Behind The Spotlight Chapter 136
"Who in their right mind will build a 7-storey building and not fix the damned elevator!?" Isabella grunted as she took another step. Her legs were trembling, and her hair clung to her sweaty forehead. She hated the situation she was in.
Just like her, Chantal was also tired and shaking. Her breaths came in shallow bursts, and her arms dangled weakly. She agreed with what Isabella said.
"You heard from the old man on the ground floor, the elevator needs renovation and it'll take at least three weeks to be fixed," Collin answered. Unlike the two women, Collin seemed fine. He was fit and actively went to the gym at least twice a week. He even stretched his arms midway, teasingly jogging a few steps ahead, which made Isabella glare daggers at him.
For him, using stairs was just another leg day... Although as a gym bro, he wasn't exactly a fan of leg day. Still, he couldn't help but smirk.
"Fuck... This is too much," Isabella gasped for air and spoke in French. Even Chantal was shaking. Her knees were about to give out, and she used the stair railing as her last support.
"Just one more floor and we'll get there," Collin encouraged them. He spoke in a calm tone, as if climbing a mountain was nothing.
At last, after a tiring day, the three reached the highest floor. They found the apartment number and Collin knocked on the door. The hallway smelled faintly of cigarettes, and the flickering light above them added a cheap motel vibe to the corridor.
Chantal and Isabella fixed their haggard appearance as they waited for someone to open the door. They tried to straighten their hair and wipe their sweat, pretending they hadn't just survived a seven-floor workout.
A few seconds later, a woman in her fifties with a cigarette in her mouth opened the door. Her expression was bored yet sharp.
"I believe you're Collin and these are your clients?" the woman asked.
"Did Lila talk to you?"
"Yeah, she just called an hour ago."
"I'm indeed Collin East, and this is my client Chantal Beaumont and her friend Isabella."
The two women greeted the 50-year-old woman and introduced themselves.
"You can call me Vivian. Come in."
The three entered the studio and realized that... it was small. Smaller than they had imagined, barely enough space to fit a proper recording setup. There were only two rooms, the recording studio and the control room.
In the corner of the control room, a fat guy was silently inhaling the scent of coins. The sound of clinking metal and heavy breathing filled the air, making the atmosphere oddly unsettling.
"Niko, we have visitors."
"Hmmm~~"
The fat guy didn't listen and continued inhaling his coins. He rubbed them together like they were sacred relics.
Collin and his entourage had no idea what was happening. Isabella whispered under her breath, "Is this some kind of ritual?"
"Here's the music tape." Collin gave it to Vivian, but the woman exhaled a cloud of smoke and shook her head.
"Let your client give it to Niko. You have coins, right?"
"Uhh, yeah?"
"Then give the coins and the music tape to Niko. He'll handle the rest."
Collin passed the music tape to Chantal with some coins. He hesitated for a second, glancing between the strange man and the smoky air before forcing a small smile. Just like Collin, Chantal was confused, but she decided to do it. What bad could happen? As long as Collin was around, Chantal felt safe.
She slowly approached Niko, who was still shivering from inhaling the scent of the coins in his hands. Next to him was an empty box of pizza.
"Niko, sir, this is my music tape." She handed the tape and coins to him. Niko took them and smelled the coins before groaning for some reason. Chantal froze, unsure if she should take a step back or call for help.
Chantal looked at Collin and the others, and they were just as confused. Only Vivian was acting normal, probably because she was used to this kind of stuff. Vivian even leaned against the control panel.
Niko looked at Chantal, and the young woman almost took a step back, but she remained still.
"Alright."
Niko nodded. He stood up and inserted the music tape into the stereo system to listen to it. The room suddenly went silent except for the soft crackle of the machine.
Chantal's voice played in the control room. Both Vivian and Niko were impressed and stared at Chantal. Her voice was captivating, it carried warmth and emotion.
They listened to all five songs while Collin and the others waited for their decision. Collin inspected the recording studio and felt like he had been scammed. There were exposed wires, worn-out foam panels, and a broken mic stand leaning in the corner of the room. This was worse than a small-time record label. In the first place, Collin had no idea if there really was a record label.
"Amazing, your voice has a certain charm. Furthermore, your range can fit any genre. Even that rock and roll you did, you nailed it," Niko said. He was different from earlier. He was now acting like a normal person. His eyes, once hazy and unfocused, now gleamed with genuine admiration.
"Yeah, that's what I thought too," Vivian added.
Chantal was happy to hear their praise. Her heart fluttered, the exhaustion from earlier felt worth it.
"Not good, I have to make a song for you!" Niko raised his voice, grabbed a pen and a notepad, and started writing.
The three looked at Vivian in confusion. Isabella tilted her head, whispering, "Is this how inspiration works?"
"You should be happy. Niko took a liking to Chantal."
"..."
They didn't know what to say to that.
"Just wait for an hour and you'll see the results."
Niko was inhaling the coins that Chantal had given him while writing. Then he dropped the notepad and started playing the electric piano.
Chantal and Isabella were still confused, but Collin was different. He was stunned as he saw words floating above Niko's head. It was not white or yellow talent... they were gold!
--Niko Walkman
-- Music Producer of All Genres (Gold)
-- Hitmaker (Gold)
'This is the sixth person who had Golden Talent... You're telling me that this guy who seems to be addicted to coins has Golden Talent?' Collin's heart skipped a beat, realizing he might have just found another treasure.
Collin was speechless. He didn't care much if Niko had a certain abnormality. The moment he had Golden Talent, Collin was interested in signing him.
"Vivian, does Niko have an agent?"
"No, but he's a partner of my record label. Hey, I know those eyes. You're probably thinking of signing him, right? Don't even try, I'll kick you out of my studio. On top of that, it'll be impossible to convince Niko. Most of the time, you can't really talk to him." Vivian stared seriously at Collin, which made the agent shrug. What she said wasn't enough to stop Collin. His brain was already formulating plans and offers that could make even this guy agree.
There was a Golden Talent in front of him, Collin had no intention of letting him go without trying.
An hour later, after Niko recorded the piano, acoustic guitars, and drums for the song, he called Chantal to step into the recording studio. He gave her the note and said it was the lyrics to the song. Chantal's fingers trembled slightly as she held the handwritten paper.
Chantal was skeptical because the fat guy had only composed the song in an hour, which was unbelievable. She didn't know that Niko was "him".
The moment the music played and Chantal sang the lyrics, she was surprised that the song was actually well-formed. However, she was even more shocked the third time she sang it... she fell in love with it. Her voice blended perfectly with the melody, like the song had been waiting for her all along. The song only had piano, acoustic guitar, and a few drum beats as accompaniment, it didn't drown her voice. She knew it was still incomplete, but it didn't stop her from loving it more as she sang.
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[Author's Note: I want to say thank you for reading this novel. I've been gone for a while. Also, I have no idea how to write a song, so don't expect much from me...]