Re:life with Karmic Gacha (Modern Family)-Chapter 439: 1 Million (5)

(Check out my other novel, That 70s Hustle (That 70s Show fanfic))

[General POV]

As Edward got on stage again, the concert excitement was at its peak. But the people were a bit quieter. Since most of them already have a sore throat from all the screaming.

The energy was palpable. The sounds, a little restrained.

After finishing the duet, Taylor gazed at Edward, trying to study his emotions. However, what she saw in his eyes was only excitement.

She turned around and walked away. She thought, ’Clearly, he doesn’t care.’

"Give a big hand to Taylor– Wait, she’s gone." Edward wanted to say a few words with her on stage, but as he turned, she had already moved backstage.

"I was distracted by the fireworks. I didn’t even see her leave." Edward chuckled, which made the audience laugh too.

"Did you miss me?" Edward asked, which made the crowd– especially the girls shout loudly, "We miss you Eddy!"

"I was enjoying the concert with you guys. I went to all of the stages and took pictures. I’ll share them on my instagram account." He said casually.

Everyone was surprised when Edward said that. No one saw him and there were a million of them inside the venue.

"There’s a lot more in store for the concert. I’ll be singing with my band member–"

The crowd cheered again.

"Then, a duet." Edward added, which made the crowd go wild. "Finally, some ballads to take us home." He said casually.

By the time he distracted the crowds, Billie, Finneas, and Alex had taken their places on stage.

Alex as the bassist. Finneas as the pianist. Billie as the drummer. And Edward as the lead guitarist.

The spotlight shined on them, which made the crowd murmured in excitement. The stadium became hushed as Edward prepared to sing.

The spotlight moved forward and flipped to the sky. The stage lit up, and Finneas started the song with his synthesizer.

"The song is called 505. Enjoy." Edward muttered with a calm demeanor.

Edward crooned with a mesmerizing voice. The crowd immediately became absorbed by the song even though it was their first time hearing it.

[Arctic Monkey– 505]

♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪

"♫♪ I’m going back to 505. If it’s a seven hour flight or a forty-five minute drive.

In my imagination, you’re waitin’ lyin’ on your side.With your hands between your thighs ♫♪"

Edward strummed his guitar, and Billie entered with a percussive sound.

The two chord progression seemed simple, but it was quite unforgettable.

As the tempo increased, Edward continued with the next verse.

"♫♪Stop and wait a sec♫♪" He pointed to the crowd. "♫♪ When you look at me like that, my darlin’, what did you expect? ♫♪"

Edward’s charming looks melted the audience. Like a bubble slightly deflated, their eyes turned wide and they slumped their shoulders.

Most of them felt as if they were the only ones there, and Edward was performing just for them.

"♫♪ I’d probably still adore you with your hands around my neck ♫♪" He chuckled and added, "♫♪ Or I did last time I checked ♫♪"

"Is he talking about us?" Taylor muttered with disbelief. "That bitch. He’s fighting back isn’t he?"

The fans waved his banners back and forth. Edward didn’t miss a beat as he strummed the guitar.

Alex’s face was quite serious, which looked cool, but she was actually incredibly nervous inside. She felt like puking from the pressure.

Edward turned to her and smiled, as if comforting her.

The slow, moody beats were broadcast all over the world. And the people of the world began falling in love with the band.

The beats grew quicker. Edward’s soul voice was activated, and everyone began thinking about their own breakups.

"♫♪ Not shy of a spark ♫♪"

"♫♪ The knife twists at the thought that I should fall short of the mark ♫♪"

"♫♪ Frightened by the bite, though it’s no harsher than the bark ♫♪"

"♫♪ The middle of adventure, such a perfect place to start ♫♪"

He strummed his guitar again. As he sang the chorus, some of the audience could already mouth the lyrics.

"♫♪ I’m going back to 505! If it’s a seven hour flight or a forty-five minute drive~ In my imagination, you’re waitin’ lyin’ on your side... With your hands between your thighs ♫♪"

Taylor and Ness both bit their lips. Taylor has a dissatisfaction on her face, while Ness has longing.

’The 505... Is that the hotel room number?’ Taylor’s eyes flickered.

The song was at its peak. As Edward crooned, people had goosebumps on their skins.

