Marching On The Club Book 3

Chapter 37

Chapter 37
Erin put all the blue ribbons with all the girls names on it on a table in the band room. "Hey, ladies; come get your ribbons," she said. I got in line behind Haley to get my ribbon with my name on it. "Are you and William dating," she asked.
"Umm.... No... Why do you ask?"
"Everyone says that you two are," she said.
'Oh, I knew this would happen. Now everyone is going to get into my business and they're all going to ask me if we're dating. Why,' I asked myself.
I collected the blue ribbon with my name on it, it also had "Went Worth Band 14" written on it. 'I will treasure this forever,' I thought to myself. I walked to the bathroom to do my hair. I put it up in a bun due to my hair being short. I then tried to put the blue ribbon in my hair and tie it the way that I tie my shoelaces, but it wasn't too long before the short ends of my hair fell onto my face for they were too short to reach all the way in the back. I then walked back in the band room, and I found Johanna.
"Can you fix my hair for me?"
"Sure, just turn around sweetie," she said.
I turned around and sat down for her. She untied the blue ribbon and removed the hair tie from my hair. She put my hair in a bun, and used hair pins to hold the lose ends back as she talked to Isabel and Erin for they were her good friends.
"There you go," she said.
"Thank you." I got up and walked to the instrument room to get my instrument out, and got ready for the game tonight.
Mr. Smith talked a little bit before we were dismissed to the football field, or should I say before we marched to the football field. "Our goal this year is to go to the trop," Mr. Smith said. 'Man, everyone is talking about going to the trop! Even Mr. Smith himself. Is this what the band all that it has become? What am I doing in here; I'm wasting my time,' I sadly thought.
We were all in the stands; most of us were watching the game, but others of us were talking to their friends... 'We're in uniform; we shouldn't talk during the football game,' I thought but I kept it to myself. The quarter back ran with the football in his hands; all the other players chased him to tackle him down. The crowd on the Went Worth side went wild, and those who were watching cheered the quarter back on to keep running with the football. Brandon was on the podium; watching the game himself. Brandon was watching and waiting. Watching the game, but also waiting for instructions from Mr. Smith. Water bottles were also being passed back and around to the marching band members. I just kept my water bottle aside. "Jennifer, you know what happens when your throat dries up," William scolded me. I looked from one side of the field to the other. "I know, I'm just keeping watch." I didn't know why I said that, but I just did. The quarter back threw the football in the air, and touchdown for Went Worth! "GO BIG BLUE," Brandon shouted. We all stood up, and got ready to play Go Big Blue for the touchdown that we earned. We played, but some of us weren't paying any attention to what we were playing. Half of the band started playing while the other half of the band was sitting; they seemed to be engaged to their conservation with their buddies. "Come on, really," Mr. Smith asked after Brandon cut us off.
"Do we play like that? Are we that kind of a lazy band?"
'I'm not so sure,' I thought in response to Mr. Smith's question.
Eight minutes before Halftime, the marching band was sent to rehearse the show. We marched to the side to stretch and rehearse. We rehearsed first. We practiced the full show; the visuals, and the music. The holds, the solos, and the sets. After rehearsing the entire show, we stretched. William doesn't usually talk when we're stretching, because we're not supposed to. I mean, we can talk a little bit, but just as long as we're stretching more than we're talking we'd be fine.
"You'd make a better brass captain than me," William said.
"No, I don't have nearly as great leadership skills as you."
"Shut up, Jennifer."
I couldn't help but laugh.
"You know what I'm talking about. You run and drink water during water breaks, and then you run back to set. Then you go to set with your horn up while everyone else is in the shade with their water jugs and their friends," he said. He had a point.
We performed the show, and we had the crowd's attention the whole time. They cheered after solos, after the guard caught their flags from a high toss. It seemed as if the crowds loved our show and that they just couldn't get enough of it.
After we marched back to the stands, we removed our jacket, gloves and gannets. We folded them in our shakos, and we left them in the stands. We stood all out of order in line in the concession stand to get our food. 'It's supposed to be in Seniority,' I thought. All the lines were always in seniority. It was very quite simple; the seniors in the front of the line, the juniors behind them and so on. Katherine was way up front with her buddy Savannah. I gave them the death eyes again and my body shook with stress. 'One day, I'll kill her! One day,' I thought to myself. The food was always hot dogs, and a choice of water or soda. Because of my allergy, I get a "special," order that was made just for me; a hamburger without the bun or cheese. Just the patty; well cooked by Connor's parents. 'I'm going to miss them when their long gone,' I thought to myself. I always loved the way they cooked the juicy meaty patty just for me. My dad doesn't cook the patties nearly as good as the Waterson's family does, but his specialty is seafood. The way that my dad cooks the patties compared to the Waterson's family is the fact that it's not juicy or meaty. His patties are rough and tough; they're good, but not the best. But that's just my opinion. William sat with me for a bit. 'Every time,' I asked myself. 'What is so special about me? Why me,' I asked myself again. Ashley came sitting near me. She gave me the face that clearly read; 'Do you like like him?'
"No; shut up Ashley!"
Ashley mouthed; 'William and Jennifer sitting in the tree,'
"Really?"
I interpreted her little fun game that she liked to toy me with. Nicholas joined the group. "Ello," he said.
"Can you please tell Ashley to stop? Go, leave me alone Ashley!"
"But I don't know anyone else here! You're my only best friend," she said.
"Such a lonely life," I teased.
"You're the one with the lonely life; get the facts straight women!"
"I choose to live that way, and I'm happy about it," I said with pride.
"Why so lonesome," Nicholas joked. I laughed.
"Yeah, sure right. Why do you have a girlfriend," I teased with him.
"Hey yo, I'm actually single."
"You know I was kidding," I asked.
"I know, I know. I'm teasing right back at you," he said before laughing.
"Oh, speaking of which, I was at the fair, and I saw this ride that had a sign that said; 'No single riders,' I said; 'I'm single, does that mean I can't ride?'" William and Nicholas burst laughing. I laughed with them.
We returned back to the stands to finish the game off. We watched, and play some stand tunes for the scores and kick offs. We won the game; 24-20. Eagles over the Spongers