The Heartbreak Factor - Part One

Chapter Thirty.

“Are you sure you wanna do this?” George asked me.

“Yes,” I smiled.

“Right, it’s quite a hard song to do, but I’m gonna make sure you perfect it,” he smiled, handing me his guitar. “No matter how long it takes, you will be perfect by the time I’m finished with you.”

I giggled to myself as my usual laid-back boyfriend turned into this strange authoritative teacher-type figure. As George demonstrated what I had to do on the guitar, I felt myself actually understanding how to play the guitar after so many attempts and tries at learning it in the past. I remember when I was eleven I went to the local library and took out a book on guitar playing and attempted to teach myself on a full size guitar - bad idea considering that I was tiny for eleven years old and my little arms couldn’t reach to play the chords so I gave up after about seven minutes and twenty-six seconds. 

“So, for the first section, it’s a cappella?” I asked. 

He nodded. “Then when you start singing, you start to play.”

As George showed me the chords, I copied what he was showing me on the guitar. I slowly was managing to get the hang of it; the only problem I had was changing from each chord. “Just play that eight times,” George smiled as he showed me the main chords. “Once for each chorus.”

I really started to get the hang of it. “I’ll be taking over your guitar playing skills soon,” I joked.

“Oh, definitely,” George winked.

“Be scared, Shelley. Be very scared,” I giggled.

“You’ve picked it up really well,” he smiled as he watched me slowly strum away at the strings.

“Your go,” I said, handing the guitar back to him.

As he slowly began to strum away at the guitar, I grinned at the song. “We were both young when I first saw you,” he sung, smiling at me. “I closed my eyes and the flashback starts, I’m standing there, on a balcony in summer air.” I could feel myself blushing as he sung to me. “See the lights, see the party, the ball gown, see you make your way through the crowd, I say hello – little did I know. 

“I was Romeo, I was throwing pebbles, your daddy said stay away from Juliet, but you were crying on the staircase, begging me please don’t go,” he smiled, looking back down to the guitar to make sure he was playing the correct chords. “And you said, Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone, I’ll be waiting all that’s left to do is run, I’ll be the prince and you’ll be the princess, it’s a love story, baby just say yes.”

“I got tired of waiting, wondering if you were ever coming around. My faith in you was fading,” he continued to sing, looking at me and then back at his guitar as he carried on strumming away softly on the strings. “When I met you on the outskirts of town.”

“I will save you, you’ve been feeling so alone, I’ve been waiting for you but you never come. Is this in my head? I don’t know what to think. I knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said, marry me Juliet, you never have to be alone. I love you and that’s all I really know. I’ll talk to your dad, you’ll pick out a white dress, it’s a love story, baby just say yes.”

As he played at the guitar, I sat in amazement at him. Everything about him was so perfect. “Baby just say yes,” he smiled to me as he finished strumming at the guitar.

“Wow,” I grinned.

“So what do you say?” George smiled.

“Yes?” I laughed, unsure of what he wanted me to say.

“Good girl, Juliet,” he grinned, giving me a peck on the cheek. 

*

Walking through the hospital, George grabbed hold of my hand. He didn’t even grab hold of it in a discrete manner so that nobody could see him do it. He just grabbed hold of it in broad view of everyone as we walked past the various wards on the way to the maternity ward where mum was still staying before they discharged her. ”You do realise people can see us?" I laughed, pulling my hand from his hold. 

"And..?" 

"And? I thought we didn't want to go public?" I asked, confused as we walked through the maternity ward. 

"I don't care anymore," he smiled, taking hold of my hand again. “Who cares if people see us? I’m not embarrassed and I hope you’re not embarrassed..” I shook my head. “See.”

As we reached the intensive care unit of the maternity ward, I looked at him and smiled. Opening the door, I saw mum and Michael stood by the incubator. To my surprise, mum was cradling a bundle of blankets in her arms. "Hello you two," mum hushed as she rocked her arms slowly back and forth. 

Still holding hands, we crept over towards them. "You're allowed to hold him?" I whispered in shock. 

"Yes," Michael grinned as he looked at Jack as mum held onto him. 

"He's okay to come home in a few days as long as we take him for regular visits with the doctor to make sure he’s growing like a normal baby,” mum smiled. "Do you want a hold?" 

I looked at Jack and then up at mum. "Okay," I smiled, scared that I'd drop him or something. I had always been very clumsy and was always walking into things or dropping things, so to think that I would be holding onto a little life that was so precious, it made me very nervous.

Mum carefully passed Jack over to me. Holding him in my arms was unreal. He continued to breathe softly as I held him close to my chest. "He's so cute," George smiled as he stood next to me. 

"Wait until you two..." Michael began. I didn't even give him chance to finish the rest of his sentence as I gave him evils. "Have to babysit him while me and your mum go out clubbing."

"Nice save," mum laughed as she folded up one of the blankets and placed it in Jack's incubator. 

"Yes, Michael," I glared to him. "Nice save."

"I wouldn't mind babysitting him," George smiled, unaware of Michael's original intention.

"It's sorted then," Michael smiled. "You two can babysit New Years’ Eve."

 "Hey, I'm eighteen now," I said.

"Exactly. You're old enough to look after your baby brother," mum laughed. 

"Poor thing," I joked, looking down at him. "Six days old and he's already been passed onto his older sister so his irresponsible parents can get drunk on New Years Eve."

"We've not been able to celebrate you even getting through your audition yet," mum smiled. 

"We don't mind looking after him," George said before I even had chance to say something. 

"George, you have my permission to date my daughter," mum laughed. 

"Sammy, why can't you be more like George?" Michael joked. 

"You see what I have to put up with, Jack?" I said, looking at Jack as he slept in my arms. 

"And he's got all this to come," mum smiled, admiring me and Jack.