It had been about 2 years since Battle of The Bands. You and Freddie had been quite happy together over these past two years, with Freddie there was always so much going on.

September 9, 1967

Today Freddie and I decided to go back and spend the weekend with mom and dad. We obviously had spent last week end there to celebrate Freddie's 21st Birthday—my god, I'm still in disbelief that he's 21, or that I'm 21—Anyways, he rather enjoyed the last weekend we'd spent back at the house and I also think he secretly wants to continue his birthday celebration since his birthday fell towards the middle of the week. He also, I'm sure, wants to finish his shirt he's been making—yes, Freddie is making a shirt. On our way over last week, Freddie discovered some teen wearing a new style of flowing shirt and he desperately wanted to recreate it. So in a rather Gone-With-The-Wind-esque style, he tore down the old drapes from our old bedroom and began to create this outfit. At first, of course, Jer got on his case a bit, but within a few hours time, she was pulling out the sewing machine and practically making it for him. Now this time around I think he's going to ask mom if she can modify his RAF jacket to match, at least that's what I think he's doing, he's brought it along with him, but with Freddie, who knows?

December 18, 1967

Today Richard came round the house and we spent the whole day listening to Beatles albums. It was rather fun. I made a big meal and we spent the whole day listening to songs on repeat as Freddie overanalyzed and over-enthused every song. He says one day he'd love to meet just one of them, it'd be 'like a dream'. Of course he then realized he could use me as a resource and began asking me a million and one questions about his future and I refused to answer any point blank. Through all of this, and using his quick wit, he figured out that one day he will indeed meet a Beatle. Freddie could be too sharp sometimes, and he didn't even know it, he got so excited when he figured something out. It made Richard and I laugh, thus provoking Freddie more, and thus he is now a stream of never-ending questions.

March 23, 1968

Today Chris and I hung out for a bit, Freddie had to stay after school awhile and finish up a project. Chris and I had a lovely time talking though! I've learned today about some of the dynamics between Chris and Freddie. I never knew that Chris could be rather intimidated by Freddie's flamboyancy. Apparently yesterday Chris had gone down to Carnaby Street and found a lovely pair of red trousers and today he wore them to school thinking he looked really sharp, but as soon as he got to school, there sat Freddie in the same pair—a better pair actually. He just sat there reading his Melody Maker, in his crimson crushed velvet, looking Chris up and down without saying a word. That boy, I swear.

June 3, 1968

Today Freddie and I went to the movie theatre to finally go see this movie everyone's been talking about, 2001: A Space Odyssey. I mean of course I'd heard of it back home, but I'd never actually sat down and seen it before. Freddie hasn't always been one to enjoy seeing movies in the theatre, as he just couldn't sit still, but Freddie had to see it—and he most definitely did not sit still! As soon as the intro started, he suddenly shot up out of his seat and began shouting excitedly. Eventually I learned that the intro song was one he'd heard long ago back when he was just a boy. On the way back from the theatre he told me about how he wants the music he creates to exceed the grander of that composition. Apparently it inspired him a lot when he was young, it made me laugh, but also gave me a sense of awe. I love the little ways he finds inspiration and joy in the world—in his own little ways.

August 31, 1968

Ha! Well, you'd never guess who I met today. Rosemary. I mean I'm not surprised Freddie's become friends with her, it was bound to happen. I guess I had the dates wrong in my mind of when they were supposed to meet, living here long enough must do that to me. Freddie brought her around today to go out for a drink and hang out awhile. He tells me I've "got nothing to worry about, she's not very pretty anyway". Though I laugh, part of me knows that's partly untrue. In another place and another time they were lovers. I've tried to be cool with it all, I'd never want to upset Freddie, but Rosemary sure doesn't seem to keen on me. I suppose when Freddie invited her over she didn't expect to see me or the other boys around the flat who'd be joining us. I can tell there's a certain jealousy inside her and honestly I feel bad—she was supposed to be with Freddie originally...well. she was a bit of a bitch to him...maybe I shouldn't care so much.

November 2, 1968

As I mentioned last week, Freddie had bought himself a guitar—no more borrowing anyone's guitars to pluck a few chords or playing around with yardsticks pretending to be Hendrix! Well today Tim decided to come around and hang out all afternoon to show him how to play it a bit. It was real sweet actually. Freddie spent the whole afternoon getting completely frustrated but refusing to give up and every so often, I'd hear a little "Haha! That's it!" from Freddie in the other room who would then proceed to get up and prance around a bit and then come into the room to tell me of his accomplishments. It was a slow and arduous process, but Freddie desperately wanted to learn. By the end of the day, he managed about three chords—the same chords he'd ever learn. As soon as Tim left, Freddie quickly lost his furor with the guitar and quickly went back to humming about the flat and playing the piano. I think Chris ought to take that guitar...Freddie and I may or may not have broken his when it got left on the bed at the wrong time...

