Reversal (Camren/Norminah)

Chapter 54: Track No. 9

LIV.

Author's note: This chapter does not have any direct impact on Reversal. Its purpose is more to highlight the events of the past and emphasize the events of the present. It is canon, but if you'd prefer, it can be skipped/ignored without any loss of content or information in the main story. Do note that track #9 on Fifth Harmony's 7/27 is Scared of Happy and on Shawn Mendes' Illuminate is Honest.

November 8th, 2004

"Alright Cami." My mother told me, kneeling down and placing both her hands on my shoulders. "Now I hope this teaches you something. It's not okay to be disobeying your teachers and acting out in class just because you don't want to do something."

I refused to look her in the eye, gazing up a the ceiling with a childish eye-roll. "I don't want to do this."

"And I don't want to have to drive all the way down here on the weekend." She countered, taking my chin between her fingers and turning my head so I was forced to look her in the eye. "So I need you to be on your best behaviour today. I don't want to hear of any issues when your father comes back this afternoon to pick you up."

"Fine." I sighed, looking back at her with a shrug. "Can we have chicken fingers for dinner?"

My mother stood up. "Maybe this will give you a chance to not think about food for a moment." She muttered softly, placing her hand on my shoulder and guiding me towards the school's rounded auditorium. Tightening the straps around my backpack, I waved her an abysmal goodbye before being escorted off and lined up with the rest of the kids from class.

"Alright boys and girls, so what we're going to do is two full dress rehearsals of the entire play." An unfamiliar teacher announced at the front of the room. She had no microphone, the round shape of the room allowing her voice to be properly projected to all ears. "We'll take a quick break between them, then be done by mid afternoon. Everyone good with that?"

There was a soft chorus of nods and murmurs, then the woman vanished backstage. Each kid was then instructed to change into their all black drama outfit, and sit in a neat line along the bottom of the stage. I complied quietly, being handed a shrub made from cardboard and green paint on a larger than average popsicle stick. It was nothing special, but when placed with all the others in the line built the world's cutest kindergarten hedge.

I spent the first half of the dress rehearsal with my neck craned behind me to watch the story unfold. It was the Wizard of Oz, familiar from the number of times my mother had shown me the original movie on our old family television. It was disappointing to see the adorable white dog in the movie was replaced by a stuffed animal in the junior play.

By the second half, I was both tired, hungry, and bored beyond comprehension. The show had been stopped multiple times to make corrections and lay tape on the stage, and it was taking far longer than anticipated to get to the break. By the second time running through the discovery of the tin man, I decided to be proactive and occupy myself by the most creative means possible.

There was a boy sitting on my right, unfamiliar and likely from the other kindergarten class. He looked uncomfortable, sitting with his legs curled up to his chest and his own craft shrub between his fingers. Chin resting on his arms, he had a vacant, bored look on his face.

"Hi." I managed to whisper, glancing behind me to make sure nothing important was happening on stage. "What's your name?"

The boy didn't respond, maintaining his position and unmoving in every way. I frowned, tilting my head to the side and waiting for an answer to no avail. "Hello?" I questioned again, meeting his eyes. "Do you like... not talk or something?"