Officials Thought Me Wrong

Chapter 11 - start

Madi's POV
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Madeline's alarm went off at 9:00. She was still asleep. How could she sleep through music? "Pompeii" by Bastille started playing. I got out of bed and walked around Madeline. I hit the snooze button. She'll need a bit more sleep since she stayed up raging on a song. I walked out of her room, past the bathroom, and into the kitchen. I saw her mother up. "Good morning, Madi." She said. "Hi Mrs. Kilpeck." I said. "Please, call me Sherry." She said. "Where's Maddie?" "She's asleep." I said. "I don't blame her. She seemed pretty frustrated with her song." "It's one of her originals she wrote last summer." She said.

I sighed. "She's so lucky to have you." I said. "I am an orphan." "What?" She said. "Don't you have a foster mother?" "Yea, but she died of cancer." I said. "What kind?" She asked. "Breast." I said. "Stage four." "You know, I'm in remission." She said. "I had breast cancer when Madeline was in middle school. I had another type of cancer that was somewhere else. You can get an idea." "Are you afraid if they come back?" I asked. "They both were operated on." She said. "But I still got treatments for it. Madeline was in a wreck for the rest of her 7th grade year. And it also took a toll on her time at her previous school." "What school did she go to?" I asked.

"She went to a catholic school." She said. "She had to wear uniforms, but there were some snobby girls there which made her transfer. She is now an incoming junior at Middleboro High School. Singing and softball helped her get through stress. She now keeps rejecting boys because of her stress that she admits is overwhelming. You see her writing songs every ten minutes, practicing her catching mechanics every day, and running at least three times a week. Maybe more. She runs for so long. When she gets back from a run, she tells me she ran 2.5 miles more than the last. She started by running once around the block, then she runs one additional time around every day. She runs the distance that she runs the day before and you see her running an extra 2.5 miles on top of that. She never gets tired."

I was surprised. "What's her longest distance?" I asked. "Probably 20 miles." She said. "She's at least marathon material." "That's unhealthy." I said. "But it reduces her stress." She said. "She wants to do it. At least she is staying in shape." "That's the bright side about it." I said. "At least she is doing what she likes to do. So, yea. My foster mother recently died of breast cancer and softball is the only thing keeping my spirit alive. I don't even know my own parents." "So, who else is gonna practice with Maddie for the concert?" She asked. "My teammate Rachel and my friend Jason." I said. "They both have a song they're gonna sing with Madeline. I'm singing 'Unsteady' by X Ambassadors with her."

"And what are the others singing with her?" She asked. "Fight Song and... Umm, I don't know the other one." I said. "She keeps being so indecisive about her song choices." "I hear that a lot." She said. "She has a huge song list on her piano in her room." Just then, I heard footsteps. "Morning, sleepy head." Sherry said. "Very funny mom." Madeline said. "Where's dad?" "On the flight to Oklahoma from Atlanta." Sherry said. "Right." Madeline said. "Ugh, why does he have to be there for two weeks?" "I'm gonna meet him there on Thursday." Sherry said. "You have to take care of the dog and work on your songs. Madi, make sure she gets her music squared away. We are gonna be back on Monday before the tournament."

"Nice, you're gonna meet the alliance." Madeline said. "And why don't you call Brian and ask him to help you?" Sherry asked. "He was in concert choir with you." I looked confused. "There's a Brian I know in Massachusetts too." Madeline said. "This one is Brian Gallagher." "Never mind." I said. "Well, I can bring you guys food and coffee from Dunkin Donuts." Sherry said. "What do you girls want?"

We both wrote down our orders and went straight back to Madeline's room. Her mother left and locked the back door behind her. "So, while we are waiting for our food, want me to teach you why we are soon to be going extinct?" Madeline asked. "Sure, Why?" I asked. "It's because of me." She said. "If it wasn't for me blacking out, none of this would be happening." "Woah, but he attacked you first." I said. "It doesn't matter anymore." She said. "I finished the fight. I killed him." "Well, a salesperson did talk about you." I said. "There was a Dick's Sporting Goods in Maine. And I almost died there. The salesperson was being a dick until he came to his senses. Then he just brought up your name."

She sighed as she grabbed her iPad. She pulled up an instrumental of Unsteady. She listened to it through her headphones. She nodded as I watched her save the video and she put the link in her notes. They were links of instrumentals to send to the manager in Boston. "Two more." She said. "Oh, those are the instrumentals for the concert." I said. She looked at me with the 'are you stupid' look. I laughed. "Sorry." She said. "I just need to start the day before I sing anything."

Next thing I knew, the dog went crazy. Sherry was back with breakfast. Madeline got an iced coffee and a breakfast sandwich. I got an iced coffee and a bagel with bacon, egg, and cheese. Sherry got herself a coffee slushie. We ate our food and got ready for the day. I finished getting dressed as Madeline finished applying her eyeliner. She then got lyrics and harmony lines. "You ready to start?" She asked. "Yea." I said. "Let's begin."