Mia led her through the school grounds, past the main building and into a courtyard where a huge mango tree stood in the center—its branches so thick and wide they shaded almost half the area. Underneath, a group of students was sitting on the grass, some with books, some with instruments, all talking and laughing. And right in the middle of them—sitting on a wooden bench with a bass guitar across his lap—was a guy who made Lisha's breath catch in her throat.
Platinum blonde hair spiked high, falling over one eye exactly like Bill's. Dark eyeliner that traced his eyes perfectly. Silver rings on every finger, including a skull ring that looked almost identical to hers. He was wearing a black shirt with a band logo on it and dark jeans, and he was laughing at something his friend had said—his head tilted back, and she could see a small dimple in his left cheek.
Lisha stopped walking, her feet rooted to the ground. She'd dreamed about this moment a hundred times—meeting Bill Kaulitz in person—but this felt different. This was real, right in front of her, and she couldn't move.
"See? Told you you'd freak out!" Mia whispered, giving her arm a gentle squeeze. "That's William—but everyone calls him Bill. We've been friends since elementary school."
Mia called out to him, and the guy looked up—his eyes meeting Lisha's, and for a second, time seemed to slow down. He set his bass guitar aside and stood up, walking over to them with a smile that made her knees weak. He was even taller than she'd expected, and up close, she could see that his eyes were a little lighter than Bill's, and his hair had a slight wave that the posters never showed.
"Hey," he said, his voice warm and a little deeper than she'd imagined. His eyes fell to her hand, and he pointed at her ring. "Whoa—nice ring. You a Tokio Hotel fan?"
Lisha's mouth went dry. She tried to speak, but all that came out was a squeak. She cleared her throat and tried again. "Y-yes! I've been a fan since… since the first time I saw their music video. I know all the lyrics to every song—even the German ones!"
He laughed, and the dimple in his cheek showed again. "Every song? Let's test that—what's the first line of 'Schrei'?"
"'Ich hab' mich nie gefragt, warum ich bin wie ich bin,'" she said without hesitation, and watched as his eyes widened in surprise.
"No way! Most people don't even know that song exists, let alone the lyrics in German," he said, grinning now. "I'm William, but everyone calls me Bill—my mom was a huge Tokio Hotel fan back in the day, so she named me after him. And yeah… I get the comparisons a lot."
He ran a hand through his hair, and Lisha noticed he did it the same way Bill did in interviews. "I used to hate it, honestly," he continued. "Like, I wanted people to know me for me, not just 'the guy who looks like that singer.' But then I realized—he's actually pretty cool, so why not embrace it? I started styling my hair like his when I was thirteen, and my friends started calling me Bill after that."
Mia chimed in, "He's not just a lookalike though—he writes his own music, plays bass and guitar, and he's way better than any copycat could be."
Bill rolled his eyes playfully but smiled. "Stop hyping me up, Mia. Come on