KNOX'S P.O.V.
‘You need to be more free with your vocal chords, breath and diaphragm Knox,” my vocals teacher instructed. I groaned and rolled my eyes.
“I’m not meant to sing Mandy Moore,” I argued back, pushing my sheets of paper into my bag and my IPod into my pocket. “Yeah, she’s a good singer, but that isn’t in my vocal range, and it isn’t want I want to sing, you told us at the start of the year that we could pick our own songs. Now, it’s August, and I still haven’t properly sung my own songs.” I slid my bag over my right shoulder and pulled out a piece of gum as I headed toward the door.
“And where do you think you are going? We only just begun class and you still have an hour left,” she called after me. I held the door open with me left hand and paused.
“I’m going to go and gate-crash the music class. It will be much more interesting than being here,” I replied. I stepped out of the room and slammed the door behind me. As I walked down the hallway, I could hear her calling after me. Instead, I just skipped lightly down the corridor with a smile on my face. Man that felt good. Now I wish I’d told her to shove it. I pressed my tongue up against my lip piercing as I descended the stairs onto the ground floor. I mumbled the words to and Evanescence song as I walked. As I turned into the music hallway, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and smiled. New text from my friend, Carrie.
‘Hey bitch! Where were you this morning? Anyway, I’ve got detention this afternoon for skipping class. I don’t learn because I’m wagging math now! Check you later! Xx’ it read. I smiled and began to type my reply as I rounded the corner, and walked right into someone. I fell backwards and landed flat on my back on the floor, the contents of my pocket and my phone sliding across the floor.
“Shit,” I muttered as I sat up. I rubbed the back of my head. That was going to leave a mark.
“You do know smoking is bad for you,” said the voice of the guy I’d just ran into. I looked around. What was he on about...? I looked over and saw Carrie’s lighter about a metre from me. She’d given it to me yesterday afternoon so some reason.
“I don’t smoke. It’s bad for the lungs, which I need,” I snapped back. “And you should really watch where you walk.” I shoved everything back in my pockets and stood up. I slid my bag back up my shoulder and looked up at the guy. I could only see his silhouette in the dark, but I could tell her wasn’t that much taller than me.
“I was watching where I was going. You shouldn’t accuse people for doing something, when you were clearly just on your phone,” he chuckled. I suddenly noticed my phone was in one of his hands, in his other was a guitar.
“Yeah whatever,” I replied, snatching my phone back. I pushed past him and glanced back at him. He was watching me with his blue eyes watched me. I could see him clearly now, the sun from the window in the recording room was shining on him. His hair was either brown or dark blonde, that was the only thing I couldn’t really tell, but his fringe was swept the right. A beanie was pulled over the back of his head, and he wore the school track pants and the polo shirt. I didn’t realised I’d paused until he smiled at me.
“Nice hair,” he commented, motioning toward it. My hand flew up to a bit that rested on my shoulder, this bit was pink, and the rest was blue, purple, red or pink. I pursed my lips and turned on my heel.
“Yeah, not really here for your opinion,” I called back as I walked into the recording room. I shut the door behind me and walked over to the grand piano at the end of the room. I put my bag on top of the piano and slid into the seat. My left hand flowed across the keys, and my right hand reached for the sheet music in my bag. I pulled out my ‘Glee’ folder and flicked through until I found ‘Get It Right’ by Lea Michele. I knew this song by heart; I just liked to have the sheets nearby.
“What have I done? I wish I could run, away from this ship going under. Just trying to help, hurt everyone else, now I feel the weight of the world is, on, my, shoulders,” I sung. If Carrie saw me singing this, she’d probably slap me. I went into the chorus and slid toward the edge of the seat, making it easier for me to project my voice. When I finished the song, I looked down at my hands. I looked back up and flicked through a few more pages until I found ‘Imagine’. I chose ‘Glee’ songs because it was easier to get sheet music, and I secretly loved ‘Glee’. ‘Imagine’ was a personal song for me. Only a few months back I had sung it at my child’s. She was only 18 months old when she died unexpectedly in her sleep. I used to practice this song at home, and Tayla sat there and watched me, getting angry if I tried to play any other song. A few days before she passed, she said her first word. I’d cried when she smiled, and blurted out Knox. I’d cried when she said my name, and then a few days later, she was taken from me. As I sung, the tears lingered in my eyes. When the song ended, I wiped them carefully, trying not to smudge the eyeliner that lay thickly around my eyes. I looked toward the door, and that was when I noticed a figure standing in the doorway. I stood up, saw him drop his bags at the door, and I ran off after him.
