Crescent Sound is colder than I imagined.
Not temperature.
Atmosphere.
Professional.
Sharp.
Unforgiving.
The stage lights are already warm against my skin, but my hands are trembling.
I flex my fingers discreetly.
Laura sits at the piano like she was born there.
Spine straight.
Shoulders relaxed.
Expression composed.
Axel adjusts his guitar strap once.
He doesn't look nervous.
He never does.
Zane rolls his shoulders once beside me.
Then glances at me.
"You good?" he murmurs.
"No."
He smiles faintly.
"Good."
I almost laugh.
The intro begins.
Laura's piano.
Axel's guitar.
Clean.
Steady.
Zane steps forward first.
The spotlight finds him easily.
He owns it.
Of course he does.
His voice fills the studio without strain.
Controlled.
Charismatic.
Confident.
The audience leans in.
I wait.
Heart loud.
Too loud.
My cue approaches.
Zane glances at me briefly.
Not pushing.
Not rescuing.
Just there.
My turn.
I step forward.
The light shifts.
And for half a second—
Everything narrows.
My hands are still trembling.
But my voice isn't.
The first line comes out clear.
Stronger than rehearsal.
Stronger than the studio.
The fear is there.
It hums under my ribs.
But it doesn't choke me.
It fuels me.
The harmony builds.
Zane joins me.
Not overpowering.
Matching.
We share the space instead of fighting for it.
The chorus hits.
And this time—
I don't blend into him.
I meet him.
The room expands.
Laura's piano swells beneath us.
Axel's guitar lifts the progression higher.
Theo stands near the back, arms crossed, watching carefully.
I hold the note.
Long.
Full.
Intentional.
Zane doesn't look away.
He looks proud.
The final verse approaches.
Our eyes lock.
The world fades again.
Not from fear.
From intensity.
We finish together.
Perfectly aligned.
The last note lingers in the air.
Then silence.
A suspended second.
And then—
Applause.
Real.
Loud.
Immediate.
My heart is pounding so hard I can feel it in my ears.
I blink against the lights.
The audience stands.
Zane squeezes my hand briefly.
Just once.
I exhale.
I survived.
Not barely.
Not by hiding.
By standing in it.
Laura gives me the smallest nod.
Axel smiles.
Not big.
But real.
The spotlight doesn't feel like something I need to escape anymore.
It feels like something I stepped into.
The overwhelmed feeling rises.
But it's different.
Not panic.
Not doubt.
Just—
Too much feeling at once.
I laugh softly under my breath.
Zane leans closer.
"Told you," he murmurs.
I shake my head.
"I was terrified."
He smirks.
"And?"
I look out at the audience again.
At the stage.
At the life I almost stayed small inside.
"And it mattered."
He smiles wider.
Yeah.
It did.