I wake up to some murmurs outside my room. I walk slowly and open the door. The murmurs get louder. I tiptoe to the balcony to get a broom. Wonder why I'm so scared? Well, this isn't the first time I heard someone in my house. The last time two men almost kidnapped me. Me, being the quick-witted lady I am, I called the police. I flip my hair and smirk to myself. Someone is facing her back towards me. I walk towards her and am about to hit her when she turns.  She screams looking at me, which makes me scream. "Oh my god, Am! What was that for?" Leah holds her chest and exhales. Oh. It's just her. "Why were you talking to yourself?" I ask, lowering the broom. She points to her phone. I nod, biting my lip, and walk away. She is talking to her manager, who apparently is very strict. I mentally facepalm myself and walk to my bathroom. Hey, you can't blame me for not recognizing her. She usually leaves for work early whenever she stays here for the night. 

Here I am, in my own little corner in the office. I had to come to the office today because those Scribble Scrabble people wanted to meet me in person. Now I'm told to wait for half an hour for them to arrive. It's almost been two hours, but I'm not complaining. I'm writing the book while waiting. I glance at my watch occasionally. 2 pm. 2:30. Still no sign of them. Then finally I hear a knock on my door. I look up to see a lady with short black hair and golden brown eyes. Her chocolate skin looks perfect with those features, you could almost think she was a model. I smile. 

"Mrs Smith!" I say and get up to hug her. Mrs Illiana Smith smiles and hugs me back. She was always there for me when I had first joined this company. She basically taught me how to write books. I always include her name under dedicated to in all my books, because she's the one who made me who I am today. But she left the company five months ago because she wanted to become a journalist. She's working in the biggest news company in Asia right now. She lives in Asia, that's why I'm surprised to see her here in Australia. 

"What brings you here?" I ask, gesturing her to sit. She does. 

"Oh, well, NewsAsia wanted me to interview you for your new book. Are you fine with coming on the news?" She asks. That's what I like about her. She always cares if people are comfortable or not. She won't ask them again if they aren't comfortable. I nod. She nods too and says, "Get ready in ten minutes, I'll take your interview." 

"Cut!" The cameraman shouts after we're done shooting. "Okay, good job everyone!" He says, clapping. The staff soon walk away. "Thank you for taking your time in this." Mrs Smith says. I shake my head.

"Thank you for taking your time in interviewing me." I correct her. 

I throw my bag on my bed and lay beside it with a sigh. Today was exhausting. Right after the interview, I had a meeting with Scribble Scrabble, and then Writer'space called for shooting a commercial. Then I wrote for two hours and I had to be present for another meeting with Scribble Scrabble and Writer'space. My phone rings suddenly, interrupting my thoughts. 

"Hello?" I say, picking it up.

"Hey!" A voice says. 

"Who?" I mumble. 

"Why don't you ever save anyone's number? It's Lucas. Lucas Gray? Your second-best friend? The one you met at the airport three years ago?" He says. 

"Geez, Luke."

"Not my problem you don't remember me."

"I never said that."

"Anyway, are you going to Quinctus' concert?" He asks. 

"Leah asked you to ask me, right? Tell her I'm sorry, but I can't come." I sit up on the bed. 

"I thought you would listen to Lucas at least!" Leah shouts from the phone. 

"Wait, Leah's with you?" I ask. 

"Yup, here I am," Leah says.

"Having fun without me, ey?" I say. "Just kidding. I wouldn't come if you called me anyway. I have a lot to write."

"We knew you would say no. We didn't want to waste our effort into calling you." Lucas says.

"Rude, Gray," I say, chuckling. "I'm not coming to the concert."

"Good news! The concert has been postponed." Leah squeals. 

"Isn't that supposed to be bad news for you? Weren't you so excited about this concert?" Lucas asks her. 

"I was, but Amber couldn't come. Plus it has been only postponed to the Saturday after the next Saturday. So I would have to wait for only...14 days." She says. "Am, you have to publish yours by the next Saturday, right?" 

"Yeah."

"Then you can come! I bought four tickets for the four of us. Oliver said he could come. He said he would be here by the day after tomorrow. I envy him, He would be having fun in Hawaii." She shouts. 

"Yeah, okay I guess. And Oliver has to work, Lee. He can't enjoy it there."

"He only models. No big deal. I'll talk to you tomorrow, bye!" Leah says.

"Bye!" Lucas repeats. They cut the call immediately. Oliver is my childhood friend. He was the only one who stayed with me till now. Back then he was just a friend. I mean, we just said hi and bye occasionally. I had only one best friend. But he left me and stopped talking to me all of a sudden. Then Oliver and I became close when we were 16. Then I shifted here, to Melbourne, from Sydney for work when I was 18. That's when I met Lucas and Leah. They were friends before, apparently, so the four of us met at the airport. Who would've thought random people in the airport could become best friends. 

My parents sent me here when I was only 18 because they believed I had the potential to do anything. They didn't know I would become an author back then. They didn't know what I would become. They just simply sent me to stay with my aunt here. But last year my aunt passed away. She had cancer. So I live alone right now. A tear escapes my eye thinking about her. She was the sweetest person I knew.  Well, maybe all good things don't last long. I shut my eyes and drift off to sleep. I imagine the happy face of my aunt, the most popular actress in Australia, Amelie Grace.  

*Click* 

"Now here's the real niece of Amelie Grace!" The cameraman shouts, which makes me giggle. I place my chin on my hand for a pose. *Click* 

"Okay, that's a wrap! Thank you, Amber." The cameraman, Josh, says. I smile and wave at him. 

"Thank you!" I reply. 

Just then I get a notification.

Lee ❤ 

Congrats on publishing your book! Way to go gurll~

I let out a small chuckle. 

                                                                                                                    Me 

                                                                                       Yo, thank you Lili!

Lee ❤

Never call me that again.

                                                                                                                    Me

                                                                                                               Noted.

I smile at my screen and open the door to my car. Yes, I have my own car. I'm a legal adult now, so why not? And I successfully finished my book and published it! I published it right on time, it was due today anyway. I'm excited to know what my readers will think of it!

*Ting* Another notification. 

The pizza squad🍕🍕

Lee ❤

Hey bestiess

Luke ✌

Wassup

Oli 😝

My famm ✌

Lee ❤

Oh Oliver you're still alive

Oli 😝

WTH I didn't chat for one day and you thought I was dead? 

Lee ❤

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Oli 😝

Bye.

Lee ❤

Noo come back

                                                                                                                           Me 

                                                       Shut it both of you I'm trying to drive

Luke ✌

Same! 

Lee ❤

Lucas where are you going?

Luke ✌

Driving to your house rn.

Lee ❤

Really? Omg I was so bored anyway

Amber how 'bout you come too?

I stop the car in front of Leah's house when I read the messages. I smirk and send them a message.

                                                                                                                             Me

                                                                          Already here. Open the door.

Oli 😝

Hey! I wanna come too :( I just reached Melbourne. I'm at the airport now, will see you guys in an hour!

