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1576 Words
CHAPTER 26 — After the City Lights
The hotel lobby was quiet by the time both bands returned, the kind of quiet that makes footsteps echo sharply against the polished floor. The managers exchanged quick reminders about schedules, but most of the members were too tired from the long day of exploring to pay close attention. Still, beneath the exhaustion, there was a strange shared energy — mostly coming from two people trying very hard to pretend the day hadn’t affected them at all.
Jane walked ahead with her group, listening to their chatter but contributing very little. She nodded, smiled, pretended to laugh, yet her mind wasn’t anywhere near the conversation. It was stuck on the moment Jimmy had stopped to point out a rooftop garden. The way the sun had hit his face. The way he’d stepped slightly in front of her crossing the street, instinctively protective.
She hated how clearly she remembered all of it.
When they got to their floor, the band members threw their doors open and disappeared inside immediately — exhausted and desperate for sleep. Jane was the last to enter her room. She paused quietly, her hand still on the doorknob, and glanced down the hallway even though she knew Jimmy wasn’t there.
A small sigh escaped her before she slipped inside.
Her room was neat, untouched since morning, the curtains drawn back to show the glowing city outside. She sat on the edge of her bed and ran her fingers lightly over her wrist where she’d worn the new bracelet she bought during the outing. No one knew she bought it because Jimmy had admired a similar one in a*****e window. And she would never, ever admit that to anyone.
She lay back on the bed and closed her eyes.
It was supposed to be a simple bonding outing between their bands — nothing more. But nothing about today had felt simple. Not the laughter. Not the little arguments. And definitely not the way she caught him watching her when he thought she wasn’t paying attention.
A soft but reluctant smile touched her lips.
Then she sat up quickly, scolding herself.
“No,” she whispered firmly. “Focus. Work first. Always work first.”
She got up and grabbed her notebook, trying to distract herself with lyrics… but every line she wrote felt off, unfocused — like her thoughts were drifting where they didn’t belong.
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Meanwhile — Jimmy’s Side
Jimmy’s band members practically collapsed into their beds as soon as they entered the suite. Someone complained about sore feet. Someone else demanded water. Another insisted he was starving even though he had eaten more than everyone during the trip.
But Jimmy stayed quiet.
He slipped into his room and closed the door gently behind him. The moment he was alone, the tiredness hit him — but so did the memories of the day.
He unbuttoned his jacket slowly, staring at nothing in particular. The peacefulness of the room contrasted sharply with the thoughts filling his head.
He sat on the bed, elbows on his knees, thinking about Jane’s reactions to things — her excitement at small details, the way she spoke passionately about music, the way she brightened around street performers. He liked watching her observe the world. It made him want to do the same.
He sighed and leaned back against the pillows.
He knew the rules.
He knew the dangers of letting something like this get too far.
He knew how fast rumors could spread.
But he also knew what he felt. And pretending it wasn’t there felt impossible.
He picked up his phone, stared at the blank screen, then placed it back face-down.
No messages.
No distractions.
Just thoughts he wasn’t ready to deal with.
He lay down and stared at the ceiling, wondering how one ordinary day could suddenly feel like the beginning of something much bigger.
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Between Two Rooms
Both of them stayed awake longer than they intended.
Jane wrote two full pages of lyrics — then crossed out all twenty lines.
Jimmy scrolled through his camera gallery absentmindedly — then caught himself pausing too long on group photos that included her.
Jane finally curled under the duvet, frustrated with her own heart.
Jimmy finally closed his eyes, equally frustrated with his.
Yet even with the distance between their rooms, they drifted to sleep with the same thought circling quietly:
“Why does it feel like something is changing?”
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CHAPTER 27 — Whispers in the Hallways
Morning arrived slowly in the hotel, the soft winter light slipping between the curtains and brushing against the walls like a gentle reminder that another day of responsibility was waiting. The competition wasn’t for a few more days, but the pressure was already building in the air. Even the staff at the reception seemed more alert than usual.
