Power & Control

1: Electra Heart

~A

Love is a bunch of bullshit.

And before you come at me and say Lex, give it a chance. I have. I'm speaking from experience when I say that love is just a facade, a bunch of lies wrapped up in pretty ribbons, a twisted game. And I will stand by that until someone proves me wrong. That someone has yet to reveal themselves, and I don't see that happening any time soon, if not ever at all.

No one really cares about you. They care about what you can do for them and that's all. Some actually have the decency to return the favour but most of them don't. I learned that the hard way.

Love will always be a game.

Heartbreak after heartbreak was what my late teens and early twenties consisted of. And I was so fed up, unable to understand why people did the things that they did. I was tired of always being the victim, so I decided to step into the offender's shoes. That's how She was born.

Electra Heart.

I never expected that an alter ego I'd create would make my dreams finally come true. The music industry is hard, frustrating and unfair. Trying to break it is like trying to teach an old dog new tricks.

But finally, after three years of being signed and one album of mediocre success, I could say I made it with the second one. All because of Electra Heart. All because I took the completely opposite approach everyone usually does in an album about love. And I knew I made it when I saw the sales, the millions of views on the first leading single and the press response. Booking a talk show and performance on mainstream London TV was an achievement on its own, but preparing for it was nerve wracking. It was just my luck that one of the most crucial members of my band quit last minute.

"How am I supposed to perform a song with a guitar solo without a guitarist?" I shouted a bit too loudly to my manager out of frustration, though I regretted it instantly.

"Lex, I understand that you're nervous and this is not ideal but don't worry. I already found a replacement and he's flying here from LA tomorrow morning." I knew Louis' words were supposed to reassure me, but they only made things worse.

"Tomorrow? The show's tomorrow! When are we gonna rehearse? Does he even know how to play the song?" I questioned in slight panic, wincing when I stupidly attempted to grab the steaming hot toast that just popped out of the toaster bare handed.

"He'll be here just in time for the show, don't worry. And Michael made sure to catch him up on everything. He's the one that recommended him actually."

"I swear to you, Tomlinson. If the guy Michael suggested turns out to be crap I'll chase him to the ends of the earth. I'm already furious with him for dropping out so suddenly." Louis laughed from the other line, though we both know I wasn't really joking. I was fortunate to have someone like him manage me, a guy so close to my age that understood me and supported me through the past five years of my career. We were both each other's firsts, meaning I was the first artist he began managing on his own and he was the first and only person to manage me since the day I signed with my label. I loved him to pieces, but I could honestly kill him sometimes. I'm pretty sure he feels the same way.

"You've nothing to worry about, love. I've checked his material and past works out. To be honest, he's a bit too good to be true. So I have no doubt he'll be able to fill Michael's shoes, maybe even exceed him."

"I sure hope so." I sighed in defeat, glancing down at my phone I had set on the counter on speaker for the entire call.

"Everything's gonna be fine. Now, I want you to rest those vocal chords and get ready for your big night tomorrow. I have a feeling that after that, you're gonna blow up even more." Louis was always the one who believed in me the most, even when I didn't believe in me myself. He fought to grant me the creative freedom to release the music that I wanted, going as far as risking his job for me. But it all was starting to pay off.