"♫♪ But I crumble completely when you cry ♫♪"

"♫♪ It seems like once again you’ve had to greet me with goodbye ♫♪"

Taylor’s eyes went dazed. She was convinced the song was for her. As they kept getting back together and breaking up over and over again.

"♫♪ I’m always just about to go and spoil the surprise ♫♪"

"♫♪ Take my hands off of your eyes too soon ♫♪"

"Phil, are you crying?" Claire asked Phil with disbelief.

With a choked up voice, he replied unconvincingly, "...No."

The fans took numerous pictures of Edward– especially those who were close to the stages. The band was projected into each stage, so everyone could see them properly.

"♫♪ I’m going back to 505 ♫♪"

"♫♪ If it’s a seven hour flight or a forty-five minute drive ♫♪"

"♫♪In my imagination, you’re waitin’ lyin’ on your side♫♪"

"♫♪With your hands between your thighs and a smile ♫♪"

Edward left the microphone and went to play the outro with his friends. They played the outro music smoothly, and as the song ended, Edward was back at the mic.

The crowd exploded into cheers as the song ended.

...

Inside the med bay, hidden base.

Jenna woke up abruptly, sitting up instantly. "Haa!" She gasped for air, and looked around warily.

"Oh, the pervert is up." Red Menace sipped on some tea and covered his face back up with his red hood. "I thought you’re going to sleep longer."

"What–" Jenna’s face blushed hard as she remembered what had happened. She touched her lips, and her eyes went into a daze.

"Are you alright there?" Red Menace asked with concern.

"Huh– Yea– Yeah." Jenna was flustered. She jumped down the bed and checked her outfit. "You didn’t do anything to me while I was asleep, right?" She asked teasingly.

R.M scoffed and said, "If I wanted to, it would be easier if I didn’t put you to sleep."

Jenna chuckled and asked, "So what’s her power? Making people horny?"

"Basically."

Jenna sighed with relief. But her face was still quite red when she looked at him.

"What?" R.M asked with concern, "Are the effects still there?"

Jenna’s heart skipped a beat and she replied, "Ye-Yeah. This must be some after effect. Should– Should we go back to the patrol?"

"Sure." R.M replied. "I know where the ringleader base is. We should go there."

Jenna nodded, and both of them left the base again.

...

"Are you ready for the next one?" Edward asked Alex, Finneas and Billie hushly.

They nodded and Alex said, "Yeah. The sooner we end this, the better."

Finneas rolled his eyes at her and said, "At least try to enjoy it."

"Sounds like you guys are arguing about having sex." Edward teased, which made Alex angry at him.

"Billie, this will look really awesome on your track to become a star." Edward turned to Billie and complimented her.

He turned back to the crowd and walked to the stage.

"Thank you everyone. Now for the next song, also a band original. It’s called ’Do I Want to Know’."

[Arctic Monkey– Do I Want To Know]

He started the next song quickly for maximum enjoyment.

Alex gulped her saliva as for this song, she needed to sing too, providing background vocals. All three of them would sing, not just her.

♫♪ ♫♪ ♫♪ ♫♪ ♫♪

Billie hits the drums and provides obsessive percussive beats.

Edward strummed the guitar and joined in.

Phil muttered, "I’m really loving this new vibe. The band is so awesome!" Then, he shouted, "GO ALEX! I’M SO PROUD OF YOU!"

"Hush Phil! I’m filming." Claire said as she was filming the show with her mobile phone.

Haley grumbled and said, "Mom. You shouldn’t do that. And also, we know Edward. We can just get the footage from him. There’s no need to record it with your camera phone."

"Oh. Alright." Claire was embarrassed and put the phone back into her pocket.

Edward crooned, and the audience became mesmerized again.

"♫♪ Have you got colour in your cheeks? ♫♪"

"♫♪ Do you ever get that fear that you can’t shift the type... That sticks around like summats in your teeth? ♫♪"

"Hmm? What’s he talking about?" Luke was confused. "What’s a summat?"

"It’s flies... right? Like those very small fruit flies?" Phil answered, but he too was confused.

Edward continued singing, "♫♪ Are there some aces up your sleeve? ♫♪"

Lily, the fan club president, felt like her ears were blessed whenever Edward stretched his vocals.

