One Man Band System

Once the upload finished, completely unbeknownst to Eric, Emma, and the girls from The Empress, back at Emma’s house, "ding," a notification popped up on Miranda’s smartphone. Miranda, who was in the middle of cooking, immediately turned off the stove and walked over to the kitchen counter.

She unlocked her phone and saw a subscription notification from Eric’s channel. She tapped it, and the new track by The Empress immediately hit her. Without realizing it, she stared blankly at her phone screen, listening intently for over four minutes without moving an inch. Afterward, she gently set her phone down and wiped her eyes.

"Those kids... no wonder their parents are always chewing them out... thank goodness Emma didn’t get dragged into this... but... they really are incredible. And according to the credits, the songwriter is... Eric. Your boy is genuinely amazing, Ethan," Miranda thought to herself with a faint smile playing on her lips.

***

Elsewhere, backstage on the final day of the festival, "Mr. Kevin!" Sophie suddenly ran up to Kevin, who was standing around listening to the band currently performing on stage.

"What’s up?" Kevin asked, confused.

"Take a look at this," Sophie replied, holding out her smartphone.

The two of them immediately started watching the recording of The Empress’s live performance in the empty venue, playing their brand-new song. The noise from the actual stage completely faded into the background for them, as both stood frozen, locked onto Sophie’s screen. Once the song ended and they watched the band members pull into a group hug,

"Wow," was the only word Kevin could manage.

"Crazy... they’re so good, right, boss?" Sophie said.

"Yeah... Eric is insane... I can’t believe he wrote a song like this... impressive... truly impressive," Kevin said, looking completely awed and proud.

***

In yet another part of town, inside the secretary’s office at the Stone and Friends law firm, Katie stared at her smartphone screen, watching the music video Eric had just shared of The Empress performing their new track. Tears began to well up behind Katie’s glasses, but she wore a massive smile.

"Katie,"

"Aaah!"

Katie jumped so hard her phone almost slipped out of her hand. She looked toward the open doorway to see Richard standing there, looking utterly baffled as to why she was so startled.

"What’s wrong with you?" Richard asked.

"No... nothing, sir," Katie stammered. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"What song were you just listening to?" Richard asked.

"Oh... that... here, sir," Katie answered.

She immediately replayed the track, and Richard listened intently without blinking. Once the song finished,

"Right... please bring in the files I asked for and contact our client’s construction company, do it right away," Richard said flatly.

Richard turned and walked back into his office, leaving Katie sitting there, staring at his door.

"Ugh... give me a break, I still have so much work to do... but... Eric, you are so incredibly talented... I wonder if I could just work for you for the rest of my life... ah... what are you thinking, Katie? Get to work, get to work," Katie muttered to herself, setting her phone on the desk and diving back into her tasks after wiping away the tears from behind her glasses.

***

In a hospital breakroom, "click," Avery walked in to take a breather. "Phew," she sat down gently in a chair, making sure not to jostle her baby bump. Just then, she heard the new track by The Empress playing and glanced across the room. A few female nurses were huddled around a smartphone, watching the music video for the band’s latest release.

Avery stood up and edged closer to see the video on the phone resting on the table, a wide smile instantly breaking out on her face. But the moment she saw the credits listing the song as written by Eric Reed, a wave of regret washed over her.

"Man... I should’ve asked Eric for an autograph or a photo too yesterday... what a missed opportunity," Avery accidentally blurted out.

Instantly, the three nurses—who had been playing the song on a loop—snapped their heads around to look at Avery.

"Wait, you know The Empress?" one of the nurses asked.

"No way... quit lying, Avery," a second nurse added.

"Come on, Avery, don’t play with us like that. You know how obsessed we’ve been with them ever since we saw them perform at the concert yesterday," the third nurse added, waving her off.

Avery didn’t argue. Instead, she pulled out her phone, unlocked the screen, and scrolled through it with her long, manicured nails. Then, she set her phone down on the table and slid it right into the middle of the group, pushing past the phone that was already lying there.

