To Be Replaced

Chapter 1: Pre-Contest Jitters

I'm having a really nice dream. I'm sitting on top of pretty, fluffy clouds. I hear nothing other than the sound of my breathing. I break off a piece of cloud and throw it in the air, watching it fall as slow as a leaf. I am at peace.

"Arden!"

Shoot. That does not sound good.

I open my eyes to see that I am no longer high up in the clouds. Instead, Catherine looms over me, looking pretty impatient.

"Nooooo," I groan. "I'm not getting up, Cath."

I shut my eyes as Cath says, "It's the frickin' Farradale Art Contest today, dummy! Get up right now!"

"Why do I regret ever signing up for that?" I say.

"Because you're sleepy, Ar. Pretty sure you won't be saying that when we're on national TV AND we win that trophy. So. Wake. Up."

The Farradale Art Contest happens every year; and it's a big deal. Schools from all over our town enter and our school, Park High, barely coughs up a finalist. But this year, with Catherine's art skills and my poetry, we've somehow made it into the final ten. Usually, someone from Hudson High School wins and everyone applauds and calls Hudson High School the best school in the world. However, Cath and I determined to win.

But, yeah, I've gotta get out of bed first.

"Is she up, yet?" I hear my mom say. I partially sit up, leaning on my elbow, trying to wake up completely. Mom walks in, wearing her scrubs.

"Mother, hi," I say, my voice thick.

"Good God, Arden, please get up. You have to get there in an hour," she says.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm up," I mutter, throwing the covers off me and sitting up.

"Man, Mrs. Jackson, you should probably start paying me as her full time caregiver," says Cath, which makes Mom laugh.

"You're right, I really think we should consider that," she says. "Well, I have to go, I'm running a bit late. I'll be there at 10, Arden. Good luck to both of you."

"Thanks," Cath and I say to Mom as she walks out. My phone beeps and I see that I've gotten a text from Matthew that says 'Good luck, Ar! I'll be there at 10 xx'. I smile to myself as I get up.

"Matthew says good luck," I say, still grinning.

"At least that woke you up," Cath says. "Now, get ready for God's sake."

I'm ready a half hour later. After a light breakfast, Cath and I leave the house and walk towards the City Hall. I start to feel nervous.

"Dude, calm down, we'll be great," Cath says.

"What am I going to say, Cath? My brain always shuts down whenever I have to speak in public!" I exclaim.

"It's alright, Arden. You're great at talking. All you have to do is muster up some courage and bam! Speaketh."

"Ugh, it's not that easy."

Cath grabs me by the shoulders and looks at me in the face. "Look here, dude, you are an amazing person who is amazing at speaking, okay? Not only that, but you wrote the beautiful words that totally complimented my artwork and now, we are on our way to win the Farradale Art Contest and go home with that trophy!"

I stare at Cath, her blue eyes shining intensely. I relax and smile. "Thanks, dude. I needed that."

"Yeah, you did. I can finally see that you're actually breathing."

When the City Hall comes into view, I feel my nervousness return. This time, I swallow it down and trudge forward. The whole place has been decorated and there are thousands of art pieces hung on the walls. There are only a couple of people and I think about how it's going to be packed in an hour or so. Cath pinches my arm and I jump.

"Stop thinking," she says.

"That won't work," I respond.

"Well, think about something else. Think about Matthew."

Matthew Clarke was this shy kid in my physics class. Even though he was quiet, he seemed to love the subject, just like I did, and slowly, through being partners in projects and assignments, we just hit it off and became a couple. Matthew became less shy and opened up more and soon enough, we became the cutest couple in school. I think about the first time we actually interacted with each other in class. It began with a discussion on entropy and we ended up talking about our pets. Matthew and I ended up going on a date to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens. I think about his hazel, doe eyes and always casually messy black hair. Cath pinches me again.

"Ow??" I say.

"You looked like you were no longer mentally on planet Earth," Cath replies. "Anyway, I've been eavesdropping on the conversation going on behind us, and there's been a change. Farradale News is gonna interview all of the finalists."

I feel my heartbeat speed up. "Crap! Crap! Shoot! That is NOT good Cath help no-"

"Calm down, child. It took a lot to give you that speech on the way here."

"Caaaaath."

"Look, let's get some coffee. That'll calm you down."

There's a table with coffee, donuts, and a number of pastries. Cath grabs a cup, pours some coffee, and adds cream and sugar, just the way I like it. I grab the cup and gulp it down as Cath watches me.

"I don't know how you can intake such a vile substance," she mumbles aloud.

I respond with, "I don't know why you can't." I look around at the pretty art pieces. I sigh.

"Gotta ask when they're gonna interview us," Cath says, walking away from me. "Be right back."

While she's gone, I try to calm down. A Panic! at the Disco song plays in my head. I look around at the people. There are kids my age, kids older than me. Some look like they've been doing this for years. I wonder how Cath and I managed to get accepted into this thing. Is there any chance of us winning?

Cath returns, grinning forcefully. "I hope you've calmed down."

"Why's that?" I ask.

"Because they're going to interview us. Right now."