SO AMERICAN, oscar piastri (onhold)

prologue.

- oh god, i'm gonna marry him

              if he keeps this shit up -

" - nothing prepares you for the fame

AND the fan edits and ships - "

PIPPA AUSTIN walks out from the curtain, her arms waving at the screaming crowd in front of her. It was almost comical, seeing how a twenty-one-year-old could arise this much ecstasy and screams of happiness out of people. 

Jimmy Fallon sat patiently behind his desk, smiling as he watched her take her place on the couch. He looked out to the crowd as their screams and clapping continued, elapsing the longest applause he had gotten for any of his guests.

"Wow, just wow." He chuckled, gesturing to everything that had just occurred.

Pippa laughed, covering her mouth with her hand. "I tend to entice that reaction out of people." Just the mere sound of her voice seemed to make the crowd jump into another roar of emotions, the screaming seemingly louder than before making both Jimmy and Pippa look on in astonishment.

"Alright, alright," Jimmy said mid chuckle, "We really need to start the show guys." 

The crowd calmed down, and those who had stood to applaud Pippa took their seats once again, leaving the studio quieter than it was before. The young American singer looked at the crowd, giving fans little waves here and there before focusing her attention back on the 'Tonight Show' host.

"Hi, Pippa."

"Hi, Jimmy." Pippa tried to keep her face neutral and posture straight with her hands resting on her knees, yet she failed miserably. Her face almost immediately broke out into a smile as she stared at the older man.

Jimmy looked to the crowd in faux bewilderment before turning back to her again, "Do I have something on my face or...?"

"No, no!" She hurried out, "I've never been good at keeping a straight face." 

Seeing her distress, Jimmy gently placed a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to reassure her that he was only joking and her reaction meant no harm. Her anxiety and inability to work in a social setting were always an underestimated skill of hers, yet still well known to all her fans. Multiple videos had gone viral of her lack of social skills when interacting with fans. It was, however, what made Pippa, Pippa. 

"Don't worry, I'm only messing with you." Jimmy laughs, the crowd joining in as the young girl turns to them with a relieved look on her face.

Jimmy shifts in his seat, his hand reaching under the table to grab an unknown object, "So, Pippa, considering you've just come out with your album 'SOUR', I thought we could play a little game." Pippa merely nodded along, unsure of where the man was attempting to go with this. 

"What I have here is a bottle of lemon juice and some question cards." The crowd ooes as Jimmy gestures to each object. "The essence of the game is I ask you questions and you either take a shot of lemon juice or answer." 

Her face contorts into the form of a grimace, disliking the idea of having to take shots of lemon juice. The crowd laughs as she picks up the bottle to take a whiff of the smell only to immediately put it back down as she's hit with the most sour smell. "I dislike citrus so much."

Jimmy laughs, clapping his hands together, "Well, I guess we will be getting all the answers from you today." 

The young girl groans, reaching for the shot glass before preparing her shot of lemon juice. She in no way was prepared to take any shots of lemon juice nor did she particularly want to. If Saorise or Dalton were here, she knew they would've immediately taken advantage of the questions. 

"Ok, the first question is, 'Was the Album SOUR based on real-life experience?'" Jimmy looks between the girl and her shot glass, looking for any indication of whether she would drink it.

"I can answer this!" She clapped her hands together, excited she didn't have to drink the horrid citrus shot in front of her. "SOUR is not based on my own experiences. I used a lot of my friend's experiences and made up the rest." 

Jimmy nodded along, shifting his question cards to the next one, "Well would you look at that? Alright, next question." Pippa shifted in her seat, making herself more comfortable in preparation. Jimmy's face turned into a smile and a small chuckle came out of his mouth as he attempted to say the next question. "'If you have to choose one friend from 'The Golden Trio', who would it be?'"

"Dalton so told you to say that, didn't he? God, he's such a little poop stirrer." Her head fell into her hands as she tried to think about her answer. She knew she couldn't answer it but she also knew this shot would ruin her. "I hate you, Dalton."

In one swift movement, she grabbed the glass and threw it back, grimacing as the liquid slid down her throat and left a sour taste in her mouth and a burning sensation down her throat. "Oh god, that's worse than tequila." The crowd let out whoops and woos, laughing along with Jimmy as her face continued to contort in unique ways.

"I wasn't expecting you to do that." Jimmy burst into laughter, shocked at how quickly she had downed the shot.

"I wasn't expecting myself to do that." She groaned, her voice hoarse from the citrus. The crowd laughed at her misery, finding the humour in the game Jimmy had crafted.

The said host wiped the tears from his eyes, holding his stomach from laughter. Pippa sat there awkwardly, her stomach aching from the citrus acids and her throat throbbing from the burning sensation. "That really wasn't nice, don't make me do it again." She pleaded with the man.

"I mean, it's really your choice." Jimmy shrugged with a chuckle, "Alright, for your sake, last question. 'Who is your current celebrity crush?'"

A rosy blush covered her cheeks, her ears turning red too. Pippa adverted her eyes from the crowd and the camera, trying to hide her cheeks and smile from the prying eyes of Jimmy. The host made sounds of enjoyment as he watched on from the sidelines. "Oooo, Pippa has a crush, everyone!"

The crowd erupted in ooes and ah's mixed with laughs as they could see her cheeks getting redder and redder the more she thought about her celebrity crush.

"Oh god," She mumbled into her hands which had now been placed firmly on her cheeks in hopes of reducing the redness. "This isn't so bad, I suppose."

Clearing her throat, Pippa took a deep breath in, "Okay well, originally my celebrity crush used to be Niall Horan for like the longest time," Jimmy adlibs a phrase in agreeance, understanding of her choice, "But right now - and no one knows this - but a TikTok came on my For You Page of a racing driver from Australia."

Those who had managed to connect the dots in the audience erupted in screams, realizing who exactly she was talking about. Jimmy looked into the crowd with his hands in the air as if he was trying to ask them who it was. 

"The point is to say their name, Pippa." He chuckled.

"It's scary!" She whined. "Okay, fine! My current celebrity crush is Oscar Piastri." The crowd once again erupts into screams and claps, making the young singer even more embarrassed.

"You heard it here first everyone!" Jimmy yells into the audience, clapping his hands and laughing as Pippa curls into a ball on the couch. "To save Pippa from more embarrassment, that's all we have time for tonight. Pippa Austin, everybody!"

The girl quickly uncurled herself from the ball, standing up from the couch. She smiles at Jimmy, giving him a quick hug from across the table before almost running off the stage. Her face was still as red as before and her heart rate had increased by tenfold, leaving her a blubbering mess.

If only she knew what this interview would start for her.