The past two days had been frenetic and eventful, so much so that Belinda still smiled just thinking about it. The first thing that had amused her was Bill's terrified face when, before being discharged from the hospital, they had given her two injections of antihistamine and cortisone, and he had almost fainted at the sight of the needle.
When she returned to the apartment, everyone had greeted her with a big smile, except Tom, who muttered something about having taken away "the joy of a grandchild" from him, but he forgave her only because he had worried too much about her.
Furthermore, that same evening, a very dejected Lucas had come to visit them because, having learned what had happened to her, he had apologized and had arranged for her costume to be remade with materials safer for her.
Belinda had forgiven him on the condition that he let her choose her choreography for the next two stages.
She'd also called her mother, who was deeply concerned about what had happened and asked if she should join her.
"I miss you so much, Mom!" she'd said, moved. "But I have to manage on my own, and... you still have Raffy to look after. For now, I'm fine, don't worry!"
That night, for the first time in a long time, she fell asleep peacefully and without dreaming.
Needless to say, the next day, Bill insisted that Belinda's act not be performed that night, as he no longer trusted the costume.
The girl had rolled her eyes and threatened to never speak to him again.
"You're using the wrong method!" Tom had teased her. "Try threatening to make him sleep alone, and you'll see that you'll get everything you want!"
Bill had thrown him an empty water bottle, and she had giggled, approving of his proposal. "Given the damage you can do..." she muttered, referring to the little scare she'd had.
Bill threw his arms up in despair. "Do as you please!" and went off to get another bottle of water.
Belinda and Tom high-fived, complicitly.
That evening's show promised to be as successful as the previous one, though before starting with Heartbreaker, Bill turned to Belinda, who was still backstage, to see how she was. She blew him a kiss with her hand and he nodded to Tom, who took off with his guitar.
Her arrival was very similar to the previous ones, but as she continued toward the center of the stage, she risked a glance at the audience, and what she saw surprised her. There was a certain silence, like there can be in a stadium when a penalty is being taken; all eyes were on her, expressing curiosity as to what she would do that evening.
Silently, she reached her usual spot, but her gait was no longer stiff; rather, it had a certain sensuality, and when she stopped to wait for Bill to approach her, she tilted her head expectantly. Then she rested her left arm on her hip, bringing the other hand under her chin to observe him better. The heart of her costume pulsed gently three times before she, with a somewhat flirtatious half-turn, walked away from the stage amidst applause.
Approaching the curtain, she stopped, lingered for a moment, turning slightly to give Bill a last melancholy glance, and finally, hunching her shoulders slightly, continued toward the exit.
The roar spread throughout the theater, with applause and cheers so loud they threatened to drown out Bill's singing.
Laughing with amusement, she climbed down the steps and, removing her helmet, went to peer through a crack to watch the final moments of the concert. She'd had fun planning those little changes for her appearance, and only Naomi and Annalisa knew about them.
When it was over, she'd already changed and waited for the boys at the back of the stage, wearing her usual jeans, black sweatshirt, and her hair tied in a ponytail.
Bill immediately ran to her with a big smile and his hands outstretched, palms up. She clapped hers together, like a little ritual, and then hugged him tightly.
"You were incredible!" he exclaimed, hugging her to his chest. "My robot is waking up!"
Belinda laughed. "It's all thanks to you!"
"There, he's always the one who gets pampered," Tom grumbled with mock disgust. "No one ever asks how I'm doing, if my hands hurt, or tells me I was fantastic."
"Maybe because you're always fantastic!" Naomi scoffed. "But it's true that we don't care about your golden hands... How ungrateful we are!"
She took his hands and looked at them carefully. "Poor Tom, what a mess! Should we use cream?"
Everyone laughed as Lucas joined them to compliment them and provide some technical data. Finally, he asked Belinda for details for the last evening, but she remained vague, careful not to reveal anything: she had something amazing in mind!
They returned home tired, singing the little song "Because He's a Good Boy!" at the top of their lungs to Tom, and he bowed gratefully, yet detachedly, like a true star.
It was now one in the morning, when Naomi decided it was the right time to have a real pillow fight, to the last feather.
They all muttered that they were tired, but at the first pillow slap they received from the girl, they fought back valiantly, regaining their energy. The real surprise was Klaus, who, with each pillow slap, managed to send them to the floor, one by one, without tiring. But it was short-lived because, egged on by Tom, the four girls struck as a group, knocking him out and burying him under a mountain of pillows.
Bill was keeping to the sidelines of the fight, but Tom suddenly tackled him, knocking him onto the couch and also knocking over Belinda, who was nearby. The girl called for help, and Naomi rushed over and threw all her weight onto the three of them. Bill complained that they were squeezing him, while Belinda fidgeted, tickling anyone in sight.
"That's not fair!" Bill shouted, trying to stop his hand.
"Then tell this dinosaur brother of yours to get off my back!" she replied, laughing.
"As long as you convince your sister to get her nice ass off my back!" Tom retorted.
"Hey, don't be vulgar!" Naomi feigned offense, giving him a light tug on the hair.
"I'm suffocating! Help!" Belinda screamed, sandwiched between the two boys. "You never would have done that if I were pregnant!"
"That'll teach you how to pretend. Don't complain!" Tom replied, trying to unload Naomi from his back by throwing pillows at her with his overturned arm.
After much thrashing, the sofa gave way and tipped over onto its back, sending everyone sprawling. With yucks and oh-ohs, they remained stretched out on the floor, gasping for air.
As they gradually regained normal breathing, they began to giggle, watching the feathers flutter around the room. The others had also sat on the floor, exchanging amused glances.
Kristian sighed. "I'm so tired, I could fall asleep here!"
"I've already made myself comfortable," replied Naomi, resting her head on Tom's stomach. Tom, with his arms under his head and his eyes closed, was smiling.
"Good idea!" Belinda approved, rolling over and lying completely on top of Bill, her hair covering his face.
"Good thing I weigh next to nothing!" Bill sighed, aligning Belinda's back to his chest and brushing her hair from his mouth.
"If only you were a little softer," he laughed. "You're so skinny I feel like I'm on a fakir's bed!"
"Ungrateful!" he hissed in her ear, laughing. "You don't always think that way."
"Um, it's true: you have some very soft spots!" Belinda giggled, turning her head and giving him a light kiss under the chin.
"Take a cue, brother!" Tom exclaimed proudly, lifting his shirt and showing off his sculpted muscles.
"Hey, baby, look at this!" Kristian called back, showing off his biceps.
"Oh my God, we're at the macho-man stage!" Naomi muttered, raising her head.
"Okay, if you really want to turn pale, I'll show you my piercings," Tom mocked.
The heads of the four girls turned in his direction, but Kristian placed a hand over Annalisa's eyes. "Not you, you're still little!"
Klaus also tugged on Hellen's arm, who, giggling, buried her face in his chest.
"If you dare show them to my sister, you'll wake up tomorrow without a single one!" Belinda threatened him, glaring at him.
"At least I have something to show!" Tom laughed boldly and winked at her. "What's big brother offering you?"
"Don't worry," Bill scolded, hugging the girl. "He's got a whole body covered in tattoos!"
"It does take a while to see them all!" she laughed. "Last night I had to use the stool!"
Everyone laughed, and when they heard the clock on the wall beep, saying 2:00, they reluctantly decided to go to sleep.