Tour Bus Troublemaker// c.p.

•11•

I didn't sleep a wink that night. How could I? Charlie hated me and it was all my fault. He may hate me, but I sure as hell still love him.

I stared at the ceiling until I couldn't take my thoughts anymore. I threw on some tennis shoes and checked the time: 3:27 A.M. Nothing better than a night run.

I silently slipped out of the room and headed down to the empty lobby. Once I reached outside, I just started running. I couldn't stop, it was like my thoughts converted to energy and I was running to escape. Escape everything.

I ran for about two miles until I reached a Starbucks, which was still open for some odd reason. When I walked in, the cafe was empty except for a barista and a tall, handsome stranger sitting on the couch with his laptop.

I walked up to the barista and offered a tired smile.

"Can I get a grande caramel frap with no whip please?" I ask and she nods politely while writing on the cup. She asks my name and I tell her. I pay and then sit at a barstool facing the street. I watched as a couple cars passed by and took out my phone.

Unknown Number: stay away from my bae

I reread the text a few times before finally responding.

K- I'm sorry, who is this?

UN- u know who it is bitch stay away from him

K- Ok, seriously who is this?

UN- not important

I rolled my eyes, choosing to ignore the weird texts and put my phone up when the barista called my name.

"Grande caramel frap no whip for Kristen," she says and I stand up, accepting my drink from her. I grab a straw and when I head back to my seat, the guy who was on the couch is now in the chair next to mine.

I sit down beside him and glance over at him. Oh, my God. I'm going to faint. Holy shit. It's him. But why is he here? In Arizona at 4:31 in the morning at a Starbucks? Be cool. Don't freak out.

"Is it alright if I sit here?" He asks and I feel my cheeks go pink.

"Sure, no problem," I answer and mentally curse myself. No problem? That's a great way to scare him off.

"So, what's your excuse?" He asks in that smooth voice of his. I smile softly at him and tilt my head in confusion.

"Excuse?" I ask and he nods, giving me a longing look.

"Well, I assume you're at a Starbucks at 4 o'clock in the morning for a reason," he remarks, making me smile a little.

"It's a long story, and you're probably busy," I say quietly and glance up at him.

"Would I be at a random Starbucks at 4 in the morning if I didn't have time?" He questions and raises an eyebrow in curiosity. I blush and look out the window, taking a sip of my drink.

"Well, you probably don't know who I am, I mean-"

"Of course I know who you are, Kristen," he casts a kind smile and I return it.

"Oh, what? You read my name on the cup?" I ask, smiling at him. He laughs and shakes his head.

"Kristen Lahey, up-and-coming pop singer with a top 10 debut single on the Billboard 100," he smirks at his facts and I smile, nodding.

"You got me," I shrug and smile.

"I went to your show last night," he says and I nod, staring out the window.

"Probably wasn't the best show to come to," I explain.
"Considering the events of the day, I mean, it probably affected my singing."

He glances over at me.
"You gonna tell me your excuse for being at a Starbucks in the middle of the night now?" He questions and I smile at him.

"You really won't give up, will you?," I remark and he shrugs.

"I just think that people need to let things out, you know? I mean, sometimes stuff happens and it's so messed up that, it simply cannot be contained by the human mind," he says and I smile at him, finally surrendering as I begin to tell him about Charlie.

When I finish my story with the parking lot bit, his eyes are full of sympathy.

"Kristen, that obviously isn't your fault," he states and looks over at me.

"But it is, though," I reply.

"Well, if Charlie really wanted you, he would have respected the fact that you thought it was moving too fast, now wouldn't he?" He asks and I begin to contemplate that sentence.

"I never thought of it like that," I mutter and he looks back out the window.

"I mean, I could be wrong, but I refuse to let a beautiful, innocent girl think a situation like this one is all her fault," he says and glanced over at me.

I look into his eyes, feeling my cheeks get hot. Did he just call me beautiful?

"Well, thank you," I say with a smile. He smiles a little back at me and sips on his drink. I check the time on my phone: 5:29 A.M.

"I should probably get going, the bus leaves at 7:00," I explain and he glances over at me.

"Well, it was nice to meet you, Kristen," he smiles and I return the gesture.

"You too," I reply and begin to walk out the door.

"Oh, wait," he says and I turn around to face him.

"I don't believe I properly introduced myself," he says.

"I'm Shawn Mendes," he finishes and I smile at him, nodding.

"I know," I reply with a grin, making him smile widely as I walk out of the cafe.
_______________________
I wake up with my face smushed in the hotel pillow. Charlie is sitting on his bed, scrolling through something on his phone. I blink a few times and then sit up, rubbing my eyes.

"We're leaving in 30 minutes," he deadpans without even looking at me.

I sigh exhaustedly and stand up. I change my clothes into something more appropriate to go out in and throw my brown hair into a messy ponytail. I put on some lighter makeup and I'm ready.

Charlie and I walk down to the lobby to see Peggy and Lili talking.

"Morning," Lili says and looks at me.

"Morning," I answer sleepily. Charlie is talking with Peggy beside us.

"Are you okay? You look tired," Lili says and I nod.

"I'm okay, I promise," I mutter and head out to the bus.

I get settled on the couch and log onto my social medias.

I smile when I see the notifications on Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram.

@ShawnMendes has followed you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~