What A Small World - Julie and The Phantoms - Reggie

Chapter 6 - The Confession

And so she let them help.

She struggled to actually play the song in front of them but writing with Luke was ok. He would play guitar and she would sing lightly as they got the melody and lyrics down.

He kept telling her she didn't need to afraid of her voice and over the week it did help, he just wasn't sure how much. He didn't want to push her too much though.

He didn't want it to go backwards. But over time she seemed to open up more to him, seemed to be more herself. Not that he knew what she was liked before.

The look that he had at the end of her story had gone. He wasn't watching what he was saying and he didn't look at her like she was going to break.

Alex was like her very own anxiety monitor. Ever time she started to panic or she seemed to close off he was right there with the right thing to say to bring her right back down.

He didn't know it but this meant everything to the redhead. She never had anyone who cared enough to notice the little things she did when she started to spiral.

She didn't know it but he'd felt all the same things she felt. He'd had the worry, the panic attacks and the shut down. He wanted to do everything he could to help because no one had ever cared enough, apart from the boys, to notice those thing in him either.

Reggie was there for moral support and a good one liner when ever it was needed. He also kept telling her she needed to embrace her awesomeness, she wasn't sure she had any to start with.

But to be honest he was the one who knew the most about country music for some reason. Although his song 'Home is Where My Horse is' did not help his case in country music expert.

He didn't know it but he helped keep her calm. There was something about him, the way he looked at her, the way he smiled at her that just kept her soul warm. Kept her happy.

Julie didn't even need to do anything and she helped. Just her being there was enough.

Olivia was still getting used to being with the boys that she wasn't sure she could have done it without Julie being there with her.

Julie just loved having her back in the studio, it felt like old times in a weird way, even thought everything was different now.

The rest of week seemed to go by so quickly and before she knew it it was Sunday evening.
She had to hand a draft of the song in on the Friday just gone so Mrs. Harrison could see who she wanted to perform on the Monday but she felt her just writing the song definitely counted as participation.
They had finished her song yesterday but Julie wanted her to come over and help with her song for class.

She felt bad for hogging the boys all week. She didn't want to take them away from Julie. They were Julies boys not hers, she was just borrowing them for a bit.

She'd always had this terrible habit of assuming that everyone hated her. Unless someone told her that they liked her or wanted to be her friend she would just assume they didn't like her. It was like she needed confirmation or she would just believe she wasn't wanted.

She assumed that once the boys had helped her with this song they'd be gone and she'd grown to like them.

Julie, Luke and Reggie were finishing it off in and the studio while Alex was off looking for one of their ghost friends she hadn't met.

Olivia found herself up on the roof of the studio looking up at the stars. She used to go up there all the time when they were younger. When things felt like they where getting on top of her.

She'd been anxious before losing her parents, it's just after they died it got 100% worst and it came with a bit of depression now.

She laid here thinking about everything. She was feeling better now than she had at the start of the week but she had feeling in the pit of stomach that at any moment everything would get worse again.

Before she could think anymore a poof noise next to her startled her. She jumped trying not to fall off the roof. She still wasn't used to them just appearing out of no were.

She didn't need to look to see which one of the boys it was, she could tell.

He just laid there next to her, just close enough that she could also feel him, if that was something she could have done. She kept her head up towards the stars not looking at him.

He watched as a smile crept onto her face and her eyes started to light up. He studied every inch of her face, every crease when she smiled every little freckle across her face. He knew his staring wasn't going unnoticed, the boys had teased him about it the night before.

"Reginald you're staring." She said finally turning her face towards him bring him out of his trance. She started to sit up hugging her knees and staring out across the neighbourhood, he did the same.

"Sorry...I...I didn't mean to." He was stuttering rubbing the back of his head. He felt a tight knot in his stomach as she turned to look at him resting her head on her knees.

She couldn't quite believe the beauty of the boy sitting next to her. Not just his infections smile that never seemed to leave his face but his beautiful soul. There was something about him the way his eyes lit up at her. How her soul just couldn't be sad around him.

She felt sad knowing that he couldn't possibly feel the same way. She knew she was just a charity case of those boys, they wanted to help because she was Julies friend.

The thought made her smile fall as she looked out over the tops of the houses.

"What's the matter?" He asked almost so quiet he didn't hear it himself.

"Oh...nothing." He lifted his eye brows at her knowing she was lying. He hadn't known her long but it wasn't hard to tell when she was keeping something to herself

She let out a big heavy sign "It's just...sad you know." He lifted his eyebrows even higher confused, he didn't know. She let out a little laugh his face was too cute.

Letting out a long shaky breath again. Something about him just made her want to open up to him more than anyone else.

"I'll miss you guys I guess." She paused not being able to look at him as her eyes watered. "You know once you've helped me, I don't want to take up more of your time and I know you're just helping for Julie, I guess you've grown on me." She still couldn't look him at the end, he didn't know how much that last bit was true.

"Hold up." He'd found his voice this time. "How could you think that? Unless you plan on going somewhere, we're not going anywhere." If he could have taken her hand in his he would have instead he stared into her soul hoping she'd believe his words.

"I'm pretty sure I can speak for all the boys when I say we love working with you, we love hanging out with you. Luke loves helping you write music, Alex feels like you share the same brain and I." He stopped, he didn't have the right words to say how much he wanted to be around her all the time. He placed his hand over hers that was resting on the roof, it went straight thought but he hoped she could feel him.

"I just like having you around....I could spend all day with you." She could barely hear the last bit almost as if he didn't want her to hear it.

"Reggie...I." But before she could say anything she heard Julie and Luke come out of the studio they had the back up a bit to be able to see the pair on the roof.

Julie had a smirk on her face as she looked at her friend with him. Luke had the same look as he raised his eye brows at his band mate.

"Sorry to interrupt but your aunts texted you loads to come home, sorry." Julie wished she could have left the pair up there, she though they were cute, but she didn't want her to get in trouble.

"I guess that's my que." She said as she started to get up and climb down but before she did she felt a bit brave. "I'd spend all day with you too." She said leaning her head next to Reggie's.

Before he could register what she'd said she'd climbed down and was gone.