Cheryl
I throw me phone on the sofa and instantly feel meself missing Mel. I want to talk to me baby for ages but I can't when she's meant to be having fun. The last I remember a time when I wasn't with Melanie for a bit of time was when she was a little over one. I had gone out to meet up with the girls in London for the first time. It was hard on us, so I made sure not to ever leave her again. The silence just kills us.
Maybe that was selfish of us but I needed her. She is the light in me life and keeps us thriving. But, then again, I should have given her more independent experiences back then. Now, she has severe separation anxiety and does not even know it. I hope that she will never have to figure it out but I had to send her off at some point.
I make me way upstairs and see that it is already five in the early night. I do not usually mope around but when Melanie's not here, I can't help it. I want to be bubbly and have a lovely weekend but it is different when I am too busy worrying.
I lay down in me bed and pull the duvet over meself. I turn on the telly and keep the volume low. Addie comes to lay next to us and I stroke her head as I watch random shows. Soon enough, me eyes become heavy and I fall right into a deep nap.
☆☆☆
I wake up from me nap and look around, seeing Addie snoozing away next to us. I stretch me arms as I sit up and grab me phone from the bedside table. I scroll through me notifications and find a few texts from Mel that ask how me day has been.
I realize that it is nine at night and I roll me eyes. I want to go out but me body's disagreeing with us. It is insane how much a pregnant woman goes through in a matter of weeks. Just imagine, I was pregnant when I was in the Maldives — pregnant.
I honestly was not sure if I ever wanted kids after Melanie. She is me world and I never want to take that away from her. I know that when she finds out about this baby, she may become upset. The last thing I need is for Melanie to become jealous and distant — it will become the "Tré situation" all over again.
Then again, Melanie could be happy. There will finally be someone besides us who will wholeheartedly love her. There will be someone who will not judge her. There will be someone who gives her affection no matter what. A little baby brother or sister could benefit Melanie — help her. It could make all her separation anxiety and fears go away.
☆☆☆
Melanie
This morning has been tough without Mamma. I am beginning to experience more anxiety and mini panic attacks every time I realize she is not here. But I keep pushing on and do not mind all the worries. My friends are here to help and I am over the moon to be going to Coachella today.
"Hey, ready to go?" Sierra asks me as I step out into the California sun. I nod my head and look towards the boys and Emmeline, who are packing up the car.
For day one, I decided to go for a white bando top with some basic light wash shorts. I am wearing my white high-top converse to match the shirt. Sierra did space buns in my hair and threw some glitter in them to make them shine in the sun. We all put glitter on our cheeks as well to add some cool details to all our looks.
"Jen!" Sierra shouts into the house, seeing as she is the only one we are waiting on.
"What?!" Jen shouts back as she makes her way down the stairs. She throws her hands in the air in annoyance and I just shake my head and laugh.
"C'mon, you lot!" Thomas calls out to us and waves us over. I get in the car and wait for my girls to hop in. Once we are all settled, we make our way to Coachella.
'Sometimes I feel like throwing my hands up in the air
I know I can count on you
Sometimes I feel like saying "Lord I just don't care"
But you've got the love I need
To see me through'
The Florence + The Machine song blasts through the stereo of the Jeep. I drive to the grounds and find a decent parking spot that is next to the boys. We all get out and I make sure we have everything, putting the camera strap around my neck. I hold hands with Sierra and Jen as we make our way to the entrance.
☆☆☆
Author
The group of teens have seen Louis the Child, Marian Hill, Tyler, The Creator, alt-J, and Post Malone. Melanie has danced hour after hour, feeling the pains in her feet. Now, they are all sitting on the grass in a clear are, taking a short break.
Melanie sees that the coast is pretty much clear and slings her camera off her neck. The teen gets up on her knees and fixes her hair. She looks at Thomas and sees him taking pictures of the pretty sky while everyone else is relaxing.
"Can you get my picture real quick?" Melanie asks and hands Thomas her camera. He nods and steps back, getting a good picture of her.
"Thanks, babes." Melanie thanks Thomas and takes her camera off him. She flicks through the pictures and tells him that she loves all of them.
"Shall we go watch Jorja Smith?" Jen asks and they all agree. Jorja is a British artist, so it will feel like a bit of home for them.
"God, I'm so tired." Emmeline hooks arms with Melanie as she yawns. None of them knew that they would become this exhausted.
