We walked into our music class—one of my favorite classes. No hard math, no long boring lectures about grammar and speech, just music. Sweet, relaxing music.
I loved this class because all I had to do was sit down and play the violin. And not to brag, but I'm sort of a legend when it comes to that. If I were skilled at anything, violin would definitely be top of the list. The second used to be embroidery… until I ruined Clara's shirt trying to stitch a cat and it came out looking like an exploded potato.
Anyway, I was extra excited today because Mrs. Anne told me during break that I'll be performing in the upcoming school music competition.
Me! The violin master! This had been my dream since forever.
Okay since she told me this afternoon, but yeah it's still a dream .
Clara went to her spot—the flute section. Honestly, the flute is so boring and old-fashioned. Like, who still plays the flute?
Lyda headed to the piano stand. She genuinely loved playing the piano, which I had tried once… but that thing had like a billion keys. Too much stress. I gave up after a week of practice and went back to my violin, my one true love.
Mrs. Anne entered the room.
"Good morning, students."
"Good morning, ma'am," we chorused.
Like every quirky music teacher, Mrs. Anne wore ripped black jeans, a cropped top, a ridiculously long brown coat, and a scarf wrapped around her neck—topped off with black high-heeled boots. Honestly, I often wondered if she was really married. She dressed more like a rockstar than someone's wife. Her face said 'grown woman,' but her outfit screamed 'youth rebel.'
"We're going to practice for the upcoming music competition," she began. " In our last class, we talked about selecting a lead singer. After some consideration and votes, our new singer will be… Ken."
My head shot up at the name just as a familiar handsome figure stepped into the classroom.
"Ken??" I blurted, more to myself than anyone.
He walked in like a scene out of a movie, offering a small bow as the class clapped. I saw Clara wink at me, and I instantly glared back.
The girls behind me started whispering and giggling obnoxiously.
"Do you mind?" I snapped.
"No, we don't," one replied with a smirk.
"Shut your traps," I said, turning back toward the front.
"Let's go," I heard Adela mutter to her friends. "You never know when someone might snap out of jealousy."
I heard her, loud and clear. But I clenched my jaw and stayed calm. I wasn't about to lose my violin spot over some stupid drama .
"You might be wondering why we picked Ken," Mrs. Anne continued. "As those who attended last class know, Ken was voted as the top singer. And let's be honest—we haven't beaten Wilfred High in the last two years. Their lead singer, Oliver, has always outperformed us. But this year, with Ken, our pianist, and our violinist—which I'm still debating on since Maria has been missing a lot of classes—we stand a real chance."
Everyone turned to look at me. Some glared.
Ouch.
"But she'll try out today," Mrs. Anne added. "If she fails, the spot goes to Adela."
My mouth dropped open, but I shut it right back. No use arguing—I had been skipping class.
But not today. Today I was going to prove myself.
Mrs. Anne was obsessed with beating Wilfred High. We were "Famous High" but never actually famous for music. Sports and athletics? Sure. Music? Not so much.
You know sometimes I felt it was ridiculous why the school was named that ...anytime we lost ...I asked myself what were we famous for !!!
"Since some of you missed Ken's last performance," Mrs. Anne said, turning to him, "he'll now show you what he's got."
Ken nodded walking to the podium he smiled one last time taking thee microp phone as he began to sing .
"Oh my…" I whispered, not even realizing my mouth had formed a little 'O'.
He was good .
.
The class was unusually quiet , which actually set the mood right .
His voice was beautiful.
Soft, emotional, and so full of life.
. Even without Lyda backing him on piano, the melody carried the room. It was a love song—about missing someone, wanting to see them again. The lyrics were simple, but his voice gave them depth.
I couldn't stop staring. Neither could most of the class. Girls were whispering and blushing. I was still clapping when his eyes found mine.
He smiled. I froze.
Literally stopped mid-clap.
He casually walked over to me, still smiling. I started to panic wondering why I'm the hell I was clapping so loudly .
I was acting like some mum, who watched her son received some award _ at least that the best description I could give for the way I was clapping like some maniac.
I looked away, nervously fidgeting with the hem of my skirt. My heart was doing this weird flip , like if was participating in some weird backflipping competition.
