woke up in japan; l.h

Chapter 1

Milan, Italy | Mid-November, 2018.

Luke Hemmings

The rhythm of my guitar pulsed through my veins as I strummed the chords to the song "Don't Stop." I gazed at our fans in the crowd and thought to myself "I can't believe the lads and I are performing in one of the most stunning cities in the world." After an hour or so, we finished our set and said our goodbyes to everyone at the gig. Calum, Michael, Ashton, and I rushed to the backstage of the venue feeling exhausted yet delighted by how well the show performed.

I glanced over at the boys and instantly noticed that they were all starving and had inpatient expressions on their faces. "Can we find somewhere to eat at near the venue? I'm hungry," Ashton said. Calum and Michael quickly chimed in and yelled, "Yeah!" "Okay, okay, okay. We can go to the nearby shop and grab some snacks, but we have to be careful because there might be some fans in the area," I replied. Although management explains to us that we shouldn't go out in public by ourselves, we snuck out the venue and wandered down the silent, secluded street.

I started to shiver tremendously when the chilly breeze whirled at us. At this point of the year, the temperature in Milan is cold and sharp; ever since we flew in, the temperature has reached as low to the mid-30s. We eventually arrived at the shop at the end of the street. The shop's name was Pam Local, and it looked similar to one of the stores from back home. The boys raced into the shop while I trudged behind, knowing that I'm going to have to pay for all of their snacks.

I heard Ashton and Calum from the next aisle arguing loudly about what flavor of chips they should get. But, I was paying attention to the two girls in the shop; one of the girls caught my eye. She has mid-length curls that frame her features, and her thick hair is a lovely shade of brown; it resembles the color of tree bark, not too dark but not too light. Her skin is a tawny-gold hue, much like the yellowish-brown sand on the beaches back in Sydney.

The other girl standing beside her looked up from her phone and noticed the boys and I. Her facial expression instantly changed, and she began to squeal in excitement at, who I assume was, her friend. We knew they were fans, so we walked up to them. "Oh my gosh, hi! We're both such huge fans of you all, and we were just at your concert. I'm Yvonne. Could I perhaps take a picture with you guys?" the bubbly, golden-blonde haired girl asked. We all agreed, and her friend took a photo of the five of us. She handed the phone back to Yvonne and rolled her hazel, almond-shaped eyes. I smiled in a friendly manner and asked, "Would you like a photo with us too?" She responded in a dull, annoyed tone, "No, I'm not a fan of you guys."

—

I think I'm going to finish the chapter here. It's such an inconvenient ending, I know. 

I wish I had written 1,000+ words instead of less than 600 words. 

I'm very bad at writing; however, after listening to this song for the first time, 

I knew I had to write a story about it. 

(June 28, 2018)