Adeline was looking around the sound stage in awe. She'd never been behind the scenes of a television program, and it was all so strange to her. But the redhead beside her seemed to be freaking out a bit.
"Addy, I can't believe you brought me along. This is mad!" Cecelia said, looking around.
"Can't say it was my idea entirely. Brian thought you might like to come along, as a thank you to the rooming situation we've got going on," Adeline explained, grabbing her new friend's arm to pull her out of the way of a few busy crewmen. Together the two women walked over to the stage, where a disappointed Roger was hitting a plastic cymbal with his drumsticks.
"This is shit," he muttered, then looked down at Adeline, who hopped up onto the stage.
"What's the problem?" she asked, setting a hand between his shoulder blades.
"These bloody things aren't real," he said, looking from her to Brian, John, and Freddie, who were just as confused, and even irritated. As she climbed down from the stage, the band's personal manager, Paul Prenter, came over with one the show's executives.
"Look, chaps, it is going to be playback. Lip synch's is all that's required," the man explained, and Adeline shared a look with Cecelia, and then with Mary.
"We do know how to play our instruments," Roger said, and Freddie stepped forward.
"You want me to lip synch?"
"I don't understand why we simply can't perform live," Brian said, setting a hand on his hip.
"The audience will never know the difference," the executive said.
"We'll know the bloody difference."
"This is the BBC. That's how things are done around here. All right? Don't be a nuisance." The man walked away, and Adeline rolled her eyes.
"Asshole," she whispered, and Cecelia laughed quietly. The two women turned to the boys, and immediately, a smile graced Adeline's lips.
"Well, the way things are done are a load of bollocks, old chap," Roger said, and Brian made a face.
"This is the BBC," he said, all while John shrugged his shoulders.
"I'm relieved," he said.
"You would be," Brian muttered as he adjusted the Red Special.
"Perfect performance."
Adeline, Cecelia, and Mary were quickly ushered off of the stage as the cameras were preparing to roll. The boys took their spots, and after making sure no one was paying much attention to him, Roger winked at Addy, who bit her lip before blowing him a kiss. She felt an elbow in her ribs, and she turned to look at Cecelia, who was smirking.
"Not a word," Addy whispered, and before Cecelia could reply, the studio was shushed, and the broadcast began. The four on stage did their best to look as convincing as possible, but as Freddie swayed his hips to keep the camera away from his mouth, Roger kept glancing over to Addy, his eyes narrowed with disdain. But as the song played, the studio audience couldn't help but dance along, creating the start of something new.
***
"Reid wasn't kidding. A whole tour of Japan."
Adeline was adjusting Brian's top, a beautiful white shirt with flowing angelic sleeves.
"You've earned it," she said, looking around at the others with a smile on her face, "all of you."
"Hear, hear," John said, raising his hand. The five of them laughed before Brian, Freddie, and John all started to make their way onto the stage. Roger, who's outfit consisted of shoes, black trousers, wrist warmers, a necklace, and a white fringe jacket with nothing under it, was quick to gently grab Adeline's wrist.
"Could you fix this for me?" he asked, motioning to the jacket. With a playful roll of her eyes, Adeline nodded, and she began to gently tug on the jacket, adjusting it while letting her fingers brush against his chest ever so slightly.
"Careful now, Ms. Garrison. This is strictly professional," he teased, letting his hands rest on her waist.
"Professional, my ass," she whispered, letting go of the jacket to wrap her arms around his neck.
"That can be arranged," Roger murmured, and he leaned down to press his lips to hers in a gentle, yet deep, kiss. They parted after a moment or two upon hearing footsteps just nearby. They looked into each other's eyes, and their smiles were nearly identical.
"Good. Now, you get out there and show these people what my boys are made of."
"Like I'd do anything less."
***
They were back home before they knew it, it seemed. Adeline was back living with Cecelia, and Roger was missing her like crazy. He and Brian still lived together, but the place felt so empty without her. As much as he wanted to call her every day, he restrained himself, having to remind himself that it wasn't her own home, she was just a roommate to this Cecelia girl. A girl, he'd noticed, that Brian had taken a liking to.
