Fairest (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale #2)(10)

“Oh, I can’t believe this is happening! No one on earth is going to believe this. Here take my phone. Get a picture of me next to Valdemar,” Nan hissed.

A solemn young man with golden hair down to his chin, wearing skin tight jeans and a black vest, sat on a red vinyl couch re-stringing his guitar. He appeared to be trying to ignore an over exuberant female fan with bright pink hair.

“Which one is that again?” Mina asked, already forgetting the names Nan had pointed out earlier.

Nan tossed her the phone and went over to delicately sit on the edge of the red vinyl couch, feet away from the Dead Prince Society’s lead singer. Nan nervously pasted a smile on her face and posed.

Unsure of what to do, it took her a few moments to figure out what Nan wanted. She got the phone to the right screen but she couldn’t get Nan and the rocker in the same shot. Mina motioned with her hands for Nan to scoot closer.

Nan’s confidence faltered. Her smile slipped a little as she carefully slid inches closer to the rocker. It wasn’t close enough. Mina mouthed the words ‘closer’ and Nan scooted even closer to Valdemar, who seemed oblivious to Nan’s inching. The girl with bubblegum pink hair started to shoot them both nasty glances, but they ignored her.

Just when Nan had inched as close as she dared, Valdemar reached his arm out and quickly pulled her into his lap. She screeched in surprise, but was quieted as Valdemar’s hands reached around her possessively, but was even more surprised when he leaned in and kissed her.

Mina snapped the picture.

Chapter 4
Nan was too stunned to fight or pull away from the kiss and she let Valdemar continue. The girl with pink hair looked furious and screamed something incoherent at the kissing couple. When she didn’t get the immediate reaction she desired, she stormed out of the room, knocking over chairs and lamps in the process. When the exit door slammed with finality, Valdemar gently pulled away from the kiss. He looked momentarily surprised by his own reaction to the intensity of the shared kiss. It took him a minute to recover before he slid Nan onto the cushion next to him, closer than what was necessary.

“Sorry about that. I was at my wit’s end trying to make her go away. Thank you for playing along.” He glanced at the door and smirked and turned back to Nan. “It worked at least.” His eyes still held a hint of desire, and he swallowed nervously.

Nan perched awkwardly on the cushion next to him, her hand gently brushing her lips where they were seconds ago pressed to his. Her cheeks turned bright red and she looked like she was at a loss for words. Hastily she jumped up from the couch, knocking her knee into the coffee table, trying to run away.

Valdemar’s hand shot out and caught Nan’s wrist. “Ah, I’m sorry. Please don’t run away, I’d like…” He never got to finish his sentence as a short fiery red haired woman in a business suit entered the room and started ushering people out for the concert that should have started five minutes ago.

The room became a mass of hurriedly fleeing flashes and last minute fixes by the hair and makeup crew. Mina watched as Valdemar tried to speak to Nan again but was pulled away out the door to the stage. She was sure she saw him motion for Nan to stay there.

When Nan’s blonde head swung forcefully back and forth in denial, his face dropped. But Mina could have been mistaken in what she saw because Valdemar immediately plastered a smile on his face and headed toward stage. They followed. Three of the band members headed underneath the stage. It was dark, but they had enough light to see a lift and hydraulics. Valdemar split off and headed towards another contraption and a crowd of techs.

From her spot in the wings Mina had a phenomenal view of the stage, and the packed-house. Suddenly, the whole arena went dark. Smoke billowed out from fog machines hidden along the platform, and a low rumbling of music began. Somewhere, an organ began a somber melody, something which would be played at a funeral. Eerie sound effects and footsteps echoed off the walls and only those backstage could hear the hydraulics kick in when lift began to rise to the stage.

The hair on the back of Mina’s neck stood up in anticipation when the stage props and band slowly rose into view. The band’s stage was decorated like a dark and twisted throne room; a large golden mirror hung on the back wall. High in the middle of the stage sat a black throne made from a dark and twisted tree. Upon the throne sat a guitar painted in the deepest blood red color. Three of the band members were onstage playing the intro to their most popular song, “Beauty’s Dead.” Naga on the guitar, Magnus on drums, Constantine on bass, but Valdemar was missing.

Mina’s head craned to look around the stage, her fear overtaking her as the dreaded feeling of magic began to tingle down her hands. A sign that the Story was interested in what was currently going on, and may even find a way to interfere.

Unexpectedly, the music stopped and Nan screamed in delight and pointed toward the large golden mirror that was filling with fog. The sound of a lone guitar picked up where the haunting melody had ended and the fog began to clear from the mirror. Valdemar was inside the giant looking glass playing a gold guitar.

The crowd chanted as Valdemar ceased his playing and used his very expensive guitar to smash through the glass. Mina stepped away from the stage subconsciously as Valdemar stepped through the mirror. Their movements were eerily similar but polar opposite. The closer he moved to the stage the farther Mina moved into the background and away from Brody and Nan.