January 18, 1969

Oh my goodness!!! Today for the first time I heard the beginnings of an absolute masterpiece! I can't even begin to describe the chilling and thrilling feeling I felt as I heard the first early beginnings of Bohemian Rhapsody. Today Freddie and I were staying after school in the college auditorium with Paul when Freddie sat down at the pain and began playing A Day In The Life—a usual tune he had been obsessed with playing these days—but over it, he began to sing the oh-so-famous "Mama, just killed a man" line. It wasn't quite the same Bohemian Rhapsody I know in love all the way back in 2017, but still, it was there. And here I was, hearing it for the first time. Paul calls it "the cowboy song", Freddie calls it "a bit of rubbish he's got in his head", and I just sit there absolutely speechless. Today was a truly magical day. Freddie doesn't have any clue why I'm so excited, he doesn't even "know what a Bohemian Rhapsody is", but as he's told me in reading over my shoulder just now like the nosy little bugger he is, that he "quite rather likes the name". I'll have to be more careful about how much I say about songs that aren't even written yet. What an interesting problem to face now, ha!

March 28, 1969

Today was Smile's debut concert! It's so exciting being a part of history. We hadn't been around them too much as Freddie had been busy enough oohing and awing at the other local bands playing in different pubs and clubs, but we did get to see them a few times at The Kensington. Last time we were there, Freddie had been trying to persuade them to take him on as their vocalist, but the best they could do was let him come along to their trip down to Truro for their debut concert. Honestly it was so nice of them to let us come along. Freddie and I had to wake up really early today and meet the boys at Ealing to pack up for the drive to Truro. Normally, Freddie probably wouldn't be so keen on waking up as early as we did, but today he was full of the excitement of being on the road...even for the five hours we sat in the car, he was bouncing off the walls. Haha, but I love that about him. The gig was absolutely fabulous! I don't even know what to say about it, honestly I think I was just as excited about it as Freddie was. Hearing Brian May, Roger Taylor, and Tim Staffel preform up there in their early days. We all were so ecstatic when we got the news that apparently Smile had been offered a one-off recording deal with Mercury records, but of course I later learned that the only reason for that little exchange was because Roger had lied and said that Smile had previously played on BBC Radio 1. But hey, what the hell! They've got a three-track recording deal, and that's plenty of reason for celebration. After the concert we all went out to celebrate and eventually around 3am Freddie and I made it back to our Addison Gardens flat. Boy what a historic adventure we had today.

May 6, 1969

I almost didn't believe my ears today when Freddie told me who breezed into Ealing today, David Bowie! Apparently he was there to give a lunchtime gig. And of course Freddie was there offering to carry his gear, which I almost didn't believe—that boy will hardly ever lift a finger around here—now he's read what I've written and is defending his "Herculean fortitude". Anyway he helped David Bowie put together a little stage out of tables and apparently had a wild time. Man am I jealous, hearing David Bowie live back in these days, must have been a dream.

June 30, 1969

Moving again! Now that Freddie's graduated Ealing and Chris and Paul had finally had enough of the two of us, it's about time we move out of Addison Gardens. Roger Taylor and a few of the boys from miscellaneous bands and friends of Smile have allowed us to come stay at their flat over off Sinclair. My god living with three boys in the house before was tough, now its going to be a bloody zoo! I shouldn't have too much of a problem handling myself though, at least I'll be able to keep things somewhere in the vicinity of clean. There's going to be no room for the piano, so we've got to either leave it here with Chris and Paul or move it back over to Mom's house in Feltham, it's up to Freddie to decide that and already we're staying at Roger's (I'm just going to call it that from now on) and Freddie still hasn't given Chris the final word. So far things are going alright, it's different being around Roger in a living aspect, at least knowing who he's going to be in the future. It's odd, he's much more quiet than I'd expect. The other boys certainly aren't quiet, maybe that's the real comparison. Ever since we've arrived there always seems to be people going in and out and every time I've left our room today, there's always someone different passed out on the couch. It's different indeed, but I think I'm going to like it here.

