three weeks later
VALERIE STRETCHED OUT ON HER BED, phone in hand, while olivia sat cross-legged next to her, munching on some chips.
"you ready for this?" olivia asked, brushing crumbs off her hoodie.
valerie shrugged, unlocking her phone. "yeah, why not? it's been forever since i've gone live, and the song drops in, like, thirty minutes. might as well kill some time."
"fair. just don't get all awkward and weird."
valerie rolled her eyes. "please. i'm a natural."
she tapped the live button, and within seconds, comments started flooding the screen.
use11 WAIT IS THIS REAL???
user73 valerie live? am i hallucinating???
user98 SHE'S BACKKK
valerie grinned at the camera, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "hey, everyone. uh, surprise? it's been a while, huh?"
olivia leaned into frame, waving. "what's up, losers?"
the comments blew up even more.
user6 OLIVIA HI QUEEN
user2 VAL AND LIV BESTIE GOALS
user4 drop the skincare routine rn
valerie laughed, shaking her head. "you guys are wild. okay, okay, focus. i figured i'd hang out for a bit before the song drops. it's been forever, and i missed you guys."
user9 we missed you more
user3 song of the year incoming
user5 so who's the song about?
valerie smirked, scrolling through the comments. "you're just gonna have to listen and figure that out yourselves."
olivia snorted. "you know they're not gonna drop it, right?"
"oh, i know. but it's more fun this way."
for the next twenty minutes, they chatted casually, answering questions about valerie's favorite movies, their most embarrassing moments, and random topics that popped up in the comments. the atmosphere was relaxed, with the occasional sarcastic quip from olivia keeping things light.
finally, valerie glanced at the clock. "okay, it's almost time. two minutes left."
"oh, shit," olivia said, sitting up straighter.
valerie refreshed her music app, her hands a little shaky. "this is so nerve-wracking. what if everyone hates it?"
"they won't," olivia said firmly. "and if they do, they're wrong."
the countdown hit zero, and valerie's song officially went live. both of them screamed-loud and genuine-and immediately went silent, staring at each other with wide eyes.
"holy shit," olivia said. "it's out."
"it's out," valerie echoed, her voice barely above a whisper.
she pulled up the song on her phone, hitting play. as the first notes filled the room, they both fell into an awed silence, listening intently.
by the time the song ended, valerie turned back to the comments flooding the live chat.
user1 this is insane valerie WHAT
user9 i'm literally sobbing who gave you the right to write this
user3 this song is gonna ruin me and i'm okay with that
user0 it's about billie no one can change my mind
valerie laughed softly, glancing at olivia. "okay, before you guys jump to conclusions-which you're most definitely already doing-when i wrote this song, i wasn't really thinking about an ex or anything like that."
she hesitated for a moment, her gaze flickering back to the camera. "i was, uh, actually thinking about my mom. and you guys already know about my... issues in that department." she let out a small, dry laugh, trying to lighten the mood. "but yeah, this song is about that. obviously, you can interpret it however you want, but for me, it's about my so-called mother and everything that comes with that."
the comments lit up with support.
user7 val we love you
user8 this makes the song hit even harder
user91 omg we both have mommy issues so we're basically made for each other
olivia leaned into frame, her expression serious for once. "it's a good song. a really good song. and she's too humble to say it, but it's gonna wreck you guys in the best way possible."
valerie shoved her gently. "okay, don't gas me up too much."
"someone has to."
as the comments kept rolling in, valerie felt a small, unexpected warmth in her chest. for the first time in a long time, she felt connected-to her fans, to her music, and maybe even to herself again.
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liked by gracieabrams and 21,271,939 others
valerie.wilson MY TEARS RICOCHET OUT NOWWW LITERALLY EVERYWHERE omg this feels like a fever dream writing this song was basically reopening wounds i wasnt sure were gonna heal. go stream it till ur ears bleed i love you i love you mwahmwahmwah
creator has turned off comments.
literally have no idea what im writing atp
i just want them to makeup as soon as possible