𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐲, 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞 ¹

fifty six.

CHAPTER FIFTY SIX
the next ceo

Royalty

Royalty hugged Jamal as he came backstage. "You did amazing, Jamal!"

"Thank you. You're gonna do amazing too."

"Yes she is because she learned from the best," Tiana bragged before hugging Ro. "You're gonna do great, Ro."

"Thank you. And I'm really sorry about switching songs last minute. I know you worked hard on the choreography, but it had to be done."

Tiana was a little sad. "At first, I did feel betrayed, but you promised it'd be worth it. I believe you."

Humiliating Blake was definitely going to be worth it. Speaking of Blake, she asked for his whereabouts. "Have you guys seen Blake?"

"Yeah, he's in the audience. In the front too."

Ro smirked slyly. "This'll be great then." She heard that man getting ready to introduce her to the stage, so she had to say goodbye to Jamal and Tiana, and get into position. Once she heard the audience clapping, she knew it was showtime.

Her back was turned right now, but the music started playing, so she turned around and started singing. Blake, Hakeem, and Lucious looked so confused because it didn't sound like Let Me Rock at all.

But Cookie was proud. "Let them know, baby!"

Yeah, she was gonna let Blake know, alright.

ROYALTY :

I don't need love!
Cause you don't make it easy, with you playing with my heart
Doing the things that you do, baby, I need freedom
Cause fighting with you ain't cute, and I don't have time to argue what's a lie or the truth

She started dancing and saw Blake whispering to Hakeem. He was probably asking what happened to Let Me Rock.

Let Me Rock was history. This song suited Blake much better.

ROYALTY :

Going up and down this escalator, cause your mind works like an elevator
First you hate me, then you love me later
And then you act like you're doing me a favor
I want you to know

If you gone come and go whenever you want, I rather be single
Cause it seems like I'll be better alone, I rather be single
Cause the things you do ain't turning me on, I rather be single

Ro sung and her backup dancers came to share the stage with her. She was so glad Tiana had taught her how to dance because Blake needed to see what he had just lost.

Her girls slowly lifted her up, and then slowly put her back down. She briefly pointed at Blake while singing the next part as she walked around the stage. Her dancers danced behind her.

ROYALTY :

I don't want you, if you're not gonna play your part
And I don't really want to listen to you when you talk Just get out my head, filling me with your thoughts
Cause I got my own mind
Don't have time to be going up and down this escalator

Ro and her dancers did the floor choreography they had rehearsed. Then she sang the chorus again, and Hakeem looked over at Blake, completely confused. Blake looked just as confused and hurt. And if Blake wasn't sure if she was talking about him before, he sure knew now because she stood right in front of him and pointed at him the entire time she sang. The audience was whispering now.

ROYALTY :

I ain't never gonna lose sleep
If you really wanna leave, just go
And I'm always gonna choose me
So pack your bags and take all your clothes
It's me, myself, and I
And I'm not gonna let me down
It's me, myself, and I
I'm better when you're not around

After that last line, a dancer handed her a large black bag which contained all of Blake's jackets he had given her. She threw all of his bum ass jackets at him, and she had cut up them up too. Good luck giving them to that Heather, Blake.

But that was the final straw for Blake. He scooped his jackets up and stormed out, feeling completely embarrassed and blindsided. Ro sang the chorus one last time and posed at the end, and the audience went wild. Except for Blake.

But who cares? Fuck his feelings.

-

It was an hour later, and Lucious had taken the family out to eat at a restaurant to celebrate.

"Why are we out to eat?" Andre wondered.

"Because tonight was a success."

Cookie clapped. "Yes it was! I have some talented kids, and I am so proud! And you're great too, Andre!"

Hakeem said, "I'm confused though. I thought Royalty was supposed to perform Let Me Rock?"

"Yeah. That was before Blake cheated on me."

Her brothers weren't happy at all now. "I'm sorry, he cheated on you? When?!"

"Yesterday."

Lucious was also furious. "Why the hell are we just now finding out?!"

"Because she wanted her performance to be a shocker, Lucious!" Cookie explained. "And it was. The audience couldn't believe what they were seeing."

"Well, don't worry, Ro. I'mma handle Blake. No one's gonna cheat on my sister!" Hakeem said angrily.

"No, imma handle him!" Lucious shouted.

Ro objected. "I don't need anyone handling him. Trust me, I humiliated him enough."

Lucious praised her. "Yeah, you did. The boy ran out crying. I'm really proud of you, Ro. Your savageness was everything."

She grinned. "Thank you."

He praised Jamal next. "And Jamal, you impressed me tonight too. I can tell you put a lot of emotion into that song."

Jamal nodded. "It came from the heart."

"Well, I'm proud of you. And Hakeem, you never fail to amaze me. I expect you to deliver every time, and you do. And since you all had such stellar performances, I think it's time to choose who the next CEO of Empire will be," he announced.

All of them looked at him in shock. "What? But our albums aren't out yet!"

"I don't need to listen to the albums. I've made my decision."

They all looked at each other nervously. Who was he going to pick? And how would everyone else react?

"So the next CEO of Empire Entertainment is going to be...Royalty."

And all she heard was, "Royalty?!"

END OF BOOK ONE. Go read the shocking sequel on my profile @rositaespinosas

Empire: Family Over Everything