HANNAH
Parachutes is the story of a girl named Zoe. Beyond her circular dormer window, she hides secrets so chilling she often has to remind herself that beyond the jungle of lives in Montreal, there is a life for her worth living. She reminds herself that there are people that are worth living for. She knows she just has to find them.
So one day she runs. She runs until she reaches a small derelict town on the outskirts of Sainte-Martine, where she meets a boy named Leo. Leo; a boy with dreams that no-one in the small-minded town understands. The desire to sing is deemed stupid by everyone he knows, until he meets Zoe.
So together they share stories, stories that neither had ever gained the courage to tell before. Leo tells Zoe that although it will be scary, and that although it will be hard, she needs to leave Montreal - she needs to escape. Zoe teaches Leo that his dreams are nothing but special, and that his voice will allow him to set flight.
And they laugh, because the weight of the world has been lifted from their shoulders for the time being, and for once they feel free. Leo sings, a triumphant song in a tone that Zoe can describe only as magical. Strangers drop money in front of the pair - enough money for a bus ticket, a polka dotted hat, and then a parachute ride.
It's then that their story really begins.
"Next," The director beside me called, watching as a woman in her early twenties entered the stage. She smiled, telling us her name before reciting the opening lines of the book to the panel.
As she traipsed off the stage, I slumped my head against my arm. I felt guilty for spending so much time away from home, worried that I was relying on the babysitter to look after the kids too much. Zoning out, I watched absentmindedly as line after line was read from the book. And then a voice caught my attention.
"Hey, uh, I'm Shawn Mendes."
"Scene four, paragraph three for Leo Martin." Elias, the director, said from beside me, "When you're ready mate."
From the stage, he glanced down and offered me a toothless grin. Why was he auditioning for a role in the movie? Didn't he have another world tour to plan? It didn't make sense.
"You can't just run away!" He took in an exasperated breath, desperation painting his face, "And I know it feels as though everything is falling to the wind, but Zoe, don't you dare give up."
He ran a hand through his hair, but I was still too dumbfounded to appreciate how good he looked. "I'll be there for you," He went on, sounding more desperate than ever, "just the same as you were there for me. I'll sing Zoe, for us - just you watch. We'll get through this together."
I was so caught up in the trance of his words that it took me a while to realise he was finished. "That was good, mate, can you sing?"
Shawn went to open his mouth, but I tapped Elias' shoulder and laughed. "He can sing," I whispered, "trust me."
"Alright," He went on, standing from his seat. "Perfect."
Shawn winked at me from the stage, and I shook my head at him, feigning an eye roll behind my happiness.
"I'm Elias," He said, taking Shawn's hand in his, "the director. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure is mine," Shawn smiled.
Elias turned to me, "And you know he can sing?"
"He's my husband," I cracked a smile, "Yes, Elias, he can sing."
"Well then," Elias laughed, his eyes wide as he turned back to Shawn, "I think you might just have the role."
SHAWN
June 12th, 2027
There's an indescribable magic that comes with the chance to sing in front of people after months and months of silence. And I'd forgotten, almost, the feeling of being able to express emotion through my voice in a way that's deeper than words could ever portray. Today there's hunger in my voice, a hunger that stretches from the tips of my toes all the way to the ends of my fingers, and it's pulling me up into a world I'd taken for granted when I was young; when everything fell into place so easily.
Jessica, the Australian actress who plays Zoe, smiles as I sing, her bright eyes reflecting light off the sun that hovers above us. Around her, a team of cameramen and directors watch carefully, their eyes following our every move as they focus on the scene. Sometimes, when the lines from the script feel like our own, it's almost as if they're not even there. I can film whole scenes from beginning to end, forgetting about the people around us to focus only on Jess, and Hannah's words that fill the air between us.
So I savor the magic and cling to it for as long as I can, knowing that today is the last day of filming, and it may be a long time before a sensation as breathtaking as this comes again. I let it lift me as I pull Jess by the arm and sprint through the winding, deserted streets of suburban Montreal, my torn up converse kicking rock and dust up at the camera that chases behind me.
I reach the end of an unsealed road, and as instructed I wait, keeling over to catch my breath in inconstant waves before turning back to grab for Jess's hand. A cargo train rumbles into a station in the distance, and Leo is suppose to catch it with Zoe.
But when Leo spins on his heels to check for the girl with sparkling teal eyes, Zoe is gone.
SHAWN
August 4th, 2027
Underneath a pile of Karen's colouring books in the back of the Jeep, I find my oldest diaries. The sight of them tears my heart in two, and I can feel it, like it's pulling me down into a bottomless pit, like it's calling for to just fall and fall and fall.
And in my head, over and over again all I hear is his voice. It's hoarse and regretful and even when I keel over in agonizing pain I can't escape it. Geoff's voice is inescapable and I'm reminded of burning that hasn't really returned since my mum died. It's pain so excruciating that every time I breathe it's torture.
Throughout my career, the team of people who I've worked with has always changed. One tour I'd have a backstage crew I'd learn to love, but the next they'd be replaced by a media team that would steal their light. I've learnt to deal with it, and I've taught myself not to get attached in the sea of constant change. But alongside Hannah, the only person who's really stuck by me is Andrew. He's been right beside me every single step of the way, and he refused to leave in times where giving up was the easiest option.
As Han buckled Karen into the backseat and smoothed over Peter's hair, I answered my phone, traipsing into our office. Geoff's voice is inescapable because now as I re-cover the diaries in crayons and paper I have to pretend I'm okay. I have to pretend I haven't just been told that half an hour ago my somewhat of a friend, and somewhat of a manager, was pronounced dead.
Hannah squeezes my hand as I put the key in the ignition, and I want nothing more than to collapse in her arms and cry. I want to tell her what's happened. But I can't, because tonight's the night of the movie premier and she's squeezing my hand because she's completely over the moon. I can't possibly tell her. Not like this.