ASSIGNED

Chapter 2

I breathed a sigh of relief as I found my next classroom on time without getting lost. I followed the other students as they filed into the classroom and took a seat in the middle row. Almost the entire row was empty as people decided to fill up the front and back rows instead. I hoped that I wasn't the reason they didn't want to sit in the second row. As the mass of students filing into the room slowed, a boy with tanned skin and blond hair came running in.

"I'm not late!" he yelled to the teacher. The teacher at the front of the classroom rolled her eyes as the boy walked to the middle row and sat down. Right next to me. He swung his backpack onto the desk and pulled out a beaten up looking pencil case. He then leaned back on his chair, swinging back on it's hind legs and stretching his arms out wide.

"Now that Mr. Hammond has kindly joined us, we can start our lesson," she said sarcastically, a smile playing on her lips. She seemed nice which excited me. Music was one of my favourite subjects and I had hoped that I would have a good teacher.

"Now, I'm going to cut right to the chase. In September, Chadstone City Council is holding a charity event to raise funds for the victims of the Larchdale fires. They have asked our school to submit three acts to perform at the event and of course I submitted this class because of the talent you showed me last term," she told us. An excited whisper ran throughout the classroom.

"You will be auditioning in August, which means that you have four months to decide on your performance and perfect it. My first three picks will perform at the event and the school's recital the week after," she continued. "Today I would like you all to brainstorm ideas for your performance. You all know your strengths so please focus on that. Choose your preferred instrument and/or song. That's all I want you to do today."

The teacher finished talking and walked back to her desk, sitting down and pulling out her laptop. The class instantly began chattering loudly, discussing what they were going to do for their auditions. I was anxious, knowing that this teacher had never seen me perform before. What if I disappointed her during my audition? What if I was the worst in the class by a long shot?

"Any idea what you're gonna do?" a voice said. I turned my head and saw the tanned, blond haired boy looking at me with a smile. His eyes were sky blue and his smile could've been used as a toothpaste commercial. I instantly felt nervous just being in his presence.

"Um...not really," I confessed to him, looking down at my lap awkwardly.

"Well, what do you do? Do you sing? Play an instrument?" he asked.

"I sing and play piano," I told him. He seemed genuinely interested in me which was making my palms sweat. I didn't really have much attention from guys in Adelaide, so this was a turn of events.

"Oh, cool! I play guitar!" he said, flashing his teeth as he smiled widely.

"That's cool, I wish I could play but it always seemed too hard," I said, laughing awkwardly. Great, now he probably thinks I'm a loser.

"Well, I could say the same about piano. All those keys...so bloody confusing!" he said with a laugh, instantly making me feel better. I smiled awkwardly at him, not knowing how to continue the conversation.

"I'm Luke, by the way. Luke Hammond. You're new, right?" he said, swinging his chair back onto its four legs and holding out his hand for me to shake.

"I'm Asha Lawrence, and yeah I just moved here from Adelaide a few days ago," I told him.

"Oh cool, I have family down in Adelaide!" he told me.

"Luke! Stop distracting the new student and start thinking of ideas!" the teacher scolded from her desk.

I felt my cheeks heat up as Luke gave the teacher a cheeky smile.