(A'N: If you guys want to hear the song, there's the youtube link on the right side. I honestly love that song even if it's not that recent. Hope you guys will enjoy this chapter!)
“Here’s our next song entitled ‘I can’t be your friend’ by the band Rushlow. And this song is for you, my angel.”
It burst out of his mouth; Clarence can’t help but say it. He supposed that having practiced that song for many times, Juliet should have caught what he meant. But it looks like Juliet was the densest person in the world. He wanted to spell it out for her and confess his feelings straight out, but of course, embarrassment went ahead of him.
“This might come as quite a shock,
But I've given it a lot of thought.
This thing that's come between us can't be ignored.
I've taken all I can;
This is where it's gotta end.
'Cause I can't be your friend anymore.
He turned and looked at Juliet. She was concentrating on her keyboard, seeming oblivious to the crowd around them and had her focus intent on the music that she creates. A few tendrils of her hair framed her face and a gentle smile played on her lips.
Clarence smiled at himself. Opportunity would present itself to him and give him the chance to confess to her. But for now, he’d better concentrate on going through tonight.
“An' I can't be accused,
Of not bein' there for you.
How many nights have you shown up at my door?
I hope you understand,
That this wasn't in my plans,
But I can't be your friend anymore.”
‘Had it been three months since he first met her in that music room? How many opportunities have already passed by?’ He thought.
He knew from the minute he first saw her playing the piano that she was special, that Juliet is different from all the other girls he have known, which maybe is one of the reasons that he can’t confess immediately. He wanted to be more than a friend but can’t find a way to go through the walls she has erected around her heart.
“An' it's killin' me to know you,
Without havin' a chance to hold you.
An' all I wanna do is show you,
How I really feel inside.
You can run to me,
You can laugh at me,
Or you can walk right out that door.
But I can't be your friend anymore.”
Clarence had a feeling that this night, everything would change. Playing in front of the whole school with her would definitely mean that the secret is out. He could already hear the buzz among the crowd as she first entered the stage. After tonight, in one way or the other, Juliet would be known.
Then a disturbing thought occurred in him. If, no, when, Juliet becomes famous, she would be talked about by everyone. And by everyone, Clarence thought with a frown, he meant about the other boys of the school. Of course, the other guys, who didn’t even knew she existed before, would gather around her like bees on a honey jar.
It wasn’t fair. What if Juliet saw another guy and she found out she likes him, too? What if some guy suddenly entered the scene and stole Juliet away from him? He, who have been planning for the perfect way to make her see him as a potential boyfriend and not just another boy friend, would be kicked out of the scene quickly.
No, Clarence thought. He definitely won’t allow some other guy to steal her away. She was his. His, the moment he first heard her on the music room of the fourth floor. He simply needed her in his life. He instinctively knew that no other girl he have met and will meet in the future could replace the stake Juliet has in his heart.
He wanted to change so he can be a better man for her. He wanted to see her everyday with that gentle smile on her face. He wanted her to be with him for the rest of his life.
It was then that all became clear for Clarence.
“So, baby, now it's up to you:
Do I win or do I lose?
Will my heart fly or lie broken on the floor.
Well, take me as I am,
'Cause I wanna be your man.
But I can't be your friend anymore.”
He loves her.
It was simple and yet mysterious. How could he have known that his heart, which he thought was frozen inside, would beat again for this special girl playing by his side?
He thought his heart had belonged to someone else already. Clarence had locked himself to the world of music so that when the day that that girl came by again, he’ll be able to continue the love that he has kept hidden all these years.
With the realization that he was falling in love with Juliet, Clarence finally said goodbye to the girl of his memories. It was time to start anew with Juliet.
“ An' it's killin' me to know you,
Without havin' a chance to hold you.
An' all I wanna do is show you,
How I really feel inside.
You can run to me,
You can laugh at me,
Or you can walk right out that door.
But I can't be just friends anymore.”
He looked back at Juliet, and strangely, she was looking at him too. Their gazes locked for a moment, and the crowd seemed to melt away. Clarence felt himself getting lost to her deep emerald eyes.
