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The Act Of The Violin
“Get her outta here!” citizens shouted. The sirens blared as screams filled the air. Red and blue police lights flashed and blinded all around. All I heard was my violin in the calmest environment. But there's nothing I could do. The music was uncontrollable.
That was then. Almost a full year has passed. I have gotten a little bit better, though I can't fully control my powers yet. But it's still nerve-racking when it comes alive.
The next morning I jolted out of bed still haunted by nightmares upon nightmares. Still, I think about those innocent lives gone by my silly foolishness. I never knew one person could be this dangerous, yet so small inside. At least there's one thing that I know I can’t mess up. Breakfast. The best meal of the day. Eggs, bacon, and a slightly burnt piece of crunchy buttery toast. Always the best way to start the day off.
My family has already left for their work...erh... whatever they do. It's always a mystery to me. They never talked to me and they treat me like I'm nothing. Like I just drag them down.
“Well,” I proclaimed, “Their loss”. As I walked with my breakfast and a new cup of coffee. My white hair dipped in and out of my coffee with every bounce I took.
As a kid, I was never treated well. All of my 4 brothers and 2 sisters were always tested on and given a better life than me, while I was by my father’s side and separated from my siblings. Even though being tested on was just testing strength and how well their powers could hold up through different environments. I always wanted to be with them and be treated like them (so I wasn't different). Everyone on the streets always heard of my oldest brother Armstrong, AKA the human hulk. And Selena who can command anyone to do anything. The list goes on but there is never anything about me. I mean, the only good thing that came out of this was that I was never swamped on the streets when trying to go anywhere.
After cleaning up my breakfast I headed outside to smell the fresh air of autumn. The wind breezed past me sending shivers down my spine. I bring my violin anywhere I go just in case trouble breaks out.
I recently heard the Doubles Troubles had broken out of jail and are looking for their revenge. I walk hastily remembering how I put them in jail and thought that I would never have to deal with them. They have been known for targeting my family, trying to extract every ounce of our powers. The good thing for us is that they aren't that smart and easily get caught.
I opened the door to the old run-down apartment building and started walking up the stairs. Up 3 flights of stairs, I reach the testing room.
“Good Mornin’ Vanya!” spoke Alex, my instructor, with his warming Irish accent. “I hope you're ready for today!”
“Ready as I’ll ever be '' I replied while rolling my eyes because deep down, I know there will never be a day when I can control my powers. Not yet anyway. I prop myself up against a stool and look at the hanging cobwebs that dangled from the top of the rundown room.
I pressed my violin gently against my shoulder, shiver, and started to play. My instructor's ears are already covered with the most soundproof headphones. The rhythm immediately gets going. All these sounds rush to my head and all my ideas start flowing. My brain immediately rushed with thousand upon thousand ideas of different rhythms and sounds that would fit.
After some time, I open my eyes to see my instructor's face terrified. Puzzled, I drift my attention to my violin. It has gone completely white along with my skin and eyes. I try to stop my hands and arms from pumping. I now see that the cobwebs are being pushed back by some force, coming from me. My instructor has bent over clutching his eyes, his headphones nowhere in sight. The pitch of my violin gets to the lowest point it had even been
*CRACK*
I fall to the ground just realizing that I was levitating, my energy drained. My eyes drift upwards towards my instructor’s face
“That’s….That’s enough…..for today….” he spoke tiredly. His ears were brutally bruised and bleeding. I walked out of this horror shack and packed the pieces of my violin away. My ears are still ringing from my music as I head outside.
Outside seems normal. The brisk breeze still blowing while the cars zoom by. I walk quickly trying to forget what I had just done. I stumble along with the cool granite slabs below me. As I get up and brush the dirt and dust off, all I feel is…..
*THWOOP*
The sharp end of what feels like a baton hits me smack in the middle of my head. The pain throbbing throughout my head plus my ears still ringing make me want to pass out. I keep my consciousness and turn around. Vision blurry I see the Double Troubles aiming another swing but out of the corner of my eye, I see Armstrong rushing towards them.
Beep. Beep. Beep. The sound of the hospital mechanics and machines almost irritates me as I wake up. Feeling sore, I twist and turn my head to see Armstrong standing beside me.
“You got ambushed” He proceeds. “You ok?”
“Yeah I’m fine, where am I?” I reply
“Public Healthcare Hospital” He answers. “They were able to get you bandaged up and you should be ready to go soon”
After Recovery
It is my big day today. I have fully recovered from my attack and am glad to hear The Double Troubles are in jail again. But besides that, I have an opera show tonight finally displaying my violin skills. After some research about myself, I have figured out that my violin spasms only come from anger or other emotional feelings. Lately, when I have been practicing, I would think about my family and how apart I feel from them, and that is most likely what's causing them.
I put on my cotton clothes and feel a sense of warmth as the fuzziness makes its way to my skin. I practice making air gestures with a fake violin to make sure I'm ready for the play. In my head, I can feel the smooth chilled wood of the violin with the strings ready to go.
Hours later I leave the house ready for the biggest day of my life. I ride my bike to the rehearsal just minutes before the performance. I enter and everyone stops playing and stares at me. I can feel my cheeks stop burning red and I quickly turn and find my place. The music continues and the clock until the performance says 20 minutes. Just enough for me to finish a couple of rounds.
I unzip my violin bag and begin to practice. The time slowly unwinding. 15. 10. 5. Showtime. I find my place in my assigned seat and the curtains slowly reveal.
The other violin players start playing and I soon join in. I create the perfect melody between the high and low parts. I look straight out of the crowd and see all of my siblings out there. Recording me. My heart suddenly flutters and I am immediately bursting with happiness. My family has never done anything like this plus I don't even remember telling them I am here right now.
The music continues to flow through the ears of our listeners and I am pleasantly excited to show off my best work to not only my family but my fans. I’ve never had fans before and now I know what it feels like. Feeling too high, like you're at the top of the words. Living in success is incredible. I stand up and bow down to the audience as they applaud joyfully.
As soon as I am released I rush outside and am immediately greeted by my family. I jumped into their arms almost tearfully because of their accompaniment. I finally realized what I was wrong about. I was wrong about my family, that they didn't like me. And that I would never be able to beat my ‘violin madness’.
Winston is a 13-year-old boy currently living in Dover, Massachusetts. He goes to the Dover-Sherborn Middle School and next year will switch over to their Highschool. He has two brothers and loves to play soccer. He also (as you can see above) has a passion to write!