“The room is full of people and I’m the only one who’s not there. But maybe you’d see me from the corner of your eye.” Zoë’s voice projected over the crowded gymnasium on Friday night. Her sweaty palms stayed glued to the microphone as she let out her strong octaves. Behind her, Brian, Jerome and Ricky backed her up with the unique rhythms they’d spent years perfecting.
Almost every person in the gym danced happily to the hard core music that blared out at them from the large speakers. The excited yells in the room had burst out before the band had even got to the chorus of the first song they played. But the band was used to that kind of attention.
The first gig they had ever played surprised them because of how the audience had reacted to their acoustics. But now, that they had done it enough times it still made their adrenaline pump at the thought that they could put themselves out there and other people could enjoy it as well.
Zoë on the other hand, had been ecstatic when the first few people let out joyous screams. It had made her jump up and down to the music as she continued to nail every note. It seemed as the more the audience got into it, the more her excitement grew. It was her first live show and she knew she would remember it forever. She stole a glance at Jerome who was also getting a kick out of the crowd’s excitement. It was wonderful to be sharing such a significant moment with somebody she truly cared about.
As the song collided to a deafening close, she knew this was her cue. She winked at Brian and Ricky signaling them to get ready. Ricky bent over and rummaged through a folder that had been on the floor next to his feet. He found the two sheets of paper he had been looking for and got up from behind the drum set. He handed them to Jerome.
For a second, Jerome stared at his cousin, confused. Then, he realized Ricky had handed him music to a new song. He skimmed it and realized he not only hadn’t played the song before, he also hadn’t heard it. He looked in Zoë’s direction to maybe get some explanation at what was going on but all she was doing was smiling.
Zoë usually wasn’t the kind of person to express her feelings publicly but she felt that this was something she had to do. Her feelings were solid and there was no way to hide them any longer. Already holding every person in the gym’s attention she said, “These past few weeks have been a journey of self-discovery for me. I never expected my life to change so drastically in such a short period of time. But now that I have gotten my life back together I would like to give a shout out to the person who helped me find myself again. This next song I wrote is for Jerome.” She turned around to find her boyfriend completely taken aback by the sudden announcement. She almost laughed to herself at his reaction and winked at him. Then she turned to face the audience as the song slowly arose from the strings of Brian’s fine-tuned guitar.
“I wake up in the morning,” she began as Jerome concentrated on the sheet music. Throughout the song he and Zoë exchanged a few infatuated glances. At first, her face was hot with embarrassment. Her voice shook a bit as she looked to the audience. She watched as her friends listened to her pour out her heart. When she looked into the faces of her true friends she realized that she no longer had to feel embarrassed or hide her feelings. It was finally time to go back to being her old self and she knew it wouldn’t be difficult.
With her strong will power, the shame lifted from her cheeks as she sang the chorus of the song she had worked so hard on with Ricky and Brian for the past few days. She winked at D.J. who had her complete support into Zoë’s contribution to the band. She knew she wouldn’t have gotten anywhere without D.J.
Next she glanced in Emma’s direction who was mesmerized by Ricky’s presence. After all, it was her first time seeing her boyfriend performing and she was excited at the prospect of his talent. Zoë was happy for the two of them and couldn’t have asked for a better sister. Even if it meant that Emma would bug her every once in a while to keep her side of the room clean. All of that was worth it to be able to be like everybody else and finally have a sibling.
But then again, that was one of the reasons for the switch. Zoë just wanted to know what it felt like to be like everybody else by having a boyfriend of her own. Although her plan had backfired, she didn’t regret a moment of it because of the fact that she learned an important lesson.
Sometimes being different is lonely but Zoë knew if she just continued to be herself she knew she would be able to find herself over and over again in life. She also knew if she kept to the close friendships she already had going, she would be able to get through anything.
After the song was over the band stood together on the stage and took a bow before the audience. Then, Emma and D.J. ran up on stage to embrace their boyfriends and the audience applauded. Zoë smiled, grateful to be a part of something that made her feel so special. When she glanced up at Jerome she noticed the sheer appreciation in his eyes as he leaned down to give her a small kiss. Then they all walked off the stage, the echo of the applause still ringing in Zoë’s ears.
