Choir of Voices, an Angel Sings
By: Atomic Kokoro
Storyline
Goten wants to join the school choir. However, he isn't sure he'll be accepted by the other students. So, instead, Goten goes at it alone in the school talent show.
Before You Read
La la la la la la la! Ahem. Hey. Just a story based on singing. I always wondered if Goten could hit the high notes as a child. He probably could if his voice wasn't so rough.
(tries to sing high notes) ...ahem...
MOM: What are you doing to the cat?
-_-" I'll hit those notes some day! I just gotta keep practicing!
Anyways, on with the story!
Choir of Voices, an Angel Sings
Goten pulled himself deeper into the corner. He couldn't leave the corner unless he left the room. So many girls...not a single guy, Goten thought to himself, shrinking in a little deeper. The seven-year-old was considering signing up for the choir, but...
He couldn't do it. What if he hit a note wrong? And even if he did make it, what would stop everyone from making fun of him. Hey, look! He can hit high notes! Many people would question his sexuality at that point. Heck! They'd question his gender!
"Son Goten?" a teacher called out. Goten shrunk deeper into the corner. This was a bad idea. A terrible idea. Goten shook his head, got up, and ran out of the room.
If someone didn't question his gender, he would question his own courage.
…
"So you didn't do it," Trunks said simply at lunch. Goten hadn't said a word, yet Trunks knew. It was like they could read each others minds. Goten shook his head.
"I'd feel better if you were there," he said.
"To watch or to join?" Goten shrugged. It didn't matter. It wasn't like he would make it anyway. He brought his carton of milk to him mouth and sipped it quietly. "Why don't you try out of the talent show next week?"
Goten choked on some milk. "Trunks! Are you crazy? That'd be even worse! Besides, what song would I sing? 'Bring Me To Life' by Evanescence?"
"Better than Justin Beiber," Trunks chuckled.
Goten sighed. What did Trunks have against Justin, anyway? "I don't know," Goten said after a minute. "I...What if everyone makes fun of me?"
"Don't do it if you don't feel comfortable," his friend replied. "I was just suggesting it. No need to get all freaked out about it."
Goten nodded. It did sound like a good idea. Besides, he was trying out in front of one, two teachers. He wouldn't have to worry if he screwed up; they wouldn't tell anyone. It wasn't like he was going to make it to the show or something.
"But what song would I sing if I went?" he asked.
Trunks shrugged and swallowed a piece of chicken. "Don't. Just sing, like, 'ah' the whole time. These two French kids did it and they were fine. Better then fine. ...that girl was pretty cute..."
Goten rolled his eyes. "Do I just make up the notes, then, to an instrumental?"
"Yeah, pretty much."
Goten thought about this. It made him wonder if it was possible.
…
It was his day. To try out. God, he was so nervous. Goten took a deep breath. He insisted Trunks should be there; he didn't want to do it alone. He needed someone there, and Trunks was the best of anyone. He didn't want to embarrass himself in front of Gohan and certainly not his Dad.
Trunks appeared to be the most understanding.
"So," said one teacher, writing Goten's name on a piece of paper on her clipboard. "what will you being doing for us?"
Goten blushed and placed a CD into a CD Player. "Uh...um...I'm...uh...s-s-sing...singing..."
Trunks smacked his forehead far at the back.
The teachers sighed. Goten had seen the previous auditions. He didn't find them all that great, but the ones doing it found it amazing. He wondered if he felt the same way. The performance he found terrific was really terrible.
He pressed play and his heart skipped a beat when the music began to play. He backed up a few steps, trying to sink into the back of the stage as much as possible. He cleared his throat and waited for the cue.
Trunks folded his arms and took to steps on the spot. Goten opened his mouth and hit the note he was supposed to hit. So far so good. One second down, two minutes and fifty-nine seconds to go.
He had taken up on Trunks' advice to not say any words and just use the syllable 'ah'. It was a pretty song to be singing, he thought. He was too nervous to sing for anyone-not even Trunks-so he had never knew whether he was good or not.
