Marching Band: The Journey [EDITING]

13 - What's This?

This year has been so different from past years. Marching Band isn't as bad, school is actually tolerable, and I don't want to kill Adrian for once! I still have my best friends by my side, plus a wonderful boyfriend. My best friend's have a significant other, too. It's difficult to imagine it will all change next year. And just as Halloween is right around the corner, I can't help but look back on other years.

My freshmen year, Halloween fell on a Tuesday which meant we had practice. Even though it was holiday, Austin still said we had to go. About everyone came dressed up. The melaphone section leader dressed up as Austin. One of our drum majors dressed up as a pirate, the theme of our show that year. Another drum major dressed up as Ms. Ferrior. Some trumpet, who was a junior at the time, came in a batman onesie but with joker make-up. Phillip's giraffe onesie came just in time for the occasion.

What everyone didn't know was the band moms organized for parents to bring in candy to give out goody-bags. I wasn't supposed to know about it, but my mother didn't know how to work her Facebook on her own at the time and I happened to come across the post. It was difficult hiding it from my best friend, but her mom ended up telling one time I was over at their house.

Austin let us go in early that day, saying the bad moms had treats. That was the one practice I ran inside after. It was actually pretty fun, seeing everyone is somewhat costumes running for candy. Like our own Band Halloween. What was even better was my mom snatched a few extra bags since they had a lot extra. She said they were for my sister, who was living with us at the time, but I got them in the end.

That Halloween was one of my favorites since I hadn't been trick-or-treating since we'd moved. It made everything seem somewhat normal in my life for once. The whole moving thing wasn't easy on me due to the death of my cat. We had actually found him on Halloween one year, hiding in the bushes. He was solid black with an upside-down white triangle patch on his chest. During our move, we left him and our other cat at the old house with lots of food and water since we were still going back-and-forth. Eventually, one time, my mom came back and sat me down. She said my cat had fallen ill. So the next time she went down, I tagged along so I could 'help'. He looked so fragile, weakly walking around the house. Her trip right after the one I tagged along on, she came back and told me the bad news. She said she buried him along the treeline in our backyard. I disappeared to my room and cried my heart out, not leaving until two days later. That cat was my little bundle of joy, and after he passed, I blamed it on my mom making me move.

Now that I sit here, Halloween on a Saturday, I can't help but reminisce my past Halloweens. Once I get as far back as my memory will go, I go to put a handful of candy in a little girl's pumpkin basket. She's dressed as a fairy, a poofy skirt and wand and all. When the sound of candy hitting the rest in her basket echoes, she shoots me the toothiest grin before running back to her mom. I smile at her as Tony joins me outside in the cool air. He places his varsity jacket around my shoulders when I shiver from a breeze.

"I can take over if you get too cold." He offers, sinking to the ground. I see him shiver. Stupid of him to sit on the pavement that's colder than the chair I'm in.

"Here." I say, giving him his jacket back. Once he gets his arms through, I hand him the bowl of candy. "I'm going to go sit with Em for a bit, maybe text Phillip. Come in if you get too cold. It's almost time for kids to be back in their houses anyway."

He nods at me before ushering me inside. I close the door behind me, not letting anymore cold in. Em smiles at me from her spot on the couch before returning her attention to the Tim Burton marathon that's currently on. Before going over to her, I grab a Dr. Pepper and fill a cup with ice to take over to her. She gratefully takes it, biting into a piece of ice.

"I know it's Halloween and everything, but I can't wait 'til Christmas." She comments as Jack Skellington falls into Christmas Town.

My mind goes on a whirlwind of Christmas memories. Every Christmas Eve my family would gather at my aunt's house for dinner and present opening. My grandfather went to a midnight church service after and my mom would head off to work after dropping us off. The Christmas after my grandmother died, we were unable to make it on Christmas Eve since most of my family was working. So we went on Christmas Day instead.

Usually, Em travels down to Florida with her immediate family to see aunts and uncles and cousins and the sorts. It was last year that I convinced her mom to do something different. I wanted to spend a Christmas with my best friends, so I convinced Em's mom to go down for an early Christmas with the family, and then be back so Em and I can spend Christmas together. It was Phillip's parents that were trickier. His parents never let him leave the house during holidays because they wanted to have 'quality family bonding time' he always said. But since I'd been a wonderful best friend for the past three and a half years, they let him come over as well. Tony managed to slip away from his family. Reese and Ethan are actually cousins so they were spending Christmas together anyway, but they said they needed a break from their families. Carson couldn't make it due to some dilemma which no one ever pushed.

So last Christmas, it was just my best friends and I. Tony and I were curled up together in the big chair by the fireplace. Phillip was wrapped in so many blankets right in front of the fire. Em was playing with wrapping paper in the love seat, moping since Carson wasn't there. Reese and Ethan were chugging beers by the hour, blacked out by midnight. Even though everyone was doing their own thing, it was nice to see us all come together.

"Yeah, me too." I agree with Em just as Jack Skellington finishes 'What's This?' song.

~~~

Enjoy!

~Lotus