Finding My Voice

~29~

//A/N//: lowkey imma rush these next few cuz i am extremely bored, and i have other shit I wanna post on here. mwahahah and i have more time now so maybe i'll actually post shit on time.

don't get your hopes up tho. mwah!  x   -   s

...

Bloodsucker, dream crusher
Bleedin' me dry like a damn vampire.

Claire finished off, as the crowd went wild. 

The lights come back up and we all put our arms around each other as the cameras pan over us once more. 

Carson walks out from wherever he comes from, "And that was your first Live Show performance of the night! Give a round of applause for Almighty! Remember that performance, but also note there are four performances left!"

I look one last time into the audience and I see my mom, standing there applauding me. This is the first time she's seen me perform and thank God, I didn't fuck up. 

We walk backstage just as the stage crew starts setting up for the other performance, and instantly we are met with Louis.

He was invited to stay and perform a song, which I am grateful for because this man is like our number one cheerleader. I'm not saying he has favorites but... it's totally me. And it's probably because I'm his biggest fan. 

"Yes, that was it! Way to go, lads!" He says as he high fives the guys, then he turns to Claire, "Way to finish off the song, love. You did great."

"Thank you so much!" Claire gushes, before her and the rest of them walk into Team Niall's green room. 

Louis turns to me and engulfs me in a hug. I once saw a post saying that he hugs his fans like they're his children, and yes. I feel so loved. 

"I told you. You were amazing!" He pulls away from the hug and pats my shoulder, "I'm so proud of you, Pyper. So, so proud." 

"Thank you. I couldn't have done it without your pep talk." I laugh.

He smiles, "You probably could have, but I'm glad to feel wanted. Right, now you got to cheer me on, yeah? I'm on after all the performances while they're collecting votes."

I nod, "Oh yeah, of course. I'm your number one fan."

I turn to go, "Oi, wait a second," Louis calls out. 

"Yes?"

"Check your phone, eh?" He says as a stage crew taps him on the shoulder.

I walk into the green room confused and immediately walk over to my things, pulling out my phone. 

Louis followed me. And shouted me out on his story?! 

Dear God...

Honestly if we don't win, I don't think I'll care anymore. My life is complete now.

Just kidding. But I'm still freaking out.

I feel a tap on my shoulder, and I turn to see Jamie.

"Hey," He says, eyes warm. "Come sit with me."

I nod, and we walk over to one of the massive bean bags. 

As we plop down, Jamie asks, "How do you feel right now?"

I look at him, "About what specifically?"

He laughs, "That's a good question. I suppose that applies to a lot of things: the performance, your family, Louis shouting you out on social media, and so on... But I guess, I just want to know how you feel right now. Like, overall."

I hum, "When you put it like that, I guess my life has been really crazy lately," he nods his head, "I think... right now, I'm feeling a mix of things?"

He scoots his bean bag a little closer to me.

"Like, this might sound crazy," I continue. "I feel relieved that we did good on that performance, I'm still crazy worried about my sister, I'm trying to recover from my favorite celebrity giving me a pep talk like we're best friends, but the craziest one is: I don't think I'd be mad if this was our last performance. Obviously I want to win, you know? But, I'm proud of what we've accomplished already."

Jamie nods, "I get that. I'm proud too. We've gotten farther than I ever thought we would, and I don't regret a single thing. Is it bad for me to say that if we get voted out here, I still think we'd get signed? I mean, Niall's sort of been hinting that his manager is interested in us."

"Really?"

He laughs, "Yeah. I don't think he meant to tell me, but it was kind of in passing so I don't think he realized he said it."

"Well, what did he say?" I ask.

"So I went up to him a few days ago cause I wasn't quite getting the harmonies in the song, and I also told him that I was feeling a little stressed. He gave me a whole pep talk, and at the end he said something like, 'Even if you guys don't win this thing, I'm sure a bunch of managers are just waiting to sign ya. Just look at mine, they're practically ready to pounce.' and then he walked away."

I look at him awestruck, "That's actually crazy."

He nods.

"But wait," I furrow my brows, "Would it be all of us? Or just a few of us? Would they have us still be a group, or would they have us solo?"

Jamie puts his hand on my shoulders gently, "There is no doubt in my mind that they wouldn't separate all of us. At this point we're a package deal. And besides, you surely have nothing to worry about, Pyper. You're fantastic."

I smile at him, "Thank you. And you're amazing too, Jamie."

"Hey, you two! Come here we gotta debrief as a group!" Anthony calls over.

We both head over to the main couches and plop down.

Anthony sits up, "First of all, I just wanted to say that we killed it out there, and I am so proud of each of you." 

"Aww, thanks dad!" Jamie coos. 

Disregarding him, Anthony continues, "We did phenomenal out there, and dare I say it, I think we're definitely one of the favorites."

Claire hits him, "You're going to jinx us!"

Alex looks at him, "Yeah, how do you know we're one of the favorites?"

"Well first of all, we're on Team Niall and his fans are loyal to a tee and wouldn't dare vote for anyone else, second of all, those said fans are obsessed with our story because it is eerily similar to One Direction, and third of all, we're just goated." Anthony finishes with a smirk.

"Okay, I think you're a little too confident there, babe." Claire nudges him.

"Hey, I just call it like I see it!" Anthony exclaims. "Anyways, we did great, and I'm not too worried."

We are all suddenly interrupted - 

"Alright! While we are tallying the votes, please welcome Louis Tomlinson performing live! You all have until his song ends to vote for your two favorite performances!"

...