"Me too," Melanie frowns and then smiles to lighten the mood. The two giggle as they walk to the stage where Jorja Smith is performing.
They enjoy the show, loving the sweet melody of the music. Melanie sways around with Emmeline and throws her arm around her shoulder. All the crowd is in their emotions and cannot help but melt along to the words and melody.
"Guys, turn around!" Sierra says and makes Melanie and Emmeline turn around. They smile at their friend's camera and take a few photos.
☆☆☆
The group has head back to the house now to chill out and take a breather. All day, they walked, talked, danced, sang. It is exhausting and they want nothing more than to have a chilled out pool party. So, they got out the speakers, blasted the music, and threw the pool floaties on the water.
"Hi, buddy," Melanie coos as the neighbor's dog makes its way over to the pool deck. The dog has come to visit every now and then and reminds Melanie of her own pup back at home.
"Alright, I call flamingo!" Melanie announces, which gets Emmeline to frown.
"No, can't you see that I'm using it at the moment," Emmeline pouts as she floats on top of the flamingo, "You can have it when I'm done." She states and leans back to get the full relaxation affect.
"Melanie!" Emmeline shrieks as the brunette teen pulls the floatie to the deck. Melanie hops onto the flamingo and laughs as Emmeline struggles to stay on. The neighbor's dog comes to the edge of the deck and tries to hop on as well.
"Oh my god!" Sierra laughs as she takes some pictures of the two crazy teens.
"So, what's with you and Tristan?" Jen asks Melanie as they get out of the pool and head to a snack table that they had set up.
"What do you mean?" Melanie furrows her brows as she speaks and takes a few crisps with her to the edge of the pool.
"I don't know, you guys seem close." Jen says as the two sit on the edge of the pavement. Melanie chuckles to herself, knowing that a lot of people have assumed her and Tristan are a 'thing'. Thomas and a few of the others are listening in, wanting to know the new gossip.
"Nothing going on, we just get on well." Melanie shrugs her shoulders and swishes her hand in the water, "I just like the banter we have." She smiles and winks towards Thomas, who feels jealousy spiking in his blood.
"Well, if you don't want him, I'll take him." Jen giggles and stands up. Melanie tuts and Max furrows his brows.
"There is nothing special about that guy," Max says to Jen as she goes to the snack table. She gives him the side-eye and questions him on his opinion of a guy he is not even friends with.
"I just think that you should look for someone who has a bit more to offer." He states and Jen just chuckles to herself. She is not sure what that is meant to mean but she just lets it slide.
"Hey, want to see something cool?" Thomas asks Melanie as he swims up to her legs. He puts his arms around her legs and smiles up at her. She nods her head and watches him leap out of the pool, eyeing his six-pack that he usually keeps hidden.
"C'mon," Thomas beams as he takes Melanie's hand and his towel. He dries off before walking inside and then takes the staircase up to the hallway. He drags her down the hall and takes her to a door towards the end. He swings it open and Melanie sees a staircase that leads up to outside.
"Woah," The teen sees a garden on the roof that fills the whole space. A walkway allows you to roam around the plants and make your way through the beautiful flowers.
"Me and Max found it last night. He thought he would look like a melt if he showed it to Jen." He sighs and shakes his head at how funny he finds Max.
"Jen?" Melanie asks why it is so specific to her redhead best friend. Thomas straightens up and regrets speaking up in the first place, knowing that he has just screwed Max over.
"I'll explain later," Thomas pushes the subject away for now, "Just live in this moment with me." He pleads and takes her hands. He walks backwards as she follows him with their hands clasped together.
"I'll miss that sun," Melanie sighs and gazes out towards the shining sunset. Thomas smiles at the sun-kissed skin that the teen has acquired from remaining outside all day.
"Have you thought about the dance?" Thomas asks and Melanie wonders why he is so obsessed with knowing. Suddenly, he wants to go and be like every other typical person in the school — it is just not like Melanie.
"No, I just don't know if it's my kind of setting." Melanie shrugs and runs her hand across the flowers that are along the walkway.
"Yeah, but the Brit Awards is...?" He jokes and sees Melanie roll her eyes at him. The two of them venture through the roof in silence — a peaceful, loving silence. Thomas just wants to soak up every little moment that he shares with Melanie, he never wants to forget them.
April 15th, 2018
☆☆☆
"Mel, what are you doing?" Thomas asks as he sees Melanie laying on the grass. Melanie giggles and peers at him taking her picture with her camera.
