Freeze Frame

Chapter 75

Third person pov

Lillian tuned into Present Mic's show every night without fail. She couldn't recall a single time she'd missed a broadcast. It aired in the evenings, hours after any schools would be letting out, and she hadn't exactly had friends before UA. Neito and Hitoshi were fine with her playing it out loud as well, evening making commentary or discussing what Mic was talking about. It was something Lillian found relaxing. It was a comfort. A constant in her life. She'd been listening for as long as she could remember, but now... 

"Hey, hey, hey, Listeners!" Mic crowed into his microphone. His studio wasn't large. Just a little office space with some couches in the corner and some desks in another. Lillian sat stiffly in a chair next to him, fidgeting uncomfortably. There were no cameras or faces. Just Mic's laptop and some sound equipment... along with the microphone looming in front of her. "This week we've got a special guest who's going to be joining us on the show!" 

Mic grinned reassuringly at Lillian, giddiness swelling within him. Lillian looked about two shades paler than she usually was. It was concerning, especially considering how much she was sweating. She looked absolutely terrified of the microphone he'd sat down in front of her. It made him want to wince, but he refrained. He had faith in her! She could do this. They could do this. He was beyond ready to tackle this week. Her choosing him to intern with was a dream come true! He refused to let her down.

"I'm sure plenty of you tuned in to the Sports Festival! That's right, you know where this is going. The precious Lillian has chosen to intern with me!" Mic squealed the last sentence out in a way that made Lillian flush with embarrassment. "She's here to work on her confidence, so let's all give her an exciting time and lots of support! Say hey, Lillian!" 

"H-H-Hey." Lillian managed to squeak out. Mic grinned and gave her a thumbs up that made her relax ever so slightly. Mic seemed positive, so she needed to be too, right? If he could do it, so could she! Maybe... probably not... yeah, she was going to die oh my god, okay, stay calm.

Lillian listened to Mic go on in awe. Listening to it on her phone was a lot different than watching Present Mic himself perform it. He updated them on some things and talked a bit about the Sports Festival. Occasionally he'd ask her some simple questions. Things that required a yes or a no, and she'd sputter out a reply. It wasn't all that often that he did this. Lillian was glad they were starting slow; though, she did have a long way to go, and not a lot of time. That being said, she hadn't had a lot of time to train for the Sports Festival either and... well, look at where she was now.

Mic's listeners were ecstatic to hear Lillian was participating in the show, and were clearly cluing their friends in. Lillian watched the number on Mic's laptop rise slowly, listener by listener. Mic noted excitedly that they were no doubt intrigued about Lillian. She had a powerful quirk and had come in second place in the very recent Sports Festival. Basically, she was the talk of the town, as were her other two fellow winners.

"Alright, alright! Time to take some calls!" Mic flipped a switch, and Lillian saw a previously red light flash to green. "Let's get this party started, Listeners!" 

Lillian held her breath, hands curling into her lounge pants. Mic had insisted she don something more comfortable, and he'd done the same. It was weird to see him out of costume. She hadn't seen him with his hair down and regular glasses on in a while. He wore a simple Present Mic graphic T-shirt and grey sweat pants. Lillian's outfit was similar. She had on her Team Eraserhead shirt and sighed jacket from the voice hero sitting next to her, the bright colors contrasting against her black bottoms.

A ringing sound filled the area, and Mic grinned at her excitedly. "We've got our first caller." Mic sung, pressing a green button on the board before them. "Hey, Listener!"