Comfortably cuddled up in her bed with Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier in her hand, Lily took a sip of hot chocolate, before putting the cup on her nightstand. She yawned briefly and shook her head, keeping on reading her novel. She looked up from the yellowish page and stared at the window with a wide grin, finding herself able to see Freddie's flat.

                She laid her book down on her chest, keeping it open. Twirling a lock of her hair around her finger without taking her eyes off the flat on the opposite side of the road, she remembered the day before, when Freddie stayed for dinner. They had cooked themselves pastas and steaks, and they had dinner in front of the telly they had not even turned on. They had chatted about music, as usual, but also about Freddie's studies, and a bit about politics. While Freddie did not know much about politics in general, Lily showed how involved she was. She had spoken about the horrible war taking place in Vietnam, and how she wished she could change it.

                They had spent the rest of the evening doodling stupid things, laughing at the features of grotesque characters they created. It was like a contest, and the winner would be the one who drew the oddest character. Freddie had won, as he drew a ridiculously skinny giant, with huge eyes reminding Lily of a bulldog's eyes, with big hands and chubby fingers. Also, the giant's hair looked like a tiny, shapeless braid. Lily had burst out laughing when seeing it, making her friend win.

                Freddie had earned a sweet peck on the cheek and a big bear hug, which made him fall backwards and laugh. They had stayed like that for long minutes, giving each other strokes on their hair, cheeks and arms. Both of them could not feel happier.

                A knock on the door interrupted her daydream. As she wedged her bookmark between the pages of her book and started to get up to go to the window, the person hit the doorbell madly. Hating the sound of it, she covered her ears, wincing, and ran to the front door.

                When she opened it, a pair of arms unexpectedly encircled her, and a face buried itself in her hair. A loud sob warmed her ear, and when the scent of the person tickled her nostrils, she recognised who this was.

                "Brian, hey, what's the matter?"

                Brian pulled away and sniffed, wiping his tears with the back of his hand. His eyes were red, and so was his entire face. His bottom lip quivered and he gulped.

                "I'm sorry, Lily. I'm sorry I've been a bastard. I shouldn't have reacted that way because you were with that guy. I... I don't own you, I don't know what came through my mind," he stuttered, catching his breath at the same time. "I'm sorry, Lily. So sorry."

                "Come on, Bri, let's talk about all that in my room," she said, grabbing his hand and bringing him to her bedroom. She sat him on the edge of her bed and sat beside him, resting her hands on her knees and staring at the floor nervously. She waited for Brian to calm himself a little, then spoke softly: "Brian, I don't understand why you reacted that way. You knew it was my neighbour, and... Why did you feel like it was the end of the world because I linked arms with him? Okay, I rested my head on his shoulder, but that's all, I mean... I really don't get it, you must give me an explanation."

                "I... I don't know if there's really an explanation to that. When I sang White Queen, I put my heart in it, I gave it my best. And it was dedicated to you, I wrote it for you. So when I saw you being that close to him while I sang it, I... I felt betrayed in a certain way. I... I was jealous."

                "But why would you be jealous, Brian?" she said in her unchanged calm tone. "Is there anything worth being jealous of?"

                Brian stared at her hesitantly for a few seconds. He gulped and lowered his eyes to his hands, anxiously playing with his fingers. "You. You are worth being jealous for, but not in a bad way. Actually, when I saw you with him, I envied him."

                "Why?"

                "I wanted to be the person linking arms with you. I wanted to be the shoulder you'd lean your head on. For the amount of times it took me to sing the song, I didn't want to be this guy with his guitar on the stage. I wanted to be in the crowd with you. I didn't want to simply look at you."

                Lily sighed and put her head in her hands, her eyelids closed, as she tried to understand what actually happened. She nervously chewed on her bottom lip, taking a deep breath.

                "Brian... That's the way we are every single day. We're even closer than I was to Freddie at that moment! I sit on your lap, I sleep beside you, I hold your hands, I rub your back, I play music with you, I hug you all the time... What more do you need? What do you want me to do? Your jealousy, or your envy, call it the way you want, was uncalled for. We've known each other for years, almost forever. That's the very first time you react that way."

                "What did you think about the song?"

                Lily frowned and shook her head. "But... That's not what it's all about."

                "I need to know, Lily," he insisted, "what did you think about the song?"

                She heaved a long sigh, images of the concert coming back to her mind, as if she needed them to give her opinion of it. But for White Queen, she did not need those memories to give him a review. "I loved it. I mean it. When you began to sing, I felt those thrills running through my body. And... And it made me cry. I cried, Brian. It was brilliant, bloody brilliant, especially this guitar solo you played. I don't know how you wrote such a masterpiece, but you made it big."

