12 - Finally

In the living room of a small apartment in New York, Jasmine changed positions on the sofa, pulling the blanket up to her chin as the show came on.

She had been following Divine Idol since the first episode, but had never paid that much attention to Theo Black.

Surprisingly, since last Sunday, she had become more curious about that young Idol, even more so with the drama that was emerging about her on the internet, she wanted to see on the show if the claims he posted about proving himself on the show were true.

When it was announced that today's challenge would be about songwriting, she and thousands of others were excited to watch and see if this kid had really improved a lot, or if he was cheating like Miguel said.

Seeing the scene of Sofia and Tyler talking about what Miguel said about Theo, and Theo replying "When I try to sing something that has nothing to do with me, I also feel that the song doesn't come out right. I think he went through that." Both she and the online comments were excited.

[He's really talking about it!]

[Isn't he afraid of being unmasked today?]

[What an idiot, talking like he's a genius...]

[Too bad Miguel left so this arrogant kid could stay.]

[I thought it was pretty cool the way he's acting].

[I want to see if he'll be able to sustain that confidence!]

The way Theo spoke to Sofia and Tyler made Jasmine trust him a little, but she still waited to see what he had to show before taking any action.

It was a shame that the show didn't show much of the process of creating the songs in his living room, but the scene that the show showed, where he thought of an idea, started strumming his guitar mumbling a lyric that he apparently thought of on the spot, and Sofia joined him singing along in the improvisation made the hairs on Jasmine's arm stand on end!

[My God, what is that?!]

[They'll do the song in two minutes???????]

[Woah... does he really have a talent for making music?!]

[Was it just me who noticed the sparkle in Sofia's eyes when she looked at Theo?]

[He's kind of cute, I could understand that look in her eyes hehe.]

[This song is getting good...]

Too bad it was only this scene that the program showed, so as not to give away completely how the song turned out.

And since they apparently made the song very quickly, the scenes that did appear of the two of them were just of them talking about random things.

On screen, Sofia threw her hair back and laughed out loud at some silly joke, while Theo leaned on the arm of the sofa, smiling and showing his white teeth.

There was no pressure between them, no rushing around, just two young people chatting as if they were long-time friends who had taken advantage of the moment to meet and catch up.

Every now and then Sofia would talk about an ex-boyfriend, or a funny situation she'd been through with friends or family, while Theo listened attentively to everything she said, and every now and then contributed something of his own.

At the end of the two hours, when the cameras cut back to their room, Jasmine laughed at what she saw.

Unlike the other contestants, who were still nervous, sweating over lyrics and trying out notes for the last-minute song, Theo and Sofia were laughing together on the sofa. The guitar was lying in the corner, the bottle of wine was empty, and the plate of cookies that had previously been on the table now only had crumbs.

Seeing the discrepancy between their situation and that of the other contestants, Sofia could only laugh.

The timer on the screen went off, and Marcus appeared on stage with a trained presenter's smile.

The timer went off, and Marcus appeared on stage smiling at the camera. "Time's up! Now let's see what our pairs have created in just two hours."

Jasmine pulled the covers up higher and leaned back on the sofa. She wasn't a fan of everyone, but she loved that moment when the editing stopped rolling and let the songs speak for themselves live.

The lights cut out two silhouettes. “With you, Hannah and Avery.”

Hannah was the blonde with the easy smile, while Avery was a serious girl with a straight posture and a concentrated gaze.

The two didn't seem like an obvious pair, and perhaps that's why their curiosity caught Jasmine's attention, especially considering how good they were on their own.

The song went into a pop-country ballad, the guitar leading the way and a discreet keyboard riff underneath.

The lyrics spoke of two people who decide to “drive without a map”, leaving the city in the rearview mirror, vowing that “if the sun goes down, we'll light the way”.

Hannah drove like she was telling a secret in the front seat of the car, Avery harmonized singing with a clean voice, not trying to show off, and this gave texture to the chorus.

It wasn't a blast, it was comfortable... and the word that went through Jasmine's head was “round”.

In the broadcast chat, there were mixed reactions:

[Cute]

[They were very safe...]

[I kind of liked it.]

[I don't think the two went together...]

Jasmine read and agreed with the last comment, the style of the two was very different, and the style they had to make the song was much closer to Hannah, making it difficult for Avery to get into.

This was so striking that there were only a few dozen flowers during the whole song, far fewer than they usually received during their solo performances.

Marcus returned to the center. "Ready for a different mix? With you, Tyler and Ace."

