Korra squinted against the bright flashes of light as cameras were pointed at her, smiling as her eyes began to tear up. She knew fans were prone to taking lots of pictures, but would it kill them to at least turn off the flash?
She couldn't really complain though. They were excited to see her perform her songs, so that's exactly what she did. Sweat beaded on her skin as she began to jump on stage- it was an easy way to get the crowd pumped up for the next song.
"Wo-ooow!" Korra applauded the crowd's efforts at screaming the lyrics to the last song sh head just sang, titled "Nomad Song." It was something she had pieced up from her manager Tenzin, hearing him sing it as a lullaby to his children when she slept over at his house one night. Fans had apparently barricaded themselves outside her own home, so she was grateful for the gesture. In turn, she took his lullaby and spun it into a radio hit.
"You guys…" she trailed off, her chest heaving, "you guys are awesome!" bending down, she took a swig of her water bottle, gasping with relief as the cool liquid slid down her throat. She could see a young girl in the front, smiling up at her in awe. Smirking, Korra winked, laughing as the girl blushed furiously, squealing uncontrollably with her friend. Sighing, Korra continued.
"Okay, so we're all really excited, right?!" Korra nearly yelled into the microphone, beaming at the audience's response. Licking her lips, she cleared her throat, "Yeah, well I think it's time we tone it down now, huh?"
A chorus of groans befell the concert-goers, and Korra giggled, "Don't be discouraged, we're not done yet!" Sneakers squeaking against the polished stage floor, Korra walked over to the sid elf the stage, reaching behind the curtain, but still far enough out on stage so the fans could see her take a peek backstage. After pretending to look curious for a few seconds, Korra tapped her microphone.
"You know, my stage manager is great," she said, fluffing up her hair, surprised when she heard a young man scream from the back of the auditorium, "KORRA YOU'RE SO FUCKING HOT!"\
"Well, I love you too!" she replied jokingly, pointing a finger in the boy's general direction.
"SEE! I TOLD YOU SHE'D REPLY, TAHNO!"
"YOU ASS SHE WAS POINTING AT ME!" Korra awkwardly ran a hand through her hair, chuckling under her breath. Her tank top was plastered to her body with sweat, her muscles glistening under the stage lights.
"Wow, Tahno's in for a world of pain, huh guys?" she joked lightly, titers of laughter scattered throughout the seats, "But as I was saying, my stage manager is a great guy. Besides my agent, he takes care of almost everything-" Korra paused momentarily to take another swig of her water bottle, "-and uh, his name is Wan. Funny story, actually, when we first met. Do you guys want to hear it?"
A loud cheer from the crowd signified that yes, they did. Nodding, Korra walked downstage until the toe of her sneaker hung over the edge, and she waved hi to a few fans ho were pressing themselves up against the stage; so much so, the singer thought they were going to melt right into the structure, become one with it and all that jazz.
"So," Korra grunted as she plopped herself down, her legs dangling lazily over the edge of the stage, "I had just gotten admitted into the hospital, right, and you guys know how I dance sometimes up on stage? Yeah I had broken my ankle, so I had to get it looked at, and as I was waiting in the lobby, this totally insane dude just came running in there…."
From a concert-goers perspective, you could tell that Korra enjoyed telling the story. She was so at ease each time, when she told it, a wave of calm spread over her. It was like she was talking with an old friend instead of a bunch of teeny-boppers who paid ten bucks for a seat. Korra of course never saw her fans as the general "teeny-boppers" other musicians treated them as. She was grateful that they screamed the lyrics to her music. She was grateful that they were so passionate in the crowds, some even coming up to her at meet and greets after shows to tell her how important her music is to them. Korra loved staying at a venue well after closing hours just to meet each and every person who had come to see her perform.
And while she couldn't meet everyone every time, she made sure to tell this story. Her fans were like family to her, and after a year of being on tour, telling this story towards the end of a show became kind of a ritual.
"…And like, we met eyes, and he had this totally smug grin on his face! But the best part was what he said to the receptionist, he goes-" she coughed into her fist, clearing her throat, "Miss, I seem to have lost my snake!"
"Of course," Korra continued, "the lady couldn't care less, she was probably gonna be at the hospital all night, so she was like, 'Fill out this form and wait until the doctor calls you' like this lady had no enthusiasm whatsoever…" Drool dotted the corners of her lips, and Korra wiped it away with the back of her hand, opening her mouth to continue, however, jumping when a new voice escaped from between her teeth.
"Wow, Korra, do you really have to tell that story every singe show?" Wan interrupted, striding out on stage with a brown ukelele in hand. His brown hair was a tangled mess, reading a little past his shoulders. On his chin was a beard that Korra always thought could rival Tenzin's, but she knew Tenzin would disagree. His pale skin looked gray under the lights, and the black clothes he wore made him look close to death. He fiddled with a small headset as he bent down to hand Korra the instrument.
"Stage Manager Wan, everybody!" Korra announced, presenting him with a grand flourish. Wan played along, curtsying as if he were meeting the Queen of the Earth Kingdom, mocking poise and being as uptight as humanly possible.
