Infinite

Solo

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How can I stand on the stage
When I know you're not right there
Beside me?
I'm so afraid
But I know you're going to
Cheer for me
When the curtains are drawn
I'll know I did the best I could've done
Since I had to go play solo
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Hi Julie!!!

I can't believe I am emailing you right now. My dad says this won't work, but I have confidence. By the way, my name is Marie-Ella Bardot. If the last name looks familiar, that's probably because of my dad. He's the President of the United States. But, that's not why I'm emailing you.

I'm actually emailing you because I want you, Julie and the Phantoms, to come perform (at the White House) for my birthday on January 6th. My friends and I all love you and your songs. You would, of course, be paid. That detail can be ironed out later. I just wanted to see if you're interested. You're one of my favorite singers of all time.

Thanks!!!

Marie-Ella Bardot

Julie nearly had a heart attack when she saw the email. It had been forwarded from her manager, but Julie hadn't realized how important it was until she read it for herself. Since Thanksgiving, all she'd done was classes and projects with her ensemble professor, and there were only a handful of days until their final exams started. And that included the weekend.

She was lucky no one was around her, because she stopped breathing for a moment and took it all in. The President's daughter wanted Julie and the Phantoms (the band that had dissolved) to play at THE WHITE HOUSE.

"Ay Dios mio." Julie rarely spoke in Spanish, but desperate times called for desperate measures. And this was a desperate time. She could hardly think straight.

How was she going to ask the boys?

"I'm going to need a lot of help if I want to pull this off." First, she decided to call her house. She purposefully left a landline in the music studio just in case she ever needed to get ahold of them. It wasn't like a lot of people called their landline anymore.

"I'm going to assume this is Julie?" Reggie asked with a laugh.

"Your assumption would be correct." She replied, trying to control herself, but it didn't work. "Can you put me on speaker?"

"Yep. We're all here." Reggie pressed the correct buttons and told her when it went on speaker.

"You got lucky, Jules. I was just about to leave." Luke said, just before Julie told them what she was sent only a half hour ago.

"So, I have really, really big news," Julie started, "the daughter of the President of the United States just asked Julie and the Phantoms to play at her birthday party on January sixth. I don't have class yet, but I want to know if you want to do it. I'm willing to counter with a solo gig if you all don't want to perform."

"Wow." They were all stunned into silence.

"Is that a good 'wow' or a bad 'wow'? Because I can't really tell." Julie wasn't sure whether she wanted to perform solo or not, but she had to wait until they gave their answer for her to be completely sure.

"Just a surprised one. I mean, I don't care either way. Music doesn't really dictate my life anymore. But, if you guys want to do it, I'll do it," Alex admitted first. As it turned out, Reggie felt the same way.

"I mean, as much as I want to, there's a part of me that's let go of the band and is ready to start moving on." It would take him a long time to let go, but playing for lifers, rather than just living a quiet afterlife, would only make it last longer.

"Alright. Huh. I guess I didn't expect you guys to say no. I'm not going to pressure you or anything, but I need to think about what I'll say." Julie set down the phone and absent-mindedly put it on speaker mode. "I think I want to do this, if she'll have me. I need to stand on my own two feet for once and show the world I'm not hiding behind this band and never releasing more songs."

"You should do it, Jules." She looked at her phone, shocked that she hadn't hung up. "You're more than talented and she'd be lucky to have you perform." They were right. Julie was talented.

"You guys are right. Now, I need to go write that email, so I'll talk to you guys later." She composed an email back to her agent explaining that the guys did not wish to do it, but she would perform solo if Marie-Ella wanted to have just her.

Since she had a bit of free time, she decided to call Carrie and tell her the good news. Well, it would be good news if she ended up getting the gig. There was a chance she wouldn't, considering the fact that her phantoms wouldn't be performing with her, but she had to have hope.

"Hey, Jules. What's up with you?" Carrie answered, confused as to why Julie would call at this time. They already said they were going to meet up for a couple hours on Saturday as a break from preparing for finals.

"Not much. I just got an offer to do a gig at the White House." Julie smirked, knowing Carrie would freak out once it sunk in.

"What? I'm so happy for you." Carrie's ecstatic response left Julie's heart beating faster than she thought possible. She still liked her in the exact same way she used to before their relationship shattered.

"It's not set in stone or anything because she wanted the whole band and the boys have all moved on. So, I proposed a solo performance, but I have to wait for her to respond first." Julie explained, but even with all those caveats, Carrie couldn't stop the smile that was spreading across her face. "I can't believe I might get the chance to play at the White House."

"I can't believe it, either." Julie knew Carrie was smiling on the other side of the phone. "Hey, I have to go to class, but we'll pick this up on the weekend, okay?" Julie let Carrie go and resumed the last of her homework.

A couple days later, she was scrolling through Instagram on her phone when she got another email from her manager. It had been forwarded.

Hi again!!!

I think it would be awesome to have you sing, even if your band can't make it. Let me know if you're willing to play on the 6th. I'm so excited to see you live after seeing your video of Edge of Great. That is one of my favorite songs of yours (hint, hint). Of course, it won't be the same without your band, but I've attached the details in the Word doc.

I can't believe I'm going to have the Julie Molina at my birthday party.

Thanks again!!!

Marie-Ella Bardot

Julie knew that, despite the dissolving of Julie and the Phantoms, she'd be just fine. There were so many people who liked her anyway. Going solo was only because she and her bandmates had decided to go in different directions. It also made the logistics of it all (considering they were ghosts, not holograms) a lot easier to deal with. Eventually, someone would've asked why they didn't age or why they looked eerily similar to guys who had been a part of a band in 1995. She found it with one Google search. The people of the internet could do far more than her and find much more dirt.

But, she did it. She got a gig at the White House. Against all odds, she'd shown people that Alvarez women (her mother's maiden name was Alvarez, but she chose to inherit her father's last name instead of combining them) were forces to be reckoned with.

Julie sat on the piano bench of the practice room and took a breath. She'd be just fine. As her mom always said, "Everything works out with time, a little elbow grease, and a sprinkle of luck."

Her mom, watching down from heaven, couldn't have been prouder of her little girl.

No matter what sacrifices had to be made along the way to reach her dream, Julie would have a good life.

Author's Note: Only the epilogues left and this story and series is officially over! Thanks so much for all the reads. Vote and let me know what you think in the comments! All the best, MistyRider921.