Violetta (Violet) Jackson has big dreams. None of which happen to include sitting in detention for a week straight for a lab disaster that wasn't even her fault. That's all thanks to Will Hawthorne, his friends (one of whom she unfortunately used to...
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Will didn't show up for school on Monday.
In between every class, I dashed out of the classroom clutching my phone, unlocking the screen, desperately hoping for a message from him, to no avail. I contemplated texting him myself to apologize for yesterday, but every time I typed out the message and read it over, I deleted it all over again. What could I say to him? Sorry that I claimed to see your dead mother. Actually, I think she was a ghost who somehow showed herself to me and me only. My bad, I should've clarified that before.
I shook my head as I backspaced the message I had tentatively prepared for the tenth time. It was no use. I had no idea what to say to him. I still had no idea what really happened. All I knew was that the hollow feeling in my chest was still there, gaping wide open.
By the time I biked over to Will's — Danny, Ryder, Olivia and I had agreed to meet earlier in the week, since we would be getting more details regarding the final round of the battle of the bands — my stomach was tied in knots. I had no idea what I would do if I ran into Will, who always seemed eager to be in on our band meetings. I didn't even know if we would still be welcome at his house, even though he did technically loan it to us for an indefinite period of time. But all of my worrying was moot, because when I pedaled up the driveway, the truck is gone, and Will is nowhere to be seen.
Danny greeted me as I ducked through the half-open garage door. He's already sitting hunched over his laptop at the recording desk, Olivia leaning against a speaker, Ryder sitting by his drums, not fiddling with a drumstick for once. They're both waiting; looking at Danny, who's looking at his screen intently, his mouth moving silently as he read something, no words coming out.
I already felt queasy.
"We got the official email from Berklee on the details for the performance," Danny said, getting right down to business. "I'll forward it to all of you like last time."
"Just give us the bottom line," Ryder said. "It's making me antsy as hell not knowing."
"The bottom line is," Danny said, turning around in his chair, "we're playing Woodlands."
It felt like a heavy stone dropped in my chest as he said the word. Both Ryder and Olivia's jaws dropped.
"Woodlands? Is that the Woodlands that I'm thinking of?" Ryder asked in disbelief.
Danny nodded. "The annual music festival in Portland, yes."
Olivia's face turned pink. "So you're saying that we're playing at the same festival as Halsey, Blackbear, and The Killers."
"Yes and no," Danny said. "Same festival, different stages. They have the main stages for all the headliners, then a B stage for the smaller bands, including those participating in the contest. We play six hours before any of the bigger headliners do."
"Still," Olivia said. "We'll be playing for all those who decide to show up earlier than the headliners' set times. That's going to be...a crowd."
"Hundreds of people at least!" Ryder interjected, though he sounded more enthused than anxious.
