The Band
By SmellDRoses
Chapter One: If I wanted Your Opinion, I'd ask for it
Authors Note: A Load of these songs will be from Evanescence, because to tell you the truth, they work. Please review and tell me what you think. There is no scout action in this story, to tell you the truth, it wouldnt have worked if there was. The rest is self-explainitory!
The Band
Chapter One
"I'm sorry she had to die, Serena, but she was suffering, she wasn't going to get better. She had a terminal illness; she is free from pain now. Do you think she would like to see you act this way? She loved you and didn't want to leave you; you know this better than I." Monday morning. It was unusually quiet; nobody was around the school except the two teens on the grass outside the front entrance of Haddock School. The building looked more like a prison than a school, it didn't have bars on the windows; it was just so gloomy.
"Bug off Darien." Growled Serena. She didn't want company; she was so fed up with life.
Serena's mother had died the previous week from lung cancer, Serenity had smoked and was addicted to cigarettes, she smoked a couple of packets a day and never stopped. In the past she had tried to give it up, but she got too weak and started up again. Apart from that Serenity was a wonderful woman, the Tsukino family had been well off, Serena's grandfather was a business tycoon and when both of Serenity's grandparents had died they got the money. The family was loved by the whole neighborhood, they were kind and thoughtful, and didn't flaunt their wealth.
"I was only trying to help, God knows why." Darien Chiba told Serena, hurt by the pure venom in her voice. Darien had jet black hair; which fell into his beautiful navy blue eyes. His body toned and on the edge of muscular because of the amount of extreme sports he did. "Will you ever sing again?" Darien tried to change the mood and subject.
"Dunno. Why?" She tugged at her coal black hair that she had dyed in an annoyed way, her foot tapped along the ground, waiting impatiently for what Darien was about to say. Since her mother had died, her heart had turned cold, her old friends worried for her, she was becoming so rebellious.
"Could you try out for our band? We need a chick singer, well, that's what the rest of the group says." Darien pleaded. He said it in a rush, knowing that Serena's reaction was not going to be nice. They had been friends for a time but when her mum died she started to stay away from the group, go off on her own. When asked she said she preferred to be alone, to think.
"No way! I gave it up when Mum got ill. And anyway, I wont have enough time to hang about, learning your songs." Serena's eyes told another story though, she really wanted to do it but she didn't want to dishonor her mother.
Looking into her eyes, which were a bright blue, the colour of forget-me-nots, Darien's will got stronger. He wanted the old Serena back. "Please? You have an amazing voice."
"I dunno, it won't feel right. I'll think about it." She stumbled, Poor Serena. She was really taking this hard.
"Listen, I don't think that your mum would encourage you to stop singing because of her leaving, she was the one who encouraged you to sing in the first place! If only you could remember the good times you spent with her, when she was alive, I know it sounds harsh but everyone has to die, Serena. Please try out." Darien spoke what was in his heart for once. He really liked Serena and had even fancied her old self. He couldn't help it. She was so sincere, kind and caring. He knew that she had changed but he could still see the same eyes starting out under the alien face, maybe if she did join the band she would change back to how she used to be; The smiling, happy teenager before the events that had scarred her for life forever.
"Well, I suppose…" Serena was crumbling. She really loved to sing, but was it right?
"Thanks, Serena." Darien rushed off to class before he hugged her; he knew that if he had she would have defiantly refused to go to the audition.
"Whatever." With that she went off to another direction, to the art hall.
"Good morning Miss Tsukino. How nice of you to come. Nice make-up." Mr Sneershope was a mean teacher and very bitter. He had no feelings for those in his classes and didn't care that Serena's mother was deceased. "Today, we are going to paint with the heart. Will you find it hard to paint your mind? We shall see. If I like your paintings I will frame them. I want complete honesty. Get to it. Draw with pencils and then paint with the acrylic paints displayed. Try to limit you palate."
Serena drew what she felt all right. In the centre of the page was a twisted figure, she was wearing ripped black clothes and chains; the background was dark blue and black swirls. There was a woman with her hands on the shoulders of the girl, her whole being was the palest blue and her blue/gold hair swept away from her face like there was a wind in front of her whereas the other girl was untouched by the wind. The woman with her hands on the other's shoulders had intense blue eyes.
"Cool picture. Bit too sad for me though. If you ever want to talk, you can talk to me. I hope you know that." Brad Whitten was another one of Darien's friends. He hadn't known Serena that well but he had seen her around before the death and he had liked her. He too preferred the old Serena though.
"Thanks but no thanks." Serena snipped. She knew Brad had meant to be nice but she didn't care. It wasn't wanted. Brad walked quickly off. He reminded himself to never speak to her again until she had got over her mother. He hoped it wasn't too long.
"Miss Tsukino. Very good, I'm impressed. I really think that this is artist material, brilliant. Good enough to be picture of the week! But, well, I know that loosing family is hard but it will soon pass and simply become a scar in your memory. Whatever you do, don't try to forget her though, it hurts even more."
"Thanks for the ego boost, Mr Sneershope."