Goten concentrated on his singing rather than the music playing behind him. He closed his eyes. He would rather not see disappointment and bored-looking faces and sing for about three minutes.
The demi-Saiyan was almost shocked at how suddenly the end came. He was holding a single note for about a couple seconds before he realized he had over thrown it and drew the song to an end. Goten shut his eyes closed and covered his eyes with his fingertips, more afraid of the looks on their faces than the dark.
He opened their eyes and everyone in the room looked...not as he expected. Most of their jaws dropped (Trunks' eyes remained wide open) and they were staring at him. "Is that a bad thing?" he whispered over the silence.
The teacher took a deep breath before looking around and her eyes finally rested on her clipboard. "Uh, why don't you wait until the posts come up, and then you'll see," she said, writing something else down.
Goten hopped off the stage and ran out the door, forgetting his CD, which Trunks received for him. He eventually found the little guy hyperventilating in the boys' bathroom. "Trust me, I'm just as shocked as you." he said. "Stop doing that! You're gonna make yourself faint!"
Trunks patted Goten on the back and he eventually calm down. "H-how did I do?" Goten asked. "Are your ears okay?"
Trunks sputtered a laugh. "My ears are fine. I was more worried about your voice, though." Goten looked at Trunks with a confused look. Trunks shook it off and continued on. "Goten, that was amazing! I didn't think you could sing like that."
"Thanks, Trunks," he said. "But don't try to be nice to me just cause I'm your friend."
This time, there was no sputtering. It was a pure, loud laugh. The kind that wasn't so easily pulled out. "I'm not being nice, I'm being serious."
Goten looked up at Trunks in shocked. "You mean it?"
"Uh, yeah!"
Goten smiled.
…
It was supposed to be a normal day for once, but when Goten came running up to him, worried than ever, he could only assume his best friend was about to turn his day upside down. Again.
"Trunks!" Goten yelled as he ran down the hall and almost ran into him. Trunks stared at Goten for a moment, trying to figure out what the problem was. "I can't do it!" he cried. "I can't sing in front of the whole school!"
It took Trunks a moment to understand what Goten was talking about. "Do you mean that talent show?" he asked. It was a week ago when Goten tried out. And ever since then, Goten insisted he wasn't going to make it.
How wrong he was.
"It's alright, Goten," he said.
"No, it's not!" Goten hissed. "The whole school is gonna think I'm weird or something! You're different. You know me. But most of the kids in the school don't even know my name!"
"Yeah? You go and everyone knows your name."
Goten sighed exaggeratedly. "Ugh! You don't understand! Think about what happened in Step Brothers. That guy sang in the choir and everyone stared making fun of him. What if I grow up and still live with my mom cause I sang at the talent show!"
Trunks stared at Goten for a minute before tossing his head back and hollering a long string of laughter. Goten stomped his foot and leaned forward. "I'm serious!"
Trunks settled down long enough to speak. "You crack me up, kid. That was only a movie! You aren't gonna be forty-years-old and still live with your mom. No, not on my watch you aren't. Besides. If anyone makes fun of you, you got me, your brother, your dad, Krillin, Tien, 18, Icarus, even, there to help you and there are still the people I didn't name. And then there's the teachers-"
"Alright! Okay! I get your point," Goten muttered.
"Exactly. Now, when's the talent show?"
Goten looked up at the ceiling, trying to recall the date. "Friday, I think," he said.
"That's in two days," Trunks said. "Try to get yourself together before then."
…
Thursday night and everything was going as planned. Everyone was getting together that night for the heck of it. Everyone was sitting down, eating and chatting when Trunks stepped onto his chair and attempted-and failed miserably-to tap his glass to get everyone's attention.
When that failed, he put his hands on his hips and hissed, "Hey, are you guys listening?" Everyone looked up. "That's better." He smiled and winked at Goten who blinked in confusion back. "I just want the world to know Goten auditioned for the talent show-"
"Trunks!" Goten screeched, jumping his feet and swallowing whatever food was in his mouth. "You said you wouldn't tell anyone!"
