• Chapter 6: Rich & Famous

    The next day, the band met at Jake’s house. Miranda was supposed to have a few songs written. Little did the boys know, she also messed a little with their fates.
    “Miranda, come on! We’re going to be late, and we need the most time we can get to practice the new songs,” Brad shouted, waiting impatiently by the door. He was wearing his boots, and other things to make him actually look like he was part of a country band.
    “Wow, you sure are impatient,” she said, stepping out the door of her new room. Brad was completely stunned when he saw her. Her clothes looked amazingly good, yet like a country singer’s at the same time. Her hair was in two braids in the side of her head, which doesn’t work for all people, but they looked amazing on her. “Are you coming?” she asked looking back at Brad, since she was already a couple of steps out the door.
    Brad snapped out of the stun of seeing Miranda look so perfect, and then answered. “Yea, sorry. ‘You sure are impatient,’” he said in a mocking voice. He walked over to his truck, had Miranda help him open the door, and then got in.
    When they got to the small, rusty, beat down garage door, they knocked in a certain pattern to allow themselves in. The door opened, and Keith and Jake were holding their instruments, ready to play.
    “Here’s the music,” Miranda said, passing out the sheets of paper. Once all three guys had a copy, Miranda stepped up to the microphone. “Ready?”
    “Can’t we have a little time to go over it ourselves?” questioned Jake.
    “I’m sure you guys will be fine. You’re pretty good. I’ll count off for you. 1, 2, 1 2 3 4.”
    The only one playing at first was Brad, since he knew to always trust Miranda. After a small amount of time, the other two boys joined, making a perfect band sound. It sounded like they had practiced the song for years.
    Suddenly, a black limousine pulled up. A man in a suit and sunglasses got out of the long vehicle. He was tall, with a light brown color of hair. He took off his sunglasses, exposing his brown eyes. After placing the sunglasses in his pocket, he began to walk towards the band. They had stopped playing, with a look of shock on their faces, except for Miranda, who held a friendly, welcoming smile.
    “Hello, sir. Can we help you?” Miranda politely asked.
    “Yes, I’m Marvin from The Near Records. How would you guys like a record deal?”
    “We’d love it,” Brad jumped in after catching Jake, who nearly passed out.
    “Great. Why don’t you all come with me in my limo so we can discuss the terms.” Marvin led the four back to his limo, with himself getting in first. Once they all had entered the fancy car, Marvin began to speak again. “The Near would love to have you as our newest members. Here are your passes to enter every room, except mine. We want your CD out as soon as possible, so as soon as you are ready, go down to the recording studio. All you have to do is sign this contract, and you not only get that, but you will also receive $20,000. The company will also pay for your instrument needs.” Once they pulled into the driveway of the very large building, Marvin got out immediately.
    “We would like a minute to discuss this thoroughly,” Miranda said after Marvin questioned why they were not following him out. Once he left, they closed the door and Miranda began to talk again. “$20,000 means we each get $5,000. Hey Keith and Jake, can I get a word privately with Brad? You can go ahead and explore the building, if you want.”
    “Sure,” they responded, exiting the vehicle and closing the door behind them.
    “Brad, I’m a little worried.”
    “Why?”
    “Well, this is for money. I’m not the one who chooses to leave the earth, I’m taken out. This could be considered enslaved, since all that was on Marvin, Keith, and Jake’s minds was money. I don’t want the world to end. Anyways, if we do take the offer, I can’t do concerts or have pictures taken of us. It’ll make people realize where I am and they can track me to use my power.”
    “How will they know it’s you? The books didn’t describe your every physical characteristic. Anyways, can’t you explain to whoever is in charge that you wanted to do this? You do want to, don’t you?”
    “Yea, I want to, but as soon as I leave, the earth will destroy itself. Not only is there not enough time for me to say anything, but there’s really no one for me to say something to. The planet itself chooses whether to stay or not. I’m the only living thing that doesn’t live on a planet. Anyways, some books do describe me, and people can tell I’m different as soon as they see me. If they’ve read about me, they’ll know exactly who I am. Didn’t you see Ralph’s face when he saw me? He knew who I was.”
    “Oh,” was all Brad could say, since she was completely right. “Well, Keith and Jake can take the deal, but I’m staying with you. We aren’t going to put the earth in danger just because we want to be famous.”
    “Thanks for understanding. Now, how do we tell them?”
    “I’ll take it,” volunteered Brad. “They’ll listen to me better, since they know me.” He got out of the Limo and stared for a second at the large building. He suddenly felt Miranda’s hand on his shoulder.
    “I’m going with you. You’re going to need a little help finding them in that building, and there’s no reason for you to take the heat when it’s my fault.”
    They took steps toward the building, using their pass cards to get in. “Where are they?” Brad asked after they turned the corner and no one was around.
    “One second,” Miranda said as she closed her eyes. “They’re in… the basement, third door on the left.”
    “Ok… where’s the basement?”
    Miranda sighed. “Just follow me.” She took a hold of his wrist and took off with a somewhat fast pace. She dodged all people and objects in the hallways. “I’m pretty sure you can lead from here,” she said once they reached the stairs.
    Brad stepped in front of her, walking slowly through the dark hallway. “Why would they visit here?”
    Miranda shrugged. “Maybe curiosity and adventure got the best of them.”
    Brad slid the card through the lock, allowing them to enter. “There you are,” he said, talking to Keith and Jake as soon as he saw them. “We don’t care if you want to be a part of this, but we don’t. Sorry. You’ll have to talk it out with Marvin.”
    “Ok, thanks for telling us before we got too excited. We’re going to talk to him. Go ahead and go home,” said Jake as calmly as possible.
    Once Brad and Miranda exited, Miranda said, “Wow, that was weird. Are you sure they’re ok with it?”
    “Yea, sometimes they act a little strange. It usually happens whenever I’ve left them alone for a while. I don’t know why, either.”