Somebody to Love - A Joe Mazzello FanFiction

Chapter 41 - Afternoon Tea

The afternoon tea place was very quaint. It was small but packed with tables and booths for people to sit and have their tea. The boys picked a booth near the back of the place so their loud voices and possibly rowdy behavior wouldn't disturb the other tea-drinkers as much. I simply followed Joe's lead, not saying much and being as quiet as a mouse as we made our way from the set to the tea place to sitting in our booth. It must have looked like I didn't want to be there from a stranger's perspective; being dragged along by a guy who was smiling and laughing while I was quiet and constantly looked at the ground. Although, both Joe and I knew that I was just nervous.

When I met Joe, I didn't know who he was and I was still nervous to meet him. Now, I was surrounded by people who I knew were actors portraying, in great replication, the musicians I had looked up to since my teenage years. It was quite the surreal moment to be in.

We eventually got settled and the boys all ordered their tea. Small sandwiches were brought to the table right after we sat and they started picking at them and taking small bites to try different ones. I was too nervous to eat, and, to be honest, none of the sandwiches looked that good to me. I sat bopping my knee up and down. My fingers and hands rubbing against each other as a major nervous tick. I kept all of my fiddling underneath the table so, hopefully, none of the other men would see how nervous I was. Although, they could probably tell from that fact that I wasn't making eye contact with any of them.

I was sitting next to Joe in the square booth. Perpendicular to me was Ben. He was sitting alone in the 'middle' of the booth. Across from me and Joe was Rami and Gwilym on the end. I was taking in slow, quiet breaths. Joe noticed quickly and placed his hand near the knee of my bopping leg. His fingers placed on my inner thigh and his thumb rubbing back and forth on the top of my thigh. I moved my hand on top of his and I curled my fingers underneath his hand to hold it. It calmed me to feel his touch. And through his touch, I could tell how much he didn't want me to be nervous, how much he knew that I would like these guys if I would give them a chance.

"So, Julie," I hear from next to me. Ben had gathered some sandwiches on his plate and ate a small bite after he got my attention. "How long have you two been together?" I took a deep breath in before I answered.

"About six and a half months," I answered. Once I let the first answer out, it suddenly became easier. I felt myself relax almost immediately.

"And you followed him halfway across the world?" Gwilym asked. He seemed intrigued by the conversation. He was resting his arms and elbows on the table, folded.

"Yeah," I laughed.

"That's mental," Ben replied.

"Some would call me clinically insane," I replied. Rami let out a sudden chuckle at my comment. Up until now, he had been focused on his sandwiches. Smiles appeared on the faces of Gwilym and Ben. Everyone seemed to relax a little more. Joe patted my leg with his hand a couple of times to reassure me that I did a good job.

"Joe told us you're a musician," Gwilym spoke.

"Of sorts," I replied with a smile.

"What does that mean?" he asked.

"Well, I do covers of songs and I post them up on YouTube. It's a good gig." I said.

"And she's good at it too," Joe butted in.

"This is not your time to talk, Joe. You've talked her up enough these past months." Ben chimed in with a smile and a chuckle. Joe and I chuckled back.

"Uh, yeah, I guess I'm good at it. I mean, numbers don't lie, right?" I gave them a small shrug.

"And what are the numbers?" Ben asked.