                Brian nodded and ran a hand through his hair with a lopsided smile. The bedroom turned silent for what seemed to be an eternity. Lily was staring into space, lost in her thoughts, while Brian shyly glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. His lips were burning, dying to say something he did not know she would like to hear or not. His heart was racing inside his chest, as he felt his blood running through his face. He did not know if he was cold or warm, or if he was pale or blushing.

                The young man broke the silent with a whisper, which Lily could barely hear.

                "Lily, is this the end of our friendship?"

                She shook her head, tears forming in her brown eyes. She stared at him tenderly, feeling the overwhelming urge to hold him against her like she did so many times in the past.

                "No," she choked up before sniffing briefly, "No, Brian. This isn't the end. Not for me. You know you're really important to me, you're the most important thing in my life, and I can't let you go. B-But if that's what you want, I don't have the right to prevent you."

                Brian unexpectedly wrapped his arms around her, pressing his lips against her forehead. A feeling of relief took hold of her, as she snuggled against him, resting her head on the crook of his neck, breathing in his smoothing perfume.

                "I don't want to end this wonderful friendship," he said softly. "But there's something you must know about White Queen."

                "What is it?"

                "I didn't write it like that. I had the greatest source of inspiration for this song. I had this source in my mind and in my heart all the time, and I still have it now. I've had it for a very long time. I wrote this song for a person in particular. My inspiration and my soul sister."

                "Who is it?" Lily sniffed, trying desperately to stop her tears from falling. The words Freddie spoke after the concert flashed in her mind. "And this song... It wasn't written for a best friend".

                Brian felt his cheeks turning a much brighter shade of pink as he tried to gather the courage to tell her what he had been dying to say.

                "You. I wrote this song for you."

                "But why me?" she replied in a short giggle.

                "Because I'm in love with you."

                Lily's heart stopped. She stared at him, speechless, and tried to find something to say. But there was nothing she could say to that. So, Freddie was right.

                Insecure because of her silence, Brian looked away, still feeling her looking at him.

                "I love you, Lily. I really do, it's not something I'm saying just to earn your trust. I didn't want to tell you at first. And I don't want you to think it's just to force you into forgiving me. You know I hate this kind of behaviour."

                Lily slowly nodded and took a deep breath – she had held it for so long it felt like she had not breathed for centuries. She could hear her own heartbeat in her ears, and her hands started to shake. She hesitantly rested one of them on Brian's shoulder to make him face her.

                "Brian..."

                The latter turned his head, not sure if he had the strength to look at her. He did, and his face felt like it was on fire. Lily leant in, and before Brian could even realise what she was doing, he felt her mouth joining his, like a butterfly would land gracefully on a beautiful flower. She cupped his face with her hands, smiling as Brian kissed her back.

                From all the kisses she had ever given him, this one was the deepest one, the tenderest one, but also the one with a deeper meaning. Their hearts were beating at the same pace as if they were singing a duo, just like they loved singing together. Their hands could not be taken off each other, and the idea of breaking this kiss and this embrace was unbearable to them both.

                Brian felt like crying. He had never felt this loved in his entire life, even if he had never doubted about Lily's affection for him. He had never felt rejected by her, perhaps a little during the concert, but now he understood it only was his imagination. Nothing more.

                Unfortunately, Lily pulled away slowly, resting her forehead on his, her eyes closed, and a wide grin decorating her lips. Her warm breath reminded Brian the taste of the kiss she had just given him, feeling like it had already been ages since she had.

                "I love you," she murmured shyly, gulping after she said it. These three words sounded like a lullaby to him, but also like the most powerful music he could ever have heard. The corners of his lips rose, as he pressed them against hers.

                They let themselves fall on top of the bedcovers, and made out for long, long minutes. After a while, Lily noticed it was getting dark outside. She knew her mother would not get home before the day after.

                "Brian, it's getting dark... Would you like to stay here for the night?"

                "Only if I'm not disturbing."

                "Not at all. I'd love you to stay."

                "Then I will."

                They shared a tender smile, then Lily pulled the sheets, inviting him to get under them. Brian kicked off his shoes, threw his jacket on the side of the bed and sneaked under the sheets, opening his arms to welcome Lily in them.

                She rubbed the tip of her nose against his, giggling and brushing a lock of his hair that was falling on his forehead. He smiled at her and playfully bit her nose. She smiled and gave his neck sweet kisses that grew in intensity. They stopped moving, holding their breaths. They silently stared at each other, before Brian leant in to kiss her. Her hands ran under his shirt, touching his spine. The sudden coolness of her skin surprised him and sent shivers all down his back.

                Their lips met again, and their tongues danced together. Soon, Brian's mouth would leave a trail of kisses until it reached her neck, bringing new sensations to her.