Chapter 2-High Hopes, High Tension

For as long as he could remember, Cole had been stuck in a perpetual competition against himself.

In nearly everything he did, he sought ways to improve, ways to be better. He found himself constantly testing every limits. There was no ultimate purpose, no clear cut goal. At this point, Cole was sure that his actions were nothing more than pure habit. That, and the ever growing pressure of not disappointing every one around him.

It was exhausting, but it was who he was. If he ever so much as slipped, the whole world would stop and stare.

As these thoughts did their daily routine around his mind, Cole shut his eyes. Laying in his bed, he tried to lengthen the wavering moment in between last night's sleep and this morning's responsibilities.

For now, it was just him, in his room. No one to impress, no one to smile to, no one to hold him to any standards. For now he-

"Cole! I thought you were heading early today, to get back on track with that band of yours." His father's shout broke the peace.

"Yeah, dad!" Cole shouted back, sitting up and reaching for the clothes he'd set up the previous night.

And so began the impossible day of the impossibly exhausted Cole Brookstone.

He ate only a small amount of breakfast to humor his father's strict diet, despite the fact that his stomach begged for more. Then, Cole sent a text to both Kai and Zane, confirming their rehearsal this morning. Zane responded quickly. Kai was a bit slower.

I am already here. Will you guys be long?

Yo, Cole, I'll need a ride if that's okay?

Cole grimaced. Of course Zane was already there. Which meant no extra time to pick up some extra food for his grumbling belly. And of course Kai needed a ride. Which meant a slightly obnoxious detour.

He shut his eyes, forced the away his selfish complaints, and reopened them to reply.

Sure thing Kai. And we'll be there soon-ish

He slid the phone into his pocket. After a quick good-bye, Cole got into his truck and drove through the familiar roads that would lead him into Kai's house. When he arrived, he wasn't too surprised to see his friend wasn't ready and waiting by the door. After shifting the truck into park, Cole pressed his hand heavily into the horn, the booming sound rattling through the silence.

In response, a window slid open. Kai's sister leaned out of it, smiling mischievously as she waved. "Hey Cole!"

Cole returned the wave. "Hey! Please tell me your brother is ready."

"Hard to say. You want to come inside?"

Not really. Just want to get going. Cole thought the words, but he didn't let them slip out of his mouth. Instead, he prepared to agree. Before he could do so, however, Nya's face switched to a look of disappointment.

"He said he's coming."

With a relieved nod, Cole turned his attention away from the window. He scrolled through different radio stations, each playing something that was just as dull as the last. With a sigh, he turned the radio back off, making a mental note to buy CDs.

Kai hopped inside, jolting Cole out of his thoughts. "Hey dude. Sorry about that. I forgot to tell my parents about showing up early."

"That's okay," Cole shrugged. "So, last year of high school. How do you feel?"

"Ugh, I am beyond ready. I should have graduated already! But no. Thanks to parents moving around, I wound up stuck in the same year as my baby sister." Kai sighed with a pout, turning to look out the window. "If I hadn't missed-"

Cole rolled his eyes, cutting off his friend's words. "I already know your oh-so-tragic story Kai. You say it every year!"

"Well it is tragic, and maybe I like sharing it!"

"Given any thought to college yet?" Cole asked, eager to change the subject to something he hadn't heard a thousand times before. "Dad's already picked one out for me. I guess it's fine. It's focused on performing arts so. . . Eh."

"I thought you didn't want to go to college."

"I don't." Cole shrugged. "But dad wants me to. "

"Well. . . I mean it's up to you in the end, isn't it?"

"Eh."

"Well," Kai said. "I haven't really thought much about anything. I guess maybe I'll go wherever Nya decides. I don't really have a very strong opinion about it. I just know that I want out of high school, baby. Live in a dorm! Experience that nice, classic college life."

"Might want to work on getting your grades up if you want to go wherever Nya goes. Isn't she like, a straight-A, honor roll student?"

"She's a show off, that's what she is." Kai said, but his tone was light and playful. "I'm pretty sure I can keep up. If I put the effort in."

"But will you put the effort in?"

"Maybe! There's a first time for everything, eh?'

Despite Cole's best efforts, they didn't get very much done that morning.

Kai spent most of the time attempting to recreate every adventure and misadventure of his summer, and Zane, curious as ever, had probed with more questions that could possibly be necessary. By the time Cole managed to get his friends to actually focus on the music, the bell announcing the start of the day echoed through the halls.

"Don't worry about it," Cole gave a nonchalant wave, although he shoved the sheets of music back into his backpack with more force than he'd intended. "We'll get set up better tomorrow."

"Cole, wait." Kai slung his backpack across one shoulder, standing to follow his friend. Zane moved quickly, easily keeping pace with them thanks to his tall frame. "I was thinking. . . Why not host a little back to school concert? My parents wouldn't mind. We could set it up in our yard!"

"Like, when?"

"Friday?"

"Friday?" Cole began to shake his head, but Kai motioned him to stop.

"Look, we already know some songs. Besides! Everyone knows we've been setting this band up for forever. People want to hear us! I'm sure some do, anyway. A back to school gathering would be the perfect debut for Spin Harmony!"

