I'm Not Losing You
A Story of Dedication to Those I Love
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The lights faded to black. I saw some motion on the stage, as the opening act was taking its place. The first opening act was some unknown pop group out of Los Angeles, and though we didn’t really know who they were, we enjoyed listening to them. The second act was the younger sister of Beyoncee Knowles, Solange. She was alright too. But her voice was nothing compared to her sister. That was for sure. But nevertheless, we enjoyed her show. But by now we were anxious. Especially when the lights went on again. It was time for the stupid people to go wait in the long lines for the bathroom and miss the start of the show. The four of us weren’t moving. Mrs. Roman tapped Rachel on the shoulder and leaned over to talk to us.
“So are you girls going to go tonight after the show?” We all looked at each other, and then back to her.
“Going where?” Mardy asked.
“Oh, that’s right, I keep forgetting Justin didn’t announce this one. But shh, keep this one on the down-low. We don’t want to cause a frenzy you know.”
“Keep WHAT on the DL momma?” Sam asked, anxious to hear what she had to say.
“Well, I’m only telling this to the people I know, but the guys are going to be heading out to that club in Melrose Park again after the show. Kind of like how they went there after the Halloween Bash that one year.”
“You mean the one like RIGHT by my house?” Rachel asked. “The one on Lake street?”
“Yes, that’s it. They’re going to be over there at around midnight.”
“Well we didn’t know about that before, but now that we do, we will DEFINITELY be there. It’s on our way home you know.” Said Mardy.
“Good! Because Justin just HAS to see these girls and their outfits.” That made me smile. It looked as if we’d be seeing the guys tonight after all. I asked who else she knew that was going, and she only said a few names.
“Well, I believe Kristina is going with whoever she came with, I think Jen and Angela, and a few other people whose names I don’t remember. But I’ve only told a few people, so I really don’t know for sure.” That got me even more excited. “Just remember. Shh!” We all laughed and agreed. And Mrs. Roman knew that the four of us can DEFINITELY keep a secret. As we wrapped up our conversation, the highlight of the night was about to start. Once again the lights dimmed slowly and faded to black. Screams erupted throughout the entire building. It was like a giant swell, sailing over chairs and through ears and vibrating the stage that was to my left. We heard chants of “Vi3” and “start the show” booming on our left and right. I looked up at the stage again, and I saw some smoke start taking over the floor. I kept thinking to myself that this was it. The show was about to start. My heart started beating faster and my breath sped up as if I was seeing them for the first time. I had a grin slapped on my face that could have lit up the whole arena. I looked to the other three people that I had come with, and they looked just the same as I did. I heard a sound echo through the speakers. It was a totally new intro, complete with a video screen deal and an on stage light show. I could see that the stage was quite elaborate. There were two staircases, a few platforms, some stools and tons of lights. I could just barely make out the giant Vi3 logo sitting above the center platform. It looked to be a blue and white deal, bigger than I had ever seen before. I continued listening to the intro play, and watched the screen play the intro’s video until the last phrase was played.
“…you are about to witness a show like no other. Justin…Jackie…Lucas…V-I-3.” And then there was a giant flash of light. When our eyes recovered, we saw the logo lit up and heard the familiar sound of that old train intro that they used to have.
“I remember this!” Screamed Rachel. They started this show just like they used to. We heard,
“Aaaarrrrreeeeee you ready?!?!” and saw the three of them run out on stage. The screams grew to a feverish pitch as the guys were bathed in the spotlight. The first song of their show was “Get’cha Boogie On” just like it used to be. I watched their every move, glued to every dance step, every note, every word and every smile that the three of them made. Justin was all decked out in his Chicago Cubs gear, Jackie was showing some hometown love with his Boston Celtics jersey, and Lucas was showing off some Miami Hurricanes gear. To us it was no surprise. I watched the crowd react to the guys, and I watched the people around me sing along to every word while they were jumping up and down and screaming at the same time. This was what all my time dedicated to them had brought us. And I was honestly quite happy with it. It had brought me what I wanted as well as what my guys in Vi3 wanted. It had brought Justin Roman, Lucas Bowers and Jackie Salvucci’s dream to life. They were, in fact, stars. Even though they always were in my eyes. Their dreams had come true, and I was there the whole way to see it through. Realizing that, I stopped singing along and just smiled. Congratulations guys. This is it.
