A Bittersweet Love || The Music Freaks || Jailey

Chapter Ten

Notice:

This chapter has my envision of Hailey's backstory. Since the series is not over yet, I still don't know what's canon and what's not. This all just came from my imagination, and it's fan-made, so of course, the backstory is most likely not true. We'll have to wait for an episode starring Hailey before we know for sure, but this is just my envision of how Hailey's story would be like.

Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy reading!

You would've never guessed the walls of Hailey's room were a pale cyan, with the setting sun casting an orange tinge over the whole room. Sunsets weren't something you could enjoy here in the city, but the orange and purple blend outside was satisfactory.

Hailey leaned on her arms, sitting down with the rest of the band members on the floor. Jake hadn't arrived yet, and they were playing Uno while they waited.

"Milly, are you serious?" Zander groaned as the pink haired girl placed down a Wild Draw 4. The others laughed as Zander added to his sixteen other cards in his hand.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Hailey stood up.

"It's probably Jake," she said.

Milly nodded stiffly. The band had been quite shocked when Hailey told them that Jake was joining the band again. But somehow, she had managed to convince them that he really did care, and that they needed him.

"Hey, Jake!" Hailey said as she opened the door. He smiled at her through the doorway, holding a sleeping bag under his arm and a backpack on his shoulders.

"Hey," he said somewhat awkwardly. She watched as he stepped in, gaping at their house.

"Wow... your house is... crazy cool," he said. Hailey couldn't help but agree with him. Her family had always been musical, with her step-mother as a star in musicals and her father a famous street performer. 

That would probably be the explanation of the number of guitars hanging on the walls, as well as certificates plastered here and there. A family photo sat on the mantle of the fireplace.

"I wish I had a family like this," said Jake wistfully. Hailey smiled vaguely and the two set off upstairs to her room.

"Hello," said Jake shyly. The band members greeted him tensely. Hailey could tell Jake was nervous about meeting them after what had happened.

"So... Jake will be singing for us again. And, I want you guys to treat him like family. I'm sure he has an explanation, and we have to learn to trust each other," said Hailey.

"I really wanted to stay in the band, I swear," Jake said. "When I'm with you guys - it's the only place where I feel like I can sing! I truly enjoyed the time I spent here, and I love hanging out with you guys!

"And your friends?" Zander asked. "Are you still going to hang out with them despite them calling us freaks?"

"I'll... figure it out," said Jake uneasily. Hailey patted the ground beside her, and he sat down.

"How can we really trust you, though?" Milly asked. Jake hesitated.

"Maybe we should tell each other our stories," Hailey suggested. They looked at her, confused. "We should tell our stories of what happened in our life, and how we got into music. I'm sure everyone here has one, and it'll make us all see everything from their view."

"That's a good idea," Luke agreed.

To make everyone more comfortable, Hailey decided to go first.

"I was around six years old when my mother died," she began, "ever since then, we started to lose money, and were eventually cast out to the streets.

"Luckily, my dad kept his guitar. So we started to perform on the streets - him on the guitar and me singing. It wasn't a big hit at first, but soon, we got attention, and people began to donate to us. 

"One fortunate day, we met Zander's mother," she smiled, nodding at her step-brother. She remembered that day clearly - Zander had been there too. As she had watched her dad and future mother stare into each other's eyes, she felt a small flower of hope blossom in her heart. Hope, something so rare to find these days.

"It was when both our parents fell in love, and they soon got married. We were able to move into this house, and ever since then, we've become one happy family.

"I was known as the 'street performer's girl' at school. I was content, and people praised me for my singing. Even though we had money, I would still perform with my dad every now and then.

"But when we started high school, that's when I met Jake," she said, looking at him. "He and his gang started teasing us - Zander and I - for liking music. I never really showed it... but it kind of hurt. And it was part of the reason I wasn't singing as often as I used to."

"I'm so sorry... I never knew," Jake whispered.

"Did you?" Zander asked, raising an eyebrow. "Did you ever consider how you and your friends impacted us?"

It was silent for a while before Hailey spoke up again.

"It became so that I stopped performing with my dad, and when we formed the music club, I'd only ever sing in front of them."

"Not that we always got a chance to hear, anyway," chuckled Sean.

"I never really heard you sing solo," remarked Jake. "You didn't practice singing with me too much, and in the band competition, I was too focused on my own singing, that I didn't really hear you."

"Why don't you sing now?" said Luke brightly.

"Aw, yes! Come on, please, Hailey?!" Milly pleaded.

Hailey hesitated, and she looked at everyone's faces, lingering a bit on Jake's.

"Alright," she sighed, smiling, and reached for her guitar. Milly pumped her fist in the air, and Sean's face lit up.

Hailey closed her eyes, feeling the familiar grip of the guitar. She strummed a few chords before bursting into song.