As the couple walked out of their apartment, Melody carried a small purse containing various things a woman of her age would have with them: a wallet, ID cards, some Tic Tacs, and a little makeup. She pulled out a car key, attached to a small keyring with a trumpet charm and her apartment key, and hit the unlock button, causing the lights of her car to flash from across the parking lot. Climbing into the car, Mike noticed the lack of new car smell. Melody explained that she had bought the car in Texas last year, and a new car smell would make that story less plausible.
Entering the leasing office at the front of the complex, Mike began to fill out the papers adding Melody as an authorized signer for packages and mail. He was glad the leasing company didn't see this as odd. She was able to produce photo ID, and Mike had never been late on his rent, so they weren't going to raise a fuss over one of their best tenants moving in with his girlfriend.
Their errand complete, Mike and Melody headed back home. Mike spent the rest of the afternoon continuing his audition prep, while Melody tried out some more of his video game collection, settling on The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Starting a new game from the beginning, she was quickly engrossed in the story and characters, completely losing track of time. By the time Mike finished work for the evening, she had been playing for over four hours. Mike laughed, reassuring her that this was completely understandable; he often found himself immersed in a Zelda game for hours on end as well. As they began to check out ideas for dinner, Mike's phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Mike! Robert Spano here."
"Maestro! Good to hear from you."
"We've put together the audition schedule for this Friday. Each of the five candidates will have a one-hour audition and interview. Yours will be the final one of the afternoon, starting at 3:00."
Writing the information on his notepad, Mike replied, "Three PM, got it."
"Great. Also, as you know, two of the panelists will be Jessica and myself. I've just received confirmation less than an hour ago that the final panelist will be Philip Smith."
Stunned, Mike could only respond, "Wow… Philip Smith?"
"Yep. He's an excellent judge of talent and potential, and I've worked with him previously. Anywho, any further questions you had for me?"
"Uh, no sir. I've got everything I need."
"Excellent. We'll see you Friday then!"
"Thanks. Take care."
As he hung up the phone, Melody looked at him inquisitively. "That was my boss, the Maestro. The three-judge panel for my audition has been set, and one of the judges is going to be… Philip Smith."
"Who is he?"
"He's literally the greatest trumpet player in the world right now. His sound, expression, and knowledge are unrivaled in professional music. Not to mention that he's kinda my hero. I've tried to emulate him in everything I do professionally. Honestly, it's really intimidating thinking about being on that stage with my promotion in his hands."
Melody kissed him tenderly for several long seconds, calming him down from his adrenaline rush. "This is a fantastic opportunity for you," she said. "Just don't forget that Philip Smith is, ultimately, just a man. Like any other, he can be impressed. As long as you don't view him as some giant monster, you'll do brilliantly out there."
Sighing, he replied, "You always know just what to say."
After a casual dinner of frozen chicken tenders and instant mashed potatoes, the pair settled onto the sofa, deciding to continue their movie streak with The Empire Strikes Back. As with the previous installment, Melody was completely sucked in from the very beginning. She absolutely loved the ice battles on Hoth, and came away impressed with the growth Luke's character started showing from the whiny farm kid in the first film.
Mike watched her face intently as the movie approached the climax. She jumped and squealed as Luke and Vader fought their epic duel. Brought nearly to tears as Luke's hand was cut off, those tears were completely halted by the shocking revelation that Vader was Luke's father.
"No. Fucking. WAY!"
Mike chuckled next to her all the while, fully enjoying her reactions to a film that he considered to be one of the greatest ever made. As the credits rolled, she was again hyped and excited, ready for the next installment. Assuring her that all her questions would be answered, Mike still refused to give anything away, bringing out Melody's pouty face, to no avail. The pair spent the rest of the evening playing Call of Duty, dominating quite a few online matches before deciding to head to bed around 11:30. A short time later, both were passed out in orgasm-induced comas.
Tuesday brought more of the same. Waking up horny, a hot shower together, they were becoming as natural to them as breathing. Through it all, none of it grew boring or monotonous; Mike still gazed on Melody as intently as the moment he fell in love with her. As he worked through his morning practice session, Melody continued setting up her photography business, managing to land her first job, filling in for a sick student photographer for a basketball game at the local college in two weeks. She bounded into Mike's studio, bouncing in pure giddiness at her first booked job as a professional photographer.
As the day became night, both called their work done for the day, and finished the original Star Wars trilogy over a dinner of frozen lasagnas. Return of the Jedi was a lot of fun for Melody from start to finish. She marveled at how strong Luke had become, rewinding the movie to re-watch the scene where he mind tricked his way into Jabba the Hutt's palace. She also grinned constantly as she watched Vader, now mortally wounded from saving his son's life, finally find redemption in his last breaths.
Turning to Mike, she asked, "Didn't you say there are three more of these?"
"Yep," he responded. "As far as films go, they aren't nearly as good as the three we've seen here, but the story they tell is extremely important, and fills in some of the blank spots from the original trilogy."
Passing the rest of the evening by watching NCIS reruns, they soon started fondling and making out on the sofa. Eventually, they returned to their newly discovered favorite position, beginning to have sex while spooning on the sofa. Thanks to a few stamina wishes, they were able to leisurely make love constantly throughout the evening before finally retiring to bed content and relaxed.
Wednesday began with their now familiar morning routine, however Mike felt a little celebration was in order for Melody's first job. Driving them to Waffle House, Melody took quite a long time to decide what she wanted from the enormous menu. Finally deciding on a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit with a side of hash browns, Mike got his traditional waffle with a side of scrambled eggs. After arriving home, Mike procrastinated a bit with news and social media, though still making mental runs through his music all the while. Around 10:00 in the morning, as he was about to begin practicing, he heard a knock at his door.
"Braxton! Time for a fire drill! Open up!"
He immediately recognized the voice as Stuart McKay, the principal tuba player from the ASO. Turning to Melody, Mike quickly asked her to slow time, which she immediately did.
"Melody, some of my friends are here. It sounds like they want to help me with my audition prep. I don't want to sound mean, but having my new girlfriend here would only distract them. Is there any way you could, ya know, not be here temporarily?"
Giggling, she replied, "You mean like this?" Instantly, she vanished before his very eyes. And don't worry about anything. I will never be mad at you for needing to give your friends the proper attention they deserve. And, of course, I'm still only a thought away. A quick kissing sound in his head, and time suddenly reverted to normal.