Instinctual//George Daniel.

XX: You'd think I'd have realised, but I didn't for quite sometime.

19th of May,  2013

Bonds had not been repaired between Alison and Lola, nor has anything come to a head between Alison and George. Something about addressing what was already obvious to the public, just scared George. It wasn't because he was selfish, or because he didn't want to show Alison off. He thought he was protecting her. Alison, thought this was nuts. Ross, after seeing how upset  Alison got, agreed with this. Hann was on the fence, and Matty was full fledged Team-George.

Considering Alison had no Lola to rant to, and Matty didn't agree with her, she turned to Ross.

"Ross, you've dated people, right?" She asks, furrowing her brow.

"Ouch. Am I that bad?" He puts his hand to his chest, pretending to be offended. 

"No, Ross. Come on, you know what I mean." She sighs.

"Yes Ali, I have.  And I did tell people about it. But.." He trails off, looking out his bedroom window for a split second.  "George is different.  You know him well by now, but I'll tell you, I know him better."

Alison nods, understanding. 

"You have to compromise sometimes in relationships, Alison. You'd be silly if you really thought that people don't know you're together." The dark haired man adds.

Alison can't seem to speak. It feels like theres a warm ball in her throat, ready to erupt and send her into tears at any second.

"Am I overreacting?" She sighs, finally getting something out after a minute of silence.

"No. I get where you're coming from. But everything happens for a reason,  love."

Tension had eased that evening.  Alison and George didn't necessarily have a chat about what was going on between them, but they were still able to look each other in the eye, cuddle on the couch and attend the show that night together.

Which is where; what we like to call  "Where shit hit the fan."

"I swear, I don't think I know how to swim. That's in all honesty." Matty holds his hands up,  laughing with Ross and Alison.  They could partake in the olympics for championship nonsense-talking.

Adam and George were what everyone else liked to call "Gear Heads." No, not heroin. But,  Hann never shut up about his pedals and their effects, and George would rather die than have his snare sound anything but perfect. Of course, Matty and Ross gave a little bit less of a fuck than the boys, which allowed them to kick it backstage with Alison.

When the boys finally did make it on stage, they were greeted with easily, their biggest audience yet. Roaring teenage girls with signs and t-shirts. That concept was nothing out of the ordinary for them, but the size of the audience had at least doubled from the previous shows. Alison speculated that it was the opening act, a little girl band from the city, had drawn a little bit of a crowd.

Matty's little tradition, of what the guys were beginning to call a "Robbers kiss" Didn't happen that night.  Alison usually looked forward to the giggle she'd get off it, watching a girl get pulled up on stage for a quick kiss from Matty.  She knew if she was eighteen and got pulled up on stage by her favourite singer for a kiss, she might just lose her mind, so watching the girls and their smiles brought some joy to Alison.

When the boys finished, they got an insanely loud cheer, as per usual for them. Alison joked with them that the applause and fame may get to their heads someday.

She did her usual hug. George to Matty to Ross then Hann.  All of them dripping sweat, usually Matty more than anyone.

"What'd you think?" George smiles down at her.  "I think I saw you dancing through the corner of my eye, hmm?" He laughs, planting a kiss on her forehead before heading off to his dressing room.

"Amazing, as per usual boys!" She beams at the three before her.  "No kiss tonight, Healy? Tut, tut, tut."

"Oh.. Yeah. Guess I forgot.  Tomorrow night, maybe." He shrugs, before the three follow in George's direction.

Alison wandered toward the backstage area, thinking it might be a good time to introduce herself to the girls from the opening band. She spotted them chatting near the refreshments table, and with a friendly smile, she approached.

"Hey there," Alison greeted them, "I'm Alison, a friend of the band's . You guys did a great job opening the show tonight."

The girls exchanged excited glances, clearly thrilled to be talking to someone from The 1975's inner circle. One of them, a bubbly redhead, replied, "Oh, hi, Alison! I'm Jenny, and this is Lily. Thanks so much for saying that. We're huge fans of  The 1975!"

Alison nods along, engaging in basic small talk with the girls. She doesn't find that she has too much in common with them, so conversation is all surface level.

"George is a cutie, isn't he?" Lily giggles, her American twang ringing through strong.

Alison can only muster up a small laugh, unsure of exactly what to say to the girl.

"He gave me his number actually, let me soundcheck on his drums." Jenny adds, her legs swinging on her chair.

Alison felt a twinge of unease as she heard Jenny's comment about George giving her his number. She tried to keep her composure and replied politely, "Oh, that's nice of him. George is always so accommodating with other musicians."

Lily leaned in a little closer, a mischievous glint in her eye. "He's quite the charmer, isn't he? I bet he has a lot of admirers."

Alison's smile tightened, and she nodded, not wanting to appear confrontational. "Yeah, he's charismatic on stage. The fans love him."

The conversation continued for a bit, with the girls from the opening band sharing their experiences and impressions of George. As the conversation progressed, Alison couldn't help but feel a growing sense of irritation. She excused herself from the chat, citing the need to check on something backstage.

Walking away from the girls, Alison couldn't shake the feeling of jealousy that had welled up inside her.

"George. George!" She hits hard on his door before he lets her come in.

"Hey darling, was just finishing up actually-" He leans in to hug her before being cut off.

Alison puts her hands on his chest, pushing him back to avoid a hug.  "How's Jenny, huh?" she taunts. George thinks she's angry, but in fact she's the saddest she's ever been.

The drone of angry and sad voices burn through the walls of the building, before Matty's fists come pounding on the door, and without a word, he gestures Alison to come with him.

Her face is paler than usual. Matty slides his thumb under her her eye, wiping away a wet puddle of mascara that would've ran down to her jaws if he hadn't intercepted.

"I must be doing something wrong,  Matty." She wracks her brain for answers. "We argue all the time, and I can't seem to get it right. I'm too jealous- he's too jealous.. there's just a new misunderstanding and a new fight every day."

Matty shakes his head.  "I don't want to see you cry,  Alison. Petty little arguments happen, especially with careers thrown into the mix. Come on." He puts an arm around her cold, bare shoulders.

"He gave that girl in the band his number,  y'know." She huffs.

Matty leaned in, determined to change Alison's perspective. "It might seem like George wants all those other girls, but the truth is, he needs you."

Alison crossed her arms, skepticism etched on her face. "You don't know that."

Matty shot back, unwavering. "Why wouldn't he?"

"He just doesn't," Alison replied, her voice tinged with uncertainty. She lifted her head from Matty's shoulder, her gaze fixed on him.

Matty held her gaze, his eyes full of conviction. "You can see it in everything he does with you and around you. He loves you, Ali." His words carried an undeniable certainty, but Alison remained hesitant.

"How can you be so sure?" she pressed, her curiosity fueled. Matty let out a frustrated sigh.

"Because I wanted you first."