I do not own the movie Sing. I only own my OC, Jason.
Enjoy and don't forget to leave a review! :)
The 9AM rays of the sun illuminated the streets of Echo Drive below.
After forcing himself up (with some loud 'assistance' from Stephanie) and informing Mr Reece of his absence for the day, Jason had managed to brush up, get dressed into his normal clothes and thankfully catch the bus in time. After reaching the last stop on the journey and gaining some directions, the porcupine's feet were killing him from the nearly-ten minute walk before he rounded the final corner at last. His drowsy eyes popped open in shock as he was met with the sight of hundreds… no, thousands of animals all lined up on the sidewalk outside the Moon Theatre, the majority of them holding the same orange flyers from yesterday. There was even a news truck parked nearby with a camera crew at the ready.
"Jeez, all this for a singing contest?" Jason couldn't help but mutter to himself, before figuring most of them were probably just there for the prize money. "Well, no point in wasting time, I guess."
Crossing over the street, Jason made his way to the back of the queue just as a couple more animals almost instantly joined him. Tilting his head out, he could see animals of all size and species either practicing a few notes to themselves, chatting excitedly with the animal next to them or posting about it on their phones. A news reporter dog was already working his way down the line interviewing some of the contestants.
Well, good to know they're excited. Jason thought, pulling out his phone and checking his messages, a majority of the new ones being from Gina and Stephanie. They mainly consisted of "Remember to breathe!", "GOOD LUCK!" and "Let me know how it goes!". Giving a brief sigh through his nostrils, the porcupine stuffed the phone back into his pocket and took a step forward as the queue moved ever-so-slightly.
Fifteen straight minutes had passed before Jason finally walked up the carpet-covered steps and into the foyer of the theatre.
"Nice digs." He murmured as he gazed in wonder at the polished wooden frames and red felt walls surrounding him, "Guess there's a reason they call it grand theatre." The line thankfully moved a little quicker inside the building until he was finally face-to-face with a doddery-looking lizard with a bullhorn and a very wonky eye. Behind her, in a snappy blue suit stood a squat middle-aged koala, who Jason assumed was this 'Buster Moon' guy he'd heard about in the queue. And he was undoubtedly trying to contain his sheer joy at the amount of animals before him. Jason took a tiny step back as the lizard waved her clipboard in front of his nose, her carefree smile never wavering.
"Okay, young man, if you could just sign your name and the song you'll be performing please?" She asked, offering a pen with her other shaky hand. Taking them both, Jason removed the lid and scrawled in an empty column on the paper:
Jason Eburno, singing Time in a Bottle by Jim Croce.
Handing the clipboard and pen back to her, the porcupine made his way through the doors and to the back of the stage. Waiting in the wings were thankfully a few less animals than there had been outside. Shrugging to himself, Jason propped himself up on one of the amplifiers and waited, checking his phone occasionally. Unfortunately, his eardrums had to suffer from the sound of the bunny trio coming through the curtains, 'singing' that painful Anaconda song by that artist whose name Jason had forced out of his subconscious.
It's amazing the kind of dreck they'll pass off as 'music' nowadays. No soul anymore, it's all about money and drinks and body parts. Jason thought to himself, repulsed. But hey, I guess if you put a butt on the album cover, you got yourself a seller.
"Okay, Ash and Lance next please!"
The lizard's scratchy old voice through the bullhorn snapped Jason out of his thoughts as the next two contestants picked up their equipment and made their way onto the stage. Jason just turned his attention back to his phone, flicking through even more messages of "Good luck!" and "Remember to sing clearly!".
Until the thrashing sounds of electric guitars shocked him enough to drop it to the floor.
Cringing, Jason knelt down to pick it up as the racket assaulted his ears more than the bunny trio had. The male voice currently singing the dreadful lyrics was deafening, like an entire army of nails scraping down the world's biggest chalkboard while screaming as if set on fire. And that was putting it nicely. Jason had heard his fair share of heavy metal but he wasn't even sure if this qualified as real singing.
But another voice quickly took over.
A girl's voice.
One that was… gorgeous. Loud yet pure and silvery at the same time.
Running over to the curtains, Jason peeked around the corner and caught a clear look at the contestants. They were two porcupines around his age, the pair of massive amps behind them booming with each strum from their guitars. Buster and the lizard in the front seats looked as if they were bracing themselves against a hurricane. The girl porcupine on the left earning a sour glare from the male next to her, clearly the source of those amazing vocals, gained only one quiet word from Jason.
"…Whoa."
She had sort of a rebellious look to her, punk-like. But in a way that she still looked… kind of cute. She wore a plaid skirt over her light blue jeans with matching blue trainers. Two loose quills were threaded through the front of her black mid-sleeve shirt, which she wore over her white long-sleeve shirt. And her fingers were practically flying over the neck of her red guitar as her stunning voice held that high note into the mike, the sound resonating throughout the amphitheatre. Shielding himself behind his clipboard, Jason could see the koala smiling and giving a nod at her performance. Not that he could blame the guy; Jason could tell she was extremely passionate about singing.
