Living The Dream Chapter 14: Hole in my Heart, a winx club fanfic

Hi Everyone! Exams are over so it's time to celebrate with a new chapter that I finally found time to write!

As usual, I do not own Winx Club. I hope you all enjoy :) Please R/R

Morning came and the sun slowly rose from the East shining its beautiful rays in through the windows. Normally, Stella loved waking up to the first rising sun for it warmed her heart and she always felt her best underneath it's rays, but today, she was in no mood to bask in the brilliance of the sun. She felt worse as it shone down on her. Stella groaned as she woke up on the couch seeing a blanket draped over her. She stood up holding the blanket around her and walked over to a nearby mirror on the wall of the living room. Stella's hair was all messed up, she still had tear stains on her cheeks and her eyes were baggy and red from crying all night.

Stella heard noises coming from the kitchen. She walked into the kitchen to find all the girls, sitting at the table in their pj's eating breakfast.

The girls immediately stopped talking the moment Stella walked into the room.

"You girls don't have to stop having fun just because I'm here. Brandon didn't cheat on all of you" Stella said grimly and taking a seat at the table.

"How are you feeling this morning?" Flora asked as Stella took a seat next to Tecna and Bloom.

"I feel like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place" Stella said as she placed her head on the table.

Layla stood up from her seat and poured a cup of coffee. She sat back down and placed the cup in front of Stella.

"Drink up, it will make you feel better" Layla said sitting back down.

"How? Would it erase the fact that my boyfriend slept with our band organiser at her birthday party" Stella said sarcastically.

"Well...no, but it will give you some strength since you have been crying all night" Tecna said.

"Oh no, you guys heard?" Stella said a little embarrassed.

"Yeah, after we went to bed, we all woke up several hours later to whimpering" Musa answered sadly.

"Oh" Stella said sadly looking down at the floor. "I'm sorry about that."

"No, we're sorry Stella" Flora said walking over to Stella and giving her a hug.

"Look" Tecna said interrupting the silence. "We have a performance down at the park as a preview of our first album, but we can cancel it."

"No, I don't want you to do that" Stella said.

"Stella, your boyfriend had just cheated on you. Your hair is a mess, you haven't showered, you're sleep deprived and you look like you had been through hell and back" Bloom said. "We can't ask you to shower, dress and go out with a smile on your face right after that."

"But, it is important to our fans since we're postponing the album release" Musa said subtly looking at Flora.

"Oh, so this is my fault?" Flora said getting defensive once she saw Musa looking at her.

"Well, you did happen to storm out of the recording session" Musa rebutted.

"I wouldn't have had to if you weren't being so mean and selfish" Flora yelled back.

"Hey!" Layla yelled silencing the two. "Look, before we go anywhere today, we might as well sit down as a group- for the first time in days I might add- and let some things out in the open and deal with the giant elephant in the room."

"What?" Tecna said confused with the Earth expression.

"Deal with what people aren't acknowledging" Bloom whispered to her.

"Layla, that's all nice, but we have to sort out whether Stella is willing to do her part for the band" Musa said standing up from her chair.

"You are the one to talk" Flora said angrily.

"That's enough!" Layla screamed again. "This is not an option, girls."

Layla death stared at all the girls until they all slowly sat down in their chairs and discussed a few things.

"Okay" Layla began in a calm voice. "In the last few weeks, there have been issues happening, especially relating to the guys ever since the band started. These issues have been resolved with the guys, some of them, but not with each other. And these are driving wedges between us already and we haven't even released our first album. If we don't acknowledge these now, we will be divided. Now, who would like to start?"

The girls were all silent around the table. Flora had a few issues in her head that she had bottled up ever since her break up with Helia, but she didn't have the nerve to voice it. Bloom was fine in regards to her and Sky, but she didn't like how she hadn't had much time with him to even set a wedding date. Stella was only half listening to Layla. The only thing that was bothering her was whether or not Ellie would show her face in this apartment that morning for their park performance. Layla wanted to get the girls talking before she voiced her concern about their friendship likely to end if they all continued like this. Tecna was worried about her friends' mental state and was worried that there might be something else going on if they aren't willing to confront their issues. As for Musa, she just sat there staring at the clock anxious to get to their performance on time and didn't realise that some of the girls' issues mainly related to her.