Day two has been long for the group of teens, they are shattered from yesterday. Melanie has not stopped calling her mother, wanting to talk to her while they take a break. Cheryl has not been able to be reached by the teen and it is beginning to make her anxious. She walks off towards a clear area and secluded herself from the group. They all watch her, Thomas especially, keeping an eye on her.
Melanie tries to call again and gets voicemail again. She gives it one last shot and hears it ringing for a bit longer than it was before. She anticipates to hear her mother's voice, her heart-rate now soaring to unbelievable levels.
"Hello?" Cheryl picks up the phone without looking at the caller ID.
"Mammy?" Melanie frowns, feeling as though her mother did not sound excited to talk to her, "I called you a million times!" Melanie got snappy in response to her building anger.
"I'm sorry, baby! I was working and me phone died. I'm here now, I'm sorry." Cheryl attempts to make amends to her daughter, hating to hear her angry.
"It's okay, I was just getting anxious." Melanie whines and takes a deep breath. Cheryl hears the breaths and frowns to herself, blaming the mini panic attack on her.
"It's okay, bubs. I'll make sure that me phone is always charged and turned on, okay?" Cheryl coos and listens to her daughter's loud end. The music, the talking, the hustle and bustle of crowds — the mother can sense the tension in the area.
"Mamma, I want to come home—"
"No, you don't! You want to stay and have a good time with your friends. Just think, I'll be waiting for you at the gate on Monday." Cheryl speaks with calmness in her voice, which sends the chilled vibes to Melanie's heart and mind.
"I miss you," Melanie whines.
"I miss you more than you could ever imagine, little one," Cheryl smiles to herself and waits for her daughter to respond, "Hey, I love you zillions." Cheryl beams and listens to hear the teen's voice.
"I love you more, Mammy." She gives in to let it go and enjoy her time. The teen hangs up with her Mam and looks around, only to find her friends laughing and joking around with the sun beating down on their skin. She smiles at them and rushes to them, wanting to be close to them again.
"C'mon!" Max shouts and runs to the stage, which makes the whole group follow him. They all stand around and listen to the music, dancing along to every Cardi B tune that she raps.
"Mel! Em!" Jen yells over the music from behind the two of them, making them turn around. Again, they take pictures and smile wide for the camera.
☆☆☆
"Hey!" Bridgette taps on Melanie's shoulder, making her turn around. Melanie gasps and hugs her tightly, letting all of the times she has thought about Bridgette fulfill themselves with joy.
"Hey, come meet my friends!" Melanie cheers and brings her old friend over to her group of friends. She introduces everyone to Bridgette and Melanie meets all of Bridgette's friends as well. As they converse, they all begin to gather for an all-girls group picture.
"Three, two, one..." Thomas counts down as he waits for all the girls to pose for his camera.
"Hey, they're selling ice lollies over there, you guys fancy some?" Sierra asks the group of girls and they all agree. The guys go their separate ways to get some actual food while the girls make their way over to the stand.
"So, hows everything in England?" Bridgette asks Melanie as they walk side-by-side.
"Really good, Mam just started a new telly show, got over the breakup, just got back from the Maldives, and we're headed for Disneyland Paris." Melanie explains how her life is going and hooks her arm with Bridgette's.
"Wow, that's amazing!" Bridgette beams and wishes she could see Melanie more often.
"How about you?" Melanie asks.
"Well, I've been working, obviously I'm here so that's cool, and my Mom recently got married!"
"Oh, no way! Tell her I said congratulations!" Melanie sweetly says and smiles wide at Bridgette, who is rethinking of the beautiful wedding she experienced.
"And did you see the boy in the black tank?" Bridgette asks and Melanie nods, "That's my boyfriend." She winks and Melanie grins devilishly and excitedly jumps up and down.
"He was cute! I'm jealous!" The brunette hypes her friend up and giggles along with her.
"You don't have anyone?" Bridgette's eyes widen in question, "That's hard to believe!" She admits and gets in line behind the rest of the girls with Melanie.
"I mean, I've had my flings lately, but they either don't treat me right or just simply aren't the one for me." The teen answers and frowns to herself. Bridgette sees the sudden mood shift in her old friend and attempts to cheer her up.
"Well, hey, we're still just kids and you'll find that special someone one day," Bridgette smiles, "You never know, maybe you've already met him." She winks as they near the cashier and order their ice lollies.
