There's a First Time for Everything (Discontinued)

Chapter 9

Kieran and I had a fantastic time bowling. Even though he beat me, we still got to know each other very well and became close friends. And it really helped our chemistry in rehearsals, according to George. "It would seem that you two have taken my advice. That was absolutely amazing," George had said during the dress rehearsal. It was going to be very hard to say goodbye to each other. But the show must go on.

It was the night of our team's battles. Filming was already in progress, and will.i.am's first pair had already gone. It was time for Rebecca and Ishana to go up. "Ladies and gentlemen, performing "Stitches" by Shawn Mendes, here is Rebecca Moss and Ishana Grant," said Emma Willis. Then, the spotlights lit up on my roommate and her opponent as the introduction began. (A/N: Rebecca is the blonde, Ishana is the brunette.)

After Rebecca and Ishana finished singing, the crowd went wild, including me, Kieran, Tristan, and Layla. George gave the two of them a standing ovation. Once the crowd died down, Marvin came out and asked the judges to give their comments. Ricky was up first, and he said that the harmony parts sounded a little unbalanced. Paloma said that she could tell Ishana was nervous because her voice was wobbling at certain points. Will didn't have anything to say. Now, it was George's turn to pick a winner. "Wow, this is extremely hard. Both of you are absolutely amazing singers, and I don't want to lose either one of you. But I do have to go with the person who gave the best performance. And for me, that was Rebecca," he said. I saw Becca's face light up as Marvin confirmed that she was the winner. And after giving George a quick hug, she went backstage. "Congratulations!" I exclaimed as I hugged her. Unfortunately, Ishana didn't get stolen, but she was glad that she came this far. Then, it was on to will.i.am's second pair. After that, Tristan and Layla were up. 

Tristan won the battle and Layla was sent packing. But Layla didn't leave without hugging Tristan for about a minute. It was clear that they were very close. It was then on to Will's next pair. "Performing "Uptown Funk" by Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson, please put your hands together for Michael Butler and Jade Holland!" said Marvin.

Jade was an absolutely amazing singer. She would be perfect for Team Boy George. And I could tell that the man himself was thinking the same thing. Michael ended up winning the battle, but George used his final steal on Jade, who was absolutely shocked when George pressed the button. "Congrats, Jade! You're now on Team Boy George!" said Marvin. Then, Jade came down and gave George a hug. "You were amazing, darling," he said. Then, she went backstage and the four of us walked over to greet our new teammate. "Welcome to the team, Jade! I'm Emily, that's Kieran, Rebecca, and Tristan. You are going to fit in with our team just fine," I said. "Thanks. Have you done your battle yet?" she asked. "No. Kieran and I are the last pair to go," I said. "Well, best of luck to both of you," she said as she walked off. 

Two acts later, it was time for Kieran and I to do our battle. Before we walked onstage, we gave each other a hug. "I'm gonna miss you," I said. "Me, too," he said. Then, we walked out hand in hand. "Singing "Somewhere Only We Know" by Keane, here is Kieran Powell and Emily Sharp," said Emma. Once the spotlights lit up on us, the introduction began.

Once we finished the song, the entire audience was screaming as Kieran and I hugged. Will was first to make his comments. "I think that was the best battle of this season. I honestly can't think of any negative things to say. It was just so perfect. George, I am so glad I'm not in your position right now, because you have a very hard decision to make," he said. Paloma was next. "I'm with Will here. The balance was perfect, no one overpowered the other, and both of you had excellent pitch," she said. Then, it was Ricky. "I do have one comment to make. George, why in the world did you put these two together? I don't want to lose either of them!" he exclaimed. It was the moment of truth. Boy George took a deep breath before he spoke. "My fellow judges are right. This is going to be the hardest battle to choose a winner from. Both of you did a fabulous job and I don't want to lose either of you. But I'm going to have to go with Emily," he said. The crowd went wild as Emma confirmed my win. I was happy and sad at the same time. And after I gave Kieran a hug, I ran over to George and embraced him. "Thank you," I said. "You deserved it," he said. Once I was backstage, I anxiously watched the camera to see if Kieran got stolen. And to my relief, Ricky pressed the button. After Kieran hugged his former coach and his new coach, he ran backstage and hugged me for about two minutes. "Thank God!" I exclaimed. "I was worried that I wouldn't make it," he said. "Me, too," he said. 

Once filming had concluded, George met me, Tristan, Jade, and Rebecca backstage. "Alright, bring it in," he said. Then, the five of us did a group hug. "I am so happy to have you all on my team. I don't know how I'm going to choose between you four and everyone else during the knockouts," he said. "You'll figure it out," said Jade. "But we're going to make it a hard one for you. None of us are going down easily," I said. "You got that right," said Tristan. "And I am so glad that I didn't lose my roommate," said Rebecca. "Oh, right! Thank you for reminding me, Rebecca," George paused as we got out of the group hug. "Tristan and Jade, the two of you have new rooms since one of you lost a roommate and the other switched teams. We have to get your luggage transferred. And I think that all of us need some rest. Let's head back to the hotel," said George. "Agreed," said the four of us as we walked out of the studio. It certainly was an eventful day.