Life Comes For All of Us

“You have to admit it does look fun unless looks are deceiving which they probably are.” Maia looked down at herself twiddling her thumbs. “I do want some form of fame though.”

“I don’t know. It just all seems a little bit false to me. I guess that ties in with the whole looks-are-deceiving thing,” Ro mused. “Well, what are you good at? You can be famous for pretty much anything, these days. There was a lady on TV the other night who was drawing pictures with sand.” 

finn was confused by the sudden offering of a headphone. “uh, you want me to listen?” his eyebrows knit together as he took the earbud from the stranger. “is this your music?” he asked, listening closely to the beat. “it’s not my type of song, but it’s not awful. what kind of specific feedback are you looking for?”

“Oh, shit, okay. So this is like your whole ass job. I’m glad I didn’t try to pretend like I knew what I was talking about,” Solomon laughed. “Have you ever played at the Underground? I don’t remember if I’ve seen you there before, but if I’m being honest I don’t remember much about any of the times I go there.”

“It pays the bills,” Ro shrugged. It wasn’t that they were ungrateful. They knew playing music for a living was a concept many aspired to, but very few made work, and they were one of the exceptions. Still, the concept of work as a whole was not their cup of tea. “Every now and then, yeah. It’s nice and easy, these local gigs. I have a radio show, too.”

harley tilted his head. ro painted a petty picture of just up and leaving; it wasn’t the first time the idea sounded tempting. what was stopping them from just leaving? theoretically, all it’d take would be money and a car with a full tank. and a guilt-free conscience, he added belatedly. “hm, maybe? i’d have to ease into it, my hips are out of shape,” harley reasoned, his mouth hinting at a smile. “you’re gonna have to drive us out there, though, i probably wouldn’t even make it out of the cape. or we can wait ‘til i learn how to ride my bike, and then we can pull into the city looking like total assholes.”

Ro quirked an eyebrow, surveying him with a thinly veiled smirk on their face. “Yeah? Hips been out of action for a while?” they teased him. Of the two of them, Ro had less holding them back, but when it came down to it, they still thought Harley had more of a chance of making it out of town then they did. If Ro ever did manage to escape, it would be sheer luck. “Looks like we’re hitching a ride, then. I don’t even own a car right now.” They pointed out. “It wouldn’t be the first time I end up looking like an asshole, though. I say we go for it.” 

“That’s the same with being an influencer right? Cause you’re essentially talking to a camera or an instagram post. That must be really lonely.” Maia trying to understand.

“I guess so, if you buy into the whole influencer thing. Call me old fashioned, but it’s not for me.” Ro used social media to promote her work, because it was a demand of the times they lived in. Given the choice, she would delete it all and never look back. That wasn’t the reality they lived in, though.

“I guess I am a pretty good representation of the uneducated masses,” Solomon cracked. He grimaced slightly when she mentioned commuting, then cocked his head to the side. “Where do you commute? Portland?” Not only did he himself work in Portland, but he knew a lot of people around here did too.

“Exactly. The perfect audience sample,” Ro smirked. She shook her head a little at his question. “Sometimes, if I have a club gig it’s usually in Portland. I’m a DJ, though, so I kinda go wherever the bookings take me. I’m not sure if ‘commute’ is technically the right word to use, but I’m not smart enough to think of another one.” 

“You don’t seem like an annoying person, so it’ll be hard to imagine you as annoying host.” Maia said hoping it sounds like the complement she’s hoped for. “Oh okay, so it’s a little different. Not your typical stuff.”

"That’s sweet,” Ro said, only half kidding. “I feel it sometimes, though. It’s just me talking to myself. You’d have to be colossally arrogant not to feel like a bit of a dick,” they pointed out. “Different is the aim of the game. I gave up trying to be like other people. forever ago.” 

“you’re welcome.” he flashed them a cheeky grin. “ro, i’m basically an influencer but, like, in real life. the garage will officially be your number one patron for free.” he settled back in his seat, his grin tempering down to a more idle upturn of his lips as the store window caught his attention. it was that time when he realized how close they were to finishing yet another year, and so much just…hadn’t changed. “what is in your plans now? anything i can crash?” 

“Surely there has to be a word for a real-life influencer. What did we all want to be before Instagram came along?” Ro mused, distracted for a second by their train of thought. They went quiet for a moment, pondering his question. As much as they talked big about skipping town once and for all, they hadn’t exactly rushed to make moves. “At this point, I’m thinking about hitching a ride to New York and seeing what happens, like a shitty movie. Maybe I can Coyote Ugly my way to success. Wanna join me dancing on bars for tips?” they smirked. 

“It’s just the same popular yet mediocre song over and over, ton of commercials, and some radio hosts are just down right annoying.” Maia said giving her the only reasons she can think of. “That’s good. Do you get any callers?”

“I hope I manage to avoid all of the above. Especially the annoying hosting,” Ro flashed a grin. “Seriously, though. We do get callers when we ask for them, if we play games or run contests or something. It’s pretty fun.” 

Solomon nodded fervently at them. “Yeah, I mean it. I mean, I’m no music producer, so take it with a grain of salt, but I would totally get down to this if it came on at the Underground,” he said, flashing the stranger a grin. “And that is one thing I have experience with.”

“You don’t have to be a producer to know what sounds good. Even the big shots get it wrong a lot of the time,” Ro pointed out. “It just helps to have a second opinion, no matter how much they know about music.” They smirked, nodding their head so that their curls bounced. “I can relate to that. Nothing like a good jam to brighten up the commute.” 

layla knew when they asked that, that she’d begin to gush about movies so she tried to keep it contained to the best of her abilities. “i’m a filmmaker. very low budget. i like making horror films,” she said, proud but with a hint of sadness. something she effectively shoved into the back corners of her mind. “have you asked them? i think people would be interested in something. i mean, it’s unique, it’s personal. this seems to be the kind of place that adores that kind of stuff.”

“ro, c’mon, you know i’m sensitive about my moves,” harley sniffed, slumping both arms over the table so he could achieve the full effect of Petulant Child. he tilted his head to squint at ro skeptically. “not the only one. people come into the shop when i’m blasting your show and they like it.” he nudged their foot under the table. “like, no pressure, but also, an album would be sick. and you know your shit well enough to make a good one.”

“I’m more of a zero-fucks-given kind of person,” Ro shrugged. Their smirk grew, his display of indignation amusing them. “Really? Well, I suppose I should be grateful for the free advertising. S’more than even I do to promote the show,” they chuckled. “If I ever decide to release an album, you’ll be the first to know. It’s not in my plans right now, though.”

“that’s fuckin’ awesome, though,” layla chirped, her attention now fully turned to ro. she glanced from her own project, open on her laptop, and nodded. “i get that,” she replied. “but, if you like it, why the fuck not?”

“Guilty. I dread listening to the radio now but I’ll do it for you.” Maia said raising her hand a bit. “That’s tough, you kind of have to be entertaining and funny because they’re basically forced to listen.”

“Really?” Ro asked, with a quirk of their eyebrow. “Can I ask what’s so bad about the radio?” They probed, interested as to why she would dread it. They shrugged. “I hope I do okay. People listen, so it can’t be all bad.”