(Annabelle's POV)
"i got us a gig," Emmett said proudly as he set his lunch tray down.
"a gig? We only have half the lyrics to one song," Sean said.
"I know, but I was talking to my sister who's in college and I told her about the band. She said there was a party this Saturday and they needed someone to play," Emmett explained.
"this saturday? That's only two days away!" I said in exasperation.
"which is why we need at least three songs by then," Emmett said.
"Do you honestly think we can do that?" James asked.
"Maybe. You guys can all come over right after school, and you can come too Brooke," Emmett said.
"Do you know how long that's going to take?" James asked.
"if we all work together then maybe it wont be too long. The party starts at nine thirty so we'll have a lot of time that day too. Nobody ever said becoming famous was easy. This is what it takes. We have to work hard to do what we want in life! And we will be able to do it!" Emmett encouraged.
We all groaned in response.
"You guys don't appreciate me," Emmet mumbled.
"I wish Adrian was here for my first gig," I said sadly.
"Don't you dare invite her any time soon. She's gonna kill me!" James shrieked.
"Don't be a wimp," Nick said slapping him on the back of the head.
"Ow! Dude that actually hurt!" James whined.
"Good. Maybe it'll man you up," Nick said.
"I can give you a ride too Annabelle," Emmett offered. "I already take Nick and Brooke."
"Yeah, thanks," I said.
~timeskip to party~
We all hopped out of cars and unloaded our instruments. Emmett, Brooke, and Nick rode in Emmett's car, and James, Sean, Elliot, and I rode in Sean's. We walked to the backyard where the party was in full swing. A man noticed us standing there and walked up.
"Are you guys the ones who are playing?" The guy asked, his breath smelling faintly of alcohol.
"Yeah, that's us," Emmett said.
"Well then come one, I'm Derek, this is my party. You guys can set up on the back deck like a stage. Like I said on the phone, you play three songs then come get me for the money and you can leave, unless you wanna stay with us and party. If you need anything just come get me," Derek said then walked away.
We all turned to look at Emmett.
"What? this could be good publicity!" Emmett exclaimed.
He headed to the deck and we followed him. Elliot set my amp down and found an outlet to plug it in to. It took Nick five minutes to get his drums set up. A girl with blonde hair walked up.
"You guys better do good or else I'll be humiliated for recommending you," The girl said.
"This is my older sister, Kira," Emmett said.
"Hi. Remember to stay away from the alcohol and do good," Kira said smiling.
She have us a thumbs up then walked off with her friends.
"Are we ready to start?" Sean asked.
"Wait, where's James?" Emmett asked.
We looked around but the spot he was standing at seconds ago was now vacant.
"Should we split up to look for him?" Nick asked.
We nodded and made our way into the crowd. After a few minutes the mob became stuffy and hot. I pushed myself out into the open and took some deep breaths. I looked to my left to see James sitting against a shed.
"James! We've been looking all over for you!" I exclaimed.
James looked up in surprise, his face was as pale as a ghost.
"What's wrong?" I asked sitting down next to him.
"I can't do it," he mumbled.
"Can't do what?"
"I can't go out there. I can't perform. What if I mess up? What if everyone. Laughs at me?"
"You won't mess up, you're amazing at piano and plus, I think the people here are too drunk and won't even remember."
James laughed and gave me a hug.
"Thank you," he whispered in my ear.
"It's no problem. Now, are you ready to go out there?" I asked.
"Yes?" He said unsurely.
I rolled my eyes and grabbed his arm. I pulled him through the crowd towards the stage.
"You found him!" Emmett exclaimed.
He had his arm around Brooke's waist as they walked towards us. We walked onto the patio and I waved my arms to get the others attention. They slowly made their way back and into position. Elliot and Brooke stood at the front.
"Good luck," Elliot said.
I smiled at him then turned to James. He looked at me uneasily so I nodded reassuringly. His fingers were shaking as he hit the keys on the keyboard. Sean and I joined in and Nick made small, quiet beats. Emmett started singing getting the full crowds attention. (I probably won't write the songs down cuz I suck at them. If I do it'll just be a line or two. Plus, I don't think u guys really want to read it.) The crowd roared as we finished the last song. We started packing up the instruments as Derek came up.
"You guys were awesome! you totally have to play at another one of my parties!" Derek exclaimed. "Here is your payment."
He handed each of us a twenty dollar bill.
"Thanks!" Emmett said to Derek who walked off to the drink table.
"You were absolutely amazing," Elliot said kissing me on the cheek.
"Thanks," I said giving him a hug.
"You guys were so good!" A voice said.
I turned around to see a man with brown hair and green eyes.
"Hey! You're the girl from the street," the man said.
"And you're the man that gave me a hundred dollars," I recalled.
"Please, call me Zach," the guy said holding out his hand.
"Annabelle," I said shaking it.
"Are you her boyfriend?" Zach asked Elliot who nodded. "Well you're very lucky to be dating someone so pretty and talented."
Elliot looked over to me in confusion.
"He said that you're lucky to be dating me because I'm pretty and talented," I interpreted for him.
Elliot smiled and wrapped his arm around my waist.
"Are you deaf? That's kind of ironic that a musician is dating someone deaf," Zach joked.
"Yeah it kind of is," I laughed.
"Well I've gotta get going but hopefully I'll see you playing at another one of Derek's parties," Zach said walking towards his car.
Elliot grabbed my amp and we walked to where everyone was standing by the street.
"Do we have everything?" Emmett asked.
"Yep!" Nick chirped.
"Well then let's get a move on," Emmett said ushering us into the cars.