"♫♪ Have you no idea that you’re in deep? ♫♪"

"♫♪ I’ve dreamt about you nearly every night this week ♫♪"

Barbara furrowed her eyebrows. "What’s this song about?" She muttered. "I feel like I should hate it."

"♫♪ How many secrets can you keep? ♫♪" Edward put his finger on his lips slightly, and it made the girls swoon.

"♫♪ ’Cause there’s this tune I found ♫♪"

"♫♪ That makes me think of you somehow and I play it on repeat ♫♪"

"♫♪ Until I fall asleep, .... spillin’ drinks on my settee♫♪"

"What’s a settee?" Luke asked, he was confused yet again.

"I... don’t know." Phil replied with a nervous expression.

It was a couch.

The other bandmates sang the background vocals.

"♫♪(Do I wanna know?) ♫♪" Billie, Alex and Finneas turned to each other with satisfaction as they didn’t butcher the timing.

" ♫♪ If this feelin’ flows both ways? ♫♪" Edward smiled at them before turning his head to the crowd again.

♫♪ (Sad to see you go )♫♪

"♫♪ Was sorta hopin’ that you’d stay ♫♪"

♫♪ (Baby, we both know)♫♪

"♫♪ That the nights were mainly made for sayin’ things that you can’t say tomorrow day ♫♪"

The beat dropped, and the crowd went wild.

Barbara, Willa, Selena, Ness, Haley, Taylor, all thought back to the time they stayed with Edward in the mansion during the pandemic. Their secret life, and they felt like Edward was referencing that in the song.

"♫♪ Crawlin’ back to you!! ♫♪"

"♫♪ Ever thought of callin’ when... You’ve had a few? ♫♪"

"♫♪ ’Cause I always do♫♪ "

"♫♪ Maybe I’m too... Busy bein’ yours, To fall for somebody new... Now, I’ve thought it through. Crawlin’ back to you ♫♪"

"It’s really about us." Haley muttered with shock. She looked at Edward intently, inhaling deeply.

"♫♪ So have you got the guts? ♫♪"

He sang tauntingly.

"♫♪ Been wonderin’ if your heart’s still open. And if so, I wanna know what time it shuts ♫♪"

His tone changed to be more affectionate.

"♫♪ Simmer down an’ pucker up, I’m sorry to interrupt. It’s just I’m constantly on the cusp... of tryin’ to kiss you♫♪

Then, it became longing.

"♫♪ But I don’t know if you feel the same as I do♫♪ "

And a slight hope.

"♫♪ But we could be together if you wanted to♫♪"

The others sang again as the chorus arrived.

"♫♪ (Do I wanna know?) If this feelin’ flows both ways?♫♪

"♫♪ (Sad to see you go) Was sorta hopin’ that you’d stay♫♪

"♫♪ (Baby, we both know) ♫♪

Edward crooned. "♫♪ That the nights were mainly made. For sayin’ things that you can’t say tomorrow day♫♪

"♫♪ Crawlin’ back to you (Crawlin’ back to you) ♫♪"

"♫♪ Ever thought of callin’ when! You’ve had a few? (You’ve had a few) ♫♪"

He let go of his guitar and picked up the microphone from the stand. The background guitarist helped him with the song.

"♫♪ ’Cause I always do (’Cause I always do)! Maybe I’m too (Maybe I’m too busy) ♫♪"

"♫♪ Busy bein’ yours (Bein’ yours)! To fall for somebody new ♫♪"

"♫♪ Now, I’ve thought it through, Crawlin’ back to you ♫♪"

Edward and his band members smiled at each other. The satisfaction they felt was through the roof.

"♫♪ (Do I wanna know?) If this feelin’ flows both ways? ♫♪"

"♫♪ (Sad to see you go) Was sorta hopin’ that you’d stay ♫♪"

"♫♪ (Baby, we both know) That the nights were mainly made For sayin’ things that you can’t say tomorrow day♫♪"

"One last time. Come on." Edward muttered to his friends.

"♫♪ (Do I wanna know?) Too busy bein’ yours to fall ♫♪"

Billie smiled, sweat beading on her forehead.

"♫♪ (Sad to see you go) Ever thought of callin’, darlin’? ♫♪"

Finneas was excited, thinking he looked cool.

