Passionfruit

1.

"Thank you Mandalay Bay!" I screamed into my microphone, the muscles in my face beginning to cramp and tremble under my constant grins and laughter. The crowd below us roared in applause. The venue, in the middle of Las Vegas, included no seating in front of the stage. Instead was a massive pool with clear blue waters, the lights on the pool floor illuminating the thousands of people attending the Psycho Las Vegas Music Festival. It had to have been around eleven by then, but I was far from tired. The adrenaline from playing at our first music festival, and pulling off one of our best performances while doing so gave me enough energy to stay awake for days. I involuntarily jumped around the stage and waved before the crowd, as if I were a water balloon of energy about to pop.

On either side of me, Miku and Gumi waved their goodbyes as we finished our set. They too seemed to be victims of their excitement. We exchanged euphoric smiles, confirming silently to each other that all of our hard work, all of our practices, all of the sleepless nights writing songs and booking shows, had finally paid off.

I barely noticed Gumi link her arm into mine and pull me towards the back of the stage. Feeling all those eyes on me was a feeling that I never wanted to end, but I couldn't stay on stage forever. The other two seemed to snap out of it before me.

The first person to greet us backstage was none other than Luka, standing with her arms crossed and a slight smile on her lips. The rare sight was enough to nearly snap me out of my performance high.

"Well done, girls," Luka complimented. "I imagine we'll be able to set you guys up at a variety of other venues, with a show like this in your books."

"Are you kidding!" Gumi yelled, still clutching my arm. "We did it, Luka! We made it!"

Luka held her hands up. "Whoa whoa whoa, you had one good show-"

"One great show," Miku corrected, already seeking out one of the backstage assistants to retrieve her phone. She, too, wore a wide, almost psychotic grin. Like a giddy schoolgirl.

Luka nodded. "One great show. But we still have a lot of hard work ahead of us. Stardom doesn't end, girls."

"Stardom," I repeated dreamily.

Only then did Gumi turn her attention to me, letting out a laugh. "Rin's high."

"Not yet," I corrected. "But tonight... we're partying. So maybe then." I wrapped my hand around my right wrist, where my silver charm bracelet hung.

All three of us looked at Luka at the proposal, like sisters asking their mom for something she was bound to refuse.

Luka stared down at us with her arms still crossed. Then, with a sigh, she waved a hand. "I... I guess we can talk business tomorrow. There is nothing wrong with a celebration every once in a while."

"Yes!" Gumi hissed. "I need to check out that club here. I heard it's legendary."

"You're not even going to enjoy the rest of the show?" Miku asked, pulling her smartphone from the hands of a stage crew member, dressed in all black. He darted away as soon as Miku plucked her phone, as well as Gumi and I's, from his hands. "I think TR is coming up," she replied snidely.

Gumi rolled her eyes. "I listened to one song by them. And it was bad, okay? I'm not a fan."

Luka's smile disappeared. "They don't matter. You girls were the bigger show, you performed better than they ever could. There's no point in talking about them during such a successful night."

Miku grinned, her phone screen lighting up her face. "And here comes the followers." She handed us each our phones.

"Jesus," I said, the device beginning to vibrate as soon as I turned it on. "I can't even have it on right now."