Leah opens the door and hugs me. "Hey!" I say. "I totally forgot Oli was gonna come today," I say, showing my phone to Leah. She raises both her eyebrows as she reads the text. 

"Oh my god, I did too." She replies and opens the door more to let me in. Oliver was supposed to come five days ago, but his company wanted him to stay longer to model. 

"Where's Lucas?" I ask as I remove my footwear. I have a habit of removing them at home. Most Australians don't even care. Maybe I do because I live alone and I don't want the house to get dirty. Have I mentioned I'm a cleanliness freak? At least that's what my friends call me. I hear a honk. "Called me, ladies?" Lucas says, which makes me cringe. 

"Ew. Just come in." Leah says.

"I got pizzas. Be nice to me."  He says and hands the boxes to me. 

"Aw really? You're the best!" Leah says and wraps her tiny arms around his neck. Sometimes I really wonder if Leah's 21 or 5 years old. She acts like a 5-year-old kid trapped in a 21-year old's body. Not lying. "Congrats, Am!" Lucas says, high-fiving me.

"Thanks!" I say. "Let's watch a movie." I keep the boxes on the table while Lucas removes his shoes too. What can I say, I'm a great influence. 

I don't know how an hour passed by so fast, but we hear the doorbell ring. "That must be Oliver!" Leah shouts and gets up. 

"I'll get it," I say because I'm the closest to the door. When I open the door, I see a tall man with messy brown hair and piercing grey eyes. "Missed me?" Oliver smirks. 

"Of course I did!" I frown and side-hug him. 

"Olly!" We hear a scream and we give each other an understanding look. Then we both start running away from Leah as she runs after us. After Oliver, to be precise. We stop after a while and start laughing when we see Leah crossing her arms and frowning. We love making fun of our precious child. Or shall I say, baby. 

Oliver walks to her and hugs her. She looks so tiny in front of him. Then he walks to Lucas and they fist bump. "I missed you, man! These girls were making me go insane." He says, which makes the two of us glare at him. He ignores us and heads to the kitchen to heat the pizzas. 

"What're we gonna do now?" Oliver asks as he grabs a slice of pizza. 

"Another movie?" Leah raises an eyebrow. Lucas and I shrug at the same time. "What about horror?" She asks. 

"Don't come crying to me later saying you're scared like you always do," I state. 

"I do not!" She whines. 

"You do so!" I smirk. She sticks her tongue at me which makes me pull her cheeks. She slaps my hand away. "You're so cute!" I squish her cheeks once more. 

"Shut up, I'm only seven months younger than you." She says. We both look over at the guys to see them staring at us weirdly. We all end up laughing for no reason. Man, I love our friendship. 

I go back home with a sigh. A sigh of relief, because I finished my book, plus today was a good day. It's always a good day if you spend it with your best friends. In another week I have to start writing a new book. Hectic? I know. But I love doing it anyway, it doesn't matter. I open my phone to see if anyone has written anything about the book yet. 

Ambearlover_112

Loved the book! I'm so glad Quinn didn't die in the end. :D

I chuckle and reply to the post. 

Amber_Jones_Official

Aww, Thank you for reading my book! I really appreciate it. 

   Ambearlover_112

  Omg, THE Amber Jones replied to me! I'm screaminggg 

I frown at that reply. 

Amber_Jones_Official

Why? I'm not famous or anything :) 

   Ambearlover_112

  You're the best. Author. In the World. 

  I find it amusing knowing that there are people who love me other than my family and friends. I'm happy to get recognized by people I don't know myself. I like that. But I want to know my readers too. 

    Amber_Jones_Official

  I'm pretty sure I'm not but thank you! I'M screaming now XD

I'm so grateful to all my readers. They're so fun to talk to. Just then I get a call. From an unknown number. But of course, that isn't a surprise because I never save anyone's number. I just don't feel the need to. The only saved contacts on my phone are my parents and my friends. And my manager. I didn't save any of their landline numbers though. I pick the call. 

"Miss Amber!" Someone says. 

"Who's this?" I ask. 

"It's Mr Walker. I called from the office. I have news for you." He says with no expression, so I don't know if the news is good or bad. I decide to ask him. 

"You guess," He replies. 

"Um...bad?" I ask.

"No! Good! The company asked if you want to do a fan sign, and guess what I told them?" 

"Yes...?" I ask uncertainly. 

"Yes!" He shrieks. My face immediately brightens up. I always love fan signs. I get to talk to my readers and know their opinion about the book. 

"Thank you, Mr Walker," I say and cut the call after a few minutes. 

I hear a thud next to me so I look over to my right. I walk over to pick the photo frame. It's me and my best friend– well, ex-best friend, Noah. Noah Thomas. His arm wrapped around my shoulder, my hand on top of his head. I miss those times. I was like...12 then? I still remember Noah, I can never forget him. He was always there for me at that time, especially when my pet dog died. Yes, tragic, I know. My pet dog Max was so important to me then. I still miss him. Max, I mean. Well, I miss Noah too, of course. I glance at the stuffed dog in my cupboard. Noah gave it to me when I was crying over Max because he thought it would cheer me up. But that time for some reason I got furious and threw the dog at him, saying I hate him. I was dumb back then. But I still kept the dog and it helped. Then after, like, maybe two weeks, he left me. He stopped talking to me. He ignored my texts, ignored my calls. He even told me to stop 'following' him around. I don't know, we grew apart. I'm happy with my friends now. More than happy. I'm so grateful to have such an amazing life. 

The loud whistle of the train is the only sound I can hear through my earphones. I get up from my seat and stretch as the train slowly stops. It's almost 8 pm now. 12 hours since I've been sitting in this train. I smile as I see a figure in the railway station. "Ava!" I shout from afar. She looks up from her phone and smiles slightly. There she is, with her signature black hoodie, short black hair with a streak of red and black headphones. My 15-year-old niece. I have a niece, yes. It makes me feel old somehow. I was only six when she was born. I take her as my younger sister, because niece is too weird. But she doesn't really talk much to anyone. She only has a soft spot for some people. I'm surprised she even managed a smile. I walk up to her and hug her, even though I know she hates it. She groans but doesn't complain. "How have you been?" I ask. She only nods. Like I said, a girl of few words. We walk home from there, because it's very near. I look around as we near our house. Still the same, of course. I only visited here five months ago. The familiar scent of vanilla fills the roads as I glance at the bakery. The bakery I've been going to since I was a child. 

I knock on the door when Ava catches up with me. She's still on her phone, typical Ava. I see a lady with brown hair and amber eyes, the same as mine, looking at me with affection. I return the gaze and hug her. "I missed you, mom," I say. 

