attempt to breathe deeply, swallowing air and making me cough.

"Woah, did someone take your breath away, girl?"

Dan, pat my back, laughing.

"You okay there, Juliet?"

Simon looked up at me, and our eyes met. His brown eyes bored themselves into mine so intensely. I looked away, escaping the intimate contact.

"Yep -"

I rasped and immediately felt embarrassed of how damaged my voice sounded.
I closed my eyes and tried to calm down. No more looking at Simon today. No more dramatic reactions.

I opened my eyes just for them to fall back on Simon. He stood up, leaving his guitar with Ray and Leo on the ground. He moved to sit beside me on the bed, one arm draping over my shoulder.

I internally flinched at the contact.

"Maybe we should call it a night."

I watched his face from the side: his long lashes adorning his dark brown eyes, hair wildly falling into his face, even though he'd just pushed it back, the small freckle on his nose...

Simon looked around the room. First at Ray and Leo and then at Dan, who was sitting next to me, awkwardly fidgeting with the hem of her shit and looking down to hide her grin.

"Yeah... maybe we should go. Come on, boys, you can look at that guitar tomorrow."

Dan interrupted the silence, standing up from the king-sized bed, and pulled Ray and Leo up with her towards the door.

"Wait -"

Where are you going? You're supposed to share this room with me.

"Mind if I sleep in your room?"

Dan already stood outside in the hall, holding the door open for the rest of the group.

"No... yeah, sure, you can sleep with us..."

Ray answered, clearly confused by Dan's sudden hurry to get out of the room.
But he and Leo followed her outside, and the door fell shut behind them.

"Goodnight!"

Leo's muffled voice could be heared through the door and then their steps echoed through the hall as they walked away, leaving Simon and me alone, sitting on the king-sized bed I was supposed to share with Dan.

"Night!"

Simon screamed after them, making me flinch. He then stood up to get his guitar from the floor.

"You were amazing tonight, you know that, right?"

I watched him holding the white instrument in his hands with a soft smile.

The evening sunlight filtered through the thin hotel curtains, casting a warm, golden hue across the small room. Simon sat back on the edge of the bed.

"Thank you for being there."

"Of course."

I cleared my throat awkwardly. It wasn't often that Simon and I had a serious conversation, showing emotions like affection and appreciation. Right now, he showed a side of vulnerability in a way I'd never seen before.

Simon mirrored my coughing, a shy smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

"Do you want to hear something, or are you too tired?"

he said, holding up the guitar, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Sure."

I nodded, excitement flooding me. In hopes my cheeks stayed their original color, I shifted on the bed, leaning forward, resting my elbows on my knees.

We sat in silence for a moment, the weight of unspoken words hanging between us. Finally,  he spoke, averting his eyes from mine, his voice barely above a whisper.

“Alright.”

Taking a deep breath, Simon began to play, his fingers moving deftly over the strings. The melody was slow and sweet, filled with a sense of longing and hope. It was unusual, not at all his type of music, still, he played with such passion and concentration, it was hard to look away.

I watched his fingers gently strumming the guitar. The soft sound of the strings filled the room, mingling with the distant hum of city traffic outside. They hit me right in the heart. Every note vibrating in my chest, hitting me backward and pulling me foreward at the same time.

As he played, he glanced up at me, watching my reaction, and in the corner of my eye, I caught a smirk forming on his mouth. That exact smirk, I saw a billion times today. The kind of smirk, that, every time, took my breath, leaving me suffocating.

The music flowed, and the city outside continued its bustling symphony, but in that moment, nothing else mattered. I forgot Dan and Ray and Leo. Myself. Just the boy, his guitar, and that fucking smile.