Free Pop Rock Love by Raine Koh, Lorraine Koh Page A

Music
Stage is a weekly pop show that invites the top ten artistes on the Oricon
Chart to perform. The Oricon Chart represents the official number of singles
and albums sold in Japan.”

 
    The production assistant came
up on stage and gave the audience a few instructions. “We are going live in an
hour’s time. If you need to go to the restroom, please do so now. Please note
that the audience is not allowed to move around once filming starts. Please
turn your mobile phones off or to silent mode.”

 
    “So who got into the top three
in this week’s Oricon Chart?” Mimi asked, looking around.

 
    “Third is Namie Amuro, second
is Orange Range and number one goes to B’z. But Mimi, the reason why I am so
excited is because the Fire Boys will be performing later.”

 
    “What!” Mimi exclaimed. The
production assistant shot her a dirty look. Mimi bowed apologetically for her
outburst.

 
    “Really? So that means the Fire
Boys will perform here?” Mimi asked in a hushed tone.

 
    Yamada nodded and smiled
brightly. “I can’t wait. Their single is not officially in the charts yet, but
they are under the ‘Hot Entry’ category, meaning that they are predicted to
enter the charts when the song is officially released next week.” Mimi didn’t
really understand what Yamada was babbling about and just stared at the
currently empty stage in shock.

 
    Mimi tried to reason within
herself: the audience will be clothed in darkness. And I am not even sitting in
the front, the artiste won’t be able to see us. After all, they were only
singing one song, and they will be too busy facing the cameras. “Yamada, I
think I need to use the bathroom,” she whispered.

 
    “Don’t be silly, it’s starting
soon.”

 
    “My stomach hurts,” she
protested, trying to stand up. The lights in the studio suddenly dimmed and an
excited buzz rose from the audience.
     
    “The show has started. Hold it
in,” hissed Yamada, using her hand to force Mimi to sit down.

 
    Music Stage’s two hosts, a male and female pair came on stage and
greeted everyone. “Good evening, I am Hiroki,” said the male host, bowing
slightly.   “And I am Masumi,” said
the lady, who was dressed in a black cocktail dress. “Welcome to Music Stage !”
they both cried in unison while the audience was prompted to clap. Hiroki
proceeded to say, “Today we have another exciting show for you. Will B’z be
able to hold their number one position this week? Or do we have a new
contender? Before we dive into this week’s music charts, we are going to
introduce the ‘Hot Entry’ acts. This week we have the Fire Boys, Koda Kumi and
Alice Nine.”

 
    Loud cheers were heard from the
audience, mostly from teenage girls and Yamada. Mimi felt as if her heart was
going to burst. The hosts continued talking, “Please give a warm welcome to our
first performance by the Fire Boys as they present ‘Love Love Night’!” The
audience exploded with even louder applause as the Fire Boys walked up on
stage. Mimi’s hand reached out to grab Yamada’s when she saw Yuki among them.
They were all dressed in bright gold, boxy jackets and black top hats. Mimi
just stared at his face. Was this a dream? He was smiling and joking around
with his members and he looked better than she remembered him. Yuki shone when
he was on stage. Maybe it’s better this way, she told herself. They both
belonged to different worlds. The Fire Boys got into their positions and they started
to sing and dance to their upbeat, disco-influenced hit track “Love Love
Night”. The audience seemed to be familiar with the various hand actions and
chants. Mimi felt totally lost.

 
    Then somewhere during the
chorus, she wondered if she imagined it, Yuki stopped dancing and looked at her
direction. Mimi blinked twice and there he was, standing still, looking at her.
The rest of his members were dancing in sequence but he just froze. Did he see
her? She wanted to shout