Chapter Twenty
Kylen
After school on Tuesday, Raven and I walk to the music room for band practice. We’re discussing the balcony scene and she tells me she wants to escort me there to say hi to the guys.
Jasper and Beck are trying out different sounds when we enter the room, while Leo’s busy on his phone.
As soon as Jasper sees her, a huge grin captures his face. “Rave!” He waves like he’s got a battery pack in his arm.
Laughing, Raven waves back. “Hi, guys.”
“Have you come to watch us practice?” Beck, sitting at his drums, asks.
She shakes her head. “No, I just came to say hi.”
Jasper frowns. “Aw, can’t you stay? It’s so boring with just us guys around. Plus it’d be nice to get some feedback.”
Beck nods in agreement while Leo continues to be entrapped by whatever he’s looking at on his phone.
Raven turns to me. “If you guys really don’t mind.”
I smile at her. “Not at all. I mean, as long as you don’t have other plans.”
She sits down on one of the chairs. “I don’t, unless you count homework.”
Beck frowns. “Never in a million years would I ever consider homework as plans.”
That makes us laugh.
Beck hits his drumsticks together. “Are we ready? Leo, put the phone down, man. Don’t you see we have a guest and she’s dying to hear us play?”
Leo keeps his eyes on his screen. “Dude, I think Lilah is going to break up with her jerk of a boyfriend.”
Jasper groans. “Not that again, bro. He already threatened to punch you. You wanna go for round two?”
He shrugs. “He doesn’t deserve her. She’s too good for him and needs a guy who will treat her right.”
Beck snorts. “And that would be you?” He rolls his eyes. “Maybe when the sky turns yellow.”
Leo scowls at him, then turns to Raven. “You believe in me, right, Raven? I could be a good boyfriend.”
“I think all of you will be awesome boyfriends,” she says.
Leo pumps his fist in the air. “Yes! See, Raven speaks the truth.”
“Can we start practice?” Jasper whines. “Another second of his obsessing over a girl he shouldn’t have is like nails on a chalkboard.”
Leo shoots him a look. “Whatever.”
“Is Ky even here?” Beck’s eyes move to me. “You’re so quiet, man.”
I shrug. “Just thinking about the song we chose.”
“What’s wrong with it?”
“I’m not really feeling it.”
“Here we go again.” Jasper faces Raven. “These morons can never agree on a song.”
She just laughs. “You guys are really funny and entertaining.”
Beck stands from the drums and does an exaggerated bow. “We aim to please.”
“Let’s try the song and see how we feel about it,” Leo suggests.
Beck sits back down, I swing my guitar over my shoulder, and we start playing. We have the music and lyrics down, but something is missing. I don’t know what it is, but it’s just not popping out like some of our other songs have.
After a bit, Beck calls for us to stop. “Ky’s right. This song stinks. What else you got, Leo?”
He reaches for his tablet, where he made a list of potential songs. As he reads them off, the rest of us frown. None of them seem good enough.
“What do you think, Rave?” Jasper asks. “Was the song okay?”
She taps her chin. “You guys sound amazing, but it doesn’t pull the person in. Sorry if I’m offending you.”
“Not at all,” I tell her. “We appreciate your honesty.”
“If we suck, we need to know,” Leo adds.
“Dude, she didn’t say we suck,” Beck says.
“I know, but we did suck.”
They go back and forth arguing. I cross my eyes at Raven, which makes her laugh. I chuckle, too. Sometimes when they argue, I feel like my brain is melting.
“I was thinking about something,” Raven says loud enough to quiet them down. “But I’m not sure you’re going to like it.”
They stop arguing and all of us look at her.
She pushes some hair behind her ear. “What do you say about performing one of my songs? Not that one, but I wrote a song a while ago that I think might be good for you guys. I’ll need to make some minor changes, but it shouldn’t take too long.”
The guys and I exchange a glance. Beck has the biggest grin I’ve ever seen on his face. He rushes over to Raven, grabs her by the waist, and spins her around. “This girl is amazing!”
She laughs, her cheeks red. He sets her down, then dashes back to the drums.
“Thanks, Raven,” I say. “It’s really nice of you to offer. Do you mind telling us what it’s about?”
“Yeah, it’s about friendship.”
I grin. “Sounds perfect. I can’t wait to see it.”
The others nod in agreement, cheering.
Since the song isn’t ready yet, the guys, Raven, and I spend some time choosing one to play in the meantime. It’s one we’ve done before, but we’re changing it to sound more like our style. This is all for fun. It’s about being young and carefree. We don’t record ourselves or post it online.
I grab hold of the mic as I belt out the words, making the tone in my voice higher or lower, just having fun with the song. It’s the kind that you can play around with and make your own.
My legs take me to Raven, where I dip my head and whisper the softer tones of the song. Raven smiles in such an adorable way that it makes my heart soar.
“Sing with him!” Beck yells as he strikes his drums.
Raven’s eyes are wide and she shakes her head. “I can’t sing.”
“It’s okay,” I tell her. “You don’t have to.”
I continue singing the song, dancing my way back to the guys. That makes Raven and the others laugh.
“Such a goof!” Jasper says.
“Takes one to know one.”
The song ends with Beck slamming his sticks on the drums. Raven claps. “That was so much fun.”
The guys and I bow.
“You really have a nice voice, Kylen,” she says, giving me a sweet smile. “And the rest of you sound great, too.”
“Thanks,” we say.
“You guys want to go at it again?” I ask them.
They agree, Beck gives us a beat, and we start playing and singing. This time, we’re even crazier than before, going faster, louder. I can hear the beat bouncing off the walls. I’m loving this so, so much. So are the guys, and it looks like Raven is enjoying herself as well.
