Désobéissance - Palaye Royale

Chapter 6

VI

PARIS, NOUS VOILÀ !

The last fifteen days have passed without me realizing it. I wish I could say with conviction that we're ready, but a doubt persists in my head. Maybe that's why I still don't feel too much pressure or stress. Basically, I go to this audition without stressing to much. Which is not really the case for Ellie who's super nervous.

My parents ended up agreeing to let me go on the condition that I finish fixing all the necessary for my departure in early September. My scholarship requests are therefore sent, I obtained a student loan at the bank and the administrative procedures concerning the registration for the main courses are completed. And I even found the time to book our room for Ellie and I in an apartment off the campus, but still close to it. As for my boss, he let me take some time off. 

The audition takes place in Paris. So we drive early in the morning with our instruments. Carole will use the drum set that they left available on the concert hall. Matt decided to accompany us. The latter ended up admitting to Ellie that he had been putting money aside for several months to join us in the City of Angels as soon as he can. Maybe not right in September, but he will try to do it as soon as possible. He's waiting to have enough money to pay for the plane ticket.

One long hours of train separate us from the capital. Nobody flinches, probably due to the very early hours, but also to the lump in our belly that we support without saying anything. It's Carole who breaks the silence.

"Damn I'm hungry!"

"You're lucky, I won't be able to swallow anything before it's over."

Ellie doesn't seem to be ok. Matt looks at her with a little laugh.

"You worked really hard for the last fifteen days! You gonna kill it don't you worry!"

He puts his arm around her shoulders and brings her closer to him to kiss her on the forehead. It's at those moment that I regret being single.

"My brother says "shit" to us!"

Maxine then hands her cell phone to me so that I can read the end of the message.

"And Hugo supports Lexie by thinking hard about her... Aww..."

The girls are making fun of me. Maybe I should have gotten to know him better. After all, he seems to be a very nice guy. I'm chasing this idea from your head. I think about it in a moment of vulnerability, that's all.

We arrive in Paris at the end of the morning. After an express stop at our hotel to get rid of our luggage, we decide to go directly to the concert hall where the auditions will take place. It is the small but very famous place called "La Cigale". Arriving nearby, we find that the fans are out. A crowd of people is gathered outside the doors. The girls and I struggle our way to gain access to a vigil with our registration number carefully printed before departure. The big guy tells us that unfortunately we will have to audition tomorrow. The number of registrants was so big that they were forced to spread the auditions over two days. He advises us to come as soon as the doors open tomorrow morning at 10 am and registers us already on the list of participants, which reassure us a bit. We almost miss the audition. 

The pressure comes down a bit but we're disappointed to have to wait another day. We still ask the security guard if we can enter the room to see the other participants auditioning, but he tells us that this is not possible from a security point of view because the room is not so big. We leave in the neighborhood of our hotel, not without regret, but at least we can get a good night's sleep to be in a top shape tomorrow morning. We go to a McDonald's to calm Carole's hunger who has been talking about heating since we got off the train.