Lily plopped on the nearest chair, sighing in relief. Her legs were incredibly painful, after all the time she spent in the street distributing those damn flyers. Now, they were all gone, and if she was to see one of them once again, she would tear it into pieces mercilessly. Since she and Brian finished their tour in Kensington, they returned to the band's rehearsal room at Imperial College. When they got in, they noticed the others were not there yet. Therefore, both sat down and took some time to relax.

Brian spread his long legs before him, massaging his calves with a frown. Lily stretched her back and grabbed her bottle of still water she left on a table before they left. Surprisingly, it still was fresh; she opened the top, brought the neck to her lips and let the liquid go down her throat. She sighed with satisfaction and looked at her friend with a broad smile.

“Want some water?”

“Oh, yes, please.”

She handed him the bottle, which he took. He took a few gulps and wiped his wet lips with the back of his hand, before wiping it on his trousers. He looked all around, searching for something to do. He winced as he felt pain in his shoulder blade; he made his shoulder rotate, but the pain didn't fade away.

Lily noticed it and frowned.

“Is there anything wrong, Bri?”

“My back hurts. I'm all tense.”

She chuckled and stood up, walking past him. She stood in his back and rested her hands on his shoulders, gently yet firmly massaging them. He let out a sigh, closing his eyes. She smiled and tenderly pressed her lips against the back of his head.

“You should become a physiotherapist or something, not a biologist. You know how much I love science, though I prefer Physics, but I'm sure physiotherapy would be your thing.”

“Quit talking, Mr. May,” she chuckled, kissing his hair again. “I would never give anybody else a massage. You're the only one who has the right to have some... and Tim, maybe.”

“WHAT?!” Brian shouted, jumping off his chair. “You're cheating on me with... with Tim?!”

“Brimi, stop that, you almost scared me!” she grinned. “I'm not cheating on anybody, we're not a couple!”

“Where has your humour gone?” he laughed, encircling her with his arms and squeezing her against him. She smiled and hugged him back. “I'm glad to be alone with you right now,” Brian whispered, closing his eyes.

“Me too. Hey, d'you want to come over tomorrow? We could listen to some records and maybe play a thing or two.”

“I'd love that!”

“You could stay for the night. And we could record new songs. Drink a bit, y'know.”

“It sounds like an awesome plan...” he susurrated. His hazel eyes drowned in her brown ones, as their fingers intertwined. At the same moment, the door of the rehearsal room abruptly opened, startling both of them. Lily pulled away when she heard a loud yawn.

“Let me tell you, guys, I'm fucking happy it's over!” their friend Rhys, one of the three band aids, shouted, stretching his back. “I finally got rid of all the flyers.”

“Cool out, we did that too, Rhys,” a girl behind him replied. As he walked in the room, rolling his eyes, the two other band aids appeared: Chelsea, the girl who replied to him, with her long red hair, and Winny, with her short curly blond hair. Then, came the bass player of the band, Dave. He looked exhausted with the rings under his eyes and his dishevelled hair.

Brian blushed and heavily sat back on his chair, looking up at everybody. He tried to move on to the band stuff, avoiding to look at Lily, who was chatting with Winny about the tour they'd just done.

“So, how did it go for you?” the guitarist asked, scratching the back of his head.

“I got chased by an old woman! Can you believe that, Bri?!” Rhys exclaimed. “I insisted a bit about the concert, and she spat at my face that rock is what comes from Hell...”

“Spat?” Winny repeated, cocking an eyebrow.

“Okay, I admit it, I added more drama...”

Dave playfully slapped the back of Rhys' head. The bass player took his backpack and grabbed some fresh bottles of beer that were inside it. The girls smiled widely, nodding, as he throws one to each of them. Rhys got one too, and Brian stared at him with wide eyes.

“Are you aware we're in the rehearsal room? IN the university?”

“So what?” Chelsea shrugged.

“Well, we... We can't do that! It's one of the main rules of the university!”

To that, Rhys opened his beer with the key of his flat; the top bounced on the floor, until it reached Brian's feet. The beer head flowed on his fingers, then dropped on his leather shoes. He smiled lopsidedly, brandishing his bottle and staring into the guitarist's eyes.

“Rock'n'roll.”

Chelsea, Winny and Lily raised their bottle, whistling. Dave threw a bottle to Brian, who shrugged and opened it with Rhys' help. They clinked their bottles and started to taste the first gulps. Brian winced a little, like every time he started a bottle; after a few more sips, it was fine. Lily felt the pain in her legs coming back: she looked all around her to see if there was an open seat. Two chairs were free, but she didn't want to sit on them.

She knew the most comfortable place wasn't there.

Lily smiled at Brian, who blushed and patted his thigh. He understood the message. She carefully sat on his lap, wrapping an arm around his neck, placing a tender kiss on his cheek before taking a sip of her beer.

Meanwhile, the others were sitting either on the chairs, or on the floor, or on the table. They were noisily chatting about people they met while giving out the leaflets, or about the concert 1984 would soon play.

Lily and Brian didn't pay attention to all the things that were said: they were in their own bubble, sharing looks, smiles, and innocent and friendly pecks. Once Brian emptied his bottle, he carefully put it down on the floor, under his chair so nobody would accidentally kick it. Then, he emprisoned his dear friend in his arms, closing his eyes and smelling her scent on the crook of her neck. She giggled and pecked his forehead.

“Hey, lovebirds, we're talkin' to ya!” Winny's voice suddenly shouted, startling them.

“Oh,” Lily blushed. “What did you say?”

“What kind of people did you meet on our door-to-door thing?”

“Mainly nice and polite people,” Brian shrugged. “Some politely declined the invitation, and nobody was mean toward me.”

“You're so well-mannered, so it's not even that surprising,” Dave said after he swallowed his last gulp of beer. “That's why you're the best for that.”

“For what?”

“Talking to people.”

Brian shrugged once again and rested his chin on Lily's shoulder. She smiled at him and stroked his short hair, which she was sure could be way more beautiful if it was longer.

Chelsea looked at Lily and snapped her fingers to get her attention.

“And you, Lil? What kind of people did you meet?”

“Oh, the majority was absolutely rude and unfriendly. I can't count all the times I saw doors slamming before me.”

“But what she doesnt tell you,” Brian started with a smirk, “is that she also befriended a young man!”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“Come on, it's not a shame!” he teased her by tickling her sides.

“Hey, stop that, Bri!” she laughed. “If you're talking about this black-haired guy, I didn't befriend him. I don't know him that much, it was the first time we met.”

“He's your neighbour, Lily.”

“And I didn't know about him! Anyway, he's a music lover, and he will come to the concert. I think he already has a good opinion on the band, just by your inspirations.”

“Good job, partner!” Dave smiled.

“Hey, perhaps he said he'd come, but he won't,” Winny shrugged.

“Don't be pessimistic, Winny,” Brian sighed. “If this guy's in the audience, it'll be a success. Anyway, Lily, now you know you have a music lover as your neighbour.”