"Hey, twins!" Emmeline cheers as she and one of Bridgette's friends holds up their matching ice lollies to Melanie's. They all giggle and see Thomas taking pictures of them, trying to hold their laughs in as they try to act natural.
☆☆☆
"I need my outfit of the day picture." Melanie says to Thomas as she holds out her camera. Thomas takes it and steps back to get the perfect angle. He advises Melanie where to stand, what poses to do, and perfect positions her in the glowing sun.
"Perfect, thanks, babe," Melanie says to Thomas and puts the camera back in her bag. They join the group's conversation once again and try to understand what they are going on about.
They stand around and wait for Bridgette's group to meet up with them once again for the day. Last night, they all came to the house and hung out. Melanie held a little pool party, which was thanks to Sierra helping her gather everything at the store last minute.
"Yo!" The boys come over and greet the English lads. They all 'bro hug' as all the girls hug each other and say their hellos.
"Ready for Miguel?" One of the girls asks and they all cheer. They head toward the main stage and bunch up into the crowd.
The group of teens dance and sing along to the Miguel tunes. It is a moment of pure joy for Melanie, dancing with her best friends and some new ones. It is not often that Melanie gets to travel and be free, but this time she is taking it all in. She is soaking in the beautiful moments of smiles and laughter as if she will never experience anything like it again.
'Banana clip on my love for you
Let it ring like
Yeah, I let it ring like
It's like I'm trigger happy
Banana clip on my love for you
Let it ring like
Yeah, I let it ring like
I guess I'm trigger happy'
Melanie smiles and hugs Bridgette tightly as the last song ends. Miguel's time on the stage is over and the crowd settles themselves to be ready for the next performance. Bridgette leaves tonight so the last performance they will see each other is Beyoncé. Melanie will miss connecting her old friend with her new ones, so it will be sad to say goodbye.
"Mel, we need a picture together!" Bridgette says and holds her phone for someone to take a picture of them. They pose as Derek takes a picture of them in the bright afternoon sun.
"I'll see you later tonight for Beyoncé!" Bridgette beams and waves off Melanie and her friends. The English group heads off to find some drinks and take a breather from the crowd.
"Wow, look at the sun!" Emmeline points to the sun that is just setting on the horizon. Melanie has never seen such a beautiful Californian sunset before. Whenever they happen, her Mam was working or they were chilling inside. To finally be on a real holiday is a relief to Melanie.
"C'mon, guys!" Derek shouts back at the three girls who stopped to take a picture. They rush over to the group once again and join them in walking around aimlessly to find something to entertain them.
"Ya' know, when no one we know is performing, it's actually quite boring." Thomas admits and everyone giggles, knowing it is true.
"We could go to The Do Lab, if you guys are up for getting wet?" Derek winks and all of the girls scrunch their faces in disgust at his adult humor.
"Yeah, I mean, it is the end of the day...?" Melanie shrugs and they all nod in agreement. As they near the tent, the music gets louder and louder.
The Do Lab is a tent that plays insane rave music from a live DJ. Every now and then, some people will go to the stage and spray hoses of water out into the crowd. It is a crazy experience but no one can deny the immense fun.
Max is the first to step in and they all watch him as he plugs his ears. They all giggle and walk in behind him, seeing the rave that everyone is enjoying. There is drunk people everywhere and no one is not jumping up and down to the loud beat. The group immediately bounces along with the crowd, which boosts their energy. Suddenly, they feel water spill over top of them and they all laugh in the soaking experience.
Melanie holds her girlfriends' hands and jumps around with them. They all let the water pour onto their tan skin, refreshing them from the heat. The race song blares into all the teen's ears and set their souls free into the afternoon.
☆☆☆
A woman in a marching band outfit began to drum a beat as the audience screams. She blows a whistle and suddenly all the dancers back out of the way and reveal Beyoncé. The crowd loses their mind as she turns around and struts across the stage. She disappears once again as dancers show off their moves for a couple minutes. Then, the intro to Crazy in Love sounds on the speakers and Beyoncé comes out again.
Melanie cannot believe that she is standing before the Beyoncé that she and her mother have always idolized. She watches the dance moves of the pop star and remembers each one. She shouts and screams with her best friends as the show goes on.
(A/N: I made this chapter very brief in settings but longer so you guys could finally hear what Melanie got up to! Hopefully, I will be back to writing again! I hope you enjoyed!)