Almost every person in the gym danced happily to the hard core music that blared out at them from the large speakers. The excited yells in the room had burst out before the band had even got to the chorus of the first song they played. But the band was used to that kind of attention.
The first gig they had ever played surprised them because of how the audience had reacted to their acoustics. But now, that they had done it enough times it still made their adrenaline pump at the thought that they could put themselves out there and other people could enjoy it as well.
Zoë on the other hand, had been ecstatic when the first few people let out joyous screams. It had made her jump up and down to the music as she continued to nail every note. It seemed as the more the audience got into it, the more her excitement grew. It was her first live show and she knew she would remember it forever. She stole a glance at Jerome who was also getting a kick out of the crowd’s excitement. It was wonderful to be sharing such a significant moment with somebody she truly cared about.
As the song collided to a deafening close, she knew this was her cue. She winked at Brian and Ricky signaling them to get ready. Ricky bent over and rummaged through a folder that had been on the floor next to his feet. He found the two sheets of paper he had been looking for and got up from behind the drum set. He handed them to Jerome.
For a second, Jerome stared at his cousin, confused. Then, he realized Ricky had handed him music to a new song. He skimmed it and realized he not only hadn’t played the song before, he also hadn’t heard it. He looked in Zoë’s direction to maybe get some explanation at what was going on but all she was doing was smiling.
Zoë usually wasn’t the kind of person to express her feelings publicly but she felt that this was something she had to do. Her feelings were solid and there was no way to hide them any longer. Already holding every person in the gym’s attention she said, “These past few weeks have been a journey of self-discovery for me. I never expected my life to change so drastically in such a short period of time. But now that I have gotten my life back together I would like to give a shout out to the person who helped me find myself again. This next song I wrote is for Jerome.” She turned around to find her boyfriend completely taken aback by the sudden announcement. She almost laughed to herself at his reaction and winked at him. Then she turned to face the audience as the song slowly arose from the strings of Brian’s fine-tuned guitar.
“I wake up in the morning,” she began as Jerome concentrated on the sheet music. Throughout the song he and Zoë exchanged a few infatuated glances. At first, her face was hot with embarrassment. Her voice shook a bit as she looked to the audience. She watched as her friends listened to her pour out her heart. When she looked into the faces of her true friends she realized that she no longer had to feel embarrassed or hide her feelings. It was finally time to go back to being her old self and she knew it wouldn’t be difficult.
With her strong will power, the shame lifted from her cheeks as she sang the chorus of the song she had worked so hard on with Ricky and Brian for the past few days. She winked at D.J. who had her complete support into Zoë’s contribution to the band. She knew she wouldn’t have gotten anywhere without D.J.
Next she glanced in Emma’s direction who was mesmerized by Ricky’s presence. After all, it was her first time seeing her boyfriend performing and she was excited at the prospect of his talent. Zoë was happy for the two of them and couldn’t have asked for a better sister. Even if it meant that Emma would bug her every once in a while to keep her side of the room clean. All of that was worth it to be able to be like everybody else and finally have a sibling.
But then again, that was one of the reasons for the switch. Zoë just wanted to know what it felt like to be like everybody else by having a boyfriend of her own. Although her plan had backfired, she didn’t regret a moment of it because of the fact that she learned an important lesson.
Sometimes being different is lonely but Zoë knew if she just continued to be herself she knew she would be able to find herself over and over again in life. She also knew if she kept to the close friendships she already had going, she would be able to get through anything.
After the song was over the band stood together on the stage and took a bow before the audience. Then, Emma and D.J. ran up on stage to embrace their boyfriends and the audience applauded. Zoë smiled, grateful to be a part of something that made her feel so special. When she glanced up at Jerome she noticed the sheer appreciation in his eyes as he leaned down to give her a small kiss. Then they all walked off the stage, the echo of the applause still ringing in Zoë’s ears.