I found my friend Jaz by the snack table with a boy dressed in black. I felt a slight headache, but ignored it.
"Hey, Alex! Your performances ROCKED! Oh, yeah, this is Tobias," Jaz gushed. The boy was at least six foot two, if not more. I didn't have time to see any more because Taylor came over.
"Hey, Alex, great job! You hit 'Fearless' perfectly! Thank you."
"Yeah, no problem!"
Taylor walked off towards the stage, and it looked like she was going to start another song. I recognized the opening tune to "The Moment I Knew."
I felt like something was missing, as if the song was about me. Jaz walked up to me, her face red.
"What? Did he kiss you?" I teased.
"Aghhhhh... May..."
"He did! How could you-"
"Alex, look at yourself!"
To my surprise, and my horror, my arm was transparent! Jaz grabbed my arm, and we found ourselves in a train turnaround.
"...Woah," I breathed. "Is that... The Empire State Building?" I asked, pointing to a symbol engraved into the wall. "We're in New York? How is that possible?"
"How did you get in here?" a harsh voice demanded. Jaz and I spun toward a balcony where a teenage boy, maybe eighteen, stood. "Balthazar!"
"No! I"m sorry! We'll just leave. Right, Jaz? Jaz?" She was passed out on the floor, curled up into a ball. "Great. She's asleep!"
By now, the boy had walked down the steps and was coming toward us. "Is that... a crown? Where did you get it?"
I touched the crown of Gondor. I had forgotten that I was wearing it. "It's... Personal. I must refuse information to anyone but my family and closest friends."
"I see," another voice said. I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head, and I blacked out.