Something Great

52. The recoupling!

Maddi stands in front of the closed door of the Hideaway, trying to build up the courage to go in. She craves to play, but the room is stained with memories of her and Lucas.

"You alright?" Ibrahim asks from behind her.

She spins around and gives him a small smile. "Yeah, just trying to convince myself to do something."

He cocks his head to the side questioningly.

She sighs and glances at the door before turning her gaze back to him. "I don't know if you lot know this, but production put a keyboard in the Hideaway for me to play whenever I need to... only, one of the last times I was in here was with Lucas, and... well, it's difficult to face those memories."

Ibrahim gives her a sad smile. "He's gone, Maddi. You don't have to worry about him anymore."

"I know that. But it all still hurts, you know?" She fiddles with her hair tie on her wrist. "I thought he was it for me. We shared so many incredible moments together. One of the biggest being in this room."

"Did you really think he was the one for you?"

She shrugs, "As sure as you can be after a handful of days I suppose."

He looks thoughtfully at the Hideaway door for a moment. "Maybe it's time to make new memories with someone better."

She lets out a humorless laugh. "I don't know about that, mate. It's only a matter of days now until I leave this Villa."

He frowns. "Don't say that. You belong here. We all love you, Maddi. The public loves you. You're not going anywhere."

She purses her lips doubtfully. "We'll see. But either way, I won't be making any memories with someone new anytime soon. I'm not someone who can just move on like that. It's going to take time for me."

"If there's one thing I've learned from being on Love Island, it's to expect the unexpected, and nothing stays the same for very long."

She smiles at him before glancing back at the door. "Maybe it's time for me to make new memories by myself."

"That too!" He beams at her.

She blows him a kiss before entering the Hideaway. She's struck in the chest by the feelings that linger in here. A tightness forms in her stomach and she has to force herself to take steps towards the keyboard.

She runs her hands gently along the keys before sitting on the bench and turning it on. At first she just sits there in silence, searching her heart for a melody.

One comes to her and she lets it flow onto the keys, taking her pain with her.

Say you're sorry, that face of an angel
Comes out just when you need it to
As I paced back and forth all this time
'Cause I honestly believed in you
Holdin' on, the days drag on
Stupid girl, I should've known, I should've known

That I'm not a princess, this ain't a fairy tale
I'm not the one you'll sweep off her feet
Lead her up the stairwell
This ain't Hollywood, this is a small town
I was a dreamer before you went and let me down
Now it's too late for you and your white horse
To come around

She plays it gently, her pain seeping into the words.

Maybe I was naive, got lost in your eyes
And never really had a chance
My mistake, I didn't know to be in love
You had to fight to have the upper hand
I had so many dreams about you and me
Happy endings, now I know