Since no one was willing to start, Layla felt that the job had to come down to her.

"Alright" Layla said with a sigh. "I guess I will start then. I feel that we have become a little stressed because of the band and that we are neglecting the boys, which is why we all have been having arguments with them. And I also feel that some of us are bottling up our emotions and this is causing a wedge between us. You girls are my best friends and I hate seeing us fight. If we don't confront our problems soon, we might be divided forever."

The girls nodded at Layla's statement. They are valid concerns and they all do feel slightly more anxious and stressed since the band was formed.

"Okay, maybe we have become a little stressed" Stella began looking at the table. "And yes, maybe we have neglected some of the boys recently, especially me, which is probably why Brandon cheated on me"

"Stella" the girls interrupted.

"But" Stella said firmly continuing her statement. "I think that the main people who should be talking are Musa and Flora."

Musa and Flora stared at Stella.

"Musa has been pushing all of us to our limits- which is fine because she wants the band to go far and that this has been your dream, Musa- but I feel that you have been pushing too much when we need a couple of seconds to take a breath. Flora was in a bad place when she and Helia broke up and the last thing she needed was for you to steal their private conversation and use if for our gain. And I would also like to add that she was in a terrible emotional state when Eric held her hostage and almost killed her. Flora hasn't had much time to properly grieve over her and Helia's break up or to recover from being released from the hospital, so you shoving the band down her throat is not helping."

"Well, I'm sorry that everyone feels like that, but I just want what is best for the band" Musa defended.

"Yes, but in doing so, you have hurt my feelings" Flora said looking down at the table. "You weren't there for me when Helia and I broke up, you used our private conversation for a song, you interfered in my business and told me my 'flaws' and then you humiliated me in front of all our friends. Not to mention you and Tony only cared about me singing well when I was released from hospital and didn't console me after my attack."

"Sorry but you had to hear the truth" Musa replied.

"I don't want to argue anymore" Flora said with tears rolling down her face.

Flora couldn't take it anymore. As soon as she said that, she immediately stood up from her seat and ran out of the kitchen. Stella felt guilty that she spoke on Flora's behalf.

"Well" Stella said quietly as she stood up from her seat. "I'm not going to let Brandon ruin our day. We're all going to put on our smiles, get dressed into something hot and then we're going to perform for our fans" and with that, Stella walked out of the room to get changed.

"Do you think that maybe Stella is trying to mask her pain that Brandon caused so that she doesn't have to deal with it?" Bloom asked when Stella was out of the room.

"Of course she is" Layla answered. "The only question is what will Brandon do now?"

It had been a long night for Brandon. After Stella basically threw him out her apartment, he walked back to his dorm at Red Fountain. He had already felt bad enough, but when his friends came back 2 hours later, he was immediately bombarded with their rants and yelling. Brandon felt even worse that his friends had said that they had lost most of their respect for him. Brandon had never heard so many curses come out of Riven's mouth, he couldn't believe how red Sky's face turned at his constant yelling and he was surprised that Timmy was yelling at him and refused to go on his computer. Brandon and never seen Nabu so disgusted in his life and worse of all, he had never heard Helia raise his voice to anyone, let alone heard him swear and say he lost respect for Brandon.

After hours of ranting, the boys had all gone to bed and ignored Brandon for the rest of the night. Brandon however didn't sleep a wink. Instead, he stood out on the balcony and stared at the hotel that the Winx now lived in. He could feel the cut on his forehead sting as the wind blew from where Stella had given him a cut by the newspaper she hit him with. He had a large bruise on his chest from where Stella punched him out of anger and his head still pounded from the hangover he received from the unspeakable evening with Ellie. But none of these injuries could compare to the pain that he felt when he lost Stella and broke both of their heats.