"Do you wanna sleep over?" Elliot asked as we sat in the backseat of the car.
"Sure, when we get back to my place I can grab some clothes," I said silently.
"Or you could just wear mine," Elliot suggested.
I laughed and lightly hit his arm.
"What are you two talking about back there?" James asked.
"Nothing, Elliot just asked if I wanted to sleep over," I said.
"We could drop you two off at his place if you want," James offered.
"That's okay, his motorcycle is at my house anyways," I said.
"That was your motorcycle? Sick! You have to give me a ride one day!" James exclaimed.
Elliot held out a fist and James bumped it with his.
"I should probably start learning sign language. They taught us the alphabet in elementary school though," James said spelling his name out. "How do you say 'amazing'?"
Elliot held up his hands by his head then did it again lower.
"Well, we did amazing tonight!" James said using the sign.
We pulled up in front of my house and hopped out.
"See you guys on Monday!" I called as they drove off.
We walked through the front door and into the kitchen where Aunt Cierra was washing dishes.
"Hey kids! How'd it go?" She asked.
"It was great!" I said. "Can I stay the night at Elliot's?"
"Yeah, that's okay. Call me in the morning though," Aunt Cierra said.
"Okay!" I chirped happily.
(Elliot's POV)
I sat on Annabelle's bed as she searched through her closet. I picked up the photo that laid on her dresser.
"I still feel bad about breaking your frame," I said glumly.
"It wasn't your fault, Tyler was the one that punched you," Annabelle said throwing a shirt into her bag.
"I think I have a frame at home that isn't being used. It should fit this," I said putting in Annabelle's bag. "you ready?"
"Yep, let's go!" Annabelle said going down the stairs.
We got outside and I opened the seat to my motorcycle. Annabelle stashed her bag in it then put on the helmet. I started the engine but Annabelle didn't get scared this time. We rode down the street and arrived at my house in minutes. There was no movement as I opened the apartment door. On the kitchen counter was a note.
Elliot,
I have a meeting in a city two hours away tonight so I'm just going to get a hotel room. Emelia is staying the night at Sabrina's house so you'll be home alone.
From mom
"Looks like we're home alone. What do you wanna do?" I asked.
"Go to sleep, it's almost midnight," Annabelle said yawning.
I looked at the clock and realized she was right. We went into my room and she changed into blue pajama shorts and a white tank top. The picture was sticking halfway out of her bag. I grabbed it and looked at it.
"Are you on the left or right?" I asked.
"The left," she answered sitting next to me.
"I know that is is Adrian, your identical twin, but who's that?" I asked pointing to the boy that was making a face.
"My little brother, Andrew," she said smiling.
Something in the background caught my attention. A man was sitting on the ground with his back against a tree reading a book. The man looked exactly like the Zach we met earlier.
"Hey, that looks like Zach," I said pointing to him.
"That is Zach!" Annabelle exclaimed in surprise. "Is he stalking me?"
"What did he mean by the girl on the street?" I asked.
"The second day I moved here I was playing my guitar on the street, the day I stayed the night here. And he came during the first song and stayed until the end," Annabelle explained.
"Do you think he was the one following you on your way home?" I asked.
"I don't know but I'm scared," Annabelle admitted.
"Don't worry, I'll always protect you," I said.
She cuddled into my arms and we drifted off into sleep.
I awoke up to the smell of strawberries. I opened my eyes to see my face pressed into Annabelle's hair. I smiled and pulled away only to be greeted by dry air. I coughed and my eyes stung. The room was full of black smoke. I jumped to my feet and grabbed the handel to the door. The metal burned my hand and I cried out in pain. I grabbed a nearby t-shirt and used that to open the door. The living room was engulfed in flames and it was making its way to the kitchen. I ran to Annabelle's side and shook her but she didn't wake up. Why does she have to be such a heavy sleeper? I'm pretty sure I was making small whining noises from the vibration in my throat. Annabelle started coughing and tears fell from her eyes.
"Elliot!" She cried.
"It's okay, I'm right here," I said taking her hand.
"W-What's going on?" She asked.
"There's a fire. We have to go. Now," I said.
We ran to the living room and Annabelle clung to my arm in fear. I tried to open the window but it's been stuck for as long as I could remember. I picked up a chair to break it open but Annabelle stopped me.
"Don't break it there's no fire escape there, it's too high for us to jump, and the air will only feed the fire," Annabelle said.
I thought for a moment before dropping the chair. I grabbed a hand towel then ran to the door. I tried to open it but the wood expanded from the heat. I threw my body against the door but nothing happened. I turned to see Annabelle sitting on the ground crying. I ran to her side and wiped the tears from her face.
"I'm hot Elliot," Annabelle cried. "I'm scared!"
"There's no need to be scared. I can get us out of this. Like I said yesterday I'll always protect you," I said kissing her.
I stood up and looked at the door. I ran as fast as I could and ran into it. I did it again but nothing worked. I started kicking the door until I felt a large crash behind me. Annabelle was laying on the ground with large pieces of the ceiling around her. I ran over and wrapped her in my arms. Blood was coming from her forehead so I took off my shirt and pressed it against the wound. I shook her limp body but nothing happened. My hand brushed against her neck and something burned me. I looked to see her locket that was starting to make a mark on her neck. I took it off and stuffed it in my pocket. I pulled her body closer to me and rested my head on hers. Tears rolled down my face and fell onto her cheek.
"Help!" I screamed. "Help me! Please! Someone help!"
I continued screaming until my throat burned and everything turned black.
O.o
Sorry if there's more grammar/spelling errors. I got 2 1/2 hours of sleep and can't concentrate on anything. I was so confused in school.