Trunks shook his head. "No, I didn't, actually. Anyways, he made it and the talent show is tomorrow, so..."
Goten jumped up and charged at Trunks who jumped off his chair and ran off. Before Goten could chase Trunks away a decent distance, Gohan grabbed Goten by the back of the shirt and lifted him off the ground. "Let me go, Gohan!" he demanded, struggling. "That isn't fair!"
Gohan sighed. "We already knew about this before Trunks said anything."
"Huh?"
Gohan chuckled at Goten innocent voice. "The school called last night and said you made it into the talent show. They were quite impressed."
"B-b-b-b-but..." he stuttered. "You can't possibly go anyway. You're all too busy. Especially you. You have school, too! The talent show is during school hours." Goten folded his arms and turned away from Gohan, despite Gohan still had him the back of the shirt.
Gohan sighed again and let Goten down. "We'll see what happens tomorrow," he said and everyone went back to the party.
Well, most of them.
…
Friday. Fifteen minutes until his turn. Goten paced back and forth, CD in hand. He felt so betrayed; how could he possibly go up there and sing?
The less time between then and his turn increased his anxiety and nervousness, until finally...it was his turn.
Goten walked slowly, taking each step tentatively. He didn't look at the crowd; just walked to the CD Player and put in the CD. He pressed the play button, walked back to the center of the stage and held his breath.
He turned and faced the crowd. His heart jumped to about fifty-nine miles an hour. He shut his eyes and focused on his cue to begin singing.
Goten opened his mouth. At first it came out as a squeak. His heart skipped a beat. Oh, crap! I messed up! The thoughts went through him mind at about a million miles an hour. He tried again, trying to hit the second note, which was too rough.
The third note, however, was the charm. And so was the next note. And the next. He couldn't believe how well he was hitting the notes. He kept his eyes shut, not making eye contact with the audience at all.
"Ahh, ah ah, aa-aahh-hhh..." Could he keep it up for the rest of the three minutes?
He shut his eyes tighter, focusing on hitting the right notes at the right time. Finally came a break in the song where he could stop for about five second for the right cue to begin again.
The crowd bursted in applause. Goten opened his eyes and stared at the audience. Was this...really happening? He shut his eyes again just before his cue and began to sing.
A minute of singing passed and Goten could feel his voice beginning to get rough. He tried desperately to not cough, which was successful for the most part, but he wasn't sure about his notes. He opened one eye and spotted Trunks in the audience, who looked like he was watching the climactic part of a movie.
Goten closed his eyes again. It was the last thirty seconds. He was going to make a strong finish. He had to make a strong finish.
Adding a bit of volume and increasing the drama in his voice, Goten sang. And he sang strongly.
And the song drew to an end.
There was silence.
Goten opened his eyes
The crowd roared in cheers and praise! He sighed with relief. It had gone amazingly well, he could only assume. Now that was a tough battle. Nothing like fighting Broly. Well, that was a lie. The victory was just as sweet!
…
"Gohan!" Goten shouted, running to his brother as he left the school Trunks walking out behind him. "I did so awesome!"
"I know!" he chuckled.
Goten blinked. "Wait! You guys saw me? I mean, sat down and watched me sing?"
"Of course!"
Goten blinked again. "How many of you were there?"
Gohan just laughed and wrapped an arm around Goten's shoulders. "How about he go home and celebrate, little buddy."
The youngest Saiyan chuckled innocently. "Alright."
…
Goten couldn't believe it when he found out everyone came. He was was pretty glad it was the weekend. He hadn't seen anyone before they left. He honestly hoped no one would congratulate him when he got back.
How wrong he was.
THE END
After Notes
Inspired by, as stated, the two french kids. Look up "Really Really beautiful French song (Worth listening to!)" by Kagura785. It's a real beautiful song!
La la lala! (looks around) Where did everyone go? (sigh) I should think this again. Maybe singing just isn't my thing...
Hey! Wait! Singing! Of course. I'm a writer! Writing's my thing. What was I thinking? Ha ha! Well, you know the drill!
Loved it? Hate it? Wanna read it again? Let me know! The review button is right there!