Chapter One.
[ Louis' POV. ]
"Harry, wake up!" - I heard as I felt a couple of hands shaking my shoulders, waking me up.
I started opening my eyes, feeling extremely tired and in between my half opened eyelids, I saw a woman's face above me.
"Who are you?" - I grumbled.
"God Harry, we don't have time for games. C'mon, interview in two hours."
"What? Who's Harry? Who are you?" - I said, sitting up in bed. - "What is this place?" - I asked, taking it in that I clearly wasn't in my bed. - "Where am I?"
Wait, why is my voice so deep?
Why am I so raspy this morning?
Am I sick?
"How much did you drink last night, H? God, we are in Shanghai, China. You have an interview now and a show tonight, so you'd better come to your senses quickly."
"Wait, China? What is happening? What is this? Who are you?" - I asked, slightly freaking out at the sudden information.
"Harry please, stop joking. Meet me downstairs in half an hour."
"Who the fuck is Harry and who are you?!" - I yelled, not comprehending anything.
The woman just rolled her eyes and walked out of the room.
What the fuck was that.
Is this a joke or something?
I dropped my head down on the pillow again and lifted my hands to my face, massaging my temples.
And then I saw it.
"What the fuck are this tattoos?!"
I kicked all the blankets away, untangling my feet from under them and I spotted another really big tattoo on my leg, and then my briefs.
Those briefs aren't mine.
These tattoos aren't mine.
Why the fuck are my nails painted?
This shirt, this isn't mine either.
As I was freaking out, I stood up from the bed and I felt disoriented for a second.
What is happening? Did someone drug me last night?
Who was that woman before?
I shook my head and tried to ease my breathing, I was about to hyperventilate.
I didn't know where I was, what was happening and why did I have all these things that didn't belong to me.
Did someone kidnap me during the night?
And China? Shanghai?
Where is my phone?
I need to call someone, I need help.
I looked around to see if I could find my phone or some of my actual belongings, but nothing.
Just an iphone charging on the bedside table and a blazer and some trousers on the sofa next to the minibar.
Nothing else.
This was a hotel room? It surely looked like it.
I took the trousers and put them on because I was getting uncomfortable being half naked in that strange room. But my movements were extremely clumsy this morning, as if I couldn't control my limbs.
And then I noticed my body was different, the dimensions were completely different apart from the new tattoos all around. Everything was distorted.
My actual tattoos were missing too.
This must just be a bad dream.
This isn't happening.
I walked towards the bathroom in the corner so I could wash my face and, hopefully, wake up from that nightmare.
But I wasn't expecting to see what I saw.
Because when I raised my head to look at myself in the mirror, I paralyzed.
It wasn't me in the reflection, it was the curly lad from yesterday at the store, this wasn't my face, this wasn't me.
I ran a hand on my - The curly lad - face, trying to decipher what was happening, and I couldn't contain a scream coming from my mouth.
"That's not fucking me!"
I ran out of the bathroom, not worrying about putting on any shoes or anything, just going outside for answers.
I found that I was inside a hotel indeed, and there were multiple corridors and that I didn't know where to go.
A big guy found me and shook his head in amusement.
"C'mon H, this way." - He said, walking in front of me and guided me through the halls and to a big dining room.
"Who are you?" - I asked him, still in shock by the strange voice coming from my mouth.
"You're kidding, right?" - He laughed. - "What happened to your shoes, lad?"
I swallowed the knot on my throat and shook my head, as if that way the nightmare would end.
But no, it didn't work, I was still inside that dining room, and around seven people were looking weirdly at me.
I didn't know any of them, except for the woman who woke me up, and the big guy who brought me here.
Are these my kidnappers?
"Harry." - The woman said. - "What are you doing standing there?"
"I'm not Harry." - I said sharply.
"Who are you? Mick Greenberg?" - Another guy said and a couple of them laughed.
"No." - I whispered. - "You… you… I need you to listen to me."
"What, H? We don't have much time." - The big guy said.
"You have to hear me out. I don't have a fucking clue who all of you are, I don't even know who Harry is, I don't know the guy. I'm Louis, my name is Louis, Okay? And this is probably insane but I think I'm trapped inside this guy's body, Harry's body. I'm not him, Okay?" - I rambled and everyone stared at me in confusion. - "We need to do something!"
"I swear, your jokes get worse everyday, H." - Another woman said.
"What?! This is not a joke, it's real. I'm not him. I'm not Harry!" - I started yelling out of anxiety.
"Sure Harry. C'mon grab some breakfast and let's go, you have a sound check before the interview." - The same woman who woke me up said.
"An interview? I can't! I don't even know what this guy does! I can't do an interview!"
"I don't know what is wrong with you today, but get ready because we're leaving in ten." - The woman said. - "Paul, keep an eye on him and take him to the car, please. I'll go get him some shoes" - She said, leaving the room.
This big guy, "Paul", stayed by my side and watched me amusedly.
"How much did you drink last night, H?" - He laughed.
"I didn't!" - I said and sighed.
This was useless, nobody was going to believe me. I can't even believe it myself.
Why is this happening?
Am I really trapped here?
I lifted my hand up to my face and slapped myself across the cheek with all the strength I could.
