The Perfect Beat

I DON'T WANT A CELEBRATION

The first day I ever got out of my room. I was watching the morning news when it flashed in the headline ‘Edna Tahoma’s 15th death anniversary was acknowledged as thousands of fans placed flower at the site of her murder.
The reporter started talking about her, how her fans loved her, how her songs are immortal and how tragic it is that no one knew where the daughter of the late superstar had disappeared during the murder. I was so caught up on the news that I didn’t notice dad saying my name. ’Emma have you forgotten?’ I jumped back to reality when he said ‘It’s your birthday!’ I looked at my dad and told him that I didn’t want to celebrate my birthday, he was giving me a disappointed look as he was convincing me to celebrate because it was my 18th birthday after all. I got up from the couch and said to him that I just don’t feel like celebrating my birthday and I don’t feel like going to school either, he then finally agreed and I headed up stairs to rest as I play my mom’s video of us over and over again. I cried my heart out for my mom, thinking about how tragic it was that her death was placed on my birthday; the one thing that connected us both was horrible.
    The song she sang to me never got released publicly. It was just the first verse and chorus. Out of nowhere I had this crazy idea so I grabbed my guitar and started to strum my way in writing the other part of the song. Putting myself in mom’s shoes seeing if I could put in the words. I imagined the things I would have done with her if she was still here. I could picture myself in my pajamas getting ready for school then her driving me off at the movies with my friends, I even imagined I had a little brother. All that went for hours and by the time I knew it I finished the song. I decided to get something from down stairs because I was getting a bit hungry, went to the fridge and got myself a pint of cookies and cream ice cream along with an apple and peanut butter then headed straight to my room.
    I was playing my guitar inside my room when I heard a knock on my door. ‘It’s Damien, can I come in?’ there was a long pause as silence drowned us both then he spoke ‘I’m really sorry that I avoided and pretended that I didn’t know you for days. I’m sorry that I didn’t told you about Brianna -- but I ended everything now, for good. I couldn’t stand to see the hurt in your eyes, me suddenly ignoring you -- I’m sorry that I hurt you. The thing is she went by my house the day we got home from the beach and threatened me that her dad would fire your dad if I still hung out with you and I didn’t want that to happen. Your dad already knows I talked with him earlier and so did your friends, they called me yesterday demanding an explanation and thankfully they believed me. Now it’s just you who needed to know. Emma?’ I paused for a while and eventually told him that he could enter. As he got inside he looked a little worried ‘Happy Birthday!’ I looked up at him and said thank you I asked him to sit down beside me ‘You know you didn’t have to do that, you just tortured yourself just for my dad to keep his job. He could still find another one’ he looked me in the eye and said ‘but I didn’t want to be the reason that he lost his, he’s a good man and I would never forgive myself for that’ I looked lovingly into his brown eyes thinking that even if he hurt me he had his reasons, all he wanted was to protect my family. ‘I forgive you’ I saw his eyes widened with joy then he threw his arms around me ‘How I’ve missed you’ I was stunned and eventually gave into his embrace ‘I’ve missed you too’. I noticed that he saw the notebook that I was using to write the lyrics on ‘Wanna hear it?’ I asked him then played him the song I was working on. The moment I stopped he said ‘That’s your mom’s song, and you finished writing it?’ ‘Yeah, It took me like two whole hours’ he looked at me with amazement ‘Wow, that fast? You really are talented and I have to say, the song was beautiful. I’m not the one who has a birthday but I felt like I was the one who was given a present’ I giggled a little before I reached for a slice of apple and dipped it in peanut butter. ‘Okay weird girl with a peanut buttered apple, speaking of gifts close your eyes and hold out your hands’ I held out my hands and felt something heavy.
