Standing backstage was almost impossible for Chomby. He kept fidgeting and nervously pacing the floor. "Oh, what if I mess this up? I haven't been a guest for any performer yet! I've only HAD guests, Sarge. You've been my only guest!"

"And yet, somehow, you find yourself as a guest for a pretty famous singer? You guys practiced the songs already. Why's now any different?" Sarge said through the headphones.

"Hundreds of thousands of people is what's different, Sarge!"

"It's a bigger venue, there are more people. But they're here to see you... erm, okay, they're here to see GUMI, but you've got an opportunity to do a duet! That's gotta mean something, right?"

"And I may squander it! What if I sing a wrong note? What if I sing improperly? What are people going to think when they say a huge, hulking Soundbyte appear on stage? I'm just a huge monster! That's not a good aesthetic!"

"On the contrary, it's a pretty popular one, Chomby. Big, gentle monster and an average-sized-human," Sarge said. "That's how I've felt whenever I worked with a human."

One of the stagehands tapped Chomby on the shoulder. He spun around to look at them.

"Get in position, Chomby. Your cue is coming up."

Chomby gulped and walked behind the curtain on stage. He could see a fragment of the crowd outside as he scanned the arena. He then looked to the other side of the stage. He noticed the green-haired star on the other side. She locked eyes with him, smiled, and waved.

Chomby smiled sheepishly and waved back.

"You've got this, Chomby," Sarge whispered. "I'll see you when the show's over."

Chomby wanted to say something to Sarge, but he knew his microphone was on now.

The lights dimmed, and Chomby heard the part of the song that was pre-recorded. It was his voice, fading in with the music. This would have been pretty hard to sing live, so they opted for that to be the cue to start.

Chomby felt his heart speed up. It was now time. He bounced onto the stage with a practiced step and began to sing. The crowd went wild.

~~~~~

Just a cute cover for the song on Youtube: https://youtu.be/riK-bzwdGzU

Chomby, more than anyone he knows, would be both terrified and ecstatic to get to sing with someone they looked up to. You can practically see him brimming with excitement in the picture a fan took of him and GUMI!

~~~~~

GUMI (C) Internet Co., Ltd

Chomby/Art/Story (C)  Juntarhenogu Me