Dressed head to toe in black clothes, Sebastian was whistling as he made his way into the classrooms building, making sure no one was around before heading down the hallway where one of the music rooms was. In his hand, a black bag swung back and forth as he walked, his legs legs moving in equally strides so he would be in time for his meeting with Cooper. It was the first of three scenes he had to complete to get the task done, so he was glad he was already onto it.
When he arrived to the music room he opened the bag and pull out a paper on which he had already written ‘Chief’s Office’ with a black marker, and he taped it to the door before going inside and locking the door behind him. With a little over ten minutes before the young woman would supposedly join him there, he grabbed some of the tools he had brought along and got to work, which implied inserting a couple of screws on the ceiling. two hooks hanging from each one. For what he had inmind, it was the best he could come up with, props wise, without having the scenes rooms to rely on. He pushed the desk to the center of the room and he leaned back on it, the bag placed on top of it as well, and he waited.
Travel days were by far the worst days about the tour -- more specifically plane days. Flying was one of the many things that filled Julie with anxiety and dread. It’s probably why she became such a homebody, but she wanted to see more of the world, so this was going to be the price she paid. Luckily for her though, she wasn’t alone in fearing being so high up off the ground.
There was Cooper.
The two had only just met, but something just clicked between the two of them. It was something Julie couldn’t really explain. They made plans to make sure they sat next to each other on the plane so they could hide under a blanket the entire time, watching movies. What better way to go through every worst possible scenario of a plane crash than with someone who feels the exact same way? There is none.
Julie liked to travel as light as possible, so she just brought a small carry on that had snacks, her phone, headphones, and a pillow. You know, the essentials. She made her way through the aisle of the plane, looking at her plane ticket and then at the seat numbers before noticing someone covered by a blanket. She couldn’t help but laugh to herself.
She lifted up the blanket and slid underneath, tucking her carry-on bag underneath the chair in front of her. “I see you’ve already set up base! This is a nice blanket you’ve got here.” She chuckled. “Also, I brought us some snacks. You know, you gotta have movie snacks!”
The cold woke her. Without Coop under the covers with her, the air conditioning was too much, even with the covers. She ran her fingers over his side of the bed. It had been empty all night. He had started coming to bed later more often, and though she pretended otherwise, Bianca knew why.
Bailey was right. It was time to stop running from this. Bianca got up and put on her robe before exiting the bedroom. She went to his office first, seeing the light still on, but he wasn’t there. She walked past the children’s empty rooms, wishing they were full. The children’s absence — though supposed to be a treat — only meant there was nothing to distract her from the growing chasm between her and her husband, her love. Bianca clutched her robe tighter around herself. She missed him.
The wooden steps were cold on her bare feet, and each step felt harder to take as she got closer to the light in the kitchen. She hesitated for a moment before taking the last step onto the main floor. This was long overdue.
“Coop?” She said as she enter the kitchen, spotting him.....drinking? But Cooper never drinks at home. “What are you doing?”
The events of yesterday had left Julie emotionally exhausted. Seeing her parents was the last thing that she wanted nor needed. Being in New York had been going so well, so she knew that something had to give. She knew being on this show was going to go above and beyond to make her crack, but she never knew just how low they’d stoop.
All she knew at this point was that she desperately needed this night out with Cooper -- something to remind her that it wasn’t always like this and that there were people who cared about her on this tour.
Her outfit of choice for the evening was a fuzzy pink top, silver sequin skirt, and holographic loafers. She had to do her best to try and outshine Cooper after all. Taking a glance at her phone and noting the thirteen missed calls and seven texts from her parents, she sighed and tucked it into her purse before heading up to Cooper’s hotel room.
He left the door on the latch for her and it made her think back to when they went to Hamilton in Chicago. It brought a small smile to her face as she walked inside the hotel room, hearing the shower water running still. “Hey, I’m here!” She hollered loud enough so he’d know she arrived. The last thing she wanted was for him to get startled when he got out and saw her sat on the couch.
Sitting down on the couch, she began flipping through her phone and checking her social media, waiting for him to be ready to go out for the evening.
Being in a hotel after sleeping in a bunk on a bus was such a luxury especially after the long plane ride she had endured the day prior. However, the ride wasn’t all that terrible -- thanks to the great Coop. He made it feel like the plane ride never really happened. For that, she was grateful. And now... they had plans to eat their weights in Taco Bell.
Despite it just being the result of a bet, Julie still felt the need to make sure she didn’t look like a sack of potatoes. She had done the lightest of makeup looks and put on a nice long sleeve black dress with some thigh high black boots to complement.
Julie was starting to feel a little nervous. Why was she nervous? There was absolutely no reason for her to be nervous. “Okay... just breathe. It’s just Taco Bell.” She shook her head, taking one last look in the mirror when there was a knock on her hotel door. “Be right there!” She yelled, grabbing her purse and heading for the door.
Opening the door, she immediately grinned. “Hey. Ready to go?”
SUMMARY: Julie texts Cooper whilst he’s at a bar in hopes that he’d agree to come hang out with her. Knowing that something was bothering him, she insisted that she come get him. The two spend the evening in her hotel room sharing some much needed cuddles, gummy bears, and Julie “lets” him win at Fortnite. The two also open up more about what’s been on their minds.
It all started with a simple text to hang out, which, didn’t initially go the way that Julie hoped. Cooper made it seem as if he wanted to be left alone. She wanted to respect his space, but gave it one last shot before he agreed for her to come to him.
The moment she saw him at the bar, she knew immediately he needed some kind of pick me up, so she insisted they give the paparazzi something to talk about by confusing the heck out of them. This included but was not limited to: pretending to argue, suddenly being okay, pretending to cry, a fake slap across the face, and immediately holding hands after. Successfully, the paparazzi decided to move on from the mess that was them so they could continue their way back to the hotel in peace.
Upon arriving at the room, the pair plopped down on the bed and decided to unwind with some games and gummy bears.
Julie was generous and let Cooper win a few games (all of them) of Fortnite. To which he sat up and gave Julie a confused look, saying: “What do you mean let me win?” And to which Julie responded by shoving a gummy bear in his mouth to get him to shush. Cooper, being a little shit, pretended to choke and die in an attempt to mess with her. Julie played along by watching him pretend to die and whispering under her breath, “Finally.” It was loud enough for him to hear and, while he was shocked someone had given him a taste of his own medicine, the two shared laughs.
After a few games, the two lay on the bed facing one another and started talking about life. Julie opened up more about her relationship with her parents and why she wasn’t too keen about being in her hometown. Cooper spoke about how his confessional didn’t go well and his concerns about the outcome of the episode airing the following day. It was all around good conversations and made Julie feel more connected to Cooper.
The night began to wind down and Julie attempted to be the big spoon, wrapping her arms around his torso and snuggling her face into his back. It was certainly a night they both needed after all they had been through the past week.
