[General POV]
Backstage. Barbara was feeding Edward some cotton candies while Ariana was singing on the stage.
Vanessa watched from afar, and her eyes turned melancholic.
Edward saw her and waved with a smile. She raised her hand to wave back, but stopped midway and walked to the waiting room.
On stage, Ariana sang her new song, "We Can't Be Friend."
Ariana crooned melodically, "♫♪ I didn't think you'd understand me
How could you ever even try? ♫♪"
Vanessa closed her eyes, and the memories of Edward and her being together flooded back into her mind.
"♫♪ I don't wanna tiptoe, but I don't wanna hide
But I don't wanna feed this monstrous fire ♫♪"
"♫♪ Just wanna let this story die
And I'll be alright ♫♪"
The audience were mesmerized when they heard Ariana sing. Phil muttered, "No wonder Edward handpicked her."
"What is it Eddy?" Barbara asked as Edward was looking at the waiting room direction.
"♫♪ We can't be friends! But I'd like to just pretend ♫♪"
Edward's eyes turned a bit melancholic.
"♫♪ You cling to your papers and pens~ Wait until you like me again ♫♪"
'If I wasn't a monster, would I have been able to–'
"♫♪ Wait for your love~! Lo-love, I'll wait for your love♫♪"
Edward snapped out of it and said, "Nothing. Why don't we go enjoy the concert together?"
"In the crowd?" Barbara inhaled in excitement. "Let's go!"
It would take some time for Edward to return to the stage. He decided to enjoy the concert before that.
…
Eminem walked up the stage, and he sang with Dr Dre. The audience went crazy with the lineup today. Coldplay, Eminem, Dr Dre.
Finally, it was time for the main event. The Entertain group talent rooster to take the stage.
Edward and Barbara went to the VIP section, although the rowdiness there didn't look anything like that.
Everyone was standing and went to the barrier as it had a clear direct view of the center stage.
Barbara stood in front of Edward, and his arms acted as a barrier that protected her from the rowdy crowd.
"Edward, this is so nice. It's my first concert, ever." Barbara said with excitement.
He smiled and said, "Really? It feels nice to be the first impression you have on this sort of event."
"What's nice about it? Don't you mean it's bad?"
"Bad?" Edward was puzzled.
Barbara smirked and said, "Yeah. Really bad. Now, I feel like their performances are really boring. I kept wanting to see the Bones zombie dance again."
Edward laughed. Barbara suddenly added, "I don't really think their performance is boring, so don't tell them about it."
The emcee went back to the stage after ColdPlay was finished.
"Without further ado, introducing… NESSA!" The emcee announced dramatically, and the crowd cheered with excitement.
Nessa jumped onto the stage after being launched by the stage platform.
She smiled amidst the cheers and waved happily at her fans. With her double twin tail, her glittery teeny bopper outfit and accessories, the tween girls around were going crazy and chanting her name.
"Hi Everyone! I missed you all so much!" She blew kisses to the audience.
Edward smiled, while Barbara looked up to his face to check his reaction. Then, she smiled in relief.
The music started. Vanessa held a microphone in her hand and walked to the edge of the stage. The dancers followed her along and spread over the stage.
[Jealousy, Jealousy – Olivia Rodrigo]
-Flashback-
"So, have you finished writing your song yet?" Edward asked Vanessa as he caught her writing in her book.
She flinched and before she could say anything, Edward snatched the book from her.
"Hey! You cannot see it!" Vanessa stood up abruptly from her desk and tried to wrestle the book from Edward.
Edward laughed and picked her up by holding her waist. She was startled as he sat her on the desk.
He leaned forward and locked eyes with her.
"Really? I can't see it?" He asked, pretending to be pitiful.
Vanessa's heart skipped a beat and she held his face affectionately. "No. I cannot show it to you."
"Can I at least help you with the melody?" Edward asked playfully.
Vanessa stuck her tongue out and said, "Still no. But, I am going to borrow your friends, Finneas and Leo."
Edward dropped his head dejectedly. Vanessa raised it back up and giggled. "I'm sorry." She said with a laugh.
