𝐈 𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐀 𝐁𝐄.. - 𝐩𝐫𝐧 & 𝐦𝐣

prologue

It was a cold night in Philly, 47 degrees to be precise, yet Michael was still mentally ready to go to the Prince concert he had been waiting for all year. He had been a huge Prince fan since Dirty Mind, and he often found himself listening to the album repeatedly until it would scratch.

Putting the finishing touches on the smallest rainbow fathomable in the iris of a woman's eye, he took a step backward, admiring the surrealistic art. Michael worked for himself in town as an art restorer, having went to the community college for his associates in Fine & Studio Arts. He painted the walls in churches, schools, and wherever else he could find that could keep him afloat until he could go to New York to really pursue his dream, but for now, he was just focused on going to that concert.

He sprinted to the bathroom, brushing his teeth and washing his face, before making sure he smelt and looked nice, taking extra care to make sure his curls were drenched in water so they stayed defined. He put Chapstick on his lips to make sure they wouldn't crack once he got outside. He got dressed in a t-shirt, and varsity jacket he still had from high school, a pair of jeans and boots, accompanying it.

He made sure his ticket was in his wallet, as well as his backstage pass before he was out of the door. He knew there wouldn't be concession so he ate a few minutes earlier. He took a bottle of water in his hand, and Chapstick in his pocket.

He refused to be late to Prince's first night in Philly, and miss the show. Michael had gotten tickets for two of the shows, the first one and the last one, spending about 30 dollars in total. He had spent all of his allotted spending money for the month, but it was Prince so he didn't mind.

Michael got out the money for his bus pass to ride all the way across town to the Spectrum Arena where the concert would be held. An hour long ride just to see Prince in concert, but Michael didn't mind, humming the melody to 'Let's Go Crazy' nearly the entire way there.

When he got off at his stop, Michael walked toward the huge gates of the stadium, making sure he read the bus schedule to get there at just the right time so he could be one of the first people in line, and his plan worked. He was literally the first person there, and that meant he could get to his seating in the front rather fast. He had a pass to meet Prince after the show, but it would be interesting if he could even make eye contact with him.

His thoughts were cut short by the bouncer clearing his throat.

"O- Oh yeah sorry." Michael mumbled, getting his wallet from his back pocket, a certain nervousness in his stomach he couldn't quite shake.

Handing the bouncer the backstage pass, and his ticket, he was handed a purple wristband, which he fastened himself, and his seat number, which was 000 before heading inside and making his way toward the front of the empty stadium.

The faint melody of 'Free' played in Michael's head as he hummed it softly aloud, looking at the numbers on the ground until he arrived at the one so close to the front he could feel himself being pushed against the barricade already.

"Hey you!" He heard from above.

He glanced up to see Shelia E. chewing a piece of gum as she shrugged a leather jacket onto her shoulders.

"What's your name?"

"My name's Michael." He mumbled, his heart rate increasing considering one of Prince's best friends was engaging him in a conversation.

"What? Come closer!"

"I can't, the barricade."

"You got a backstage pass?"

Michael nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat.

"You see that entrance up there? Tee, let him though." She said, causing Michael to look to the left where she was pointing.