Archive of Our Own

Was there anything more exciting than a boy band? It was impossible to forget something as significant as The Beatles craze or the impact of the Backstreet Boys. Then came One Direction, with a fresher sound that was perfect for a female audience. There was always a boy behind the screen, a boy behind a beat that filled stadiums and showed up on teenagers' t-shirts.

In 2026, it was Gavi. Gavi, who had caught everyone's attention mostly thanks to his pink hair and his Spanish roots –and, as a result, an excessive amount of Spanglish in his lyrics–, was at the peak of his fame.

He wasn't in a boy band, but he didn't need to be when he had the complete package, or so the music and gossip magazines said. A pretty face, a voice that could melt anyone, and stage shows worthy of a movie. Justin Bieber who? This boy was a mix of all the great pop boys who had ever existed. That was how they sold him.

But Jude couldn't stand the sight of him. Every time he turned on the TV or checked his social media, the first thing he saw was Gavi's pink hair and his stupid face. How could people like him and his garbage music? If he was being honest, Jude hadn't spared a single minute of his life to listen to it, but he didn't need to. He knew it would be a waste of time.

The only time Jude gave him his attention, however much he hated the idea, was when Gavi came up on the news on the TV at work. Why would a pop boy be on the morning news? Jude read the headline in big letters. He couldn't believe it.

"Famous pop singer Gavi will make his debut in England," said the woman on the news. "He'll be visiting a bunch of cities across the country. Is yours on the list?"

I hope not, Jude thought. But in the list, he could clearly read the name of his city: Birmingham.

Shit. He really hated the idea of having to witness Gavi invading not only his digital space, but his city too. That was the real problem. Jude worked in a small university bookshop on the main shopping street in Birmingham. In other words, right in the middle of all the stores that would probably do everything they could to get Gavi to visit. Advertising, promotions, maybe even a pink themed coffee. Jude knew exactly how that side of the city worked when someone as big as Gavi showed up.

"This has to be a joke," Jude complained, leaving the paperwork he was doing half finished.

Next to him, his coworker Louis looked at him over the top of his glasses. "Oh. We have a Gavi hater here?"

Jude gave him a dry look and picked up the remote to change the channel. Whatever he put on, Gavi was there. He hated that the ancient TV couldn't even run Netflix.

"It's not that," Jude defended himself. He picked up a stack of anatomy books and lined them up on one of the shelves. "I hate it when the streets get noisy. That's all."

All things considered, Jude wasn't lying. Whenever an event like this happened, everything turned to chaos. A chaos he was forced to be part of. He didn't consider himself a bitter man; he was only 24, and it was more than clear he didn't want to get wrinkles young, so he tried to take everything calmly. But with Gavi he simply couldn't. The mere idea of having him in the same city somehow irritated him.

The thing was, on top of having to see him everywhere, he also had to put up with him at home. A few months ago, his younger brother, Jobe, had started dating a girl from his university, Franny. A sweet girl studying communications. Charismatic, polite, even religious. So what was Franny's problem? Her stupid obsession with Gavi. You'd think someone like her would be smart enough not to fall for garbage music like Gavi's –and by you, Jude meant himself–, but there she was. Playing his music on car rides and talking about him at the dinner table.

Obviously, Jobe didn't think it was a bad thing, and he even seemed to genuinely like the guy. Was Jude the villain of this story?

"Think of the business," Louis told him. Jude looked at him, not understanding. "He could help us bring in more customers, you know."

"C'mon, Louis," that was stupid. "How could Gavi help us? We're a shop that sells academic textbooks. Bet he's never set foot in a university in his life."

"You have a point there."

Coffee and clothing stores were the ones that made the most money at times like these. If a coffee shop got lucky, Gavi would come in for a coffee in the morning, and then that coffee would carry his name and be the most ordered drink for months. People would come to take photos, to sit in the same chair he sat in, and to talk to the barista who had served him. What's he like? they'd ask, and then the coffee shop numbers would climb on every platform.

If Gavi decided to buy a new t-shirt at one of the stores around there, the same thing would happen. It would become a trend, and they'd probably put up a sign afterwards: Gavi was here.

But what would a guy like Gavi do in a boring shop full of textbooks and educational books? Not even Jude would step into that place if he didn't work there. The only reason he was there was that he needed a part-time job and free textbooks. Studying physiotherapy wasn't cheap. He had to make it work somehow.

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The nightmare began for Jude at one of the family dinners at his house, when Jobe asked him a question.

Jude had always fantasized about traveling through time. About going back to one specific moment and wondering whether it was best to leave it as it was or change it. If he could, he'd change a lot of things. Maybe he'd answer something differently or take another road.

"Jude, could you drop Franny off at Gavi's concert and pick her up afterwards?"

At that exact moment, when Jobe asked, Jude wondered if this was a decision that would make him want to travel back in time in the long run.

Jobe went on. "I have an important meeting with the finance guys in their final year."

"So?" Jude took a sip of water, not paying much attention. He didn't want to assume anything.

"You know how important these things are for networking," and in fact, Jobe was right. But why to that stupid concert, of all places? Jude was speechless in front of his brother. "C'mon, Jude. I'll do whatever you want."

"Whatever I want?"

"Yes."

"Okay," Jude propped his face on both hands, staring Jobe down. "Tickets to the Manchester versus Arsenal game."

If Jobe was asking him to do something as much of a sacrifice as picking his girlfriend up from Gavi's concert, he had to pay the price. Jude wasn't going to do something like that for free. Not in a place where everyone loved Gavi and he'd have to see that face not only on screens, but on t-shirts, on posters, on practically everything around him. It was a huge sacrifice that, thank God, would get him tickets to watch a football match.

Just from his brother's reaction, he knew he'd put him in a tight spot, but also that he'd won what he wanted. At the end of the day, nobody wanted to lose their girlfriend, right?

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It was a stupid idea. One that no football match could make up for. Jude hated every moment of his life as he drove through the crowded streets around the stadium where Gavi would be performing. Not only were there tons of people, both fans and street vendors, but he also had Franny beside him, turning up the volume on his car radio because her favorite Gavi song was playing.

Oh, no. That was a lot. She was doing that in his car. She had just shattered the anti-Gavi peace his car had. It was the only place on those streets where he could take refuge. Now he had to listen to that damn voice and the way Franny melted at the sound of it.

"Can we not?" Jude asked, looking at her with his brows drawn together. Irritated.

"C'mon, Jude. I don't know why you don't like Gavi."

"I don't know why you like Gavi."

"He's handsome, first of all," in his head, Jude couldn't find anything handsome about Gavi, so he had no reaction to her words. "He sings well. His songs are catchy. God, Jude. He has a foundation in Spain for stray animals. That's very sweet."

No, he couldn't take any more. He let out a sigh and felt like his head was going to explode. Was it because of Gavi, or the unbearable noise on the streets? Or maybe his brother's girlfriend's words had made him dizzy. Something he couldn't understand was this extreme fandom. Maybe Jude was losing his mind, and the gray hairs would come soon because of how bitter he sounded.

He turned near the entrance and unlocked the car doors, looking at Franny. He didn't know where to stop.

"Here's fine," the girl told him. She took off her seatbelt and grabbed her things. Before getting out, she looked at Jude. "See you in two hours."

Being the polite guy that he was, Jude nodded and said goodbye. But as soon as the door closed, he changed the music and put on some Oasis. He turned up the volume and sighed in relief, looking at the streets full of teenagers and adults. The first thing he thought was: where the fuck am I going to park?

He could go home and wait there, in the comfort of his couch in his house slippers. But he knew it would be more chaotic and difficult afterwards when the concert ended, so it was better to find a good spot to wait. Maybe taking a nap or watching some true crime on his phone would make the two hours go by quickly. Staying near the stadium definitely worked better for him.

So Jude found a promising spot. Even though Gavi was a big artist, the venue for his concert wasn't the biggest stadium in Birmingham for this kind of thing, so it was easy to park in a blind spot at the back. If Jude remembered right, he'd been to that stadium more than once for friendly matches or electronic music concerts. He knew the area well, so the spot he secured was perfect.

He had his back to the chaos of the main entrance and there was nobody else near him. If this were a horror movie, Jude would probably be the first to die, given how dark and lonely the place was. But this wasn't an horror movie. Although being at a Gavi concert sounded like one in Jude's head.

After parking, long minutes went by. Jude searched his pockets for his pack of cigarettes and decided that smoking one was the healthiest choice for him at that moment. One minute of relaxation was all he needed. Alone, in a dark alley with Gavi's music drifting in from far away. Could anything be more performative? Jude was always in hilarious scenes.

Leaning against his car, he lit his cigarette and began to smoke. When he thought about when he'd started this habit, he always remembered the first semesters of university and how stressful they'd been. How social they'd been, too, watching himself fall down the bad path of alcohol and cigarettes because it was what all the university students his age did. It went against what his degree taught him, but who cares? There were worse ways of dealing with this kind of thing.

When Jude was halfway through his cigarette, he heard a loud noise beside him. From the building, the back of the stadium, Jude saw a metal door open. It was big and heavy, hence the loud noise. A person came out, and at first glance it was hard to tell if it was a woman, a man, or whatever else. It was really dark. The only light was from the street, and it barely lit the area where Jude's car was.

