I've always felt like I've had two personalities. You know, like split personality disorder? My parents even notice it sometimes. Sometimes I'll act confident, cool and collected, but other times I'm moody, cold and hateful. They've never taken me to see a psychologist. I always refused. There's nothing wrong with me, I protested, lots of kids act this way. It's just a part of growing up. I never asked to be this way, but everything happens for a reason, right?

Have you ever analyzed your dreams? Like, trying to figure out what they mean? I do all the time. Dreams have always fascinated me. My dreams made a lot of sense, but they shocked me because how different they were. Or maybe I was shocked at how alike they were.

"Three seconds until the buzzer, if Tamura Hikari makes this shot, she'll win the nationals for her team!" An announcer cried, excitement of the game catching up to him. I was just outside the three-point arc. I shot the ball, and...

Swoosh! Right before the buzzer. The crowd goes wild! Rushing out on the court, fans held me up in the air chanting my last name.

"Tamura! Tamura! Tamura!"

This is one of my oldest and most recurring dreams. I fell in love with basketball when I was very young. I remember watching the all-star players on television with wide eyes and looking at my parents on the couch and saying "I could do that."

From then on, I had a basketball in my hand almost all the time. Once I was old enough, I started seriously training. I loved what I could do with my body. I could lift weights, run as far as I could, stretch for as long as possible. I was rather tall, so I normally played the post position. I was fast for a forward, so I could almost play anywhere on the court. Playing always cleared my head. If I was down, I would just grab a ball and head to the court. It was my ultimate stress-reliever.

But basketball is not the only thing I love.

I stand on stage, microphone in hand, shaking. It's a nervous shake. Not a bad kind of nervous, but I definitely have the jitters. The music starts, nice and slow, then it speeds up, leading to my cue. The spotlight suddenly brightens. It's right on me, and it's like I can feel the heat radiating from it even though it's dozens of feet away. I begin to sing, and all of my inhibitions and nerves fade away into the song.

Toward the end of the song, my voice gets stronger, my spine straightens and I stand taller. This is my moment, and no one can take this moment from me. I end the song with a long, high note, and the huge audience erupts in applause. It's nearly deafening. I grin from ear to ear, and take a cheesy bow.

"Thank you so much, goodnight!" I say, waving as I leave the stage.

The two dreams always end in the same way. A huge crowd is always chanting my name, wanting more.

I discovered my passion for music in a similar way. I was listening to the radio, and all the sudden, a song came on. Not just any song, mind you. It was a song that changed my life. It doesn't matter what it was or who it was by, that's not important. What's important is the message it conveyed to me. It was my favorite song from there on out. I would sing it everywhere. In the car, in the shower, during class, while shooting hoops. But one day, I was singing it during my music class, and my teacher called me out into the hallway. She asked me to sing for her. So that's what I did. She smiled at me and asked me if anyone had ever told me I had a beautiful voice. I shook my head. My teacher told me I was very talented and she said she could give me vocal and instrument lessons. Any instrument you want, she said. Of course, I accepted her offer and I chose the guitar.

After school every day I would go to the music room, go to my lesson, then go home and train. After that, I would do my homework. I kept my grades up, even with everything I was doing. My parents weren't big fans of music, though. They said if my grades ever dropped or if I got behind on my training, I was not to go to music lessons anymore. But my grades never dropped, and I never got behind on training.

Singing and playing basketball do have some common ground, though. When I sing, I'm in control. When I have the ball in my hand, I'm in control. With basketball, it's like it's just me and the basket. With singing, it's like I'm singing for a huge crowd every time. It's a great feeling. I can't decide which I like more.

I've always loved being the center of attention. It's like when everyone is paying attention to me, I get drunk on the excitement. Don't get me wrong, I would never fake something just for attention, and I never bring the limelight to myself. I just wait for it to happen on its own, and I love every minute of it. However, being alone and in the spotlight is a totally different story... And that, brings us to our story.