Stronger

About two hours later they arrived at the X Factor studios, Angel felt as if her nerves were going to wreck her from the inside, she was fiddling with her hands and playing with the hem of her shirt. She was wearing an army green loose shirt and black shorts with her hair in a messy bun, having removed the beanie, she didn’t feel adapt for the job of an X Factor stylist at all.

“Here we are, this is where everything happens but I need to get you to my boss now, she is probably going nuts” said Helen as she flew out of the car.

Angel’s stuff were taken to the Corinthia, they didn’t have time to go there first so they just did what they had to do, things were different here, even the people that worked as assistants had people doing things for them, it was so weird.

Angel’s heart was drumming inside her chest, she was going to meet her boss, Martha had been her only boss so she was kind of freaked out that she had to meet someone else, someone she didn’t know, that would boss her about and tell her what to do, which was the one thing she mostly hated about all of this.

She almost ran back home.

They walked further and deeper behind the set and soon they arrived in front of a door and Helen knocked after which someone told them to come in, and even though the voice was as normal as anyone’s it still gave Angel the chills.

“Is this her?” a very pretty woman asked as they entered, Helen had called telling them she had found someone.

“Yes, she is a hairdresser and also a make up artist” said Helen proudly.

The woman looked Angel up and down, she didn’t seem to like her appearance but she couldn’t be very picky, it was Friday and tomorrow they had the live shows, she couldn’t wait any longer, she needed to get the contestants to meet the new staff and not let everything fall to the last minute.

“Fine, just go to the styling room, there are some new people we found, we only need a few others now” said the woman as she dialled a number on the phone and turned away dismissing them.

Helen took Angel to the styling room where she found another ten people waiting there eagerly.

“Hello people so this is a critical moment for all of us, I know, but congratulations you are working for X factor now and we need to make you meet the contestants, get to know them, because we need for you to get to know their style and what they like but what you should do also if their own style is totally not working. So, we already called them they’re in the other room, we are having a photoshoot this afternoon, so we need you to style them and we’ll see how it goes, okay” she nodded and they all nodded in response.

Angel’s thought ran amuck, ’These people are all older than me, probably with so much more experience and courage to talk to these people, I don’t know why I even accepted, Oh my God I am going to regret this, I just know it. I will not be good as all these people and they’ll kick me out, laughing at me and I will be so embarrassed.’

***

She was fiddling with her clothes again and not talking to anyone even though everyone was already getting to know each other but her heart was in her throat and she didn’t know what to say.

She didn’t have to say anything though because Helen came in with the contestants, ‘so many’ Angel thought, no one had been eliminated yet and this was the first live show so there was a lot of pressure on everyone, she had to stop stressing then because she was about to break a brush.

“Contestants take seats, let them style you and we’ll have a photoshoot in an hour and a half, while you wait you can rehearse in the other room, they will call you when it’s your turn, so come on let’s do this” said Helen, clapping her hands together for everyone to get moving, everyone nodded and some sat down and others went in the other room.

It turned out that there were only three other makeup artists other than Angel so she would have a lot to do.

A cute guy with nice cheekbones and a cheeky smile, smiled big at her while he sat on Angel’s chair as three other very handsome boys came near them to see what she was doing.

Awkward!! ‘Why aren’t they waiting in the other room?’ she thought.

“Hi my name is George” the boy said.

“Hi I’m Angel” she said with a small smile.

“I’m Josh this is Jaymi and that is JJ, and you have a beautiful name by the way” said Josh, one of the boys around her.

“Thank you” she said, these guys were so cute that she didn’t want to ignore them like she did most people, they were all smiling so big at her that she felt a grin creeping its way to her mouth. She felt Martha

“Are you guys really going to watch me?” she asked, this was already more than she ever talked to any guys she was always sat next to at school.

“Yup” said Jaymi,” We want to see how little Georgie turns out” said JJ.

“Okay” was all she said.

She started on George and by the time others finished with their contestants and asked one of the boys to come they didn’t want to, they just waited for Angel.

After George, it was JJ’s turn and then Josh’s and strangely enough by the time she started on Jaymi she couldn’t stop laughing, they were just too funny, they kept joking around and she felt really good around them even though she had just met them.