Even so, Jude didn't stop looking at the person. There were several possibilities. Either someone wanted to hurt Jude, or it was simply a ghost. Which was worse? Jude stayed still, not knowing what to do. He felt that if he didn't move, that person wouldn't notice he was there.

But then that person started to talk. Or complain. He was making noises that Jude at first didn't understand. Was it another language? Maybe alien?

"Joder," the voice was rough and definitely male. The person kept getting closer to the light. He was patting his pants, his torso. He was looking for something. "Mierda."

For some reason, Jude lost all the fear he'd felt and leaned out to see him better. He just looked like a lost, irritated guy.

"You need help?"

At Jude's voice, the guy turned to look at him, and for the first time the light reached his face. He was wearing sunglasses and had the hood of his sweatshirt up, so it was hard to see him properly, but he didn't look old. He was young, and shorter than Jude.

"Uh," his voice wavered. He looked around with an urgency that surprised Jude. Was he running from someone? "I lost my vape."

Jude didn't know whether to laugh or worry. He understood that the mystery guy's desperation was over that. If Jude thought about it, he of all people knew how maddening it was to lose something like that. He didn't use a vape, because he found them strange, but he had lost his pack of cigarettes before and it had been chaos. So Jude decided to drop the humorous side of the scene and wanted to help.

"I only have cigarettes," was what he said. He took the pack out of his pocket and stretched out his hand to offer it. "You want one?"

Once again he noticed the urgency in the guy as he looked around. He wasn't running from someone, but it seemed like he was looking for someone. It was strange. Jude didn't know if he was witnessing some kind of crime.

Finally the guy stepped into the light with quick steps. He took a cigarette from the pack.

"Sure, thank you," then he put it to his lips.

In an awkward moment, they both looked at each other, confused. As if they were carefully analyzing their next move. In the end, the mystery guy made a gesture that made Jude understand he needed a lighter.

"Shit, right. Here," he took out his lighter and handed it to the guy.

Seconds later they were both smoking in silence. Jude lit a second cigarette. The reason he did was that it simply seemed like the right thing to do; leaving that guy alone felt like abandoning a puppy in the street. Smoker's law: never leave someone smoking alone, especially if you're the one who gave them the cigarette.

So he stayed there. From time to time, he glanced at him out of the corner of his eye.

"You're here to see Gavi?"

For some reason, Jude decided to make conversation. If he was going to be alone in that place for two hours waiting for his brother's girlfriend, a little conversation sounded perfect. The guy beside him startled at the question. Since he was wearing sunglasses, Jude couldn't see his expression. But he could tell that his lips were curling in a slightly restless way.

"Uh, yes," Jude looked at him in disbelief. It couldn't be that perfect. "I mean, I'm working–" then he turned to look at the building. "Here."

"I see," Jude let out the smoke. "I guess you must be used to the girls screaming, then."

"Yeah, kinda. You never get used to it, though," the mystery guy let out a small laugh. It sounded nervous. Then he let out his smoke too. "What about you?"

"Nah," Jude began. "No way I'm here to see Gavi. I got stuck being the chauffeur."

He pointed at his car. The guy looked at the car and nodded.

"So, you don't like Gavi?"

"Not really."

"Why?"

Jude shrugged and blew smoke at the sky. He had noticed the mystery guy had a pretty American accent. He wasn't from England. "Not my type of music. I don't know, there's something about him I don't like. He doesn't seem genuine."

When he was little, Jude used to get scolded a lot for being so honest. His mother would tell him it was fine to tell the truth, but that he needed to have filters. In that alley, Jude didn't care. That guy didn't seem like someone who wanted filters.

"Oh, I see," then he dropped the cigarette on the ground and stepped on it to put it out. "I don't think he's that bad, maybe if you got to know him better, you will–"

The same sound Jude had heard when the mystery guy came out echoed again. They both turned to look, and in the doorway was a tall, burly man. The presence of this person, for some reason, made his companion more desperate. The mystery guy started to move restlessly. Was he really running from someone?

"Pablo?" the burly man called out. Or shouted. "We're about to start. Come here!"

"Mierda."

Beside him, the guy moved and wiped his hands on his pants. Something typical of a not-so-frequent smoker. He wanted the smell of cigarettes to go away, but it wouldn't be that easy. Then he turned to look at Jude one last time.

Jude didn't know if he was saying goodbye, but something in the way he moved his head told him he was. A thank you, maybe. Then he disappeared with the burly man through the metal door, and Jude got into his car to watch some YouTube.

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How was it possible for two hours to feel so endless? Jude didn't know what else to do inside the four walls of his car. He had already watched two true crime cases and a full gameplay of Resident Evil. Even so, the time didn't seem to pass. He'd get out, take some air, smoke a cigarette, and then get back in. Now and then he scrolled through delivery apps thinking it would be a good idea to order something extremely calorie-heavy, but then he'd regret it.

He had to stay in shape. Jude had dedicated himself so much to his body and lifestyle that nobody could ruin it. Not even Gavi, who was the main reason he was there at all.

Finally he got a message from Franny saying she was ready. He drove back to the exact spot where he'd dropped her off. When he found her, the girl opened the passenger door and got in. Her smile was so big that Jude felt his own cheekbones burn. She really looked like the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland.

"That was fucking amazing, Jude."

Shit. Jude didn't even want to ask, because he knew the whole ride he'd have Franny telling him about the incredible concert he couldn't care less about. Still, he looked at her attentively. As if he were really listening to her words.

All he could make out was: Gavi is gorgeous blah blah Gavi did this and then this and then he threw his bottle blah blah he sang a new song blah blah I love him, Jude.

Jobe was the strongest warrior, Jude thought. Because there was no way Franny could ever love him more than she loved Gavi.

When they got home, Franny greeted his mother and left her things in Jobe's room. She lived quite far from the concert venue, so she'd be staying at the Bellinghams' even if Jobe was still in his big meeting with the university guys. Franny was already like one of the family, so his mother welcomed her warmly. She hugged her and stroked her hair. Jude, on the other hand, poured himself some lemon water. Maybe he'd make himself a sandwich.

"How did it go, love?"

"Ah, Denise. Best day of my life."

If Jude had Gavi in front of him at that moment, he'd punch him. Or well, something like that. He wasn't really violent, but how could he not get a break from him even in his own home?

"It finished later than they said, didn't it?" his mother said, looking at her watch.

Franny nodded. "Yes. Gavi came out later, apparently he got held up with something"

The conversation didn't end there, but Jude wasn't fully interested. So after making his sandwich and pouring his water, he waved goodbye to both women and went to his room. He resumed the gameplay, this time from another streamer's point of view.

While he ate, he noticed the posters in his room. There weren't many, but there were a few of some England national team players. What made him different from the teenage girls who drooled over Gavi?

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The next day, everything was chaos in the streets. The culprit? Gavi.

When Jude got to his shop, he had to squeeze his way through the crowd on the street, arriving with his shirt slightly rumpled. He didn't know if it was actually hot or if the sheer amount of human body heat had him like that.

When he opened the door and dropped his things behind the counter, Jude looked at Louis.

"What the hell?"

Without saying anything, Louis showed Jude his phone. There was a news story: famous pop singer Gavi had been spotted in the streets of Birmingham after his concert. Jude understood everything. It was the street his shop was on. The fans hadn't wasted any time.

"That Gavi, really," Jude dramatically grabbed his head, as if he'd been given the worst news of his life. Then he calmed down and checked the day's orders. "Did it do any good at least? Did he bring in customers?"

"What do you think?"

The way Louis looked at him was more than enough to understand it hadn't helped at all.

"Told you," then Jude decided to change the subject, because there was nothing more to say about Gavi. "Were you able to talk to the distributors?"

The day went on like a normal day at work. Usually not many people came in, sometimes college students in a bind who needed to study a whole semester in two hours. Other times professors looking for books in bulk. The rest were tourists who thought it was a fiction library, and the occasional random person. But that day had been completely boring.

Jude blamed Gavi. There was no way that boy's fans would take the time to come into a boring shop like his. It wasn't entirely boring, but it wasn't the target for teenagers or pop fans. There was nothing inside that could catch their attention. So the day had only two headcounts: Jude and Louis.

That was until, before the sun went down, someone came into the shop. From the way they came in, they seemed to be in a hurry. For a book? No, Jude ruled that out, because nobody would be that desperate for a book. Nobody. Then he thought maybe they were lost, so Jude quickly came out from behind the counter to see what was going on. Louis had left early that day.

"Can I help you?"

When he asked, the person who had come in turned their attention to him. For some reason they stared at Jude longer than normal. It was as if they already knew him, but Jude had no idea who this was. They wore dark glasses –which was strange, because there wasn't much sun– and a cap. It had an English flag on it, so Jude assumed it was a lost foreigner.

So he pulled out his best imitation of an American accent. "Are you looking for something in particular?"

But they still didn't answer. In a matter of seconds, the guy in front of him glanced toward the door with a hint of desperation. At the door, Gavi's fans seemed to be running by. Shit, how could they be so loud? Scaring away the only customer Jude had had all day. No way they're stealing him from me, he thought.

"Sorry for the noise. Some superstar is here in the city," Jude tried to sound jokey, but not quite enough. He was still treating him like a customer.

For a few seconds Jude thought the guy was mute and that he was being a complete idiot in front of him. How could he escape this situation?

But then the guy spoke. "Actually, I do need your help."