"I missed you too." She whispers and kisses my cheek. Then I go to my dad and do the same. That's when I hear a bark. I turn to see a white dog running to me. I giggle as he pounces on me and licks my face. "Hi Coop!" I say in between giggles. My family dog Cooper. My parents brought him three years ago when they saw him alone in the streets. He was just a puppy back then. Even though I was in Melbourne, I managed to get him to recognize me. He very much reminds me of Max, though Max was a golden retriever. "Amy!" My cousin says as she wipes her hands on her apron. She's twenty-four years old, three years older than me. "Welcome back to Sydney," She smiles and hugs me too. Well, since I just published a book, my company decided to give me a holiday for a week. And then two days after the holidays is my fan sign– which I'm both nervous and excited about. Nervous because I haven't had one of these in a while. I'm scared, people might judge me if I don't smile for even one second. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating, but this has happened to me before. Some haters came to the fan sign just to point out my mistakes. I didn't smile for like two minutes because I was tired, and they posted it on Twitter. It became viral, people started hating on me saying I take my 'fans' for granted. But I responded to them truthfully saying I was just tired and I tried my best. Who wouldn't be tired when you stay up all night just to complete a book for your readers? But obviously, there are many good people in this world too. My readers defended and protected me. They're the reason I'm here today. 

It feels good to be back in Sydney. I crunch some leaves nearby as I walk around the streets. I always used to walk outside after dinner to get fresh air when I was little. I look around me and I kick some stones. Sydney has changed quite a bit since I moved out. But the playground where I used to play with Noah and some other friends is still there. The same bench I cried on, and Noah was there to comfort me. I wonder what he's doing now. Maybe he's still continuing to study. Maybe he lives abroad. I really miss him whenever I see this particular bench. 

"Wake up darling, let's go out today," My mother says, tugging on me. I hum in response and turn to the other side. 

"Ah, Amber, you're awake." My dad mutters and flips a page in the newspaper as I come down the stairs.

"Where are we going today?" I ask, yawning.

"Wherever you want to," My mom replies, which causes a frown on my cousin, Emma's face. 

"You never said that to me when I came two months ago, Auntie Mia," She says. My mom just laughs. 

"Good morning Ava," I smile at her. She grunts in response. She's extra grumpy in the mornings, if that's even possible. 

It was a good day, I spent most of it talking to my friends and writing short stories for fun. I'll never get tired of writing, will I? Now I'm getting ready to go to a skyscraper. The night view in Sydney is a must-see. We'll eat dinner there, spend some more time and come back home. 

Here I am, the wind hitting my face as I lean on the rails in the skyscraper. My family is talking among themselves, Ava beside me. She's listening to music wearing her headphones. I wonder what she's listening to. I want to ask her but she looks so peaceful, I don't want to disturb her. Then she suddenly walks away, her eyebrows furrowed. I can't help but go closer to her and ask her what the matter was. "Mom, no. I don't want to come back. I like it here." I hear her say. I know I'm not supposed to overhear, but I want to make sure Ava's alright. She might seem tough on the outside but I've seen her cry to herself once or twice. Ava's parents, that is my cousin and her husband abandoned her when she was just a baby. Then after she became 14 they started pestering her to come back to them, even though she made it clear that this was her home now. Then my phone rings suddenly, which makes Ava look at me with distrust for eavesdropping. I slowly edge away and pick the call up. Unknown number. 

"Hello?" I say when no one talks.  

"Is this Amber Jones?" A voice asks. 

"Uh, yes?" I reply. The person cuts the call. I realize what I just did. They have my number. They might leak it. Crap. 

I'm laying on my bed, wondering if the person who called me exposed my number yet. I switched off my phone, afraid anyone else calls. But what if it was someone I know? Am I overthinking? I need to apologize to Ava too. Oh my god, it's so messed up. I close my eyes as the memory floods into me. 

I saw Ava talking to someone while crying softly when I passed by her room. "No, no, no." She whispered to the phone. Then she hung up and threw her phone on her bed. She looked at me and asked, "How long have you been standing there?" I immediately walked to her and asked what the matter was. She shook her head and wiped her tears. "You can tell me, you know," I said, stroking her back. She sniffled and looked at me with teary red eyes. "My mom called me again." She said plainly. I looked at her with pity. "Look please don't tell anyone I cried, please?" She said and I nodded. "And I'm sorry for eavesdropping, I should have given you privacy," I said. She smiled. "Just promise you won't do that again?" She asked. I nodded. "Promise." 

I groan in frustration as I think about it. I broke our promise. I eavesdropped. She probably hates me now, because she trusted me.  Maybe she did. I'm leaving at 3 in the afternoon tomorrow, back to Melbourne. I wanted to stay here for a week but my parents have to attend some marriage in England and they'll there for a month, so I can't go. But I also want to have fun with my friends. Because whenever they call me for a vacation or something I refuse. I wanna spend the time I have with them too. My hand crawls to the phone on the table beside me. I yank it back. I don't know if I should switch it on or not. Ugh, screw this. I reach for my phone and turn it on. There are 250 missed calls from unknown numbers. So I was right, the caller did expose my number. I didn't know these many people would call though. Like, I'm just a regular author. Nevertheless, I have to change my number as soon as possible. I got this phone just two months ago. I switch my phone off once more and drift off to sleep. 

I slowly walk into Ava's room the next morning. I need to apologize. She's reading a book. She doesn't realize I'm there yet. When she looks up at me, I smile guiltily. She ignores me and continues to read. I clear my throat. "Hi, Ava-cado," I say. It's this joke we have where I used to call her Ava-cado when she was little and she always laughed about it. She sighs this time and closes her book. 

"What do you want?" She asks, clearly frustrated. I sit on her bed. 

"Ava, I'm sorry. For everything. I shouldn't have eavesdropped like that, but I wanted to know if you're fine. Please try to understand." I reply. She looks at me for a long time. 

"I saw the post about your number being exposed." She says finally. 

"Okay...and?" I ask slowly. "How is this related to you forgiving me?" 

She inhales deeply before saying, "I know you are going through so much more than I am right now, so I'm sorry." 

"It's no big deal, actually. I don't mind, I can just change my phone number." I answer truthfully. She nods and smiles slightly before going back to reading her book. I get up and leave. 

"These three days went by so fast," My mom whispers into my ear when we're hugging. "I wish you could stay for more time." 

"Aww, mom, it's okay, not like I won't ever come here again," I say and smile. I wave to the rest of them and sit on the train. I'm finally going back home. 

I scroll through my social media. I'm so bored here on the train. I got a new phone number in a small shop near the railway station. Then I get a notification. It's Leah. 

Lee ❤️

Hey, where are you? 

                                                                                                                     Me 

                                      Still on the train, reaching at 1 in the night.

Lee ❤️

Oh cool I'll pick you up from the railways, I won't sleep until 3 anyway

                                                                                                                      Me 

                                                                                                          Thanks :)

There she was, leaning on her purple Holden car. I run to her when she notices me. "Hey!" She says. I wave and sit in her car. "How was it there? I heard your number got exposed," She says, snickering. "What kind of a best friend are you?" I say, smiling at her. "Laughing at your own best friend's misery," I pretend-wipe a tear, which cracks her up more. 

"Hey, let's go on a trip?" I ask her when we reach my house. She widens her eyes. 

"Oh my god, the Amber Jones is free? Of course I can come! What about the boys?" She asks. 

"Oh my god, the Amber Jones is free?" I say, mimicking her. She slaps me on the shoulder. "You ask the boys yourself, I'm too tired. Malibu, tomorrow at 3 pm. 4 days, be ready. My treat." I say and walk into my house. 

