Ranko pushed open the door of the Phoenix with a sigh, and as soon as she stepped foot in the room, there was a chorus of cheers from the bar. Hana, Mei, and Izumi all sat on the stools, swiveling them to face her. Yui, as usual, held dominion over her little kingdom behind the bar, filling a glass from the soda gun for the newcomer and sliding it to the corner of the bartop closest to the door.
Hana smiled and spoke first. “Hey, sweetheart! How was your first day as a real superstar?”
Ranko bit her lip. She couldn’t bear to tell them the truth. She’d never seen Mr. Tashima, and never sang a single note. She’d endured six hours of being paraded in front of the cameras in one humiliating outfit after another. By the end, her spirit had been so broken that it wasn’t even embarrassing anymore; she had just gone through the motions with all semblance of shame having been burned out of her.
She looked up at the hopeful faces of her family. They’d all worked so hard to get her this opportunity. She couldn’t bear to let them down. To say it wasn’t everything she’d hoped would almost be ungrateful. She thought back to standing in the little changing booth, where she had managed to convince herself that she was a performer, and performers sometimes had to put on a brave face to get through a show. This was no different. Besides, it was over now, and surely tomorrow would be better.
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Willing herself to concentrate not on the disappointment of the day, but on the enthusiasm her newfound family showed in their support of her, she found a way to smile. “It was great! Hectic, but I’m sure things will settle down once I get the hang of it.”
Izumi dismounted her stool, closing the distance to the door and wrapping her arms around her sister. “We’re all so proud of you, you know.” Ranko said nothing, but she could feel her body relax into her embrace. She hadn’t realized just how badly she needed a hug.
Mei giggled a bit. “Well, I hope you didn’t wear out your vocal cords too much, little sister. We open in 2 hours.”
Ranko nodded as Izumi let her go. “I’ll be ready.” She didn’t especially have the heart to get on stage and perform after her ordeal of a day, but keeping up appearances meant going through all of the motions.
She chose to focus on the positive. At least someone would hear her sing today.