"Great," Jude began. With his hands behind his back like a proper salesman, he approached the bookshelf. "What are you studying?"

"Oh, not with that."

If Jude could have answered as the guy his age that he was, he would've told him to go to hell. But he was a good salesman, so he showed his white teeth and looked at him doubtfully. What do you want, then?

"Is there a back door I can go out through?"

The question took Jude by surprise. He really didn't understand anything.

"You can take the main door. Fans are harmless," was it about that, right?

"No, you don't get this. I can't go out the main door. I need a back door."

"Sorry, sir. I'm not allowed to do that."

Jude was losing his patience. His smile had gone, but his posture hadn't changed.

The moment the guy took off his dark glasses and his cap, Jude thought again about the possibility of traveling through time. What would've happened if he'd woken up in a bad mood that day? He wouldn't be in the shop at that moment. Or maybe if he'd had the opening shift instead of Louis, things would have been different.

Because there's no fucking way he had Gavi standing in front of him, his pink hair shining. What were the odds?

Frozen, Jude couldn't think of anything to do but be an idiot. "Wait, you're Gav–"

Gavi quickly moved toward him, looking around. There was nobody there.

"Sh, don't say it," Gavi was a second away from covering Jude's mouth with his hand.

In response, Jude pulled away with an apathetic expression. "Chill. We're alone here."

They both stayed silent, looking at each other. Everything felt so awkward. How was it possible? It all seemed like a bad joke.

"Look, I can't go out the main door, as you can tell," they both looked outside. There were still fans running around, and if they weren't running, they had their phones out recording. "I just need you to let me out somewhere there aren't so many people."

Jude still didn't look convinced, though it was more than obvious. He wanted to play hard to get.

"I lost my phone and my wallet," Gavi continued. "I'm not from here. I don't even know where I am. Can you just help me, please?"

Suddenly, what stood in front of him wasn't Gavi, the pop singer. It was Jobe, his little brother, asking him for help with something basic. Asking him for basic humanity.

Jude wanted to scream. If he'd ever said he wanted to punch Gavi simply for existing, he'd been wrong. He couldn't go against his values, and what he had in front of him was a scene he couldn't ignore. Letting him out the main door was basically throwing him to the lions. God, how old was Gavi anyway? He was still so young.

"I can give you money," Gavi went on. Jude came back to his senses quickly. "Uh, well, when I get my things back."

Shit, no. Jude suddenly felt like a bad person.

"Come here."

It was all Jude could say. He motioned with his head for him to follow, leading him to the shop's stockroom. The stockroom was spacious and had a back door, so whenever new merchandise arrived it was much easier to carry the boxes in. He'd never thought it would serve as an escape door. On the other side, the door opened onto a quiet residential street. Jude had always found it ironic how the shop faced a crowded street full of tourists on one side, and a calm landscape on the other.

Jude gestured for Gavi to stay to one side while he opened the door. What he saw on the other side made him blurt out: "What the hell?"

What was normally a quiet street was now a noisy place full of Gavi's fans. Not as packed as the main street, but there were a few people clearly intent on finding him. Fuck, there was no way Gavi could go out there without being seen.

"What is it?" Gavi asked.

Jude closed the door. "Man, your fans are crazy. They're everywhere."

"Mierda."

With his back against the door and his eyes on Gavi, both of them were left speechless.

"I'm done," Gavi groaned, covering his face with both hands. "This is what I get for wanting to see the city."

There was something intimate in the way Gavi shared that. It wasn't said in an angry or spoiled tone; it was completely worried and regretful. Jude couldn't imagine what Gavi was going through at that moment. The poor guy couldn't even walk around in peace.

Although Jude wasn't an expert in psychology or human behavior, he noticed the way Gavi moved his jaw. As if he were biting his tongue or his lower lip urgently, a clear sign of anxiety.

Quickly, Jude went to the front door and locked it. That made Gavi look at him from the stockroom.

"Okay, I have a plan."

Suddenly they were both sitting behind the counter.

"You stay here, in the shop, until it's night and all those people go home tired of looking for you," Jude explained. "When they leave, it'll be the perfect time for you to go out through either door and get back to your hotel or wherever you're staying."

After he laid out the plan, there were several minutes of silence between them. Gavi never stopped looking at him; it was as if he were putting together each word Jude had said in his head, trying to make them make sense. The British accent was pretty confusing, even more so the Birmingham one, so Jude couldn't blame him. But Jude thought the boy's reaction was due to something more than the accent.

"You'll close the shop for me?"

Jude hated to admit it, but that was how it was. So he nodded. "This store's always empty anyway."

"Okay."

Then, as had become the norm between them, they looked at each other awkwardly.

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Life could be really funny sometimes. What did you mean Jude was in the shop where he worked, with Gavi a few feet away looking for who knows what on the shelves? He could almost hear Franny's fan screams from somewhere. If she found out, along with Jobe, about the situation Jude was in right now, they'd probably think he'd lost his mind.

Time passed slowly. Gavi browsed the shelves, still wearing his England cap, while Jude got a bit of his work done, stamping the shop's logo on the books.

He glanced over at Gavi. A few seconds later, Gavi looked at him too.

"What are you doing?" Jude asked.

"Nothing, just checking the books," he said, pulling out a random one. "Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship," he read the title, then flipped through the pages. He put it back in its place. "Very nice."

Jude wanted to laugh, because there was no way Gavi was truly interested in that book or in anything in his shop.

"You can stop pretending," Jude stood up, leaning on the counter with his arms crossed. "Are you bored, Gavi?"

The clock said eight. There were still a few hours before the flow of people would disappear. Gavi nodded slowly, almost ashamed, looking at Jude from where he stood. Then Jude took the books he had on the counter and put them on one of the tables. Next to the books he set down a stamp.

"You're gonna help me, then."

For some reason Gavi didn't object. He sat down next to Jude and took the stamp, watching the way he worked so he could copy him. His hands moved carefully, as if he were touching something sacred, when really they were just old, boring books. But he still did it delicately. They were the hands of an artist, of a performer.

Jude still couldn't process any of what was happening. The fact that Gavi, that Gavi, was helping him with his work without complaining felt like a punch to the stomach. Where was the supposedly arrogant, wealthy Gavi who only cared about fame? Jude was starting to think he'd gone down the wrong path of Gavi's fans, or rather, his haters. Because in front of him was a completely normal guy. Ordinary.

"Is it your first time in England?" Jude dared to ask. Although the silence was fine, he needed a little action.

Gavi nodded. "Yes. I've already been to London and Lincoln, Birmingham is my last stop."

When Gavi spoke, he looked at Jude for short seconds.

"They always say the best is saved for last," why was Jude joking with him? Gavi smiled, then shrugged.

"Can't say. I barely got to see the city, the only things I've seen of Birmingham are the stadium and this shop."

"The stadium was a mess yesterday."

As far as Jude was concerned, there was nothing wrong with what he'd said. He had indeed been at the stadium yesterday, and hadn't even needed to go inside to realize the chaos. It wasn't very attractive to look at, not for a tourist's eyes. Although Gavi wasn't just a tourist; the stadium was there for him. That chaos was for him and because of him.

Then Jude understood why Gavi had that expression.

"You went to my concert yesterday?"

Shit.

"Oh, no," he quickly waved his hands. Why did he feel like he'd been caught doing something naughty? "I just went to drop someone off and pick them up. That's all."

"Your girlfriend?"

What? Jude looked at him and their eyes locked for long seconds. Then he went back to looking at the book. "My brother's girlfriend, actually."

"Ah," without saying anything else, Gavi stamped one more book. Then he moved on to another, and another, and another, until he looked at Jude again. "So you're not a fan?"

"Of you?" Gavi nodded. "Of course not."

Gavi's expression was the same as a kid who's had his candy taken away.

"Can I know why?"

"There's no why," why did he care so much? Jude was starting to lose patience. "Just not a fan."

"Okay."

Clearly Gavi didn't look satisfied with the answer, but he couldn't blame him. There were millions of Gavi fans in the world; he couldn't feel bad because some random guy from Birmingham said he wasn't one.

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"I actually know this one."

Jude heard Gavi speak from the other side of the shop. He was looking at some books. In fact, Gavi had been poking around the whole shop since he'd finished helping Jude. He had gone down every aisle and flipped through every book with an eye-catching cover.

Once he had Jude's attention, he moved a little closer so he could see the book in his hand. Complete Vocal Technique, the cover read. Of course Gavi would know that book. It had to do with what he did.

"You read it?" Jude asked as he came up beside him.

"No."

"Why did you say you knew it, then?"

"Because I do know it. Just haven't read it yet."

Time went on like that, with a curious, annoying Gavi and his questions. Even though his English had an American accent, which made Jude assume it might be hard for him to understand, Gavi kept talking to Jude about whatever came to mind.

"Have you ever been to Spain?"

Jude looked at him, exhausted. "No."

Then it was about things Jude really wasn't interested in. It was like babysitting the most hyperactive kid in the class.

"I've always wanted to write a book, you know."

"About what?"

"Maybe aliens."

He knew Gavi was bored; after all, there wasn't much to do in that shop without a phone in hand. But how could he be so bored? To the point of not being able to stop talking. Jude was really being a grump, but it seemed like life kept laughing at him.