"Kai is right." Zane nodded, making Cole groan inwardly. "We are capable of performing a good amount of songs in a decent quality. Perhaps it is time we give this a try?"

Cole bit his lip. He'd been purposely putting off performing for anyone other than themselves. If the band wound up being popular, that would only mean more eyes on him. Not to mention what his father's reaction would be. The man would surely go overboard, pulling strings here, shoving unwanted advice there. Overall, this would go from a fun after-school experience, to another activity for Cole to test and push himself in.

On the other hand. . . Both Kai and Zane seemed excited to do it. He couldn't keep leading them around in circles.

"Okay. Friday then. But you guys both have to actually focus tomorrow."

Kai hopped, punching the air with a shout of victory. "Whoohoo! It's settled then!"

With a forced smile, he marched away from his friends.

Day's almost done Cole told himself, as he weaved through the busy hallway with purpose.

He'd snagged a considerable amount of snacks from the vending machine at lunch, so Cole was now taking a detour, to drop off the precious items at his locker. Someone else at the locker beside his, half hidden by the open door.

The guy beside him pushed the door shut, but instead of heading off to whatever class he was supposed to be in, he stood still as if rooted to the spot. When the seconds ticked forward and the guy didn't talk nor move, Cole turned to face him.

"Oh hey, locker neighbor." Cole said, trying to sound as nice as possible, but he could feel his face tugged down by a slight frown of concern.

The guy blinked himself back into the present moment, and away from whatever sort of thought he'd been tangled in. "That's. . . Yes. They moved me here. Because of the, you know, the remodeling. So uh, I mean, hi back to you."

"Wait," Cole frowned. The guy's unique mannerisms struggled to spark a memory within his mind. "Do I know you?"

Cole watched as the guy's features slowly began to redden, making the scattered freckles across his cheeks all the more visible. There was a certain glow in his eyes as he waited for Cole's answer. "Oh yeah! You're in my second period, aren't you?"

"First and third too." The guy said a bit too quickly, the words tripping over his mouth. The weird glow quickly vanished from his eyes.

Now that the guy mentioned it, he could remember seeing him there,in the back of the classroom, doing his best to be as invisible as possible. But. . . There was something else. Yet hard as he tried, Cole couldn't pinpoint anything.

"Looks like we'll see each other quite a bit then." Cole finally said. He spotted a name tag stuck to the guy's shoulder, and he squinted at the scribbled letters. "I'll look forward to getting to know you. . . Motor-mouth."

The guy turned towards the sticker in a panicked motion. With a smile of amusement, Cole shook his head. He quickly turned away, trotting towards his class before the bell could beat him to it.

As soon as he stepped inside, the sound of it echoed through the hall.

"Have you chosen a song to perform in your school audition? The Marty Oppenheimer doesn't let in just anyone, you know."

Cole hadn't even closed the front door, and his father had already begun the usual monologue of insane expectations.

"Just because I was a student there, and you're my son, does not mean they'll go easy on you. In fact! They'll probably test you double. They'll be expecting great things from you."

Cole tossed his bag onto the living room, gaining a disapproving frown. "And you will, of course, deliver. You'll blow them away! Why don't we go look through some songs? I'll help you find the perfect fit for your voice. Then we can rehearse it together."

"You've been practicing your piano as well, yes?" Cole walked over to the kitchen, where his father followed. "I haven't heard you play in a while. You could play for me a bit after you come back from your dance lessons."

The pantry was filled with things Cole couldn't eat without cooking, and the culinary arts had never been his forte. Reluctantly, he opened the fridge. Labeled containers sat on an annoyingly organized manner. Cole reached for the one labeled with that day's date.

"Speaking of dance lessons, your teacher sent me a bunch of new recipes that will be good for keeping you healthy. Don't forget son, your body is a temple!"

He frowned at the food. The portions were too little, and the ingredients too healthy. With a resigned sigh, Cole began to eat, his mind drifting to the hidden treasures in his school locker.

"Anyway, we'll be leaving for your class at 6. Be ready then!" With a smile, his father patted Cole's shoulder before drifting away to a different part of the house. Cole felt himself relax instantly.

"My day was good today, thanks for asking." Cole said to one, while forcing another forkful of food into his mouth.

Once he'd finished his food, Cole gave a quick glance at the clock. He would have a little more than an hour of freedom. Good enough. He trotted up the stairs, taking two steps at a time simply because he could. Pushing the door of his room open, Cole crumpled onto the bed. He reached for his earphones, plugging them in to drown out the world.

As music pulsed into his body, Cole shut his eyes, looking forward to enjoying a good session of doing nothing. In the darkness behind his eyelids, a sudden, random image flashed.

Blue eyes. Freckled skin. A comically panicked expression.

Cole's eyes snapped open.

He was sure he knew the guy.

Feeling like an absolute creeper, Cole rolled out of his bed, reaching for one of his desk drawers. After searching through the organized mess of different items, he recovered the yearbook from that past year.

He flipped to the end, searching through each of the pictures. Cole was surprised to see the guy and him were in the same year. He had pegged him to be at least a year or two younger than he was.

Cole's eyes slid to the side of the images, searching for a name to match the face of the familiar stranger.

Jay Walker

Once again, his memory scrambled to reach for something, and once again, Cole wound up with nothing more than disappointment.