"♫♪ (Do I wanna know?) Do you want me crawlin’ back to you?♫♪"

Alex chuckled as she saw Edward’s face, an indescribable feeling of success washed over her.

The crowd went wild as the song finished. With only two songs, the band had now become world famous.

...

Alex, Finneas and Billie went backstage as they had finished their session. Edward was still on the stage, preparing for the next performance.

Alex suddenly hugged Finneas and went limp.

"Hey, what’s wrong?" Finneas asked urgently. "My legs feel so weak." Alex replied with a shaky voice. "That’s 1 million people you know?"

"Wait." Billie widened her eyes as the realisation just hit her. Then, she calmly sat crossed legged on the floor.

"What are you doing?" Finneas asked her seriously.

"I’m just preparing to wake up from my dream." Billie said with a deadpan voice.

"This is not a dream." Finneas snapped at her. "Come on, let’s watch the next performance."

He made Alex stand on her own.

"No. I think I need to lay down." Alex said hintingly. "Finn, do you want to lay down with me in the waiting room?"

"What? No!. I want to watch the next performance." He whined.

Alex pouted. "I guess I’ll just have to let go of all my pent up energy and emotions alone then."

"Just go away." Finneas waved her off teasingly. Billie looked at him like he was stupid.

He didn’t realize Alex was feeling turned on and wanted to do something with him until the concert was over.

...

On stage, Edward was singing his hit songs that people love. "Grenade", "7 Years", "Enemy", and much much more.

He has over 100 songs. He could sing the entire concert himself without any guest singers.

After almost an hour, Edward sat down on a bench and drank some water. He was drenched in sweat from the performance.

Although he could go on for hours, he still wanted to get some rest to talk with the audience.

"The broadcast is over, so I can relax a bit." He said jokingly. The fans laughed and relaxed slightly.

As he wiped his face with a towel, some fans screamed out, "Throw it!"

"The towel?" Edward was taken aback. "Sure." He rolled it and threw it up high in the air. The roll was opened, and the towel gently floated down to the audience.

Then, a skirmish happened. People were ripping out the towel into pieces.

"Oh my god." Barbara was taken aback by the scene. "How crazy are his fans?" She muttered, her pupils shook slightly.

She gulped her saliva and muttered, "They won’t try to attack me, will they?"

"I want to talk with some of you. The drones will hand 5 random people the microphone. If the drone didn’t come to you, then, don’t try to pry it away from the lucky ones. They have built in cameras, so I can see what’s happening." Edward said.

The drones flew around 26 stages and picked people randomly from the 1 million people who went there.

An ordinary girl was picked as the first questioner. She giggled in excitement, her face was displayed on the big screen.

The first thing she did was show her shirt. It was a custom made cat shirt.

"Oh my god, is that Vader?" Edward was curious.

She held the microphone and said, "Yes. I made this. Do you like it?"

"Yeah. I do. I love it. What’s your name?" He asked with a charming smile.

The other girls around the area glared murderously at the lucky girl.

"Rebecca." She replied with a snort. Everyone laughed as they thought it was funny.

"Nice to meet you Rebecca. Do you have anything to ask? Or just to say something?"

"Yes! I have plenty." Rebecca said urgently. Everyone laughed again seeing her change of expression.

Edward chuckled and leaned slightly on the chair. His face and her face appeared on the big screen, side by side as if they were having a conversation from close by.

Rebecca’s friend squealed and began taking pictures of it.

"My question is, are you single right now?" She asked childishly.

Edward knew he would get in trouble if he answered it directly. But he did it anyway.

"I have a girlfriend, fortunately." He replied. A conflicted wave of sad ’Awww’ and melting ’Awww’ enveloped the entire venue.

"Fortunately? So you love her?" Rebecca asked again.

"We just started dating a couple days ago. I like her, is that an answer?" He replied with a laugh.

Rebecca giggled and asked again, "Um, what kind of girl is your type?"

"That’s three questions. So I’ll answer it, and we will move on to the next one, alright?" Edward said calmly, and Rebecca nodded with reluctance.

Edward chuckled and thought about it, "Um... The kind of girl I like? That’s a complicated question. Um... I guess...girls I like spending time with."

The crowd melted again. "Awww."