just off-stage (bennett, razor, xingqiu, chongyun, + diluc)
“Alright, everyone warm? Everyone ready? We go on right after Tyskland!”
Bennett jumped and slapped his arms and legs to try and get warm. Somehow, he managed to hit three people, but he apologized and went on with his warmup. Around him, the rest of the band prepared similarly.
Razor nodded. “Ready.” He didn’t speak Dansk or Engelsk very well, but he knew enough of both languages (and the others spoke enough Rumænsk) that they didn’t have a lot of trouble communicating with their bassist.
“Yes, we’re ready too. Should we go to the wings to see Tyskland perform?” Xingqiu proposed.
“That’s a great idea! It’s the first pre-party after all, we should take the chance to see the others!!” Bennett started for the wings… and immediately tripped, his face just barely saved from hitting the floor by Chongyun’s quick reflexes.
“Good catch!”
The drummer just patted his back. “Be careful.”
Only colliding with one more person on the way, Bennett made his way to the wings, the rest of his band not far behind.
“Just in time! Tyskland’s just about to start!”
As Bennett spoke, the Tysk representative finished up their greetings to the audience and the opening notes of the song played. Xingqiu began to speak, presumably to comment on some detail of the music, but Bennett shushed him. He normally appreciated the guitarist’s commentary, but he could already tell that there was something special about this song, and he didn’t want to miss a second.
The person onstage began to sing.
“There was a child that reached for the stars
So afraid of falling
They got hurt, lost trust in the world
And the lights went off one by one.
They got hurt, lost trust in the world
And the lights went off one by one.”
Bennett was sold. He was gonna cry if Tyskland didn’t win. He was still probably gonna cry if they did win, actually, because that song was a masterpiece.
“It’s definitely a beautiful song, but I don’t know if you can go onstage crying,” Chongyun whispered. “I don’t think it’s the best look for a metal singer, especially not at our first major concert.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Bennett wiped his face. “Do I look okay?”
“You look simply stunning, my lord.” Xingqiu grinned and did a little mock curtsy, which made Bennett laugh. “Everyone ready? For real this time?”
“Yep!”
“Yes.”
“Yeah, ready.”
The crowd went wild. Tyskland (man, Bennett had to figure out what their name actually was so he could stop just calling them Tyskland) waved and made their way off the stage, passing the teens on their way out.
“Good luck, you four. I like your song a lot.” They continued walking, and that could have been the end of it, but of course, Bennett just HAD to say something.
“Hi, uh, I love you.” What the fuck, Bennett.
They looked over their shoulder and laughed, then turned away again, never stopping their walk. They disappeared through a door at the end of the hall, leaving Bennett to wallow in his own misery.
“…Wow.” Razor patted his shoulder, causing the other two to burst out laughing.
“Oh, okay. I’m not gonna be able to perform if I keep laughing at Bennett.”
“Guys! Really?”
“I’m sorry, Bennett, it was just so sudden, and then Razor…” Xingqiu and Chongyun fell into renewed fits of giggles.
“Alright!! I get it! My brain is broken! Can we go onstage now?” But he couldn’t keep himself from laughing.
Chongyun took a sip of water. “Yeah, yeah, looks like they’re ready for us. Wow, okay, I needed that.”
“Any last minute tuning you guys need to do?” The others shook their heads. “All right!” Bennett shook out his arms and legs, jumping up and down. “Let’s give the fans the best show we can!”