Edward sighed and smiled. "It's alright. I will respect your wish as an artist." He then grabbed her up and put her on his shoulder. "But as a boyfriend, I will punish you a bit."
"Noo~!" Vanessa yelled fakely. "Oh no! I'm going to need a knight in shining armor to help me."
"To save you from the villain?" Edward asked with a bit of confusion.
"No, he's just going to help me move into the villain's castle." Vanessa quipped, which made Edward laugh.
-Flashback ended-
Seeing Edward with his new girlfriend, Vanessa tried to be okay with it.
'But I'm not okay with it at all.'
Vanessa grabbed her microphone and crooned.
"♫♪ I kinda wanna throw my phone across the room
'Cause all I see are girls too good to be true ♫♪"
The fans were mouthing the lyrics as she had released the song after the pandemic.
"♫♪ With paper-white teeth and perfect bodies
Wish I didn't care♫♪"
She held her microphone to the audience, and they sang together with her.
"♫♪ I know their beauty's not my lack ♫♪"
She smiled in satisfaction and sang again, "♫♪ But it feels like that weight is on my back♫♪"
"♫♪And I can't let it go ♫♪" She pointed at the VIP section. Amongst the crowd, Edward, who was wearing a cap and glasses, felt like the fingers were pointed right at him.
'She wouldn't be able to recognize me with this getup and this distance, right?' He thought weirdly.
"♫♪ Co-comparison is killin' me slowly ♫♪"
"♫♪ I think I think too much! 'Bout kids who don't know me ♫♪"
Maggie and Amy, who were in the crowd, danced along to the song. The song felt really relatable to them despite being pretty girls themselves.
Vanessa held the side of her head, pumped her legs slightly, "♫♪ I'm so sick of myself! I'd rather be, rather be ♫♪"
"♫♪ Anyone, anyone else! My jealousy, jealousy ♫♪" She walked backward hurriedly, and the dancers were trying to catch her.
"♫♪Started following me (he-he-he, he-he) ♫♪"
They grabbed her and picked her up. She laid down in their arms. The camera recorded her from the top, which showed she was actually relaxed.
"♫♪ Started following me (he-he-he, he-he) ♫♪"She sang with a voice that seemed to tug at people's heartstrings.
While Vanessa was singing, Red Menace– Edward's duplicate in disguise, followed two cloaked people who had snuck backstage.
Instead of going for the celebrities like the others, they went to the electrical section.
"I can feel it. The strong energy here." A man with a zebra mask held his hand up, electricity flickering between his fingers.
"Cool. I wonder what's going to happen when they have no power. I fucking hate Newgate." The man in the monkey man said viciously with a husky voice.
As they found the cable for the stage, Red Menace appeared behind them.
A little pissed, Edward grabbed their heads and slammed them against each other.
*BAM*
Both of them fall down unconscious.
"Sorry but, interfering with… is crossing the line." Edward said robotically.
Behind him, Jenna was puzzled. "Hmm? R.M. You're Nessa's fan?"
Edward turned around and said casually, "A little bit."
He put handcuffs on them and dragged them out.
On stage, after finishing the song, the music immediately changed amidst the fans' thunderous cheers.
Vanessa held her microphone and said, "For the first time, I will be unveiling my new song on stage. I hope all of you will like it."
The fans screamed out in support. "Nessa!" CeeCee Cooper yelled in excitement.
[Happier- Olivia Rodrigo]
The soft intro music transported the audience. They were hushing down as they wanted to listen to the song attentively.
Her eyes flickered with melancholy.
"♫♪ We broke up a month ago ♫♪"
"♫♪ Your friends are mine, you know, I know ♫♪"
"♫♪ You've moved on, found someone new ♫♪"
Maggie was slightly surprised by the lyrics. "Ness, didn't you say you're moving on?" She mumbled.
"♫♪ One more girl who brings out the better in you ♫♪"
Barbara fed Edward some candies as they watched the performance together.
"♫♪ And I thought my heart was detached. From all the sunlight of our past ♫♪"
"♫♪ But she's so sweet, she's so pretty! Does she mean you forgot about me?♫♪"
The melancholic lyric was deemed as romantic to some, and they started to cry.
