I made it to the school in record time. I was really tired though because I practically ran all the way there. I didn't want to miss the band meeting we had scheduled for the morning. Stella had told everyone last night to meet her in the auditorium. We were all kind of curious as to what Stella had in store for us all. I had spent most of last night talking with the rest of my friends over the phone, instant messages and video chat. After the long hours of discussion, we came up with the wildest ideas for the following morning. Because knowing Stella, she always did something crazy.
Thinking of all the possibilities just made me go faster, first speed walking, then sprinting and now practically running through the halls of my school. A little voice inside of my head kept urging me to go faster and get to the surprise. But there was another voice arguing with the first one, telling me to slow down before I got caught and had to sit through a long lecture which would make me late. I decided to listen to the first voice and was thankful when I burst through the doors of the auditorium safe from the nagging words of potential busting teachers and hall monitors.
Unfortunately, no one was there yet and I let out a loud sigh of frustration. "I just ran all the way here! Come on!" I shouted to no one in particular. Seeing as how the room was deserted, I felt a little weird screaming at the air. I looked at my watch to see it was only 7:55 which meant I was 5 minutes early. Learning that I only had to wait five minutes set my mind at ease and I made my way towards the stairs the lead to the stage.
Standing up here made me feel so empowered and free. I felt like I could do anything that I could think of and it was the best feeling in the world. I don't know if the rest of my friends feel this way about standing on stage but I would find it crazy if they didn't. Everyone loved the music and you could just tell by the looks on their faces when we sing together or someone comes up with a new song idea. It was just something we all bonded with together as a group, and a family.
I sat at the piano and ran my hands along the keys. Contemplating what song I should play, I settled for Determinate. I rested my hands on the keys and I took off, not paying any attention to what I was playing and just getting lost in the feeling of the music. It wasn't until the keys blurred in front of my eyes that I froze and shook my head. I looked up and the whole room seemed to be fading slowly in and out of my vision. I staggered up from my seat and felt the room violently spin under my feet.
I grabbed onto the edge of the piano and cradled my head in my free hand. "What's happening?" I questioned. There was ringing in my ears that almost sent me into darkness but not before I felt a pair of hands grab me and help me sit down on the stage. I put my head between my knees, remembering how it was supposed to help someone stay conscious when they were about to pass out, and took slow, deep breaths. Eventually the ringing went away in my ears and I was able to hear a voice next to me full of concern. I looked up and as my vision slowly went back into focus I saw a very scared Stella holding me steady.
"Wen, are you okay? What happened?" she frantically asked me. I blinked a few times and furrowed me eyebrows before I came up with the words that came out of my mouth a little slurred.
"I don't know. I was playing on the piano but then my vision got all blurry and I stood up but I got really dizzy and next thing I knew you were helping me down onto the floor." I answered slowly and a little bit confused. She grabbed my wrist and pressed her thumb to the underside, no doubt checking my pulse. She sighed and looked back up to me.
"Well your pulse seems normal but you look a little pale. Did you eat anything before you came here?" The granola bar weighed heavily in my pocket as I realized I never got to eat it. I pulled it out of my pocket and smiled sheepishly at Stella.
"I ran all the way here because I didn't want to be late and completely forgot that I had grabbed this. I'm so stupid." I explained to my friend. She shot me a stern look but grabbed my arm and helped me up onto the piano bench. I was still a little shaky but I ripped open my granola bar and nibbled at the corner of it.
"You need to be careful, Wen! I walked in here and all I saw was you hunched over holding you head. You're lucky I was here. And don't be surprised when I tell the whole band what just happened when they all show up for the meeting. And another thing…" Stella continued to drone on and on about everything she could sputter out. But I just smiled and kept on listening, relieved that I wasn't alone. The truth was just something I didn't want to admit. I was afraid.