Melody - JATP x Soulmate AU

Chapter 7

A beat passes while everyone soaks in the impromptu performance just put on for them. No ideas yet on how to explain this all to the crowd.

"Hey, where'd the band go?" So, they did see the band. That would have been embarrassing to look like I was sharing a mic with air. Technically, ghosts are air, but not the point I'm trying to make.

"Wait, were those holograms?" Oh my gosh, your genius, Kayla. I don't know how you came up with that idea, but I'm forever grateful.

"Yes! They were holograms. I'd explain it all, but, you know, science." Science that I've never learned and probably never will. Luckily, for me, nobody here is really all that great at science, so I'm lucky I go to a performing arts school. It seems to be a good enough explanation for everyone, because within a few minutes, the gym is cleared out.

Unfortunately, the only people left are the principal and Mrs. Harrison. I am so getting in trouble for this.

"Mrs. Harrison, I'm sorry I didn't ask for permission, I just wanted to prove—" She cuts me off with a sad smile and something I was hoping I wouldn't hear. But, it's what I was expecting.

"I'm sorry, Julie." If I don't perform, I'm out. "There's only so many spots."

"Well, as much as I didn't approve of your little stunt you pulled, but I would be the worst principal ever if I didn't let Julie Molina back into the music program." She makes it sound like I'm the next superstar. I was just trying to get back into the program, nothing more. "But, when you win your first Grammy, I want to be thanked." A... a Grammy? I mean, I'm good, but not that good. And then, it hits me. I'm in the music program again! Oh my god, I can't believe it!

"Thank you!" I wrap my arms around the principal before I can think twice and she seems a little shocked by the display of affection. Or, in my case, appreciation. Flynn is just outside the door, so when I come out of the gymnasium, my wide smile and happy bouncing is more than enough to tell her I am back in the program.

"I'm back in the music program!" Her shriek pierces my eardrums, but before my hands can cover my ears, her arms pin mine in a tight hug that almost cuts off circulation.

"I can't believe it!" Flynn screeches, and a few people look at us funny, but ignore us seconds later. "So, when did you become a part of a band?" I can't tell her, because once I do, she'll never see me the same. Having a ghost as a soulmate basically means I'll never find mine.

"Oh, we're not a band. I mean, they're a band, a hologram band, but I'm not a part of it." I ramble on, hoping she doesn't pick up on the lies I'm feeding her. "They were just playing with me to help me get back my spot."

"Are you lying to me, Julie?" She figured it out.

"Yeah," I mumble, praying she's not angry.

"Since when have we lied to each other, Jules?" My heart sinks into the floor because her voice is laced with a venom I've never heard from her. She storms away before I can manage to say anything else, leaving me to wonder how angry my best friend is at me.

"Good job Julie. That song was sick!" One of the many guys in the music program tells me in passing, but his comment, along with so many others, don't even register in my head as I wonder how I'm supposed to explain this to Flynn.

The rest of the day seems to pass by as slow as a tortoise, while I wish it was going at the speed of a hare. All I do during my classes is wonder how I could explain this all to her without a look of pity or some kind of sorrowful connotation. Sure, there are notes to take and quizzes to finish, but it all seems irrelevant if the one person I can count on to have my back—outside of my family—despises me. And with the news that these guys in my mom's studio really are ghosts, I have to find someone to fill the void my person won't fill.