Chapter 3 Him

• I was in constant confusion where I had nobody to lean on due to their biased expectations of me. I felt like I was in my own land; a universe that revolved around my guitar and freedom. I was pretty much an independent loner who was loved by many just because of my title. I hated that painful urge to rip my title out of my soul that had been stapled by my family.
• In one way or another, my dad and mom did look out for me but they couldn't try enough to see past their limitless passion that they thought they passed along to me. I was envious when my eyes would catch the practitioners with their guitars and emotional smiles thrown at their little groups of people who clapped continuously.
• "You have to remember that this piano is special to my heart. Don't ruin what you had worked for with this piano," My mom said as she patted my back and my fingers continued to play along for her, "You are one of a kind, Xavier."
• A knock interrupted my train of thoughts and without making an effort to stand up to open it, my annoying sister barged in like she owned my dorm room. As expected, she looked at me cheekily and I knew she was up to something.
• "I'm not going to ask you what you planned behind my back," I shot straight to the point and she gave me a deflated look before clapping her hands like an excited penguin. "Whatever you have to say, I won't do it so save your breath." I continued my practice on the piano.
• "Why did you have to be such an emo? you didn't even listen to me," she spoke loudly for me to hear and I rolled my eyes at her. She was obviously the happy child in the family. "Anyway, before I was rudely rejected, I have set up a date for you and you have to prepare yourself." She squealed out and I groaned.
• If there was to be a reflective experience in my life with my sister, it would be to never take her plans seriously. She tried that move once when she tried to set me up with her friend that was also a drama actress, she tried to fake a whale sound while I played with the olives on my salad, I never prayed so hard until that moment when the people around us in the restaurant thought I put dark magic in her.
• Lesson learned: never again.
• "No. Off you go now, I'm practicing," I told her quickly. If one thing you should know about Elodie Adams, it was that she never gives up, I hoped that she didn't change my mind like she always had before.
• "Come on, it's not that bad and she isn't a drama actress this time," she defended when she noticed the grimace etched on my face and I scoffed at her attempt to convince me.
• She huffed and sat on my bed with crossed arms. We had many similar traits which were our love for the arts this university provided for us and the fact that we were stubborn; we inherited that from our dad.
• Elodie's aqua eyes glinted with a devious little smile, that was enough indication that she had a plan B I didn't know about. I knew I was done for when she opened her mouth to speak.
• "You know how you always wanted to learn Hard To Handle by The Black Crowes that you kept complaining about," she reminisced. "Well, I have tickets for their private sessions to help you learn to play it on their exclusive guitars." She bribed and I tried resisting the temptation but I couldn't find any reasons to stomp on that offer except baring another nasty date.
• "One date only," I decided and she stood up and clapped with a wide grin on her face. "You have to give me the tickets first," I said and she rushed to get her bag that she threw carelessly on my bed the second she barged in. I almost laughed at the fact that she knew I wouldn't give in so easily so she packed the tickets for the lessons to bribe me.
• My sister's strategic mind never seemed to fail me.
• She practically threw the tickets in my face before it tumbled down on the piano keys. Elodie began to open my closet in less than a second while I continued to play the piano after putting the tickets in my back pocket.
• "Hey, don't mess my closet. I recently cleaned it." I shouted at her. She jumped at my loud voice then she gave me thumbs up before pushing her head in my closet to look for something attractive for me to wear.
• I sighed as I was allured into my thoughts when my fingers tapped on the right keys swiftly. I was supposed to feel what my mother felt when she played with the piano but I didn't feel anything at all because I always felt like I was obligated to play it considering my family's history. Nobody except Elodie knew about my secret thrive for guitars.
• Taking a rest for my aching fingers, my sister laid out my outfit.
• "So, this is the least cringy outfit I have found for your date," she told me with thoughtful eyes. "I still didn't tell the girl yet but I did set up the place for your date earlier for tomorrow so it should be fine. Get your needed beauty sleep for now and I will text you the time tomorrow morning." She informed me with a proud, satisfied smile.
• If she didn't love drama classes so much, she could have been a successful planner but I knew she wouldn't last until she had her favorite acting shawl on her neck and her stage.
• My mind went to the mystery girl that Elodie sacrificed her tickets for, was she like me? trapped with no chance of freedom? I sure hoped she didn't have a strange fetish and sixty-five wigs and faces back in her dorm.
• "Tell me about the girl I was forced into a date with," I ordered sarcastically to the bubbly girl laying on her stomach on my bed. "After all, it's my money that I'm going to spend on her." I teased lightly and she chuckled.
• "You underestimate me, brother. I chose the best for you," she teased back. "Her name is Rayna Harrington, she is in a vocal arts program and she is new in Juilliard. I don't know her since I only met her yesterday but she was the definition of hot like if only you saw her ass, she was-"
• "Okay, stop it, I don't want to hear my sister gushing about her female fantasy." I interrupted her with my hands on my ears. I didn't want to admit it to my sister but the thought of the girl possibly being a good person got me even more curious.
• I placed my hands down on my piano and her eyes caught my hesitant eyes. My heart ached for my hidden guitar in the closet but I knew that I had to sacrifice the career I wanted for the sake of my family and the title I didn't want. At times, I felt like walking up to everyone and playing the guitar in front of them, my catalyst was frustration that desperately urged me to be who I was but the memories of my mom telling me about how she cared for her piano and how they spent a fortune on me to study here made guilt my second skin.
• Elodie knew the second that she caught my guitar in the closet that I was not into piano anymore. It was something that they forced upon my childhood but with good intentions and that was what I hated the most. I couldn't hold it against my parents. I didn't know who to take my frustration on because I was in so deep in this la la world and I felt like it was too late since the death of Mrs. Gilbert that had mom weeping for days and dad comforting her.
• "You can't keep doing this to yourself," she spoke after a moment of silence. "You can't keep listening to people anymore. You don't belong in the piano world, you belong with your guitar and a chance of life outside this trap." she declared and I could see the truth in her eyes.
• I stopped playing the piano and joined her on my bed, laying on my stomach beside her.
• "I wish I could," I whispered and she caught it. "You know I want that more than anything but I can't keep disappointing anyone."
• "Fuck that," she cursed, taking me by surprise. "You need to stand up for yourself and find yourself in the process. Fuck them, they don't control you, you're much better off with your guitar, I heard you play and I could tell that you die a little more inside when you have to hide it when our parents come to visit, I'm sorry but it's not fair-" she rambled but my arms wrapped around her shaking body to calm her anxiety down.
• "Calm down, Elodie. You need to take your anxiety pills," I reminded her since it was time for her daily pill. Elodie was diagnosed with anxiety disorder and that was why she found comfort in her drama classes because it taught her how to calm down without taking her pills but when she thought about me and my problems, she would stress herself out too much and it got me worried most of the time.
• She grabbed her bottle of water and swallowed the pill I brought her. She muttered a thank you to me and came back to my embrace.
• "So, Rayna Harrington, huh?" I started and that was enough to get her fueled once again as she talked my ear off the rest of the night.