Chapter 1
“So as you are aware Miss Flour…”
“It’s actually Fleur, like fir but with an l, and it’s Saint Fleur,” I say to the president of my college. As a top student she knows me more than I’d like. She’s always watching me. It's becoming a bit weird.
“Right, okay Miss Flour,” it’s literally Fleur and not that difficult. “We are a very prestigious school of the arts, we have dominated every competition we’ve ever entered since our opening days in 1901.” Is there a point to this? “As you know Florence Competition of the Arts is approaching soon and I have decided to have you and another of our shining stars take part in this competition. Your partner will be Romy James.”
“Excuse me who? It sounds like you said Romy James. Can you repeat the name again?” Just by the mention of his name my heart rate goes up. I can feel myself become physically uncomfortable whenever his name is mentioned. The mention of his name sparks something within me I can’t quite put my finger on, like it makes me both uncomfortable and angry. I hate Romy James no not hate loathe, no loathe isn’t even the right word. I- he-. No, I need to calm down, I need to stop myself from getting too excited.
“No that’s correct,” President Howard says.
“Immediately no, but thank you for the offer.” I grab my backpack off the oak floor and make my way to the door which is adjacent to my seat.
“Miss Flour,” hm hm yep because that’s totally the pronunciation and a whole word isn’t missing at all. “I know there’s a complicated history between you and Mr. James due to the incident that happened last year.”
“Complicated isn’t the word,” I retort. “And it wasn’t my fault he came up to me and scared me,” I say with little reaction, President Howard is definitely going to pick up on that and blow it all out of proportion.
“Are you sure? Because it seems that you two knew each other before.”
How are you going to tell me? You haven’t lived my life. I just roll my eyes and go on to grab the gold colored door knob.
“If you don’t do it, I’ll take away your scholarship.”
I stop in my tracks to really try and process what exactly she has uttered. Did she just threaten me? I make my way back to her desk which is in the front center of the room, perfectly centered, it bothers me. The color of her furniture also bothers me, it’s this mix of gray and dark wood and it just makes me uncomfortable all around.
“Are you being serious? You are going to take the immigrant black kid with no mother scholarship away? This feels racist, don’t you think? You don’t have to answer that but I do know a few places everyone is going to think it’s racist. Would you like me to name them?”
“That just sent chills down my spine. Remind me to never threaten you again! Whoow I need some water or something or even prayer. Back to the topic at hand if you’ll do it I’ll reward you with anything you want.
Anything I want? You couldn’t possibly give me the things that I want. I want things that I don’t know, things… “Fine a semester in Italy to learn about Opera.”
“Deal all expenses paid. Okay Romy is right outside that door,” she points to the brown door just a few seconds I was going to escape out of. “I’m going to bring him in. Do you think you can try and not strangle him like last time?”
I didn’t even do that last time, it was just a fluke. I was under a lot of stress and he did scare me. “Of course I can.” I close my eyes and take a breath, I hear heels clicking away from me towards the door. The door opens and my heart starts to race again. I concentrate harder and try not to let him get to me. I need to be in control at all times. I open my eyes and there he is standing, his hands in his sweatpants pocket and his brown hair framing his face. The sight makes me want to cry, it’s just too much right now.
“Lillia,” he says flatly, with no emphasis or emotion behind the word. He said it like it was just a word and not my name, not something I hold near and dear to my heart.
“Mr. James please take a seat next to Miss Flour.”
“It’s Saint-Fleur, not flour.” He takes his hands out of his pocket and moves to the seat next to me. I watch his every action and I feel stupid for it so I take away my gaze from him.
“Okay great start,” President Howard then takes her seat opposite of us. “I already explained what’s happening to Romy. Let me just read over the logistics, the competition will be held May 28 so about ten weeks from now. You two have to work together to compose a unique performance based on an emotion. The piece must tell a story,” as President Howard explains everything I can just feel Romy watching me, his eyes never leaving my presence. I should tell him to stop but if I do it means that I recognize him and I don’t want to.
“You guys must come up with a set for the performance. It is not required that you make it or design it yourself, you can have other people design it and make it but their names must be included in the project. When it comes to music only 8 second samples would be allowed, anything over that will be considered plagiarism and you will be disqualified.” Can he stop looking at me? Like I’m squirming on the inside. “When it comes to dance, acting, and a performance all ideas must be unique. You are allowed to record the music that has been created for the competition if the composer wants to dance or be on stage, the dancing and acting can not be recorded. The winners of this competition will get a play written about their piece and the chance to network with very important people. The schools of the winners will receive a million dollar check that’s to be awarded to a talented student in need. Is that clear?”
“Yeah,” I say as I quickly spring up from my chair. His gaze was making me crack and I can’t crack. “Is that all?”
“No, is his presence making you so mad that you can’t sit next to him for more than just a few minutes.” Yes and no and why would she say that out loud.
Like it’s even more uncomfortable. I hate feeling this way. “Oh oops, you didn’t want me to say that did you?” I continue to stare at President Howard. “Oh you didn’t want me to say that either.” Just shut up, woman.
