The Ice Palace

Ch. 1 - Icy intros

Join the Rebirth tour, they said

I escaped narrowly down the left side of the main stage. It wasn't until I saw everyone running off to the right that I realized I was going the wrong way.

Best way to promote the album, they said

I cussed at myself for not paying attention to the security brief when we reached the stadium.

Trying to double back I stopped in horror when I saw the flock of people that had stampeded their way through the flimsy security gates now hopping onto the stage, screaming and chasing after anyone they saw.

When they said we would have fans falling over themselves to see us after quarantining for so long, this wasn't what I pictured.

It'll be fun, they said

It wasn't my fault the last time I was on tour was like two years ago. I had adrenaline in my veins and my mind on nothing but my performance. Now all that shit was down the drain.

A few guards were trying to hold people off as I ran towards the lounge areas, but I heard a flood of footsteps coming at me like a pack of wild boars.

"G!!! G!!! G!!!"

The voices were shrill and felt hot on my feet. I had to think quick so I ran to my break room on the next floor up to grab my stuff then bolted out before anyone could catch me. "Stuff" is a loose term - all I had time to grab was my sweatshirt hoodie, my jacket, and anything I had inside the pockets.

The screams echoing through the hallways pierced through my skull, making me run even faster than I thought my legs could ever carry me. Before I knew it, I was out the back door of the arena running, panting, wheezing as the cold air brushed against me.

I stopped to catch my breath after a few blocks when I finally couldn't hear anything anymore. It was way quieter now, but also way colder than I anticipated. That's when I realized my feet were wet.

Snow. Fucking snow. In my adrenaline rush I didn't even realize how hard it was coming down.

I was only a few blocks away; I knew because I hadn't been running for too long, but I had no idea where the fuck I was. I pulled out my phone to check a map or call the group when I realized my main phone was dead, and that I was missing my second one. To make things worse, I started to hear the screams from earlier getting closer. How the fuck did they chase me out here?

It'll be the best opportunity to get back out there, they said

I was out there alright. Out there and out here freezing my fucking ass off. I looked around me but the streets were empty. Even the businesses seemed shut off.

Everyone else got the memo: don't go out or do a fucking show during a winter storm. Why couldn't these thirsty hoes at least do that?

That's when I saw from the corner of my eye one person on the left-hand corner of the next street. They were walking around staring at the phone in their hand, distracted as hell and not paying attention to where they were going when they almost ran into a streetlight.

I crossed my side of the street and followed them as they walked down a pedestrian walkway that was filled with closed luxury stores and bright lights. I could still hear some noises in the distance and got nervous to walk that route, stressed it would make me an easy target. I turned towards the dimly-lit street and walked all the way around the shops to reach a main road again.

There weren't a lot cars; way too few for my comfort, and not a single cab. I crossed the street to see if I could get a better view of the incoming traffic, but there wasn't a single damn thing. That's when I saw the person from earlier walk out of the fancy pedestrian area with their face still glued to their phone.