That was until, a few minutes before eleven at night, when the streets were almost completely empty, Jude stopped hearing Gavi's voice and his feet walking around the place. It struck him as odd, because somehow he'd gotten used to the noisy guy. He didn't know whether to be glad about not hearing him or worried. He decided the second was the better option.

So Jude got up, setting the anatomy book aside, and walked through the aisles of the shop.

"Gavi?" he called. There was no answer.

When he turned down the aisle with the children's educational books, he saw Gavi on the floor, curled up. He was resting on his arms and had a book half open. One about farm animals; it was full of drawings. Gavi was completely asleep, lips parted and chest rising and falling calmly, signs of deep sleep.

It looked as if Gavi hadn't slept in years.

Jude didn't know how to wake him. A part of him wanted to let him sleep a little longer because it was obvious Gavi was sleeping peacefully. That he was dreaming something good, because he clung to his own arm with a certain warmth. Breaking a dream like that would be a sin. But if he didn't get Gavi out of the shop right now, tomorrow would be worse. Besides, he'd have to explain it all to Louis, and he didn't feel like it.

So Jude started testing out the best way to do it. He touched Gavi's arm and got no response, then passed his hand in front of his face. His breath felt like the sun burning his skin. In the end, he touched Gavi's sides, poking his waist with his fingers.

Gavi reacted by snapping his eyes open. The surprise was so great that Jude almost didn't notice how Gavi clung to his arm. He found it curious, as if the guy were always on alert.

"Hey, man. It's me," Jude said in a low voice, almost a whisper. "You fell asleep."

The pink-haired guy took a few seconds to sit up. He sat, rubbing his hair with his free hand, since the other was still clinging to Jude's arm.

"Uh, sorry," finally his eyes saw the grip. He let go of Jude's arm quickly, which made the situation weirder than before. Then he straightened his shirt. "Did they leave?"

Jude nodded.

"Great," great what? Gavi stared at him without saying anything. Without doing anything. It seemed like he was still asleep. "Let's go, then."

They set off. Jude turned off the shop lights and checked his phone before leaving. He'd told Jobe he'd be at a party or something like that, and that he'd be home late because of it. If he knew the party was being alone with Gavi for hours, his brother would lose his mind.

He grabbed his car keys and opened the back door –which was where he parked it–, only to see that there was indeed nobody around. Everything was pretty deserted, just as Jude remembered. The only sound was the sprinklers.

Jude started his car and, before getting in, looked at Gavi.

"Okay, so," how could he say goodbye? It had been a completely weird encounter. "You're free now."

"Yeah, thank you," Gavi fidgeted with his fingers. "For everything."

Without saying anything else, Jude opened the driver's door, but something kept him from getting in. Not something, someone. A pink-haired boy named Gavi who looked at him with pleading eyes from across the street. His lips were parted, ready to say something, and one of his hands was reaching out, trying to stop Jude. What now?

"Actually…" his expression was one of confusion. "Wait, what's your name?"

"Jude."

"Okay, Jude. Actually, can you–?" Gavi seemed to be fighting an inner battle. "Can you take me somewhere?"

What?

"I have no way to get anywhere. I don't know how to get anywhere," he came closer to the car. Fuck. "I have nowhere to go."

What did you mean, the long hours with Gavi weren't over? The worst part was that Jude couldn't be a bad person, tell him no, get in his car, and drive away. He couldn't leave the guy alone. This guy who probably had a bunch of luxury cars and people working for him back in his own country. He simply couldn't put his humanity aside.

So what the hell?

"Get in."

━━━━━━━━

"You said you had nowhere to go?"

Jude asked him while driving, now in the car. Beside him, Gavi sat in the passenger seat, putting on his seatbelt.

"Yeah."

"How so? What about your hotel? I don't know, your manager?"

The truth was that Jude had a lot of questions. How little security Gavi had in Birmingham was stressing him out; how was it possible that nobody was looking after him? Being the superstar he was.

"Because I lost my things I don't have anyone's contact," Gavi explained. "I don't remember where I was staying or anything. Pedri must be going crazy looking for me."

"Pedri?"

"My best friend, who's also my manager."

Jude let out an oh in response and looked at the road, not knowing what to actually do. He could see the desperation in Gavi's eyes, but also a calm he couldn't understand. Maybe this little escape was giving him a kind of peace that Jude, an ordinary guy, couldn't understand. Who was Jude to burst this bubble of calm Gavi was in? Even though the guy still struck him as irritating, he hadn't done anything wrong. He wasn't a bad person.

So Jude took one of the curves and turned onto a new route.

"Where are we going?"

Jude looked at him out of the corner of his eye. "I know a place."

Since taking him home wasn't an option, Jude decided the best thing was to go to a small motel a few minutes from his campus. Who would look for Gavi in that place? Nobody.

The look on Gavi's face when he saw the place was worthy of a movie. His eyes looked bigger than normal and he even seemed scared. Jude wanted to laugh, fuck. Gavi was hilarious.

"Jude, what–"

"This is the Zeus Motel," right outside the place there was a huge statue of the Greek god Zeus, pretty rusted from the time it had been there. "As you can see."

"Is this a joke?"

"Oh, no," for some reason, Jude leaned over to Gavi to unbuckle his seatbelt. "You don't have your money here and this is all I can afford."

"Mierda."

They both got out of the car, Gavi in his disguise –the cap and the glasses– and Jude with his wallet. It had been years since Jude had been to that place. He remembered it perfectly, his first experiences with older girls. For some reason everything led back to Zeus.

When they went in, Jude smiled at the cashier. He took out his ID, showed it to her, and then spoke. "Full night, please."

Gavi, beside him, looked tense. He kept pressing his glasses against his face and looking around as if there were people there, but there was nobody. Jude wanted to tug his ear, because if he kept that up they'd think Jude was kidnapping him or something worse. All he did about it was bump Gavi's shoulder with his own and give him a relax look, while the cashier searched for the room key.

"Here's the key," the key looked old. Vintage. "You have to pay if you want to drink something. Same with the condoms."

Shit. Jude felt his cheeks burn at the implied mention of sex. Although Jude had been the one to take him to a motel and knew that in places like this situations like that came up, the mere idea of sharing something more intimate with Gavi made him nauseous. He couldn't figure out what kind of nausea.

They both rode up in the elevator without saying anything. Gavi seemed more and more hidden inside his clothes.

"Why are you hiding so much? It's just me."

The elevator doors opened. "You never know."

Then Jude opened room 208. When he opened it, he found what was an ordinary motel room: a freshly made queen-size bed, a section with drinks and another with sex protection. There was a very flashy, suggestive sofa and the bathroom. The good news was that the soap and shampoo came with the room.

"Okay, Gavi. Goodnight."

Jude said goodbye. Before he could leave, Gavi grabbed his arm. He no longer had his glasses on.

"You're not staying?"

Why did his eyes look so worried? If Jude kept looking at them, he was sure he'd sink into them and not be able to escape. Like when they raise the red flag on the beach to show it's not safe to swim.

"I'm going home."

"No," Gavi wouldn't let go. "Stay here."

Did he mean stay there with him all night? Or simply keep him a bit of company? Jude let out a defeated sigh, because he knew he couldn't say no. Somehow he'd already gotten more involved in this situation than he should have, and there was no way out. If anything happened to Gavi, he'd be an accomplice.

"Only until you fall asleep."

━━━━━━━━

Gavi was drinking one of the sodas you had to pay for. He was sprawled on the bed, and Jude was lying back on the sofa on the other side.

"You're not going to tell me why you don't like me?"

Why did he care so much? Jude let out a sigh as if he'd had an exhausting day at work and looked at him over his shoulder. Gavi was watching him closely, playing with the cap of his soda bottle. For a brief second, he raised an eyebrow, almost like a challenge.

"You really want to know?"

"Really."

"Okay," Jude got comfortable. He sat up, facing Gavi. "First, I don't like your music."

"Have you listened to any of my songs?"

"No," then Gavi let out a mocking laugh. Jude stopped him with a sharp look. "Let me finish."

"Okay."

"I just don't really like pop stars," Jude shrugged, almost uninterested. "They seem fake and arrogant. They have all the girls drooling over them. Do you think that's normal? Besides–"

"So is it because of the girls?" Gavi interrupted him again. He shifted to sit up too. "Because they want me more than you?"

"Jesus, man," Jude felt his fist heat up, with a strong urge to punch a pink-haired guy. He didn't, but he stared at him for several seconds. "It's not about that."

"So?"

"I don't feel like you're genuine. Nothing that comes out of your mouth sounds real. You're like a model. A mock-up. That's all."

What followed was a battle of stares that ended in silence between them.

Jude felt uncomfortable. Or more than that, he felt some nerves at seeing Gavi's reaction after being so honest. The guy had wanted the truth and that was what he was giving him. He wasn't supposed to set limits, like his mother always said, right?

On the bed, Gavi crossed his legs and after a few seconds stood up. He walked over to Jude and handed him the half-drunk bottle.

"I think you should get to know me better, Jude."

Jude took the bottle by reflex and let out an ironic laugh. "Right. Because we have all the time to get to know each other."

They exchanged quick glances. Jude opened the soda and took a sip. It was cherry, and the flavor was so sweet it pulled a grimace out of him. Then Gavi took it back and drank too, finishing the contents. He drank down to the last drop.

