december10x
Before the world knew his name, Hendrick was just another night-shift worker at Nando's-quiet, exhausted, and carrying dreams he was too afraid to say out loud. Music lived in his headphones, in unfinished lyrics typed at 2 a.m., in an audition email from Simon Cowell he almost didn't open.
Then there was her.
A brief, unexpected connection on an ordinary night-no names exchanged, no promises made. Just a moment that stayed with him longer than it should have.
The next day, Hendrick auditions alone. So do six other boys-strangers with different lives, different fears, and the same impossible dream. Except for Josh and Danny, who grew up together, none of them know what comes next. They don't expect to be put into a band. They don't expect fame. And Hendrick doesn't expect to lose himself trying to keep up.
As the band rises from anonymity to global recognition, Hendrick is forced to navigate the noise of success while holding onto the quiet parts of himself-the parts shaped by late shifts, small moments, and the girl he never thought he'd see again.
Caught between who he was before fame and who the world wants him to be now, Hendrick must decide what matters more: protecting his heart or risking everything for love that began long before the spotlight ever found him.