Tyler, wearing thin glasses and a restrained expression, stood to the left with a pedestal microphone.

Ace entered from the other side with a calmness and confidence that he always showed on stage, causing a few girls in the audience to scream with excitement.

The basis of the song came with a bouncy bass and broken R&B drums; Tyler opened the chorus with a soaring melody, singing about “leaving the door ajar, even when the house catches fire”, and Ace responded in the verse with a confessional rap calling for “letting the house catch fire and fuck the consequences”.

The contrast between the two of them singing the same song but saying different things as if they were arguing with each other got the crowd going right away.

Jasmine raised an eyebrow, surprised at how well they fit together: Tyler had the pulse for modern pop and Ace, who acted as if he didn't need to prove anything, sounded more human.

Thinking about Theo and Sofia's song, which was also like a conversation between the two, she was worried about how it would sound after Tyler and Ace had already shown something similar and of high quality.

[I didn't expect to like it so much.]

[I want a studio version of this!]

[Tyler sweet, Ace raw... that worked really well!]

The edit cut to backstage, with a quick take of Hannah hugging Avery a little worried but trying to stay calm to reassure her partner, Ace greeting Tyler with a mumbled “good job”, and the other contestants looking at them surprised.

Then Marcus filled his lungs and spoke excitedly. “Now, for our contestant who chose to use his advantage by coming first to take part in this song alone, Jordan Mitchell!”

The lights dimmed to a single spotlight.

Jordan entered wearing a leather jacket and a microphone without a stand.

The instrumental started dry, hip hop drums with an emphasis on bass and a staccato piano over the top.

"I grew up hearing ‘no,’ learned to rhyme it into ‘yes’...

turned every mistake into a bridge, not an address..."

In the first verse, he recounted his own climb as if he were narrating a fight in an alley; in the second, he turned to the audience and transformed the “I” into “we”, sending out lines about carrying your own vision when no one else is carrying it for you.

Jasmine was amazed at how good a song he'd made all by himself in just two hours.

The chorus was simple, catchy, something like "say my name when the lights go black... I'll light it back", and the studio responded with spontaneous hand clapping.

Even though Jordan often acted overconfident, she had to admit that he had the talent to back up his arrogance.

“Okay...” she whispered to herself. “That was very good.”

The camera caught a close-up of him with sweat on his brow, steady breathing and a confident half-smile.

It wasn't empty arrogance, it was the expression of someone who had nailed the delivery he had envisioned.

In chat, the outpouring was instantaneous:

[My favorite!!!]

[Lance no Lyra urgente!]

[Poor guy who's going to perform after Jordan...]

Then Marcus reappeared. “Jordan Mitchell, ladies and gentlemen.” Applause. Whistles. A banner with his name on it waved in the front row. “Take a deep breath, because there's more to come.”

Jasmine took a breath.

The “more” she wanted to see had a first and last name: Theo Black.

She was very curious what his song with Sofia would be like, even more so after seeing performances as good as Jordan's or Tyler and Ace's, to satisfy the public about the drama and show that he was right in his fight with Miguel, he could only post something better than that.

[After Jordan's, good luck with the rest].

[I want to see the shy badboy now].

[If the double romance flops I'm going to laugh].

[I just want to see the beautiful Sofia!!! <3]

[Theo said he was going to prove himself today. Time to pay what he promised].

Jasmine bit back her smile. “Let's see if he pays.”

Marcus signaled to the band. "We'll continue with the performances. Stay with us."

The vignette came in short.

Jasmine straightened her blanket again, as if preparing for a movie. On the side of the TV, the hashtags rose and fell like waves: #JordanKilledIt, #TylerxAce, #CountryCute, #WhereIsTheo.

The “where is” said a lot.

The editing of the show was keeping Theo as a card on the table: it showed enough to prove that he had the potential to be proven right, but hid enough for the public's expectation to keep everyone watching.

Jasmine thought back to the scene on the sofa... the way Sofia laughed without worrying about her image, the way Theo looked, more confident than he had been in other episodes.

Could it just be editing? It could be. But it could also be a sign that the two had found a clear path early on and could therefore relax.

Those who finish music quickly have the luxury of chatting away, those who don't finish run. And the camera had recorded running in the other rooms. Not in theirs.

The show's logo rotated one last time, Jasmine straightened her posture and put her fingers on her cell phone, ready to comment.

The studio went dark. A soft light tinged the stage with wine and gold, the same colors she remembered from the romantic room. In the background were two microphones on pedestals and two stools.

Jasmine's heart raced with anticipation.

“Finally!”