The day Harry left, was the worst day of my life. After our fight, he went home and that was the last I ever saw of him. I found myself getting distracted from everything, I didn't know how to be happy. There was a constant knot in the pit of my stomach and an emptiness in my heart. Some days I would sit in my room and just cry my eyes out, listening to songs by people like Martina McBride because they made me realize my life wasn't so bad.

When I did finally come to that full realization, I picked myself up a bit. I signed up for summer school and powered through it so I could finish school early. I felt trapped and claustrophobic in this town, I wanted out. I would write songs with my guitar and sing to forget Harry, to forget the world. When I sang and wrote, I felt calm. I could channel my emotions and pour them, shape them and craft them into a piece of art.

About a year after Harry left, I went to the park across from my house. It was a beautiful day in late June, so I had decided to play my guitar and sing outside. I couldn't help but think of him, and how much I miss him. I felt like I had lost all my friends once he left, because they didn't understand why I was so upset. Sitting under a tree close to the sidewalk, I began strumming my guitar and singing "The One That Got Away" by Katy Perry.

"In another life, I would be your girl. We'd keep all our promises, be us against the world. In another life, I would make you stay, so I don't have to say you were the one that got away, the one that got away."

"Excuse me, miss?" I stopped playing my guitar and looked up to the woman who had interrupted me.

"Hey, how can I help you?" I replied, leaning my guitar against the tree and standing up. I brushed my skirt off and then placed my hands on my hips, smiling at her.

"Hello, my name's Jane Wells. I work for J&G Studios, which is a record label here in London. You're a fantastic singer, I was wondering if we could exchange information and maybe set up a meeting?"

I didn't know what to say. "Am I being Punk'd?"

She laughed. "Nope! Here's my ID." She pulled out her wallet, showing me her drivers licence. After that she rummaged through her wallet and pulled out a small business card.

"So what's your name?" She continued.

"It's uhm, Madison."

"Nice to meet you, Madison." She smiled. "Anyway, call that number sometime this week. Ask for me, tell them your name."

"Alright." I replied. I was still in shock.

"I look forward to hearing you." She said, before turning and walking away briskly.

~

I walked into the office quickly, shutting the door quietly behind me. I looked around, unsure of what to do until I saw a desk with a secretary behind it. I walked over to her, dragging my guitar along with me.

"Hello. Do you have an appointment?"

I nodded my head in reply.

"Okay, what time and who with?" She asked me.

"1:30 with Jane Wells." She nodded, typing something into her computer.

"Okay, head through the door on the left and she'll be just inside there."

I nodded my thanks, and turned toward the door. Unsure of whether to knock or not, I did so lightly.

"Come in!" I heard Jane yell from through the door.

I opened it up and saw her sitting at a computer, speaking with another man.

"Oh, sorry to interru-"

"Madison! Hello, darling. Come in, come in. Madison, this is my husband Gary. Gary, this is Madison."

He walked over to me and shook my hand. "It's wonderful to meet you, love."

I smiled at him. "It's nice to meet you too."

"So I heard you're a fantastic singer."

I shrugged my shoulders. "Whoever told you that is very generous, sir."

"Please, call me Gary. So, let's hear it then. What song are you going to sing?"

"I'm going to sing one that I wrote myself."

"Excellent, excellent."

I opened the guitar and sat down on a chair, holding it in my hands.

"This one's called Smile."

I began singing.

~

One Year Later

I walked quickly toward my home in London, ignoring my best friend and bandmate Sonya, who was following behind me. I struggled to keep the tears that were fighting to pour down my face in, and I was trying to concentrate on not slipping on the wet pavement and falling. My arms wrapped around my body to keep as little of the cool rain off me as possible.

I reached the corner in front of my house, and of course as luck would have it, my heel fell into the little hole. My foot gave out from underneath me and I heard a small 'snap'. My eyes looked down at my foot instantly, to find that my heel had broken off.

"Fuck!" I shouted. "Can this day get any worse?!"