Well I wasn't use to all this feeling things _ so I was kind aof bad at explaining things and ken was making me feel things I never felt in normal days .
Why was I even staring?
"Hello, how ar—" he began.
"Hi!" I screamed, cutting him off short in a very loud pitch , that I doubt I had before .
I blinked twice ,wondering where that sound came from .
Definitely not me , I couldn't sound like some dying bird .
I clamped my mouth shut, blinking twic again .
He blinked too, clearly caught off guard.
Who wouldn't be , I sounded like I was trained to ruin eardrums with that loud sound .
"You may continue," I added awkwardly, clearing my throat like I was some overexcited game show host.
He chuckled softly. "Sorry, I didn't ask for your name. So, what's your name?"
"It's… Mayia. No, Miya. No, Mia—" I slapped my own mouth close.
Definitely to hard though , wondering what the hell was wrong with me .
"It's um… Ma ... ri... a. Yes, Maria. That's my name."
I had to pronounce my own name slowly, just to see if I was correct , cause duhh I kinda forgot my name ...
"So, you're new here, right?" I asked, swinging my legs under the seat.
"Yeah, I just resumed last week. And by the way, you shouldn't be nervous—I don't bite," he said.
If only he knew I wasn't used to talking to guys—especially the good-looking ones. I nodded quickly, still smiling like an idiot.
"You have a nice voice," I said, regaining some composure.
He smiled. "Thanks. And I assume you like the violin?" he asked, glancing at the case beside me.
"Yeah. It's… really nice."
We stared at each other, and the moment grew kind of awkward—but I didn't want to look away. It would just add to my long list of embarrassing things I'd done today.
"Maria, come show us what you've got. I hope you've practiced," Mrs. Anne called.
"Sure! I did practice. I think I'm perfect," I said with forced confidence snapping out of my trance with a blush as I quickly hoppes of my chair, giving her a thumbs up.
She gave me a look that screamed , you better be ..
I almost got lost into that brown eyes again . This boy was sure going to be the death of me .
I grabbed my violin and took my seat in front of the class.
Ken's POV
I swear, that was the most interesting violin performance I'd ever witnessed. I chuckled to myself, remembering how she stammered earlier.
There was something about Maria—she acted weird sometimes, but in a cute way. She looked really beautiful playing, her eyes closed as she focused. She was in her element.
When she finished, she opened her eyes and looked at me like she was waiting for a review. I gave her a big thumbs up, and she smiled—a wide, glowing smile. I clapped along with the others.
"Magnificent!" Mrs. Anne praised.
"Ken, what do you think about your violinist?" she asked.
My violinist? I smirked at the thought. "She's great. I prefer her."
Mrs. Anne nodded. "Then it's settled. Maria will be the violinist. Just make sure to attend tomorrow's practice or the spot goes to Adela."
"I'll be there!" Maria promised, giving a little bow before walking back to me.
"So… was it perfect or bad?" she asked like it was some life or death situation.
"It was perfect," I said. Her smile grew even wider _if that was possible .
"But maybe try not to close your eyes so much next time. Look confident. That'll help you score more points," I added.
"Got it. I'll keep that in mind," she said.
Just then, a girl walked up. "Girl, we need to start going. Practice is over," she said.
Maria turned to me. "That's my friend, Clara. I think she's waiting for me. I'll be going now, sooo… bye."
She picked up her backpack.
"I guess I'll see you next time?" I asked, standing.
"Yeah, sure. Next time."
Before she could leave, I bent slightly to her height and gave her a hug.
She was kinda of short ,and when I wrapped my arm around her _ she was also kinda of small .
The bug jersey just hid that fact , giving her some stuff appearance even though she seemed shy .
Her body stiffened for a second before she hugged me back wrapping her hand clumsily on my neck .
I let go, and she smiled , her cheeks taking this red shade of color ,she nods towards the door while I waved watching her walk away .
Before exiting, she turned and gave me a small wave. I waved back again. .
I sighed, walking over to Mrs. Anne.
One thing was clear—I really wanted to see her again.
Just like Aunt always said:
"Mine."