Heck, even she can make those terrible lyrics bearable. He thought, still gazing in awe at her.
"Right, thank you, Ash and Lance." The koala commented, smiling gratefully whilst clearing out his ear with a finger. The two porcupines unplugged their guitars and walked back behind the curtain, the boy scowling at the girl who simply smiled to herself excitedly. And Jason couldn't help but crack a smile himself as she walked past him; it was downright contagious.
"Next up, Jason!" The lizard's voice on the bullhorn blared out. Regaining his focus, Jason straightened his black zip-up hoodie before taking a deep cleansing breath and stepping out onto the stage. His eyes quickly adjusted to the lights as he took his place in front of the mike, still heightened to his level.
"Right, take it away, Jason!" Buster called, a keen smile on his face. Relaxing slightly, Jason simply imagined himself behind his desk at work as the beginning guitar notes of Time in a Bottle sounded from the speakers. He then started singing gently into the mike, keeping his composure and remembering the lyrics with no trouble. Opening his eyes a crack, he could see the lizard looking deeply invested in the performance whilst Buster jotted down some notes onto his clipboard, occasionally taking quick glances at the porcupine.
The moment Jason had finished his act, he opened his eyes fully as the final guitar notes of his chosen song faded away. Buster and the lizard both looked equally impressed.
"Very nice, Jason! Very nice indeed!" the koala stated with a grin, checking Jason's name off his list. Giving a grateful smile along with a small nod in return, Jason made his way back into the wings as the next contestant's name was called out.
"Well that was… pretty fun." He muttered to himself with a tiny smile. Exiting through the door, he went into the main area where a number of rehearsal spaces with glass walls were. Animals who had already auditioned were waiting around, either standing, leaning or sitting on chairs talking to one another. Through the jungle of legs and tails, he squinted slightly until he could make out a lone empty chair. Making his way through the crowd, giving quick apologies to everyone he accidentally poked with his quills, Jason finally got the chance to sit down on the chair. Letting out a relieved sigh, he was just about to pull his phone out of his pocket when he heard a pair of familiar voices a few feet away.
"Ash, babe, don't you remember what we discussed yesterday?"
"I know, I know, sorry. I just, y'know…"
"Got carried away. Again. Yeah, there's a shocker."
Turning his head left, his eyes widened slightly at the sight of the same two porcupines from before, both engaged in quite a heated debate. The girl, Ash if he'd heard correctly, fumbled her fingers around her guitar neck awkwardly as the male porcupine gave her a disapproving frown, leaning against the glass of a rehearsal room. Jason couldn't help but slump his shoulders slightly at the word "babe", confirming their relationship. Nonetheless, he listened to the rest of the argument.
"But the koala looked like he enjoyed it, Lance. I'd say that's a pretty good sign." Ash smiled optimistically to ease the tension, but that did very little to change her lover's face.
"Yeah, but it coulda been a whole lot better if you'd just stuck to the backing vocals like you were supposed to." Came his curt reply, "Heck, we'll be lucky if we even get into the show at all." With that, he simply went back to tuning his guitar nonchalantly.
Jason's eyes narrowed in disgust as Ash looked down at the floorboards with slight guilt; he'd had plenty of friends in school who were girls and may have never been romantically interested in any of them, but surely that wasn't the proper way for someone to treat their girlfriend. Ash's performance had been superb, regardless of whether she was singing as lead or backup. As much as he pictured giving that creep a well-deserved punch in the teeth, Jason remembered he wasn't exactly the authoritative type.
So instead he picked himself up and slowly, albeit slightly anxiously, stepped over to Ash who was still glancing downward. A quick tap on the shoulder made her look across at him. Jason's knees almost gave out from under him at the sight of her dazzling blue eyes staring right at him. The skin under his tan fur heated up slightly as if he was bathed in warm sunlight. They say that the eyes were the key to the soul. And these particular eyes, like pools of diamond, led to a very passionate, fierce yet gentle soul.
"Uhh, yes?"
Snapping out of his stupor, Jason's daydream melted away as he cleared his throat, Ash glancing at him with curious impatience. Finally he gave his compliment.
"If it's of any consolation, I thought you were pretty amazing."
He flashed a quick smile of support as Ash's eyes widened slightly before he made his way back to his seat. Happy he'd gotten that off his chest, Jason fished his phone out of his pocket and began texting his mother and sister about his audition. Almost instantly, his message was met with "OMG, well done, tell us if you get in!". Chuckling slightly, Jason gave a roll of his eyes before taking out his earphones and plugging them in. He sighed in bliss as the loud barrage of chatter around him faded away to be replaced with the sweet tunes of the 80s.
The whole time, he didn't noticed Ash's surprised gaze never leaving him. As if this was the first time anyone had complimented her on anything.
"Hello? Can I have everybody back to stage please? Everyone come back to stage for selection!" The lizard's scratchy voice yelled into the bullhorn for the final time that day.