“So are you guys excited for tomorrow?” she asked.

“Oh yes, we are like freaking out about all this, sometimes it’s not even real for us” said Jaymi.

“Can someone else talk Jaymi I’m trying to do your face” she said with a smile.

“We are so buzzed” said Josh.

Jaymi just couldn’t shut up so he just mhmed and nodded.

Josh kept looking into the mirror, “You know what I think I like you better than the other stylist, I mean he was a guy and well you are better than a guy and my hair is just so fluffy and shiny, I love it, I never thought this style would suit me” he said, she had cut Josh’s hair in a totally different way, he was sceptical about it but he was super happy with the result, hair, make up and styling was the one thing she wasn’t afraid about, she knew she was good and took leaps sometimes, they always turned out good, she still doubted herself when it came to seeing herself good near others though.

Angel blushed and George noticed.

“You’re so cute, you don’t have to blush, you did a great job” he said.

She smiled and continued to put the finishing touches on Jaymi’s beard.

After a few minutes they were done, “Can we stay here?” asked George with a smile.

“I don’t think you can you have to go for the shoot” said Angel with an apologetic smile.

“I like it more here” said Josh. They all looked like they were bursting with energy.

Angel smiled and she told them to leave as a girl was about to sit on her chair. “Go I need to continue on someone else, I’ll catch you guys later” she said.

They left but George came running back, “Hey were are you staying?”

“At the Corinthia with all of you” she replied.

“Great” he said, then he looked around, found a lip pencil and started writing on her hand, “that is my number, call us when you’re settled in a room ’kay” he said with a smile and a wink.

She didn’t have time to answer, she was left there, mouth agape staring at the door.

“Union J are crazy, all of them” said the girl in her chair, she was absolutely gorgeous and since Angel watched the X Factor she knew this girl had an amazing voice, she smiled at her and the girl turned and stretched her hand forward, “I’m Ella, you are?” the girl said.

“Angel” she said shyly.

They talked and with Ella also she found herself relax, she was very outgoing and amazing and soon after her came a man, he seemed very shy so they both didn’t talk much, he giggled a lot when he talked to her which she found endearing and cute, he introduced himself as Jahmene and since he didn’t have much hair and his face was pretty much perfect she was ready with him in no time.

She knew that if she did a nice job these would be the people she would work with all the time because there was no time for the contestants to get to know all the stylists so if they all got along with one they would probably stick with her or him.

Others came like, James Arthur, he was shy too but they got in a few sentences here and there, he was just like her. Lucy came after him and a guy named Micky and then another one named Kye, and then Angel and another hairdresser worked on a guy named Rylan. One girl did his hair and then he was sent to her with the make up, he was so energetic she was kind of afraid of him, he talked and talked and sometimes his accent would make her smile, he was a dream to do make up on since he had a very nicely shaped face, guys on this edition on the X Factor seemed to all be like that, she had mostly guys on her side but she was very glad with her work, everyone seemed pretty happy about it and about her and some of the pressure was just lessened a little bit. It seemed she could finally let out the breath she had been holding, it seemed, since Helen walked into Martha’s salon.

By the time she was finished she was exhausted and went straight to the hotel, her back was killing her so she had a shower and dumped herself on the bed to call Martha, she wasn’t sleepy yet but she was definitely tired, soon after she ended the call with Martha her phone started to ring.

“Hello” she answered.

“Hi, Angel, it’s George”.

“You gave me your number how did you get mine?”

“I got my sources” he said and she could just imagine him smiling the way he did.

“Okay, that’s kind of creepy but it’s fine, why are you calling?”

“Come over to room, 250” he said.

She argued saying she was tired but he told her that he would go find her if she didn’t come over so she accepted, if he could find out her phone number he could find out her room too.

“I’ll be there in a bit” she said and hung up.

She sighed, what was happening, why was she so outgoing all of a sudden, she was never like this it took her a long time to get along with someone she met, if she even accepted to meet anyone. X Factor did change you but not when you weren’t even a contestant! She thought it only happened to those that were in the competition not the ones working behind the scenes, but she was changing and she could feel it, it was so soon, after only one day, and so sudden but she just gave into it, she imagined her mother and Martha, they would want this for her, she then got up and out of her room to find room 250.