I let myself sink back into the gray chair, not because I want to but because I’m not feeling well. I feel dizzy and the palpitations are ringing in my ears. But I think her blabbing made him stop staring at me.
“I’m sorry I don’t know how to handle this type of situation, where I’m from somebody mess with them you pop them and everything becomes good again. Oh we did stop you from popping him.” She takes her time to look at our faces, and she quickly goes back to the papers. “Anyways you must practice together for three hours a day together, any composing can be done outside those hours. That’s it for the logistics now on to the other stuff.” She gets up out of her seat and motions for us to follow her. I hesitantly get up and follow her. I do not want to really have any exchanges with Romy right now, for the sake of everyone and my sanity.
President Howard leads us out of her office into a hallway I have never seen before, but there are a lot of places on campus I don’t know. The hallway is narrow and painted a guacamole green, I like it. We finally reach the end of the hallway and there are two brown doors with glass windows, they look like they belong in a cathedral somewhere. President Howard opens the doors and lets us in.
In this room there is the most beautiful piano I have ever laid eyes on. It’s white and there’s this angelic air around it. I am immediately captured by its presence and I can imagine myself playing it, stroking its keys and sharing an intimate bond with it.
A finger snaps in front of me, “I know you’re a piano freak but you need to know these things.” She’s so herself, I can’t describe it but she is herself, one hundred percent herself. “As you can see there is a wide open space and a piano. You guys shall practice here everyday starting on Monday, except weekends for three hours. I have looked at your schedules and I have decided on the hours of 3 to 6 pm.” She then suddenly stops, uh oh. “Okay now Lillia baby I’m going to leave you two here so ya’ll can talk and brainstorm can you try and not murder or attack Romy, especially his face, that’s a beautiful sculpted face right there. You have to talk for at least fifteen minutes, you can’t leave until I feel like you guys have talked.” She slowly takes steps back when she reaches the door she runs out of and closes it.
She said she would never threaten me again and here she is threatening me again. I avoid Romy by turning the opposite direction of him towards the big window letting all the sunlight in.
“So?”
So? Is that all? SO?
“How have you been? How’s your mother?”
I don’t know, she’s been dead for like a year. Find her spirit and ask.
“Lillia I don’t know what I did to you in the past but I’m sorry. You don’t have to accept my apology, let's just do the competition and get out of each other’s lives.”
Wow that stings. “Whatever you say,” I say without turning to look at him.
“Great for our emotions. I was thinking we can do a piece about heartbreak.”
How unoriginal? “Who told you, you get to choose? Plus that’s so unoriginal, I can name a hundred pieces of art about heartbreak right now.”
“No need to be rude, I was just putting out an idea. What ideas do you have?”
“I don’t know something original like anger or distress.”
“There are also countless pieces made on those emotions. I think we can combine them because our piece has to tell a story and we can focus it more on dread and heartbreak since you experience dread during a heartbreak.”
God if you are real I do request you kill me and now, and painlessly. I am tired of living life. And what is he doing here? At my university? Did he stalk me or something? I bet he did, like a little psychopath.
The doors open and that immediately catches my attention and it’s my guardian angel well in human form. My advisor Dr. Wren Desmond.
“Hi I’m Dr. Desmond Lilia’s advisor and a professor of music here at Somerset School of Fine Arts.” She goes to shake Romy’s hand. Ugh, she better not touch me after. “I know you guys are here discussing important things but I need Lilly because she debuts today.” Yeah debuting here which is playing a composed piece of yours as a solo on a stage full of your peers, fun. “Hope you don’t mind.”
She tries to grab me but I avoid it and walk out the room. Soon after I hear heels clicking towards me.
“You need to be nicer Lillia. You’re hurting his feelings.”
“Good,” I say holding back the hurt and the tears just waiting to fall out.
“Lillia I know he hurt you in the past but let it go for like ten weeks. For ten weeks let it out of your system so you can do this.”
I can’t, it's too fresh and too soon but I know what she wants to hear, “Fine I’ll do it but only because you say so.”
“Good now, come on let’s go get ready you’re debuting tonight.” She tries grabbing me again but I swerve. “Lillia are you being for real?”
“One hundred percent. You touched him, you can’t touch me.”
“I thought you said you were going to let go.”
“I will, starting tomorrow I will be as nice as you want me to be.”
Dr. Desmond rolls her eyes and just starts walking, I follow suit. When I catch up she touches me unexpectedly and I let out a scream. “Yep I touched him and I touched you. Get real Lillia! Don’t you think he heard that? Don’t you think he’s going to tell Howard all about it and then she’s going to come to me. Last thing I want but I don’t want to blame him. Grow up! You are acting like a two year old girl that thinks boys carry cooties.”
Ugh whatever. I walk past her, upset and on the brink of tears. She can’t see me like this, no one can. I control my emotions, not the other way around. If only she knew what Romy did, and the consequences of it all. I can’t believe she would do that.
Hi, thank you for reading my story. I would like to also add that this is a rough draft, and I will be editing chapters. I would also like any feedback you have! Happy reading :)
