One Man Band System

After swapping introductions and chatting for a bit, Miranda headed back into the kitchen and tied her apron back on. She was about to resume cooking, but before she even picked up her spatula, she glanced back over her shoulder.

"You’re staying for dinner, alright? Don’t go running off just yet, I want to catch up with you," Miranda said, locking eyes with Eric.

Eric’s mind raced as he tried to come up with an excuse to decline, but before he could formulate a way out, "vwooong," a holographic screen flashed right in front of his face.

[Side Quest Triggered.]

[First Objective: Win over Miranda Cruz by playing the guitar alongside Emma on the piano.]

[Reward: ???.]

Eric froze the second he read the holographic display. It was completely obvious that he couldn’t back out now. Left with no choice, he spoke up,

"Um... alright, thank you, ma’am," Eric said, completely giving in.

"Perfect. Emma, take him out to the living room. Once the food is ready, we’ll all eat together," Miranda said.

"You got it, Mom," Emma replied. "Come on, let’s head out front," she added, wrapping her arm around Eric’s.

"Um... excuse us, ma’am," Eric said politely.

"Yeah, go on, get out of here. Don’t ruin my rhythm in the kitchen," Miranda shot back cheerfully, entirely unfiltered.

Emma pulled Eric out of the kitchen, leading him into the family room where they sat down on the couch. As he settled in, Eric noticed an array of framed photos lining a shelf to the left of the TV. From a distance, he could see shots of Miranda with Kevin and Emma, but something felt noticeably off.

Out of all those picture frames, there wasn’t a single photo of Kevin and Emma’s father, nor was there any wedding portrait, the kind families usually put on display in the main living space. There was, however, a distinct, rectangular discoloration on the wall where a large frame used to hang.

"Hey... loosen up a bit, will you? Just make yourself at home. I’ll go grab you a soda, hang tight," Emma said, standing up.

Without waiting for Eric to reply, Emma walked off. Eric got up and took a closer look at the photos on the shelf. He saw pictures of a young Kevin and Emma as kids, posing alongside a youthful Miranda. Nothing on the shelf dated back any further than those childhood shots.

"Where is Emma’s dad anyway? I’m dying to know, but it’d be totally rude to ask," Eric thought to himself.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoing down the stairs caught his attention. Eric turned around toward the staircase behind him. Kevin was coming down, wearing nothing but a pair of athletic shorts, completely shirtless. Eric swallowed hard at the sight of Kevin’s incredibly jacked, broad physique moving toward him.

"Oh... Eric? I wondered who was down here," Kevin greeted him.

"Um... hey, Kevin," Eric replied, awkwardly raising a hand.

Kevin walked straight up to Eric with a friendly expression, extending a fist. Eric immediately met him with a fist bump. After that, Kevin pulled his phone out of his shorts pocket, unlocked the screen, and pulled up the video Eric had shared.

"My sister says this is you, right?" Kevin asked, turning the screen around.

"Um... yeah, that’s me," Eric answered, rubbing the back of his neck.

Without missing a beat, Kevin stepped in and threw a heavy arm around Eric’s shoulders, catching him completely off guard and nearly knocking him off balance.

"My future brother-in-law is a total badass," Kevin declared cheerfully, his demeanor a complete 180 from how intense he had been when they first crossed paths at the fast-food joint the night before.

Eric’s brain instantly scrambled to process Kevin’s words, specifically the phrase "brother-in-law," and his mind immediately went into rejection mode. Before any major misunderstandings could spiral out of control, he blurted out,

"Emma and I aren’t dating, we literally just met yesterday."

"But Emma said you’re Grandpa Elliot’s grandson, which means you’re my brother-in-law," Kevin countered with a grin.

"Huh," Eric’s mind went entirely blank. He couldn’t fathom what his grandfather—a man he knew absolutely nothing about, had to do with him suddenly being designated as a future brother-in-law.

But before he could even ask what Kevin actually meant, "Kevin, stop talking nonsense!" Emma shouted suddenly. Eric looked toward the kitchen doorway to see Emma walking out, clutching two soda cans with a furious, blushing face. She marched straight over to them.

She immediately pulled Eric away from Kevin’s tight grip, handed him his soda, and guided him back down onto the couch. "Sigh," Kevin just let out a breath and slumped into an armchair. The room fell into a silence so heavy you could hear a pin drop.

Emma kept glaring daggers at Kevin, completely unaware that she was still clutching Eric’s arm tightly. Needless to say, Eric’s head was spinning, and he had absolutely no clue what was actually going on here.

"Alright... alright... I’m going to go help Mom out in the kitchen, you two enjoy yourselves," Kevin said, standing up to break the ice.

"Yeah... go on, get out of here. Stop bothering Eric," Emma said snapped.

Kevin walked off into the kitchen, and Emma finally let go of Eric’s arm, shifting slightly away from him. She then pulled a folder from underneath the coffee table and handed it over. Eric took it and checked out the cover. It turned out to be a brochure for a highly prestigious arts and entertainment university, a famous school known for producing massive stars and drawing the most talented artistic students around. Eric looked over at Emma.

"Um... what’s this?" Eric asked, completely confused.

"I’m planning to go there next year. What if you went to music school there? Though, honestly, you’re already a total pro," Emma said.

"Huh... me?" Eric asked, pointing a finger at his own chest.

"Yep... that way, when I start my freshman year, I’ll already have an upperclassman looking out for me, haha," Emma said cheerfully.

"I don’t really think I’d fit in at a place like this," Eric replied, staring down at the cover of the folder.

"What? You’re incredible on both the guitar and the drums, of course you’d fit right in. What do you say?" Emma coaxed.

Eric went quiet. He had never once considered going to a university that focused seriously on the arts. Originally, his plan had been to major in IT, but after getting thrown out of his house, he had shifted his focus toward a business degree so he could successfully run his grandfather’s shop and studio.

Now, suddenly, there was another option on the table, in a field that was completely uncharted territory for him, even if the system had already turned him into an expert. He still had a massive amount to learn about the actual industry, bands, and live gigs. And of course, it completely caught his attention.

"Just think about it. If we end up at the same university, it would be so much fun," Emma said brightly.

"Hmm... alright, I’ll keep it in mind. Where do you go to high school anyway?" Eric asked, turning to face Emma. He was deliberately trying to dodge the nagging question swirling around in his head, namely, where Emma’s dad was.

"I go to a private arts high school called Cultural High," Emma answered.

"Are the others there too?" Eric asked.

"Yeah... Priya, Chloe, Monica, Heidi, and Laura... we’re all at the same school. We’re actually in a girl group together, haha," Emma revealed.

Hearing Emma’s words, it finally clicked for Eric. He finally understood why Emma and her friends all looked so incredibly attractive, confident, fashionable, and outgoing—except for Laura, of course.

While the two of them were chatting about the new topic, Miranda walked out of the kitchen with Kevin and started setting the food on the table. "Dinner’s ready, come and get it," Miranda called out to Emma and Eric, who instantly turned their heads toward the dining table.