It was the day of their performance for the musical.
The contestants were already finished with hair and makeup, waiting for the signal.
Zeno sat in front of the mirror, running a fingertip over the cool glass. He opened his system interface in the corner of his vision.
[Compliment Quest Progress: 96/100]
Time left: 3 hours.
He exhaled through his nose. Three hours to finish it.
He could finish it. But the thought of giving those last four to his teammates, after everything, felt like swallowing glass. Yesterday's "pep talk" hadn't exactly brought the group together. In fact, it had done the opposite.
Not that he minded.
The problem was, they hadn't practiced again since yesterday.
Zeno had spent the evening practicing alone in a smaller rehearsal booth. He was hitting the notes better now. It was not perfect, but he was closer to where they needed to be. The trouble was that his part wasn't the only one that needed work.
