*Jessie's P.O.V*
It all began that night.
That night at the Ed Sheeran gig.
I was playing a small venue, accompanied by a very difficult audience who just were not enjoying themselves. They were just glaring at me, throwing alcohol everywhere and things were beginning to get pretty rowdy. I was so glad I had invited my friends along, I really don't know how I would have coped. I could see Ed out of the corner of my left eye, clapping and cheering for me to go on. Everyone was staring at him because he was one of the only people appreciating what I was doing, while they were all extremely drunk and unaware of their actions. "I would like to thank you all for coming tonight.." I had mumbled half-heartedly. But I then looked over at Ed grinning. "A special shoutout to my best mate Ed, for supporting me tonight. This one's for you!"
"Come on Jess!" He screamed, and I giggled as the intro into Do It Like A Dude began thumping.
After my set was over, Ed came over and gave me a warm hug and a friendly kiss on the cheek. "Ahh that was a tough crowd" he said, pulling his face. "You still smashed it though!" It was those compliments that really drove me to do better. I knew starting out wasn't going to be easy, but with the right network around me I knew it would all fall into place eventually. My friend Holly, who was also there, was looking a little bit unsteady. "Sorry but I am going to have to call it night I'm afraid, I think Hol's had one too many.." I sighed. Ed nodded, and we walked swiftly out the venue.
A few moments later, we said our goodbyes and agreed to meet up later in the week. "I've had a really good evening watching you Jess", Ed said and I blushed, making him realize what he had said maybe wasn't worded quite right. "Oh I didn't mean..well..umm.." Ed trailed off. I stood there laughing for a while as he looked very embarrassed to have been caught out. "Don't worry, I know what you meant," I had winked.
Taking Holly back to the hotel gave me a chance to think about what I wanted. I wanted a friendly, fun relationship that wasn't too serious, yet wasn't too casual. That night, I made a vow to not let my industry guard get in the way of what could potentially be the start of new things to come. I had been warned to stay well away from those celebrity boys, but I just felt like Ed was different.
I eventually got to bed wearing a satisified smile upon my face.
*Ed's P.O.V*
I was pretty nervous when Jess told me she was playing at Laughing Boy. Those crowds were notoriously difficult, as I knew from some of my friends who had also played there. She asked me if I would like to go, as we hadn't been in contact for a while so I figured it would be good to briefly catch up. My SBTV friends were also there, and were filming part of the set to upload onto YouTube, so I knew this was a pretty big night for Jessie's career- those videos can either make you or break you. SBTV gets so many views, and artists uploaded onto their channel can go onto do massive things if the set is good enough.
I noticed one of Jessie's friends when I arrived, Holly I think she was called. She had bright red, bouncy hair, but was pretty tipsy and began to sway drunkenly before Jess had even began singing. "Hi", I intoduced myself quietly and she responded with a cheery wave and continued her drunken dancing. Jess stepped onto the stage and we caught each other's gaze immediately; she looked pretty uneasy if I was honest, and was unsure of how to get the set started. My circle of friends began to cheer, and that gave Jessie the encouragement to begin. She gave an acknowledgement to me, which was cute and began her first song. Her vocals never failed to blow me away, the gymnastics she could achieve with her pipes was amazing. It was evident the rest of the crowd didn't share my opinion as they just chattered throughout and sent bottles of beer flying through the air. That was the problem playing little venues. The crowd tends to be local so you never know what reception you will get.
Half an hour later, Jessie stepped off stage looking very relieved it was over. Hugging her, I shared my opinion on the crowd as she nodded in agreement. She scanned the crowd for Holly, and rolled her eyes as she noticed she was worse for wear. Jessie walked over to her, which gave me an opportunity to look her up and down. She was a very attractive girl- long legs, glistening eyes and an enticing smile. I felt guilty as I thought that, nothing had ever happened between the two of us and I was doubtful that it ever would, but at the same time I did have an attraction to her. My wishful thinking was interrupted as Jessie dragged Holly over to where I was standing and explained she would have to return to the hotel. I was disappointed, I had hoped we would spend some more time together, but she promised to get together soon.
I repeated my praise of her set and felt like kicking myself as I awkwardly said I enjoyed watching her. "What did I say that for?" I thought to myself as she began to giggle at my verbal attempt to redeem myself. I could feel myself going a deep shade of beetroot. Jessie seemed to understand my self-humiliation and gave me a flirtatious wink. We exchanged a final hug and then parted back to where we were staying, in our separate hotels.
It was after that I decided I wanted to see more of Jess. We had always maintained a close friendship, and I felt as if there was some chemistry between us that I wanted to ignite. I knew Jessie was left a bit downbeat after the testing audience, so I sent her a late night text which she would pick up in the morning. "Good morning Jess!", I had sent. "You were fab last night you know, contrary to the crowd's beliefs. Really looking forward to seeing you again, we need to meet up more! Missed your company. Love Ed x". I was unsure if Jessie had my new number in her phone, I was constantly changing it and had several ones depending on where I was at. I fell asleep looking forward to her reply the next morning.
