accompanied | billie eilish

thirty-six

aria

new year flies by and in no time, it's time for us to return to tour.

"canada here we come," ashley sings as we all climb onto the tour bus.

"hi bus, we haven't missed you," tyler says.

"tiny bunks and back cramp every morning." shay swoons sarcastically.

"it's not that bad," i reply.

"i'm half a foot taller than you," he points out, and i laugh as he demonstrates how far down he has to duck in order to enter his bunk.

"oh shit, who's that?" ash frowns as someone that i don't recognise enters the bus.

"that's leilani," says finneas in surprise.

"what's she doing here though?" bil frowns, standing on her tiptoes to get a better look.

luckily for us, the question answers itself; the unfamiliar woman approaches us, interrupting us from unpacking our stuff into our bunks.

"hi guys, figured i should introduce myself," says a tall, dark-skinned woman, smiling down at us. "my name is leilani. i'm sure you're aware that after your situation with your change in band members, you also went through a change of contract, and subsequently a change in management. i'll be your manager from now on," she explains. "there'll be a few changes around here, but nothing should be too major."

"wait- what happened to mike?" shay frowns.

leilani shrugs. "i believe he's gone on to manage and mentor a new, upcoming band. i know he's been your manager since the beginning but since i'm here for the long run i do hope we get along well," she says sincerely.

"so you're managing them as well as me and finn?" billie frowns. "how's that work?"

"you manage bil and finn?" i ask in surprise.

leilani nods. "when you and finn originally signed with our label, the two of you shared a contract due to how close you work. since finneas has joined the vision officially, in contractual terms you're considered an extra member of the band," she explains. "even though you're a solo artist. if that's all then i should probably unpack."

she breaks her professional manner for a moment, ruffling billie's hair playfully before smiling at us and making her way to the back of the bunk and upstairs, where the rest of the tour team are gathered.

finneas blinks. "well, i didn't see that coming."

"she seems nice," shay replies a little absently.

"she'll be more fun than mike," tyler says half seriously.

"what do you think, ri?" billie asks, looking directly at me.

i look up, and shrug. "uh, the change is unexpected, but she seems nice enough," i offer. "barely know her though, so no promises."

but i think of the way she looked at bil as she passed her, and a pit forms in my stomach.