Infinite

I Got the Music

𝄆 ♫♪ 𝄇
I got the music
Back inside of me
Every melody and chord
Can't stop the music
Back inside my soul
And it's stronger than before
I got the music, it won't let me go
I got the music, just like a radio
I got the music, streaming from my soul
And it's stronger than before
𝄆 ♫♪ 𝄇

"I Got the Music" was a song that the three girls (and Carrie, before everything went down) had grown up with and could sing to and make harmonies effortlessly while singing. Julie was lip-synching the lyrics, dancing along like she had the night before with her family. They planned to have dance parties more now to preserve the memory of their mother. And to enjoy life with whoever wanted to join in with them.

Julie sashayed across the hallway, arriving at her locker while the music played in her headphones. At the same time, Flynn's headphones were blasting the same song, loving the beats flowing through her ears. Mari's earbuds, on the other hand, were quiet enough that she could hear faint footsteps behind her and lockers slamming closed beside her, all because she didn't didn't want to let herself go to a place of happiness when the grounding seemed to have only gotten worse. And she hadn't even done anything to warrant it.

Julie sang quietly while pulling out books from her locker. She didn't mind if everyone heard her. It wasn't as if her classmates didn't also do the same thing (or its equivalent if they were dancers or jocks or nerds). Nobody really judged her, or anyone else, that much, as long as it wasn't extremely disruptive.

Mari sang, but she couldn't say she was feeling the music. It was a good song, but just not the one she wanted to hear right then. If she had to pick one that truly displayed how she felt, it would be something from her "Sad and rainy days" playlist she'd created when her father died.

Mari and Julie, though separated by a couple hallways, were singing in perfect harmony, letting the music set them free. Somehow, they could do it without being together. It was a talent and a perk of being best friends for years.

The bridge—a rap that almost everyone in their generation knew—was Flynn's favorite part. It'd always been her favorite part because she'd always been partial to rap and hip hop. Rock n' roll was also up there, but hip hop and rap took the cake. Flynn let the words fly out of her mouth at top speed as she grabbed her own books from her locker. There had always been something about rapping that made Flynn feel as if she was flying high above the clouds.

The song ended quicker than they'd wished. They had been trapped in their own little worlds, but once the song was over, they all gathered around Julie's locker to talk before class. They had a lot to talk about after last night's dance party. It was epic, even if Mari missed it.

"Mari, you missed an awesome night. My whole family plus the guys and Flynn all had a dance party at my house." Julie and Flynn stared at their friend, hoping to get more of an explanation than they've been given thus far. The current explanation for all of it was that she was busy doing things at home and just hadn't been up to expending what little energy she had at the end of the day. Oh, the lies she could tell to her friends. It wasn't her, but she wasn't sure what to do with everything that had happened. "What were you up to?"

"Just writing songs." Mari didn't open up to them about what had happened when Laura got home. It wasn't easy, but she managed to keep it under wraps for the few seconds it took for her to come up with another sentence. "I've got a new one composed now, which I'm going to play tomorrow for the class performances."

"Oh that's cool. I'm performing today, and I don't know how I managed to write another song with all of the guys distracting me every two minutes." Mari could imagine that, mostly because it had happened to her once or twice with only one of the boys. She couldn't imagine having all three distracting her at the same time.

For the music program, each person had to perform for the class (or the school, if that was possible) five times per quarter. One performance was set aside for the midterm or final exam time, and the other four were just whenever Mrs. Harrison decided to have them. Aside from the entrance performance, which was either the first or second day of school.

"I still wish I could see them. They're cute. And hot." Flynn fanned her face, and it was the first time Julie noticed that Flynn and Mari were getting along. There were no sideways looks or pointed glares or underhanded comments between the two of them. She'd never seen it like that, so it shocked her to see that they were getting along so well. "You can't deny that."

"Not really." Mari kept her smile hidden, though it was clear to both of her friends that she clearly found at least one of the boys attractive.

"So, when did you two become so buddy-buddy?" Julie wondered as soon as she thought they wouldn't cut her off.

"I didn't know we had," Flynn replied with a shrug. Mari hadn't truly noticed it either, but she did notice that they weren't at each other's throats anymore. Frenemies was the best label for their relationship now.

"You aren't giving death glares to one another, so it's definitely a step in the right direction." Julie pointed out, just as Luke popped in to annoy Julie (and Mari in the process). Neither Julie nor Flynn knew Mari could see the boys just like Julie could, but Mari always expected that secret to come out sooner rather than later. "You guys can go to class, I'm right behind you. Just have to take care of something."

Mari could clearly see that the issue Julie was "taking care of" was Luke. Mari thought, in all honesty, they would make a cute couple. If Luke wasn't their parent's age (or, at least, had a childhood at the same time) or a ghost. She acted ignorant and walked away with Flynn to music class.

"Mari! I know you can hear me!" Luke yelled towards her and she wanted to sink in a hole in the floor. Julie stared at her best friend in shock, realizing Mari could see the boys just like her. In a handful of seconds, Julie was storming over to her, fuming. "Wait, you didn't— you didn't know she could see us?"

"Have you seriously been hiding that?" Julie was angry and confused and felt betrayed. "I can't believe you, Marietta." If Julie had thought Mari was forgiven for everything that went down before, she was rescinding that and resuming her anger towards her kind of best friend. Her appalled look said everything.

"Julie, wait—" Mari watched her soon-to-be-ex best friend storm off.

"No. Mari, I need time." Mari didn't even stay for the remainder of the school day. It was as if her life was falling apart faster than she thought possible.

Author's Note: "I Got the Music" is an awesome song. Love it. The rapping part is probably my favorite because girls don't usually rap. And, of course, there's more stuff going down in Mari's life (I feel bad, but there's not much I can do... well, yes there is a lot I can do as the writer of the story, but I am not doing it). I do promise that there is a happy ending. Vote and let me know what you think in the comments and I'll see you all in a few days. All the best, MistyRider921.