A Little Bit... A Little More. (Huh?)

Tharn: Chapter 2

Reaching my faculty, I notice Tum, Tae and Song standing by the staircase. I approach them and we head off to our first class.

We've been friends since high school, though I've known Tum since middle school. It's really a wonder how all of us got into the same University. Well, I can't really complain because that just makes our lives easier.

We became friends because of our shared interest in music and we discovered that we each play multiple instruments and one of us joked that we should start a band. At first, it was a joke; then we started meeting for jamming together. Jam sessions turned into practice sessions for performances we put up at school and random festivals that we could get in on. Before we knew it, we had become a legit band. Well, not legit as in wide recognition but just legit in the sense that we did identify as a band. We soon began to write our own music. Where my personal interests lie in ballads and classic rock, we decided to settle on pop-rock as our main genre.

Tum volunteered to be the main vocalist and guitarist, Song was on bass, Tae the lead guitarist and I was designated the drummer. We all picked the instrument that we enjoyed playing the most. Tum would sometimes play the keyboard if the song called for it. We were really happy with our positions and the gigs that we had been landing.

We need to make ourselves known to the locals so we would have a better chance at taking a crack at the popular pubs when we come of age. Until we all hit twenty, we'll have to settle for small functions and festivals that happen around town. So, far we've managed to get a foot in with the locals and we sometimes get recognised on the streets. It's not a crazy fan base but everyone who approaches us makes us feel proud and acts as motivation for doing better.

There is a woman by the name of P'Jeed, who owns a big Japanese style pub near the campus, she's seen us play at a few festivals and has joked about giving her place the priority when we do start playing for pubs. We laugh along and assure her that she's on top of our list because she really is. Her place is the most popular pub around and there have been bands and solo acts that have been scouted by big music producers from her pub in the past. In our aspiring musician circle, P'Jeed's pub is seen to be a stepping stone to the endgame. So, saying that P'Jeed herself approached us is nothing short of a miracle and it makes us all giddy. We hope with all hope that she isn't kidding around.

We don't even know how we got to a place where we decided to study music and pursue it seriously. One day we were a bunch of kids just joshing around in my garage and the next we're performing at festivals and applying for music school.

We couldn't be happier with our decision and the fact that we got into the same University seems like a sign that the Universe is on our side. Now we all have the same schedule so it makes it easier for us to form a schedule for practicing and we have a whole music room with a choice of instruments at our disposal.

I was pulled out of my reverie by the sound of the bell signalling the end of the orientation.

"Hey, so want to go check out the music room after classes today? We could check the schedule and book the room for our practice on the days that it's available," Tum says as he places his arm over my shoulder.

We all hum in agreement.

The classes go by in a blur and we soon find ourselves in the music room deciding on a schedule.

"So, since we made it here before a lot of people we can book the room for all the week days from 6pm to 7:30pm for this week. The bookings are only on a weekly basis. So, we'll have to rush here every week to reapply if we want to keep our schedule." Tae says as he looks at the clip-board.

"That's okay with me," I state. There is a chorus of agreement from around the room and just like that our schedules are decided.

"Hey, since it's our first day today, let's take it easy and start from tomorrow. Big boy's got a date today," Tum says with his shit eating grin.