Both bands had early schedules — rehearsals, warm-ups, stage orientation, and interview slots arranged by the event organizers.
Jimmy’s Morning
Jimmy’s alarm rang for the third time before he finally reached over to silence it. His eyes felt heavy, not from lack of sleep but from thinking too much the night before. He sat up slowly, rubbing his face, trying to push away the lingering thoughts of Jane.
He wasn’t supposed to be thinking about her at all.
But he was.
He showered, dressed in a thick winter hoodie, and stepped out into the hallway — only to find several of his band members arguing over who took the wrong charger. Typical morning chaos.
“Let’s go,” he said calmly, slipping past them. “We’re already behind.”
His members scrambled to pack their things and follow him.
Yet even as they walked toward the rehearsal room, Jimmy’s mind drifted, uninvited, to Jane’s expression during the city exploration — especially the moment when she had stopped at the Christmas market and stared at the snow globes like she was seeing magic in them.
He shook his head subtly.
Focus.
Music.
Rehearsal.
That was all that mattered right now.
Or at least, that was what he kept telling himself.
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Jane’s Morning
Jane’s room was filled with papers — lyric sheets, discarded drafts, open notebooks. She had barely slept, and it showed. Still, when she stood in front of the mirror brushing her hair, she forced a bright smile onto her face.
Her members depended on her energy.
Maybe she didn’t always feel confident, but she never let them see that.
She tied her hair up neatly, grabbed her thick winter jacket, and stepped out of her room. The hallway was quiet except for distant elevator chimes and muffled footsteps from other guests.
Her members were waiting near the elevators, talking excitedly about the Christmas decorations going up in the lobby. Jane smiled and joined them, her typical leader-like composure falling naturally into place.
But deep down, she still felt the weight of last night — the thoughts she couldn’t shake, the memories of Jimmy standing a little too close when they crossed the crowded street, the way his voice softened when he spoke to his band in the marketplace.
She shook the thoughts away.
“We have a full schedule today,” she reminded her team with a bright tone.
“Let’s give our best.”
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A Sudden Encounter
Both bands headed toward the same rehearsal area — two different rooms, side by side. The hallways were buzzing with competitors from other countries, event volunteers, and cameramen preparing for behind-the-scenes content.
As Jane walked with her band, a door swung open ahead of them.
Jimmy stepped out — and froze when he saw her.
Jane also froze for a second before quickly recovering her expression, lifting her chin, pretending the pause hadn’t happened. Their members greeted each other warmly, as usual, completely unaware of the silent tension between the two leaders.
Jimmy stepped aside politely to let Jane pass.
Jane nodded stiffly in acknowledgment, keeping her expression neutral, almost cold.
But the moment their eyes met, even briefly, something flickered — not hostility, not competition, but lingering thoughts from the city exploration.
Jimmy looked away first.
Jane walked past him without a word.
Yet everyone around them noticed the silence.
Two managers glanced at each other.
Some members whispered, confused.
Even a few foreign staff members exchanged curious looks, having already heard rumors online.
It was becoming impossible to hide.
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Small Ripples Turn to Buzz
During rehearsals, both bands worked exceptionally hard, yet the atmosphere in the building felt different. Whenever someone opened a door, they half-expected to see the other group. Whenever members took breaks, they whispered about the tension.
Even other contestants from France, Korea, and Brazil whispered to each other:
“Are those two really enemies?”
“I heard they used to pretend to be close.”
“No, I heard they can’t stand each other.”
“But they looked weird yesterday during practice…”
Rumors multiplied quickly, spreading like sparks catching dry wood.
Neither Jane nor Jimmy heard the direct whispers — but they sensed the shift.
The quiet attention.
The subtle stares.
The curiosity from people who didn’t even know them personally.
And even though neither of them admitted it, the real problem wasn’t the rumors.
The real problem was that, for the first time…
…the rumors weren’t entirely wrong.
Something was happening.
And neither of them knew how to stop it.
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- Writer
