Rewind With A Superstar System-Chapter 118: Profound Art

<🎧 Song Recommendation: MEMORIES! by 347aidan>

...

Naomi reached into her handbag and retrieved her MyPad. She sat up a little straighter in the vinyl booth.

"So, the entire album art was hand-drawn by me," Naomi explained, tapping the screen to unlock it. "I had to digitize it at the end to get the resolution right for the label’s formatting requirements. While I could have easily just done the whole thing with editing software from the start, I prefer to paint it first. It gives it a rougher, more grounded texture. Anyway... I really hope you like it."

She turned the screen around and slid the MyPad across the table.

Von looked down at the glowing screen.

For several long minutes, he didn’t say a single word. He just sat there, completely absorbed by the image, admiring and understanding the sheer depth of what she had managed to capture.

It was incredibly sophisticated. The perspective was angled from the front-left side of a worn-out Sedan driving through a heavy, relentless downpour.

The vehicle looked incredibly dusty, as if it had been driven through dirt roads for years, but the rain was violently washing it clean.

Right on the center of the windscreen, the title Lost And Found was spelled out. But the letters weren’t just a standard font pasted over the image. The words were formed organically because the heavy rain had carefully, yet messily, washed away the dirt in the exact shape of the letters. It was an amazing visual detail born from the absence of dust.

But it was the background elements that truly elevated it to an S-rank tier.

In the driver’s side mirror on the left, there was a reflection of a pristine, heavily tinted luxury limousine. It looked menacing, aggressively chasing the Sedan through the rain. Von knew exactly what that represented. It was the corporate machine and the industry elites who had tried to run him off the road and destroy his career.

Then, his eyes shifted to the rearview mirror mounted inside the car’s cabin. Reflected in that small rectangle of glass was a worn-out, rusted black van.

Von recognized it instantly. It was Naomi’s van that had come to deliver him from the Star Mansion, eventually setting him up to independently release Masquerade. The van had accompanied the both of them for quite some time admist their struggles in New York.

Looking at the angle of the Sedan’s tires, it was clear that the car was sharply merging into the path of the van, aggressively cutting it off and leaving it behind in the storm.

Finally, Von’s gaze drifted to the shadowy backseat of the Sedan. If one looked closely, the details were there. Piled up together in the back like absolute trash were dozens of recognizable items. There were crumpled newspapers, articles, and most notably contracts ripped in half. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

It represented everything perfectly and his his journey to the top. It wasn’t just an album cover. It was a masterpiece!

"Wow," Von breathed out, finally breaking the long silence.

He was simply short of words. Looking at the picture made him feel incredibly nostalgic in a certain way, a heavy reminder of where he had come from and exactly what he had survived to get to this diner booth.

He looked up from the screen, meeting his sister’s nervous gaze. "Nana, this is really beautiful."

Naomi let out a massive breath she had clearly been holding in. She smiled happily, "You really think so? Thank you!"

"Of course," Von said smoothly, his tone full of absolute certainty. He offered a sly grin and added jokingly, "Honestly, I won’t be surprised if my album cover becomes more popular than my actual album because of you."

Naomi burst into laughter, shaking her head. "Don’t be silly, you’re teasing me."

Von laughed along with her and slid the MyPad back across the table. "I’m dead serious. Send the file to me right now. I’ll send it to Emily real quick when we’re done here."

Just as Naomi began tapping on her screen to send the file, the waitress returned. She brought their food, setting the greasy, steaming plates of burgers and fries down between them.

They ate in comfortable silence for the next few minutes. It felt remarkably normal. Despite the pressure of his upcoming debut album, his rapidly rising fame, and the crazy auction they had just left, sitting in this quiet diner just felt like the old days back home.

"Are you really flying back tomorrow?" Naomi asked while stealing one of his fries.

"Yeah, I have to. I have to do some major makeup interviews since I completely blew off the radio station tonight. But don’t worry. I’ll fly you out to Miami for the release party."

"You better," she laughed, pointing a fry at him before eating it.

Von looked at his sister. She looked really happy. She was doing what she loved, and he finally had the power to protect her dream. The system had given him a lot of skills and stats, but moments like this were the real reward.

They stayed in the booth and talked for over an hour, catching up on everything they had missed while living on opposite sides of the country. Eventually, Von paid the bill and they stepped out of the booth. He was just about to leave the diner and walk her back to her campus dorm when his phone began to ring again.

He pulled it out of his pocket and saw the caller ID. It was his manager again.

"What’s up, Em?" Von answered, stepping out onto the quiet sidewalk.

"Von!" Emily screamed immediately.

Her tone was so high-pitched and frantic that it left Von wondering if she was furious about something new or incredibly excited.

"What’s the problem?"

"There is no problem! I am super sorry for scolding you for flying to Los Angeles!" Emily yelled through the speaker, her words tumbling out rapidly. "Forget the radio slot! Forget the local station manager! The producers at Late Night with Colin Gork just contacted us directly! They want you for an exclusive couch interview this Friday! An extended one!"

Von was really impressed. That was one of the biggest broadcasts in the entire country, and it was the same one Julian had used as a tool to try diminishing Masquerade for not having visuals.

"Your display in CalArts is absolutely trending right now!" Emily continued, completely out of breath. "Videos of you at the auction are all over social media. In fact, the pre-saves on your album have increased by ten percent in the past hour alone! You lucked out big time, Von! The hype is literally off the charts!"

Von smiled widely, looking over at Naomi who was watching him curiously. He easily controlled his happiness, keeping his voice confident. "You see? I told you I had everything under control."

"Yes, sir," Emily laughed with pure relief. "I will even argue with you this time. You played it perfectly. But..."

Her voice suddenly trailed off.

"What?" Von asked with immediate urgency, sensing how her tone had drastically dropped from ecstatic to deeply serious in a matter of seconds.

Emily let out a slow, hesitant sigh through the phone.

"You’re not the only one trending, Von. On some level, your sister is, too. And you might not like this."