As soon as I plop into my bed, I get another notification. 

Lee ❤️

Guys, Miss Amber Jones is free! We're going on a vacation to Malibu. Tomorrow at 3 pm, be ready. For 4 days. For now, Amber's gonna pay for the tickets but we should pay her back

Oli 😝

Omg yass Malibu here we come!! 

I chuckle at the texts and fall asleep. Here we come, Malibu. 

I groan as I hear my phone's loud rings in the morning. This time I see the contact. It's Mr Walker. James Walker, his name. "Hello?" I mumble, picking it up. 

"Hey, Amber, we found out who called you." He says. 

"You didn't have to, I'm fine," I reply. 

"It's just so that this doesn't happen again," He says slowly. "It's some guy named Thomas Steves."

"But how did he get my number?" I furrow my eyebrows. 

"Turns out he just wanted to prank call a random number but he knows your voice so well, and he says he's sorry, he just got excited. Turns out he's a big fan." 

"It's no big deal, I swear," I say again. "Ok, I gotta go. Thanks for telling this to me!" 

"No problem, just thought you should know this. Bye." 

I cut the call and get out of bed. My phone rings again after I take bath. It's Leah. "Yes?" 

"We're leaving for Malibu today. Have you booked the tickets yet?" She asks. Oh my god, I completely forgot. "You forgot, didn't you? I bet you didn't start packing yet."  She says when I don't speak for a moment. Stop exposing me like that, Lee. 

"O-of course I packed, I was just going to book the tickets now." I curse at myself for stuttering. 

"Whom are you lying to? I'm coming over in 10." I could almost hear Leah smirk. 

I just started packing when I hear the doorbell. Leah hands me her suitcase when I open it. I'm surprised to see Lucas with her too. "Don't ask, Leah forced me," Lucas says, looking at me. I giggle and let them in. "What about Oliver?" I ask as I see both of them sit on my couch. 

"He was busy, he said. In modelling," Leah scoffed. She thinks modelling isn't a job, for some reason. "He's gonna meet us directly at 3." I glance at the clock. 12:30. We still have 3 more hours. I booked the tickets before they came, thankfully. I continue packing while they watch TV. "I thought you came to help," I say, looking at Leah. She rolls her eyes playfully and walks over to me. 

"All done, finally!" Leah shouts, plopping on the couch. I look over at Lucas only to see him sleeping. I sit next to her, sighing out of relief. 1:30, the time. We're leaving for the airport in half an hour. I'm excited, I haven't done this in a while. I really need a break. 

Yup, It's time. Time to go to Malibu. I check my bedroom one last time just in case I left something. "Come on, Am! We're getting late!" Leah says while I lock my door. She does her little jumps of frustration when I drop my key on the floor. Lucas is already sitting in the car, holding the steering wheel. I get in and shut the door. Leah groans and enters too, and Lucas cheers as he starts the car. 

We reach the airport after what felt like forever. I see Oliver waving at us from afar. "Hey, mates!" He says when we go to him. It's 2:54 now. We have six minutes to walk to the aeroplane. We start running because it's quite far. Suddenly I hear someone shout, "It's Amber Jones!" I look at the person and smile. But suddenly many people start running towards me, I don't know why. I get scared and start searching for my friends, but I can't see them. It's like me and these people are the only ones here. Finally, I hear Oliver screaming my name. I duck between two people and go to him. Leah and Lucas might have already sat in the aeroplane because I only see Oliver. And the aeroplane is right in front of us. "Hey, you ok?" He asks me. I nod and we get on the plane. I see Leah waving to me so I go and sit next to her. She's sitting in the middle and someone else is in the window seat, and Oliver and Lucas are sitting on the seat next to us. 

"I didn't know you were that famous," Leah smirks. I look at her weirdly. 

"Does it have anything to do with my job? I thought people were just rushing for their flight or something," I reply. Now it's her turn to look at me weirdly. 

"You're dumb? Of course they came for you. Don't be ridiculous. It's like saying Quinctus isn't famous," She says. 

"Isn't Quinctus famous worldwide? You can't compare them to me." 

"It's useless to argue with you," Leah lets out a small chuckle and wears her earphones. 

"What are you listening to?" I ask. 

"Quinctus, you wanna listen?" She offers me her earphones, which I refuse. Ever since she got to know Quinctus isn't going to perform in Melbourne she started listening to more of them. She says we have to go next time, though we all don't know when that time is. I just shut my eyes and try to sleep. It's a long journey. I asked my manager for another week off and he said okay, surprisingly. I like this manager, he isn't like the old one. When I was 18, almost going to be 19, I had a lady manager. She never let me go anywhere. She expected me to only write 24/7. I didn't talk to anyone for three days. She used to call me at midnight to make sure I'm awake and writing. Yeah, that's how bad she was. I didn't sleep at all. Then last year my aunt complained to my company and because she's the Amelie Grace, the company listened to her and Mr walker came along. The last thing I hear is Lucas and Oliver talking to each other, then I fall asleep. Yes, I sleep a lot. 

We've arrived. I have always wanted to come here, to Malibu. I get off the taxi, followed by Lucas and Oliver. The ride from Los Angeles Airport to Malibu felt long. Leah's too excited she got off first. I already love it here. The wind isn't too hot nor too cold. Of course, it's October. It won't be hot here in Malibu. "Yes mom, I've reached, don't worry. Yes, I'll be fine. I have my friends with me," I hear Oliver saying as I walk towards the hotel we're staying in. I see Leah at the counter, probably asking for a bottle of water. She loves water. Well, who doesn't? I stand next to her and sign in the register for checking into the hotel because I'm the one who's supposed to pay. I feel a tug on my pant so I look down to see a kid. He smiles at me, which I return. I kneel in front of him. "Where's your mother?" I ask. He points at a distance nearby and looks at me again. "Aren't you Amber Jones?" He asks with an American accent. I'm surprised someone recognized me. I nod and he looks down, fiddling with his little fingers. "Can I have your autograph?" He mutters. Aww, cute. I take out a piece of paper and pinch his cheeks. 

"What's your name?" I ask him. 

"John Evans." 

"How old are you, John?" 

"I'm a big man now. 5 years old!" He says proudly, which makes me chuckle. 

"You sure are," I reply and scribble on the paper. 

"John, mom will scold you if she knows you went somewhere. Come on!" A girl scurries over. She looks like a 15-year-old. She stops suddenly. "Amber?" She says, looking at me. 

"Hello," I smile at her. She stands still for a moment. 

"Oh my god, Amber Jones! I love your books and I love you!" She says. It warms my heart, these kinds of comments. "Thank you so much! I love you too," I say. 

The kids were seriously so cute. We spoke for like ten minutes, and then their mom called them. I'm glad I'm getting recognized like this. Overseas, especially. I like this feeling. It's seven o'clock now, Leah and I are just laying on our beds, scrolling through social media. Lucas and Oliver have the room in front of ours. Tomorrow's going to be a big day. Leah planned things we'll do tomorrow and because it's Leah, of course there'll be many things in the plan. 

