amelia closes the door of her apartment and looks at herself in the mirror next to it. she has the biggest smile on her face. she can't take it off. she walks to her bedroom, leaving the bag on the floor, and literally jumps on the bed. it's almost 10:30 am and she needs to start studying for her class this afternoon. but guess what? "will" doesn't leave her mind. she can't stop thinking about him. what he looks like. what his voice sounds like. if his eyes shine bright when he's talking about something he loves. if he has dimples. or freckles. she's putting too much thinking into someone she barely knows; she is aware. but she can't stop. her brain refuses.
she gets up from the bed before her mind can wander off again. she walks to the kitchen and fills up a huge glass of water, then sits down on the sofa and gets her books from the centre table, opening them where she'd stopped the day before. she's waiting for "will" to reply to her last text, but she needs to be productive, so she leaves the phone in the kitchen and attempts to start reading. it works for a while but not too long. she sighs, frustrated, but doesn't give up. it's just a boy, amelia. get over it and focus.
she can hear the phone buzzing from the kitchen, but she's determined: she's gonna study until lunchtime.
meanwhile, brad's heading to the studio. they're working on the second album of the band and he just had an idea for a song. he takes a taxi cause he can't bother himself to walk all the way over there. he's also a bit late.
amelia doesn't leave his mind during the car journey. what's she doing right now? how is she feeling about him? does she think he's a weirdo for leaving a note instead of talking to her? what is she writing about? questions he wants to ask her so badly, but still haven't had the opportunity. their texts are not that deep yet. it's not even been an hour since they started talking.
he checks his phone once again. third time in less than two minutes. no reply. he sighs, nervous. he just told her he works in the music industry. but he couldn't bring himself to tell her his real name. has she ever heard about my band? probably not. she listens to oasis. but what if...?
the car stops in front of the building and, as he pays the driver, brad forces himself to think of something else. to focus on the music he's about to work on. can i just mention it's a song about amelia? so the whole let's-stop-thinking-about-her-for-a-while plan it's not going to work. but we're letting brad fool himself, aren't we?
as he takes the lift, his phone buzzes and his heart immediately races. he looks down at the notification and can't help but feel a bit disappointed. it's only james.
james: hey man, are you late again? we're on the studio and i need to share some ideas with you so hurry up please. X
he doesn't reply cause he's there already. the lift opens and brad walks down the hallway to the studio, being able hear a guitar playing some unfamiliar chords. the sound gets louder as he gets closer, and then tristan starts drumming along to the melody. by the time he reaches the room, the idea he had just a few minutes ago when he left his house is now complete in his mind. when he opens the door, all eyes turn to him while he walks in, and he simply stops there and says, before anything else:
"i just wrote an entire song."
...
coffee guy: oh so you're a writer then?
coffee guy: i work in the music industry, actually.
amelia frowns. the music industry? that's vague.
amelia (!!!): and what exactly do you do in the music industry?
amelia (!!!): not a writer. not yet.
she's leaving the apartment to meet her mum for lunch. she succeeded in her task of studying until lunchtime. but now she can't wait to speak to "will" again.
the restaurant's not far from her home, so she decides to walk there, arriving just ten minutes later. she's early, so she sits at a table by the window, patiently waiting for her mum and impatiently waiting for a reply from "will".
they both come together. amelia feels the vibration of the cellphone at the same time as she sees her mum entering the establishment through the door. the woman spots her almost immediately, and amelia has no choice but to leave his message for later.
"how are you, sweetie?" andrea asks, hugging her.
"i'm good, mum, how about you? how's work?" amelia smiles, sitting back on the chair and quickly checking her phone, just to confirm if the text message is indeed from coffee guy. it is.
"work's just the same old boring thing. tell me about yourself, my love."
"well, i've missed you, mummy. you've been travelling a lot for work, so it can't be that boring."
"but it is. what's fun about being stuck in an office sixteen hours a day for an entire week, even if it's in china? i'll tell you: there's nothing fun about it."
"sixteen hours, mum? you can't do this to yourself! you do look tired. you need some time off urgently." amelia says, a frown on her face.
amelia's mum chuckles lightly and shakes her head, dismissing her daughter's concerns.