Jason looked up to see all the animals around him beginning to head for the exit and make their way back to the stage. Bundling his earphones up into a ball and stuffing them back into his pocket, he pulled himself off the chair and onto his feet.
"Well, let's get this over with." He murmured as he followed the contestants. Once onstage, they all lined up as Buster and the lizard stood before them intensely. Jason positioned himself behind a cat and that awful bunny trio from before. Many of the competitors bore extremely nervous looks as Buster paced slowly along the front of the line like a drill sergeant. Even Jason quickly straightened himself up when the koala turned around to pace the other way. For a big-eared ball of fur, he sure had a tremendous presence.
"Alright, let's see now… I'll taaaaaaaaaake…" the porcupine heard him mutter as he studied his clipboard closely, briefly looking up to scrutinise some animals he passed. Finally he pointed his pen at a trio of frogs all clad in white leather. "…you guys." The three long-legged contestants whooped and celebrated amongst themselves as Buster then stopped in front of Ash and Lance.
"And which one of you is the girl?" Jason could only roll his eyes at, he assumed, the koala's attempt at humour.
"Ha-ha, very funny." Ash replied dryly.
You read my mind.
"'Loud and horrible but shows promise'." Buster read off his sheet before giving a cordial smile. "Welcome to the show." Jason felt his heart fly as Ash's expression lit up with surprise followed by sheer delight.
"Heh, cool. Guess we could hang." Lance remarked.
"No, no, I just want her, not you." Buster replied without missing a beat as he walked away from them both.
"What?" The porcupine pair stared at him, Lance looking more irate than Ash did. Jason couldn't help giving a miniscule smirk of satisfaction at Lance's anger.
Suck it, jerk face.
"The rest of the group acts, thank you for coming." The koala's announcement resulted in disappointed groans from many of the contestants who immediately began leaving the stage, ignoring Buster's reassurances of ticket discounts. Out of the corner of his eye, Jason noticed Lance give a roll of his eyes and begin following them, clutching his guitar in his paw.
"Pssh, let's get outta here, Ash."
The girl porcupine hesitated, however, taking a tiny step back but never drawing her eyes away from the remaining contestants. Or was she looking at… someone else?
"Ash!" She jolted slightly at the sharpness of her boyfriend's tone before reluctantly joining him.
"Uh, yeah. Yeah, let's go." She replied uncertainly. Her eyes didn't leave Jason's until she finally turned away and left the amphitheatre. A twang of sadness went through Jason's chest as he watched her go.
Well at least she's in. He reassured himself with some gratitude.
"Okay, soloists! Johnny, Mike, Pete, Richard, Daniel, and Ray!"
For some reason, the porcupine felt that sad wave rush through him once more at the fact his name wasn't mentioned.
"Eh, may as well be a good sport and not leave yet." He muttered under his breath as the selected contestants nervously stepped forward. Buster once more inspected them all before pointing down at the white mouse in the snappy red suit.
"Mike. Wowza! Gotta have you in my show."
"Oh, I, if you insist." The mouse replied in an aloof manner, as if he'd had no doubts of being selected.
"And I'll take… Pete."
"Yes!" The camel in the foreign getup gave a victorious fist-pump before joining Mike on the edge of the stage. Buster continued pacing around the contestants before stopping behind the bull, who was practically shaking with tension.
"And two more… let me see now… umm, thanks for coming, Richard." The bull, Richard, let out a breath of disappointment before stomping his hoof.
"AAAH!"
Right on top of the snail contestant.
"Oh, my… Ray!" Jason cringed along with everyone else as the panicked bull picked up the barely-conscious snail in his hooves. Hastily, he sprinted away down the aisle and out the doors, muttering "I gotcha" and "you're gonna be okay" all the while.
Yeesh, poor guy.
"Well there goes my original selected contender." Buster muttered, looking back at his clipboard then at the giraffe and gorilla remaining, "Hmm… I'm gonna need a replacement for Ray, uhh…" He studied his list carefully before his eyes lit up.
"Jason!"
Jason's eyes snapped open at the mention of his name. He could only stand there, frozen in a stupor as the koala looked at him with a grin.
"…Huh?"
"Congratulations, you're in. Welcome aboard." Jason stared at him for what seemed like forever.
"Umm…" Awkwardly sucking his lips in, the porcupine gave a sharp clap of his paws to snap himself out of his trance, "Okay. Great. That's, uh, that's cool. I shall just, uh… go stand over there. YYYYep."
Making his way past Buster as he began to make his decision between the giraffe and the gorilla, Jason's utter shock never died down at this unexpected turn.
Well… He thought gawkily. …at least Stephanie will be happy.
*I do not own the rights of the movie 'Sing'. All rights go to Illumination Entertainment.
Here's the YouTube link to Jason's audition song: /watch?v=AnWWj6xOleY
Also, yes, I removed the farting bull. Because really, what did that scene add? That was just in the movie because the writers thought to themselves "lolz, kids like farts cuz they're stupid".