Spy School High School (Highschool AU) [ONGOING]

08. Talent Show

December 18, 2019

"Performers, please be ready to begin in 10 minutes."

The Public Announcement, which was made by the principal, rang through the backstage. Students glanced up at the sound of the announcement. They immediately started working a bit faster, trying to finish their activities. Because today, December 18th, was the day of the Winter Talent Show.

The backstage, which was really just a portable classroom, was filled with lots of performers, whose acts varied widely. A group of girls were gathered in one corner, gossiping about the latest news and such. In the opposite corner of the classroom though, were Ben and his friends. His friends were all casually sitting around, while Ben was dressed in a suit.

"Remind me why I agreed to do this again," Ben said to Mike, who was sitting on a chair.

"Because we dared you to," Mike said for the millionth time that day.

"It's one thing to perform at the Talent Show. It's a whole other to thing to sing at the Talent Show. And in a suit? Not my style," Ben said. Mike sighed.

"And lastly, I can't sing," Ben said. Mike gave him a look.

"Dude, if you wanted to, you could become a professional singer. Might as well use your voice," Mike said, relaxing on the chair.

"Let's just get this over with," Ben said. And as he said that, another announcement came over the PA.

"All performers please head to the Stage Wing."

The Stage Wing was the area of the stage that was out of view from the audience; it was the area on the left and right of the stage, and this is what actors used to exit the stage. Ben's school had been lucky enough to get an profession stage. Ben waved goodbye to his friends, grabbed this guitar, then headed to the wing. When he arrived, there were a few rows of seats set up. Ben found the one with his name on it and sat down. 

5 minutes later, Ms. Brooke entered through one of the nearby doors. She took a deep breath, then nodded and walked onstage. The audience offered a round of applause. She gave the normal speech, about how thankful she was to the audience for coming, and how hard we all worked. Then, the performances began.

The next hour was filled with many performances. Dancing, juggling, and even some acting was presented. Finally, it was the last performance of the day, Ben's. He took a long breath, then held his guitar, got up, and walked on stage. The audience clapped politely. Ben smiled, but inside butterflies were arising in his stomach. He continued walking, until he reached the center of the stage. In front of him, was a stool and a microphone stand. Ben sat down on the stool, positioned the mike, placed his guitar in his hands, and started singing.

I know the bible isn't perfect, 'cause it left one person out
There was Adam, there was Eve, and there was someone else around
Yeah I think his name was Steve, and he was passin' through town

When he heard a snake a-whisperin' to Adam in the garden
"Take the fruit, it's good for you" Steve said, "I beg your pardon"
I know it's not my business, but will you just hear me out?

He said, "I wouldn't lie, you should not go to that tree
The serpent knows the apple grows from a forbidden seed
Oh, you want what you can't have but you've got all the things you need
There was Adam, there was Eve and there was Steve"

He said, "Adam, don't be fooled by the snake
Don't risk it all for a taste, oh what a waste
To have everything and give it all away"

Adam looked around and as he wrestled with his fate
Steve and Eve rolled up their sleeves to wrestle with that snake
In the midst of all the chaos, Steve was still screamin' out

He said, "I wouldn't lie, you should not go to that tree
The serpent knows the apple grows from a forbidden seed
Oh, you want what you can't have but you've got all the things you need
There was Adam, there was Eve and there was Steve"

He said, "Adam, don't be fooled by the snake
Don't risk it all for a taste, oh what a waste
To have everything and give it all away"

Sometimes I feel like Adam 'cause I've got more than I need
But even when I have it all I want what's out of reach
Maybe I should learn my lesson like Steve was talkin' to me

He said, "I wouldn't lie, you should not go to that tree
The serpent knows the apple grows from a forbidden seed
Oh, you want what you can't have but you've got all the things you need
There was Adam, there was Eve and there was Steve"

He said, "Adam, don't be fooled by the snake
Don't risk it all for a taste, oh what a waste
To have everything and give it all away"

Ben finished slightly out of breath. The audience was silent.

'Please say something. Please say something," Ben implored.

Then, all at once, the audience started clapping. And it wasn't casual clapping either. It was the standing ovation kind of clapping. Ben smiled, bowed, and walked off stage.

"Congratulations Ben," Ms. Brooke said.

"Thank you so much," Ben said.

Then Ms. Brooke went back on stage, and thanked everyone for coming. Slowly, the audience got up and left. After that, Ms. Brooke went back and dismissed all the performers. Ben went backstage once more, grabbed his backpack, and left. As he walked to the front of the school, he met up with Zoe and Mike.

"Great performance Ben!" Zoe chirped. Ben groaned. Mike smiled a bit.

"So today I saw this new boba place nearby, you want to check it out?" Mike asked.

"I'm down," Ben said.

"Sure," Zoe said.

Then they all walked to the boba place. Zoe got strawberry boba, Ben got mango boba, and Mike got orange boba. They got their drinks, and then left.

"How's the boba?" Mike asked on the way back.

"Pretty good, but T4 is still better," Ben said.

"I agree," Zoe said. Mike nodded, and they finished rest of their walk in silence.

That night, Ben went to his bedside, and crossed off another day on his calendar. He was counting down the days to not only the New Year, but also the new decade. The calendar had 13 days left to cross off.

'Just 13 more days,' Ben thought.

Then he crossed his room, flipped the lights off, and crawled into the bed. Within minutes, he entered a steady, peaceful slumber.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

- Cookie