When we’re at the peak of the song, the light suddenly turns off.
We stop and look toward the doorway and find Principal Harrington standing there along with a few teachers who are in charge of clubs or other after-school activities.
“Sorry, were we too loud?” I ask. She told us when we asked for permission to use this room that she’d only allow it if we promised not to be too noisy.
She steps into the room. “I received some complaints, yes. I don’t want to shut you boys down, but it’s important you adhere to the rules.”
“We got carried away,” Leo tells her.
She nods. “I understand, but please be careful in the future.”
We tell her we will. She nods again and walks off.
Beck breathes a sigh of relief. “Thought she’d give us detention or stop us from practicing.”
“Yeah,” Jasper says. “Some kids back home told me Harrington’s got a stick up her butt, but she’s actually pretty cool.”
“She used to be very tough,” Raven tells us. “But she softened up once her son Damian moved in with her. She completely changed and is more understanding now.”
It’s a little early and none of us wants to stop playing. We choose a few more songs and make sure to keep the music and singing low enough so we won’t disturb anyone.
“So did you have fun?” I ask Raven as the five of us leave the room and head for the dining hall. It’s nearly time for dinner. I didn’t realize we were practicing for so long. I definitely worked up an appetite.
Her face shines. “I had a lot of fun. You guys play really well.”
“Thanks, we try,” I say.
I notice that the guys hang back, as if giving Raven and me some alone time to talk. She must notice, too, because she gives me a shy smile.
“So other than homework, what else is the plan for tonight?” I ask her.
“Probably going to work on the song.”
“We really appreciate you helping us out.”
She nods. “My songs just sit in my notebook, anyway. I mean, I don’t know if they’re good or anything.”
“If they’re anything like ‘I Don’t Need Your Kisses,’ then you have something really special to offer the world.”
She smiles, her cheeks pink. “Thanks. Do you guys want to play professionally or is it just a high school thing?”
I shrug as we reach the dining hall building and stand outside. It’s cold, but it seems the weather doesn’t bother either of us. “I’m not sure. We sound good, but I don’t think we’re a match for anything that’s out there. We barely have views or followers.”
“Right, but that doesn’t mean you’re not as good as everyone else. I think you’re great.”
I wrap my arms around her. “Thanks so much. We don’t get a lot of support back home, so we really appreciate you being there for us.”
“Of course.” She draws back. “Your grandparents don’t support you?”
I rub the back of my neck. “It’s not that they don’t support it, they just don’t think it’s a viable option career-wise. My grandma is very strict with school and expects me to go to college.”
We sit down on the low wall surrounding the building. “What do you want?” she asks.
“I don’t know. We only formed the band last year. It’s fun and everything, but can I see myself doing that for the rest of my life? I have no clue.”
She playfully jabs me in the ribs with her elbow. “You’d make a hot musician.”
“Yeah?”
“Duh.”
I laugh. “Thanks.” My stomach growls, causing both of us to look down at it. “Darn. I should probably feed this thing.”
“Yeah, that’s probably best.”
We enter the building and head to the buffet tables to fill our plates. I load mine with a few pasta dishes, chicken, some other side dishes, and of course dessert. I’m so hungry I really can eat a lion.
As I pass Raven and her friends’ table, I stop to say hi. Then I go to mine and plop down.
“So what did you guys talk about?” Beck asks with a mouth full of food.
“Just stuff.”
“Romantic stuff?”
“Shut up. How many times do I have to tell you that we’re just friends? Anything more will just complicate everything.”
“I hear what you’re saying, but I don’t believe it.”
I give Jasper and Leo a look. “Can you guys please stop him? Raven and I are in a good place now and I don’t want to rock the boat. We’ve been through a lot and the last thing we need is to mess everything up.”
Jasper holds up his hands. “I’m not getting involved in this.”
Leo stares at something in the corner of the room. “What does she even see in that guy?”
We twist around to check what he’s looking at and find the girl he likes chatting to her boyfriend near the entrance to the dining hall.
It doesn’t look like they’re having a pleasant conversation and I notice the hopeful look in Leo’s eyes.
Of course he doesn’t want to break them up, but he won’t complain if they do end their relationship.
“What’s her name again?” I ask him.
He sighs dreamily. “Lilah.”
Beck frowns. “We’ve got two guys who can’t have the girls they like. This school stinks.”
Jasper lifts a brow. “Like we’d have more luck at Everheart? You know, a school with only boys?”
“That’s why it was harder to get a girl. Because you had to look for one outside of school. This school has lots of girls, but no options. That’s why it stinks.”
“That’s because you don’t have a trust fund.”
“Dude, look at them. Leo can’t take his eyes off Lilah, and Ky can’t stop staring at Raven.”
I blink. “I’m not staring at Raven.”
“Right. Sure you’re not.” Jasper snorts. “You get this look on your face whenever she’s around you. Like a lovesick puppy.”
“I do not. Like I said a billion times, Raven and I are—”
“Friends who want to be more than friends but they can’t because they’ve been through crap and are scared they’ll get hurt again,” Jasper says.
“I’m done with this conversation,” I tell them and stab my fork into my chicken. “Didn’t you just say you’re not getting involved? Maybe your parents should do you a favor and bring you a muzzle for Parents’ Day.”
Jasper sticks out his tongue, then starts laughing, making me laugh, too. “At least if they did bring me one, I wouldn’t be forced to answer the questions when teachers give us oral quizzes.”
“And Raven wouldn’t get mad at you for calling her Rave,” I add.
He grins. “She secretly loves it, even if she won’t admit it.” He glances in her direction and yells, “Rave!” When she looks at him, he waves enthusiastically.
She playfully rolls her eyes at him.
“See? She can’t help but love it.”