A Light in the Dark

Chapter 20

"Miss Cabello, a moment, please?" her professor called out after dismissing the rest of the students.

"Someone's in trouble," Dinah sang under her breath. "I'll wait for you outside, Mila! Have fun!"

"Thanks," she grumbled and watched how the taller girl joined the others on the way out.

She sighed quietly, before cautiously stepping up to Professor Barnes. "Yes, sir?"

"I'm going to be blunt, Miss Cabello. You're slacking."

Camila blinked. That was a word that had never been directed at her before. "I beg your pardon?"

"I had always been quite keen on your writing... but in the past few months your lyrics have become meaningless. Empty. Void. Frankly, you're going to fail this course." Professor Barnes frowned, his bright blue eyes missing the typical amused twinkle.

She stared at her professor in disbelief.

"I'm sorry," she finally said, "I think I misunderstood... did you just say that I'm going to fail?"

"Why, yes." He inclined his head slightly. "You are."

"How can you even say that my lyrics are empty?" she asked incredulously. She had never failed anything. Not even PE in school. And that meant something!

"They have always been dark," he slowly said, nodding to himself. "But I could feel your sadness and your inner conflicts from reading your words. But in the last, let's say... three months? They were only words. As if you had written them because you had to. You aren't expressing yourself, they are missing your passion, your feelings."

Camila bit her lip. She had been distracted by her problems and had been thinking about... she had been contemplating things. There had only been one emotion and that had been something she couldn't put into a song which would be read by others without drawing too much attention.

"You were one of my best students, Miss Cabello," her professor continued. "You seem or at least used to be in a difficult place. How about you try something different for your next project? Look for the light in your life. Let it inspire you."

She furrowed her brow. Did her professor really just tell her that she should stop writing depressing lyrics?

"You may go now."

"Thank you, sir."

As soon as she closed the door, Dinah came up to her. "What did he want?"

Camila shook her head, still feeling somewhat numb.

"He's just... he was giving me some advice," she answered slowly.

"Oh-kay," Dinah drawled, raising her eyebrows slightly. "Anyway... let's go and meet Lauser. We have to set my plan in motion as soon as possible. She's probably in the cafeteria right now, it's perfect for phase one!"

She hadn't really put her heart into the last songs, but were they really so bad that she was now failing? She couldn't wrap her head around that word... fail. Failure.

"Mila, don't just stare at the wall like that, you're creeping me out!" Dinah linked arms with her and pulled her along. "Like I said, she's going to be in the cafeteria... maybe with some of her boring friends from this business stuff..."

She was a failure, Camila suddenly realized. She always had been. She never accomplished anything. It never worked out the way she wanted it to or how it was supposed to.

"... and just be yourself, or maybe a little bit more outgoing, if you know what I mean? Try a little flirting, but don't be too obvious. We're still only in phase one and testing the waters, so to speak..."