Andante con Brio

XX

"Actually, I need the toilet first." 
Eddy had put his violin case down on top of the grand piano in the corner of the smallish room and was turning around to go out again. Brett's lips twitched with the slightest of knowing smiles. 
"Want me to come with you or wait here?"
Eddy hesitated for just the smallest fraction of a second before shaking his head. I mean, come on. He was a man, now. Men didn't need men to come to the toilet with them, no matter how fucking nervous they were. 
Being a man didn't change the fact that the second he walked off down the hall to the door at the far end, where he knew the bathroom to be, all the peace that Brett had brought with him that morning vanished without a trace. He almost ran into the cubicle, locked the door quickly and stared at himself in the mirror. 
Deep breaths, now. There's no need to start throwing up. 
He was looking pale, haggard almost. There were shadows under his eyes from the short night, and probably also from the lack of breakfast. He really should try and have a couple of bites of the roll he had brought from the breakfast table, but the thought of eating only made him more queasy. 
He blinked at his reflection once more, turned around to quickly pee and then he made his way back through the deserted hall in a half jog. Brett looked him up and down subtly. 
"You okay?"
Eddy nodded. 
"Have you eaten at all? You're pale as fuck."
Eddy shook his head. 
"Nah. I will. Let's just warm up first."

Eddy closed his eyes for just a second as he shut the practice room door behind him half an hour later. 
This is it, mate. This is what you have been working towards. Come on. You got this. 
He nodded at nothing in particular and squared his shoulders. Then he walked calmly towards the audition hall with Brett on his heel. He was a bit better now, strangely. It was like he had left  some of the nerves behind in that little practice room, and he was focused now, super focused on what he was about to do. 
The hall looked exactly the same as it had last year, when Brett had auditioned. Even the plastic chairs that were against the concrete wall were the same. He chose to stand though, leaning slightly against the wall, his violin already in his hands, staring fixedly at the double doors in front of him. 
He would step through those doors in just a minute, and decide his future. 
So no pressure, right?
Brett seemed to understand that he didn't really want to talk right now, because he just sat down on the chair closest to Eddy, smiled at him again and crossed his legs. Eddy would have to tell him, later, how soothing his presence had been.  

"Eddy Chen?"
It was actually the same woman as last year, who had let Brett into the same doors. Eddy stepped away from the wall mechanically and walked forward. He smiled at the woman and walked into the space ahead of her. 
It was smaller than he had thought, just a studio really, with three men and two women sitting behind a long table. The man in the middle smiled encouragingly at him and for a moment he wanted to turn around and run away, all the way back home and hide under his bed. 
He swallowed convulsively and smiled back. 
"Good morning." he said softly. "I'm Eddy Chen."
He wasn't sure what to do. Did he shake their hand? Stand by the piano? Say something else? 
But before he could decide either way the man gestured to the piano. The woman who had opened the door had sat down behind it. He blinked and took the couple of steps over to the bend of the piano. Then he took the biggest inhale and turned to the pianist to get his A.