August 21, 1969

You wrote the date down. You'd enjoyed these last two years with Freddie. Everything had been a whirlwind really, but you had a hell of a time.

This last week in particular had been quite enjoyable, Freddie was in one of the best moods you'd ever seen him, and that was because he had finally joined a band. His dream! He met Ibex about a week ago yesterday when you and all the boys had gone out to The Kensington to celebrate Pat's 21st birthday, you didn't know her too well but she was a friend of Smile. In a weird turn of event's Pat's sister's boyfriend showed up and brought along with him the band who he was managing/driving around, Ibex. Freddie immediately got to talking with Mike, Mick, and Tupp and convinced them to let him on as their singer. You believe he led with the line, "I'm a singer, but I haven't got a band," how that lead him to actually being their singer, you'll never know.

Freddie had been spending the last week practicing their songs and working on a few of his own to show them, as Ibex has got a gig in Lancashire this Saturday. He's been just ecstatic about it and has always had a smile painted across his face and a musicality in his voice ever since they'd let him on. Every morning you'd hear him singing to himself in the shower, once you'd even walked into him in your room singing and dancing around the room naked because it was supposed to "rid him of his fear". Sure Fred, you thought to yourself, that's why.

Besides preparing for the show, you and Freddie had been rather busy this week actually. Your hours at work had been later due to a minor back to school rush and the cooling temperatures. Freddie had actually been busy mosts days this week working right down the road from you. He had been commissioned this week to come on and draw some lady's corsets for one of the local newspaper's adverts.

Today was both your last day of working this week as tomorrow you'd have to start your travel to Lancashire for Freddie's first big show. You were excited to go on the road with him for longer than just an afternoon. It wouldn't be too long of a drive, but you'd never stayed overnight out on the road before and it was an exciting new adventure.

You stared out the shop windows of the Biba store awhile, the evening rush had slowed and only one or two people were in the shop browsing at their leisure. You didn't always like when things were slow, when the store was crowded it helped you concentrate on the work instead of the hours that slid by. If things kept at this pace, maybe you'd get to leave a few hours early, but even so that was still a few hours away. And so you sat, continuing your inventory on the baskets of bracelets and beads by the front counter.

Suddenly you heard the front door open for the first time in awhile and the light-footed steps of someone familiar. And up he strode, Mr. Mercury, humming to himself as usual and a smile from ear to ear.

"What do you think dear," he said pulling an earring out of the basket and holding it up to his face, "Do these match my eyes?".

You laughed, "Hey Freddie".

"Ooh, maybe I should go a bit bolder," he said picking up another pair and holding them up to his ears.

"I'm not quite sure that's your color," you laughed.

"Oh stop it you, I can wear any color I damn well please," he laughed picking up the pink pair in your hand, "I'm going to be a pop-star soon anyways"

"And you're going to wear that to your show?" you mused.

"Of course not, but I've got to be dressed to kill," said Freddie as he laughed, "Anyway, darling, how is your day".

"Boring, as usual," you answered, "well of course until you came along," you smiled, "the last two minutes have been the best bit of my day quite actually".

"Well, let's make it a bit better then," Freddie began, "Do you think you can get out of here?"

"I wish I could," you sighed, "but instead I've got to sit here and watch some old lady try on a thousand hats she's never going to buy and some girl who comes in here every week to shoplift".

"Oh come on, leave them be, let's go out and have some fun for a bit," pleaded Freddie.

You sighed.

"How about this, I'll try to see if I can slip out in an hour or two and meet you back at the flat. Then we'll go grab a drink at the Kensington and you can show me what you've been practicing. Alright?" you suggested.

"I guess," said Freddie reluctantly with a dramatized longing strategically placed in his eyes. You came around the table and kissed him goodbye.

"Love you," you kissed him once more.

"Love you," he mumbled.

"Oh don't give me that shit," you laughed and took his head in your hands and gave him one deep, overly romanticized kiss. Freddie laughed and kissed you back.

"I love you, y/n" said Freddie with a glimmer in his eye.

"I love you too," you replied with a grin as you walked him walk out the door. 

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Sorry this update took so long. I just lost my house in a fire. It's crazy but writing the beginning of this chapter was the last thing I ever did in my house...that's just crazy. I'm okay don't worry! I'm making do. Just wanted to explain why the long wait for the update. I don't know how spotty updates will be as of right now, but I am really excited for the next few chapters so they may be sooner than you'd think...but I can't promise.