I had come a long way since my life took a downturn. I’d not only found my way back to the drums, but rediscovered them in a new way. I’d also fallen in love again. Despite my fears and everything that I’d convinced myself about relationships, I’d managed to fall for Melany. I was so glad that I’d taken a chance on trusting her. I believed that she and I were meant for each other. The fact that we both felt so strongly about each other, and had both affected each other’s life so much in such a short amount of time was proof enough to me that it was true.
Fuck it.
If I was going to play to prove someone wrong, I’d do it to prove them all wrong. Max, my dad, Dr. Adler, hell, even Herschel and Brandon Miyaguchi. I’d raise one big middle finger to them all with the best performance of my life.
Kaitlyn turned back and made eye contact with me and Brianne. Brianne nodded and looked at me. I nodded to the both of them.
Here we go.
I inhaled, clacked my sticks in the air, and then let it all explode.
As soon as I made contact with the drum pads, any anxiety and nervousness I’d had vanished into thin air and was replaced with the single thought—prove them all wrong.
We opened with a cover of David Bowie’s “Ziggy Stardust,” and our playing tore through the gallery, turning heads and vibrating the walls so hard that I saw a framed photograph fall from the wall and shatter on the floor. The crowd started to fill out as people made their way out from the gallery. People were moving to the music, nodding their heads and tapping their feet, and when Kaitlyn and Brianne broke into a badass alternating guitar and violin solo, the audience broke out into cheers and whistles.
When we started our second song—an improvised salsa style tune—the outdoor area had mostly filled up to its capacity.
The three of us had had plenty of jam sessions over the past two weeks, but none of them had been like this. With the electric energy of the crowd backing us, we reached a whole new level of synchronicity. We could only communicate with our eyes and the movements of our bodies, giving each other cues to how to change the song, but we did it so seamlessly that anyone watching wouldn’t have believed it was all on the fly.
Sweat poured down my face, and on a break when Brianne took over the song with her violin, I tugged my shirt off down to the tank top I wore underneath. I was flying. I’d never felt such energy while playing before.
Show them how far you’ve come.
And that’s when I spotted him in the crowd.
I nearly dropped my sticks in surprise, thinking that I was seeing things, but I managed to keep it together without even missing a beat. I looked hard, and realized I hadn’t been mistaken. It was him.
Dr. Adler was there, watching the show.
I felt the swell of anxiety rise up in me—but I quickly pushed it down. Show him.
I was in the zone, and nothing was going to take me out of it. Not even him.
Kaitlyn took over the song next, doing a fingerstyle solo on her guitar, and then nodded over to
me. I let it all out in the wildest drum solo I’d ever done.
Throughout the rest of the set, I forgot that Dr. Adler was even there. My drumming consumed me, and I was focused on listening to the music and watching Kaitlyn and Brianne for cues.
I played my fucking heart out.
It may have just been a random show, but to me, it was the best I’d played in my entire drumming career.
The crowd cheered as we waved and walked off the stage, and we were immediately rushed by admirers wanting to talk to us. Kaitlyn and Brianne started to chit-chat with our new fans, but I had only one thing on my mind. I pushed my way through the crowd to where I’d seen Dr. Adler standing, but he wasn’t there anymore. Looking around, I saw him standing near the doorway going back into the gallery, speaking to Professor Barley. I made my way over to them.
“Dr. Adler,” I said, coming up to them.
“Excuse me,” he said to Professor Barley, who nodded and walked away. “Ms. Ellings.”
Suddenly, I was at a loss for words. So many things were going through my mind.
“What a show,” he said. “What a performance. You played excellently. The originals—that was improvisation?”
“Yes, sir,” I said.
“Spectacular. And you know me, I don’t say that lightly. You’ve progressed immensely since you were my student.”
“You know, Doctor,” I said, “I don’t think you ever once gave me such a high compliment when I was your student.”