I felt Sonya wrap her arms around me, pulling me into a hug. And just like that, I broke down into tears. I pulled her against me tightly, digging my face into her shoulder.

"Why, Sonny? This isn't fair. Why me?"

"Let's get you inside, okay?" She whispered back.

I nodded, and after removing my shoe, she helped me walk to the house.

Thirty Minutes Earlier

We were all sitting in the meeting room - and by we, I mean my entire team. Gary and Jane had signed me to their record label within a month of my audition. Since that day, I've recorded a whole album and have toured the entire UK, under the band name 'Maxxie'. In the last year, my fan base has grown to almost a million people. Right now we were going to plan what the next big step was, and apparently Gary and Jane had some big news for us.

"Sorry! So sorry I'm late. Here you go, Michelle." Jane came rushing into the room, followed closely by her assistant.

I looked at Sonya, who rolled her eyes at me. I smiled before returning my attention to Jane and Gary.

"Hello, love." Jane mumbled, kissing her husband on the cheek. "So, first of all, congratulations on a very successful tour across the UK!"

Everyone gave a quick round of applause and cheered.

"As you all know, Maxxie's fanbase has been growing very quickly. She has people from all over the world now starting to listen to her music." Gary continued.

"So, now for the good news." Jane could barely contain her excitement.

"You will be going on tour to open for a band in North America!" Gary announced.

"Oh my god!" I squealed. I couldn't believe this, North America?! That was huge. It would be exactly what I needed to get my music known.

"That's crazy!" Sonya squealed as well.

The entire room was in agreement, and soon enough the excited chatter began. I watched the annoyed look on Gary's face grow - he hated being interrupted during meetings. He coughed lightly, making the whole room quiet down almost instantly. Gary was a nice man, but you never wanted him angry.


"That's not the only good news." Gary said.

"Guess who you're going to be opening for!" Jane continued.

I never had a chance to guess the band, because Gary announced it.

"One Direction!"

I watched Jane punch his arm slightly, mumbling something about wanting me to guess. But I wasn't really paying attention, because at that moment, I felt my throat get very dry. My stomach fell to the bottom of my feet and my head felt like it weighed a hundred pounds.

"She must be in shock." I heard Gary say. Everyone else was all talking quickly and excitedly.

"Jane? Can I go home?" I asked quietly.

"Go home?" She said. I knew she didn't want to let me leave. I was the singer of the band, the meeting pretty much depended on me. But we already knew the essentials for tour, we just had to clean it up for bigger stadiums. They wouldn't need me for that. Plus, Jane was like a second mother to me. She could tell when I was upset, and I definitely needed a moment to cool down.

She nodded, and I thanked her. I stood up, grabbing my bag and throwing it around my shoulders. I walked around the large table and exited the room as quickly as I could, and I could hear Sonya say she was going to walk me home.

Sonya - my soldier, my best friend. She was my rock, and I didn't know where I would be without her. She knew everything there was to know about my life, so of course she knew about Harry. Which is why she didn't want me to do anything stupid.

Present

Sonya sat me down on the couch, walking into my room to grab two sets of pyjamas. She handed a pair to me, and I started getting changed into them as she did the same. We were like sisters, we didn't care about changing in front of each other.

When I sat back down, she quickly brushed her hair out before sitting behind me so she could brush mine.

"This isn't fair." I mumbled.

"You knew you would have to face him at some point." She said.

"I know. But I never thought I would have to go on tour with him."

"I know it's going to be hard for you, Mads. I do. But I want you to stay strong. Think of the bigger picture here. You don't have to talk to him, just keep your head in the game. I'll be there with you for the entire tour."

I nodded. "I'm scared of seeing him."

"Why?"

"Look at his reputation. How can I be around him when all he'll be doing is flirting and fucking girls?"

"I'm sure he won't be that bad."

"You've seen the interviews, and the pictures and everything. He looks so happy, looks like he's completely forgotten about me."

She shook her head and placed the brush on the coffee table. "Then forget about him."