At first I just sat in my seat, waiting for the competitor to walk up. Then it hit me. I was competing in the Regional Competition of Virginia. Amid Aliyah's screams of "JOJO!" and the crowds thundering applause, everything was frozen. Time stood still, sounds were muted as I walked up to Madame Courrie. She was smiling, mouthing something. It was "I'm proud." No one had ever been proud of me before. As soon as my feet hit the stage, sound came back again, cheers, screams, whistles, all for me. My smile could have wrapped across the whole world.