It was now early morning and Brandon had been out on the balcony staring all night. All of the boys were up but they kept to their rooms when they all saw Brandon out on the balcony. The only person who managed to walk out of their room and be able to stand the sight of Brandon was Sky, but even then he couldn't think of anything to say to his lifelong friend. Brandon leant against the railing and saw the sun rise. He felt hot tears run down his face seeing the sun. Him and Stella always loved getting up early and seeing each other so that they could watch the sun rise together. Brandon had always thought that the sun rise was almost as beautiful as Stella. The sun just reminded him at just how much he had lost that night.

Brandon was caught in his thoughts that he almost jumped when he heard the balcony doors open. He spun around to see Helia standing in the door way.

"Morning, Helia" Brandon said softly feeling the intense gaze that Helia gave him.

"Morning" Helia replied with no emotion.

"Do you want to stare out from the balcony? Because I can leave, if you want" Brandon offered feeling the tension between them rising.

"Actually" Helia said walking towards Brandon. "I wanted to speak to you, alone."

"More yelling? I've heard enough to last me the rest of my life. Look, whatever you want to say to me, just say it. You can't hate me more than I hate myself right now."

"I'm glad that you said that, but I just want to get something off my chest. It's not a lecture or a yell; it's just an eye opener."

"What do you mean?"

"I just want to say…ARE YOU NUTS?" Helia yelled right in Brandon's face. "You had the most beautiful, funny, loving girlfriend in your grasp and you go and do something like that?"

"Helia" Brandon began.

"No, you're not talking, I am" Helia interrupted.

Brandon kept his mouth shut and listened to what Helia had to say.

"That girl loved you and you let her go? She was your equal, your perfect match and then you go and screw it up? Why would you do something like that when you had it all? I mean, I am so angry that you do something stupid! If I was still with Flora, I would have never done that! I am furious that you had the perfect relationship- that I am jealous of because I don't have it anymore- and you screw it up! I mean, if I still had that, I would never screw it up!"

"Now hold on, Helia" Brandon yelled. "You are one to talk. You had Flora. She was your equal just like Stella is mine and you let her go! You did screw it up! You have no right to come here and lecture me about how much I lost. I know damn well how much I lost. While you, you don't seem to notice. I know I screwed up, I know that. But you don't! I know you miss having what I had and you're angry that I let it slip away when you still want that, I get it, but maybe you should try fixing it like I am with Stella."

"But you're not fixing it"

"Yes I am. Did you know that I'm going to Stella's performance in the park today to try and apologise? What have you done?"

"I broke up with Flora because she wasn't Flora anymore. She wasn't the girl that I fell in love with. You were being selfish and felt neglected by Stella so you hooked up with someone that gave you attention."

"That is not true! We had problems, yes I admit that, but I thought we broke up and I was vulnerable that night because of it so I did something that I thought would take the pain away. And what do you mean Flora is not Flora anymore? Isn't the point of love that you love them no matter what? No matter how much they change or what they do, you will always love them? Isn't that the crap that you've been saying all these years? You're the love guru and suddenly, you contradict yourself by breaking up with someone because they changed?"

"She doesn't trust me and now I can't trust her!"

"Over an ex-boyfriend that attacked her? Dude, she was vulnerable and felt like you didn't trust that she knew her better judgement. Obviously she didn't. You are mad at yourself because you promised to always protect her and she ended up in hospital. You tried to warn her and protect her and she still got hurt. You're not angry at her, your angry at yourself that she still got hurt even though you tried to warn her, protect her and be there for her!"

After those words were said, both men fell immediately silent. Helia had his arms crossed and stared down at the ground. Brandon was breathing deeply at how much he had yelled at Helia. Helia had said everything that he wanted to say to Brandon, but he also heard a few things that Brandon had to say to him.

"We both lost something that meant the world to us, Helia. But the only difference is, is that you can still have it back. I can't. I am jealous of you now because you still have a chance" Brandon said breaking the silence and he walked past Helia and walked inside the dorm.

The girls arrived at the park and were escorted to a private trailer where they could get ready. There was 1 hour remaining until the actual start of the performance and already there were hundreds of fans camped out waiting for them. The girls were so stunned and amazed at the turn out but felt embarrassed that Tony had to hire body guards for them to escort them to the trailer.