Okay, it hurt.
And it didn't work.
Paul looked at me worriedly.
"Are you fine?" - He asked and I shook my head.
"You don't fucking understand!"
"C'mon, eat something. You'll feel better." - He said. - "Besides, you don't want to go through the day without anything in your stomach."
I rolled my eyes and prepared myself a cup of tea and grabbed three donuts to eat.
The guy looked weirdly at me.
"What now?!" - I snapped out.
"Hey, calm down, it's just… your breakfast choice isn't your usual."
"Fuck off." - I huffed.
The "Paul" guy didn't say anything in return, he just stared at me as I finished my breakfast.
"You done?" - He asked after a while.
"Yes." - I sighed.
How the hell am I going to do this?
📖✨
The car arrived at a tv studio and that annoying woman from before was waiting for me.
"H, you have the sound check now and then you'll have your time to do your makeup, hair and change your clothes, your stylist is arriving in like forty minutes to help you, okay?"
I took a deep breath and tried to relax as I figured out what to do next.
Maybe I just could go with it and escape at some point, when they leave me alone. When nobody was watching.
"Can you at least tell me your name?"
She looked confused at me and shook her head.
"I'm Nancy. You already know that, you idiot. C'mon, no time to lose."
I followed her through the corridors of the studio with Paul following behind us.
"Nancy…?" - I asked.
"Yes?"
"What is the sound check for?"
She stopped in her tracks.
"You are kidding me, right?"
"No, sorry. I just don't remember." - I lied.
"Watermelon Sugar and Lights up. Just those two." - She said, rolling her eyes.
"Just those two… sure." - I said.
What the fuck is she talking about!
Some people waved at me as I walked past them so I waved back, this was completely awkward for me.
Who were those people?
Nancy said hello to one of the show producers who guided us through the rest of the corridors and pointed where the dressing rooms were.
There was actually one with my name on it.
I mean not my name, Harry's name.
And then we entered the tv lounge.
A band was setting their instruments on the little stage and Nancy walked me to the microphone in the middle.
"There you go." - She said, turning the mic on and handing it to me.
Oh no, Harry is a singer.
I took it doubtfully and looked around as Nancy walked away.
And there, by my left side was the other guy from the store yesterday. The messaging pigeon of Harry, the long haired one.
What was his name?
I walked to him carefully as he was tuning his guitar.
"Hey…"
"Harry." - He said.
"I need to talk to you." - I whispered.
"What's going on?"
"I… do you remember the guy from the book store?"
"The guy who didn't know who you were?" - He asked and smirked. - "I will never forget that."
"Good. Well. I'm him. I don't know what happened, but you have to believe me, man. I think I'm trapped inside Harry's body." - I whispered. - "I need you to believe me. I'm Louis and I don't have a clue where I am or what I have to do."
The guy looked at me confusedly and shook his head.
"What are you saying, H? C'mon."
"I'm not Harry. Please, you were the only witness. I'm Louis, I swear. And I need an excuse to get out of here because I don't know this guy's songs or anything. I don't even know who he is. So I need help. And I want you to help me. Please. You… you were there. I sold Harry three books yesterday, and now I woke up in China. I don't know what to do."
"Are you serious?"
"Fuck yes! I swear to you. I'm telling the truth. Please believe me."
"But how?"
"I don't know! But I need to return to my body, I need to find a solution or something, please help me."
The guy looked at me worriedly as if he was analyzing the situation.
"Harry! C'mon Watermelon Sugar now!" - I heard Nancy scream.
"What the fuck is Watermelon Sugar?!" - I whispered-yelled to the long haired one.
"It's one of Harry's hits."
"I have to sing it? I don't sing!" - I said frustrated. - "I need help, please. Fuck I don't even remember your name."
"I'm Mitch."
"Mitch! That's it. Mitch, help me get out of this. I can't sing, and I don't know the lyrics. Please." - I begged.
"What's wrong in there?" - Nancy asked. - "Mitch, Harry, are we ready?"
"No." - Mitch said, looking at me. - "Harry has a bit of a sore throat and he prefers not to do the sound check now. Can we try later?"
I let out a sigh I didn't know I was containing, mentally thanking the "Mitch" guy.
Nancy looked at us, frustrated.
"I guess we can do it in twenty minutes." - The producer by her side said.
"Thank you." - I said to both of them.
"Can I bring you anything for your throat?" - The producer asked.
"Tea, please. No sugar." - I said, shyly.
"You're definitely not him." - Mitch whispered.
I looked at him confused and he shrugged.
"Harry, do you want to go to your dressing room in the meantime?" - Nancy asked, walking towards us. - "I can bring you your tea later."
"Yes!" - Mitch said. - "I'll take him."
He didn't waste a second in leaving his guitar aside and dragging me with him to the dressing room with my - Harry's - name on it, leaving a confused Nancy behind.
Mitch closed the door of the dressing room and pushed me to sit on an armchair in front of a big mirror.
I found my reflection again in the mirror in front of me, and it shocked me all over again.
It was such a weird sensation.
"Stop looking at yourself. We have work to do." - He said.
"What?" - I asked, turning to him.
"You're going to learn those songs. Now."