Chapter 6: A Free Knight
MOMO
I eventually found a low-rent place with not too many issues. It was a bit of a struggle though. One of the places wanted me to go on expeditions to look for Bigfoot and UFOs. Another hauled me and some guy I was roomed with out of the apartment claiming "any guys found with girls in their apartment will be CAST OUT!!!" They apparently shouted "wasshoi!" while hauling the two of us. The third appeared to be a cult. They talked in depth about how we needed to be married immediately, then have a "second marriage" to the dread demon Mrungii. This one I was in now had a small room with just one bed and a lamp, a bathroom, and a kitchen, but it had a basement and a sub-basement, which was perfect as an artist. It had a sub-sub-basement, but that was owned by one of the other tenants. I met him while exploring the apartment's underground, and the mole-faced man told me to close that door because I was "letting in light" despite it being nearly pitch dark aside from my flashlight.
As far as the Fruit Smoothie gig went, Apple, Coconut, Cherry, and Banana hit it off with me remarkably well. Whoever produced them had a good sense of how to make stylistic choices. Apple had dyed apple green hair braided behind her with the hair in front bobbed (her natural color was actually dark brown, but had been bleached then dyed) with sleek long green dresses usually coupled with green boots, and was our center. Cherry and Banana were our backup dancers. Banana was the smart one and always wore glasses to her shows (she was actually pretty intelligent, that wasn't just her stage persona, but the glasses in question were actually cosmetic as she had perfect vision), with blond hair and a very prim look to her costume. Cherry had natural red hair, but it wasn't showy enough so they dyed it redder, and personified the "cute and sporty" aesthetic. She typically wore a tennis dress and hiking shoes to stage but was always glamorous. As for Coconut, it was an open secret that she was actually a boy. The producers hinted at this, by making her a 'nut' instead of a fruit. But early on, they leaked pictures of Coconut with her dress off and rocking boy's clothes. Every now and then, a shirtless picture of Coconut would pop up, which became collectible, when it wasn't actively suppressed by the record label. The record wanted to market Coconut as a "cute girl with a surprise", and dressed her as pretty as possible, using expert makeup and costumes so the audience was actually shocked the first time she appeared out of costume. They had her wear a silver wig, although the performer's natural hair color was almost platinum blond (it was just cut much shorter). Banana was actually dating Coconut in real life and it was no secret, but on stage they acted like two girls who were friends.
As for me, I was supposed to be artsy and clumsy type (which I was) and had dyed pink hair with matching dress. My dancing had gradually gotten better, but I was still the most awkward dancer of the group. The five of us really did get along well, and I'd like to say this was the best job and I never wanted to leave. But...
"I can tell this isn't really your thing, is it?" asked Cherry (real name Sakura Bradley). I sighed. "I was originally wanting to be an artist," I explained to her, "Somehow or other, the record company picked me up after my design company kept getting more and more famous, because of a stupid missing dancer." Banana (Chiquita Esperanza) blushed, "Sorry, our manager is a bit forceful. I imagine when he saw you hanging around, backstage doing makeup, he realized it would be cheaper to hire a complete amateur than to do auditions. I'm sorry for bailing that night. I just hadn't seen my family, and being on tours was getting to me." Apple (Milia Anastos) was team leader, and always wanted the group to be happy, so she said, "I'll talk to the manager tomorrow. What sort of work situation would you like? I mean, you want to leave us? Or be part-time? Or…" I blurted out, "I want to be freelance! I love you guys. But as an artist, it feels like I never get to draw anymore." I got hugged closely by the four of them. In the course of our work, we had gotten to be really close after all.
The next day, Milia was true to her word. She brought the five of us in for a meeting with our manager, a petite man who looked a bit like like the vice-principal of a certain anime Gemini had me watch about an ex-gang member turned schoolteacher. He was balding, had glasses, and looked as though he spent much of his adult life trying to earn money to keep his wife and daughter happy. The manager was a tough sell, "Sorry, but you have a contract for the next five years! And the audience loves you! Why should I let you out of your responsibilities?" Milia spoke up, "If you don't let her out, all of us will break up. I know how our band has made you a small fortune." The manager tried to bluff, "Bah! I can replace you in a heartbeat! Groups like you are a dime a dozen." After a long pause though, he begged, "I'll do anything! Please don't break up!"
And so, the new contract was like this. I would be the guest lead for one song, where I'd explain to the audience that from now on, I would be doing guest performances. After that, I was not obligated to go on any tours, but I was welcome to if I wanted to, and would be paid for appearances. I was also allowed to help design costumes from the band as a freelancer. If I couldn't lead the song, the deal was off. I had to write the song, I had to choreograph the moves, and I had to finally dance without tripping or looking awkward.
And so, I made some stupid song up on the spot. I couldn't think of anything meaningful, so I just kind of started with a template theme and just filled in adjectives and nouns. Technically, the song was to thank Apple for freeing me from the contract, but I turned it into some awful cheesy love song. Much like "I'm Not Gonna Write You a Love Song," it was a tune made under duress.
So it began in a cold winter,
Intertwined with the idol singer,
I was just a young painter,
Tryin' to get by life like your local sailor,
But then she came to me like a breeze of tailwind,
We laughed, we loved, life was breezing,
Through the sea, the land, the earth and,
There was nothing like us under heaven,
She was my lover,
My tiny lover,
My brave idol singer.
But one twilight, cold winter's twilight,
Together we kissed a girl. It was hot, so hot.
For a cold winter's twilight, that is.
And then it happened: She hit that girl.
Alas, that lady! My lover hit a lady...
On account of me,
and not just because this song needed
some kind of action in it.
(And) she was my lover,
My tiny lover,
My brave idol singer.
From that moment our relationship changed.
She grew so distant.
I grew so lonely
I guess?
But still, she is in my thoughts.
I think about how it all changed that twilight,
That cold winter's twilight.
Now we are just friends.
(Yet) she was my lover,
My tiny lover,
My brave idol singer.
Not that we were really lovers anyway.
It's just a song.
Yeah, uhhhhhh. This is why I'm not a songwriter. The song was sung folk ballad style to an extremely strange rhythm. We sort of improvised in order to get it to be danced at all, using It was not at all catchy, but the audience not only loved it, they wanted me to sing it again and again. Uhhhh, I wrote it once in order to get out of a contract, we played it, and then I forgot it forever! So any repeat performances? No, I made up excuses every time why I couldn't sing that song. My throat hurt, or it was hard to dance, or we don't have the right lighting for it. In any case, from now on, I was free to do what I wanted.
I kept in the spotlight enough to help my art career, and because I loved those girls. But as for writing songs? No, I think I will leave this to other people.
