Two years earlier
"♬ I know I need my own girl—"
A fragile voice blared from black headphones, accompanied by noisy instrumentals and distorted bass. Then she pulled the buds out of her ears.
A quick glance at her phone to pause the music.
☆LiL PEEP☆ – ghost girl (prod. lederrick)
The little bird from the song cover looked at Lyra with sad eyes. Lyra looked back just as sadly. She would've liked to finish listening. But what if she ran into someone in the stairwell?
Better not be rude. Just be quick.
So she rushed through the five flights of stairs without running into a single person. Almost an achievement.
The click of the lock ended her speedrun. Lyra in, door shut.
Once inside, she staggered toward the nearest wall. Something to lean on while she caught her breath. A few panting breaths later, and she was good again.
Lyra kicked off her black sneakers and simply dropped the sports bag with her costume inside. Past the threshold of the entrance area, she walked straight into the living room, where her furniture greeted her. There wasn't much of it, but it was new and modern. Everything was still pretty sparse.
No wonder. She had only moved in last week.
She was finally out of that old shithole she'd barely been able to afford. Out of the cycle of part-time jobs she'd constantly had to switch. Jobs that brought her more grief than money.
Getting yelled at again and again. Getting fired again and again. All because of that damn nervousness.
And maybe… because she wasn't that good with people.
But that didn't matter now. The era of normie side jobs was over, ever since that nice guy, Shinkin, had pulled her out of that shitty café.
Lyra still remembered it clearly.
She had just been sweeping up the shards from her last order off the floor when he slipped her a small business card, along with a sweet comment.
He had recognized her potential.
Since then, she'd been working at Rudi's Bunny Club. The job kinda was the same—just waitressing. The only difference was the bunny girl costume.
And the people there? Scum. Filthy pigs and rats driven by nothing but lust. So they didn't matter to her either. She just had to act "cute" and do a bit of cosplay. Don't listen to what they shouted at her. And if she did hear them, , just fire back. Always better, always sharper.
Then everything's fine!
It even boosted her self-confidence. Even if the persona didn't feel like a part of her. It didn't really fit. Not with her softness, nor her shyness. And definitely not with her purity.
Working as an angel in hell wasn't easy.
So she put on a mask, like she always did. The one for the club suited her better than the ones from other jobs. So well that it almost scared her. But everything was fine. She just had to keep the mask separate from her true self.
The job at the Bunny Club brought in way more money than all the other dull jobs. She had been working there for a month. And now, just one week ago, she had finally gotten this new apartment.
The chemically damp smell of cappuccino-colored wall paint still hung in the air. The smell of a new life. One where she could finally commit to her online existence.
With a lightness she hadn't felt in far too long, Lyra let her legs carry her across the room until she finally landed on the bed.
Her soft blanket was already waiting for her, the scent of detergent still clinging to its fibers. Lyra couldn't resist and rolled around in it a few times. A feeling she could sink into.
Eventually, she stretched out her arms and legs and stared at the ceiling. A relieved sigh escaped her as the scent of detergent gently enveloped her.
Now the mask is off.
Lyra sat back up, even though her gaze wanted to linger a little longer. It fell on the yellow fabric of her old duvet.
I really need to get some new covers.
She took a deep breath and enjoyed the artificial smell. Maybe something with a cherry blossom design. How cute would that be?
After letting the thought settle, she pulled out her phone.
A flood of new notifications grabbed her attention like a magnet. Lyra had to scroll just to get an overview.
Twitter: 1,394 new notifications
Among them, 23 new DMs.
Her eyes widened, then she tapped it.
Twitter opened.
Her finger immediately hovered over the bell of new notifications. The display turned into a sea of new likes, comments, mentions, and more. Reactions to tweets in which she shared both her life and her thoughts. A sight that filled Lyra's heart.
But the most important part was her videos.
Videos of her sitting at the piano, filling every keystroke with emotion until the notes formed songs.
