After the show finished, Aiden came out of the booth with a smile on his face. He had thought that it would be much harder, but he had really enjoyed himself.
Unlike a few of the interviews he had in the past, Hector was more of the listener type, and he also had insight into music theory, so the talk had gone pretty smooth.
The only dissatisfaction was Andrea, who sometimes tried to butt in when he was talking, but after a few times, she had stopped it.
"I really enjoyed working with you. When you are releasing a new song, please come back to the show. I think it would be a fun conversation."
Hector said, patting Aiden's shoulders. He had talked to a lot of musicians both on and off his show, and he truly felt that Aiden was one of the more mature ones out there who truly understood what he was doing.
The episode had been fun for him.
"Thanks."
Aiden said, and before he could talk any more, the Production Director called Hector to talk about something.
It was then that Aiden noticed something weird in the atmosphere.
'Why is everyone's expression so weird?'
He thought as the door opened and Wade walked in. He was absent during the recording but currently had a smile on his face, like something good had happened to him.
"Where were you?"
Aiden asked, walking up to him.
"I was out trying to get some coffee, but I bumped into a TV producer who I have known for a long time. He was a bit free, so we talked for more than an hour."
"You missed the show."
"Don't worry, I was checking up on reactions online from time to time. It seems like you did great." He asked, then turned to look at Andrea, who was talking about something with her agent. "Did she bother you?"
"Yeah, a bit, especially at the start. She's kind of a brat, but she acted professionally for the most part in the interview, so it was fine."
Aiden said, but Wade didn't fully believe him, mainly because, from time to time, Andrea was glaring at Aiden. He was sure that if there was no one else in the room, she would have already started a fight.
"I don't think she likes you a lot."
"I don't think she likes anyone a lot."
Aiden said and chuckled. They talked a bit more about the radio show and then their schedule for today. Fortunately, it was not that packed today, and Aiden could take it easy.
At that moment, the Production Director approached them.
"I'm sorry, but do you have a minute? We need a bit of your help."
He said, putting off an anxious face.
***
'It's a pretty troublesome situation.'
Aiden thought in his mind.
The program director had just finished explaining their situation. How Justin Frank was going to reveal his new song on the radio station and how his van had gotten into an accident.
As he was not going to come to the radio station today, they needed to fill slots somehow.
"We are already promoting Justin Frank releasing his new song at our radio station for a week, so tons of people would tune in. Way more than what we would get normally."
The Music director said, frowning. It was really not an amicable situation for them.
"Can't you just say that he's in an accident? I think people won't be too disappointed as it's not something that could be helped."
Wade asked, looking at the Production director.
"We will do that, but last time, one of the boy bands was going to do an acoustic version of one of their songs here, but they cancelled it at the last moment. The radio station's reputation took a hit then."
"Yeah, even if we explain that Justin Frank got into an accident, people will think that these types of things happen a lot in Red Ant FM. We will lose all our credibility, and you do know reputation is one of the most important things in this industry."
Hector said, and Wade agreed with what he was saying. The radio station was very unlucky in this regard.
He knew how big of an opportunity it was to have Justin Frank's new song being released by radio. But now, everything was a mess.
"So, you need someone to slot in, in place of Justin Frank?"
Aiden asked, and everyone around him nodded.
"Yeah, we have an interview with an actor later on, and we could just do that a bit early and insert time here and there, but we still need someone to sing a song. At least for ten minutes. That's the utmost we could do in damage control at the moment."
The Production Director said, his words felt like he was pleading.
They had asked Andrea Hales' agent first about it as she was a bigger star, but her agent was quick to reject them, the reason being that Andrea had a pretty tight schedule today.
Their only hope was now on Aiden. As he had been received pretty well in the interview by the listeners, everyone felt like he would be a good choice.
Anyway, it was far better than contacting some small-time musicians.
"Can you give us a while to talk about it in private?" Wade asked, and the Production Director was quick to nod.
He and Aiden went to a corner to talk about it. Though they didn't have a tight schedule today, a sudden performance on a radio which is broadcasted all over America could easily ruin Aiden's reputation if it didn't go right.
It wasn't something they could agree on without talking about it.
"What do you think?" Wade asked.
"It's a good opportunity, especially because it's a chance to do a favour on a radio station. It would help us a lot later on, and articles could spread after this as Justin Frank is a global star. If it works, it's a good opportunity for my career."
"Yeah, I know. That's why I want to agree but are you sure you can give a good performance? And which song are you going to sing?"
Wade raised an eyebrow. He didn't doubt Aiden's capability, but this was still a very quick and unexpected situation.
"I'm confident," Aiden said. "As for the song, 'Revolution' is undoubtedly my biggest hit, but it's hard to play it without a band, and I don't have the instrumental on my phone. Moreover, it's a pretty hard song."
"The song 'Hold onto me' won't suit the situation, and 'Lonely' is thought of more as a Grey song than yours. We need to think of something else."
Wade sighed, and suddenly, the gears of Aiden's mind started turning as an idea struck him. An idea that could let him use an opportunity in the best way possible.
He thought of the one song that he could perform here.
"Let me sing 'Lost in the Sky'."
It was a song which he could easily perform on a guitar. Moreover, it was one of his best compositions and its atmosphere even suited a radio.
"We were planning to release it a month before [30 days of Happiness] premier. If we released it right here, it would mess up our plans. That's never a good thing, especially with the song being so important for the movie." Wade said, shaking his head.
"No, I think this is the right opportunity. I have a plan."
Aiden said, attracting Wade's attention. Instead of rejecting his plan straightaway, he squinted his eyes, knowing full well that Aiden won't have a stupid plan.
"Tell me what plan you have."
***
"This is the last commercial. 30 seconds to the broadcast."
Everyone in the room became more and more nervous hearing that as they stared at Aiden, who was standing inside the recording booth. He was holding his guitar and was just waiting for the signal to start singing.
"Do you think it will be fine? It's a sudden performance, and he just started last year, right?"
The Production Director asked Hector, who was standing next to him.
"I think it would be fine. He's young, but he seems mature. Moreover, look at his agent." Hector glanced at Wade, who was smiling. The Production director's eyes followed.
"He looks calm."
"Yeah, he's the only person in the room who is calm," Hector said. "That means he is very confident in Aiden's skills. Don't worry, we don't have any other choice either. So, just wait and see how it goes."
The Production Director nodded and brushed off the sweat gathered on his forehead. It was then that the commercial ended, and one of the female announcers present in the booth quickly explained the situation.
"Today, Justin Frank's new song was going to be released here, but just an hour ago, he got into an accident. He's safe, but the program is unfortunately cancelled. But we have arranged something else for you. You must know Aiden Silvereye, he just finished his interview with Hector Burn a while ago. He's going to sing his new song, 'Lost in the sky'."
Now, it was all on Aiden.
'I need to do my best.'
He thought and slowly started strumming the strings of his guitar. A unique yet soft melody came out. The tempo of the rhythm was pretty normal, but it gave a warm feeling to the listener.
Taking a deep breath, Aiden started to sing.
"Please tell me if this is an illusion."
"Why am I still finding the reason?"
"Oh, am I just searching for something that isn't there?"
"Reaching my hand out to nowhere."
Through the radio, the strong silver light coming out of Aiden's music spread to the whole of America.
...