"That is no way to speak to a teacher, apologize or go down to the principal's office." Mr Sneershope was getting annoyed with Serena, this was happening oh too often for his liking.
"I'll go to the office, thanks."
"Miss Tsukino, I hear you have been sent here for back chatting your art teacher, how many times have you come here this semester, once every lesson? I think you are beginning to like me so much you get into trouble just to see me. This must stop. I am giving you a role model who will take you to each class and help you to behave. Okay?" Madame Doldor, the Principal, was seated in her black chair, leaning forward and looking over her glasses to see the troubled teen, i.e. me.
"No." I sniped back, why couldn't they all just stop interfering in my life?
"There you are again, back chatting. I will go and get your role-model, don't try to leave." Dosseldorf left the room.
"Cow." I muttered once I had found that Principal Doldor had locked the door.
A little later Doldor came back with Darien. "Hello Serena, this is Darien, who you should already know. I will let you leave to your next lesson, what is it, Serena?" Dosseldorf looked pleased; maybe Darien had volunteered to help her?
"Killing People With Hockey Sticks. Why?" I said oh so sweetly and sarcastically. I didn't know why it was any of their business. And the sneakiness of that bitch of a head teacher, the 'role model' being one of my ex friends.
"I take that is Physical Education. I want you, Darien, to stick by Serena like glue. Okay?" Briskly Principal Doldor took charge.
"Yes, Principal Doldor. Come on Serena." Darien said respectfully.
"No." I said holding tightly to the armchairs. Darien simply bent down and put his arm behind me, between my back and chair and heaved me easily out of my chair.
Darien frowned at me. And whispered to me so that Principal Bitch couldn't hear. "Serena, you have to eat something, you are starving yourself!"
In reply I bit his finger hard to tell him to let me go.
"Are you going to walk to the next class?" Dosseldorf asked sweetly.
"I'm going to walk, but not to my next class." I left the room running, Darien behind me.
"Leave me alone, I don't want to be with you anymore!" Serena shouted behind her to Darien, she ran out the school and to the Park and climbed a tree.
Darien climbed after her, glad he played so much sport, for someone so small she was bloody agile. He sat down next to her, the tree branch was strong enough to hold them both.
"Shhh. Calm down. There is no point shouting, I'm sitting next to you. Serena, look at yourself, what would your mum say?" Darien told her calmly after she had quieted.
"You have no right to speak to her, she died because of me."
"No she didn't."
"She did." She paused and turned haunted eyes upon the boy. "I heard a crash, I went downstairs and found that my Dad was back, I ran to hug him but I noticed something was wrong; something was different about him. I stopped running to him and looked behind him, the door had been smashed open and my mum was on the floor, surrounded by glass. Dad said that I was going to live with him, I tried to reach the phone but he had taken it off the hook. I told him that I needed the toilet, my mobile was upstairs, he let me go. I phoned the police and they came, they said it was too late for my mum, she had died." Serena found it hard to breathe; she kept getting flashes of that terrible night.
"But I thought that she had died from lung cancer?" Darien was puzzled
"No. She would have but my own father killed her. She was so weak, that in a way, the lung cancer had killed her, she found it hard to breathe."
"But that wasn't your fault, it was your father that had killed her."
"He had told me to live with him the month before, saying, bad things would happen if I didn't. Now bad things have happened!" Serena's eyes filled with tears, but she angrily dashed them away.
"But it isn't your fault, you can't help it if you want to live with your mother, not your father. I know your mother and I don't think she would be happy that you are blaming yourself, or that you are being so coldhearted, come on, I'll take you on a tour of this town."
"No."
"Trust me. Give me a chance, everyone should have a chance to prove themselves." Before she had a chance to resist, Darien climbed down from the tree, and caught hold of Serena's foot and caught her when she fell.
I took Serena to the places that I knew she had loved, first to the ancient oak tree in the Public Park, surrounding the tree were roses, millions of them. There were pink roses, yellow roses, red roses, white roses… Roses in every colour imaginable, all in bloom too.
Serena gasped and looked at me with surprise, momentarily loosing the frown constantly on her face. "You remembered? Years ago I told you I loved this place." She smiled at me, I looked into her eyes, trying to find out her feelings and wondering at the same time whether it was working, I was shocked, she was nearly crying!
"What's the matter? Serena? What's wrong?" I asked shocked, I noticed that the tears were not of happiness but of sadness, of remembrance.
"My…my mother…used…love…place…loved…roses." She stammered through tears. She looked up to me; saw the pity in my eyes and her eyes hardened and she shrugged my arms from her and said coldly. "I don't need your pity, give it to someone else."
She ran off. I tried to chase her, thinking that she might hurt herself but was unable to catch up with her; she was too fast for me, and I was one the track team!
I watched as Serena ran out of sight and sighed. She was going to be impossible.
I ran all the way back to the home that I had lived in for all my life. There was a black Volvo in the drive. I wondered to whom it belonged to, dad can't drive so it couldn't be him. I then noticed there were people in the car. A man and a woman.