"Wake up, Amber," I open my eyes to see Leah hovering over me, trying to wake me up. I look at the clock on the wall. It's hard to read because there aren't any numbers, but eventually, I figure it out. It's 8:30 a.m. "We need to go quickly for breakfast or we'll have to starve till lunch," She says and goes out of the room. 

Okay, I have to say Leah is pretty good at choosing something fun to do. I just went scuba diving. For the first time in my life. It was super fun. Now we're heading to eat lunch, even though it's only 12. We get hungry easily if we stay in the water. "Stop being on your phones when you are eating," Oliver says when we're eating our sandwiches. "Sorry," Lucas, Leah and I mumble and switch our phones off. "What do we do after this?" I ask Leah. 

"We're going paragliding!" She shouts. Wow, paragliding. Never tried that before. I'm scared and excited at the same time. After we have lunch, we head for the activity. Of course, Lucas goes first. He's very daring. But also because he has done this multiple times before. He waves to us when he reaches the top. Next, Oliver goes. And now it's my turn. Leah's too scared. I find it ironic how she selected this activity. I exhale deeply when they tie me up. They soon leave me up and it isn't scary at all. I was overreacting. 

Well, we came back to our rooms because Leah said she was seasick. Honestly, I feel sick too. We did so much in one day. "Okay, fine! I'll listen to them," I say. Leah's pestering me to listen to this group Quinctus. She hands me one of her earphones and wears one herself. I expected it to be rock or something. It's actually quite relaxing, the music. And then a guy starts singing. His voice is deep but soothing. It suddenly switches to another guy. I've never really heard to groups before so this is weird. But one person's voice catches my attention. It's neither high pitch nor low, it's just...normal, but unique. I don't know how to explain it. It also sounds familiar somehow? But I didn't expect Quinctus to be like this at all. I turn to Leah, who's looking at me eagerly. I shrug and nod. "It's nice, I guess." 

"Just nice? Okay fine, like I promised, time to listen to Beethoven," Leah replies. I smirk at her and play a piece. "Not gonna lie, he's cool." My smirk grows wider. 

"Told you." 

I don't know how a week passed by so fast. We're all sitting in the aeroplane again. This was probably the best vacation I've had since I've shifted to Melbourne. I should thank my friends for that.

Leah taps my shoulder vigorously, which wakes me up. "Oh my god, Amber, Quinctus is having a concert in Melbourne the day after tomorrow! I love their little surprises. You are going to come this time," She says excitedly. Day after tomorrow? As in the day of the fan meet? "Lee, I'm so sorry, but I can't. I have the fan meet," I say. She sighs and nods. 

"I understand, I do." 

"Thank you," I reply and plug my earphones in. 

It's the day! The day I've been so excited for. The day I get to meet my readers and talk to them. The day of the fan meet. "Am, you look gorgeous," Leah says, leaning on the frame of the door. 

"Thanks!" I reply and look at myself in the mirror. Blue jeans, black crop top, big hoop earrings. I think I'm ready. Leah rushes off to get ready for the concert. Lucas, Leah and Oliver are all going together. Leah and I talk for like half an hour, then we hear a honk outside. "I think it's Lucas and Oliver," Leah says, looking at me. "Amber I'm so sorry I can't come to your fan meet," She says. 

"No, Lee, I understand. I'll be fine on my own. You've been waiting for this day to come since forever. Now that it's finally happening, their concert, I want you to enjoy it. Don't worry about me, you come to my fan meets every time. It's fine," I reply and she hugs me. 

"I'm so glad to have a friend like you," She whispers and waves. I wave back and walk her out of the house. Lucas and Oliver wave at me from inside the car. "All the best, Am!" They shout in harmony. "Thanks!" I shout back and watch them drive away. 

I'm surprised to see more than a hundred people here, I thought everyone would go to the Quinctus concert. I smile at the first person as he walks over to my table. "Hello! I just wanted to tell you I really love the way you write!" He says. 

"Thank you! I appreciate it," I say back and sign on the first page of my latest book. I do the same with the rest of them. Now it's the last person. 

"Hey! Do you like Quinctus?" She asks me. 

"I wonder why you're asking that. Well, I've heard to only a song and I liked their voices, but no, I don't listen to them. My friend is a huge fan, she's at their concert right now," I say. The girl nods. "What's your name?" I ask her. 

"Quinn," She replies. 

"Well, Quinn, are you a fan of them?" 

She shakes her head. "My brother is in that band, actually. Brandon Rogers. But yes, I do love their music."

"Wow, that's cool! But why didn't you go to their concert? Why did you come here instead?" I ask. 

"It's just my brother and his group, nothing great. I go to their concerts every time. Plus you are having a fan meet, how can I miss it?" She says excitedly. I smile gratefully at her. 

It finally ended. I mean, obviously I'm sad it did, but I'm exhausted. I fall on my bed with a thud. I open Instagram and see everyone's story is them going to Quinctus' concert. I have to admit I do feel a bit left out. Whatever. I'm glad I could meet my readers at least. It was so fun today. I decide to listen to Quinctus because I want to see what everyone else sees in them. The first voice I hear is familiar again, somehow. Turns out they are only four people. I really like this song, wind tree. All their voices are so unique but soothing at the same time. I drift off to sleep by listening to them. Tomorrow I'll search them up on google if I have time. I'll have to start writing a new book. Not to publish, though. I mean if it's good enough to publish then yes. But I just want to practice writing better, for my readers. 

"Now can you tell me where we're going, Luke?" I ask, trying to remove the blindfold off me. 

"It's a surprise," He whispers for the hundredth time. 

"You've been driving for a whole hour now, Lucas," I point out. 

"It's worth the surprise, trust me," He only replies. I groan and rest my head on the seat. Somehow I'm feeling all bubbly inside. "Where is Oliver? And Leah?" I ask him. 

"They're already there."

I can't explain the happiness and relief I feel when he finally stops and asks me to remove the blindfold. But, of course, it doesn't last long. It isn't Lucas if he doesn't disappoint us when we're happy. No, like seriously, whenever we try to think positive, he points out the negative, making us sad all over again. Not that he does it on purpose though. "I'm just stating facts!" He says when we all give him a death stare. Now he covers my eyes with his hands instead of using a blindfold. Wow, Lucas, it made a huge difference. Note the sarcasm. He starts walking from behind me, pushing me with him. He stops all of a sudden. "Keep your eyes closed," He says slowly and removes his hands from my face. I hear footsteps but I keep my eyes closed. I don't want to ruin their surprise, even though I feel the urge of opening my eyes. "Open them!" He shouts from what seems afar. I open them after a while. Everything's dark. "This was your 'surprise', Lucas?" I start walking around, only to hear no one. "Luke?" I walk further. 

"Lucas Gray!" Now I'm shouting. It's still pitch dark. I start running forward, though I don't know where I'm going. I can't see any light, not one ray. "Leah? Oliver? Lucas!" I continue shouting. No one responds. Then I feel someone hold me and drag me away. "Who's this?" I shout at the person dragging me. "Shh! Keep your voice down," The person, sounding like a man tells me. I don't recognize the voice. If I'm going to die anytime soon, it's today. I have a gut feeling. But why today, of all? Today's one of my favourite days. Wait. What if all this is a prank? I swear if it is one I'm going to kill the three of them. I'm genuinely scared here. 

