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57: Here We Are Now, Entertain Us

Jeremy

"Alright," announced the singer on stage. "Can you believe prom is almost over?" The crowd booed in sadness. "I know, it sucks. But guess what? We have a special performance none other than our very own prom queen. Yes, Hailey Romero!" The crowd cheered louder as they chanted her name.

"Wait, what?" Hailey asked in confusion as she looked toward me. "Like, what the hell do they mean that I'm doing a performance? Did you have something to do with this?"

"Yeah, I kind of forgot to mention that I volunteered you to sing a song." The crowd grew impatient as they desperately wanted Hailey to sing. "I'm sorry, but I promise that you'll do great." A quick kiss was given to her for moral support.

"But I can't sing in front of this crowd? Like, what if they hate me? What if I ruin the rest of the night? Like, I so cannot do this tonight."

"Hailey, look around you. Everyone is calling out your name. They want you to sing. Think about it, would I have volunteered you if you sucked at singing? Would I have volunteered myself if I didn't know how to play guitar with the most beautiful singer in the entire world?"

"You volunteered yourself to play guitar?" She asked in great shock. "Like, you actually know how to play guitar? This is not a joke? What are we even singing?"

With no answer about the song we were singing, the girl gave me the world's most passionate kiss before she grabbed my hand and rushed us up onto the stage. And there we were on stage with the microphone in Hailey's grasp and me holding on to the guitar that I barely knew how to play. Yes, I guess I was the one that should've been more nervous. No reason for Hailey to be nervous.

As Hailey still didn't know what song we were doing, it was up to me to begin playing my guitar. After about twenty seconds, it became obvious to Hailey which song we were doing. She smiled and began tapping her foot.

"Load up on guns, bring your friends

It's fun to lose and to pretend

She's over-bored and self-assured

Oh no, I know a dirty word."

The girl had her eyes closed as she did everything, she could do to put passion into her voice. For a moment, I actually believed she was sad. We're these lyrics sad?

"Hello, hello, hello, how low, Hello, hello, hello, how low."

Both of us were singing as a duo at that point. To be honest, I never thought saying hello would be that much fun. Heck, we decided to extend the song by singing hello a few more times.

Emma

"Are they actually about to sing that Nirvana song?" I asked in excitement and disbelief towards Hector. At this point, our fingers were locked in together.

"Sounds like it," he responded with a light laugh. "You remember the time back in sixth grade?"

With a response, my eyes rolled. "Oh, you mean the first day of sixth grade when I first met you? The time you tried to get everyone to sing with you and you almost got in trouble?"

"Yup, that would be it." There was a proud tone in his voice. "By any chance, you wouldn't happen to be thinking what I'm thinking?

It's unclear what got into me, but the next thing I knew, I found myself rushing up to the stage with Hector following me. Hector was able to collect the base while I found a second microphone.

"Our little group has always been

And always will until the end."

Wow. I couldn't believe it. I was actually on stage singing a Nirvana song with three other people. It was as if I were actually in a band. Along with some sweaty palms, chills traveled everywhere in my body with that thought. Was this how Selena felt when she sang for the first time? Was this how she felt when she sang in front of large crowds? How did she do it so well?

"With the lights out, it's less dangerous.

Here we are now, entertain us."

Hector and I gave each other a look. By that look, it was apparent that Hector knew that he won. He knew he was able to get me to come over to his weird side. And I didn't care. In fact, we repeated those lines a couple more times as we both looked at each other in the eyes. The two of us were trying to outdo each other. It was as if this were turning into a competition. A fun one.

The song continued as it seemed like everyone was into what they were doing. With Hailey singing, it felt like I was in the presence of something great. Her hair was a mess as she acted like she was some sort of eighties rock star. And with everyone giving it their all, Jeremy and Hector picked it up on their instruments and gave it more power that provided a bigger rush.

"With the lights out, it's less dangerous

Here we are now, entertain us."

At this point, Hector was focused on his base which left me to wander off toward Hailey. Crazy, but the two of us ended up singing together side by side.

"I feel stupid and contagious

Here we are now, entertain us."

Oh crap, singing along with her was beyond words. We both gave each other a look. It almost felt like a look of trust. Maybe even a look of a new friendship. Perhaps she was reaching out to me. Deep down, I knew this was the case. Something about us singing together to this song made my soul want to accept this peace offer. No, I had to accept this lifetime offer.

Once this offer was accepted with a spontaneous fist bump, we both began to shake our heads and flip our hair as we tried to outdo each other. It was another competition. This was a moment that I would truly never forget. It was a story I would be telling to my children forever.

Can you believe there's only 3 chapters left? Thanks for making it this far. Be sure to to comment and vote!

Have you ever been volunteered for something?

How do you feel about Emma and Hailey singing together on stage?