The Meeting

The Reunion

It had been three weeks since that dreaded trip away and things had been going well for me. This weekend there was a local festival on, I had been given a headline slot at 8pm on the second largest stage so most of my time had been taken up with pre festival interviews and rehearsals.

On the day of the festival, my nerves had taken over and I found myself unable to stomach eating. I always avoided social media on the day of the festival so as not to read any negative comments from people who believed I was not worthy of the slot. I got ready for the gig in a small cabin at the back of the festival, changing into some fitted trousers, trainers and an oversized shirt. Dad hated my love for unisex fashion but unfortunately for him, it was what I felt most comfortable in.

As I took to the stage and began to singalong to my guitar, I noticed a familiar face in the crowd. Once again, it was not the face of my family or any of my friends but the face of the girl I had held during that awful flight to Scotland. The girl I thought wouldn't even remember my name had travelled to Belfast, was it to see my gig? Did she even know I was playing? Is this a coincidence? My mind is filled with rambling thoughts as I finish my final song and thank the crowd for their cheers and support. As always, I finish the show with my trademark line of 'look after yourself, you're the only one that will always have your best interests at heart.'

I exit the stage and pose for pictures with some fans that have gathered for a meet and greet before heading into the crowd to see my Dad. He gives me the biggest hug and tells me how proud I have made him, referencing my mum by pointing to the sky. He can't get the words to leave his mouth but I know he's trying to tell me that she saw the entire show from her place in the sky. My Dad was never good with words, his actions always spoke much louder but it made it difficult to turn to him when I needed to talk about what was going on in my head. My mum was always the person I would go to about things like that and since she had been gone, Dad and I communicated regularly but on a surface level. As usual, he said a few words and headed home, knowing it meant the world to me that he even showed up.

As I tearfully watched my Dad walked away, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I composed myself, ready to put on my artist persona as I turned to face the person behind me.
"Leah" I said, trying not to give away the fact that my heart was beating out of my chest.
"Hi Alex, I hope you don't mind me showing up like this. I saw you were playing and my mum and I were in Belfast so I thought I would drop in."
"Of course not, it's lovely to see you. I hope you enjoyed the show." Was all I managed to get out. I'm talking to her like she's a fan, I'm not good with people. Never have been.
"You were amazing, I loved the last song you played. Do you write those yourself?" She seemed genuinely interested in the gig and I felt my cheeks flush with excitement that she had even remembered my name.
"Yes, I have been writing since I was younger, it's always made me feel like I'm getting my feelings - I don't know why I'm telling you that. That's not what you asked. Sorry!"
"A song really can impact you like that, never apologise for that. Anyway, I told my mum about you looking after me on the plane and she would love to meet you. Join us for a drink?" She smiled slightly as she said this, if I'm not mistaken her face gave off the impression that she was hopeful I would say yes but slightly unsure as to whether or not she should be asking.
"I would love to, lead the way!" I cringed at myself again, playing it cool was not going well and I knew she could tell I was a crumbling mess.

Leah's mum embraced me as soon as I arrived at the table, she thanked me for helping to calm Leah on the plane and congratulated me on my festival slot. She was warm and kind and it became obvious that Leah had gained a lot of her positive traits from her mum. We talked for over an hour before Amanda went to get some more drinks for us all. This was the first time in a very long time that I hadn't left straight after the gig, normally I couldn't wait to get home but tonight I wanted nothing more than the night to go on forever.

"How come you weren't on the plane to London?" Leah broke the chain of thoughts in my head.
"It made more sense for me to fly straight back to Belfast to be honest. The hotel they put me in was right beside the airport and I managed to get a flight back to Belfast the following morning at 6am." I couldn't help but feel a little elated that she had even noticed my absence from the flight, she had obviously looked for me to know I wasn't on the plane.
"I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little bit gutted that you weren't there when I got to the airport." As I heard this, my mind went into overdrive. Had she really just said she was gutted that I wasn't on the plane?
"I - I - yeah" I said, stuttering and stammering over my words, internally hitting myself in the head at my inability to speak.
"Oh god no! I didn't mean in that way. Just so I could thank you, you know for letting me literally cling to you on the flight." Quickly turning the conversation in a different direction, clearly sensing my awkwardness.

Amanda approached with our drinks again, allowing me to collect my thoughts and forget about the pain in my chest at the thought of me being stupid enough to think that she was looking for me for any other reason than to say thank you.

After this, I became quiet deflated and just wanted to go to bed and forget I had ever made such an idiot of myself. I finished the drink Amanda had given me and thanked them for a good evening, telling them to enjoy the rest of their trip and exiting as swiftly as possible. I headed back to my house, hoping to wake up tomorrow with that conversation erased from my mind. I grabbed myself a bottle of water and headed to bed, scrolling through my phone to see the latest pictures that had been posted of the gig, liking them as I went along. Just as I was nodding off to sleep, my phone vibrated in my hand. I rubbed my eyes to be sure that I was seeing clearly, before letting out a slight gasp and sitting upright in my bed.