The Arts

4 - Fresh Start

TYLER

          Tyler had a simple plan laid out for his time at The Arts: first, find a new band; second, hit the gym and stop being so scrawny; and third, do not make contact with anyone from Hillside. Especially not Robbie and Matt.

          That plan lasted for about half a day.

          In Tyler's defense, he had forgotten that Ivan existed. They never talked in middle school and weren't in the same social cliques by any stretch. Tyler was a band kid. Not a band geek who was in the school marching band, but literally a band kid. A kid who was in a band. So he always fell comfortably in the top tier of artsy kids at Hillside's social hierarchy. He wasn't a jock, but he was obviously cooler than every other art kid. Ivan, on the other hand, didn't ever belong to a clique. He was the guy who was known for always trying really hard to be funny and failing miserably. Tyler had never shared any classes with Ivan, so that on top of not being in the same friend circles made for an easily forgettable person.

          Probably the most difficult thing about being Tyler was the constant strategizing to stay at the top of the popularity food chain, or at least near enough to the top that people above him would be cool with him and the people below him would still either admire or fear him. It was a crappy thing to care about, and he knew it, but he also knew how the entertainment business worked. He'd be judged on his network connections just as much as his talent and skill, maybe even more so. It wasn't just about getting famous; when he was famous he'd be able to inspire people. And Tyler knew that the most sure-fire way to inspire people was to be successful as much as possible and be surrounded by more successful people.

          So for that reason, he had to keep a low profile and avoid a lot of people. Ivan included.

          The thing was, though, that Ivan didn't seem all too bad.

          Sure, there was still the occasional dirty joke or creepy comment about women. That was undeniably bad. And that alone should have put Tyler on high alert.

          But the way people used to talk about Ivan, Tyler would have guessed that those comments and jokes were constant. Maybe Ivan just dialed it back?

          The second thing was that Ivan's mother was the head of the art program.

          It never felt good when Tyler teamed up with someone on status alone, but he found himself doing that all the time. He simply wouldn't make it without connections.

          Knowing how often he did this and how many superficial relationships he had made his separation from The Flaming Wolves that much more painful. Robbie was Tyler's first real friend. They paired up because they enjoyed the same things. It was a genuine connection.

          But genuine connection and genuine talent only went so far. And Robbie had completely and totally turned on him. Leaving as soon as he had an opening to do so felt like the only choice in the moment, but perhaps it was the best choice. Maybe Robbie was objectively right in his musical decisions, but he certainly didn't have the high ground when it came to how he handled their disagreement. When Tyler received his acceptance letter to The Arts, it took everything in him to stick to his guns and not call Robbie and Matt. This was his chance for a fresh start, and he wasn't going to blow that by going back to an ensemble where he didn't have a voice.