Once the girls got inside the trailer, they all started to get ready. As they did their hair, make-up and got dressed, Musa took out sheets of paper and began handing them out to everyone.

"What is this?" Tecna asked looking at the sheet music as she placed an earring on.

"A new song that I wrote" Musa replied continuing to hand out the sheet music.

"What is it called?" Flora asked suspiciously flipping through the music.

"Better than revenge" Musa replied innocently.

"Wait" Stella immediately said finishing reading the song. "This is about someone being cheated on!"

The other girls gasped in horror.

"You use, Brandon and I's relationship and break up so that you could write a song!" Stella screeched.

"Well, you judge a person by their past actions" Flora said shaking her head.

"I can't believe you have done this twice to us, Musa" Bloom said shocked.

"Look, it's nothing personal. When I had my meeting with Tony, he said that people aren't going for relationship songs anymore. They are going for the upbeat boy trashing songs that girls love to sing when they are mad and want to vent" Musa informed.

"So you sold me out so that we could get ahead" Stella screeched again.

"Again" Flora added disappointed.

"It was either; find inspiration from your break up, Stella, or the band goes downhill."

"You could have consulted with us and we could have found another solution" Layla reasoned.

"There wasn't enough time" Musa said putting her shoes on.

"No, there was time you just didn't want to discuss it with us because you knew that I wouldn't have said yes" Stella said.

"Look," Musa said walking over to Stella. "No one will know that it is based on Brandon cheating on you. They won't find out. And besides, he might be in the audience with us with the other guys and if you sing it, you will get your revenge on him. Isn't that what you want? To get even with the guy that broke your heart?"

Stella thought about Musa's offer. She had to admit it, it did sound tempting and worth considering.

"Stella, you're not really considering this, are you?" Flora asked surprised.

"Well, Musa does have a point. If we want this band to go further to the top, sacrifices must be made. And besides, no one has to know that it is about Brandon and I and no one will know that Brandon and I have broken up, because I won't let that happen. And it would be fun seeing Brandon's face when I get my revenge" Stella said.

Flora was shocked. Did Stella actually say yes to this? What kind of world was she living in when the only way people get ahead anywhere is by lying, cheating and back stabbing your friends? Flora knew that the girls were changing; she just didn't know how much they had changed. Did Flora actually want to stay in a world where even her friends were losing themselves to fame and glory? Were they really her friends when one of them has betrayed her so early?

The boys all arrived at the Winx's performance in the park. Security personnel were everywhere keeping people from hurting the Winx and causing riots. Reporters and camera crew were set up to record the performance to stream live to people at home. The performance wasn't long away and people were already cheering and throwing their signs up in the air. In the centre of the park right by the lake, a large stage was set up with lights, special effects and instruments. A drum set with the band's emblem was set out on the stage along with a few guitars, keyboards, microphones and percussion instruments for the background. Around the perimeter designated for the performance were tall large speakers so that everyone could hear.

"This is crazy" Riven said as the boys manoeuvred their way through the crowd.

"Man, fame does come around quickly" Sky added.

"From my calculations, this is the best angle to watch the performance" Timmy said looking at his computer and stopping in the correct spot.

"Thanks Brainiac" Riven said rolling his eyes.

"Lighten up, will you" Sky complained.

Before Riven could start an argument a loud voice echoed all around them.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, children of all ages, please welcome to the stage, The Winx!"

The crowd instantly screamed and cheered as the winx girls walked on the stage waving and smiling. The boys looked at them and smiled. They looked so stunning.

Layla wore black skinny leg jeans with a black strapless top with a leather jacket with sleeves that went to the elbows. She wore a black leather wrist band on her left wrist and black ankle boots.

Tecna wore a black flowing top with circular design that went around the neck holding the top in place. She wore black skinny leg jeans with long black high heel boots that went to just below the knees.

Stella wore black leggings that didn't touch the ankles, with a black strapless top and a black leather jacket, unzipped. She wore black and white high heels with long necklaces around her neck.

Bloom wore a black collared dress with a black belt just under the bust. She wore silver long earrings and black strappy high heels.

Flora wore black skinny leg jeans with a magenta spaghetti string top with a black sleeveless vest. She wore black open toe heels with a silver ring on her left hand.

