melodies at midnight (a.g x m.j)

on the rise

5 years later...

Ariana ~ March 5th, 1983

"Hold that!" The photographer says, taking a few more snapshots. I do a few different poses, being encouraged each time.

"That's perfect! I think we're done." He holds his thumb up, fiddling with the camera.

"Thank you!" I state, walking off the set. Or should I say waddling, I've been in heels this entire shoot so my feet are killing me. Courtney stands there, guiding me back to my dressing room.

"You looked killer out there!" She exclaims, walking beside me with her clipboard in hand. "You know, playboy's been calling nonstop. They pay a pretty dime for a celeb issue." She jokes while shrugging casually. "You already fit the part!" She gestures to the black bunny ears that sit on top of my head.

I gasp with a laugh, pushing her away from me. "Have they actually been calling though?"

She nods, smirking obnoxiously.

I pretend to think for a few seconds. "Quite flattering..." My face goes blank. "But no."

Once we arrive back to my room, I plop myself down onto the little couch as I throw my heels off. The instant relief my feet feel is priceless.

She shuts the door behind her, placing the clipboard on the vanity.

"You excited for Dangerous Woman's release? I know you're like-a pro or whatever..." She sarcastically rolls her eyes, smiling. "But are you?"

A goofy laugh leaves my mouth. "A pro, where? But I'm really excited. My sound is a lot more mature now, I'm surprised the label approved of so many tracks..." I answer honestly.

"Hey, you're 23! Practically ready for your casket."

My mouth drops open and I grin. "You're older than me!"

She purses her lips, throwing her hands on her hips. "In my head I'm not..."

"Anyway-" She picks her clipboard back up. "You have an interview with People magazine tomorrow, after that's done you have an appearance at a charity event..." She skims through her paper. "On the 7th, you have a shoot with Cosmopolitan-"

As she's listing more and more, it starts to go in one ear and out the other. I love doing what I do but it can get pretty overwhelming sometimes. There are some days I wish I could go back to the simple days when I was just starting out but then I realize how silly that would be and how I'm taking this all for granted.

That old era of my life seems like such a lifetime ago. My life has never been the same since Yours Truly was released. I never in a million years thought my debut album would do as well as it did.

I was quite nervous of it flopping to be honest but it had the total opposite effect. It was like overnight, all the hard work instantly paid off. I have somewhat of a status you could say now and there are days that I can't believe I'm considered a celebrity.

The second things started getting too much for me to handle, I realize I needed an assistant asap. I held a few interviews but nobody was really clicking for me. I wanted to hire someone who knew me as well as I knew myself, that's when I came up with the idea to offer the job to Courtney.