The Music In Our Hearts

Piano

I slam my bright-blue locker closed as Matt stands behind me, blathering on about something I don't care about. I sigh heavily and turn to the direction of my classroom.

"Hey," Matt stops me in my tracks. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I answer him faster than I had liked to. He raises an eyebrow at me. He knows me too well to not see past the lies I make. "Okay fine," I give in. "It-"

"It's about a girl, isn't it?" he interrupts before I get a chance to speak.

"What?" I exclaim. "Pfft...No," I nervously sip from my slushie.

"Well, shit," he says. "Who is this chick? What's her name? Is she hot? Is she available?" he grabs my shoulders, while he and I get weird stares from the people in the hallway.

"Calm down! You're making a scene," I say, pushing him off of me.

"So what's her name? Is she cute?" he asks me, expecting an immediate answer before slapping my back. The force of his hand causes me to drop my slushie, with the bright pink contents spilling onto the cold floor.

"My slushie..." I say. I look back to him in anger. "You're gonna pay for that." I say.

"Oh...Sorry, man. I'll make it up to you, someday," He says, patting me on the shoulder.

"Maybe you can start by paying for it."

"Oh, right," he grabs his wallet. "Two dollars right?" He says, handing me the said amount.

"I guess I'll tell you," I say, grabbing the cash. "Just don't say a word."

"A'ight man, jeez. Can't even trust your best friend?" He mumbles as I lean in close.

"Alright man," I say. " It's Melody Young." I whisper in his ear.

"Woah, what?" He asks me as he pulls back in shock. " You mean that girl right there-?" He whispers as loud as whispers can ever become as he points at a girl across the hallway. I pull his arm down before shutting him up as fast as I could.

"Jeez man, how much more obvious can you be?" I say, trying not moving a muscle on my face. He looks away from me and back to Melody. "Don't stare," I say before he snaps his head back to me. "Now, keep pretending like we are having a normal conversation, so it doesn't seem like we were looking at her."

"I think it's a bit too late for that."

"And who's fault is that? Now come on, let's go. I can't return her picks after you made me look wierd in front of her," I say, leading him to our next class.

"I think you did a great job doing that yourself," he mocks me. I don't even try to make a comeback; because if i did, we would probably never stop comeing up with comebacks.

"And isn't she the same girl you ran for a while ago?" He asks me. "And then you tripped, and made it even more embarrasing?"

"Yeah well, I kind of overreacted," I answer. "And I didn't trip. I was shoved," I add before muttering under my breath, "Friggin' she-hulk..."

"Anyway, she's out of our league. Forget about even trying."

"Really? I could probably be a good match for her."

"No, David," He stops me. "Listen, there is a reason why people like us are single," he says as I give him a questioning look. "Because we aim too high when we're nowhere near that level of character...Or skill...Or looks. Or-"

"Alright, I get it."

"Look, the only way you can even hope of being with her, is too climb up to that standard." He tells me.

"What are you talking about?"

"I mean become part of that same standard that you're aiming for. Think about it. Would you date someone who isn't quite as successful as you are? As high up in the food chain as you are? This is the real thing, David."

"Yeah, real shallow. Now I'm confident on why you don't have a girlfriend."

"Just answer the damn question," he presses, trying to hide the fact that his feelings got hurt from my comment.

I sigh, pondering for an answer. "Alright fine, I get your point," I say. "Alright, so how do I climb this 'Food-Chain' that you speak of?"

"First of all, you have to get to know people."

"Wow! I never knew that the key to winning a girl's heart involved 'Human Interaction'! Please tell me more." I sarcastically say, putting my palm to my chin. He stares at me sternly before continuing.

"You have to study how she acts around people, how they act around her, and mimic these actions as best as you can. This way, they would see you more as someone who would fit well in their little clique, and accept you as part of them."

"Why?" I ask. "Shouldn't I just... be myself? Or some bullshit like that?"

"Trust me, you do not want to act like yourself for this."

"Hurtful."

"Second. Find out what she likes, what she does, what extracurricular activities she partakes in. This way, you will meet new people, and if your lucky, maybe even meet her."

"You know in some countries that would be considered STALKING," I say as Matt gives a rather surprised expression.

"Hey. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do."

"You know what nevermind, this is never gonna work."

"Hey come on, man!"

We are interrupted by someone clearing their throat.

"If you boys don't mind, get inside the classroom and take your seats. Discuss your personal matters after school hours," Mr. Oliver says, as Matt and I realize we've been standing outside our classroom for ten minutes.

"Oh..." I say.

"Sorry, Victor." Matt says.

"Yeah, yeah, just get in here you lazy..." Mr. Oliver mumbles the rest of his sentence to himself.