"♫♪ Oh, I hope you're happy! But not like how you were with me!♫♪"
"♫♪ I'm selfish, I know, I can't let you go! So find someone great, but don't find no one better ♫♪"
"♫♪ I hope you're happy, but don't be happier! ♫♪"
The sincere confession made Edward look at Vanessa with a conflicted expression.
Barbara suddenly nudged him. As he turned, he saw she was a little angry.
"She's talking about me, right?" Barbara asked.
Ness walked to the side of the stage, and the crowd's eyes followed her with every step. She walked through the platform connecting the smaller stage and the biggest, center stage.
The crowd screamed in excitement as they saw she was approaching them.
"♫♪ And do you tell her she's the most beautiful girl you've ever seen?!
An eternal love bullshit you know you'll never mean ♫♪"
Edward felt pricked when he heard that.
"♫♪ Remember when I believed you meant it when you said it first to me?♫♪"
Vanessa smiled in satisfaction as she knew the lyric would bother her ex.
Her expression turned softer. "♫♪ And now I'm pickin' her apart♫♪"
"♫♪ Like cuttin' her down will make you miss my wretched heart ♫♪"
"♫♪ But she's beautiful, she looks kind! She probably gives you butterflies ♫♪"
Barbara nodded in satisfaction. Edward chuckled wearily and hugged her close.
"♫♪ I hope you're happy! But not like how you were with me♫♪"
"She's selfish–" Barbara was interjected by the song.
"♫♪I'm selfish, I know, I can't let you go! So find someone great but don't find no one better♫♪"
"Oh," Barbara turned to Edward and said, "I don't know how to react now."
"♫♪I hope you're happy♫♪"
"♫♪ I wish you all the best, really♫♪"
The audience sang together with her. "Wait, is she talking about Edward?" Lily widened her eyes in shock.
"Remember his song, Love Like You?" Her friend whispered.
Lily furrowed her eyebrows and muttered, "Edward's love life is a bit messy don't you think?"
Vanessa crooned, "♫♪ Say you love her, baby, just not like you loved me!"
"And think of me fondly when your hands are on her ♫♪"
"♫♪ I hope you're happy, but don't be happier♫♪"
The choir appeared and sang with her.
"♫♪ Ooh, ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh♫♪"
"♫♪Ooh-ooh♫♪"
The choir stopped. Vanessa looked straight to the crowd and reached her arm out.
"♫♪ I hope you're happy♫♪"
"♫♪Just not like how you were with me ♫♪"
"♫♪ I'm selfish, I know, can't let you go ♫♪"
"♫♪ So find someone great, but don't find no one better ♫♪"
"♫♪ I hope you're happy, but don't be happier♫♪"
The crowd cheered explosively as the song ended. She waved and breathed heavily.
"Thank you everyone!" Ness waved her hands, which made the crowd scream again.
Ness walked backstage, and a staff member went to give her a towel to wipe her face.
Taylor pursed her lips as Vanessa saw her.
"What?" Ness asked with a scary edge in her tone.
Taylor shrugged and said, "I don't know… you tell me."
"What do you think I should tell you?"
"I don't know, what do you think I think you think you should say?"
"What?" Ness furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.
"I win," Taylor said with a smirk.
"Win what, you dumb bit—"
Before Ness could curse, Pepper walked toward her and said, "Ness! Great performance. Just… just great. Why don't you get some rest now?"
He led her away hurriedly.
"Oh my god, I've lost my voice," Phil muttered with a hoarse voice as the song ended.
"I'm hungry." Luke tugged on Claire's sleeve to get her attention. Claire took out a burrito wrap from her purse and gave it to him.
"I don't want it. I want to deliver food." Luke gave it back to her.
"Delivery? Luke, there's no way—" Before Claire could say anything, a small drone flew toward them.
Then, it used its claw hand to pick up the paper bag from its body and handed it to Haley.
Haley smiled and showed her phone to Claire. "I've already ordered it… Mom, are you sure you worked with Eddy's company?"
Claire felt pricked when Haley narrowed her eyes at her. Phil giggled and said, "Haley, you know your mom is always bad with technology."
