2. I Hate It Here

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"I'm lonely but I'm good
I'm bitter but I swear I'm fine
I'll save all my romanticism for my inner life and I'll get lost on purpose
this place made me feel worthless"

It had seemed a bit odd to him, given the whole thing was some elaborate PR stunt designed to make the headlines, that she was worried about him being seen by the paparazzi. He was more than happy to go around the back, the idea of being blinded by the flashes and having to fight his way through was less than appealing, but it was odd nonetheless.

It wasn't until he turned the corner onto the street of the hotel that he realised the scale of it and then it made sense. There were people everywhere and it wasn't just photographers, there were fans lined up, police officers and barricades up to keep them out of the road as best as they could. It was insane, he'd never seen anything like it. He wasn't sure he'd have been able to get near the front door of the hotel to get inside anyway.

He followed the instructions he'd been given, ducking down a side street and arriving at the side door where Cassie was waiting for him. "Hi Lando, come in." She smiled, pulling the door firmly closed behind them.

"It's mad out there, is it always like that?" He asked curiously, following her as she ushered him through what appeared to be a kitchen and into a service elevator.

Cassie grimaced. "It's getting worse. I booked three different hotels in the hope they might not figure out which one we were actually staying in but clearly it didn't work."

"That's crazy." He breathed. "And I thought I had it bad sometimes."

"Most of them are friendly." Cassie shrugged. "There's just a few of them that aren't so nice, especially since the breakup, and she'll never say it but I know it bothers her. There was that one crazy guy who tried to grab her a few months back, she's not been so keen on going out to meet people since then."

He so desperately wanted to ask more questions, the lack of answers he'd been able to gain from the internet only intrigued him further. He knew she'd been in a relationship, a serious one, for the last five years, although if the headlines were to be believed it seemed to have been a bit on and off at times. It seemed like the majority of the songs he'd heard last night were about him, but he wasn't sure what had happened or when and how that tied in with the fact he was now standing outside her hotel room.

Cassie let him in, yelling that she'd be back at 4 pm to get Hannah ready to go for the show that night. Then she left, leaving Lando standing there awkwardly.

"Come in." Hannah waved at him wearily, not getting up from her spot on the sofa. There was a whole mess of paper spread around her, a guitar leaning against the sofa beside her.

He kicked his shoes off, walked in and sat down on the sofa opposite her. She looked like a completely different person from the woman he'd met backstage last night. Her long blonde hair was scraped back off her face and shoved into a bun on the top of her head, she didn't have a scrap of makeup on and the exhaustion was clear as day on her face. "Thanks for coming, I couldn't face the idea of getting dressed and going out into that." She gestured lazily to the window.

"It's pretty crazy out there." He agreed.

She nodded in agreement, then went quiet for a moment. "I know this is all a bit weird, I'm sorry." She gave him a hesitant smile that still didn't reach her eyes.

"It is a bit weird, isn't it? I've only got myself to blame I guess... How about you?"

Her blue eyes locked onto his, looking almost startled by the question. "I um... I've got a new album coming out and they don't like the way it sounds with the news of the breakup with Joe." She mumbled. "I think Cassie is worried what I've written so far makes me sound like I should be in the psych ward."

I can do it with a broken heart (Lando Norris)Where stories live. Discover now