CHAPTER3
1171 Words
Mia's POV
Three weeks after joining Nova Girls, my life barely felt real anymore.
Every morning Started before Sunrise.
Every night ended long after midnight.
Training upon training, vocal lessons, dance Practice, media Coaching, fitness Sessions and lot more.
Sometimes I was So exhausted that I fell asleep Sitting upright.
But for the first time in years I was happy.
Truly happy.
Because I was moving again, growing again and dreaming again.
And that made every aching muscle worth it.
"Again!"
Ava Clapped her hands.
I groaned dramatically.
"No."
"Yes." She said.
"No."
"Yes."
Sophie burst out laughing.
"You two Sound like a married Couple."
I threw a towel at her.
She dodged it.
Lily nearly fell over laughing.
The Practice room filled with noise, laughter and teasing.
For a brief moment I Simply Stood there and watched them.
And Something warm Settled inside my Chest.
This felt different from Aurora Girls.
The Pain of losing Aurora Girls would Probably never disappear Completely.
But Nova Girls wasn't trying to replace them.
They were becoming Something new… Something beautiful in their own way.
Ava noticed my expression.
"What?"
I Smiled.
"Nothing."
"That's Suspicious."
Sophie narrowed her eyes.
"Very Suspicious."
I laughed.
"You guys are weird."
"You're Part of the group now."
Lily grinned.
"Which means you're weird too."
I Couldn't even argue.
My Phone Suddenly buzzed.
I glanced at the Screen.
It was Kane..
A Smile immediately Pulled at my lips.
I answered.
"Hey."
"Still alive?"
I laughed. "Barely."
"Practice again?"
"When is it not Practice?"
He Chuckled..
I Could Practically hear his Smile through the Phone.
The Sound always make me feel better.
"Are you feeding well?" He asked.
"I eat Sometimes."
"Mia."
"I'm feeding well, Kane."
His laughter echoed through the Speaker.
"You haven't Changed."
"Neither have you."
For a moment neither of us Spoke.
There was a Calm Silence, the kind only years of friendship Could Create.
Then Kane Cleared his throat.
"I heard Something."
My Curiosity immediately Sparked.
"What?"
"The National Music Awards."
My Stomach flipped.
"What about them?"
"Nova Girls got invited."
I froze..
The room around me disappeared.
Everything disappeared except those words.
The National Music Awards.
The biggest event in the Country.
The Same Stage where the world's biggest artists Performed.
The Same Stage I'd dreamed about Since Childhood.
"No way."
"I'm Serious.”
I Stared at the wall unable to breathe.
"Oh my God."
Kane laughed.
"That's exactly what I thought."
My heart raced fast.
The National Music Awards?
This was huge.
Life-Changing huge… Career-defining huge.
"Congratulations."
His voice Softened.
"You deserve it."
Emotion tightened my throat.
Because a few months ago, I'd almost given up.
Now this… It felt unreal.
The Call ended and I immediately looked up.
"Ava."
She Smiled knowingly.
"You found out."
My jaw dropped.
"It's true?"
She nodded.
The room exploded.
Sophie Screamed. Lily Started jumping.
I accidentally knocked over a water bottle.
Nobody Cared.
We were all too excited. Too overwhelmed and too happy.
The National Music Awards?
We were actually going.
The next week Passed in a blur.
Preparations Consumed everything..
The Closer the event got, the more nervous I became.
Until finally, the day arrived.
The National Music Awards.
I Stared at my reflection backstage.
My Stomach felt like it Contained Several hundred butterflies.
The makeup artist adjusted my hair.
"You look beautiful."
I Smiled nervously.
"Thank you."
Outside, thousands of fans filled the arena.
Cameras flashed nonstop. Reporters waited everywhere.
The atmosphere buzzed with excitement, energy and anticipation…
This wasn't just another event.
This was the event.
Ava appeared beside me.
"Nervous?"
I laughed weakly.
"I'm one Step away from Passing out."
She Smiled..
“Don't be. Everything is going to be fine.”
Only Ava Could make anxiety Sound inspirational.
A Production assistant Suddenly appeared.
"Nova Girls, you're up for red Carpet introductions in ten minutes."
Ten minutes.
My Pulse immediately doubled..
The girls gathered together.
Hands Stacked in the Center.
We did a familiar and Comforting ritual.
Ava Smiled.
"Ready?"
Sophie nodded. Lily nodded.
I nodded too.
"Nova Girls on three."
"One."
"Two."
"Three!"
"Nova Girls!"
Our voices echoed together.
And Somehow… I felt Stronger, braver and good to go.
The red Carpet was madness, Pure madness.
Fans Screamed, Photographers Shouted.
Lights flashed Constantly.
Questions Came from every direction.
"Mia!"
"Over here!"
"Nova Girls!"
"Look this way!"
I Smiled until my Cheeks hurt.
I Posed for Photos, answered questions and tried not to trip.
We finally entered the venue and relief flooded through me.
Until I Saw who was Standing nearby…
My feet Stopped and my heart Skipped.
It was Alex Ashton.
In Person… Not on television or online or magazines.
He was actually Standing twenty feet away.
He looked exactly like the Cameras Portrayed him.
Maybe even better.
He was tall, Confident and effortlessly handsome.
The kind of Person who Commanded attention without trying.
People naturally moved around him.
As if he existed in a different universe from everyone else.
For Some reason I Couldn't Stop Staring.
Then his eyes lifted and landed directly on me.
My breath Caught for a Second..
Then Someone Called his name.
The moment broke and he turned away.
Suddenly I felt ridiculous.
Why was I reacting like this?
He was just a Celebrity… An extremely famous Celebrity.
But Still he’s just a Person.
Right?
"Earth to Mia."
Sophie nudged me.
I blinked. "What?"
"You were Staring."
My face immediately heated.
"No, I wasn't."
"You totally were."
"I was not."
"You were."
Lily nodded enthusiastically.
"Definitely."
I groaned.
The girls laughed.
Thankfully, another Staff member interrupted before they Could tease me further.
"Nova Girls, follow me Please."
I happily escaped.
The evening Continued.
Performances. Award Presentations.
Interviews and excitement everywhere.
I Spent most of the night trying not to embarrass myself…
Which was going Surprisingly well.
Until it wasn't.
Hours later I found myself hurrying through a backstage Corridor.
One of our Stylists had Sent me to retrieve Something from another dressing room.
The hallway bustled with activity.
Crew members rushed everywhere. Equipment moved Constantly. People Shouted instructions.
I hurried around a Corner, not Paying enough attention.
A voice Suddenly Called from Somewhere behind me.
"Mia!"
I turned instinctively for one tiny Second.
And that was all it took… I Slammed directly into Someone.
The impact knocked the air from my lungs.
My balance disappeared instantly.
"Oh my God—"
The Person Stumbled.
Their body Colliding with mine.
Everything happened too fast.
I looked up and my entire world Stopped.
It was Alex..
My eyes widened… His widened too.
For one frozen moment neither of us moved and neither of us Spoke.
Then Someone Screamed.
"Alex!"
Suddenly he lost his balance falling backward toward the Stage entrance.
Toward the Performance area. Toward hundreds of Cameras.
My hand Shot forward instinctively trying to grab him but I was already too late.
And as Alex's body tipped backward toward the brightly lit Stage, horror exploded through me.
Because I knew Something very, very bad was about to happen.
- Writer