Haley took out a lozenge from the paper bag and gave it to Phil. She had food, water, and some snacks in there.
Most of the people in the concert venue did that. They just needed to order the food from the Concert City app Edward made.
The drones were stealthy enough that they didn't even interfere with their concert experience.
"Ahh… This place is really great. I want to live here," Haley muttered as she ate the still-warm chicken sandwich.
It was already an hour and a half since the concert started. Many people were feeling peckish, so they ordered through the app like Haley did.
Backstage, Frankie and Pepper were consistently barking orders to the staff members.
Renaldo said urgently to Frankie, "We're down to the last 10% of the food stock we prepared."
"What? We prepared 50 tons of food."
"But we have 1 million people," Renaldo said urgently. "And the Reefer Stage was taking over half of the food stock with their orders."
"Damn it," Pepper and Frankie said in unison.
Pepper added, "So Edward was right. We needed 300 tons of it at minimum."
Frankie sighed and said, "It's my oversight. I will make sure to make up for it."
"It's okay Mommy brain." Suddenly, a voice interjected from behind her. Frankie turned and saw Annie giggling while walking towards her.
"I just got a text from Edward. The rest of the food is here now. So we don't have to worry about the concert goers going wild from hunger." Annie said casually, her eyes glittering with admiration.
Edward had opened a portal from Cuba and his farm, taking in some meats, flours, and ready made food from various businesses around the world.
He put them on his apps, so the concert goers could just order what they wanted, and he would go pick it up.
If they wanted a whole turkey, they could get that too.
"There's two more days. We need to make sure not to have any oversight again." Frankie said to the staff. She turned to Annie, "From now on, you will be my assistant."
"What– NO! I'm Edward's assistant–"
"I'm Edward's step mother–"
"I will be your assistant from now on and serve you well, mother." Annie changed her tune instantly.
Pepper rolled his eyes and said, "Alright. Let's get ready for the next phase of the concert. Once it's sundown, then Edward will come on stage, and we have to be ready for that."
…
Somewhere outside the concert venue. A group of cloaked men were gathering around an alley, their faces behind the mask dejected.
"Zebra, Monkey, Lion and Antelope, all of them are arrested." The man in a mouse mask said with a childish tone. He has the lowest stature of everyone there.
A passionate female voice said, "Forget about them. They are stupid enough to cause small scale trouble."
Everyone turned to the Salamander, the girl with Red hair who wore a partial mask on her face. The leader of the group of ne'er do well espers.
"If they were put in prison, don't you think the government will dissect them? We have to break them out." The girl in the gorilla mask said urgently.
"I don't think the government cares. I think they would've done that already." A man in a snake mask said.
A man in a dragon mask breathed fire and said, "I'm out."
"What? Draco! You can't get out of it now." Salamander jumped from her seat and said urgently.
"Give it up, Sal. We're not going to do anything to Edward Newgate or the party goers. He has too much security around. We're not experienced like them."
Salamander gritted her teeth in anger. "That motherfucker makes a RACOON!!! Bite my nose off!!!"
"I'm not going to stop until I get my revenge on him!" She added as her hair fluttered to the sky like they have a mind of their own.
Draco ignored her call and walked away. Salamander was angry that she smashed the bricks around the area with her hair. It broke into pieces with her immense strength.
"Fuck! Wait… I know, if I can't get to him… I should let him get to me." She grinned evilly.
"Now, which bitch should I pick to get to him?" She checked his Instagram to see which of the girls he was most close with.
"Or…" She saw the picture of Frankie and her pregnant stomach. She grinned with satisfaction and said, "Should I go after his family?"
The others shivered fearfully as she started laughing like a madman.
Suddenly, Mouse said, "Flamingo is getting chased by Jewel and Red Menace."
"That fucking team… The other 'heroes' all sucks! But those two… They are really annoying. What's Flamingo's power again?"
"She can increase people's pheromones. She's doing that to break up couples by making people kiss each other." Mouse said, shrinking back as Salamander walked to him.
Salamander suddenly laughed and said, "Well. If she can make Red Menace and Jewel starts fucking each other… Then, we don't have to worry about them anymore, right?!"