"Wow, Korra, how you flatter me!" he joked, then to the fans, "You guys wann know what I said?"
Korra laughed, "Wan! I'm the one telling the story!"
"Well," Wan ignored her, plucking the microphone from her fingers, "AS she said, I spoke with the incredibly boring lady, saying i had lost a snake, but in reality, I never had a pet snake to begin with." The crowd had become silent, everyone's eyes wis with anticipation as far as Korra could see.
Wan went on, sniffing a bit, "And I go to sit next to Korra after being handed the forms, right, and I noticed she was sitting next to her manager, Tenzin-"
"So he goes, 'Hey old man, what you in for?" Korra jumped in, imitating her techie friend as hilariously as she could, smirking as she garnered laughter from almost everyone in the audience. It almost sounded as if a herd of elephants were rampaging through the pride lands, the kids in the front were so loud.
"-And then!" there was a big pause as Wan waggled his eyebrows at the singer, "when he ignore dmd, i asked her if he was there for a hair transplant, but she to all hot and bothered, saying really angrily-" at this point he was preparing how best to contort his face, Korra beaming with pride as he continue imitating her, "I had to cancel the rest of my tour because I broke my ankle and m stage manager quit, you dingbat! Don't bother my agent, he's trying to find me a new one!"
Korra wiped away tears as she laughed at him, her grip so tight on the neck of her ukelele her knuckles had turned white. The audience themselves seemed nearly besides themselves, Wan lapping up all the affection as much as he could before continuing, "But as we all know now the rest is history. So, without further ado, Korra shall now sing you one last song whilst I go play air hockey with Huan, our lighting dude. By everybody!"
Applause erupted as Wan pirouetted clumsily offstage, Korra wincing as there was a sudden crash, followed by Huan's ever recognizable scream.
"WAN! YOU DESTROYED MY SCULPTURE! WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO DO, CRUSH MY INDIVIDUALITY?!"
"Whoa," Korra grinned, pointing backstage, "that was Wan, once again!" The fans clapped politely, watching a Korra set up her instrument, strumming a few chords before shifting her weight, getting comfortable. She never like sitting on stage that much, but it was easier for her fans who happened to not be that tall see her better. That, and sometimes she'd try leaning down to photobomb their selfies. It was great seeing their reactions afterwards, how they'd nearly scream that "Oh my god! I got a picture with Korra! My life is COMPLETE!"
Now, as she sat there, she anticipated the crowd recognizing the song from the first few chords, waiting for the yells and hollers and whistles. The microphone exploded with feedback as she placed it gently down on the stage; she'd have to get Wan or Huan to fix that later, provided they were not arguing over the former shape of Huan's sculpture.
"Okay," Korra sighed, letting her nails pluck the rough strings, "so this is my last song for tonight, hopefully you guys know it." She smiled as there was an immediate reaction, someone yelling how this was their favorite song.
A few minutes had passed as she strummed through the song, finally reaching the chorus. Flicking her fingers to keep the beat, Korra sang with the crowd, her voice wavering as she lost breath, trying to merge the thousands of voices as one:
"Secret tunnnn-el! Se-cret tunn-elll!" she sang, bobbing her head back and forth, the crowd following suit. Soon they were a giant wave, an ocean with white watered edges, as smooth as a pebble in the sand on shore as they moved in unison.
Finally, she ended the song, nearly screaming out "YEAH!" with everyone in the auditorium.
Out in the lobby, she waited with Tenzin by the mercy table, who was on his phone, jabbering away about who knew what. For a man with three, soon to be four kids, he was pretty high-strung. Korra let him be . It was better to let him plan the next leg of the tour and take care of his kids instead of annoying him to get her a glass of lychee juice all the time.
"Alright, Varrick!" Tenzin yelled, startling a few fans who had made their way to the booth, "We'll be there, just tell Zhu Li it will take a day or so!"
"Sorry guys," Korra apologized to the fans, "my manager can get a little crazy." Smiling, he twirled her finger near her ear, then reached out to them, "Come on! Bear hug time!" The little girls' grins stretched from ear to ear as they embraced the singer, Korra waving them away as they ran off to find their parents.
"Korra, we'll have to cancel the next leg of the tour," Tenzin cleared his throat, making Korra freeze as she went to sign something. Kids and teenagers were everywhere, waiting patiently to see her.
"WHAT?!" she shrieked, a few of the fans shrinking away.
"Varrick has requested you perform at a party of his," Tenzin explain, clapping his hands on her shoulders, "do you have a problem with it?"
Korra opened her mouth to speak, faltering when she couldn't find the words. The only other time she had to cancel a tour was when she was injured. But for a party? Come on, Korra told herself, Varrick is a friend- and besides, it won't be that bad!
Sighing, she nodded, "Yeah, sure. But you owe me as much lychee juice as I want! Got it?"
"As you wish, Korra," Tenzin agreed, rubbing his temples as he slipped his phone into his pocket. Korra could only hope the detour was worthwhile, going to occupy herself with the fans standing in front of her right now.