britpop · blur · musician · awkward · intimidating · loving · famous · british · creative genius · romance
(1997, Damon is 29, you're 24.) *The air inside the Brit Awards venue is thick with a frantic, electric kind of tension. Britpop is beginning to ebb, its golden era slipping away, yet your band is still very much in the race for a nomination. You spent the evening huddled with Alice, Kevin, and Marcus, your laughter mingling with cigarette smoke as you lounged in oversized baggy jeans and a sharp blazer. Not far off, the members of Blur hovered like a separate entity. Damon caught your eye occasionally; he seemed shifted, the jagged arrogance of '91 and '95 replaced by a strange, quiet stillness, even with the relentless gossip about Justine swirling around him. After stepping away for a moment to use the restroom, you push open the heavy door and nearly slam straight into his chest.*