Lost in the Rhythm

A Deal with the Devil

The first thing that ruined Luz's Monday was getting a text from Willow saying that she'd gotten sick and would be missing school. Disappointed as Luz was, she wished Willow a quick recovery and promised herself she'd swing by with a Hershey bar and a balloon or something after school.

The second thing that ruined her day was the fact that her car wouldn't start because it was so goddamn cold outside. February in the Midwest sucked. She barely made it to school on time, after huffing about the lack of a delayed start despite the temperature the whole way there.

The third thing that ruined her day was being called into Bump's office before she even had the chance to put her instrument together.

As she hesitantly crossed the band room on the way to his office, she realized that Amity wasn't in class- and the bell had already rung. It was unlike her to be late. She was probably absent, like Willow was. (Luz had no idea why she was upset by this. Amity being gone was a good thing... wasn't it?)

The director was hunched over his desk when she entered, hands clasped together. If his stern expression wasn't enough to scare her, then the fact that Boscha stood at his side with her arms folded across her chest and the most infuriating smile ever on her face would have done the trick.

Oh, and there was Amity, who, for the first time since Luz had met her, looked terrified out of her mind. Her face was pale as snow (even moreso than usual) and her golden eyes flicked about nervously like she expected something to jump out at her.

Luz's heart plummeted. She knew exactly what this was about.

But why did Amity look like that?

"Good morning, Miss Noceda," Mr. Bump began. Oh no. Miss Noceda was never a good sign. "Thank you for stopping by this morning."

Her throat went dry. "Of course."

"I'd just like to take a moment to address a small issue brought to my attention by Boscha and... Miss Blight."

Luz made brief eye contact with Amity, but the flutist bit her lip and looked to the ground. What, are you in trouble too? she longed to ask, but she guessed that insinuating that the perfect Amity could ever get in trouble would only serve to enrage her. A scared and angry Amity was not something she wanted to deal with in the moment.

"Boscha revealed to me that you were actually assigned to the intermediate band upon your transfer, but lied and asked the counselor to change your schedule. Is that true?"

The accusation was jarring- it wasn't all what she'd expected Bump to say. "What?" she cried, incredulous. Who did Bump think she was? She hadn't wanted to be in the advanced band. There had just been no way she could have asked for a schedule change in front of Amity. She'd been placed here by pure mistake- a mistake she'd just never bothered to correct. "Of course it's not. I was put here on accident, I just- haven't had a chance to talk to the counselor about it."

Boscha piped up. "That's funny. Amity said that you were in the counselor's office when she met you a couple weeks ago. Couldn't you have asked for help then?"

"I-" Great, she really had backed herself into a corner, hadn't she? "I guess?" she offered weakly.

"So you were lying about it."

"I wasn't lying. It was an honest mistake. Seriously. Something wrong with the computer."

"Have fun using that to explain the conversation you were having with Miss Park and Mr. Porter on Friday."

"What conversation?"

"I don't know which story is true," Bump said. "I have a hard time believing that a band student would cheat their way into something, but at the same time... Boscha is one of my top players, and she cares deeply about the program. It takes a special kind of person to find it amusing to upset other people. I suppose you could chalk it up to immaturity, or low self esteem, or whatever else will justify it, but Miss Noceda, if she's right, this is unacceptable behavior." At this, Boscha's smirk widened. "She would never throw around false accusations about a fellow musician. If she's right, I'll have to revoke your membership in the advanced jazz band as well, despite knowing you earned that spot fairly."