Music In the Night

Act 1

You quickly cast a glance at the car dashboard clock. Twelve o'nine pm. You let out a sigh of relief you didn't even realize you were holding. You're on schedule, more or less. Good.

You and your older brother Roman were driving along down the highway in his red range rover convertible to get to your new college. You had formerly insisted you could drive yourself in your car, which happened to be a semi-unreliable P.T. cruiser, but your brother just shaken his head and chuckled. He pretty much never took no as an answer when he set his mind to something, the stubborn guy, and he absolutely abhorred your car. So here you were, at the tail end of your summer break, off to a new beginning at a new school.

The top of the convertible is down, and the wind whips through your wild twisting mane of hair, making you giddy with both anticipation and anxiety. You were excited as all hell, but at the same time, you were terrified out of your mind. The college you are now going to attend is extremely prestigious, less than fifty new students were allowed to enroll per year. It's a music/dance based college, one that churns out some of the best and most renowned singers, dancers, and musicians in the world. Yeah. It's daunting. And yet totally exhilarating at the same time. You just have to make up your mind what you're feeling, that's all. You let your mind course over the past years and events that led up to this momentous day.

The day you had received your acceptance letter was probably one of the few bold highlights in your life, having really nothing else to compare against in terms of best days ever, except maybe the days you received your current violin and guitar. Your brother had been ecstatic, having been accepted and graduated from the same college a few years ago. He had driven in from out of state just so he could run up the driveway of your parent's home to give you the most bone crushing bear hug you had ever received and shower you with praise and congratulations. The two of you talked animatedly into the night in your old bedroom you had shared before he moved out, discussing class choices and all sorts of opportunities that would soon be presented to you. Your biggest hope and dream of many years had finally come true in a single moment. You should be able to say you couldn't be happier.

On the other hand though. Your parents had been... well... less than thrilled with your decision to attend college, even if it was an extremely renowned one. They had never once congratulated you, nor did they mention once that they were proud of all the hard work and dedication it took to even get into the college. They only really cared about the cost. Which to be quite frank really irked you, seeing as you were accepted into the college on a full music scholarship. Yeah. You're that good . But your parents refuse to acknowledge your talents. They fought and continue to fight with you on multiple occasions over several months, sometimes even getting to the point of physical aggressiveness. You'd spent more nights than you'd care to mention with bruises on your body after particularly nasty fights, which were fairly common. You had tried several times before to get out from under their thumbs; calling the police, running away, or staying with Roman before he left the state. Despite your damn best attempts, your parents had the means and steely determination to keep you squarely where you were. It really didn't help that you had no source of income of which to speak of, and Roman barely had enough to support himself, let alone the both of you, you always ended up back at square one.

Life for you with your parents was exhausting and frustrating, and you only had your brother to support you in your endeavors. You had been home schooled all your life, a ploy of your parents to make sure you had no chance of making any sustainable friendships. Your parents made sure to keep you isolated, keeping you indoors pretty much all your living days. You could count the times you had been allowed to leave the house on your fingers, so it was a very short list.

When you had finally managed to get your driver's license on your birthday at age eighteen, mostly thanks to Roman's interspersed help, you had packed up the few important things you owned and moved in with your brother at his own little apartment. You worked a part time job at a fast food restaurant for a time to help pay your own 'rent'. Though Roman insisted he could handle it, you knew it would strain him to the limit to pay for you both. So you worked when you could, and you got by.

Eventually, Roman decided to fight in the military, having somewhat abruptly felt that patriotism was his way of expressing himself. You didn't fully understand that, but with all the love and support your bro had given you all those years, you weren't ever going to be one who questioned his motives. Due to his current enrollment with the military, he's away quite a bit now, and when he's gone on tour, he leaves the apartment under your care, which you appreciated beyond words. The only real problem was your parents called you day and night asking when you were going to get your shit together and come back to figure out where you were going to go and what you'd do with your life. You had calmly yet firmly told them you'd be majoring in music, but they scoffed and said that wasn't a real profession. You had strong self esteem, but their words sometimes gave you deep pangs of regret and indecision. Thank heaven for Roman. He's always been there when you need him to be your rock or your voice of reason. He's also provided you with a steady stream of moral support and encouragement. He's even letting you use the new house he just bought recently that's located close to the college while he's going to be away. Your brother is way too good for you, but you've long since accepted you're too selfish to let him go. You doubt he minds much.

The only thing is, he did say there's going to be a roommate with you in the house, seeing as it'll kill two birds with one stone; keeping you company and helping cover the bills a bit. You don't mind in the slightest, even with your mild social anxiety. You want friends, and this is one way of doing so. And even better in your eyes, Roman's still doing his best to help you where he can, and you're always grateful for every bit of help he offers. You love this guy.

But now, since your former dream has been fulfilled, your updated 2.0 dream is to become either an actor for musicals, or a concert violinist. You're not really one who desires fame or fortune though, if you're honest with yourself. You've always loved singing and playing your violin to your heart's content, and that in it of itself was enough for you, really. And your personal passions were what had gotten you into the college in the first place. You had talent, and had been practicing for more than a decade, so you used those things to your full advantage to get to where you wanted to be. And now here you are, ready to start a new life doing what you love. You can only hope all goes well as time marches on and college life begins.