The Cost of Dying Young (rewriting)

Chapter 6: Crushed By a Bombshell

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            I get chills every time I think about those tests. It was one of the most painful experiences in my entire life. A big needle was used to draw cerebral fluid out of my spine. They numbed the area profusely but it still caused major discomfort after wards, especially the bone marrow biopsy where they had to use an even bigger needle to draw bone a fragment of a bone and some bone marrow. I had back pain for a couple hours after that. About seven weeks passed when the test results came in.

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            Claude Oscar Monet's School for Performing Arts is one of the best private visual and performing arts high school in America. It is also the most expensive high school in America. It is on a $240 million dollar campus in Los Angeles, California. Xander and I are talented and blessed enough to have been accepted. There are four majors offered in the curriculum along with traditional academics. These four majors are Dance, Music, Visual Arts, and Theatre Arts. With the campus designating one building for each major all of our activities are pretty separate except for lunch and “nutrition” as they call it. I suppose they like to be special.

            My major was in the visual arts with a medium in watercolor painting. My schedule has just begun to be focused on my medium. The same goes for Xander although his major is in musical theater. I tease him every day on how queer that seems. The courses throughout your high school career were set up in such a way that it goes from well-rounded to more focused. They did this to increase exposure to more mediums in your freshman and sophomore years such as media, two dimensional, and three dimensional arts.  Junior and senior years are to prepare you for your college experience focusing on your medium whatever it may be by offering AP and College Credit courses.    

            Currently it was four weeks into my junior year on a Monday and much like Garfield, I believe that Mondays do indeed suck. The only highlight of my day is AP Studio Art, which is the class that I am in right now. That is by far my favorite class. It is just some place where I can pour all of my inner fibers into my art. After this class, I always feel refreshed and replenished. I was working on my beginning of the year painting. It's not my best but I resound with the message behind it. I was searching in my art bag for my acrylic paint when there was a tap on my shoulder.  

            Simultaneously, when the tap on my shoulder came my nose was greeted with the smell of lavender. That scent belongs to the one and only, Cataleya Emerson. I turned my body and my eyes met with her lustrous, brown eyes. Although she has such a gorgeous name, she prefers being called Reya because she thinks it’s less of a mouthful. She was really short compared to my six feet four inches being just over five feet. Her personality is what I like that most, but it doesn’t help that she has killer body. I mean it’s not helping that I’m sitting down and her chest is in my face. Don’t get too distracted…   

            “Hello? Earth to Reece?”

            I just got so freaking diverted that I didn’t hear her talking. Crap, come on Christian... Get it together! I suppose I should answer her before she thinks I am a freak just staring at her and what not.

            “Uh, what did you say?” She released a giggle.

            “I asked if I can borrow one of your watercolor paintbrushes. I forgot mine in my locker and you know Mr. Garvey won’t let me go and get mine.”