     ‘Okay, open them’ when I opened my eyes it was a microphone filled with violet rhinestone ‘Oh Ian, I love it and it’s my favorite color too. Thank you!’ I hugged him but strangely he pushed me back lightly ‘Wait! there’s more, turn it around and tell me who’s name is written on it’ as I saw what was written my eyes widened, I couldn’t believe it Edna Tahoma ‘But, How?’ I stared at him in disbelief ‘This was the package that was brought to me earlier than expected. Well I pulled some strings, I have to tell you it was hard getting the original but it’s all worth it because it made you smile’ I was crying while staring at my mother’s microphone in my hands. That’s why he didn’t want me to find out what was really inside the box. ‘This must have cost you a lot, I mean I can’t accept this’ I insisted in giving his gift back but he placed his hands on mine and said ‘Hey, it’s okay keep it, at least now you have something that can bring you closer to your mom’ I smiled at him and gave him the tightest embrace ‘You know, you’ve given me so much and I -- well I never given you anything’ he withdrawn from our embrace and said softly ‘Just you being you whenever you’re with me is enough’ we shared a moment of silence and I asked if he wanted something to eat ‘Yeah, but not those peanut buttered apples ihck’ After what he said we found us both running down the stairs as I chased him with an apple smothered in peanut butter ‘come on you’ll like it when you taste it’ I shouted. Was chasing him around the kitchen island when he rapidly went outside to the garden and stubbornly closed the door infront of me ‘I would prefer a birthday cake than what you’re holding right there in you’re hand miss Emma’ I heard his distant voice from across the door.
     ‘Damian Banner! You open this door right now!’ I said angrily ‘Nah-ah, there’s no cake’ my patience didn’t last and before I knew it I shouted ‘Go buy a cake then!’ after a few seconds of silence I heard him say 'okay'. Was he going to buy a cake then? I was still pulling on the door when it instatly swung open and I fell down on the floor. When I stood up I saw my dad, Damien and my friends video chatting from California. The set-up on the garden was so pretty with all the lights and a small cottage wrapped in white and purple cloth with three bean bags and a cute little table at the center. ‘I told you I didn’t want a celebration’ Damien went up to me and said while squinting his eyes ‘do you really though?’ then he brought a birthday cake in front of me ‘told you I’d buy a birthday cake and the best part is it’s a carrot cake’ he then grabbed a lighter and lit the candles I looked at the cake and written on it was ‘happy 18th birthday our dance-less songbird’ ‘I agreed to put that there!’ my dad shouted from the table while holding his camera. I looked up at him and gave him an annoyed glare ‘I can dance you know.!’ Then my dad loudly said ‘Ah no, you don’t.’ I heard Damien giggling ‘We’re just teasing, I know you’re a good dancer’ then gave me a cute wink ‘Come on, blow out your candle already I’m starving’ my dad jokingly said. I blew my candle and made my wish then my dad told us to get closer together for us to take a picture. The second he was done I heard my high school friends coughing uncontrollably, I excused myself and came up to them to have a little chat.
     They were video calling from their school, they had a vacant subject so it was okay for them to use their phones ‘So that’s him, are you sure you guys aren’t together?’ Stacy asked jokingly as they all giggled. I told them that I do like him but we weren’t an item and that we were just very good friends. They went silent for a second then screamed ‘THEN TELL HIM!’ I panicked because then Damien came close to me and asked ‘tell him what?’ he brought me a slice of cake on a plate. I thanked him while I was so nervous that I couldn’t feel my feet. They all said hi to Damien and I introduced him to them ‘It’s a pleasure to finally meet you all I would love to stay and chat but I have to man the grill, so I'll leave it to you birthday girl’ he placed his hand on my shoulder before he got up to go to the grill which was across the patio.
My eyes followed him on his way to the grill then instantly turned my head back to the screen when I heard Kate say ‘just look at the way you look at him, girl you’re in love!’ my friend agreed to her while nodding their heads. ‘I can’t and I shouldn’t’ I exclaimed as I lowered my gaze onto my hands. ‘Girl, why wait for a man when you can say it in front of their face?’ Said Brooke. Stacy followed, saying ‘well if you won’t tell him, we will!’ I pulled the laptop closer as I said to them that they shouldn’t while telling them that I will be the one to say it myself, I’m just waiting for the right timing. ‘You’re call babe just promise us you would tell him, okay?’. I nodded my head assuring them that I will confess my feelings to him when I’m ready.