Chilly and crisp, the December air bites at my skin as I walk towards John Quincy Adams middle school. It is a Monday, the beginning of a long week at school.
Riley walks along side me. A bubbly brunette, Riley Matthews has been my best friend for as long as I can remember. She's everything I could wish for in a best friend: she is supportive, caring, and always keeps my secrets. This quality especially comes in handy when it comes to crushes.
For the longest time, Riley and I liked the same boy, Lucas Friar. He knew of her crush but never found out about mine, thanks to Riley's keen sense of... when to keep her mouth shut. I was pretty sure he liked her back, so I didn't want anything to stop them from becoming a couple. Her feelings eventually wore away, though, so now I'm in a new predicament. To tell or not to tell. So far, I've settled on 'Not'.
Lucas is our friend, anyhow, and I am content with that. Riley, Lucas, Farkle, Zay and I are the closest knit group I've ever known. None of us want that to break apart, and I certainly don't want to be the cause.
Riley opens the tall doors, holding them open for me to enter.
"Thanks, Riles," I say.
"Anytime, peaches," she replies.
We turn the corner to our lockers, located right outside Mr. Matthews's classroom. Yeah, Riley's dad teaches our history class.
"Ladies," we hear a voice from behind us say.
Without turning around, we utter an enthusiastic "Farkle!"
After forcefully shoving our backpacks into our lockers, we turn to face him.
"Did you hear about the holiday concert?" Lucas asks, walking over. Zay followed close behind, flirting with the cheerleaders on each side of him.
"Yeah. You gonna sing, Huckleberry? It ain't country music."
He smiles. "Yes, and you can make fun of me," He laughs.
I do too. Farkle looks back and forth from one of our faces to the other. I think he can tell what's going on. After Riley, Farkle is my oldest friend. We met in first grade, when he "fell in love" with both Riley and I. Now, I think that attraction has moved on to just Riley, which I'm happy about.
"What about you, Maya?" Lucas asks. "You going to sing?"
I shrug. "I don't really want to. Anyone can do it if they choose, but the solos always go to the best singers."
"You could definitely get a solo!" Lucas encourages.
"I don't want to hope too much," I say, but secretly, I'm glad to have his support. "You hope for things, you get disappointed."
The bell rings, sending us into the classroom.
"Taylor Swift." Mr. Matthews begins.
"Finally, a history lesson I like!" I exclaim. This gets a few chuckles from my classmates.
"I won't be playing 'Shake it Off', if that's what you're thinking," He clarifies. I fake a pout.
"You all know her, right?" He asks.
Everyone raises their hands.
"Okay. And you know that she hasn't always been famous. She was a kid like you once."
"No duh, Matthews," I roll my eyes.
He ignores this comment. "Before becoming a worldwide superstar, Taylor had to experience rejection. People thought she was too young and inexperienced to become what she has. She sure showed them."
"But, Dad, what does that have to do with us?" Riley asks.
Mr. Matthews looks puzzled. "Does it always have to be about you?"
"It always is, sir," Lucas answers.
"Okay. It is," Mr. Matthews admits. "The winter concert is coming up. As 8th graders, you'll all be participating. There are solos to be had. Find your Taylor. Don't shy away because you think you won't make it. You'll never know if you don't try."
The bell rings, and we hurriedly pack up to leave the classroom.
We walk towards the music room. I hear Christmas songs playing inside before I even open the door.
I quietly sing "Twelve Days of Christmas" as I walk. I can't wait for the holidays.
"And a partridge in a pear treeeeeee," I sing to myself. My voice isn't alone, though. I look to my right and find Lucas singing with me for the final line. We share a smile.
Practice goes well, for the most part. Since it's the first one, we mostly just get our music and meet each other. Miss Newsarelli announces that auditions for solos and duets will be after school a week from today. I can't be sure, but I think she winks at me as she says it. I take the audition music and shove it deep into my backpack.
A/N: First chapter, yay! Leave your thoughts below :)
