Blackbird

Chapter 15 - But Not the Next Freddie Mercury (Whoever that is)

Both Charli and Mari started talking amongst themselves as I nibbled away at my apple. I sat there silently learning things from my new friends.

·         Charli is actually really good at art... (maybe she can be the next Van Gogh instead of me)

·         Her parents are hardcore Christians

·         She has similar taste in music to me (Elvis, Chuck Berry, etc)

·         She has a boyfriend who is actually going to a rivalling school the 'Liverpool Institute for boys'

·         She keeps this a little secret from her parents. (because they don't her to have a boyfriend unless they're from the church that they go to.)

·         Loves doing acrobatics (stuff like silks)

·         Marinette is called Ladybug due to her obsession with ladybugs.

·         She was actually born in France, moved to Liverpool when she was 6 with her father who is born French and her mother who was born in China.

·         She loves superheroes almost as much as she loves ladybugs and Elvis

·         She wants to become a fashion designer and is constantly drawing up designs and making outfits and stuff like that.

·         If she isn't doing designs for her fashion designer dream she is making a comic book.

·         The comic book is about superheroes who live in France, one is based off a ladybug and the other on a black house cat.

I didn't pay that much attention to the conversation as I was scribbling down some new chord combinations that I paired in my head. There were a few times when I did tune in, they were talking about some band that was playing at some pub this Friday. I think they called them the Quarrymen, they must have been from this school, because, you know, the school is called the Quarry Banks High school. That or they like the name or their parents work at some random quarry near Liverpool...

I'm going to one of the first two options. They're both more reasonable than their parents working at some quarry.

Anyway, their music-related conversation was short lived at the bell rang, signalling that recess was over and that we had to go to our next lesson.

---

The music room was similar to the art classroom. One half of the class had tables, the other half had practical equipment.

But this room was downsized, compared to the art room. The actual room was small, the circular tables were smaller and so were the chairs.

But that was the half of the room that had the tables and chairs. The Practical half was more than half of the room. It was twice the size.

Up against the wall, there were about half a dozen pianos. Two drum kits sat next to each other at the back of the room, sitting in front of the twelve wooden pedestals. On the other side of the room was a rack filled with different kinds of guitars; acoustic, electric, bass, etc. The was also a 'book' shelf with other instruments that I fail to identify. I moved to the back of the tables/chairs area. This time I pulled out my songbook. Quickly flicking through the songs that I have written: Welcome to my life, this song saved my life, carry on, badly broken, Boulevard of broken dreams, if I died young.

I pause when I came across Empty, the song that I have been working on for months. I looked at it, reading through the lyrics as the chords played in my head. My fingers even started twitching, dancing across an invisible piano, my foot tapped the fast-paced song.

But still. I couldn't think of what to write next or what chords or keys to play.

Let's say... I have writer's blocked on this song.

I can normally write songs easily. Taking me a week or two, sometimes a day to write one. But I have a feeling that I'll come back to it soon. I just haven't found the muse or I'm writing it before it's time.

I sighed, admitting defeat on this smaller battle. Then flicked the pages to another song that I had been working on.

I continued with the song, writing the lyrics. Adding the chord that played into my head as I re-read the lines that I had written.

By the time I felt like I finished I looked up. It felt like I was sucked into a tube and spat out into a different world. But I knew exactly where I was. It is the same feeling you get when you finish reading a book, or just look up from it for a second. That feeling that you just don't quite belong, or like a chunk of time and your memory went missing.

I looked around the classroom, feeling like I am just an outsider looking in through the window. The class was now full of students. All of which were sitting at the tables. I took in the appearance and made my most amazing Sherlock-like deduction yet.

90% of the student in this class was Teds. The other 10% were the weird band geeks – and I am not talking about the cool band geeks, I'm talking about the band geeks that are your stereotypical geeks that get geeky over marching band stuff.

A teacher then walked into the room as I closed my book.

The teacher had a diamond-shaped face. His white teeth were pushed forward, poking out of his mouth. There was a moustache that grew over his lips, short black hair and chocolate brown eyes.

His attire consisted of a suit, which didn't seem to fit his image, his body seemed to radiate his personality which screamed out there.

"You know what to do. Go pick your instruments and begin practising." He spoke, walking over to his desk. "Can I also see Miss Lilith Blackbird."

I hesitated for a second. Everyone had already started going over to their preferred instruments.

"Will you please come over here, darling." Said the teacher, his brown eyes on me.

I slowly got up, dragging the chair back. I clutched on to my songbook as I walked up to the teacher.

"Hello darling, please have a seat."

I sat down in a plastic seat that was placed in front of his desk.

"Thank you. My name is Mr Mercury by the way."

We shook hand.

"Anyway. I was looking through the subjects you have previously done in your school at Washington." Mr Mercury spoke, taking out a piece of paper with a list of five subjects scribbled on it in my old principals writing. "The thing is, it shows that you have never done music as a subject. But yet, darling, you have chosen this class."

I nodded.

"Do you know how to play an instrument? Or even how to write music?"

No response. I sat there.

I wasn't sure what to say.

I don't know how to answer.

Like I've said before, I have never played in front of someone, so I never got criticism to tell me if I was good or not.

The teacher sighed. "Okay then. So, I am going to have to give you private lessons until you catch up since you have no experience. Unless you want to transfer into another class."

I shook my head.

"Okay then. I am going to send you into the other music room, our top music student to help you"

I didn't argue.

I nodded.

Mr Mercury showed me to the music room next door which looked similar to the other one, then left to get the person. I expect this 'top music student' to be one of the band geeks who also happened to be a teacher's pet. So, I wasn't worried.

I walked over to the guitar rack and grabbed one of their beautiful acoustic guitars.

I took it over to the middle of the empty floor. Sitting down, tuning the guitar in my lap before flicking open my book to the song that I had just finished.