Musa wore black skinny leg jeans with a white strapless top with a black fringe vest. She had a thick black belt around her waist with black open toe boots and a black jazz hat. (1)

The guys all stared at how gorgeous the girls looked. Layla sat at her drums, Tecna was at her keyboards, Bloom and Musa picked up electric guitars, Flora held a bass guitar and Stella stood at a microphone. They all looked so confident and happy, but not all of them were good at pretending everything was okay. Brandon looked at Stella and he could see all of the pain and misery in her gorgeous eyes. He felt a huge pain in his chest knowing that he had caused them to look that way. Helia watched Flora shyly walk on stage and saw that she was fake smiling. This was the first time he had seen her fake anything. Why would she be fake? Helia instantly knew that Flora was upset and it wasn't about him. Helia felt all of his feelings for Flora rush back and hit him like a tonne of bricks. Brandon's words kept echoing in his head and he couldn't shake them off. Helia knew that Brandon was right. He was angry at himself for not protecting Flora as best as he could and he avoided it by being mad at Flora. He just hoped that maybe, he wasn't too late.

"Hello city of Magix" Musa said in the microphone.

The crowd cheered and whistled after Musa said that.

"Are you all ready to party?" Musa asked.

The crowd screamed louder.

"I think that is a yes, Musa" Stella said into another microphone acting innocent and sarcastic so they could tease the audience.

"Alright" Musa laughed. "We organised this concert so that you all get a little taste of our upcoming album that is due out soon. We've had delays that caused it to be postponed but we hope that this makes up for it. Our first song that we would like to sing is brand new and I like to invite Stella to join me in singing it."

"Thanks Musa" Stella replied in her microphone as she held her guitar. "We decided to write a song that was totally different and we all hope that you enjoy it."

"Better than Revenge" By Taylor Swift

Stella Speaking: Now go stand in the corner and think about what you did.

The drums and guitars kicked in and the lights instantly started changing colours and strobe lights were flashing.

Stella Speaking: Time for a little revenge

Stella: The story starts when it was hot and it was summer and
I had it all, I had him right there where I wanted him
She came along, got him alone and let's hear the applause
She took him faster than you could say sabotage

I never saw it coming,

Stella and Musa: wouldn't have suspected it
Stella: I underestimated just who I was dealing with
She had to know the pain was beating on me like a drum
She underestimated just who she was stealing from

Everyone: She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress,

Musa: whoa
Everyone: She's better known for things that she does on the mattress,

Musa: whoa
Stella: Soon she's gonna find stealing other people's toys on the playground won't make you many friends
Stella and Musa: She should keep in mind, she should keep in mind
Stella: There is nothing I do better than revenge

Bloom Speaking during music playing: Ha

Stella: She looks at life like it's a party and she's on the list
She looks at me like I'm a trend and she's so over it
I think her ever present frown is a little troubling
She thinks I'm psycho

Stella and Musa: cause I like to rhyme her name with things
Stella: But sophistication isn't what you wear or who you know
Or pushing people down to get where you wanna go
They didn't teach that in prep school so it's up to me
That no amount of vintage dresses gives you dignity

Everyone: She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress,

Musa: whoa
Everyone: She's better known for things that she does on the mattress,

Brandon stood there listening to the song. Every word that came out of Stella's word was like an arrow to his heart. She was singing about their break up and he couldn't believe his ears. He watched as she smiled at the chorus, how she danced with the music and how into it she was when the lyrics 'better than revenge' were sung. She was actually enjoying this and at his expense. Brandon couldn't help but feel huge pains in his chest hearing Stella's song. And that was when he knew, that he lost Stella, forever.

Stella: I'm just another thing for you to roll your eyes at, honey
You might have him but haven't you heard
I'm just another thing for you to roll your eyes at, honey
You might have him but I always have the last word

Bloom Speaking during music: You are….can't take it back…you are…

Everyone: She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress,

Musa: whoa
Everyone: She's better known for things that she does on the mattress,

Everyone: Do you still feel like you know what you're doing
Cause I don't think you do
Oh, do you still feel like you know what you're doing
I don't think you do, I don't think you do
Stella: Let's hear the applause
Come on show me how much better you are
See you deserve some applause
Cause you're so much better

Stella speaking: She took him faster than you can say sabotage

The stage instantly went black as the song finished. The crowd cheered and screamed for the girls.

