The Guitar > M.G.C.

Chapter 11:

Last Chapter. Are you ready?

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I was shipped off the next day, just as promised. At the doctors, I ended up having Strep Throat and a Common Cold. I was over my Strep Throat in a couple days. Fun Fact: I spent my seventeenth birthday laying in bed recovering. That Saturday after my actual birthday, approximately three days after, my parents hosted a birthday party for me.

It was about two hours in, everyone was there. My grandparents on both sides, my uncles, Zoe, the band members, my mom's celebrity friends, some of my parent's managers and such.

It was a vague birthday party, I wasn't really paying attention to the 'Happy birthday's. I was still slightly mad at my parents for sending me back home alone. Any Australian doctor could've prescribed me medicine for my strep throat.

"Do you want to open your presents now?" My mom asks me with a grin on her face. The way she says it makes me feel like a child. Maybe it's the 'I'm almost an adult now' vibe? I tap on the cup in my hand with my finger.

"Okay," I put down plastic cup and follow my mom out into the living room, where the majority of 'my guests' had gathered. They circle around the area.

I started opening them with a pit in my stomach, feeling exactly like a kid again. I think I'd rather just have my grandparents, the band mates, and a few other family members come than an entire crowd.

I get a diverse variety of presents, like gift cards, new skinny jeans, cash, new guitar strings. After all of them are gone, there's a long box wrapped in a soft green wrapping paper.

"That's mine," Michael points out to me, sipping whatever was inside his red SOLO cup. I nod, and rip open the wrapping. I slightly gasp, because just by seeing the box shape and the photo of the object on the cardboard box.

It was that baby blue guitar.

I squeal and glance up at him. Michael's got a stupid grin on his face and a couple people chuckle.

"It's a new guitar," I explain to Zoe and the others with curious expressions on their faces, who's looking over my shoulder.

"Oh, cool," She says and scoots away.

"Thank you, Michael," I flash him a smile.

"You're welcome," He responds.

I thank everyone and the party continues on. My parents help me to take my things to my room. I want to look at my pretty new guitar, but I know my parents would make me come back down, mostly my mom.

So, the party slowly comes back to normal, the guests coming up to me, asking about school and my music. But the guitar still hangs in the back of my head.

***

It's about ten and I shut my door, looking straight at the box containing the instrument. I practically slide on my knees to it. I grab my pocket knife out of my drawer that it's next to and go to cut the tape, but it's already cut. Not knowing why someone would cut it open, I put my knife away and then stare at the box again.

Michael. Only Michael.

I carefully pull up the cover and it reveals the shiny, brand spanking new guitar that I've been staring at on the wall of the music store for over five months. I pick up the instrument and pick at the strings. It's in tune, and I tell that without even plugging it into an amp.

At the bottom of the box is a white envelope. Thinking it was the instructions, I ignore it. Then I notice that they aren't.

Neatly written on the front of the envelope in black pen, it says: To Jade.