Rise to Stardom!

This was where rubber hit the road. Or a better analogy, our beautiful voices hit the airwaves. All the pins were set up, so now it was time to knock ‘em down.

I had a +1 inside the recording booth, which was Meda. She’d be a guest star in this morning's performance. We had a makeshift setup where the mic was placed between us so she could read my lips while I cast.

“We’re on in five!” Mimi announced.

“You ready?” I asked Andromeda.

“Mmmm.” Poor thing was red as a tomato and shaking like a leaf.

“You’ll do great, Meda,” I assured her. “Just let me take care of the hard parts. And when it's your turn to talk, just pretend you're talking to me.”

A quizzical look sprawled over her face, but she eventually nodded, shooting a thumbs up.

“Good stuff.” I paid that thumbs up forward to Mimi on the other side of the glass. “Let’s do this.”

Mimi’s fingers did her quintessential countdown, leading up to that lovely signal that we were on air. I held myself back from saying anything because I knew she was the one who had to kick things off.

“Heeeelooo all you beautiful people!” Mimi declared. “Weren’t expecting me, Mimi-chan, this early were you? Well I hope you're not disappointed, because we’ve got quite a few surprises in store!”

She was great at this. Even more confident than the last time I tuned in. It felt like she was hitting her prime, and that really got me going.

“How’s this lovely morning treating you? I’m sure everyone is on their best behaviour in the face of a few juicy rumors spreading like wildfire!”

Rumors… I wish…

“But hey, before I get into some a’ that, why don’t we get the academic stuff out of the way so the teachers think this show is worth the school funding…”

Mimi gave a nice rundown of all the official morning announcements. But I was so excited that I didn’t pay attention to any of it. My mind was on Meda exclusively, and I just had to wait for the cue to start talking about her.

“Alright, let’s cut to the chase now,” Mimi said. “Hade-kun. What’s been goin’ on with you lately? You disappear for a few weeks, then we see some saucy pics posted all over the place. Care to explain that to the class?”

“I’d love to, my good friend Mimi-chan.” I spoke in a confident tone, happy to be back on the radio. “Listen up, ladies and germs. Sorry for the sudden podcast format, but it’s been a while, and I’d like to break back into the airwaves and give you all the deets on how I’ve been. Man, it’s been exciting.”

My senses were telling me that people were startled by my unexpected tune in, but not completely surprised, since all the commotion needed to be addressed.

“Those pictures you’ve been seein’ all ‘round the school? Not fake. Ain’t artificial or chopped. Those are real pictures of me out in the real world.”

“Nooooo!” Every school girl in Japan shouted at the same time.

We had to get this piece of drama out of the way so that I could pave the road for Meda’s announcement.

“Simmer down, gals across the land,” I said. “You’re old dog Hade couldn’t roll the dice forever. Someone was going to get lucky eventually, and I found myself a star to settle down on.”

Meda blushed and looked shocked at how I phrased that statement. Unfortunately, I had to make it as dramatic sounding as possible so people would know this was the real deal and not just a fling.

“She’s a nice girl. Intelligent, pretty, and sweet as they come. But she’s also got a feisty side, which really gave me a run for my money when we first met. I needed her attention, so I fought for it. But love struck back so fast that I was on the floor. No joke!”

“L-love?!” Meda blurted out, then covered up her mouth when she realized that was caught by the mic.

Love is the perfect first word to send over the air…

“Oh hey, speak a’ the gal…” I chuckled. “Say hello, Andromeda-chan. The audience is dying to hear from you.”

She shook her head.

“Aww, she’s radio shy,” I said. “Isn’t that cute?”

I had my phone next to me and was watching the trending tab. People were starting to talk about all the new developments here:

-Is that girl really good enough for my Hade?-

-I dunno. She’s cute and all, but what’s so special about her?-

-He’s probably just into her because she’s blond!!!! >:( -

-LOL did you hear her squeak into the mic? What a shy little mouse!-

The temperature online was turning against us. We had to act quickly or they’d give her some trouble.

“You know, speaking of her…” This was it. The moment where we’d truly ascend her to stardom. “She’s actually got a fun little secret I’ve been dying to share with y’all.”

I gave a moment of silence, looking Meda in the eyes to challenge her resolve. This was her time, and she was about to get the true spotlight she deserved for her discovery.

“You ready for it?” I asked both her and the audience.

She was trembling in her seat, biting down on her folded lips as she processed the moment. Her eyes didn’t break contact with mine.

“A-” she squeaked out. “Ah-” her teeth clenched and her fingers gripped tightly to the arm rests of her seat.

“Hmm?” I was going to make the announcement myself. But if she wanted to do it, that was all the better. “Come on. Tell the people why you're so awesome.”

“I discovered a comet!” she exploded with crystal clear Japanese. “It’s big, and it’s colorful! You should look it up yourself and on Comet Hug!”

“She meant the Comet Hub website, folks.” I clapped my hands. “Well, isn’t that something special? What a prodigy! Would you believe she did it with an old children's telescope too? I was there, and let me tell you… What a pair of eyes! Hey, Andromeda-chan. There’s a lot of people posting on comet hub. What’s your name on there so the nice folks can leave their support?”

“Uh…” She rubbed the back of her head. “Uh…” then she blushed and shied up again. “P-PerseusLover…”

“PerseusLover? Who’s Perseus? You tryin’ to make me jealous? Hah!”

I think Meda mentioned one time that Perseus was the prince in an old cartoon she used to watch. She always got shy when talking about it though.

“Anyways, everyone…Let’s go over there and give her some much needed comments, yeah? Make like the good earthlings you are and send her your energy quick. Give her some good vibes for her hard work.” I focused intently on Meda’s gem blue eyes. “Keep a tab on her, because one day she’s going to make some major discoveries that’ll change the world…The universe! I know I’ll be watching her closely.”

Her trembling eased and we both smiled at each other.

It took a second for something to happen, but people flooded the comet hub website so fast that it was struggling to keep up with the clicks. Once they saw the post with their own eyes, support blew up for her both there and all over social media.

-Woah! She really discovered a comet!-

-I want to go outside and look for the comet right now! Too bad its daytime T_T-

-You know what? She’s cute! I want her to be happy!-

-Uh, like they actually make the cutest couple ever?!-

-It should have been me! (Gif of spiky haired guy dropping to his knees) Take care of him, Andromeda chan!-

-If this girl is going to take my Hade-kun away, she better be the most special thing on the planet, and every other planet too!-

Meda was in tears at my support, and her crying erupted when she looked at the flood of people sharing her comet discovery. She completely controlled social media in that moment.

I’d never been more proud of anyone in my life. She really was amazing, and now the whole world knew why.

But for all those eyes and ears, there was one person that was the most important to impress, and her phone was buzzing with his number…

Dad: -Andromeda…- Her father declared over a text message.

Dad: -We need to have a talk…-