Battle of the Bands by Lesley Choyce Page A

than that,” Cia says. “We’ve got us. And the music.”
    â€œFor sure,” Kel says. “We just gotta keep paying our dues.”
    A warm flash of excitement pulses through me. It’s still there. I want to do this. “All right then! So, do you wanna hear some new lyrics?”
    They grin and lean forward. “Bring it on,” Kel says.
    â€œIt’s called ‘Spying on the World’...”
    I went out and hid
    There in the dark
    Tried to look through your eyes
    Feel with your heart.
    I felt so cold
    Like a guy in a lab
    Experience,
    I wanted you bad.
    But here I am
    Still just me
    Skimming the surface
    Won’t let me be free
    Spying on the world
    Living like a fly
    Feeding on the crap
    Will never take me high
    So I’m gonna live
    Every day, all the time
    And I’m gonna be
    Just fine. Just fine.
    It’s all gonna be
    Just fine.
    Kel is thoughtful for a while. Then he says, “I like the line about the fly feeding on the crap. My science teacher told us about flies. He said we should keep flies off our food because of what they do. They land on the food and then they barf on it. I think that’s to kinda soften it up. Then they walk around in the barf, stirring things up. Finally they eat. Then they poop on the food before they leave.”
    Cia and I need a moment to consider this information.
    â€œGross!” Cia decides.
    â€œYeah, man. That’s disgusting,” I say.
    Kel shrugs. “So? That’s the way it is.”
    I nod. “Okay. I can live with that. Reality as it happens.”
    â€œToo right,” Kel agrees. He looks at Cia and they smile. Do Rowan and I look that connected when we smile at each other?
    â€œSo do you wanna work on this number with me?” I ask. “Get the music part happening?”
    â€œWhat are you saying?” Cia asks.
    â€œI’m saying that I can’t come up with the tune on my own. Got any ideas? Like, what kind of rhythm do we want here? What’s the bass going to do?”
    Cia’s eyes light up and she grabs her sticks. “How about this?” She lays out a pattern, settles down and picks up a beat.
    â€œYeah. I like that. It feels right. Kel?”
    Kel gets intense. He drops his head, closes his eyes, starts false. Then he finds the groove to match Cia. He goes farther and comes up with a sweet undertone. He’s echoing Cia, but the bass is alive, making music.
    I can feel the grin coming on before it breaks out on my face. “Cool! That sounds good. Real good.”
    â€œJump in any time, Jay,” Cia says.
    And I do. I connect with the strings and the whole wide world is busy making music.

This is K.L. Denman’s first novel. She lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.
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