Chapter Text
It was a bright, sunny summer afternoon, just one week before summer break. The band room buzzed with the familiar sounds of instruments warming up and students chatting between rehearsals. Tyler sat in his chair, his bass clarinet resting comfortably in his hands and between his legs. Beside him was his best friend, Jenna, the only other bass clarinet player in the band.
After one last run through, they finally finished practicing the marching band music for next semester. Tyler let out a relieved sigh and leaned back in his chair, happy to have made it through the more difficult parts of the piece.
Jenna turned toward him with an excited grin, almost smacking him in the face with her bass clarinet in the process.
“You should join color guard with me next year!” she blurted out.
Tyler blinked in confusion. “Isn’t color guard just for girls?”
Jenna rolled her eyes and lightly punched him on the shoulder. “No, of course not! There are other guys in color guard. Besides, we could really use more people on the team.”
Tyler paused and thought about it for a moment. Next year would be his senior year, the last chance he’d ever have to try something new in high school. He had never really considered color guard before, but maybe he should give it a shot.
A small smile crept across his face.
“Honestly,” he said with a shrug, “why the hell not?”
Jenna practically squealed in excitement, making people close to their section stare for a brief moment.
“You wont regret it i promise it’s so much fun” Jenna grinned before their band director, Mr Lisden, interrupted her joyousness with announcements.
After the lunch bell rang, Tyler put his bass clarinet back into its case and tucked the rest of his music into his band locker before slipping his backpack over one shoulder. Tyler walked out of the band room and leaned against the hallway wall outside, waiting for Jenna to finish talking with her friends.
It wasn’t like Jenna was his only friend. He knew plenty of people in band. But after the mess that had been freshman year, she’d been the one who stuck around. Somehow they’d just clicked, and now it was hard to imagine going through school without her.
With nothing else to do, Tyler dug his phone out of his backpack. He unlocked it, opened Candy Crush, and immediately got sucked in.
A few minutes later, the band room door burst open.
Before Tyler even had time to look up, someone slammed into him.
The force sent both of them crashing onto the floor. A binder flew open, and pages of sheet music scattered across the hallway like confetti.
“Oh seriously, I’m so sorry!” the other boy blurted, already scrambling after the papers. “I was in a rush.”
Tyler let out an irritated sigh and knelt to help gather the music. As he reached for one of the last pages, another hand grabbed it at the same time.
His eyes flicked up.
Josh.
Tyler recognized him immediately. He was one of the percussionists, a junior like him. Tyler had only spoken to him a handful of times, usually because rehearsal required it.
For a second, neither of them let go of the paper.
Josh cleared his throat first and pulled his hand back.
Tyler handed him the page. “Maybe you should watch where you’re going.”
Josh’s expression tightened.
“I said I was sorry.”
“Yeah,” Tyler replied, standing up and brushing dust off his jeans. “You did.”
The silence that followed was awkward enough to make the hallway feel quieter than it actually was.
Josh shoved the papers back into his binder a little harder than necessary. “Whatever.”
Without another word, he adjusted the binder under his arm and disappeared down the hallway.
Tyler watched him leave.
“What’s his problem?” he thought.
He barely had time to think about it before Jenna and Mark walked out of the band room.
Mark had short brown hair that never seemed to sit right, giving him permanently crooked bangs. He played trumpet, complained about his knees like he was sixty instead of sixteen, and somehow always had the personality of a retired grandpa.
“There you are,” Jenna said.
The three of them headed toward the cafeteria together.
Jenna happily swung her arms as she walked while Mark rambled about how impossible a few measures in their concert music were. Tyler mostly nodded along, only half listening.
When they reached their usual table, Tyler set his backpack on the floor and pulled out his lunchbox before sitting down.
“Tyler’s thinking about joining color guard next marching season,” Jenna announced with a grin.
Tyler shot her an offended look.
Mark’s eyebrows lifted. “Really? That’s actually pretty cool. I would’ve never guessed you’d be interested in that, Ty.”
“It wasn’t my idea,” Tyler muttered. “Jen basically decided for me.”
“I did not.”
“You absolutely did.”
“I merely suggested it.” Jenna rolled her eyes dramatically while Mark nearly choked on his sandwich laughing.
Tyler couldn’t help laughing too.
As the conversation settled down, his gaze wandered across the cafeteria.
It landed on Josh.
And he was looking directly at Tyler.
Not glaring.
Not smiling.
Just…looking.
The second Tyler met his eyes, Josh looked away and started talking to the person beside him like nothing had happened.
Tyler frowned.
“Hey, Mark.”
“Hm?”
“Who’s this Josh kid, and why does he keep staring at me?”
Mark looked over his shoulder before shrugging.
“Oh, Josh? He’s cool. One of the best drummers in percussion, honestly. Pretty chill once you get to know him.”
Tyler glanced back toward Josh’s table.
“Didn’t seem that chill.”
Mark laughed.
“you’re reading way too much into it. People zone out all the time.” Jenna added, rolling her eyes.
Tyler looked back one last time.
Josh wasn’t looking anymore.
“…Yeah,” Tyler said, unconvinced. “Maybe.”