Cloud Chasers

You're Acting Your Thin Disguise...

Dust to Dust-----The Civil Wars

Snow's P.O.V.

I walk into the choir room and I finally feel safe. After last night, I have no idea what to think. He called me and all I could ask him was how he got my number. I wish I could talk to Audrey about this but I didn't even see her in the parking lot this morning. I had a restless night and all I can think about is the solo I want at the end of the semester.

I go into one of the sound booths and start to warm up my vocal chords. Auditions for the solo are in two weeks and I've been debating which song I'll sing. I'll definitely be stepping out of my comfort zone but I want to surprise people with who I really am. Maybe they'll start to see past this brat façade they only see. This is my only outlet. To share this with other people is like opening my world, being vulnerable. Finally, letting people see me for me. Not my parents. Not my parents achievements.

I still remember the first time I ever told my mother that I wanted to sing. She laughed and said that I could sing as a hobby, but that as a career, I was only fooling myself. Dad has always done whatever mom says and only makes it easier for her to take over, but this isn't something they'll take from me. I will practice till the very second before the audition, if I have to.

There's only one girl in this class that could be possibly be trying to take my dream right from under me and that's Janelle Fitzgerald. She's shy but when she opens her mouth, I can swear that the clouds split apart and the sun comes out and shines brighter than ever before. If I want and need to beat anyone, it'll be her. Mrs. K walks into the choir room and calls for all of us to come over and sit in the risers. I walk out of the sound booth and head to my chair. I'm on the first row, in the center. I'm a second soprano, although Mrs. K says my range is indescribable. I remember the first time I auditioned for Varsity Choir, she commended me for never having vocal lessons. She said that she knew I was shaky because it was new to me, but that in time I would grow into my voice and that I'd only get better with time.

Janelle is a soprano. She never did warm up to me. I'd always hoped that she'd warm up to me. She is very dedicated and I thought that we would be close because of the dedication we show towards all the things we hold with importance, but she's rarely spoken a word to me or acknowledged me at all. She comes off snotty but I often wonder if she's just as misunderstood as I am.

"Good morning, Janelle," I say, as I turn to sit on my chair.

"Morning." She doesn't even look me into my eyes. She focuses her attention to the piano and Mrs. K sits on the piano bench and asks us to stand. We start warming up together and do our breathing exercises. She give us sheet music to I'll Paint You a Rainbow and we sing through it.

This is exactly what I live for. I get lost in music. I can feel every key movement in all of my body and the way the air escapes my mouth, the vibration of my vocal chords that create melodious tones, finally finding everything that my existence consists of.  

The music stops and I open my eyes.

"Ladies, please be sure to work on exercise 5-7 in your sight reading text book. Great job today. You're dismissed. Remember auditions for the end of semester solo is in two weeks. Work hard, ladies!"

I gather all of my belongings. I look over my sheet music and place it neatly inside of my binder's divider pocket.

Suddenly, my phone begins to vibrate in my pocket and I immediately reach for it.

*Meet me upstairs in the girl's bathroom by the large basketball court.*

Audrey only ever texts me to meet her anywhere, during the school day, when she has something major to tell me. Hopefully, there's nothing too bad going on. I'm just glad to hear from her. I haven't talked to her in what feels like forever. This J guy must be something else.

I push the door open to walk out of the choir room and there he is, standing against the wall, opposite of the choir room. He's looking down at his phone. I need to talk to him. He cant escape now. I walk towards him fast, so he doesn't have time to think about walking away from me.

"Zayn." He looks up at me and those honey-caramel eyes immediately make me melt. Anything offensive that I planned on saying to him suddenly slips from my mind. He tries to move around me but he quickly realizes that he cant get around the mob of people that surround us. For the first time, I'm grateful that Northside is so jam-packed with students.

"What do you want? Did you follow me here?"

"What are you talking about? I could ask you the same thing. What are you doing on this side of the building?"

"I don't have to answer to you. What? Mommy and Daddy own this side of the building?" As soon as the words leave his mouth he realizes he's been to harsh and instantly regrets his choice of venom. I choose to ignore his comment. Although my bruised ego must be showing because he decides to look away from me.

"How did you get my number?" He starts to shuffle from one foot and then the other. He's nervous.

"I've got to get to class. You're in my way. Now, if you could kindly get the hell out of my way and make sure to never directly speak to me again. I've told you to stay away. Stop trying to prove yourself."

"Who am I trying to prove myself to? To you? Please, I don't have to do anything. I want to know why you have number and why you called." He looks down at his phone and I'm reminded that Audrey is waiting for me. I fish for my phone and see that Audrey has already tried to call me once. The minute I look up, he's half-way down the hall.

I turn in the opposite direction and head for the stairs. I'm completely baffled. Again, he has managed to escape before giving me actual answers.

Zayn's P.O.V.

That was a close call. She had me right where she wanted me and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy. She's determined. She's going to fight me, but I have to keep her at a distance. I have to protect her. Every time I look down at my phone, I want to call her or message her. What was she doing on this side of the building. How did she manage to find me in the crowd of all those people. This is the most student-polluted school. All I can think about is the way my name fell from her gorgeous lips. The way she said it with uncertainty.

I manage to arrive to art on time, even with my small delay in the hallway. She interrogated me like a cop. I felt cornered. Hopefully she didn't notice, she almost had me. Mr. Davis, our very talented art instructor asks us to pull out our sketch book. I make sure that no one is watching while I flip through my sketch book to finally get to a blank page. If anyone saw what I have in here, they'd probably lose their minds. I should get rid of this sketchbook, but its too hard to get rid of, no matter what stained memory it brings to mind.

"Malik!"

"Hey man, what's going on?" Ryan is the first friend I've made since I've arrived here at Northside.

"I saw you out in the hallway with that Whittman chick. She is one hard pill to swallow."

"She's that bad?"

"Yea! Looked like she was tearing you to shreds. What did you do to Hillsboro's royalty?"

"Didn't do anything but show up to English. We're working on a project together."

"Dude, that's lucky. You wont have to do anything."

"That's the plan." Stop lying. You know you wouldn't let her do all the work by herself. Stop acting like you are dreading this project.

"So are we still on for Friday night."

"Yea, sure. So, tell me how long you've known Snow,"

"Are you into her?" He looks at me with a face of disgust. How could he be disgusted with that beautiful control freak? Sure, she comes off a bit strong, but she just wants to belong in this world of idiots and I just want her to belong to me. I don't know what draws me to her, but as I'm sitting here talking to Ryan, I realize I need to have Snow in my life.

I look down at my sketchbook and a pair of familiar eyes are staring back at me. I have to look for her after class.