Culture Vibe

8. Glowing Sun

River was feeling like she'd been abandoned for the third time in a row, and although she knew her best friends and band mates were not deliberately avoiding her, she couldn't help feeling upset that they didn't seem to have time for each other anymore. She felt as though she was the only one who could see it, being the only single one of the group, and that made her worried. They really didnt have a lot of time left to produce this final song, if they wanted it to be on the album, and River felt that it was too good to leave off.

For a few years, Kira had been the only one who had been dating, and the girls had found it pretty easy to work around her so that she could spend time with Marcus. But now that Naia and Shensea were apparently both taken as well, River began to feel as though this was the new normal that she'd have to get used to. She sighed, and ran one finger through her long brown hair, tucking it behind her ear and out of the way, before turning to focus on the lyrics for the new song.

"River?"

The Australian heard her voice being called, not ten minutes later, and glanced up in surprise to see Neymar was standing before her, smiling at her sunnily.

"Oh, hey Neymar," River returned his smile, albeit a little half-heartedly. She'd been prepared to spend her morning wallowing in self pity, but supposed that his intervention wasn't entirely unwelcome. "What are you doing here?"

The Brazilian grinned at her sheepishly, before inviting himself to take a seat at her table.

"I've developed a love for the white hot chocolate they make at this cafe," he shrugged. "Auba took me here a while back, when I first moved to London... apparently he knows the barista or something. Have you tried it?"

"I haven't," River admitted, and this time she couldn't help the genuine smile that made its way onto her face. Neymar's enthusiasm was infectious.

"You should," he stated, seriously. "It's really good."

"I'm a bit of a coffee gal myself, but I'll definitely try it next time I'm here," River promised him.

"Sorry for just inviting myself to join you, by the way," said Neymar. "I know I don't know you super well, but you... I dont know, you looked a little down, and..."

"It's okay, Neymar, really," River smiled at him. "And you're not wrong, I was feeling a bit... sad... this morning. But I think you're helping."

Neymar chuckled, and their eyes met in a moment of understanding.

"Well, whatever you're going through, I'm here if you wanna talk. But if you just want me to distract you, I'm here for that as well."

"Distract me," River laughed. "How's football?"

"Good," Neymar shrugged. "Do you watch it, by the way? I just realised I never really asked you this before."

"Can't really escape it in England, can you," River smiled. "But I do enjoy it. I think if I had more time on my hands I'd be a really big fan. Do you have to train everyday?"

"Not every day," Neymar replied. "We train a couple days in the lead up to a game, then the day before we have a double session, then the day after a recovery session. It's more intense this time of year though, especially in England, there's just so many games to prepare for. But it's worth it to be doing what you love."

"I can relate," River nodded, in response. "We're preparing for a world tour at the moment, and that in itself is hard work, let alone when you're actually on the tour. But all of us have such a passion for music, and we get the opportunity to use it to promote good things, so all we can do is grab it with both hands until it's gone."

Neymar was smiling at her, and he shook his head when she'd finished speaking.

"You start glowing whenever you talk about music," he told her.

River felt her cheeks heating up a little.

"I do?" She asked.

"Yeah," said Neymar. "It's really sweet."

River had never been good at accepting compliments, but somehow she didn't mind hearing it from Neymar. She was only concerned about what that meant for her.

"Thank you," she chuckled. "That was nice of you."

"You're welcome," he told her. "And speaking of sweet, I still haven't ordered my hot chocolate."

"You should go do that then," River laughed at him. "And I can show you a sneak preview of our new song when you come back?"

Neymar's eyes lit up at the suggestion, and he stood up immediately, holding out one finger to her.

"I'll be one sec," he stated, before heading over to the counter to order.

River watched him go with a smile on her face, wondering how she'd become lucky enough to find her own ray of sunshine, that was definitely warmer than any of the others the sun had provided that morning.