The OK Orchestra (Part 2 of the Album Story series)

Chapter 10: Three O'Clock Things

*Alternate title: Jack has a midlife crisis worrying about how the show will go and consults his brothers for advice.*

"This could quite literally decide the fate of Symphonia."

Why did Joe have to phrase it like THAT?

Jack stared up at the ceiling, a frown forming on his face. The fate of Symphonia... why. Why? WHY?

Maybe he could distract himself by thinking of something else. He closed his eyes, deciding to envision a field of grass. And some fluffy, little white sheep. A fence that they were all contained behind... yeah, that was a cute, relaxing scene. One, two, three-

A wolf appeared, the same color as the storm clouds that were plaguing Symphonia. As Jack's imagination went wild, the wolf began to prey on the sheep. The first sheep let out a scared 'baa' as it was bitten into from behind. As it was devoured, the sheep began turning into an instrument -- a trumpet, to be exact -- until it was completely swallowed in a few quick bites. The wolf-cloud thing continued to prey on the sheep in Jack's imagination, each one turning into an instrument near the end of its dream life.

Jack's eyes snapped open, and he growled in frustration. He was trying way too hard to fall asleep, and his negative thoughts wouldn't give him peace. Even when he wasn't trying to think negatively, he couldn't help it! His thoughts kept circling back to the upcoming concert, and how much every Symphonian was relying on them, whether they realized it or not. Would Adam and Ryan even be able to summon that strange magic that Jack had discovered in the woods? Would Jack himself even be able to harness that power again? What if it was a one-time thing?

Irritated, Jack sat up, swinging his legs over the side of the bed in the small house that Ms. Hoots had provided for them. Everything here was much smaller than he was used to, but luckily, the bed was still comfortable, if a bit small. He stared at the clock -- it was 3:30. He'd been up for at least five hours, with not a wink of sleep. He decided to turn to the people who always made him feel better about things, especially upcoming concerts.

It was time to pay Ryan and Adam a nighttime visit.

Jack made his way to the room where he knew Adam was sleeping, cautiously approaching the door. He slowly cracked it open, hoping not to disturb his brother despite coming here specifically to see him -- but inside, Adam was already awake, sitting in a swivel chair with his bass guitar strapped to him and studying sheet music with a flashlight.

The oldest brother looked up as Jack entered, somewhat surprised. "Couldn't sleep either?" Jack asked him. Adam shook his head. "Not really... I know the chords to our songs, it's just... I really, really want to nail them down."

"Yeah, that's understandable," Jack agreed. "I've been tossing and turning for the past few hours because I can't stop thinking about our problem. The fate of this world is literally in our hands -- and our instrumental abilities. If we can't summon that magic that I discovered, how else are we gonna be able to-" Jack broke off, tearing up a little. He was terrified of the thought of losing the metaphorical battle to the strange storm clouds.

Adam, with his older brother skills, noticed Jack's distressed tone immediately. Seeing the tears in his eyes, Adam stood up, walked over, and embrace Jack tightly. Jack hugged back, smiling a little. "Don't worry. I promise we'll get through this, no matter what. We have to."

"Ugh, don't phrase it like that... I'm already stressed as it is," Jack complained, although he was thankful for Adam's attempt to cheer him up. "I don't like thinking that I'm the savior of the world."

"Okay then... we will get through this. Everything's gonna be just fine," Adam released Jack, patting him on the shoulder. "Want to go over the sheet music for some songs with me?"

"Yeah, why not. I don't think I'll be able to go to sleep anyways," Jack nodded.

"Hey! Don't start without me!" Ryan startled them both by standing in the doorway. His glasses were on, which meant he'd been up for at least 30 minutes. He took a seat behind Adam, sitting on his older brother's bed. "Which song are we rehearsing?"

"I was trying to go over Weak," Adam explained, his hands shifting to his guitar.

"Okay! Let me get my- oh, you've got it already," Ryan cut himself off, reaching down to pick up his ukulele from the floor, where it was propped up against the wall next to a wooden dresser.

"We probably shouldn't use the soundboard. I don't wanna wake up Ms. Hoots, not after she's been nice enough to let us stay here," Jack reasoned.

"True. Let's do an acoustic version, then," Adam said. He counted them off. "Three, four."