The Next Big Thing- Prologue
The first time Mr. Deacon Lorimer, long time band director of Mt. Olive Memorial High School, walked in to the auditorium on a Tuesday afternoon, he was brought to a stand still.
He had heard that Glee Club, or by the more popular name, show choir, was very competitive. He had heard that these kids, even though there were only a few of them, had passion unlike anything anyone had ever seen before. Mr. Lorimer had dropped by to see if it was true. To see if there could really be kids out there, that enthusiastic about music. Well, he had actually been asked to drop by to see if he could get his band to play for him, but the first reason seemed so much better.
Still, he wasn't expecting to walk in on this.
Two boys stood on the stage, face to face, screaming at each other.
Well, not screaming, but singing.
He could see Mr. Hennings standing, facing the wall, banging his head into it. Whoa. What in the world was going on here?
The band director walked a few rows down, tuning in to the lyrics. It was something he had heard before, but something he had never heard sung by two guys.
He did have to admit that it seemed to fit the situation perfectly.
The boy to the right was dressed nicely, too nicely for a small school like this. His clothes had designer origins, and his voice was pretty darn high for a guy.
Not saying that it wasn't good. It was packed with emotion.
That boy was really in to what he was singing. What was his name? Kadin…. Kadin something.
"What is this feeling, so sudden and new?" Kadin sang rather forcefully at the toher, taking a step forward.
The other boy took a step back, before charging forward with the next line. His voice was good, but he was trying to hard to overcome the other, who Mr. Lorimer guessed had been training his whole life. "I felt the moment, I laid eyes on you!"
"My pulse is rushing!" Kadin spat back, getting redder with every beat.
"My head is reeling!" Oliver Kellen snapped back, holding one hand to his head.
They both sang together in perfect harmony, circling around each toher like two predators fighting for the same piece of meat. "What is this feeling? Fervent as a flame! Does it have a name? Yes! Loathing! Unadulterated loathing!"
"For your face!" Kadin sang, holding his nose high in the air. My, he really was a prick, wasn't he?
"Your voice!" Oliver sang, dramatically putting his hands over his ears.
"Your CLOTHING!" Now this one you could tell he really meant, especially after the kick. He reached forward, pulling at the other's jacket before snorting and pushing him back with both hands.
Both of them were together again, singing right in each others face, each attempting to gain the higher ground. "Let's just say, I loathe it ALL! Every little trait, however small makes my very flesh begin to crawl with simple utter loathing! There's a strange exhilaration in such total detestation! It's so pure, so strong! Though I do admit it came on fast, still I do believe that it can last. And I will be loathing," they're voices gained in height, but Oliver wasn't able to hold his tone. "Loathing you," quickly Kadin was over coming him in pure vocal power. "My WHOLE. LIFE. THROUGH!"
Kadin gave him one final push. Oliver fell back, but he didn't seem afraid. Kadin towered over him, both hands on his hips.
A wicked smile spread across his face. "That's right, Oliver Kellen, you lost. To me. Yet. Again." He laughed, taking a moment to fix his bangs before walking off.
"Wow," Mr. Lorimer said under his breath. "Just, wow."
He walked over to Mr. Hennings, his eyes still on the one boy left on stage. He was laying there, looking rather distraught.
"If the rest of your group is like that, then you guys are definitely going to make it to finals!" Mr. Lorimer told the other teacher, not being able to hide his grin. "I'm more than impressed!"
Mr. Hennings turned around, looking more than a bit aggravated. "Do you want them?"
"Want… them?" The band director asked, not sure what he meant.
"Yes, do you want them?" his tone was sharp. "Because I QUIT!"
Mr. Lorimer watched as the other teacher stormed off, wondering what in the world could be so bad about these kids. I mean, he had heard that there were only five of them. How much trouble could five kids cause?
He looked back over at the stage, noticing that Oliver was gone. He walked up the few steps, standing stage right. "Um, hello?"
A girl appeared from behind the red velvet curtain, looking around. "Hey, where'd Mr. Hennings go? I'm ready for my solooo!"
She skipped out as she talked, spinning as she said the word solo.
"Um, he's gone," Mr. Lorimer told her.
"Oh." Her blue eyed stare immediately turned from one of mere curiosity to one of expectation. "Are you here to take over?"
The curly red haired girl had never seen this guy before. Of course, she never spent much time near the band room, so it wasn't surprising that she didn't see him. "Who are you, exactly?"
"Me? I'm Mr. Lorimer, the band director."
"Oh." She was still staring at him. "You never answered my question. Are you here to take over?"
Was he? It couldn't be that hard. He'd had some workings with show choir before, and it had always seemed like something he could enjoy doing. "Um, sure?" She still didn't say anything. "Who are you?"
She seemed shocked that he didn't know her. "My name's Addi Fairly," she told him matter-of-factly. "And I'm the best female singer in this whole school."
Wow, she was sure of herself.
"Who else is there?" he asked curiously.
"It's just me, Kadin, Oliver, Elliot, and Garrett, Mr. L," she told him sweetly. "Would you like me to fetch them?"
"Yeah, if you could." See? Only five kids. He couldn't be getting himself in to much.
The curly haired girl reappeared a few moments later, hand in hand with the boy who had won the singing match earlier. Three other boys followed, including the one who had lost.
"Alright, this is Kadin Vivanio," Addi told him, pointing at the nicely dressed boy beside her, who gently shook her hand off and crossed his arms.
Mr. Lorimer had never met the Vivanio boy before, but it was very clear that Kadin did not like him. Very clear.
He nodded, and she moved on to the next boy.
"Oh, Elliot!" Mr. L greeted the short, blond boy on Kadin's other side. Elliot was one of his best snare drummers. "I didn't know you could sing."
Elliot chuckled lightly, running one hand through his spiky, almost lion like hair. "Yeah, well then, you're the only one!"
Addi cleared her throat. "Next to Elliot is Oliver Kellen."
Ah, Oliver. The loser of today's match. He nodded once more, and Addi continued.
"And then we have Garrett Shepard."
Garret was at the end, which was good, because he was a lot taller than everyone else.
"Oh, I've seen you before," Mr. Lorimer realized, looknig up at the boy who stood a few inches taller than even him. "You play basketball, don't you?"
Garret nodded, responding with a polite, "Yes sir."
"And they don't mess with you for singing too?" he asked. He had heard that the glee kids got picked on a lot.
"Nah, the guys are pretty cool with it." Of course they would be. Garrett could beat the crap out of any one of them, and they all knew it.
Mr. L took a step back, surveying the group.
They seemed like good kids. He would let Principal Reever know that he was taking over.
Mr. Lorimer had no idea what he was getting himself in to.