One morning, Roger was awakened by the phone. While the ringing was faint, it was still enough to rouse him, and he groaned once it stopped. Everything was suddenly very quiet. And then there was a hurried knocking on his bedroom door.
"If it's before nine, it's not my problem," he called, rolling over onto his side with the pillow over his head.
"Right then, shall I give Reid a call back and tell him we can't do an American tour, then?" Brian asked, and before he knew it, the bedroom door was wide open.
"Suddenly, I'm a morning person," he said, and Brian rolled his eyes.
"Just get washed and dressed. I'm going to give the others a call, and Addy, too," he said, taking in the look on Roger's face.
"All right, but don't tell her what you told me. I wanna see the look on her face when we tell her."
A little over an hour later, Brian, John, Roger, and Adeline were packed into Brian's car, with Adeline and John in the back.
"Tell me why we're going to Freddie's again?" Adeline asked.
"Because he wasn't answering his phone, and we've got some news for him," Brian answered, glancing back at her before parking his car.
"News that you refuse to share with me."
"You'll find out when Fred finds out. Now out of my car."
The four of them got out and made their way into the building, then climbed up the stairs to Freddie's floor. Roger headed the group, and with no hesitation, he barged into Freddie's apartment, knocking on the door after it was opened.
"Your phone's off the hook," he said as the others followed him in, and Addy gave a naked, but covered, Mary and a half naked Freddie a small apologetic wave. As Roger walked across the room to a cabinet of glassware, Brian and John sat on a couch along the wall.
"Oh, come on in. Make yourselves at home. Don't mind us," Freddie said as Addy closed the door.
"Hello, Mary. How's your dad?" Brian asked as he twisted the tie around the cork the champagne bottle he'd brought along.
"Yeah, pretty well. Thanks," Mary said, pulling the blanket tighter around her body.
"Good."
"What's going on, Brian?" Freddie asked.
"Well, if you'd answered your phone, you'd know already."
"I answered mine, but you didn't want to spill to me, ass," Adeline muttered, folding her arms over her chest. Brian glanced up at her, but when she glared back at him, his attention went back to the pair on the couch.
"This really isn't a good time, guys," Freddie said, and Brian stopped working the twist tie on the bottle.
"John Reid called today. He has a little tour in mind for us."
"It's not little, Brian," Roger said, as both Freddie and Addy looked at him, "he's booked us a tour of America. The album's hit the charts in the U.S.!"
Adeline's eyes lit up, and a grin broke onto her face. She and Mary shared a look, the excitement clear in their eyes.
"Oh, yes. Yes!" Freddie got up from the couch as the others laughed, and the four boys embraced. Once they pulled away from one another, Addy hurried over and nearly tackled all four of them in a hug.
"Brian, I'm simultaneously pissed at and proud of you!" She laughed, feeling his arms wrap around her. She hugged him tightly, then John, then Freddie, and then Roger, who kept his arm around her waist once they broke apart.
"You'll be coming along, too. We'll need the band's personal assistant," Roger said, looking down at her,
"Oh, a promotion, too," she teased, making the others laugh.
"Yep, a promotion. But we needed our emotional support American to help us through the craziness of America itself," Brian chuckled, and she rolled her eyes.
"I don't know the whole country. But I'll do my best," she said, then glanced over at Mary, "I think we should let our hosts get back to what they were doing before."
"What makes you say that?" Roger asked.
"Boys, I do believe we barged in on an engagement."
A sudden silence fell over the group, but then more laughter rang out, and Brian popped the top off of the champagne bottle.
"All the more reason to celebrate, Adeline! Don't be such a killjoy," he said, pouring the drink into the glasses Roger had brought over. He handed one to Adeline, who took it gently, and with a small and a shrug of her shoulders, she joined the others in a toast, standing beside Roger.
"A toast. To Queen. And to Freddie and Mary," John said, "may everything work out in our favor."
"Hear, hear," the others called, and as the others drank, Roger looked down at Adeline.
"May everything work in our favor," he whispered, and with a small smile, they both drank from their glasses.