The man drags me somewhere and stops. "Aren't you Amber Jones?" He asks me. I don't answer. "Answer me!" He shouts. I flinch and nod, not realising he can't see me. "Y-yes," I reply. 

"Give me your money. Right now," He says. So this person just wants money? Well, guess what, I didn't bring any here. I'm not even rich, to be honest. Everyone thinks I'm this arrogant rich child. Before I can answer, I hear a thud on the floor. "Uh, hello?" I say. 

"Amber, are you fine?" I hear someone, who I assume is Lucas, ask. 

"Yeah, I am. Who was that? Was that your little surprise?" I ask him. 

"Oh my god, no. I don't know who that was. What did he want?" Lucas asks. 

"Money," I say blankly. 

"Right. I brought you here to surprise you for your birthday, but I guess it went wrong," He says. I feel a hand drag me, it must be his this time. Like I said, I can't see anything. It's still pitch dark. Then I see a ray of light again. You know when someone switches on the light in the night suddenly and you can't see anything for a second? That was the feeling I got when the light finally filled the place. "Happy birthday Amber!" Many people shout, grabbing my attention. 

"Thank you!" I reply and Leah comes running to me, followed by Oliver. 

"What took you guys so long?" Leah asks when everyone returns to whatever they were doing. Some were swimming in the huge pool, some were at the drinks counter, while some were just talking among themselves. That's when I take a moment to recognize the place. It's one of my favourite places in Melbourne. Sky City High. The biggest party place. But then I realise there isn't anyone else other than the people I know, like family and a few friends from the company. 

"Did you book this place?" I ask, turning to Leah and Oliver. They were talking to Lucas. Oliver looks at me and nods while smiling. "You didn't have to!" I exclaim. "It sure would be so costly."

"Okay mom," Oliver chuckles seeing me frown. "It's fine, really. We all paid for it. It's the least we could do to pay you back for the trip. Consider this a gift of gratitude."

I smile at him. "Thank you," I say again. 

"You what!" Leah shouts. Lucas scratches the back of his neck as he smiles sheepishly. 

"Not like I killed him," He replies. I widen my eyes. 

"You killed whom?" I ask. 

"I didn't kill anyone, I just slightly punched that guy who asked for money," He says. 

"Yeah, slightly punched and he passed out?" Leah scoffs. 

"Luke, why would you do that? We might get in trouble now. He might have a gang or something and they'll be preparing to come for us now," I say. 

"It's not that big of a deal. I thought he was trying to hurt you."

"Thanks for saving me, but be careful next time," I warn him and he nods. 

"That's it? They might come back to kill us, Am. You realise this is a big deal, right?" Leah looks at me. "You're just overreacting, Lee. Everything's fine," Oliver butts in and I nod. 

"Don't blame me when you guys actually die," She says and walks away to a group of friends. I look back at Oliver and Lucas, who shrug at the same time. 

We decided to have a sleepover. Again, yes. It's my birthday, why not? People say I spend too much time with my friends, and I do agree. But they aren't like my friends. They're like siblings. Too cheesy but yeah. These three are just fun to hang out with. You would say the same if you met them. 

We're just sitting here, playing UNO as usual. Whenever we have a sleepover we have to play UNO, it's like a rule. Somehow we never get bored of it. "UNO!" Oliver shouts as he throws his second-last card in the pile. The three of us groan. "Done!" He says, putting his last card down. Another round of groans. Oliver always wins. And I mean always. He was the nerd in high school as well, guess it helped. He used to wear huge glasses with a tie back in high school. The thought of him dressing up like that right now makes me want to laugh. He's changed so much from then, it's amusing. Now he's a model. Who could've imagined the nerd in the class became a model. Well, I'm not one to speak. I used to be the 'trouble-maker' if you could call it that. I never really liked any subjects. God, I used to fail in every subject. Don't blame me, it's Noah's fault. He influenced me not to study. I'm saying that as if it's a good thing. But it doesn't really matter now, I don't use any of what I learnt right now. Like someone won't just approach you and ask what 58 multiplied by 63 is, or what a nerve cell is. Unless you're a mathematician or a scientist, that is. I knew I wouldn't be either, so why bother to study?

I never really wondered how Lucas or Leah was in school. I think Leah would've been like me, and I can't really guess how Lucas was. "How were you guys in school?" I ask them. They look at me weirdly, maybe because it was out of the blue. "I hated studying, but I still did," Leah answers anyway. Oliver and I turn to Lucas, expecting an answer. He simply shrugs. 

"I never went to school. Real school, that is," He says. "I was home-schooled. But I didn't study normal stuff, like what you guys did. I only studied art." Did I mention Lucas was an artist? He is really good at it, painting. And drawing. He drew my portrait too, I kept it right at the entrance of my house, to show it off. It really does look like me. 

"I knew I was going to become an artist. Or painter. My parents encouraged me too, they didn't force me to study. I'm glad they didn't because I became better at drawing and painting. And here I am," He continues. We look at him in amusement. 

"Whoa, that's so cool. I wish I knew I wanted to become an author when I was small," I say. Oliver nods at that. "Then how did you guys meet? I never asked you both," I ask, turning to Leah. 

"We were neighbours. We never spoke to each other before, I don't know why. Then I saw the painting outside his house, turns out he kept it for drying. I asked him if it was his and we just started talking often. I didn't know we would become such great friends," Leah says, bumping into Lucas' shoulder. He smiles slightly. Just then I see a black figure run past my balcony from the corner of my eye. "Guys, did you see that?" I fix my eyes on the door of my balcony. 

"See what?" Oliver asks. 

"I think someone's in this house," I reply. 

"Pfft- wait are you serious?" Lucas asks. I look at him and nod slowly. 

"I told you they were gonna come back!" Leah shrieks. 

"Who- oh." 

I realize it might be the person who asked for money. I get up and head to get the broom. I hand a mop to Leah, a badminton racket to Lucas and a fork to Oliver. Not the best weapons but it could be of some use at least. I open the balcony door cautiosly. The three follow me. Anyone would think the boys were brave because they look brave. But they're the opposite, as much as it hurts to say that. 

I look around, gripping the broom tightly. No one. I walk further but still see no one. "Okay guys, false alarm. There's no one." I turn behind to see none of them. "Guys?" 

"Hello? Guys?" I proceed to walk back home when I feel a hand on my mouth. 

"Haha, very funny, Lucas." I say sarcastically. 

"Shut that filthy mouth of yours!" A low voice says. Well, looks like I'm caught again. 

I bite the man's hand. Disgusting, yes. But can I do anything else to let him go off me? I can't. He yelps in pain and removes his hand as I turn around and smack him with the broom. On the head. He only rubs his head and grunts. "I thought I wouldn't harm you, Amber Jones. But you leave me no choice." He puts his hand in his pocket and takes out a knife. Goodbye world. 

