After the Show

( Hertz: she/they 
Tethys: he/they
El: they/them
Meadow: she/her )

Hertz and her Enbeat bandmates, El and Tethys, had just finished a performance and were now sitting in a diner, chatting excitedly.
This particular set had gone especially well - a record number of people had attended, and their voices during the sing-along parts had been so loud that El themself was barely audible over all the noise.
Hertz was surprised they didn't have a sore throat, actually.
She herself was still buzzing with adrenaline, and very much in need of a milkshake to cool down.

Of course, the performcances themself were her favourite part of her hobby, but the post-performance meals were certainly a close second.
At this point they had become a tradition - it was a rule set in stone that after a show, her, El and Tethys would go out to eat.
Today, they had found themselves in a cozy little diner with dim lights and not too many other patrons.

Hertz looked back over at their bandmates, who were still engaged in conversation.
El had an open menu lying in front of them and, while they were distracted, Hertz snatched it away to get a good luck at it.

While they were trying to decide wether they wanted to order a strawberry or vanilla milkshake, the bell above the diner's door jingled, indicating that more customers had entered.
Hertzt briefly glanced up out of reflex, then did a double-take when they noticed one of the newcomers was wearing an Enbeat shirt.
She turned to look at El expectantly. And, just as she thought - they were grinning from ear to ear, ever excited to meet a fan.

Hertz snorted at their friends enthusiasm, which caught the attention of Tethys, who had previously been absorbed in the diner's menu. Upon noticing El's expression, they sighed deeply and flipped the menu up in an attempt to hide their face.
Hertz snickered, but nonetheless asked them wether they'd be ok. She knew he got anxious, especially around strangers, and wanted to spare them any potential discomfort.
Tethys hummed noncommitally.
She patted their arm reassuringly, saying: "Don't worry, that fan looks friendly enough, I'm sure they'll be nice." They leaned in conspiratorily, continuing in a stage whisper: "But if you want to leave just let me know, I'll cause a diversion so you can get away unnoticed."

This got a laugh out of them, and they even put the menu back down again. Success!
But before she could set an emergency signal for Tethys to use should he get overwhelmed (Hertz figured a classic bird call might work nicely), El returned to the table, adoring fan in tow.

They spread their arms theatrically, grinning broadly at their bandmates.
"Everyone, meet Meadow! She's a big fan of the band."
Meadow waved, looking somewhat awestruck as she took in Tethys and Hertz.
Hertz smiled, returning the greating. "Nice to meet you Meadow! I'm Hertz, but I reckon you knew that already, heh."

Meadow nodded, laughing nervously. "I did, yes! Gosh, I - I still feel like this might be a dream, and I'll wake up at any moment."

El put an arm around their shoulder, exclaiming: "Well, I'm as real as real gets baby! Say, why don't you sit down and chat with us for a while? I'm sure the others would love to get to know you better."

"Oh!" Meadow looked delighted. "I would love to, if that's alright!"
Upon getting confirmation from themself and Tethys as well, Meadow sat down, fidgeting slightly in her seat.
Noting her nervousness, Hertz jumped to include her in conversation, before El steamrolled everyone with one of their many, many band-related stories again.
"Say, what's your favorite song?"
They grinned and, with a wink, added: "Doesn't have to be one of ours, of course."

This got the conversation going, and they chatted about all sorts of music-related topics for a good while (Even Tethys threw in a couple of sentences here and there, though he mostly kept out of the chatter).

Apparently, Meadow was a singer herself, though she didn't plan on going professional anytime soon.
After some more talking, El insisted on putting on an impromptu performance, which Meadow got to film to show to her friends later.
Hertz chose not to participate in that one, instead ordering some fries to share with Tethys while they watched.

By the end of the night, everyone was laughing uproariously while El told the tale of how they had aquired their first guitar through a series of incredibly bizarre events (it was only about 50% made up, as far ad Hertz knew).

After Meadow left, three autographs scribbled on napkins and lots of stories richer, Hertz sighed and leaned back in their seat, content.
While El and Tethys argued about wether they should stay in the diner until closing time or go somewhere else, she looked out the window opposite her.
For now, the parking lot outside was dark, only lit by the sparse light of the stars and moon overhead.
But in a few hours time, the sun would rise, bathing everything in its golden glow.
By then, she and the others would be back at home, sleeping soundly - or, in El's case, probably still up - their sleeping schedule was a bit of a mess.
Hertz had more than once woken up to find El had texted them at an ungodly hour of the morning; with a new song idea or random fact they'd learned that day.

Hertz smiled at their bandmates fondly. They were so lucky they met these dorks. Playing music just wouldn't be as fun without them.