Deciding to ignore the people I go up to my house. As I was fitting the key into the lock the man and woman get out of the car and come up to me.
"Are you Miss Annabella Serena Kacy Tsukino?" Asked the woman to me.
"Maybe." I replied uncertainly. I was never called by my first name it was too long.
"You are only fifteen, so you are to go to a foster home, your father is too unstable to look after you and you have no other known relations." The man continued, giving me his career license, the woman followed suit.
"What is to happen to my home? What about my things? What about my education? I have been able to fend for myself since my mother got ill, why is it that you are here now?"
"We are not at liberty to say. You can keep everything in your house, and come back here any time, if we find you have slept here without your new foster parents permission though then you will not be allowed here at all. All the money from your mother's Will will be transferred to your bank account since all their money has been passed on to you, as well as the money from her life insurance. Can you unlock the door, let all of us go in, pack all the stuff you want to take, and then lock up please."
"Whatever." I replied quietly, I knew I couldn't argue with these people, I could make my foster parents life hell though. Hehehe.
I unlocked the door and we all went in. I rushed upstairs and went up the stairs into the loft. In the loft I brought down my travel bags, all of them, knowing that I would never see this house for a time.
"You have as long as you need to pack everything you want. Once you have all your stuff packed you can keep the key yourself but give the spare to your foster mother." The woman said through my bedroom door.
"Okay." Sighing, I packed away my clothes and toiletries in two large suitcases. I got my wooden box that had been my grandmothers, and packed away my personal keepsakes, albums full of pictures of me, mum, and friends, I noticed that in one of these pictures me and Darien, were smiling happily.
I remembered the time that this picture was taken, it was just before mum got ill, and she took the picture. Mum took Darien and me to the Lake and we paddled there, before Darien fell in, he then pushed me under and mum was laughed at us. Then she took the picture, when we were soaking. It had been such a wonderful day and it couldn't happen again. I had been a bitch to Darien and mum was dead.
"I'm packed." I called down the stairs.
The doorbell rung, I struggled down the stairs with suitcases and plunked them down in the hall and went to answer the door. The doorbell rang again.
I opened the door and Darien was there, about to ring the doorbell again.
"Don't bother, I'm here. What do you want now?" I asked, grudgingly.
"I thought I should help you ferry your stuff to Brad Whitten's place. I heard from him that you are getting fostered." He asked helpfully, but I could tell he thought I would shout.
I decided to surprise him and said sweetly. "Did you say Brad Whitten?"
"Yeah. He has a house your size, ten bedrooms; it will only be you, his sister Mary, him and his parents. Mary isn't Brad's real sister, she was adopted. The house is lovely, and I live next door so I can take you to school, aren't you lucky?"
"Not particularly." My mood just got worse, Brad was annoying, I couldn't wait to live with him. Not.
The woman (Miss Cartwright apparently) came up to the door, behind me. "Who are you?" She asked pointedly, (thinking that we were a couple).
"I'm Darien, I heard Serena was packing and so decided to help ferry, I know how much stuff she has." I hated him; he gave the impression that we were a couple. At the same time though, scarily, I wanted to be his girlfriend. I knew he wouldn't treat me wrong. Like my father did to my mother.
"Okay then, thank you for the help. Do you know 21a Malabo Street?" The man had come up too and he interrupted our conversation.
"Yeah, my friend lives there." Darien replied happily.
After I brought everything down I noticed that there wasn't actually much there, I hadn't brought all I wanted, I was going to go back to the house and get more stuff later. The man and woman from social services brought the suitcases and I was ferried into Darien's car with my two boxes. And the journey began.
As we parked at the house, Brad and a woman met me at the door. The woman came to me and shook my hand awkwardly then hugged me hard. Brad stayed at the door.
"Brad, dear, help Annabella with her cases." Ordered the woman to Brad. Brad's forehead creased, he didn't know that my first name was Annabella! I forgot about that. He then saw me struggling and came to me.
"So are you Annabella? I always thought your name was Serena?" He asked me quietly.
"It is. Well Serena is my middle name, Annabella is too long." I said through gritted teeth.
"Oh, right. Thanks for telling me. Annabella." He smiled.
"That's quite all right. Bradmund."
"No, it isn't Bradmund, if you have to know it's Bradley, I know you're taking the piss 'cause I'm taking the piss so I suppose I deserve it, Hey, we act like brother and sister already! Come on, I'll show you to your room. Let me take that bag." He said taking my bag off of me. I smiled gratefully; I had been struggling with that bag but didn't want to say so.
Brad led me upstairs to a long hallway, I followed him to the last door, he opened it for me and let me go in, it was a wonderful room. It felt almost like home.
"It's lovely. Thanks." I said happily.
"It's okay. I hope you are feeling better. Are you going to try out for 'band?"
"I think I will. Where is it?"
"That's the lucky thing, it's simply in the basement, I have a soundproof room there, and mum brought me instruments, I can play them, the drums, piano, guitar, it helps so that we can practice and make up songs there, without anyone getting annoyed with the racket we make."
"Cool. Well, suppose I'd better get unpacked if I'm to live here.