TONE DEAF

Chapter 2

"You did what?" I had never seen Corrie's eyes so big before.

"I volunteered to be a 'band baby'." I sighed.

"I know I may sound ignorant,but what is a 'band baby'?"

"A service monitor. I'm supposed to put the instruments away."

"I can't believe you,Maddy. First, you're dying to drop this class. The next minute, you've not only decided to stay in it, but you're a band baby. Now you're trying to learn the keyboard. It just doesn't make sense."

Nothing made sense to me these days. I know it was insane to stay in the class, that I would fail miserably, but I couldn't help myself. Why couldn't I be levelheaded like Corrie when it came to making decisions?

I stared at the piano. My parents were music lovers, and they had tried desperately to make me and my sister Stacy into concert pianists. Finally my instructor had told my parents to give up; we did not have an ounce of talent between us and they were going to have to accept it.

"Steve is the musical one in the family," I said out loud. "Steve's talented don't you think?" Steve's my ten-year-old brother. He has an ear for music, though I have no idea where it came from.

"What does that have to do anything?" Corrie said,laughing. "Sure he's talented,musically,but you're talented in other ways. You're a terrific actress. You were great in last summer's production of Arsenic and Old Lace."

"Thanks,Cor" I needed to hear that. I was feeling so insecure about band that I had forgotten I could do anything well. "Now are you ready to start?" Corrie's long and elegant fingers were poised above the keys.

"I guess so"

"Repeat after me" she commanded. "DO"

"DO" I sang.

Corrie winced. 'Listen ,Madeline" She hit each key carefully . "Do,re,mi,fa,so,la,ti,do," She gracefully sang.

"Do,re,mi . . . . . no, I can't do it" I protested as my voice cracked.

"Then why are you staying in the class?"

"I had no choice" I lied.

"That's ridiculous.People always have choices. What's up?"

I thought for a minute. Should I tell her the truth? Just this past fall Corrie had laughed at me for switching out of three different acting classes. When I explained that each teacher was a 'cold fish' she'd teased me for weeks. I didn't want Corrie to make fun of me for staying in band class just for a guy I didn't know.

"Come on,Mad,tell me " she coaxed. "We don't have any secrets between us. I mean,I always tell you everything." I thought about that time two years ago when Corrie's dad had lost he's job and had been out of work for six months. Corrie had been really embarrassed,but she hasn't hesitated to tell me about it.

"Well . . . . " I began.

"Wait,I know!" Corrie grinned widely. "I'll bet it's a boy. You've got a crush on a boy in band class and you're too embarrassed to tell me!!"

I sighed heavily."You know me too well. So,what should I do?"

"Let's eat now and talk later. We'll figure something out."

"Good idea!!!" I stood up, anxious to forget about music for a while,Corrie and I raced down to the first floor of my family's apartment. We lived on two floors of a brownstone in th e Park Slope area of Brooklyn.

"How's music practice,girls?"

"It's okay,mom,we've decided to take a break for a while. We're starved" I told her,clutching my stomach dramatically.