I shut my eyes tightly, expecting to die very soon. I hope my friends are alright at least. I bet his workers took them away. I take a deep breath in before saying, "If you kill me you should leave my friends." My eyes still closed. He laughs loudly. And cruelly, I must add. 

"Of course," He replies. I hold my breath when I hear him sharpen the knife on the railing of the balcony. Exagguration much. Then it stops. I don't open my eyes for another minute. 

I open an eye slowly because I don't hear anything. I should've died by now, right? I don't see anyone in front of me. Then I open both of them and look around. No one. I look down and see him. The man. He's fallen down. And by down I mean the floor of the balcony, of course. 

"Amber?" I hear a soft voice. I turn to my left and see the person I was least expecting.

"Noah?" 

"Noah? What are you doing here?"

He scratches the back of his neck and smiles. "You still recognize me?" I furrow my eyebrows and nod. "Of course I do, you haven't changed much."

"You haven't either," He says. "I actually wanted to visit you, but when I came here the front door was open and I saw some guy taking out a knife in the balcony." He looks at the fallen man. I stare at the man for some time before widening my eyes. "Did you kill him? And how do you know where my house is?" I ask. 'After all this while you decide to show up?' 'What do you do now, as a job?' 'Are your parents fine? I haven't met them in so long.' I have so many questions I want to ask him. But these two questions are the only ones that come to my mind first. It makes him seem like a stalker. Just great.  He widens his eyes too and shakes his head. 

"I didn't kill him! I just smacked him on the head a bit too hard," He says, which causes me Deja vu. "And I have my own ways, to answer your second question." He smirks. I glare at him. He chuckles softly, the same chuckle that used to warm my heart. Used to. That was ages ago. 

"You're creepy," I mutter low enough for him not to hear it, but it looks like he did, because he raises an eyebrow and leans closer, his hot breath on my forehead. "You think so? Well, I'm sorry. I should get goi-" 

"No! Stay," I say. He smirks and nods. I smile back. I'm seeing my childhood best friend after so long. But the happiness goes away immediately as I remember Leah, Lucas and Oliver. I run back inside, followed by Noah, who constantly asks me what the matter is while I search the entire house. I turn behind to look at him and sigh. "Look, I'm happy you've come all the way to meet me and all, but please shut up. I'm trying to think." 

"If you tell what happened," He says when I enter my room for the second time, "maybe I could help you." 

"Okay, so they aren't at home, they must've gone outside. What if those men took them? I can't lose them." I say to myself. 

"Who they?" Noah asks me, placing a hand on the door frame as I try getting out of my room. "You tell me everything so that I can help you," He says again, this time slower. I run a finger through my hair and nod. Then I tell him everything. From the birthday surprise to almost getting killed. His mouth automatically opens after I finish. He closes it immediately and clears his throat. His hand slowly slips from the frame. "The door was open when I came so maybe they escaped? The worst thing that could happen is them getting kidnapped. Maybe even killed..." He trails away as I clutch my fists tightly, trying not to cry. Noah places an arm on my shoulder, maybe an attempt to comfort me. Then he runs back to the balcony. I follow him. He must have an idea. He looks at the man and takes the nearest water bottle. He splashes water on him and the man wakes up with a gasp and holds his chest. Overdramatic much. 

"Did you come here alone or were there people with you?" Noah asks as he glares at the guy. If he glared at me like that I swear I would die. Looks could kill, isn't there a saying like that?

He doesn't respond. Noah glances at his side and picks the knife up. "Answer me!" He growls. The man shakes his head vigorously. "No. No, I was alone." His voice trembles. 

"Are you sure?" Noah asks slowly. The man nods. Noah nods back and gets up, looking at me. The man takes that as a chance and jumps from the balcony. Fortunately, my house is only on the first floor, so it isn't that high. "Do you think he'll come again?" I ask Noah when I see the man's figure slowly disappear. He looks at me and shrugs. Noah, I mean. "For now we have to find those friends of yours." 

We run to the main door and look to our left at the same time. Leah, Lucas and Oliver are on top of each other...sleeping? No, they're unconscious. I lift Leah and walk to my room, carrying her on my back. I look back to see Noah doing the same with both Lucas and Oliver. God, he's strong. We both place them on the bed and sprinkle water on their faces. They open their eyes one by one and look at us. Leah gets up quickly. "Noah Thomas?" She shrieks. 

"How do you know him?" I furrow my eyebrows. She looks at me and scoffs. 

"Who doesn't? Wait..don't tell me you don't recognize him?" 

Turns out Noah is part of the group Quinctus. That explains the behaviour of Leah. But why am I not surprised. Noah had a sweet voice from when we were kids. He used to sing for me when I was sad, or lonely. Or even happy, for that matter. I used to play the guitar and he used to sing along. I still do play the guitar, just not as much. I try to, though. I loved playing since I was small. Guitars are so pleasing to the ear. I've lost practice now. Right, where was I? Noah. That explains the familiar voice I heard while listening to them. Leah's freaking out right now, who wouldn't if one of the members of your favourite group is here. 

"You still didn't tell me how Noah's related to you," Leah says to me. 

"He's my best friend. Well, he used to be," I say with a blank expression. 

"You're telling me Noah- no, the Noah Thomas from Quinctus was your friend once? How can you not be excited about this?" She shrieks. I shrug and look at Lucas and Oliver who are just as amazed as Leah is. "And you still didn't tell me how you ended up sleeping on top of each other outside my house," I point out. 

"The same guy dragged us out and threatened to kill us all if we entered the house, and because of shock I passed out," Leah says. Lucas and Oliver nod. "Us too," They say in unison. 

"I don't know how we ended up on each other, though," Lucas says truthfully. They all turn to look at Noah again. "Are you planning to release an album soon? I saw an article where someone said you would- wait, when are you coming here for the concert? And why are you here, in Melbourne?" Leah asks. I chuckle looking at Noah, who looks shocked. 

"Give him time to breathe, Lee," I say. She glares at me and sticks her tongue out. Is she really 21? I'm just wondering. 

"Hello, Leah," Noah says, and smiles. She widens her eyes and starts jumping on the bed, screaming, "He said my name!" 

"Whoa," Noah mutters. I drag him to the living room, followed by the other three. 

"Sit. You need to tell me what you've been doing since you decided to ditch me," I say, crossing my arms. "Hey, I didn't ditch you, I just left without telling you." He says matter-of-factly. I raise my eyebrows at him. "Okay, okay," He giggles, "I knew I would become a singer just a week before I stopped talking to you. And if you weren't so angry back then, you would've realised I shifted to New York. I left you for a reason, Am. I thought you would leave me if I told you I was shifting, so I didn't. I left without telling you." He sighs. 

"Then I joined the company NYTunes and trained to sing for two years before debuting," He continues. 

"So there was this group Quinctus from when I was 18, and I didn't know about it until last year?" I scoff and look at Leah. 

"You always refused when I asked you to listen to them, not my problem," She shrugs. 

 "What have you been doing, Am-bear?" Noah asks me, and I cringe at the name while Leah giggles. I tell him about my life. 

