the scent of heat → r . taylor ( COMPLETED )

four

"Hello, boys," she called, opening the door to get in beside John.

"Ready?" Freddie asked, and she nodded.

"Ready, Freddie," she said, and he chuckled.

"Oh, that's good."

Adeline smiled, and then leaned into the front seat to look out of the window.

"Bye, Dorothy!" she called, waving her fingers, and when she sat back, Roger began to drive off.

Once at the pub, Addy set to work helping the boys unload a few things from the back of the van. She looked to the back door, a soft sigh leaving her lips. She could still see Tim walking off, and for a split second, she thought she felt his lips on hers.

"Addy, you all right?" Roger asked, coming up behind her and setting a hand on her back. She jumped, and sheepishly, she turned to look at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about the last time we were here," she said, leaning back against the van with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Funny, I was thinking about that on the way over," he said. "it'll be weird, playing without Tim."

Adeline nodded, and she looked up at Roger with a small smile.

"You'll do great. Tim made a mistake in leaving you guys," she said, and he nodded, slipping his hands into his pockets.

"You think so?" he asked,

"I know so. Now, come on. Brian'll kill us if we take any longer."

The two made their way inside, and Adeline took her seat at the table she had the last time, one with a good view of all the boys. Once the four of them took the stage, Brian was at the mic, his Red Special in hand.

"Hello, everybody. We've got a few fresh faces," Brian said, shouldering his guitar. "this is John Deacon, our bass player," John raised his hand, "Yeah, and our new lead singer, Freddie Bul... Bulsara," Freddie nodded, "Freddie Bulsara. And Roger, of course. The biggest member of them all."

"Hello, all you beautiful people," Freddie said, leaning forward to the mic.

In the crowd, Adeline smiled and clapped quietly for Freddie, sending Brian and thumbs up. But a murmur settled over the crowd, and an angry voice from behind Adeline rang out.

"Where's Tim? Who's the Pakkie?"

Adeline turned around, but before she could say anything, Brian hit a chord on his guitar, Roger began to play, and Freddie picked up a tambourine, hitting it against his hip. She watched as he struggled with the height of the microphone, finally breaking it out of the stand and swinging it around. Once he began to perform, the crowd started to liven up. She mouthed the words she'd learned during her time awake at rehearsals, and she moved with the crowd as Freddie claimed the stage. And soon, the crowd was in the palm of his hand.

After the show, and after saying goodnight and parting ways with both Freddie and John, Adeline was relaxing on the couch with Roger, her head on his shoulder. Brian was pacing back and forth, running his hands through his hair.

"I mean, it was a good show, and the crowd loved it, but they were the wrong lyrics!" he said, throwing his hands into the air.

"Bri, give it a rest. It went well, and Freddie's a good lead," Adeline muttered, curling up and closing her eyes. She felt Roger's arm around her, and she sighed softly.

"But, Addy —"

"Brian Harold May, the show was a success, and you're just overthinking everything. Tonight was one of the best nights Smile's had in a long time, you said so yourself," she said, lifting her head from Roger's shoulder.

"I know. But the lyrics —"

"Still worked, and they sounded magnificent. Sometimes you need to be spontaneous and break the rules. That's just life," she said, and Roger nodded.

"She's got a point. People loved it, even if they insulted Fred at the start," he added. Brian was silent for a moment, then with a sigh, he nodded as well.

"You're right, both of you. But mostly Addy," he said when he saw the smirk on Roger's face. Addy laughed as Roger rolled his eyes, and she sat up beside him once more.

"Thanks for the back up, Rog," she said, squeezing his shoulder.

"Any time," he chuckled.

"I think I'm going to turn in for the night," Brian said, looking between the two of them. After a chorus of "good nights", Brian headed into his bedroom, leaving Roger and Addy on the couch.

"I should probably turn in, too. I've got a bunch of papers to grade over the next two days. Gotta get them done before I go back to home next week. Goodnight, Rog," Adeline said, stretching her arms up and pushing herself off of the couch. She made to walk down the hall to Brian's room, but before she could start down the hall, Roger stood as well.

"You know, we're really gonna miss you," he said, leaning against the arm of the couch.

"Aw. I'm gonna miss you guys, too. I've had a lot of fun these past few weeks," she said, turning back to face him.

"You'll come back and visit us, right? If you're able?" he asked, walking over to her.

"Of course. Maybe I'll even try to apply for a work visa and stay a bit longer," she said, tucking her hair back behind her ear.

"Yeah, that would be nice. I like having you around here," he said softly, stepping a bit closer to her,

"I like being here. It feels more like home than home does," she whispered, looking up into his eyes. She realized how close he was to her, and how much closer he was getting. She felt his hand on the side of her neck, his thumb against her cheek. Then his lips were on hers, and her eyes fluttered shut. She tilted her head and brought both of her hands up to cup his face, and she felt his thumbs brush along her cheeks. They broke apart to each take a breath, and they looked into each others' eyes.

"Goodnight, Adeline."

"Goodnight, Roger."