"I leave the day after tomorrow. In the morning"

Gavi sat on the edge of the bed, looking at Jude, who didn't really know what to say. Was it a warning? A proposal?

"So?"

"I think that's enough time to get to know each other, no?"

For some reason, Jude didn't think it was a bad idea. If he was going to be with Gavi for a few more hours, why not use them to his advantage? There was no way Gavi could change his perspective on him 100% in so little time. His curiosity was much bigger than his desire to escape.

━━━━━━━━

Then they were both on the bed. Jude sat with his back against the headboard, and Gavi at the foot of the bed, lying down and propping himself on his arm. The empty bottle lay between them; Gavi had come up with the great idea of playing spin the bottle, but with questions, to get to know each other. If the bottle pointed at you after you spun it, you had to answer the other person's question. At that moment, the bottle was pointing at Gavi.

Jude was quick to ask. "Why did you decide to dye your hair pink?"

"You don't like it?"

"Not really."

"Harsh," Gavi was touching his hair as he spoke. "Marketing, you know. There are a lot of pop stars in the world, my team thought it'd be a good idea to do something different. I had to find something that was completely mine."

"And you picked pink?"

"It's my sister's favorite color."

Somehow, that was sweet in Jude's eyes.

The bottle pointed at Jude.

"Why do you work in that boring shop?"

The way Gavi said boring made Jude laugh. Then he wiped the smile off his face and pointed at him. "I can say it's boring, not you," the pink-haired guy looked at him as if saying right, right, and Jude continued. "It helps me pay for my studies and get free resources every time I need to study."

"What's your major?"

Jude hesitated over whether to answer. If he wanted to be a brat, he'd say it was one question per round, but Gavi seemed truly interested. Everything still seemed so unreal; he couldn't believe he was talking about his life with Gavi.

"Physiotherapy."

"Oh, that's cool," from one second to the next, Gavi was smiling at him. "It suits you."

For a second, a tiny second that felt like hours in Jude's head, he smiled back at Gavi. There was nothing wrong with smiling at him, with showing his personality. But on the other hand, it felt strange. A smile meant he was relaxing, that something in Gavi was causing something in Jude.

After that small smile, they kept playing for a while. At first the questions were just trivial. Things to get to know each other, like when you meet someone on the first day of class. Favorite food, color, vacation spot, and so on. Basic things.

But in one of the rounds when the bottle pointed at Gavi, Jude decided to be bold.

"Why did you show up in my shop with nothing?"

With nothing meant without his documents and his things. Jude knew it was a hard question for Gavi to answer, because he stopped looking at him and started playing with his hands like a nervous kid. Jude knew that kind of gesture well. Again he could see the way Gavi bit his tongue and clenched his jaw with undeniable anxiety.

Jude stretched out his hand. He didn't touch Gavi's, but used the plastic bottle to do it, wanting to convey something. A hey, I'm here.

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"No, it's okay," Gavi looked at him again. For the first time, Jude felt like he was looking at a real person and not a Gavi poster. "I was with Pedri in a rented car. We wanted to see the city a little bit."

That was something Jude remembered: Pedri was his manager.

"We argued a little. I got out of the car, and that's where the chaos started. It's easy to find me with this," Gavi pointed at his hair. "I panicked and ran away from the car and the people, and that's how I ended up at your shop. It looked like the calmest one."

Gavi's story made a lot of sense to Jude, who listened seriously. There was no resentment. Nothing negative. Just two guys telling each other something intimate.

"Why did you argue?"

Jude thought he wouldn't answer, but Gavi didn't take long. "I wanted to see the city. I've always wanted to come to England, it's like a dream for me," Jude thought, people like him still have dreams. "Birmingham was one of my dream destinations, but Pedri wouldn't let me do it. He told me it would be risky, that it was better for me to stay at the hotel until tomorrow's flight. But I really wanted to see the city. To walk down Birmingham's streets."

Gavi brought one of his hands to his chest. His jaw was still tense.

"Pedri's not a bad person, he's just realistic. Someone like me can't walk around in peace, not after an event like my concert. But I couldn't understand it, I was blinded," Gavi's voice cracked, but he wasn't crying. He even seemed angry. "So I just got out of the car. And now I'm here, with you in this beautiful motel room."

Jude let out a small laugh. Then he picked up the empty bottle and threw it at Gavi in response. The pink-haired guy threw it back, and they tossed it back and forth for a while.

"Do you think it's unfair to you?" Jude asked.

"No. I chose this. I don't get to walk around in peace and have privacy. It's the cost of the life I chose."

There was something in the way Gavi said that. As if that were his fate, a life full of luxuries but without privacy. Without time for himself. Which was better? A life full of love but with difficulties, or an easy but lonely life? Both of them, sitting on opposite sides of the bed, shared both extremes. Even though there wasn't much they had in common, Jude felt a certain closeness that he began to fear.

"I just wanted a picture in Moseley Bog."

When he heard the name of that place, Jude looked at him, confused. Jude knew Moseley Bog; it was near the city and was a gem of nature. It had been ages since he'd been, but hearing it mentioned struck him as odd. Why would Gavi want to go there? How did he know about that place? It wasn't the best-known spot in the city.

"What?" Gavi seemed puzzled by his reaction. Jude had to calm his curiosity. "How do you know that place?"

"Uh, this might be weird," Gavi sat up. He crossed his legs and moved closer to Jude, as if he were about to tell him the biggest secret in history. "I'm actually a big nerd. A big fan of The Lord of the Rings."

Okay, if Jude had wanted to laugh before, now he wanted to even more. Seeing Gavi, famous pop star, with his ridiculous pink hair, saying he was a nerd didn't compute in his head. It was like a fever dream. When you dream things that make no sense.

"I read that the author based the Old Forest on Moseley Bog," okay, Jude wasn't understanding anything, but pretended he was. "I don't know, I just wanted to– don't know. See it."

Gavi was drawing circles on the duvet. He was nervous about that confession. Who would have thought his pop idol had those tastes? That in reality, there was nothing wrong with them. Jude's heart softened for a brief moment because Gavi was just a normal guy in his twenties who'd had the success of becoming famous. But beneath that façade he was still a guy with tastes of his own. With a personality of his own.

Jude let out a laugh.

"Don't laugh," Gavi scolded him. But Jude couldn't help it.

"That's crazy, man. Who would've guessed?"

Then, as if their minds were connected, they both lay back looking at the ceiling, pausing the game. As is common in motels, there was a giant mirror up there. They could see each other from a strange angle. Gavi's body looked smaller next to Jude's, which made Jude feel somehow drawn to him. Not in a romantic way, but feeling that he wasn't a stranger. That he knew him, maybe from another life.

In the reflection, Jude saw Gavi turn his face to look at him.

"That's weird."

"The mirror?"

Gavi nodded. "And the couch too," then he was looking at the reflection again. They looked at each other from there. "Can you imagine how many people have been here?"

"Oh, probably a lot."

They both laughed a little.

"Maybe you?"

Jude could feel Gavi looking at him. Not only in the reflection, but in the way he turned his face and looked at him directly. There was no way Jude would return that look, so he was a coward and only did it through the reflection.

"We're not playing anymore. I can't answer."

And on an impulse Jude didn't recognize, his gaze went from looking at Gavi through the reflection to looking directly into his eyes. Gavi looked at him with a certain curiosity, but also with calm. Is he looking at the spots on my face? My barely existent facial hair? The way my eyes wanted to escape from his? Jude wondered. He was sure that if he spoke at that moment he'd stutter, and he wouldn't be able to justify it.

He thought again about time travel, about the way things happened. Nobody was ready for anything, nobody had prepared him for a moment like this, because it didn't seem real. Gavi smiled at him. Gavi looked at his eyes, then his nose and the rest of his face.

When Jude thought Gavi's eyes had reached his lips, he stood up abruptly. It wasn't a hot day, but Jude felt sweat under his arms and on his forehead. He needed air.

"Okay, so," now standing, he saw Gavi turn to look at him. "Time to sleep, Gavi."

"I'm not sleepy."

Jude turned to look at him. "It's late," he checked his watch. It said 3 a.m. Shit, when had the time gone by so fast? "I have to go."

"Okay."

Gavi didn't seem angry, but there was something different about him. He grabbed one of the pillows and curled up with it, just as he'd curled up with his own arm in the shop hours earlier. Then he closed his eyes as if he were acting the whole thing. As if there were an audience waiting for him to fall asleep.

"Please, turn off the light when you leave."

Jude did. He turned off the light and left the motel as fast as he could.

━━━━━━━━

The next day, Jude dialed Louis's number.

"What is it, mate?"

"I'm not feeling well," he lied. Then he coughed a little. "I think I can't go to work today."

On the other end there was only a sigh.

"Okay, you owe me one, Jude."

And then he hung up. His phone screen showed Jude it was 9 a.m. His shift normally started at 11 on closing days. He knew that letting his coworker know he wouldn't come to work two hours before his start time wasn't mature or responsible of him, but Jude had something else on his mind.

Not something, someone. Someone who was making him feel unwell, so he hadn't entirely lied to Louis.

After leaving Gavi alone in the motel room, Jude had taken the long way home, driving in unnecessary circles because he didn't want to arrive. If he arrived and touched his bed, he'd start overthinking. Recapping his whole day and the intense feeling it had given him. What had started as a normal day ended up as a crazy one. Why, deep into the night, could Jude only think about Gavi?

