Thing- Chapter 9

I heard them all, the crowds shouting my name. The big blue spotlights swirled across the stage as I watched from the side, I spotted Susan on the other side of the stage, she looked stern, not encouraging for my first show at all. I was nervous, I felt sick. I knew it was what I had always wanted but I didn;t know it would be that bad, so many people, they knew me but I didn;t know them. I began to panic.

The crowds screams grew louder and louder, so loudat one point that I couldn;t hear what was being said into my ear piece, or was I just choosing not to listen, hoping that I didn;t have to step out and face all the people who knew my face, my name, my music, but not my secret. The secret that I was actually a normal girl pressured into choosing fame over love and friends. They knew my songs, every word. My support band were good, a lot more confident than me, it couldn't have been their first time like me. But then how did I get the headline spot? Susan Black, the woman who pressured me, the one who made me change my image, leave everything I knew behind, leave Gem and Stacey and Lucas, he'd probably hate me more if he knew what was happening.

I managed to choke back my tears as the support band waved and walked off stage. They were older than me, a lot older than me. I was only 15, very almost 16 and I was fired from a cannon into this life I didn't want. I became dizzy. Bristol was so far away from Cheshire, I pictured my old house, it was tiny, but it was home. I missed everyone, my family, my friends, even some of the teachers. By now, the technicians were setting up for my performance, Susan was looking aprehensivly at me. Her suit made her look scary, I really was scared of her, I felt like I could never say no to her.

"You're on, good luck kid," the voice in my earpiece sounded worried, almost as worried as me, but the voice was right. I was a kid, a child, I didn't belong on a huge stage with people screaming at me, that was meant for professionals. I stepped forward unwillingly and looked out onto the crowd who were now in hysterics just at the sight of me, a 15 year old girl, I couldn;t understand why they liked me so much. The lights became blinding and the crowd melted away like butter on toast.

It became hard to breathe, my heart raced and my legs wobbled. Actually they wobled so much that I couldnt stand anymore. I fell to the floor in a quivering heap, the crowd went wild, obviously thinking that it was part of the show. I began to cry like I had never cried before. the tears stung my face, I had made a huge mistake, this wasnlt the life I wanted but now I could never go back. I was stuck in a life I hated. A lonely, worthless life with nobody for support. I looked up at Susan who looked angry and was barking orders down her phone. I cried even more when my 'fans' started to groan and boo at me, some even threw drinks up at me, making me feel filthy.

Two pairs of hands picked me up and threw me off stage before apologising to the people who had come to see me, offering refunds and saying it was 'due to dehydration'. They said that about every problem any star had. I wasnlt dehydrated, I was lost in a world of people who only cared about fame and money and material stuff, that just wasn't me. Susan stormed over.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" I was too weak to answer her, looking back I wish I did, I wish I kickedher off her feet and made her feel small like me.

"Answer me, are you stupid? You're throwing everything away Emma! I could've made loads of money from you!"

"You don't care about anyone but yourself," I managed to whimper. She scowled at me and walked off to talk to the stage hand. A bell rang, I thought it was the fire alarm but nobody moved, nobody could hear the ringing but me. It rang and rang until everything went hazy.

"Emma! Get up, can't you hear your alarm?!" Thank God. It was just a dream, it wasn't real. I ran downstairs and hugged my mum tightly, tighter than I had ever hugged anyone before.

"What's this for Em? You've not broken anything have you?" I laughed, I was always clumsy.

"Nothing, just look after me," I wiped a tear away from my eye, a tear of relief. I had made me my mind about the superstar life Susan Black had promised me.