Safety Pin | Luke Hemmings' Little Sister (COMPLETED)

16 | The Final Countdown

Side note: to the side/top is a picture of Rya in this chapter:)

I can't believe that the tour is almost over. Our last show is in a few more days, and then that's it. Then we go back to Australia, where the boys will visit with their families for a week or two before leaving to work on more songs and do promo again. I'm sad to see the end of my summer tour with them, but I'm also excited to see Willow and mum and dad again.

"Hey Rya," Luke says with a grin, sitting down beside me on the couch in the tourbus. "Hi," I say chirpily, turning to face Luke. Michael comes in, flopping down on top of Luke, who groans and shoves him off with a laugh.

"What would you think about singing at our last show?" He asks. My eyes widen, and my lips curl into a nervous smile. "Me? Sing?" I repeat. He and Michael exchange smiles and nod back at me.

My mind is racing. I know how to sing, but what song would I sing? Would I sing more than one? When would I go on? At the beginning, middle, end? My heart starts hammering in my chest. I have to go onstage and perform in front of millions of people.

"Do you think I'm good enough?" I ask quietly, still a little shocked. Luke laughs. "Of course! I was thinking you could sing You Found Me, since you already know it." I smile, knowing the song very well. I was around seven or eight the first time I learned it. That was when Luke first got into singing, and I remember he covered this song. I watched in awe at how good he was, and also fell in love with the song. Luke noticed this and volunteered to teach me how to sing it. That was also when I first started getting into the guitar.

-Flashback -

I watch with great interest as Luke sets up his video camera in the office. He tunes his guitar and prepares to start singing. I watch from the doorway, astonished, because he's such a great singer. He turns the camera on and introduces himself before starting to sing a song. I don't know the title, but the way he sings it and the way the words go together perfectly has me instantly in love with it. When he's finished and turns the camera off, he spots me lurking in the doorway, my eyes wide and mouth open. "You like that song?" He asks with a chuckle. I smile and nod enthusiastically. A smile spreads across his face. "Want me to teach it to you?" I gasp and nod eagerly. "Yes!" He chuckles and brings me up to his room, teaching me first the basics of the guitar, then the chords. It takes a long time, and I get frustrated constantly, but Luke keeps encouraging me. The first day wasn't very successful, because I'm still a little unsure how to even work the guitar, but Luke says that's normal, and that it took him a long time to learn how to play as well as he can now. After that, I vow to practice the few chords he taught me everyday. When I finally get them down, he teaches me a little more, then I practice, and so on until I've finished the song. The process takes about three or four months, and even after I learned the whole thing I kept practicing until it sounded almost as good as when Luke plays it. Only then did I start to learn the lyrics of the actual song.

"Okay," I say shyly. I'm excited and terrified at the same time. I did sing and play guitar the first time I flew out to LA, but that was a small gig. This is a huge stadium, and there will be tons of people.

"Don't be nervous, you'll be great," Mikey encourages, ruffling my hair fondly. I smile, but I'm still worried. "You can practice if you want," Luke offers, and I nod eagerly. I need all the practice I can get.

—

Since the day Luke asked me to sing at his last show, they've been doing promo and advertising. A lot more people have gained an interest in them, and their last show sold out in seconds. That's a lot of people, so I'm still absolutely terrified.

Thankfully, the boys have been practicing with me every chance they had, and while they're out doing interviews I'm allowed to practice quietly off to the side.

Now the day is finally here, where I'll come out at the end of the show to sing. I'm performing in front of all those people today.

As soon as I wake up, I'm on edge, so I decide to call mum and tell her. With everything that's been going on I haven't had much time to talk to her lately.

Once I've filled her in, I tell her how scared I am. "Oh honey, you'll do amazing. You have such a strong and beautiful voice, and everyone will love it." I hesitate, pacing the kitchen area of the tourbus. "Are you sure?" I ask quietly. I really wish she was here right now to give me hug. "I'm positive. You're going to kill it," she says, and the fact she's smiling is obvious by the way she speaks. I nod, smiling a little myself. "Thanks, mum. I love you."

"I love you too, honey, I'll see you soon." With that, I hang up, and soon after the boys are up and we're on our way to the stadium to go over the guideline and do soundcheck.

The guys go over what they're going to do during the concert and how they'll make the final bow special since this is the last show of their tour. While they do this, I stay off to the side and continue practicing.

I do okay during the soundcheck, but I feel especially nervous because everyone is watching and grinning like idiots, even though I'm not really that good in my opinion. Everyone else argues me on this, of course, so I just smile and take their compliments. They do make me feel better.

After we finish soundcheck we go out to eat, then return to get ready as the people eagerly file to their seats. I watch backstage as the boys go out and everyone screams. They play a bunch of songs, talk about how amazing this tour has been, and before I know it, it's time for me to go on. "And now, please welcome a very special guest," Cal announces. The boys turn towards me, and I freeze. My heart starts pounding, and suddenly I can't move. I just breathe rapidly, staring at the tons and tons of people waiting for my arrival. The crowd slowly quiets down, and I hear whispers going around. I feel my throat tighten, and I start to back away as several backstage managers harshly whisper I have to go on. I can't do this! How did I think I could sing in front of all those people?! I close my eyes, trying to calm myself. I just want to go home. I want to be with mum and dad and walk to the park with Willow.

I'm suddenly aware of Luke kneeling in front of me. I open my eyes and notice they're wet. "I'm scared," I squeak. My whole body is trembling, and my heart feels like it's going to jump right out of me. Luke just smiles and wipes the tears off my cheeks. "Hey, you can do this. Just like the first gig, when you came and surprised me. You were amazing. Just focus on the singing, and everything else will Ry cancelled out." I nod slowly, remembering how I was able to do this last time. He's right. I just focused on playing the chords and singing the words, and everything else seemed to vanish. "Ready?" He asks gently. I take a deep breath before nodding. "Ready."

I take his hand and he leads me out onto the stage, where everyone screams and cheers, and the boys grin and clap. "Give it up for little Hemmo Rya!" Michael exclaims as the crowd cheers louder. "We're gonna throw it back for this one," Luke says, adjusting the mic to fit my size. I smile, getting ready, and start to sing. And Luke was right. As soon as I started singing, nothing else mattered. It's as if I'm in my own world where there's no one but me.

Before I know it, I'm finished with the song and everyone cheers, chanting my name. I grin as Michael readjusts the mic for Luke.

"What did you guys think?" Luke says, ruffling my hair. I smile shyly as the boys brag about how good I was. "This tour has been the most amazing experience we've ever had. You guys are amazing, and we owe everything to you guys. Give it up for yourselves!" Ashton exclaims into the mic. Everyone cheers and claps and screams before Michael starts to talk. "It was so great having Luke's little shadow with us for the summer, we had so much fun," he says, smiling down at me. "We love you guys!" Luke yells into the mic. I then follow them out onto the catwalk and we take our final bow. I can't believe the tour is over.

A/N - Yay, quick update before school, hope you enjoy!