"They love the song" Musa yelled waving to the audience.

Flora looked away from the crowd and stared at the ground sadly. She hated every minute of playing the song with the girls.

"Yes, but at what cost?" Flora whispered to herself.

The girls were too busy waving and smiling at the audience that they didn't hear Flora talking to herself. Flora looked at the crowd again and saw that no one had noticed that the song was based on Stella's pain. She looked to the corner of her eye and saw a familiar face in the audience. It was Helia. He was still there supporting her even through all of their issues and even though they broke up. He was still there. Flora looked down at the ground again. These days, the floor was the only comforting thing. Is this what she really wanted? Did she really want to move forward with the band when they are hurting each other, betraying and lying to each other and using their pain for the band? Did she really want this? Flora knew it right then and there that Helia was right. She had changed, they all have changed and it wasn't for the better. Flora had let herself believe that they all were doing something that they enjoyed, but Flora was not enjoying herself. She was actually miserable. She had lost the best thing that she ever had and she knew there was only thing that could make her happy. And she wasn't going to lose it for a second time.

Flora breathed deeply preparing herself for what she was about to do. She slipped off the guitar strap and placed the guitar down on the ground. The girls were too distracted to notice that Flora was removing her guitar and her microphone head set. Flora threw the headset on the ground and ran off stage. The audience gasped in horror as they watched Flora run off stage. The girls turned around and watched Flora ran off stage.

"Flora!" Musa yelled as Flora ran away from the stage.

Helia watched as Flora ran off the stage and he could swear that he saw a few tears threatening to fall from her stunning green eyes.

"Go get her" Brandon whispered in Helia's ear. "Get your second chance."

Helia didn't have to be told twice. He instantly ran after Flora.

Flora could hear Musa and the girls yelling at her to come back, but she didn't want to. She ran down the stage stairs and away from the fans. She couldn't take it anymore. She wanted to leave all of this behind her. She followed her heart and her instincts and they immediately led her to the lake. Flora stood by the lake and watched as the moon light hit the lake. Flora sighed as she thought about what she had just done. She had just abandoned her friends during a performance, so unprofessional, but she didn't care. They had abandoned her when they used her pain for a song without her permission. She didn't want that life if it meant hurting the people that you love the most. Flora felt so stupid that she had let Helia go for the life that she thought she wanted. She let him go for a life of betrayal and lies. All Flora was concerned about was getting her life back to normal.

The girls stood on stage gob smacked seeing their friend running off and leaving them.

"What just happened?" Stella asked confused.

Musa smiled to the crowd and walked towards the microphone.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we're having some minor technical difficulties so we're going to take a short break" Musa said with a smile.

The girls calmly left their instruments and walked off stage. As soon as they were off the stage and were out of public view, they all ran after Flora.

Flora stood by the lake with her arms folded across her chest and watched the moon light shine through the water. Flora felt the last of her tears stop and she began to calm down. She felt silly that she was blinded by the fame and how much fun she had to see that she had always had the thing that she wanted most of all. She had her friends, respect and she had Helia. She lost respect for herself when she fell for Eric's trap, her friends are changing and back-stabbing each other and she lost Helia. She lost everything that she really wanted, for something that only Musa wanted. Flora was lost in her thoughts when she heard someone walking towards her in the grass.

Flora didn't turn around. All she knew, or thought she knew, was that whoever was behind her was going to give her the biggest lecture and scream-fest of her life.

"Whatever it is that you have to say to me, Musa, just say it" Flora said still staring at the water.

"Musa's on stage with the girls" a voice said.

Flora's eyes lit up by the person's voice. It was soothing, loving and made her heart quicken. The voice held confidence with a hint of protectiveness, but also kindness. Flora would admit that she saw the owner of the voice in the crowd during her performance, but she thought they were the last person she was going to see at this very moment. Flora instantly turned around and saw Helia standing behind her.

