Song 7

The air was cool, the stove was lit, and it was covered with various pans filled with vegetables and sauce. The meat for tonight's dinner was in the oven, the top crisping up to a golden brown. Tonight was enough for five, as for tonight, Edward and Evelyn would have their fortnightly date night.

Meloria hummed as she stood over the stove, carefully stirring the sauce, making sure to pay attention to the sides so as not to have any unsavoury burnt bits. On these days, Meloria was particularly happy, not only did her parents get to have some much-needed alone time, but she also got to pull out her greatest treasure. While her parents were supportive of her dreams, bringing her vocal practices while her mother was in the house still created an awkward atmosphere. So, until she was able to prove herself, Meloria would practice every time her parents went out.

Since she discovered the forbidden library at school, Meloria was able to enjoy music again. The lyrics from the vinyls she found her a new connection to this world, and yet she still didn’t know….

Who was the woman?

There was no name on the vinyl, no credits, and nothing else. This woman was nameless, but if Meloria was sure of one thing. This woman might be the songstress her father told her about as a child. It was the only thing that made any sense to her, assuming that was the reason why the vinyl was kept hidden and locked away. If these songs were as dangerous as they believed, why not destroy them? Were there more songs somewhere?

“Meloria, honey,” Evelyn called out from the doorway to the kitchen.

Meloria turned, smiling as she saw Evelyn dressed up as if it were her first date. “Don’t you look beautiful, Mama,” she complimented, turning the heat down before walking over. She waved her finger in a circle, gesturing for Evelyn to turn around. Evelyn, confused, did as her daughter gestured, jumping as she felt the band around her waist begin to tighten. “There we go,” Meloria chuckled, as she tied the band into a neat bow. “Much better.”

Evelyn giggled like a teenager, turning back to face Meloria. “When did I get so lucky to have such a wonderful daughter?” She cooed, cupping Meloria’s face in her hands.

“I’d say the day I was born,” Meloria teased, putting her hands on Evelyn’s. “Now enjoy your night, and please don’t come with any more children,” she laughed and joked, making Evelyn cringe. “I’m serious, go have some fun.”

Edward chuckled, coming into the kitchen, wrapping an arm around Evelyn’s shoulders. “Remember the rules,” he said with a stern voice and a wag of his finger.

“The younger three in bed by nine,” Lucan sighed, coming in behind Edward, taking a step beside Meloria. “I'm in bed by half nine and all the kitchen to be cleaned.”

With all the rules set, Edward and Evelyn set out on their date night.

While Lucan plated up the dinner, Meloria ran upstairs to her room, eager to get out her treasure. She kept the bedroom door wide open, kneeling to touch the floorboards and giving each one a slight push until she found the loose one and pushed it down. She then lifted the other side enough to pull it off, revealing the vinyl player from school. Smirking, she pulled it out from its hiding place with care, grabbing tonight’s soundtrack and taking it downstairs.

The twins and Finn were already sitting at the dinner table, eating away at their pork as Meloria proudly strode past with the player. They cheered, knowing tonight was a special night for them as well.

Meloria blushed, and her heart swelled with affection. Sure, her living room and little brothers weren’t much in comparison to Tokyo stadium; however, when she saw the smile on their little faces as she performed, it would beat any other performance she could dream of.

After dinner, the lights of the living room were swapped with small lanterns, and the boys crowded onto the sofa, each with a pair of homemade light sticks. Meloria stood in front of them, dressed in her best, giving a twirl, her hand outstretched towards the boys, who cheered loudly. “Welcome to the fortnightly Meloria concert,” she proclaimed, making the boys cheer louder. “Who’s ready to have some fun tonight?”

“We are!” The boys cheered in unison.

Lucan chuckled, reaching over and pressing play on the player. The upbeat music started, and Meloria began to dance, using the count of the steps to help cue her in to when the song started.

“Looking up at the sky…” she began to sing, her vocals matching the vinyl perfectly. “The stars are guiding me to you. I can’t wait to see what our meeting brings.”

The boys waved their glow sticks in a backwards and forward motion as Meloria continued to perform. Merloria’s smile never faded as she could see how much her brothers were fixated on her performance. In her previous life, when she would perform small shows for her family, they never showed as much enthusiasm as her brothers. Then again, that could be due to not being allowed to hear songs in this world. All this was new to them, and it was also a secret between siblings.

Meloria’s performance came to an end after an hour. She laughed, seeing Finn’s head in Lucan’s lap, already threatening to fall asleep. She walked over, picking Finn up with ease, rubbing his back. “Not sure if I should be offended,” she teased, kissing him on the forehead.

“I’ll get the twins to bed,” Lucan proclaimed, encouraging the twins off the sofa and gesturing to the stairs. “Then we can tag team the kitchen before mom and dad get home.”

Nodding, Meloria tightened her grip on Finn, who had started to go limp in her arms. She was careful as she navigated up the stairs, heading to the bedroom at the end of the hallway, placing Finn down carefully. “There we go,” she spoke in whispered tones as she pulled the covers over Finn.

“Thank you, sis,” Finn spoke through half-lidded eyes.

“No, thank you,” Meloria giggled, rubbing the tip of her nose with Finn’s. “For being my biggest fan.”

“You were even better than last time tonight,” Finn yawned, pulling the covers closer to his body, curling up into a ball.

Meloria took a deep breath, trying to keep herself from crying with happiness, watching as Finn fell into a deep sleep. She gave him one last kiss on the head before leaving to go to the twins’ room, who were fighting sleep. “Come on, boys,” Meloria sighed, sitting on the edge of Ren’s bed, patting it. “You know the drill, you stay up a little later on the condition you go straight to bed once we’re finished.”

The twins groaned, lying down on their respective beds, knowing they had to listen to their sister. Meloria nodded, seeing the twins getting settled under their covers. “Very good,” she praised, kissing their foreheads one at a time. “Get some sleep, we have chores to do tomorrow.”

“Night, sis,” she called out in unison as Meloria left the room, closing the door behind her.

Once everything was cleaned up in the kitchen and Lucan was in bed, Meloria placed the vinyl and the player back into their hiding spot and changed into her nightwear, hiding all evidence of their little concert. She sat on her bed, looking up to the stars, the lyrics playing back in her head. The stars were guiding her somewhere, and she couldn’t wait to see where her new idol's journey was going to take her.