The show was less than two weeks away, and I was already feeling the pressure of being the only person in the percussion section learning the piece. It was technical and I haven’t been able to grab the hook the way I would normally do on a piece. I felt my stomach tie itself in a knot when Mr. Harrisburg had us set up for this particular piece.
I don’t hear anything or anyone besides the sweet, soft voice of a girl. I look up and see Sophie standing there, watching me tune the drum set for this particular piece.
“Hi, Milo,” Sophie said and smiled. I couldn’t help but smile back.
“Scout,” I said and leaned back in my chair. “And what do I owe for this surprise visit in Percussion Paradise?” Sophie immediately laughed.
“Percussion paradise?” Sophie questioned.
“Two tickets to paradise,” I said in a sing-song melody. Sophie laughed and shook her head as she took a seat next to me. “What’s up, Scout?”
“I was going to ask you if you wanted to practice for the show after school,” Sophie stated, picking at her fingernails.
“Why so nervous?” I questioned, noticing her hands fidget on her lap. She immediately stops.
“Well,” Sophie began to say. “I’m usually never the one to ask to hang out, and I don’t know if you’re busy doing other things like being a dual major.” I rolled my eyes at Sophie, but smiling to let her know I wasn’t serious.
“You know you can always ask to hang out with me,” I said. “And you know I will always say yes.” Sophie smiled and immediately cleared her throat.
“It’s always fun practicing with you,” Sophie pointed out. “Plus, it gives me an excuse to practice anywhere else but my house.”
“Another video visit from your dad?” I asked. Sophie nodded her head.
“My mom is supposed to see him today,” Sophie said. I nodded my head as she spoke. I know how hard it was for her to talk about her dad. I cant imagine not being able to see or be with someone you loved every single day. “And knowing my mom, she is going to take away all of my practice time to sit in this call and I just don’t have the energy today to do that.”
“It’s cool,” I reassured Sophie. “I’m down to distract you with music.” I smiled at Sophie, which makes her smile. Finally. “You know, you should just permanently switch your seat next to me; it’s not like he comes into class anymore.”
“But I don’t play the drums,” Sophie said.
“I’ll give you another drum lesson when we hang out,” I insisted. “And then you can teach me a couple of things on the violin.”
“If you learn the violin, I’m out a spot in the strings section,” Sophie commented. “You’ll be so good, you could be a one-man string section.”
“Well I guess you’re going to have to take my drum lessons seriously,” I teased. Sophie nudged me on my shoulder. Mr. Harrisburg clears his throat, in which Sophie immediately gets up from the seat and rushes to her section.
“Good afternoon, class,” he addresses the class. “As you may know, our mid-winter showcase is two weeks away. This show is a very important one as there will be some special people watching in the audience.” The class begins to softly chatter in excitement. My dad had told me that potential colleges scout freshman for these specialized programs; they basically work with you for the time you’re in high school and pay for your college when you graduate. It was something that my dad did when he was a student at Waverly all those years ago. I can understand why he’s been so pushy about me being good at both of my majors.
In true fashion, the classroom door opens, and in walks in Aaron Serrano. Mr. Harrisburg turns his head and looks at him.
“Aaron,” he addresses him as he tries to sneak past him. “Please see me after class today.” The class snickers to themselves before Mr. Harrisburg quiets the class. Aaron sits in his seat, next to mine, taking out his notebook and sheet music. I slightly shook my head; how can he get away being absent for so long without getting his status suspended?
“I would like to start with percussion today,” Mr. Harrisburg said as he looks in my direction. “Milo, Aaron; please flip to the last four measures of your section.” I couldn’t help but grin a the fact that Aaron has no idea what we’ve been working on and that he’s about to make himself look like a fool. Payback’s a bitch, huh? I quickly open my book to the song that Mr. Harrisburg is referring to and I immediately panic. Where the fuck is this sheet music? I look at Mr. Harrisburg, who is looking at me. “Are you ready, Milo?”
“Uhm, yeah,” I answered, trying to play it cool. Mr. Harrisburg counts us into the piece in which I nervously wait to start playing. I look over at Aaron, flipping through the pages of the music before we come in to play. How the hell did he get this music?
One, two, three, and–
To my surprise, Aaron and I begin to play at the same time, and for the first time actually sound like one section. I tried to not look in his direction, but I was genuinely curious how he knew the piece just as good as I did.
“Okay, okay,” Mr. Harrisburg stopped us. “This is the best I’ve heard you both play together. Well done.” I finally look over to Aaron, sitting in his seat like what he did wasn’t a big deal. How did he learn this piece so quick? How did he even get the sheet music? Aaron looked at me and rolled his eyes, making notes on the sheet music as the rehearsal went on. Something is hella weird.
…
The bell rings and everyone begins packing their bags to leave. As I started to put my books away, I see Aaron walking past me to leave. I don’t know what possessed me to say anything to him; I just do.
“Yo, Aaron,” I called out. Aaron stops to look at me; clearly he’s confused that out of all people, I’m the one calling for him. I’m just as confused. “Got a minute?”
“For you?” Aaron asked. “No.”
“Sorry,” I quickly said. “Don’t mean to take up your precious hallway time with Mollie.”
“Yeah, my girlfriend,” Aaron emphasized. The sound still makes my skin crawl.
“Yeah,” I played along, trying to not him get the best of me. “Tell her that the next time she needs to steal my sheet music in order for you to learn it to let me know in advance.”
“The fuck are you talking about?” Aaron asked, annoyed now.
“Just admit it, dude,” I said, now directly looking at Aaron at his face. “How the hell do you miss all these classes, yet you have the sheet music for a song we just started to learn, and you knew perfectly?”
“It’s called being good at your major,” Aaron scoffed, trying to walk away from me.
“Sure,” I continued to say. “But it’s a coincidence that my sheet music just magically disappeared the day you finally show up to class with the music and knowing how to play it already.”
“So you’re accusing Mollie of stealing your sheet music?” Aaron asked before laughing. “Damn, that’s suppose to be your best friend, dude.”
“Damn,” I mocked. “That’s suppose to be your girlfriend; why would you have her steal my music?”
“Listen, jerk,” Aaron spat out, getting close to me now. “I don’t need to steal your fucking sheet music.”
“So where is it?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” Aaron started to get louder. “But I don’t need to be stealing your shit, and I wouldn’t tell Mollie to do some shit like that.” He points in Sophie’s direction, which startles her. “Now go bitch about it with your band-filler violinist girlfriend.” Mr. Harrisburg immediately calls out our names to stop arguing. The class quiets down and everyone is now walking away from Aaron and I.
“Aaron, I told you to see me after class; Milo, keep it moving and go to your next class.” I grabbed my backpack from the ground and look at Sophie. She quickly puts her head down and walks towards the exit of the classroom. Just when she was getting more confident in her craft. I sighed, leaving the classroom as well.
Letters From Liz. 