The crowd was just as big as he expected it to be. He may have been free of Sadness and Disgust for a few years, but he still didn’t know all the faces around him. It was like he had only just come to life and was still learning the way of the world. At least he had plenty of friends to help him out, at least he had Confidence at his side. 

“Lonely!” a voice called from within the crowd. Fear’s small frame pushed towards them, a grin on his face. 

They hugged briefly and Lonely smiled when they pulled away. “It’s good to see you,” he said. “How long until we start?”

“Not long. Come on, Love’s waiting,” Fear said and dragged them both along by the hand. He was surprisingly calm for once. Usually, whenever Lonely saw him, he was jittery and easy to startle, just as anxious as Lonely was. 

Love was just as happy to see them as Fear was, giving them both a hug when he saw them. “How are you feeling?” he asked Lonely, who let out a small chuckle. 

“He’s been nervous since last night,” Confidence answered for him. 

“I can’t help it,” he added with a shrug, leaning into his partner’s side. “I’ll be alright when it’s over.”

“That won’t be for a while,” Love told him. “I think Pride and Happy put you two in the middle.”

He groaned in irritation. It was better than being the first up, but the waiting would be awful for him. Confidence squeezed his hand and pressed a kiss to his cheek. At the front of the massive crowd, Happy and Pride walked onto the stage and smiled at everyone around them. 

They introduced the Performance in much the same way Sadness and Disgust used to and within moments, they were the first to show their tiny world what they could do. Lonely watched with pride as his friends danced and sang about the stage. That was something good about not being first, he got to see what everyone else could do. 

Others he was still learning the names of came and went, colours swirling around their beautiful performances. Love went up before them, playing a lively tune on his piano, quickly followed by Wisdom, who’s performances were always strange. He passed on his emotion by writing and to show that, he read one of his stories to the crowd. 

The closer his time came, the more nervous he got, but looking over the crowd, he knew no one would mind if he messed up. He was going to be nervous, but it would be fine, he could handle it. 

“Lonely and Confidence, come on up,” Happy called from the stage, waving a hand at them. With a deep breath and a small smile at his friends, Lonely walked up to the stage, Confidence’s hand clutched tightly in his. Happy and Pride gave him an encouraging smile when he met them, hugging them both briefly before leaving the stage. 

The crowd looked far bigger from the stage than it did from within and Lonely struggled to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat. He turned away from them even though he knew he shouldn’t and struggled to pull his violin from its case. 

Confidence, who was stretching in the middle of the stage, looked over at him and frowned with worry. “You can do it,” he said. “Show them what you’ve got, alright.”

He could do that, couldn’t he? He could prove to them that he deserved to be there, even though it had been years since anyone had said otherwise. With a deep breath and a nod at Confidence, he put his violin up to his chin. He had practised it a thousand times, he knew what he needed to do. 

The music that came from his violin was not a sad tune, not anymore. He didn’t know how to describe the tune he had come up with, but Confidence had told him once that it sounded powerful, like he knew who he was. The song started on a long note that rose in pitch, before dropping into a series of notes that allowed Confidence to leap about the stage beautifully. 

He was stunned every time he watched Confidence dance. It was beautiful, the way he moved, the way he was able to put everything he felt into his actions. The magic that swirled around him only made it better. Bright and purple, it swirled around them and showed the crowd grinning faces and happy people. 

Lonely contrasted everything. With each swell of the music, faces of lonely people joined those who were smiling. They seemed like complete opposites from the outside, he and Confidence, but they weren’t. They had their differences and similarities but together they were happy.

And he hadn’t made a single mistake. His magic and music swirled around him but not once did he slip up. The crowd didn’t matter. All he wanted to do was play music for Confidence to dance to. So that was what he did. He locked his gaze on his partner and focused only on getting the song out, letting their magic mingle together. 

He couldn’t stop the smile that spread across his face as Confidence spun in time with the music. He met his gaze for a second and beamed at him. He wanted him to know that he was doing okay, that he wasn’t panicking. 

It felt like forever, the two of them together on the stage, the rest of the world gone. They weren’t even looking at each other, not all the time, but it didn’t matter. Lonely could have played for him for hours if it meant he felt this good, this free. 

But it all had to end eventually. Other people needed to perform and they would both need a break in a few minutes. The music swelled as he drew the bow across the strings and he swayed with it. The song ended in a long, deep note that faded into the air with their magic, Confidence standing in the middle of the stage with his arm in the air, chest heaving.

Ever so slowly, Lonely looked over the crowd. Most of them were clapping, but he couldn’t tell if they knew just how powerful he felt up there, how free. They probably didn’t, but he knew and Confidence would too. That was all he needed. 

As Happy and Pride walked back up onto the stage, big smiles on their faces, he put his violin back in its case. Confidence came up behind him and placed his hands on his Lonely’s hips, pecking him quickly on the cheek. Pride shooed them off the stage with a quick ‘well done’ shot Lonely’s way and made preparations for the next person. 

“Come on,” Confidence whispered as he pulled him through the crowd. “You were amazing, you know that?”

He said nothing, heat in his cheeks, and followed him all the way back to Fear and Love. The pair showered him with similar compliments but he couldn’t find it in himself to get any words out. Confidence spoke enough for the both of them, thanking their friends with a bright grin on his face. 

They watched the other Performances in silence, clapping at the end of each one. He should have been paying better attention to what was going on, but his mind continued to dwell on his own Performance. He felt good, better than he had in a long time. And that was saying something, considering how happy he had been over the last few years. 

At one point, as the Performance came to a close, Confidence leaned in close and whispered in his ear. “How do you feel?” he asked. 

“Good,” he said and wrapped his arms around him. “Really good.”

“Well, hopefully it stays that way,” Confidence replied and kissed him on the temple. “We still have a dinner to attend.”

They did, but for once he didn’t feel so nervous about it. Following the instructions of Happy, the massive crowd headed for the park, where a bunch of tables had been set up for each and every one of them. Lonely hadn’t seen anything like it before, but it seemed lovely. 

He and Confidence sat next to each other, their friends spread out around them. Lonely still didn’t speak much; he didn’t feel the need to, and instead watched over the others moving between the tables. At the end of one sat Sadness and Disgust, talking quietly among themselves. 

It was as if they could feel him watching them. They looked up and met his gaze, one of the few times they actually acknowledged his existence. For a moment, he was sure they were going to get up and say something, or at least glare at him, but they didn’t. Instead, Sadness smiled at him. 

After a few seconds of shock, Lonely smiled and waved back, unsure if he should do anything else. It seemed to be enough and Sadness turned away from him again. A prod on his side made him face Confidence, who was frowning at him in confusion. 

He shrugged at him. “Maybe they’re finally opening up?” he suggested. 

“Maybe,” Confidence replied. 

Within moments, food arrived on each of the tables and the night passed with laughter and joy. Lonely talked with his friends, laughing at their jokes and eating food that was good enough for the night they were having. After a good Performance and what seemed to be acceptance from Sadness, he didn’t feel he could feel any better. And as he sunk against Confidence’s side, arm around his waist, he sighed with content.