[[[the wonderful mess that we've made]]] [[[part iii]]]

9.

We were staying in Budapest for two days, having arrived a day before Eds performance at a massive festival, to do some photos and interviews. I loved this place. And the festival was massive. It was a week of music and dancing and had I not been working, I would've loved to have stayed to enjoy it. The weather was perfectly warm and the scenery beautiful.

'Liiiiiiiiil.' I heard Ed's familiar voice whine, having spent three hours answering questions backstage. 'Can we stay in the main campsite tonight?'

'We've got the special artist area to stay in. We've even got proper real beds and everything.' I reminded him.

'But there's a load of people camping in the main campsite and I want to go.'

'Definitely not then! How do you think you'll get away with camping out there,' I motioned to the dozen fields all swarming with drunken revellers, 'without being spotted and turning it into a circus?'

'Well, we've got this massive tent and-'

'Ed.' I glared at him.

'Lil. I never ask you for anything. Didn't you say I was the best person you'd ever worked with?'

'Well, yeah but-'

'This is all I ask. I never get to hang out with people. I promise if it gets hairy then we'll go.' He gave me his big blue puppy dog eyes. How could I say no to that face? And I couldn't deny that I wanted to stay too. I'd worked many festivals but never stayed in the thick of it. Maybe we could pretend we were normal people for a few hours?

'Ok. But-'

'Thank you!' He threw himself at me and squeezed me.

'BUT. You listen to me. No inviting girls into the tent. No going crazy. Right?' I knew Ed well enough to know he'd never keep that promise.