The New Manager (Pentatonix)

8.

Michelle met up with Kevin after rehersal, so around four. The two went to a small gluten free bakery.

"Hey. So... I'm Kevin." The cello boxer said to the new manager.

"And I'm Michelle. So... Esther wants me to have one on ones with everyone. To get to know everyone, and find out how to help keep everything managed."

Kevin smiled, grabbing a cookie from the plate infront of him.

"So... what was up with your old band?" Kevin asked Michelle.

Michelle choked on her muffin. "You wouldn't have heard of us. We were a five person group. We had a bunch of instruments, along with our voices. We never got that big, and they wanted to move so that we could get a bigger audience. I said no, and left. I tried to do some solo stuff, but it wasn't the same. So I dropped music. I did some odd jobs for a few years, and then got a call from Esther. She wanted to get together, said that she had a job for me. So I went, having been friends with her for a while. She offered me a job, and I took it." She shrugged, ignoring how she was lying through her teeth at parts.

Kevin smiled. "What part are you?" He asked.

"I always considered myself a counter tenor. Thats where I was always put in choirs and stuff." Michelle said.

"So... soprano?"

Michelle laughed. "I guess so. I never really cared for classifications."

Kevin looked at the girl more carefully.

Her facial structure was extremely familiar. Her eyes looked fake... like she had contacts on. The colour didn't give it away, but the seam. Of course, maybe they were just for eyesight, but Kevin doubted that. Her hairline had a seam that was very efficiently disguised...

And there was a few purple strands peeking out.

"What odd jobs did you take, Mitch?" Kevin asked slyly.

"A few retail, customer service, a lot of restaurants... wait, WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!" Michelle shrieked.

"Mitch. Or do you prefer Mitchell?"

Michelle buried her face in her hands.

"How did you tell?" She asked.

"The biggest giveaway was the few purple strands of hair. Nice colour, by the way. Next one was the contact ring. Then your facial structure. My advice to you is to clip your hair back, contour your face, and try not to stare at peoples eyes."

Michelle was kicking herself. "I knew that this wasn't going to work."

Kevin reached across the table and grabbed her hand.

"Just so you know, no one else will notice. I'm the only one who ever bothers to look."

Michelle dabbed her eyes, happy to have someone accepting in her life.

"Anyways, the formal assesments. I want you to work your lower range."

Kevin smiled. "Sure thing."

They chatted about nonsense for a while, just getting to know each other again.

The two left the bakery after a while, laughing.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day, Michelle met up with Avi at a small cafe.

"Hey. So, I'm Michelle." She said to Avi.

"Hey. It's about time that we got someone new around here." Avi said with a chuckle.

Michelle allowed herself a small laugh.