So he decided he felt sick, that something was wrong with his body. Maybe the cherry soda or the long hours without eating. Jude felt nauseous and a little panicked. He didn't know what was making him feel that way, but all he wanted was to grab his car and go to the motel to find Gavi.

He hadn't thought it through. What would Gavi do alone? When he woke up and realized that once again it was him against the lions. Jude had been a big coward.

At breakfast, his mother made omelettes and sweet bread.

"You saw the news?" Jobe asked Franny beside him, who had stayed the night.

"Oh, yes. Actually, Jude," Jude looked at her when he heard his name. "Didn't you see Gavi yesterday on the street where your shop is?"

Shit. The omelette suddenly tasted bitter. Jude wasn't a good actor; the look on his face was as if he'd been caught lying, though he hadn't said anything yet.

After long seconds he shook his head. "No, why?"

"The news said there was total chaos because they saw him walking around there," Franny explained. "If you see him you have to get me an autograph, please."

Jude looked at Jobe, who was looking at him with pleading eyes, as if that were actually going to happen. The funny thing was that it had happened, and that Jude was the only person in Birmingham who knew where Gavi was, not those drooling fans.

"Sure."

After that conversation they went on to other topics. Jude grabbed some napkins and stashed a few sweet breads and a little omelette.

"I'm going to work."

Which was a lie too.

With his car keys in hand, Jude started the car and got in, on his way to the great Zeus Motel.

━━━━━━━━

When he opened the door with the key –which he'd taken with him by accident–, he found the motel bed empty. He checked the bathroom and nothing, there was no trace of Gavi. Fuck. His heart started racing because it all looked like a scene from a true crime story. Gavi had left his sweatshirt on the bed, along with his glasses and his cap.

That meant he didn't have his disguise with him, so going out was risky. Where was Gavi? Jude rushed down to the reception desk, where he saw the same girl who'd helped him last night. He licked his lips and straightened his posture, trying to look calm.

"Uh, hey. Sorry to ask–" the girl looked at him without expression. "Have you seen the guy I came with last night?"

"The one with pink hair?" Jude nodded. "Outside."

With a tilt of her head, the girl pointed to a back door. It led to a small courtyard that connected to a residential street. The place didn't have much green space, but it was peaceful. Jude leaned out the door and the first thing he saw was Gavi, crouched off to one side with what looked like a cat between his legs. He was petting it.

The little sun there was lit up his pale skin. Like that, with the rays on him, Gavi's hair looked more blond than pink.

Jude felt he could finally breathe, and then wanted to bang his head against the concrete wall beside him. Why had he worried so much?

"Gavi?" he called.

Gavi quickly raised his head. They exchanged looks for a few seconds, then the pink-haired guy smiled at him. He was still sleepy, Jude noticed. His eyes were puffy and ringed with dark circles.

"You're here."

Coming closer, Jude crouched down with him. That way he didn't need to raise his voice and had a better view of the animal between his legs. It was a black cat. It nuzzled into Gavi's touch.

"Why did you go out without your disguise? Isn't that risky?"

Gavi wasn't looking at him, but he was listening. "Yes. But you left with the keys," their hands brushed fleetingly as they both petted the cat. "I went out to get some air and the door locked behind me. I couldn't get back in and the girl wouldn't give me another key until you came, because I had to pay for the soda."

Right. It was Jude's fault.

"And I didn't know if you'd come."

How could he not? But then he thought it was fair for Gavi to think that. He'd left in the middle of the night without saying much, no see you later, no see you tomorrow, he hadn't even paid for the soda.

As if he were a dog begging forgiveness, Jude pulled from his pocket the breakfast he'd saved at home. Then he offered it to Gavi.

"You must be hungry."

It worked. Gavi showed his teeth in a warm smile, taking the food. Then they both said goodbye to the cat and went up to the room.

━━━━━━━━

"I like them," Jude said, looking at himself in the mirror wearing the sunglasses. He quickly took a picture.

"They're mine."

"C'mon, you have like a thousand of them."

"Not really," Gavi had finished eating. He got up from the bed and stood next to Jude. "Give me the glasses."

Jude sighed, irritated. "Boring."

The truth was that the glasses were amazing. You could tell just from the feel that they were expensive and designer. Probably from some collaboration Gavi had done at some point; Jude really wasn't interested.

Turning around, he helped Gavi tidy the bed as best he could, though it wasn't their obligation. Then he took his car keys from his pocket and they left the motel. They said a superficial goodbye to the girl who'd helped them. She definitely had no idea who Gavi was, otherwise the press would already be outside the motel. She'd missed out on a great marketing opportunity.

Once outside, Jude opened the car door. Before getting in, he noticed Gavi wasn't moving, looking at him with curious eyes.

"What?"

Gavi already had his cap and glasses on. "Uh, you want me to get in?"

"Yes. Get in."

Seconds later they were both in the car and Jude put it in reverse to pull out of the parking lot. Gavi already had his seatbelt on and his curious fingers were pressing different buttons on the radio, which reminded him of the night he'd had to drop Franny off at the concert.

That night, all Jude had wanted was to turn off Gavi's music. Now, at the very start of the day, he had Gavi beside him. Who would've thought?

Gavi tuned to a pop station.

"Now we'll hear the pop sensation of the moment, who was recently on his tour," Gavi quickly looked at Jude. Shit. "This is Gavi."

Jude looked at him quickly. Gavi had a teasing smile on his face. Seeing him like that, it was as if he owned the car. As if he belonged in the passenger seat.

"Oh, no. This can't be happening to me at this hour," Jude joked.

"Ha-ha," Gavi laughed fakely. "Now you have to listen to every word."

The song started. Beside him, Gavi hummed the melody and pronounced every word with care. He was singing. Even with the song louder, Jude could still hear Gavi's live voice and it sounded so sweet he felt cavities all over his mouth. He sang in English, but then there were Spanish words he didn't understand.

Jude was enjoying it so much that he started to nod his head to the rhythm of the song.

"Is this real?" Gavi ruined the moment by looking at him. "Am I watching Jude, who hates Gavi, enjoying a song by him?" then he made a gesture, searching his pockets for something. "Where's my camera? I have to record this."

The irony in his voice was obvious. Gavi was making fun of him, which made them both laugh because yes, he was in fact enjoying Gavi's music, something he never thought would happen.

"I think I'm a fan. Can I please have an autograph?"

In a moment that lasted only a few seconds, Gavi and Jude looked at each other. They were smiling and genuinely having a good time. It was like sharing a car ride with a great friend. So why was his heart beating like that?

When Jude took a curve, Gavi stopped looking at him and looked out the window. There were no buildings anymore, only trees and vegetation. He looked at his driver in exaggerated disbelief. Right behind him was a big sign indicating the destination: Moseley Bog.

If he'd looked closely at Gavi's eyes, which he could only see for a few seconds because he had to watch the road, they were eyes full of hope. Just like a kid opening a Christmas present and looking at his parents, happy that Santa had given him what he'd asked for; because he'd behaved so well just to have that gift in his hands. That was how Gavi looked at Jude.

"Are we–?"

"Yes," Jude answered, glancing at him. "We're going to your magic forest or whatever."

"Old Forest."

Jude felt pressure on his thigh. When he looked to see what it was, he noticed Gavi's hand on top of it. Before, whenever someone put a hand on Jude's thigh, it had been for some sexual reason. At that moment, it had no such intention. It was something purer, a true way of showing he was grateful. When Jude looked at him, Gavi smiled without needing to say anything more. Jude had understood everything.

━━━━━━━━

"Can I ask you something?"

They were both walking along the dirt path. Jude had parked his car at the entrance –since it was a weekday there was nobody around–, and then they'd gone on foot into the park. On that dirt path, all you could hear were their footsteps and the bugs that lived there.

Jude turned to look at him, since he was walking ahead. Gavi had his hands in his pockets. "You just asked."

Gavi stuck his tongue out at him, teasing. "Did you skip work today?"

He could lie. He could say it was his day off, since that was actually an option. But Jude felt the need for Gavi to know he was there for him. That he had skipped work to be with him in that place.

So he nodded. "Yes, I did."

Behind him, Gavi went quiet. Seconds later he was beside him, having hurried to catch up.

"For me?"

Shit. Jude looked at him intently. "It's not every day you get the privilege of being with a superstar, is it?"

With a small punch on his shoulder from Gavi, they both kept walking in silence. From time to time their shoulders brushed and they looked at each other without saying much. They mentioned the weather and the way their sneakers were getting covered in mud. Then they talked about basic things like the cycle of the leaves.

━━━━━━━━

Gavi was sitting on a giant rock. It looked out over a small lake that reflected England's almost nonexistent sun. In his hands he held little stones he tossed one at a time, watching them sink into the water.

On impulse, Jude took out his phone and snapped a photo of him without him noticing. If it were night and they were in a bar, he'd blame the alcohol. But since he was sober and in nature, Jude couldn't find an excuse for what he'd done. The photo showed Gavi's back with the lake behind him. The day was gray, but a small ray of sun still reached him. Wherever Gavi was, a bit of sun always seemed to find him, which Jude found curious.

Saving the only evidence of his delirium for Gavi, he went over and sat down next to him. When Gavi felt Jude's presence, he looked up and glanced at him for a moment.