The nurses’ eyes instantly went wide and their jaws dropped. Right there on Avery’s screen was a photo of her standing next to a smiling Monica, Chloe, Priya, Heidi, and Laura, all looking incredibly cheerful.

"Whoa... so you weren’t lying... you actually know them?" the first nurse gasped.

"Oh my gosh... you have to introduce me!" the second added.

"No fair... you can’t keep something like this to yourself, Avery!" the third exclaimed.

"Ha... didn’t you guys just say I was lying?" Avery asked with a smirk.

"We’re sorry!" the three nurses replied in unison.

Avery hadn’t actually taken their words to heart, so she didn’t hold a grudge. With the air cleared, they fell into easy conversation, chatting away and enjoying the rest of their break together.

***

In another corner of the city, inside a skyscraper bearing the name Trinity Entertainment, Robert sat all by himself at the head of a long oval conference table. He was listening to the new track by The Empress through his headphones, his face a twisted mix of exhaustion, fury, and other unreadable emotions. Suddenly, the boardroom door swung open. Anthony walked in and took a seat right next to the solitary CEO.

"Um... you called for me, Mr. CEO?" Anthony asked.

Without saying a word, Robert placed his smartphone on the table and slid it right in front of Anthony. Anthony stared down at the screen, his eyes going wide the second he recognized The Empress’s music video. Robert then disconnected his Bluetooth, letting the new track instantly blast through the entire conference room, leaving Anthony even more stunned. Once the song faded out,

"Do you know what your job is now?" Robert asked, his voice harsh and cold, not even glancing at Anthony.

"Y-yes, sir. The Empress and Eric Reed are a package deal. I’ll do everything in my power to track them down and get them signed to our label," Anthony answered.

"Good. You have a one-week deadline. Now get out there and get to work," Robert fired back, deadpan.

"R-right away, sir," Anthony replied.

Anthony immediately exited and ran out of the boardroom. Once he was safely outside, he wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"What a mess... where the hell am I supposed to find them? Wait... I think Mike and Jade might have some info on them... I’ll try asking them later," Anthony thought, a sudden headache coming on as he mopped up his sweat.

***

Meanwhile, in an apartment, Jade and Ruby listened to the new track by The Empress while watching the music video. Their faces cycled through a complex, unreadable mix of emotions, especially when they saw the credits listing the song as written by Eric Reed. Once the track ended, Jade shut off her smartphone, and both of them fell dead silent, staring at the floor, completely speechless.

"Eric is... already way ahead of us," Ruby said.

"Yeah... this song he wrote... it completely tears me apart inside, yet it wakes something up at the same time... it’s hard to explain," Jade replied.

"I... I want to see him," Ruby said, looking down. "I want to apologize to him... I... I still think of him as my brother," Ruby added.

"But I’m positive he won’t want to see you... because he doesn’t want to see me either. He’s happy now... he has a girlfriend... and he’s surrounded by the incredibly gorgeous girls of The Empress... he doesn’t need us anymore," Jade said bitterly.

Ruby turned to look at Jade, studying her face as if searching for something. All she saw was jealousy, anger, and deep regret.

"Are you jealous? Do you like Eric?" Ruby asked.

"Ha... you’re just figuring that out? Where have you been? I’ve liked him since we were kids," Jade snapped.

"Then... do you really want to pivot your career toward entertainment? You don’t want to be a nurse anymore?" Ruby asked.

"Shut up... what I do with my life is none of your business!" Jade shouted angrily.

Jade immediately stood up, marched into her bedroom, and "blam," slammed the door shut behind her. Left behind, Ruby just sat there blankly, completely lost as to why Jade had snapped like that. She then looked back down at the floor, which seemed a lot more appealing than trying to figure out Jade’s attitude.

"Eric... where are you... I’m so sorry... I just want to see you," Ruby said to herself, her face filled with sorrow.