Swell (Complete)

Chapter Three (Part Two)

"Wrote down a thousand songs,
Wish I could say the things I wanna say out loud."

....

Will walked slowly to the music room. Part of him was glad to be going somewhere he hoped he'd feel comfortable, the other part of him felt like he had suddenly become the little fish in a big ocean, not just a pond, but an entire ocean.
Music in Richieville had been a safe haven, possibly some of the best moments of his life so far had happened in that rehearsal room. His first kiss with Liss, her saying she'd wanted to kiss him for a while and even her asking him out.
Tom had found it hilarious that Will's crush had been the one to make the moves. He had approved of the relationship though. Marti had thought it was adorable; she'd been excited because Liss had been her best friend.
Thinking of those moments allowed a smile to drift to Will's face, however it dropped when he realised he had reached the music room.
He felt exposed in the empty hall, at the closed door with the window showing him another hall with more doors. He fought a strong urge to run, an urge to at least go and get his own guitar so he could feel protected by nursing it close.

He could hear the bass drum thumping through the air, feel it vibrating underfoot.
There was already a guitarist in the band, but Adora had offered her guitar parts, saying it would allow her to concentrate more on her vocal performances.
His stomach was churning with the vibrations and he pushed the door open. It was clear that this part had been added to the older building and he could see through the open door at the end that it was the main classroom. He could hear muted instruments behind the doors as he walked to the end of the hall.
"Will! Welcome to music!" Adora nearly walked into him as he reached the door. He was taken aback by her sudden appearance in the frame but returned her smile.
"Thanks."
"We're playing in the classroom, so just come in." She gestured over her shoulder with her thumb into the room. He could see rows of tables and a drumroll ended with a symbol smash and a light laugh.
"Count me in, Kurt." Another female voice spoke and Adora turned back into the classroom. Will followed her in and the sound of the high-pitched strings made his eyes widen and his heart jolt.
He looked up, his gaze following the sound of the violin and saw the dark haired girl smiling as she pulled the bow across the varnished instrument. Suddenly the room was shrinking around him. His bag dropped from his hand and he turned out to go back the way he came, leaving the window lit classroom and heading for the door.
"Will?"
He made the quick exit out into the main corridor and then broke out into the cool, fresh air.
Adora frowned as she saw Will freeze in the doorway. His bag dropped to the floor of the music room and before she could see what had made him react so strangely he was leaving.
"Will?" She called out after him again and Rae stopped playing the violin and looked towards them.
"Is he ok?"
"I'm not sure, but I'll go find out." Adora shook her head and stepped over Will's abandoned bag to leave after him.
She found him outside, leaning against a brick wall, his body heaving as if he'd been running.
"Are you alright?" She stopped beside him and bit the corner of her lip.
He looked up in surprise and let go of a deep breath. His face broke into an awkward smile and she could tell he wasn't as outgoing as Tom, which was a bit of a relief to her honestly.
"Yea, I just... I didn't expect a violinist." He put his hand to his hair and roughly brushed it through.
"Is that a problem?" Adora asked uncertainly as he shoved his hand into his pocket. She didn't know why Rae's violin would cause a problem; it wasn't like Rae couldn't play. She actually played in the city in another orchestral group.
Will looked away and down at his feet. "No, I just... It's a surprise is all, I used to know another violinist in Richieville, and I didn't think there'd be one in a small town, you know?"
Will's explanation didn't ease her confusion or concern and a few moments passed silently between them. Adora wasn't sure what to say, or even if there was a question she could ask to help him.
Will pushed himself off the wall. "Sorry. I'm fine, let's go and meet the band." He forced another smile her way and she tilted her head as he gestured for her to walk back inside. She knew there was more to his reaction than he shared, but didn't know him enough to pry. He radiated a completely different demeanour to his confident brother and she felt as though he would stutter and shut down if she asked too many questions.
"Alright..." She turned back inside the building, glancing over her shoulder to see him following behind her.

Brett adjusted the guitar strap and looked up as Adora walked into the room. He'd arrived a little late after lunch training and Rae and Kurt had told him about Tom's brother just dumping his bag and leaving.
Brett didn't know what to expect from Will, but he struggled to pretend it wasn't a surprise at how identical he was to Tom.
Apart from the lazy hairs growing on his face, maybe a week or more of no shaving, there was no other discernable difference to the twins. His hand absently reached up to his own stubbly jawline and rub.
Adora closed the classroom door behind Will and Brett watched as he picked up his bag and put it onto one of the tables. His eyes were trained on Rae's violin and his skin was ashen.
"Okie dokie, in case you guys don't know, this is Will. Will, this is Kurt, Rae and Brett." Adora introduced everyone and Brett just gave a nod in Will's direction. "Will's going to be taking my guitar parts, and I'll be able to focus on hitting all the notes easier. Maybe you could find it in your heart to share a solo or two, Brett." Adora smiled at him and Brett couldn't help but smile back and shrug.
"Maybe." He turned his smile towards Will, trying to be friendly and welcoming.
"Will, did you want to grab one of the guitars and strum along today or just watch and listen?" Adora turned her attention back to Will and he seemed to finally break his trance from the violin.
"Um, I'll just watch today, get the feel of your style." He answered.
"Alright then." Adora shrugged and picked up a classroom acoustic. Brett looked from Will to her as she took her place in front of the microphone stand.
Will seemed the complete opposite to Tom, nowhere near confident or friendly. Brett felt unsure about how to take Will in comparison to his brother, but it seemed he would be finding out through music.