Everything was real. Just herself, no mask. That was what she wanted to convey with her videos. With her entire Twitter account. It meant everything to her.
And it resonated.
Barely had the first five videos gone online when "Marv420," a bigger streamer, noticed Lyra's covers and reacted to them in his videos. He sparked the first small wave of hype, which triggered a chain reaction of interactions.
Other content creators became interested in her music. Some asked if they could use it in their videos. There were even people who made AMVs with it.
The variety of reactions was incredible. Pure sensory overload. Probably too much. But exactly what she needed.
Her Twitter account now had around 50,000 followers. The most popular videos had several million views. It was so surreal. And that was exactly why she loved it.
Lyra scrolled through the notifications.
KyouACAB: "I love it lets goo 🤩"
Suzu241: "OMG this is such a 10/10 💫"
SeraphyTV: "I love how your delicate hands caress the keyboard's keys. Gentle and careful, as if it were the cheek of a person who broke long ago."
Kathy_uwu: "You touched my heart again!! 🥺🖤"
Oh shit, I need to reply to Kathy right away!, a thought shot through Lyra's mind.
But among the sweet compliments, a few repulsive ones had also slipped in.
BoomerHD: "Sentimental nonsense, skipped."
Sh1rotaScreen: "You're so hot, when OnlyFans content?"
With a grimace, she deleted whatever didn't fit her image.
Rats.
She was extra careful that nothing of her showed in the videos. Only hands and arms. Sometimes maybe the white tips of her hair when she leaned over the keys. But never her face, let alone her femininity.
How can people still get off on that?
Before it became too much, she switched to her DMs. Lyra's throat went dry, her pulse quickened. At the very top was the chat with Hana.
Hana: "fuck you, lyra. then rot in your cave…"
Not because they texted regularly—quite the opposite. Lyra never wrote back. They hadn't seen each other since the accident. Still, she had pinned the chat.
She hadn't replied for a year. Hana should feel what her harsh words and accusations after the accident had done.
Even though Hana had apologized afterward. Lyra would never write to her again. Never react.
Her gaze shifted to the new messages. Among many requests, a reply from Kathy was waiting.
Kathy: "Have fun at work, you got this!! <3"
Kathy: "Everything okay?"
A gentle smile played on her lips, then she typed.
Lyra: "Heyy, sorry >.< Work was really busy today"
She started typing again.
Lyra: "Super stressful but let's talk about it later. :3 Gonna take a break now! And maybe even make a new video"
Lyra set the phone aside, it immediately vibrated with a new message.
She casually swung her legs over the edge of the bed to get up, but stayed sitting for another moment.
"So, what should I do now?" she muttered to herself.
Jump straight into a few rounds of League of Legends with Phelix and the others, or record a new piano piece first?
Lyra chose the latter.
Her piano was made of beautiful dark walnut wood. At first, she had only owned a simple keyboard. The only thing Lyra had taken from her parents' house when her drunken father had thrown her out of the apartment.
She shook her head, pushing the memories away.
After her talent had been recognized online, she eventually got to know Kathy. Lyra's music seemed to move her so much that she gave her money for a real piano.
If only everyone were as kind as Kathy…
The piano had a small shelf where her camera stood on a little tripod. Right in front of the camera lay a small owl pendant.
Lyra's smile faded.
She had bought it with Satsu back then when they were in middle school. A symbol of their friendship, because they loved staying up late together.
Since the accident, that little charm was all she had left of her. She always placed it in front of the camera so it would be clearly visible while she played the piano.
With a soft thump, she dropped onto the piano bench.
"Sooo, what are we playing today?"
She tapped a finger against her lower lip, as if she had to think about which song to play. But of course the answer had already been decided. And well practiced.
"Haunt u" by Lil Peep.
One of her favorite artists. Even if some of his lyrics were too sexual.
Lyra started the recording. For a moment, she paused.
Then she gently placed her fingertips on the keys and began to play.