The Hidden World of Norminah

Chapter 2: Twenty Seventeen

The girls—Normani, Dinah, Lauren, and Ally—have been enjoying their break and have not really been communicating. This was their time for individualism and family time. This was normal for them. They spend the whole year together, so this last month of the year is strictly for them to break away from each other. It was the unwritten rule to keep them sane. They all love each other deeply, but this time apart was a way for them to keep their bond strong. Even though they were apart and not communicating directly, they kept up with each other through social media. They all spent the holidays with their families. Normani spent some time in New Orleans, Houston, and even went to Atlanta for some holiday charity at a children's hospital. Ally also lent some of her time to a children's hospital in Texas. Dinah volunteered by serving food to those who are underprivileged. Lauren spent time with her rumored girlfriend, Lucy, after spending some holiday cheer with her own family.

To kick off the month of January, the girls released a new photo that sent the internet in a frenzy. The picture came from the group account with a caption that read: Twenty Seventeen. That's all the girls needed to say. The picture said the rest. They were ready to move forward as four. They did not plan to slow down at all. The photo had a scheme with each girl rocking a red ensemble catered to their individual styles propped up in front of a red background. Lauren was in a full length spaghetti strap silky red dress with a split down the left leg. She had black heels, red lips, and her hair was back to a dark black that draped down to her hips. She crouched down slightly on the left of the picture. Next to her, sitting down on a tool, was Normani who had on a two-piece ensemble. Her ensemble was a darker red than what Lauren was wearing. Her top resembled a bustier, and she wore red pants covered with black lace print. Her heels were red. Between her legs, sitting on the floor, was Dinah in a similar shade of red as Normani. Dinah was wearing a full red body suit with a dark magenta waist band and black shoes to match. Ally's thigh-high boots matched Dinah's waist band. She also wore a long sleeve full body dress in a shade of red that matched Lauren's. She stood on the right side of the photo. The aesthetic of the photo was very pleasing.

The Harmonizers, the girls' nickname for their fans, went nuts. Even people outside their fan base was loving the photo and excited for the girls' new era and look. The photo would go on to be the girls' official press picture. The day after the photo was released, Ellen DeGeneres, renowned TV talk show host tweeted a picture of herself cropped into the group's photo, also wearing all red with a caption that read: Looks like it's just us now. The girls' group account jokingly tweeted back saying: You and your tracksuit are late to rehearsals... where you at, girl? Though they had not reunited just yet. It was not long before the photo went viral. Shortly after, the Harmonizers started the #BeThe5thChallenge, in which famous celebrities were cropped into the viral Fifth Harmony photo wearing red. Each of these celebrities were seen as "possible replacements" for Camila. It was mostly humorous. The girls quickly saw what was happening and got a kick out of it. Jamie Lynn Spears cropped herself into the picture as part of the BeThe5thChallenge, to where Britney Spears also showed her interest in the group and expressed support for their continued success. The girls were loving it. They even got the attention of John Mayer, someone they all adore. The viral challenge was being covered heavy in the media. It was great press for the girls to show they had no intentions of slowing down. In the following days, the girls announced that their first performance of the new year, and their first as a 4-piece group, would happen at the 2017 People's Choice Awards. They followed this announcement with several other upcoming performance dates scheduled at festivals in the coming months.

It's Saturday, a few days before the People's Choice Awards. The girls are ready to reunite and prepare for their performance. Dinah is the first one to show up. She's wearing a gray half-sleeve shirt and a red wool sweater. Her face is fresh with a hint of past day's makeup. She's very excited that she beat Ally there. Just as she's about to enter the building, she hears a scream. Before any actual words are spoken, she already knows it's Normani. As she turns to her friend, Normani shouts her name and jumps on her.