Andante con Brio

XII

Eddy was willing to bet he wouldn't feel quite as confident as this for his actual entrance exam, but this theory stuff was very seriously a walk in the park. 
I mean, how dumb did they think he was? He had made the trial exam, one of the days last week behind his computer at his desk, and had sailed it. In fact, he would be quite willing to admit that he had never been more confident about any exam in his life as he got off the bus and walked the last bit to the con building. 
Well, he wouldn't admit it out loud, obviously. But still. 
He briskly walked into the stone building with its red details, trying as hard as he could to look like he simply belonged here, and nothing like he was one of the kids that were auditioning today. Which would be a lot easier if only Brett were here, but he was off all day on some sort of rehearsal. So he had no choice but to go to the front desk and ask where to go. 

"Eddy?"
He whirled around automatically. No one knew him here yet, did they? Was there another Eddy or something? He was just scanning the faces around him when he saw her. Tall, curvacious and a face full of enthusiasm as she hurtled towards him with her arms extended. 
"Ronnie!"
"Hey, Eddy! Fancy seeing you here, how have you been?"
"Great, busy, you?"
His quest to go unnoticed, to blend in as one of the students, was well and truly behind him as Ronnie dragged him over to a little group of kids in the cafeteria that were sat there with books and anxious faces. 
He didn't care very much though. This was much, much better than waiting in the halls alone, right? He sighed happily and sunk down in between Ronnie and some guy he had never seen before. 

He was just busy explaining to the new guy - whose name he hadn't caught - that a diminished seventh chord was built up out of minor thirds, when everyone started getting up to go to the hall. 
Oh well. He got the feeling that guy was a lost cause, anyway. Seriously, if you had trouble understanding the difference between a minor third and a major third, did you have any business to be in a conservatory theory entrance exam?
He followed the group to a small hall, chose a little table in the corner by the window and waited while a teacher closed the door and started handing out some forms. 
The second his form landed on his table he scanned the page quickly. There were a whole bunch of intervals he had to name, some keys he had to find from a few fragments, some chords he had to build... well. This was easy!  
He listened carefully to the melody the teacher played on the piano and wrote it down in sure strokes. Then he quickly filled in his intervals and built his chords. After fifteen minutes he checked his stuff one more time and got up. Everyone around him was still busily writing shit down on their forms, and he couldn't help but stifle a smile. He would very seriously have to thank his mum when he got home, for paying for all those theory lessons he had gone to in the last year.
He felt light, upbeat as he walked back out into the hallway. Now he would simply wait until the rest of them were done as well so he could sit in the cafeteria again with his new friends, before going to his aural exam. 

"Jeez, Eddy, how did you get that done so quickly?"
He grinned at Ronnie as she came up to him half an hour later, and pointed to the empty seat beside him. 
"I've taken a lot of theory lessons this year."
She shook her head. "God, it was awful! I'm happy if I scrape a pass. And how did you write down that melody so easily?"
He grinned again, a bit shy now. Then he pointed at his right ear.
"Perfect pitch. It helps."
"Well, remind me to sit next to you in every exam from now on if we both get in." she sighed, wiping her brow dramatically. Then she looked over to the food counter.
"Want a bread roll? My treat."