Until Next Time | HS

60

My eyes flutter and I pull the blanket up to my face. But I groan when I start feeling hot and take my arms out from the blanket. Half-asleep, I tap on the bed beside me, but my brows furrow a little when I found the place next to me. Slowly, I open my eyes, get adjusted to the sunlight, and sit up straight to see Harry wasn't there.

I get off the bed and walk out of the room while rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand, I lazily step into the loving room in search of him and found him standing on the balcony. So, I swoop my hair back and walk towards him, I smile to myself and wrap my arms around him from behind.

“Good morning, moon.”

“Good morning,” I mumble, burying my face in his back. “What are you doing here? When did you get up?”

“I came here to practice some notes,” he holds my hand and intertwines our fingers. “But I decided not to because if I do something right now there's a high chance that I'll be more anxious on stage.”

“Mmh.” I hum and tap his chest. “Good job... By the way, when are you leaving?”

“In an hour, Syd and Joshua said they'll come over and we'll go together,” Harry states and I loosen my hold around him and move to his side, a smile forms on his face when he swiftly puts his arm around me. “Today's the day, the big day, huh?” I glance at him with my arms wrapped around him. “I can't believe you convinced me to do this again, Luna, this is insane.”

I chuckle. “I know, It is insane. But I'm glad we made it through without any problem.”

He scoffs. “Without any problem?” he glances at me. “Did you forget about the Collins family?”

“Oh, absolutely not.” I chuckle. “But you know everything happens for a reason, because of him you challenged yourself to prove him wrong, and look where you are.” I smile and look away, cuddling closer to him. “Don’t think about the past now, it's your day today. You should just focus on yourself.”

“I'm scared, Luna,” he whispers. “There are gonna be so many people, industry experts, and the contestants also might be better trained and skilled than me...what if I don't even stand a chance when I go there? What if I don't have a good stage presence or a nice meaningful song with others?... It's freaking me out.”

I smile softly and tap his chest. “You're unique, your presence is unique, your songs and lyrics are unique from other contestants, that's what makes you a valid opponent, H. It's a competition, there's surely going to be someone better than you but to win you have to show what you and your talent are, how authentic you are.” I rub his back. “Don't compare yourself to others and don't believe that you have to act something different to stand out. Be who you are and act how you want on the stage, if they love it, they love you for who you are not the person they only see on the stage, the made-up version of yourself. Hmm?”

He stays silent for a moment before I hear him let out a breath as he smiles. “It's crazy how much your words calm me down...” I smile when he pulls me against him before kissing the side of my head. “I love you so much, Cherry. Thank you for everything you did and are doing for me.”

“You helped me get through the toughest times of life, still and always will do, so it's my responsibility to give my full efforts in helping you in your hard time.” I take a step away and turn him around with my hands in his arms. “You deserve everything and more.”

I look at him, his eyes getting glossy but a smile forms on his face. Without a word, he leans in for a hug, I close my eyes and wrap my arms around him, slowly stroking his back. I feel him breathing shakily on my neck as he silently puts his head on my shoulder.