"you know what i need urgently? food. i'm starving."
the girl rolls her eyes playfully as her mum laughs, carefully reading the menu.
"i'm not letting you get away with this, lady. you should be taking care of yourself."
"okay, baby, but can we eat now please?"
"when did i become the mother in this relationship?!" amelia says and they laugh.
"well, we both know deep down that you've always been."
amelia loves spending time with her mum, especially because their meetings have been more and more rare in the last few years. busy woman. but even with amelia's heart filled with happiness and love, her mind keeps wandering back to her phone. it vibrates a few more times and she's getting very distracted by her own curiosity. so for the first time in her life, she has to try really hard to control herself from not picking up the phone and reading his messages.
they talk and catch up until andrea looks at her watch, widening her eyes.
"oh no, i've gotta go!" she exclaims, and a sad look takes over her face. "i'm sorry, sweetie."
amelia nods and smiles softly, caressing her mum's hand.
"it's alright, mummy, i understand. but can we please meet again soon? and by soon i mean in less than three months?!"
"yes! i promise! and before i go, i think i still have time to ask you, why are you so distracted today? you kept glancing at your phone."
amelia raises her eyebrows in surprise. she didn't think her mum would notice.
"oh. ummm, it's nothing, really."
"i don't buy it. c'mon, tell me! is it a boy?!" she smirks, raising her eyebrows repeatedly.
amelia rolls her eyes and sighs, giving up and deciding to tell her the truth. why not?
"well... yeah... i mean, it's really nothing, it's just this guy who goes to the same coffee shop as me, that's all. not a big deal."
"i'm so happy for you! honestly." andrea's smiling widely.
"mom! there's no need to be happy about it, it's really nothing."
"honey, you forget that i've known you for your entire life. i can tell it's not nothing." she winks. "so, i am happy. but now i really have to go."
they leave together, her mum paying the bill, and they hug each other on the pavement, going their separate ways after.
amelia can finally read "will's" message now, so her heart's thudding.
coffee guy: i am a musician
coffee guy: okay i know this is gonna sound really creepy but i swear it's a coincidence
coffee guy: but i think we're having lunch at the same place and if you just raised your head you might see me
coffee guy: omg this sounds soooooo wrong i swear i didn't follow you or anything!!!!
...
"this is one of the best things you've ever written, brad, i love it." james says, after brad finishes writing down the lyrics to the new song and shows them. "it's gonna sound amazing. do you have the chords yet?"
"i have everything, james, you're not understanding. this has never happened to me before so i'm really surprised, but the song just popped into my head like this," he snaps his fingers, "and it was done. everything. you just have to trust me on this and give me some time to work on it."
the other three boys all agree and so brad starts to work immediately, while they continue on the song they were already making before brad arrived.
"guys, i'm starving and we've been working for hours non-stop. what about some lunch, huh?" tristan says after a couple of hours.
"sounds good to me." connor agrees. so they leave and walk down to this restaurant they all love. it's a bit far from the building, but the food's great, so they don't really mind walking there.
they sit down at a table by the window, and when brad looks up from his phone - checking to see if amelia has replied to his latest text - he thinks his heart actually stops. she's right there. she's sitting there, just two tables away from them. brad just can't believe it. this has to be faith. it's too much of a coincidence.
"...don't you think, brad?" connor's voice says in the distance, bringing him back to reality.
"huh? sorry, i didn't catch that." he looks away from her with a lot of efforts.
"are you okay there, mate?" tristan asks from beside him.
"yes, sorry, i just got distracted for a bit. what were you saying, con?"
"i just think we need to work some more on the chords for worry. i think it can get better. and it needs a bit more of drums."
"oh, i totally agree. that song is far from finished. sorry, james." brad replies, glancing at james and shrugging.
"it's fine."
they quickly choose their meals and engage in a heated conversation about the songs they've been working on for the last couple of days. brad takes the opportunity to text amelia to let her know he's there too. maybe she has more courage than him and decides to come and meet him.
he sends her three more texts and looks up at her direction to see if she's gonna read it. but she doesn't even pick the phone up. he feels a bit disappointed, but his thoughts are interrupted by tristan.
