Chapter 14

For the next few days Gil and Arthur did nothing but practice. They divided up the song, they switched parts, they did whatever they had to and perfected the duet.

The night of the challenge both were a bit nervous. Arthur wore tight black jeans that were going to tease Gil all night long. He had his old British flag t-shirt on but not any of his spikes. His hair was a little wild, like Gil's.

Gil had his plain black shirt on, tight. His had the usual bandanna and normal dark jeans.

Arthur looked at the clock "Well….ready?"

Gil nodded and grabbed his guitar "Ready as I'll ever be…and hey, I'm driving." He smirked and ran to his car, jumping in the driver's seat.

Arthur grumbled and slowly followed him, sliding in next to him. It was a shirt ride to the bar, but it was packed, Gil didn't find a closer spot and ended up parking in the grass. The two walked into the bar, elbowing past people and going to find the set list.

Gil yelled over the noise "Act #24! They're on 17!"

Arthur nodded and they fought through the crowd to find a table, that was not their usual one.

The bar manager sat near a man, who was the judge and they talked and marked scores on a piece of paper. The bartender doubled as an announcer, calling out names and act numbers.

Gil watched and listened, committing numbers to his mind of those he thought were competition. Arthur tapped his fingers, a bit restless.

When the 23rd act went on stage, the two crept over to stage side. The current act wasn't that great and Gil wasn't too worried about them. All together there were only 35 duets.

There was a polite applause to the group as they left, but the energy in the room after them was dead. Bad pair, bad song.

Arthur took a deep breath and slide on stage, alone in the spotlight. Gil hid back a bit, in the dark, playing the guitar.

Arthur started off singing.

"Every time I see your face
My heart takes off on a high speed chase
Now don't be scared, it's only love
Baby, that we're falling in."

Gil moved up from the dark, standing at Arthur's side, picking up singing.

"I can't wait till tomorrow
This feeling has swallowed me whole
And know that I've lost control
This heart that I've followed
Has left me so hollow
That was then, this is now, yeah you have changed everything"

He looked at Arthur as he sang the song, smiling a bit. Their chemistry and skill started to bring the room to life.

They picked up the chorus together, voices mixing in perfectly.

"Every time I see your face
My heart takes off on a high speed chase
Now don't be scared, it's only love
That we're falling in
I would never do you wrong
Or let you down or lead you on
Don't look down, it's only love
Baby, that we're falling in."

When the chorus faded, Arthur picked up singing again while Gil played the main chords.

"I'm standing in your driveway
It's midnight and I'm sideways
To find out if you feel the same
Won't be easy, have my doubts too
But it's over, without you I'm just lost, incomplete
Yeah you feel like home, home to me."

He pointed to Gil, grinning and touched his hand over his heart.

They sang the chorus together again and when it faded this time, Gil started off.

"All those nights I stayed awake
Thinking of all the ways to make you mine
All of those smiles will never fade
Never run out of ways to blow my mind"

The two stood right together and closed strong, going out with the chorus, pitch matched and voices in perfect harmony. The room was buzzing, the judge was impressed, and Gil felt on top of the world, happy, with Arthur at his side.

The two bowed and left the stage, laughing and grinning. In the corner Gil grabbed Arthur and quickly kissed him.

"We nailed it."

Arthur grinned "Hell yeah we did."

Walking back through the crowd a few people caught them and praised them. Gil couldn't stop grinning and Arthur was in a great mood. They found a table and sat down, waiting to hear the end results. After the rest of the duets went, the judge and manager took the stage.

"It has been a great night with a lot of talent, but it is our honor to say, the winner of tonight's duet contest, is entry number twenty four with Gilbert Bielschdmit and Arthur Kirkland!"

Gil grinned brighter and flung his arms around the stupid Brit he had come to love. They really were a perfect match.

Arthur and him walked over to the stage to shake the hands of the judge and manager, even pose for some pictures.

Their smiles never faltered, their victory was perfect. They locked their hands together and took a final bow, retreating off the stage.

It was not anything tremendous. It was not the end of a war, it was not world peace. It was a small thing, a small win. All the celebration was over just a song.

Just a song that told the story, of two young musicians in love.

END

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