Deal With It - Sidemen Fanfiction

Chapter 10 - At Sea

By the second day of the convention I had realised that it would be hard to follow my own advice. The general stress of organising the event, on top of the pressure to conceal the truth from hundreds of prying eyes every time I stood on a stage was unavoidable and, slowly, the other five were coming to terms with the fact as well.

I woke up early on the second morning, memories of the previous day fresh and unwanted at the forefront of my mind. Simon was curled into a tight ball on his bed across from mine, murmuring to himself in his sleep. I cocked my head to one side, trying to hear what he was saying.

"Jide... wait," I picked out a few words among the intelligible muttering, much of his monologue getting lost in the pillow his face was buried in. Although he didn't seem as if he was in a nightmare, I crossed the room in bare feet and shook him awake.

"Simon?" I whispered softly, my breath lightly ruffling his hair as it fell across his ear. He glanced at me through a barely open eyelid, allowing a small crack of light to seep into his cerulean eye.

"What time is it?" he grumbled back, not seeming to remember his dream. I pointed at the display of the digital clock next to him, which read 05:45, eliciting another groan as his face returned to the pillow.

"Too early," I heard from a face full of fabric. Shaking my head, I moved over to the suitcase that leant against my own bed. As usual, I hadn't found the time to unpack and so I was living out of a bag for a few days. I felt his more awake eyes on my back as I turned away and slipped a shirt on self consciously.

"Go back to sleep," I muttered, still not facing him but feeling the heat enter my cheeks. He laughed lightly and I registered his gaze leave my figure. Once I was ready I turned back around, watching him lie thoughtfully for a moment.

"You ok?" I asked, crossing back to sit opposite his head. He nodded contentedly before rolling back over.

"I said I'd come in with you early," he stated factually, "But I'm really tired." He sounded disappointed in himself but the yawn he stifled got the better of him.

"It's fine," I reassured with a laugh, "I'm sure one of the other guys will get there early too." He snorted disbelievingly but didn't make a move to get up so I patted his shoulder, brushing the hair from his forehead and stood up to leave.

"See you later," I smiled at the already sleeping body.

The expansive building was eerily quiet at that time in the morning. However, no matter how many times I looked up from my work in the Sidemen store, I couldn't help but feel watched. There was an unshakable sensation in my spine and the beginning of a tremble in my hand, something that always led to anxiety. I tried to ignore the uneasiness that settled across my mind, turning my attention to adding price tags to clothes. It's all in your head.

"Hey Josh," I was startled by the sudden voice of Vikk, who appeared from nowhere in front of me. I let out a breath and shook my head slightly.

"Hi," I replied, feeling my heart rate slow considerably after the jump. He sat down cross legged in front of me, trying to mask the deep set frown that was etched across his skin.

"What's up?" I asked warmly, turning my full attention on him and setting all distractions aside. He shot me a grateful look before picking at his fingernails for some time.

"No matter what I tell people, everyone seems to think something is going on," he began slowly, referencing the difficult questions we had been avoiding the day before.

Why did JJ leave?

"I know," I sympathised softly, trying to think of something reassuring to say, "I've been coming up with some ways to dodge them but-" I trailed off a little helplessly, giving an apologetic shrug. Vikk nodded understandingly.