"They'll be fine," Marie said as she settled down n the seat beside Leonardo. Claire was sitting on his left, and James had gotten a seat somewhere else in the audience. Leo wondered what James was doing there. James didn't really like Alejandro, and he definitely didn't like Kenneth—or maybe he did? Leo wouldn't know. He had been too busy thinking about graduation and readying the school orchestra for it.

The crowd at the auditorium was smaller compared to the ones in the last two rounds. This was the last round the competition would be having, and the competition had thinned out to just five pairs. The winners would be announced tonight. Leo wasn't sure why he was so nervous. It wasn't like he was the one competing.

When everyone settled down the person on stage went about calling the contestants, and then there were some words from the judges. Leo couldn't help smiling when he spotted Al on stage. He saw that Kenneth was waving at someone in the crowd, but Leo couldn't figure out who, but Ken did seem to like having them there.

Is it James? Leo wondered to himself. It was a possibility. The two didn't get into catfights as often as they used to.

Leo didn't have much time to dwell on the thought since Ken and the rest of the contestants were soon escorted off stage. It didn't take long till the first pair of contestants were called up to perform. With performance after performance, Leo was getting nervous. None of the pairs were taking risks. They'd all picked out well-known compositions and followed their music sheets to the T. Kenneth and Alejandro had put some experimental twists into the piece they performed, and Leo wasn't sure how the judges took it.

Marie was humming along to the piece that the current pair of contestants were playing. He leaned forward on her seat before giving Leonardo a tap on the shoulder.

"Kenneth and Al did great," she assured him with a small smile. Her makeup was light aside from the black matte lipstick she was wearing, you wouldn't be able to tell she had any on at all. Leo smiled back at her before looking back at the stage. The last pair were presently performing—a lady with curly pigtails and a young man that wasn't too tall. They were good, and everyone clapped when they finished their piece and took a bow. They left the stage soon after, and it was now the pause where the Judges had to discuss with each other.

"Kenneth and Al did great! It took me a while to realize what they were playing but when I did, I appreciated it," Claire said to Marie and Leo, talking for the first time since the contest started.

"First Marie tells me they did great, now you? I'm not sure but do I look worried?" Leo asked, and Claire and Marie looked at each other before chuckling.

"Yes!" they said together, and Leo covered his face in embracement.

"I'll go get us some drinks," Marie said before getting up and leaving. Leo talked with Claire for a bit until James came up to them and joined the conversation. James waved them goodbye and left for his seat again when everyone was asked to settle down. The host gave a speech, thanking the remaining contestants, the judges, and the sponsors for making the competition possible. Leo noticed the number of talent scouts around and knew that even if a contestant didn't win today, they would be picked up as a musical talent.

Finally, the host went about announcing the winners. She started from the second runner-up's, calling the two siblings that had played a song by Gioachino Rossini—safe, gentle, and well-executed. She then called the second runner-up's who were the last contestants to perform.

"Kenneth and Alejandro—" Leo couldn't hear the rest of her words when she was calling the winners because the row of critiques up front had gotten up to start clapping. Leo had been so nervous that he hadn't paid attention to the judges and critics up in front during Kenneth and Al's performance. The critics loved it. They really did.

Leo smiled, glad that they'd accepted Al and Kenneth's alt, alternative playing style for what it was—brilliant. Leo watched as Al got on stage with Kenneth's help. After some pictures and questions from reporters with no regard for personal space, Alejandro and Kenneth disappeared backstage again.

"We should go and meet them," Marie said, making Leonardo blink. He noticed he was the only one sitting and got up. He hadn't realized he'd been frozen in his seat since the winners were called.

"Come on guys, James already left to go backstage without us," Marie said, picking up her handbag. She was in a small umbrella dress, a nice change from her long skirts. Claire, a fan of plaid and mod clothing was in a mod top and a simple pair of trousers.

With a little more hassling from Marie they left their seats. They moved through the crowd and soon found themselves backstage. It took a while for them to spot Al and Kenneth. The place was crowded with everyone from talent scouts to friends of the contestants. After a while of searching, they found Ken and Al and rushed over to them. Marie gave the two a hug, and Claire just smiled at them both. She wasn't close to either of them. James was standing at the corner, and when everyone's attention shifted to Al, Kenneth walked up to him. The redhead dodged a hug from him, and instead wedged an open palm in-between them for a handshake instead. Kenneth was disappointed, but he guessed a handshake would have to do.

After a while of talking Al, the girls and Leo left backstage and then the main building. Al was smiling and straining his ears to separate his friends' voices from that of the rest of the people in the crowd. Somehow, they found themselves in the gardens at the auditorium's backyard. Claire and Marie moved ahead, so lost in their conversation with each other that they left Leo and Al lagging behind.

"Congratulations," Leo said again, making Al turn his head at an angle to listen to him. He smiled, listening to the sound of leaves moving in the evening breeze.

"Thank you," Al muttered in reply, hugging Leo's hand as they continued to walk. He hadn't brought his walking stick with him, so Leo would have to do. "Where are we?" he asked, noticing that the place had gone oddly quiet apart from the sound of leaves and crickets.

"The back garden," Leo replied with a small hum. Al muttered an 'oh' as he tightened his grip on Leo's hand.

"You're happy you two won, aren't you?" Leo asked, and Al chuckled a bit.

"I already have an offer. This was more or less for Kenneth," Al said.

"Kenneth's stoked, isn't he?" Leo asked, and Alejandro laughed before muttering a small yes. Leo was happy they won, but Kenneth would rub the win in everyone's face back in college until graduation stopped him. Typical Kenneth.

"You're thinking about Kenneth bragging about this, right?" Al asked

Leo groaned. "He's going to brag about it," Leo said. This wasn't an assumption it was a statement. Kenneth's ego was bigger than a whale.

"He's not that bad. Not anymore, anyway," Al said, and Leo laughed. The two laughed until they stopped walking, and stood still for a bit, and it didn't take long for Al to hold on to Leo in a way that allowed him to step forward so that he was in front of him. Leo smiled, leaning in so their lips touched.

Sweet. Leo thought, smiling into the kiss. It's too sweet.