"who's "amelia three exclamation points"?" he asks, looking at brad's phone over his shoulder. brad locks his phone immediately and replies:
"uh, no one."
"no one?! amelia three exclamation points? three exclamation points does not mean no one!" tristan jokes, poking brad on the belly.
"what, three exclamation points?! who is she, braddy boy?" connor joins in, smirking. brad sighs and shrugs. no point in keeping her a secret now.
"if you wanna know... she's just this girl who goes to the same coffee shop as me, that's all. not a big deal."
"okay but why three exclamation points then?!" james quizzes.
"oh my god it's just exclamation points! it doesn't mean anything, chill out, god."
"is she the same girl you told me about just the other day?" connor asks and brad just nods. "okay so it is a big deal, mate."
"connor! it's not! c'mon guys, forget about it!"
"waaaaait. wait. is that song about her?!" tristan suddenly realises. "the one you just wrote today?!"
brad's entire body freezes for a split second. bloody hell. they weren't supposed to put the pieces together.
"no." brad lies.
"you're lying! it is, isn't it? it makes total sense." tristan says.
"it really does make sense!" james agrees, nodding exaggeratedly.
"so that's why you go to the same cafe every day! i've always wondered." connor adds. sometimes i could really kill connor.
"alright alright, i give up. the song is about her. there you go. happy?" he looks at the boys, who are all smiling kindly.
"you're so sweet, brad." james giggles. "being all "lovestruck" and everything. how did you get her number?"
brad's cheeks are burning red so he looks down and pretends to check his phone, feeling a bit embarrassed by james' comment.
"we just kind of bumped into each other one of these days and it just happened, i guess." he lies, shrugging. there's no way i'm telling them i left her a note.
"cute." connor says.
"bradley bear is in loooooove." tristan teases.
"stop it, tris."
saved by the bell, i'd say. cause their food arrives and suddenly they fall into silence. brad quietly thanks and looks back at where amelia's sitting. she's concentrated on what the woman in front of her is saying, nodding and raising her eyebrows in surprise. and then she glances at her phone. it's so quick brad almost thinks he imagined it. but no. she does it again. and then again. and one more time. i guess she's not so concentrated on the woman after all.
brad makes it his mission to keep focused on the conversation with his friends. the girl never really leaves his thoughts, like a constant beeping in the back of his mind, but, in general, he does a good job, not glancing at her table anymore. when they finish eating, brad finally allows himself to look at her direction again, but he can't find her. she's not there anymore. he feels a bit let down as his heart sinks in in his chest slightly.
amelia reads the messages five times before she completely understands what it's saying. we were having lunch at the same place? at the same time? this has to be faith. it's too much of a coincidence. she's standing still there at the corner of the street, just a few meters away from the restaurant, not knowing what to do. so she texts him and waits, finding a bench to sit down, by the shadows of a small tree.
brad stops when his phone vibrates in his pocket. he picks it up quickly and sees that amelia just texted him back. he's suddenly sweating.
amelia (!!!): what? where are you now? are you still at the restaurant?
amelia (!!!): idk would you like to meet or whatever? i could wait for you outside? i'm not far.
brad starts typing a reply but james interrupts him.
"brad, why are you standing there? cmon, joe just called, we need to go right now."
he looks up and sees that the three boys are already rushing past the door of the restaurant, so he starts walking and types a reply at the same time.
coffee guy: i'm already going back to the studio, some work just showed up and i can't be late. sorry amelia, but we can meet tomorrow or idk
james, tristan and connor are walking so fast that brad has to almost run to catch up to them, not being able to take a look around, therefore missing seeing amelia, who's just at the other side of the pavement, looking down at her phone. if he only turned his head left...
she reads his message and gets up from the bench, sighing disappointedly, giving up on trying to meet him today. another time, then, i suppose. she casually looks at her right, back at the direction of the restaurant, and sees four males jogging down the street, one of them slightly behind and almost getting hit by a car. she can't help but giggle lightly. poor guy. barely does she know who he is. if she'd only turned her head right at the right moment...
...