SEVENTEEN
QUEEN & GHOST
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON
BEYONCÉ RAN HER HANDS THROUGH HER blonde hair and closed her eyes. Her manager Alexia stood next to one of her executive stylists, Lauren, patiently waiting for her to say something. Beyoncé was performing another show in Seattle and after seeing her opening outfit, her entire mood flipped. She was standing in her dressing room wearing nothing but her nude shapewear as people rubbed oils and lotion on her skin.
"This is what they sent?" Her deep voice asked, her eyebrows furrowed together. Lauren nodded and together, they continued looking at the red unitard with matching thigh-high boots.
"But this is not what we paid for. This-," she pointed all over, "was never the pattern we sent to them. I mean, is this entire thing made out of latex? Are they trying to make me faint in this heat?"
"You will have the fans pointed at you," Lauren explained and Beyoncé swore her blood began boiling.
"Okay, but this isn't what I wanted. So how do we fix this because this is a big problem." She asked, narrowing her eyes and a few seconds of silence passed where no one spoke. She felt as if she was talking to a wall because these people never seemed to understand her. Sometimes she felt because she was a black woman, people were constantly trying to fuck her over because they didn't think she could ever make it this far. She was doing something unprecedented with her formation tour and she wanted everything to be perfect.
So she wasn't backing down.
Every show, she was trying to make it better than the last.
"We can reschedule the looks and use an outfit from an upcoming tour. Then we'll have our executive stylists contact designer brands to create another look in a short time."
"Then I need y'all to get on with it." She demanded. Alexia and Lauren nodded, walking out of the room. Beyoncé sighed and raised her hand, signaling to be left alone by the women who were oiling her. She placed her hands on her hips before sitting down at her vanity. She looked at herself in the mirror and began combing her hair, trying to calm herself down.
Alexia stood behind her and looked at her through the mirror. "You're upset, why?"
"No reason," Beyoncé assured. There was no point in explaining it, she wouldn't get it anyway.
"Well, I have been talking with David Angelo for the last couple of days. Coachella and the team have finally negotiated a decent price we think you'll love. I think 2018 will be known as your year."
"What about this year, 2016?" Beyoncé asked, narrowing her eyes. "I'm literally on tour and I'm working incredibly hard to deliver shows for my fans who have been day ones. Why would two performances for Coachella suddenly make 2018 my year?"
"I didn't mean it like that, Bey." Alexia sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. Before Beyoncé could respond, there was a knock at her dressing room and she gestured for her assistant to open the door. Julius soon stepped inside, "Miss Knowles, I have Trey outside for you."
Upon hearing his name, she curiously turned her head and nodded. Julius moved to the side, allowing Trey inside. Her lips subconsciously curved into a smile and she almost forgot about her problems for a moment. He flashed her a cheeky grin. "I just wanted to make sure you were alright before the show."
"You worry about me too much," She said, her cheeks slightly turning into a bright red. "You have such a big heart. I love that for you."
Trey chuckled to himself, he had never heard someone tell him that. If she knew the truth about him, she would never dare to say something so contradictory. He didn't have a heart or he believed he didn't. Until he met the Queen.
He was most vulnerable with her and completely in love. She only has the power to destroy him; for she has all the grace and beauty of a flower but as venom grips from her lips, it's not hard to see she has the poison too.
Even if she ever betrayed him, he would still love her. He would lay his life at her feet, like the lamb at an altar. He would sing her praises, even as her blade grazes his throat. His blood, his offering.
"Trey?" Beyoncé asked, snapping him out of his dangerous mind. He looked up into her hazel eyes and flexed his jaw. He realized he had never kissed his beauty and he wondered how her precious lips would feel against his bloody ones.
Then he moved his eyes to her body and it was only then he realized she was wearing a simple nude body suit that pushed her full breasts up. Her skin was shining with oil and her face was bare, allowing every beauty mark to meet his eyes. He didn't know why he was behaving as if he had never seen her natural face before. Maybe it was because, he only really saw her in the night time but now with the vanity, he was able to see everything.
"Did you bring that for me?" She asked in that sweet voice of hers. "How did you know I loved pink lemonade?"
He frowned slightly before realizing she was talking about the bottle in his hand. "Lucky guess."
Beyoncé smiled and gestured for one of her security guards to grab it. After inspecting the bottle for a couple of minutes, he nodded his head. "Seal hasn't been broken. Miss Knowles, it's safe for you to drink."
"Thank you, Toni." She said, setting it down on the vanity. Trey turned his head and looked at all the food on the coffee table which hadn't even been touched. There was an assortment of chips, crackers, guacamole, vegetables, cheeses, sliders, and fries but Beyoncé hadn't even turned her attention over.
"Did you eat yet?" He found himself asking and she flicked her wrist. "I'll eat this after the tour. I don't want to throw up during the show."
"Just take a bite." He suggested and she raised her eyebrow, watching as he made his way over to the seating area. "You got all this food and you're not going to eat some? Come here."
"Trey."
"Just come." He said and she sighed, standing up from the vanity and sitting next to him on one of the white couches.
He picked a few crackers and dipped them in guac. She rolled her eyes, giggling softly and shaking her head. He lifted it upwards and aimed it at her mouth. After a period of hesitation, Beyoncé parted her lips and allowed him to feed her.
"See was that so hard?" He asked. "Now, I couldn't help but notice how tense you were when I walked in. You wanna tell me what's going on?"
