Behind The Camera

Chapter Six.

Me and Stacey had been driving for what felt like hours, I had no idea where I was, but Stacey refused to let me drive, insisting that she drove, which she never did, although she passed her test ages before me she would take any chance she could to be the passenger.

Soon enough we pull up into a car park, I scan my eyes around the buildings trying to figure out where we could be. Nothing looked familiar so I was totally baffled as to what this surprise could be. "Okay you're going to have to tell me what we are doing in a carpark because I have no idea" I mutter. "Well, like I said its a surprise, but we need to talk before we go in" She whispers. "Okay.." I mumble, knowing this was a speech I wasn't going to be prepared for. "The first thing I want to say is I need you to trust me, and trust that I am doing this for you" She whispers. "Stacey you're starting to worry me and scary me at the same time" I mumble. "I know Tee, but I have to do this before it goes too far" She mumbles back. "Before what goes too far?" I ask, She takes a deep breath and sighs, running her hands through her hair, something we both do when we are stressed. "Stace, what's this about? you can tell me anything" I state, putting my hand on her leg. "It's about Pel" She whispers. "His names Perri, not Pel" She whispers, studying my face, looking for my reaction, almost like something inside of me was supposed to click. "Okay so he told me a nickname?" I ask, she rolls her eyes, taking another deep breath. "Stacey you don't like him, that's fine but it doesn't really have anything to do with you either" I mutter. Thoughts spinning around my head. I had never once judged a boyfriend she had, had. No matter what I truly thought of them, because in the present time they made her happy and that's all I have ever wanted, to see her happy. But part of this felt personal, like she wasn't happy that I had kind of met someone, that we was honestly drifting apart like friends do, we was becoming more like an old elastic band, instead of flinging back instantly it took a little longer, but we still come back.

"You honestly have no idea who he is though, do you Tee? You've locked lips with him, spoken five words to him and you seriously have no clue about what's going to happen next, you thought with your heart and not your fucking head and you're now going to be on this rollercoaster of emotions and its me as usual who is going to have to pick you back up and I honestly don't know if I can do it this time round" Stacey exclaimed, making my train of thoughts come back to reality. "What do you mean who he is? What's the dramatic secret that's going to ruin me?" I whisper, realising slowly that this was reality, better yet this was my reality. This wasn't some extract from a book I had read over and over. "It's easier if you just come inside and I show you" Stacey breaths, unbuckling her seatbelt and looking at me. "This is something you need to learn now before it goes too far, you need to know this" She mutters, stepping out of the car.

I take a deep breath and compose myself before following her into the crowded building. "Stace? Why are we here" I shout over the loud music. "You'll see" Stacey shouted back, grabbing a hold of my hand and pulling me through the crowd, I suppose this was so I didn't lose her. As we walk into a bigger crowded room I take in the sight around me, the lighting was dim, but you could still make out all the figures in the room. The smell was overpowering of alcohol, the smoke machine buzzing on the stage making the mood more dramatic. "You need to see this" She whispers in my ear. I take a deep breath as the lights blare on the stage and two people take centre stage. I couldn't really see their faces, but that didn't really matter at the moment, I was still trying to focus on what was happening around me. "Stacey I don't get why I am here, honestly please just tell me" I shout, turning to face her. Her face drops, her expression showing the realisation of what she's done, she opens her mouth to talk but before she can say a word the lights go up on the stage, showing seven or eight people and centre stage was Pel.

The music starts and at first I cant take my eyes away from the stage, the boy had moves. As the lighting becomes more apparent I look around the room, there must of been at least one hundred people here. There was t-shirts and jumpers hanging around the stage, I couldn't make out the wording on them. I was entranced with the movements happening on the stage, the flips, the jumps, the crowd was just cheering. I look over a Stacey who just mouths 'sorry'. I look back at the stage, he was in his element, he was happy, you could see the energy flowing through him. I take a deep breath running my hands through my hair, looking down at the floor. How did I not know? how could I not know. I felt so stupid, I felt so let down. How had this not come up in a conversation. How did he not think this was important to mention. I look up once more seeing him pumping his hand in the air, his cheeky grin plastered over his face, his brown eyes scanning the crowd. This was his life, this was what he was meant to do, I was never going to fit into this life style. For a moment it was like our eyes locked, but it was impossible to tell for sure. It was not like he was going to be searching for crowd for me, or was that something that thrilled him. I look to Stacey and shake my head. "I can't do this" I mutter before turning on my heels and exiting the building, the crowd erupts into cheers as I walk down the hallway, the music that was pumping through the walls stopping.

As soon as I get outside the cold air hits me, blowing my hair everywhere. Its only at that moment in time that I realise I'm crying when my hair sticks to my face. I take a few deep breaths, trying to process my thoughts, trying to make sense of everything. I feel a tap on my shoulder and I look up to see Stacey, she holds her arms out and I just walk into them, my head resting on her shoulder. "Stupid question, you okay?" She whispers. "I feel sick" I whisper back. "Why.. how did I not know Stace, am I just that oblivious, or that fucking stupid" I choke, the tears falling from my eyes. "You are not stupid! don't ever say that" She mutters back, rubbing my back. I sniffle and pull away, looking at her. "Thank you, I know it was a hard thing to do bringing me here, and I know you didn't want to be the person to tell me, but thank you for doing so" I whisper. I hug her again, trying to get the feeling back in my legs so that we could leave, when I hear footsteps approach from behind me. "Tee Smith?" A voice asks from behind me. I take a breath and straighten my composure turning around and looking at where the voice came from. "Yes?" I ask, looking at the older man. "Perri has asked for you backstage" He states, turning around and looking back to the building where there's a hooded figure stood, but I wasn't stupid enough to realise it was the brown haired afro boy that I had grown to have feelings for. "You can tell Perri to FUCK OFF!" I shout in the direction of the building. "Lets go" I mutter as I walk away from the building, Stacey hot on my heels.