"Amber Jones, the most famous author of Australia!" Lucas says and laughs after I'm done. Then they introduce themselves to Noah. Like that we spend the rest of the night. Until he decides to leave, even after many protests from us. He even told us that we could visit his group tomorrow, to which of course Leah shrieked. Tomorrow's gonna be fun then. 

I look at Leah as we get off the bus. We're finally here, Leah and I, to Noah's house. Lucas said he couldn't come because he had a project with an art company, I forgot the name. Same with Oliver, he had to model for an upcoming brand. Noah's house is just next to the University of Melbourne. We cross the road and walk further before we reach the house. It's huge. And beautiful. It's made out of bricks, creepers covering the top of the walls. Even the door looks beautiful. A polished red door, with a huge copper handle to knock. I press the tiny button on the side. Leah takes a deep breath next to me, I don't know why she's so nervous. A guy with curly brown hair, chocolate skin and grey eyes opens the door. "You must be Amber and Leah," He says, nodding at us. We smile at him. "And you are?" I ask, tilting my head. Leah nudges me. "He's Brandon Rogers," She whispers. The guy chuckles and opens the door for us. Brandon Rogers...wasn't he the brother of Quinn? The girl in the fan meet? Wow, they do look similar. I enter the house. Leah walks in behind me, looking around the house. It's very clean, the house. I didn't expect that for a bunch of boys my age. The interior is just as pretty as the outside. We see two guys sitting on the couch, Brandon walking to them. 

"Hey guys, Amber and Leah are here," He says to them. The two straighten and look up from their phones. They both smile at us, which we return. I'm surprised Leah isn't freaking out now, maybe she wants to maintain her dignity. Look who's behaving like a 21-year-old. 

The black-haired guy gets up and walks over to us, offering his hand for a handshake. "Hey, I'm Dallas Noelle." I notice his dimples when he smiles. One could sink in those blue eyes of his. The blonde guy with green eyes comes to us too, and says, "I'm Caleb Murphy," He says, his smile just as charming. When they turn to introduce themselves to Leah, she says, "Of course I know you guys, I'm a huge fan!" 

Noah walks in after some time, turns out he had gone to buy groceries. We talk for quite a while before eating and spending more time together after that. Then we head home, the two of us. "It was fun today, wasn't it?" I ask Leah when we walk to her house. I decided I would drop her first and then head to mine, and write for the rest of the day. 

"Are you kidding me? I met Quinctus!" There she goes again. I smile sheepishly at the people staring at us on the streets. 

It's been a month since that day. I'm still in touch with Noah and the others. We've gotten pretty close lately, the group and the four of us. Leah, Lucas, Oliver and I stopped hanging out as much now, we're all busy with our own stuff. I have yet another book to publish before this Saturday, I have only four days left. That's fine, actually. I'm almost done writing it. Leah got promoted as the head of the fashion department, which means double the work. She doesn't complain, though. I'm proud of her nonetheless. Lucas and Oliver are as busy as before. 

Finally, it's already Saturday.  I successfully published my book. Quinctus announced a concert here in Melbourne, hence they were staying in the house here. Leah obviously freaked out. It's on the Saturday after this one. Of course I'm gonna go, my best friend's in there. I think back to a few months before when I refused to even listen to them. Now I'm obsessed with them. I'm not saying this because Noah's in the group, I genuinely like their music. 

Leah and I walk hand-in-hand to the concert, next to Lucas and Oliver. We're all smiles. Everyone's satisfied with their work this week, whether it be painting a portrait for the Prime Minister of Australia, or modelling for the biggest cosmetic company, or being appreciated by the CEO of the fashion company. Yup, those are my friends. We jump as the concert starts, there are more people here than I expected. Leah sings along to every song. It's reached the end, and they're performing my favourite song, Wind tree. Euphony to my ears. We're all waving our hands in the air to the rhythm. Quinctus did an amazing job today, not gonna lie. 

We meet the guys backstage after the concert. It was a huge success. We all decide to celebrate in the nearby restaurant for dinner. I look around me. The place filled with laughs and smiles. This is what I dreamed of when I was 16. An ideal night, dinner with friends while laughing and talking. 

"Noah! How have you been? We all missed you so much!" Mom chirps in. Noah wanted to visit his family, and they're still living here in Sydney, so I thought why not tag along to visit my own. It's been a while. It feels like I met Noah just yesterday. Can't believe it's been six months since the day. The day he saved me from dying, literally. Oh, you must be wondering what happened to the guy who tried to kill me? He got arrested. Not for attempting to kill me though. He robbed a bank just two weeks after breaking into my house. How shameless. 

It's just like old days. We're all sitting at the dining table, eating mom's special, Spaghetti with garlic bread. Only this time it isn't only Noah's family and my family. Leah, Lucas and Oliver are there too. The three of them have gotten incredibly close with Noah these past few months. Fortunately, Leah behaves like a friend to him now, not like a fan. It took her two months to overcome that. And guess what, she even got hired by Quinctus' company for designing the dresses for the boys. The reaction on her face when the company offered the job was priceless. She liked her previous company too, don't get me wrong. But if you were given an option between designing dresses in a company or designing dresses for the most famous group in the world, you would obviously choose the latter. At least I would. 

"Pass me water please, Ms Bestseller," Noah says, tapping my shoulder. They've been calling me that ever since I came in the newspaper. Yes, I came in the newspaper. Yay! And the heading was 'Amber Jones' new book becomes bestselling again'  I was shocked when I read the article. Do those many people actually read my books? Well, if they do, then I'm glad. And grateful to my readers. Did I mention that already? 

It feels good to be walking outside on the lanes with Noah again. And Leah, Lucas and Oliver too, obviously. I can't leave them. I smile proudly as I show my friends around the neighbourhood. They really like it, surprisingly. I thought they were city people. Our house is more on the village side of Sydney. 

We reach the bench Noah and I always sat on. We dust the leaves off and sit on it, sighing as we do so. It feels like that was so long ago. We've come so far in only five years, I'm proud of us. "What're you thinking?" Noah asks me. The other three are talking among themselves. I shake my head. "Just about how far we've come in these years," I reply. He lets out a small chuckle and nods. "Yeah, I was thinking that too. You went from a Sydney girl to the most famous author in Australia," He tells me. I look at him like he's crazy.

"Excuse me, but you've gone from a Sydney boy to being in the most famous band on Earth."

He smiles slightly and shrugs. Then I get an idea. I run back to the house, shouting, "Stay here guys, I'll be back." I go to my room and get my guitar from my suitcase. I smile down at it. It's been a while. I take it and run to the bench. Noah looks up at me surprised. "Here?" He asks. 

"Yeah, why not?" I remove the guitar from the case and strum a chord. "Ugh, I've lost practice." I practice for a while and finally get it. I start playing wind tree, my favourite Quinctus song. He smiles and starts singing along, just like old times. Leah, Lucas and Oliver stop talking and listen to the music, swaying their bodies to the rhythm. Noah's voice is really good. Like, I mean really. No wonder he's this famous. He continues to sing for a long time, and yet another good day passes by.