V & V - Rageous Road to Fame

Defining Debut

Kid Ritz: *ALRIGHT MOUNT RAGEONS, WE'VE HAD THREE GREAT PERFORMANCES SO FAR. NOW, IT'S TIME TO WELCOME EVERYBODY'S FAVORITE... ROLLIE ROY WITH "EARN THAT GOLD"!!!*

The crowd goes wild, the loudest we've heard tonight. We watch steam and smoke pour across the stage, a bright red Rolls Royce rolling through. Rollie jumps out, belting his iconic first note, his voice sounding as good as gold. 

His jazzy and silky voice captures the hearts of everyone watching. If it weren't for what I know now about him, I'd have no idea about his personality and be smitten like I was. The more he performs, the more scared I get. He dances around the stage, landing softly for his ending note. The crowd goes wild, holding cheers the longest out of all the acts. 

Kid Ritz runs on stage, shaking Rollie's hand while camera stars snap photos of them. Once the crowd dies down, Rollie says thank you, gracefully walking off stage.

Kid Ritz: *WOW! WASN'T THAT A PERFORMANCE, HUH FOLKS! I HOPE YOU ARE AS READY AS I AM FOR TONIGHT'S LAST PERFORMANCE BY THE NEW... VELVET AND VENEER! STAY TUNED FOLKS; YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS IT!*

My heart pounds in my ears as Kid Ritz calls my name; I feel like I'm going to pass out. Camera stars flash at us as Rollie appears from backstage, smirking. He saunters over, hugging and high-fiving all of the boys. As he reaches Velv and me, he hugs her before shaking my hand, then pulls us together for photos in the same fashion we've done with everyone else.

Rollie: "Hey, you two! So excited to see how tonight goes for you! I'll be watching!"

He smiles at us before heading to his cabana, camera stars flashing after him. Huh, that did not go nearly as badly as I assumed it would. Rollie doesn't seem too bad, but it could also be a facade for the public eye. 

Johnny pulls the flaps closed, turning to us. I'm terrified now that it's time. Sammy and Jaye hug us, looking at us with encouragement before heading to their cabanas.

The assistant comes over, telling us it's time to follow her. Dom grabs me, pulling me in for a heavy kiss. Once he's done, he holds me as his cool voice whispers in my ear good luck. I nod, looking into his eyes one last time before following after Velv. We follow the assistant backstage, where we're left to wait. Velv grabs my hand, ducking us behind a speaker and part of the side curtains.

Velv: "Ok, Veneer, this is it. We'll put on a little more troll since it's the real thing. We've got this."

She pulls out Floyd, spraying him feverishly. Once she's done, she hands me the bottle. Floyd grunts, and I watch as the life is literally sucked out of him. Even though I feel awful and I know it hurts Floyd, we need to do good tonight, our careers are resting on this performance. I'm only just realizing how unrealistic this was set up for us. We had no official rehearsal, we don't have props, and we will be by ourselves.

Floyd: "Veneer... please."

Ven: "I'm sorry. I need you to help me."

I grab the bottle, spraying a good amount until I feel it's enough. The more I spray, the more confident I feel. When I'm done, I feel beyond ready. I look to Velv, giving her a smirk. When Kid Ritz walks by us, he gives us a thumbs-up and a cute smile. We're told to pose and wait on stage with the lights off. I have never felt more confident about something in my life; I'm so ready to show the world who we are. 

Kid Ritz: *ALL RIGHT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!! ARE YOU READY FOR THEIR DEBUT PERFORMANCE OF "SWEET DREAMS"? LET'S WELCOME... VELVET AND VENEER!*

The crowd screams as our music starts up, and I can't help but feel great. Velv starts us off by giving amazing riffs and opening the song.