Then he smiled, and strummed his guitar once again.
“We can't be just friends anymore.”
After a deafening applause from the crowd, they bowed and rested their hands from the instruments. The grinning gay host went up the stage again, his eyes sparkling with amusement.
“My my, I’ve heard of rumors before that a certain ‘angel’ has caught the heart of the elusive heartthrob.But I didn’t expect that those rumors would be clarified tonight, and by no less than Clarence himself!” he said and went directly to Clarence’s side.
“Can you describe this girl whom you have called ‘angel’?” he asked, sticking out his mic to Clarence.
Clarence laughed. “This isn’t an interview, Samuel.”
The host didn’t look disturbed by his answers. He mischievously smiled and walked instead to James, who was flexing his fingers.
“How about you, James? Is there someone special on your teenage life?”
“Yep. I love you, Ellie.” He exaggeratingly blew a kiss to Ellie’s direction, who grinned and blew a kiss in return.
“Lucky girl.” The host looked at Ellie for a moment and returned his gaze on James. “And, do you know who is this ‘angel’?”
“Yes,” James said smugly. “But I won’t reveal her name. That’s for Clarence and the girl to decide. But I do want to say as a clue, that she’s here and I see her right now.”
The girls screamed as the host excitedly went to Simon in return.
“How about you, Simon? Any idea who this girl is?”
Simon just shook his head but looked speculatively to the right side of the stage. Noting this, the host went to Juliet’s side with a grin.
“Are you by chance the ‘angel’ that everyone is talking about, Juliet?” Juliet shook her head. “Oh? Come on, girl, we all saw how Clarence looked at you tonight and he even kissed you on the cheek a while ago!”
“I don’t know who she is, Sam. As far as I know, Clarence and I met after the rumors spread around about this ‘angel. I honestly admit that I’m also interested in finding who she is,” she replied with a smile.
Seeing the sincerity in her smile, the host decided to believe her and quickly went to Clarence again.
“Your band mates won’t tell your secret, Clarence dear. I’m sure everyone wants to know who this lucky girl is. Am I right, audience?” He pointed his mic to the crowd as they shouted their approval. “How about a little clue? How did the two of you meet?”
Clarence took the mic but hesitated. “Are you sure we have enough time, Sam?”
The host nodded. “Definitely. The night is still young, don’t you agree, dear judges?” The judges smiled and gestured Clarence to continue.
It’s now or never, Clarence thought. He might as well use the opportunity to announce his claim on Juliet so that no other guy would even dare approach her without him around. He took a deep breath.
“Three months ago, as you all know, we were looking for a substitute pianist because our other band mate decided not to show up on our rehearsals. James, Simon and I were searching for him around the campus. When we reached the fourth floor, we heard the sounds of piano.”
He looked at his two best friends and got encouraged by the grins on their faces.
“We decided to peek through the window to see who is playing such beautiful sounds. And that’s when we see her. A beautiful senior like us who was playing the piano so well with just her hands and a piece of notebook paper that we were just so speechless.”
“We were debating on what to do but we didn’t notice that our voices grew loud. The girl went out of the room and after seeing us, she blushed and ran away. That’s when we decided to call her an ‘angel’. She is just so beautiful and so talented with the piano that we thought she was an angel.”
Clarence was about to give the mic back to Sam when he decided to look at Juliet and saw her staring at him with shock in her eyes. With surprising confidence, he stared directly on her eyes and used the mic to amplify his voice. He definitely want to make this clear for everyone.
“Yes, that girl, my angel, is you, Juliet. You are the one who disturbed my thoughts and my heart since that afternoon I first heard you play.”
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A/N: Wow, next update would be my tenth chapter. I honestly didn't thought it would come this far because this story was just really a pastime for me before. Just wanna say thank you for all the support for this story. :)
Please do comment your opinions and suggestions and other kinds of feedback. It really makes me smile whenever I see someone commenting and voting my story even if they're just asking for an update. :D
Much love,
Lily aka Lady Knight :)