"I'm just feeling overwhelmed."
"Shit, I would too." He chuckled, feeding her another bite and Beyoncé furrowed her eyebrows while chewing. For the first time, someone wasn't telling her that she shouldn't be overwhelmed or she should just deal with it.
"You perform almost every day for two hours and you have a bunch of people trying to play you in your face. It's not easy."
"See? You get it." She smiled. "You always seem to get it. You're so easy to talk to."
There was another knock at the door and Julius stepped inside again. "Boss lady. I've got the team outside for you."
She nodded and checked her phone. It was time for hair and makeup. Then she looked back at Trey and her lips formed a straight line when she realized how hard his gaze on her was. Her cheeks started burning again and her eyes scanned his face. She didn't know what she was thinking but her mind wasn't able to rest.
Suddenly, she cleared her throat and stood up. "I've got to get ready. Thank you for coming and calming me down. You have no idea how upset tour can make me."
"It's nothing, Giselle. You need me I'll be with the band getting ready." He said, following after her. She pulled him for a hug and he provided a special type of warmth she barely experienced. In a world full of manipulative and lying people, he felt safe.
Always safe.
As a large team of makeup stylists and hair stylists entered inside, Trey began to walk towards to door. He suddenly stopped when Beyoncé called out for him once again. "Oh, Trey. I have one more question. Have you heard from Shawn? I know you guys don't talk but I have been trying to call him and he is leaving me on voicemail. That motherfucker."
Shawn was dead.
And sweet little Beyoncé didn't have a clue.
Normally when Ghost killed people, he would leave their bodies out in the open without leaving anything that could be traced back to him. But he knew he couldn't do that; he didn't want the attention of Shawn's death to take away from Beyoncé's tour. So he spent most of last night, dragging the body away and chopping it up into little pieces. Then, he buried those pieces in the dirt all over the grassland.
"Nah." He said, his lips curving into an upward smirk gently. "I haven't seen Shawn."
TIME-SKIP
"I look and stare so deep in your eyes. I touch on you more and more every time. When you leave, I'm begging you not to go. Call your name two, three times in a row," Beyonce sang, a large smile on her face. Seattle cheered, holding their phones up to record every moment.
"Such a funny thing for me to try to explain. How I'm feeling and my pride is the one to blame. 'Cause I know I don't understand just how your love can do what no one else can."
"Got me looking so crazy right now, your love's
Got me looking so crazy right now. Got me looking so crazy right now, your touch. Got me looking so crazy right now. Got me hoping you'll page me right now, your kiss got me hoping you'll save me right now." The backup singers sang, swaying their bodies side to side.
"Looking so crazy, your love's got me looking, got me looking so crazy in love," Beyoncé leaned her head back, looking up at the gorgeous sky in Seattle. The band continued playing behind her and as usual, Trey only had his eyes on her. He loved the way she effortlessly moved and how carefree she was. Just like everyone else, he was addicted to the way she carried herself.
"Uh oh, uh oh, uh oh, oh, no, no. Uh oh, uh oh, uh oh, oh, no, no. Uh oh, uh oh, uh oh, oh, no, no. Uh oh, uh oh, uh oh, oh, no, no!"
"When I talk to my friends so quietly. Who he think he is? Look at what you did to me. Tennis shoes, don't even need to buy a new dress. If you ain't there, ain't nobody else to impress. It's the way that you know what I thought I knew. It's the beat that my heart skips when I'm with you. But I still don't understand. Just how your love can do what no one else can,"
"Got me looking so crazy right now, your love's got looking so crazy right now. Got me looking so crazy right now, your touch. Got me looking so crazy right now. Got me hoping you'll page me right now, your kiss got me hoping you'll save me right now. Looking so crazy, your love's got me looking, got me looking so crazy in love."
"I'm looking so crazy in love. Sing it y'all!" She yelled, holding the microphone out to the audience. She nodded her head to the screams while the cameras faced the stadium. The fans cheered when they spotted themselves and waved.
"Got me looking so crazy, my baby. I'm not myself, lately I'm foolish, I don't do this. I've been playing myself, baby, I don't care!" She sang, dancing with her dancers. "Cause your love's got the best of me and, baby, you're making a fool of me. You got me sprung and I don't care who sees. Cause, baby, you got me. Baby, you got me!"
"You got me so crazy, baby."
Beyoncé held the microphone to her lips and started singing an impressive run as the backup singers began singing the last verse. "Got me looking so crazy right now."
"Your love's-."
"Got me looking so crazy right now. Got me looking so crazy right now, your touch (your love) Got me looking so crazy right now."
"Got me hoping you'll page me right now, your kiss!" She continued walking to the center of the stage, her hair blowing flawlessly in the wind. Her dancers followed behind, swaying their hips to the beat. Then, they started their last dance for this song, completing the original Crazy in Love dance with Beyoncé in front.
"Got me hoping you'll save me right now. Looking so crazy, your love's. Got me looking, got me looking so crazy in love. I'm looking so crazy in love!" Robyn, Normani, Kehlani, and Ryan all harmonized.
"Got me looking, got me looking so crazy in love!" Beyoncé sang, turning around and facing away from the crowd. Just as the band played the three final notes, Beyoncé and her dancers turned their heads, their hair flipping the wind as they looked at the audience. The stage turned dark and a wave of cheers erupted before a silence could surround them.