"Helia?" Flora said confused and shocked.

"Hi, Flora" Helia replied with a soft smile.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to see if you're okay."

"Yeah, I'm fine" Flora said looking at the ground.

"You don't look it."

"Well that's strange because I am fine" Flora said before she felt tears forming in her eyes.

As soon as Flora said that, her eyes betrayed her and she felt hot tears running down her cheeks. Helia's face saddened and he walked up to Flora and gently pulled her into a hug. Flora couldn't hold back her tears anymore. She started crying and she laid her head on Helia's chest.

"I just feel so stupid" Flora sobbed.

"Why did you run off stage, Flora?" Helia asked trying to comfort her.

"I couldn't take it anymore" Flora replied still crying.

Helia felt his heart quicken when he heard Flora say those words. This might be easier than he thought.

"I lost everything that I ever wanted. This stupid band is tearing everyone apart" Flora continued.

"How is it tearing everyone apart?"

"Bloom and Sky almost broke up, Tecna and Timmy had a rift between them and Timmy almost cheated on Tecna, Stella kept cancelling on Brandon and he cheated on her and I lost you."

Helia's grip on Flora loosened hearing the last part of her sentence.

"I lost everything I ever wanted. I lost my friends, I lost the confidence to defend myself, I lost you and I lost myself. You were right Helia. You were right."

Flora cried harder. Helia could feel the tears on his shirt now. He tightened his grip on Flora as he tried to calm her down.

"Everyone was just awful to each other and I didn't see it until now. Not until Musa betrayed Stella as well. There is so much betrayal now and I can't take it anymore. Brandon betrayed Stella, Musa betrayed Stella and I, Musa betrayed herself into thinking that that was okay and worse I betrayed you."

Helia's eyes widened. Betrayed? Flora didn't betray him. Sure she didn't trust him, but trust is different to betrayal. She definitely had the wrong idea about everything. Hearing these words that Flora was saying, made Helia's news even easier to say.

Helia released Flora from the hug and held her shoulders and forced her to look him in the eyes.

"Flora" Helia said waiting for Flora's eyes to meet his. "Look at me." When Flora's eyes met his, he continued. "You didn't betray me, okay."

"But I did. I should have believed you about Eric, I should have believed you about Tony changing the band and I should have believed you when you said I was losing myself."

"Flora, trust is different to betrayal. Tony was controlling you and your way of thinking. I know that now. I know that Tony and the band's fame were influencing you and changing you into something that you're not."

"Even so, I should have believed you. I ran off stage because I quit. I quit this whole thing."

Helia tensed up hearing those words come out of Flora's mouth. When he broke up with her, he knew that the only thing to get the real Flora back and for them to get back together was for her to quit the band. But after his talk with Brandon, he realised that Flora was still the same, she was just influenced by Tony and everyone else. He thought that he couldn't look past that, but hearing Flora say that she wanted to quit, made Helia feel like he was walking on air. Helia smiled as he took one hand off Flora's shoulder and lifted her chin to look him in the eyes.

"Flora, do you honestly quit the band or are you just saying that because you are upset?" Helia said sincerely.

"I honestly want to quit. You were right. This whole thing had changed me into something I'm not and I feel like there is no safety in this life. I want my old life back."

Helia could not help but smile hearing that.

"That's fantastic" Helia said.

As soon as Helia said that, he gently pulled Flora into a kiss. Flora was caught off guard by this and was stunned to suddenly be kissing Helia. The moment their lips came together, they instantly moved perfectly like they were never apart. Flora felt butterflies in her stomach as she felt the feeling of Helia's lips on hers that she had missed dearly. Flora had never put so much passion and feeling into a kiss as much as this one. Everything immediately intensified as Helia's strong arms encircled around Flora in a protective, firm yet gentle embrace that she loved. The kiss deepened as Helia gently pulled Flora closer to his body promising never to let her go again. As they kissed, Flora could tell that this was Helia's way of apologising for the break up. Helia's leaving had left a hole in Flora's heart and she was now starting to feel it heal again.

(1) Pictures are on my profile