"It's so quiet here."

Jude nodded. "It's nice. I like quiet places."

"Oh," for some reason, Gavi laughed ironically. "You wouldn't last a day in my life, then."

"No thank you," he teased back in the same way. Then he thought about how serious the situation was. How could he live without a single day of peace? "Do you miss it?"

"What?"

"Having silence."

Gavi's eyes showed a strange expression. He was mourning that.

"Every day, to be honest."

"Don't worry," Jude put his hand on Gavi's back and gave it a caress. At first he'd wanted to give a light pat like friends do, but it ended up as a caress much more intimate than that. "We have all day here. Enjoy it."

Gavi smiled at him with every part of his body.

━━━━━━━━

Right on a wooden bridge over the dirt path, Gavi made the same gesture he always made: searching his pockets for his phone. The thing was, there was no phone in there; he seemed to keep forgetting.

"Shit, right. I don't have my phone."

Jude understood that the search for his phone was because he wanted to take a picture. The place was beautiful, and although Jude wasn't a fan of The Lord of the Rings, he knew Gavi was damn happy to see that place. It looked like it was straight out of a movie, honestly. Birmingham had areas so beautiful that Jude felt like he barely knew his own city.

"You want to use mine?"

Gavi turned to look at him. "You sure?"

Jude nodded and handed him the phone. Then came a few short minutes of Gavi using its camera to photograph everything he saw. The bridge, the tree beside it, the sky, and even a photo of his sneakers on the wood. He had an aesthetic worthy of a pop idol, as if each photo would end up on his Instagram hours later.

That was something Jude wondered about. How much humanity was there behind a photo of a famous person? How much was real, made by the person, and how much was a robot? AI, maybe. Then he wondered whether any of those photos would end up on Gavi's Instagram. Besides the landscape, Jude had been part of the experience.

When Jude saw Gavi take a selfie with his phone, he felt nauseous again. The fact of having photos of Gavi that nobody else would have, in his gallery, made everything more intimate. A memory he'd carry forever not only in his head, but in a photograph. There was proof of everything he was living and feeling.

"You want me to take a photo of you?"

"Uh," Gavi seemed shy. "Please."

Unlike the photos Gavi had taken of himself, when Jude photographed him he looked quite awkward. Not a negative awkwardness, but one that screamed nervousness. He was shy; he barely smiled and his body looked stiff, not knowing what to do. Somehow, Jude melted at that image.

"You know I have complete control of these photos now," Jude teased him, while Gavi looked through Jude's gallery. It was full of him. "I could sell them."

"Shut up," he hit him on the shoulder. Then he lowered his voice. "You'd never do that to me."

Even though they had met only hours ago, there was an inexplicable complicity between them. How was it possible to feel so comfortable with someone you'd just met? And someone, moreover, whom you swore you couldn't stand. There was nothing about Gavi that irritated him. Not even his screaming pink hair; there really was nothing. Everything was comfortable and calm.

For the first time, Jude wanted to trade his wish to travel through time for a remote that could pause it. He would freeze that moment of the two of them in Moseley Bog.

━━━━━━━━

They were back on the rocks, but this time closer to the lake. Sitting on top, both had taken off their sneakers and were dipping their feet in the lake's cold water. The way they sat created a perfect distance; they faced each other with their feet brushing under the water. Since everything was lighter in water, they could barely feel the touch. Still, Jude kept nudging his feet, by instinct, closer and closer against the other's.

They watched the water, but also the clouds getting brighter. Hours had passed since they'd been there.

"What's your real name, Gavi?"

Jude broke the silence with that question. It was something he'd wanted to ask for a while. He could have googled it, but searching for Gavi's name online somehow confirmed his curiosity about him. He couldn't allow that.

"Pablo."

When he said his name, Jude watched the way his lips pronounced each syllable. "Pa-blo."

Gavi laughed in front of him. "It sounds funny when you say it."

"Pa-blo," Jude went on. He wanted to make him laugh more. "Can I call you Pablo?"

"You can."

Jude looked at him. Gavi looked back.

It was an invitation. Not only to call him Pablo, but to get to know something deeper about him.

"So, Pablo. What would you have done if you weren't a singer?"

"You're gonna laugh."

"I'm not," he covered his lips with one hand.

"A footballer."

Right there, in that moment, Jude couldn't hide the beat of his heart. It pounded so hard that Jude pressed his lips tightly together, thinking it would escape through his mouth. It might even explode, so Jude pressed his free hand to his chest.

It was as if the universe had sent him Gavi. Whether it was a punishment or a prize, Jude still couldn't tell.

"Shit, you like football?"

"Big fan. I used to play a lot when I was younger," Gavi said. "My room was full of Spanish national team posters."

"Let me guess. Iniesta?"

Gavi nodded. "Indeed."

"You're a box of surprises."

In any other situation, Jude would have invited him to next month's Manchester match. He'd do it without shame. Then he'd ask for his Instagram to stay in touch and would probably text him every afternoon. But things were different. Gavi wasn't an ordinary guy Jude could strike up a friendship with, or something more.

"I assume you're a football fan too."

"Oh, you want to have that conversation?"

After that question, they spent more than thirty minutes talking about the sport. About some World Cups and championships. Also about players and their favorite teams. Gavi was a big Barça fan, while Jude was a Real Madrid one, which made them compete a little in arguments over which team was better. They ended up laughing and talking about football techniques and how Jude, thanks to his degree, had met some great local footballers.

Once again Jude felt as if he'd known Gavi his whole life. Every minute with him was like an entire year of friendship.

After a silence between them, Gavi made Jude feel even dizzier when he asked: "Do you believe in destiny, Jude?"

The shift from football to destiny made Jude's head spin.

"I don't know. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't," Jude looked at his feet. He lifted one out of the water, letting it float. "I do believe there's something for us, as individuals."

"That's a good way to see it."

Jude looked at him. "What about you?"

"I do believe in destiny," there was a new smile on Gavi's face. Jude didn't know how to define it. "I'll tell you a story. Two days ago, before my concert here in Birmingham, I slipped out of the dressing room for a few minutes because I was having an anxiety attack. Something pretty common in show business," that sounded intense, Jude thought. "So I went outside, to a dark alley. Just like now, I'd left all my things somewhere else and couldn't find my vape."

Jude watched him attentively.

"Then I ran into this guy who was alone there. He offered me a cigarette and we stayed smoking together for a while. You know what's great about the situation? He didn't recognize me. I was having a normal conversation with a normal guy who saw me as an equal."

Jude's heart was definitely going to explode.

"Wait, it's–"

"Then I saw the same guy the next day and he helped me again," Gavi brought one of his legs out of the water, letting it float next to Jude's. But he decided to bring it closer, until the sole of his foot was stroking Jude's calf softly and innocently. "And now he's here, in front of me."

The sun was setting, so the sky looked much grayer. Even so, in the middle of that muted palette, Gavi's presence filled everything with a warm tone. It was as if he could see his aura; Jude felt like he was going to go crazy.

Gavi's words made him lose track of time and space. It wasn't his feet floating, it was all of him. Why did it feel like a confession? If he'd told him earlier that he didn't believe in destiny, now he was doubting it. That lonely, frightened boy from the night of the concert had been Gavi. If he had known who he was, would they be in Moseley Bog together?

What did destiny have in store for Jude?

━━━━━━━━

Night fell. They both knew it was time to head back, but neither wanted to. The way Gavi's body spoke suggested he could stay hours more among those trees, and the truth was Jude felt the same. But it was cold, neither of them was prepared, and they hadn't eaten anything all day. They needed to leave.

Jude's most selfish thought was that he could put up with the hunger as long as it took, just for one more minute with Gavi.

As they walked along the dirt path leading to the exit, the pink-haired boy matched Jude's pace and moved next to him. It was dark, but not so dark that you couldn't see. Their hands brushed with the swing of their steps.

"You should come to Spain."

Jude glanced at him, though Gavi wasn't looking back.

"Someday I will."

"But to Barcelona, not Madrid."

Gavi's fingers were getting closer and closer. On impulse, Jude took his hand to tuck it into his sweatshirt pocket. It was cold, so he covered it with his own hand under the fabric.

"What does Barcelona have that Madrid doesn't?"

Besides the team, he wanted to say. But Gavi stopped and looked at him intently. His pleading eyes. How could he ever forget them?

"Me."

It was a valid reason. If Jude thought about it that way, Barcelona had everything he wanted at that moment. Everything Jude cared about.

Jude didn't know if it was the full moon or the sound of the bugs. It could have been the cold he felt in his feet from having wet them earlier, or the hunger from not having eaten anything. He didn't know what it was, but he chose to stay in doubt when he closed the distance between the two of them. They were so close, their torsos brushing.

When Jude leaned toward Gavi's face, he could see the moon reflected on his lips. Lips he kissed seconds later, hearing a soft, in-tune sigh. He kissed him with a certain intimacy and sweetness, but also with awkwardness and bitterness. A first and last kiss that would remain in the memory of a Birmingham night.

They took the kiss to his car, using the back seats so that not even the moon would be a witness to what they did. Just them, like a great secret. A beautiful memory.

━━━━━━━━

On the way back to the city center, the ride was quieter than ever. Gavi had his hand over Jude's, stroking his fingers with a heartbreaking sweetness. It was already night and Gavi had an early flight, so the most sensible idea was to drop him off at the same place where he'd gotten lost. According to the pink-haired guy, his friend Pedri would be there. And if it wasn't Pedri, some fan would notice his presence and draw the attention of his manager.

