Rewind With A Superstar System

Chapter 141: Virus Outbreak

<🎧 Song Recommendation: STORY by NF>

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For three agonizing seconds, the Beverly Hilton ballroom was trapped in a state of collective denial.

The music industry’s elite simply stared at the stage, waiting for the punchline.

Then, the stage manager sprinted out from behind the curtains, completely ignoring the broadcast cameras. He dropped to his knees beside the CEO of Cloudary Holdings.

"Medic! We need a medic up here right now!"

The illusion shattered.

There wasn’t a wild stampede, but the panic was still evident. A woman in the second row let out a scream.

Chairs scraped violently against the floor as hundreds of executives and artists stood up, talking over each other, trying to figure out what was happening.

Hotel security and event staff immediately moved to secure the room, blocking the main double doors to keep the aisles clear for the paramedics.

But wealthy, powerful people didn’t like being told to stay put. The VIPs began arguing with the guards, demanding to be let out. The room quickly devolved into disharmony.

Von didn’t wait to see if Rex would wake up. He had seen the pale blue tint on the man’s lips. The H-19 virus had officially made landfall in America.

He immediately reached into his jacket pocket, about to use his phone to send a text to get Bunny’s attention at the back of the hall. But as Von’s fingers brushed the screen of his device, a massive shadow fell over their table.

Bunny was already right in front of him before he even looked up.

The giant didn’t need to say a single word. He understood the assignment perfectly. Bunny immediately positioned his broad shoulders between the surging crowd and Von’s table, creating a barrier that gave them the space they needed.

"We’re leaving," Von made Emily aware after seeing her frozen, confused expression.

Olivia was already moving. Operating entirely on adrenaline, she stood up, unzipped the bag she had brought, and quickly packed up the three glass trophies sitting under their table.

They were originally meant to be four physical awards at their table, but Von had handed Noah the trophy for Northern Attitude on stage.

Von would receive his own personalized one from the committee sometime later in the mail.

Bunny pushed forward, carving a direct path through the frantic room.

As they moved briskly past the center tables, Emily was still looking back over her shoulder at the chaos on the stage.

"Did he have a stroke?"

"Don’t look," Von instructed from behind his mask. He reached out, tapping Emily’s arm. "You should fix your own mask. Wear it properly."

Emily blinked, momentarily stunned by his strict tone, but she complied, pulling the black fabric tightly over her nose and mouth.

Von kept his eyes locked on the exit. This wasn’t the Corona outbreak from his past life. This was H-19, and from the reports he had been reading, the onset was terrifyingly fast.

He didn’t want to take any chances with its spread. Who knew if the System could even help him if he caught the virus?

Suffocating on a hospital ventilator would be a pathetic way to die after everything he had accomplished. He wasn’t going to let that happen.

Bunny led them completely away from the bottleneck at the main lobby, opting to push through the heavy swinging side doors near the kitchen.

The catering staff were pressed nervously against the stainless-steel walls, totally confused by the sudden influx of leaving VIPs abandoning the broadcast.

They didn’t stop to explain. They burst out of the loading dock doors into the cool Los Angeles night, right where their SUV was already idling in the alleyway.

Von climbed into the back seat, pulling off his mask as the heavy doors shut and sealed out the frantic noise of the hotel.

"We’re heading to the airport. Van Nuys Airport," Von told Bunny as the giant took the wheel.

Von leaned back into the leather seats, letting out a sigh of relief. He was genuinely impressed with how well the giant had handled the situation.

Bunny had gotten them out of a volatile, panicked room without a single scratch, and Von didn’t even have to say a word to direct him. That level of competence was exactly why Von chose him.

As the rented SUV took off, merging onto the Los Angeles streets, Von looked behind the passenger seat at Olivia.

"Olie, we’ll be booking a charter flight. Are you capable of that?"

Olivia’s eyes showed some surprise at the sudden request, but she gave a nod to show she was able, instantly pulling out her phone and opening her contacts to find an aviation broker.

Emily, however, was still trying to process the timeline. She turned in her seat to face Von.

"Excuse me. A jet? Tonight? Why the rush?" Emily asked with some panic. "Our flight is on Friday and we have press runs scheduled for tomorrow morning."

"There is no press run tomorrow," Von explained. "By tomorrow, this entire city is going to be locked down. The virus he just collapsed from, it’s airborne, and it spreads fast. If we don’t leave LA right now, we aren’t leaving at all."

Emily stopped. She looked at the certainty in his eyes. The words hit her like a bucket of ice water, and the reality of the situation finally settled in her chest.

It was really a big deal. She silently nodded, pulling out her own tablet to start canceling tomorrow’s meetings.

As they drove through the neon-lit streets of Los Angeles, Von looked out the tinted window. The city outside was completely oblivious.

People were laughing on the sidewalks, lining up outside nightclubs, living their lives as if the world wasn’t about to fundamentally change in less than twenty-four hours.

Von remembered that Alex, Noah, and the guys from Midnight were still inside the Beverly Hilton.

He couldn’t help all of them. But he had to try for Alex.

Von pulled out his phone and called Alex.

It rang three times before Alex finally picked up. Over the speaker, Von could hear the loud background noise of people talking, sirens wailing in the distance, and the general commotion on the streets outside the hotel.

"Bro, did you see that?" Alex’s voice came through the speaker. "They’re locking down the main lobby. The paramedics just wheeled him out."

"I saw it," Von sighed in relief, glad to hear he was alright and out of the danger zone.

"We already left through the back. I’m booking a private flight right now and we’re heading to Miami tonight. Get to the Van Nuys airstrip in an hour and you can fly back with us."

There was a pause on the other end of the line. The background noise of the street shifted slightly as Alex seemed to walk away from the crowd.

"Tonight?" Alex asked, sounding completely surprised by the offer. "Man, the night is just starting. And I’ve got some unfinished business out here. I’m supposed to meet a producer at a house party in the Hills in like, twenty minutes. I’ll catch my commercial flight back tomorrow."

Von narrowed his eyes. He thought back to the last time a major virus broke out in his previous life. He was making guesses based on the timeline, but COVID had been a massive deal then, and the H-19 variant looked like it might be even bigger this time.

"Alex, you don’t want to be in this city tomorrow. It’s better you come to the jet."

"I’ll be fine, bro," Alex insisted. "Even if I can’t somehow catch my flight here, I’ll be alright. I’ll call you when I land. Celebrate those trophies for me."

Before Von could argue further, the line went dead.

Emily looked at him from the opposite seat, reading his expression easily in the dim light of the SUV’s cabin.

"He’s not coming?" she asked quietly.

"Yep," Von said, slipping his phone back into his pocket. He turned his gaze back to the window, watching the city blur past them as Bunny accelerated toward the highway.

"Hopefully he stays safe, but we’re traveling tonight."