The Moment He Stepped Through The Door

Chapter 1

You recently became a freshman in high school, which was a difficult experience. Your new highschool had almost 2,000 students, when your middle school had 400 at most. It was a massive campus, four floors with pastel yellow, red, and white streaked hallways. Massive windows brightened the bigger parts of the school and lined many hallways and classrooms. During passing period, they blasted music over speakers dotting the high ceilings instead of the standard alarms. The fourth floor contained a large pool and locker rooms, as well as a student-staffed Starbucks and a student lounge. It takes a long time to adapt to your new schedule, with crowded hallways and classes on different floors every period, but you adjusted. Your new school was fun, with new people to talk to and places to explore, but your workload was double and days were longer than ever before.

Despite the new challenges, thanks to high school you discover the joy of marching band. You think that you are going to hate every second of it, you hated concert band in middle school. You missed your middle school director, but your middle school band experience had an awful and tense atmosphere. However, being in marching band feels different. Everyone is so warm and welcoming and you feel like an important part of the program, something you never felt in middle school band. When you're not there, people complain about the hole you left on the field and you begin to feel genuinely valued. Your band section becomes your second family. You talk your best friend's ear off about the different practices and visuals and the music you have to memorize, but you don't think she cares as much as you do. You're not too worried about it, when she sees the show she'll change her mind and see how important the feeling band gives you is to you. You feel a spur of energy everytime you perform at a football game or an assembly, as a passion ignites within you. You discover your love for marching band and put forth a lot of effort to prepare for I of U, the final competition where competitive bands across the state compete. Performing under the spotlights in the massive stadium is exhilarating, a high you had never felt before. After your band places 2nd in your class, you feel proud of all the individual work you put into the show, but are heartbroken to see the show come to a close. 

The bus ride home is dreary, you find yourself falling asleep with your forehead resting on the seat in front of you. A movie with no audio plays from the bus's small screens, and uniforms hung in their black cases dangle from the racks above the seats. Streetlights streak by the smudged bus windows, and you realize you love being in the band; the anticipation of performing, remembering your sets, hitting visuals just right, and with the passing street signs you wave the season goodbye.