But Jude drove around more than necessary, wishing not to let Gavi go. It was all so ironic. Everything seemed like part of a badly told joke. Jude didn't recognize himself.

When they reached the center, Jude stopped the car and looked at Gavi, who leaned in to give him a quick kiss. When they pulled apart, his eyes were shining more than normal; Jude understood they weren't that way for anything positive. Their hands were still together. How could he let go?

"Thank you for everything, Jude."

"It's nothing, Pablo."

Before getting out, Gavi looked at him with a bitter smile. "You still hate me?"

Jude slowly shook his head. "I was wrong."

"I'm happy with that."

I'm happy knowing that someone truly knows me and likes me, is what Gavi meant, Jude knew. After a few goodbyes, Gavi got out of the car. The street was still crowded with tourists, so it was well lit.

Since stopping time was impossible, could Jude travel through time like he'd once wanted? If he could choose a moment, maybe he'd pick when he got out of the car to find Gavi, wanting to say one last thing to him, or just to see his face once more. But when he stepped out, everything turned to chaos. There was press and cameras pointed at Gavi, the same ones that pointed at him afterward. They took photos of his car and of him getting out of it. In the distance he saw Gavi looking at him with some sadness, and next to him a guy Jude assumed was Pedri, pulling him away from the scene.

When he got home, Jude watched the news and felt the world come crashing down on him.

Pop singer Gavi spotted in the streets of Birbingham with a mysterious guy, and right next to the headline, a very clear photo of Jude.

━━━━━━━━

For the following days he heard nothing more from Gavi, other than the press's constant attempts to get something out of Jude. What is your relationship with Gavi? What were you doing with Gavi at that hour? Blah blah blah. If every day was like this for Gavi, Jude didn't know how he handled it.

At home, his parents, Jobe, and Franny all looked at him with confusion. He knew it was more than hard to process; Jude, who'd said he hated Gavi just days ago, had been with Gavi in his car in the middle of the night in Birmingham. Jude, who was supposed to have been working that day.

Somehow, Jude had lied not only to his family. He had lied to himself too.

On one of his workdays, Jude was organizing some books when the TV aired a story about Gavi. A few days ago he would have ignored it and probably changed the channel, but at that moment he was paying attention.

Gavi was on a show, apparently one where they interviewed celebrities. Probably a gossip show.

"So, we saw you with a mysterious guy a few days ago," the interviewer said. Jude felt his hands tremble. "Can you tell us who he is?"

"Oh, yes."

Jude was nervous. The way Gavi smiled made him think everything was fine.

"I can't tell you, because I don't know who he is. It was just a coincidence that I was with him there, but he's a stranger."

When they'd been together in Moseley Bog, Jude felt like his heart would burst from how much he was feeling in so little time. Here, in his shop, hearing the way Gavi denied his existence, his heart shrank. As if he'd been burned.

He looked for the remote and quickly turned off the TV. Then he looked at the papers he was organizing and noticed they were slowly getting damp. Fuck, he was crying. Jude didn't feel he had the right to cry over something like this. Jude had been stupid. How had he thought something like this could turn out well? How had he thought he'd have the slightest chance of things working out? He hated to admit that before going to sleep, Jude checked social media with a little hope.

Will he look for me? Will he think of me? Will I matter among the millions of followers he has?

When the shop door chimed, Jude wiped away his tears and smiled at the girl who came in. In the end, Jude understood that destiny had sent him Gavi as a punishment.

━━━━━━━━

Months passed since those days with Gavi, and Jude didn't spend a single night without thinking about him.

The news faded into the background, since Gavi released new music and nobody cared anymore about this mysterious guy. The press left him alone and people on the street seemed to forget his face. In the end, Jude went back to the life he'd had before Gavi's chaos.

He was fine with that, but there were still nights when he'd check his gallery and look at the few photos from those days. The photo with Gavi's glasses, Gavi from behind looking at the lake, and Gavi smiling shyly at him on the bridge. Those photos ended up being completely his, since neither Gavi nor anyone else had them. How could you feel so much in so little time? If Gavi acted as if nothing had happened, Jude would do the same.

That was until one afternoon, right before closing the shop –since he had the closing shift–, Jude heard the door open. Because he was busy balancing the register, he didn't look up.

"Do you have the book The Lord of the Rings?"

It was common for people to come in asking for fiction books, even though there was a big sign outside saying they didn't have any, so Jude wasn't surprised by the question. He put on his best face –because customer service was the priority– and smiled at the person.

A smile that lasted only a few seconds, because in front of him was Gavi, wearing his usual glasses and a cap. This time it was yellow. Suddenly he felt as if his tongue had been taken away; he couldn't speak.

"Wh–"

"Jude, listen to me," Gavi came closer quickly, looking around, agitated. "I'm so sorry. For everything."

Jude's heart was excited and anxious at the same time. Angry, sad. All the emotions.

"I don't have time now. Please take this."

On the counter, Gavi left an envelope. Then he took Jude's hand for a few short seconds that felt like an eternity and left the shop.

When he opened the envelope, Jude saw a ticket for Gavi's concert that night in Birmingham. Since Jude had been trying to avoid Gavi on social media –though failing in the process–, he hadn't known he'd be performing there, in the same stadium where they had met by chance months earlier. Then things had taken a different path.

Right behind the ticket there was a small lump. When he tried to move it, Jude realized they were the sunglasses Gavi had worn in those days. They were the same ones; Jude could recognize them. His fragile heart was working against him, because as much as he wanted to hate Gavi for having denied him that way, another part of him empathized with the guy. Having gotten to know him better during that day together, Jude understood that Gavi wasn't a bad person. Gavi was simply a guy with a complicated, lonely life. If he had confirmed who Jude was, he would probably have had problems in his career. In the end, artists didn't move alone, Jude knew. Who was he to demand more from Gavi, who had shown him his deepest, most sensitive side during the hours they'd spent together?

Jude closed the shop and grabbed his car keys. He typed the concert's address into the map.

━━━━━━━━

When he scanned his ticket, Jude realized Gavi had given him a front-row one. He was so close to the stage that it seemed like he was the one about to put on the show. Since Gavi was so famous, the area was packed, so Jude could blend in among some girls. It didn't work very well, being so tall. What was such a tall guy doing there, and in sunglasses?

The show started minutes later. The intro was an upbeat melody, followed by a rap Jude didn't recognize. During the time Gavi had been gone, Jude had listened to more of his music and fallen in love with it. But since he'd released a new album, he hadn't wanted to listen to it to avoid thinking too much about Gavi. So it was new music to him. Music he would definitely add to his playlist afterward, because apparently he was a pop guy now.

Gavi appeared on stage. Minutes earlier he had been in Jude's shop looking like a total stranger, and now on stage he was the superstar everyone knew. Gavi, with his hair pinker than ever and a denim outfit, came out with his microphone greeting the audience.

It all felt like a fever dream. What just a few months ago he'd thought would be his worst nightmare was a great memory for him now.

The great memory of seeing Gavi, the artist, showing everything he had. His great skill at singing and dancing. A great performer. But that wasn't the best part; the best part was knowing that behind that great idol there was a great person. And that Jude, out of everyone in the audience, was the only one who'd had the privilege of seeing that side.

Before the show ended, the lights went out. There was only one spotlight aimed at Gavi. The music stopped too, and everything was silent.

"Before I go and leave the beautiful city of Birmingham, I want to say something," Jude felt his hands sweat. "Months ago, when I first came, I discovered how beautiful this city is. The landscapes, the peacefulness, and the people," Gavi seemed to be searching for something. "Specifically, I met someone very special."

Jude's feet felt weak. Was there a way to melt and become a puddle on the floor?

"That person made me feel at home, even though I was thousands of miles from mine," finally, their eyes met. "I want to apologize to that person for lying. I also want to thank them properly."

Suddenly, the light was no longer on Gavi but on Jude. Everyone else's eyes were on him. Slowly, Gavi stepped down from the stage. The crowd made a small path for him to pass, and when he stood in front of Jude, he took his own sunglasses out of his pocket. They were both wearing the same sunglasses, ridiculously.

"Jude."

Jude looked at him. His heart was about to burst.

"This song is for you."

The music started playing again, but they both stayed there as if they were alone. As if there weren't a crowd of fans watching them. Despite the constant attention, Jude didn't feel invaded. He felt happy, because the only thing he could focus on was Gavi. On the way he had given himself to him. Because it had been something fleeting. Jude never thought he'd get to know someone so well in so little time. That he could feel something like falling in love with a guy like Gavi, hours after meeting him. But there were many things Jude didn't know and was about to find out.

He didn't want to think about the future. For the first time, Jude let go of the idea of traveling through time and threw himself into the idea of an uncertain destiny. That there's something destined for each of us, as individuals. Maybe destiny had given him Gavi as a prize, or maybe something much more important than that.

When the song ended, Gavi sealed the moment with a kiss on his lips. A short kiss, full of adrenaline and shyness, and a bunch of lights all around them. The sunglasses bumped clumsily and they both laughed like the first time they had.

In front of him wasn't only Gavi, the pop superstar, but also Pablo, the boy Jude had fallen in love with.