“Will you stop?”

 

Hea Jung’s head snapped up. The girl in the desk next to hers was glaring at her, her eyes narrowed into slits, reminding Hea Jung of a grumpy cat.

 

“What?”

 

“The drumming on the table. The fingers.” The girl hissed at her, still glaring at her furiously with annoyance.

 

“Oh.” Hea Jung looked down at her fingers, which were running along the edge of her desk, making a light tapping noise against the old wood. She stopped. “Sorry.”

 

The other girl made a sort of haughty huffing sound before turning back to the front of the room, where the teacher continued to drone on about the next marketing assignment due for the next week.

 

The bell rang.

 

Hea Jung jumped up, grabbing her backpack.

 

Thank God it’s over.

 

She felt a small smile on her lips as she finally got to her locker, her fingers spinning the dial on the lock. Three times around before she reached the number six, one full counterclockwise turn before reaching forty-six, and finally, spinning it halfway back to thirty. She carelessly threw in her business and law textbooks on the second shelf, switching them for the glossy black rectangular case sitting on the first shelf.

 

She shut her locker with a satisfying slam as she began to walk down the hall, still smiling. Her pace seemed to have quickened as she continued walking to her next class, her footsteps a bit lighter, her feet no longer dragging on the ground heavily.

 

She reached the music room. Naturally, she sat down in her normal seat, the first one in the first row, on the right hand side of the conductor.

 

The bell rang, and other students filed in quickly, pulling out their instrument cases from shelves, biting reeds, and yanking at black neck straps as they snapped open their cases, quickly setting up their instruments before the professor came in.

 

Hea Jung quickly opened her own case as well, feeling her hands run over and grasp the thin silver metal, putting on the mouthpiece, then connecting the body and the joint. She rolled her fingers gently on the keys, enjoying the feeling of the new padded foam she had gotten under her keys over the spring break.

 

“I want a concert B flat now, kids.”

 

Hea Jung lifted her own flute to her lips, feeling the way the metal rested just below her bottom lip.

 

In several weeks…  I’ll know whether I got into Julliard or not.

 

She blew softly into her flute, knowing the other members of her section would follow and tune to her, her perfect pitch guiding them to a full sound.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The bell rang.

 

Hea Jung began to gently pry apart her set-up flute, wiping it down with a soft cloth before returning it back to her case.

 

“Have a good day, everyone, and Miss Kim, I need to talk to you.”

 

Hea Jung looked up. “Who, me?”

 

“Yes, you, Hea Jung. You have lunch next period, am I correct?”

 

“Yes, third lunch.” She nodded.

 

The students began to file out of the room noisily. A chorus of “Bye prof!”s rang out before the room was finally cleared out.  

 

“Um, so…. What was it you wanted to talk to me about?”

 

“Sit down, Hea Jung.”

 

She sat back down in the chair.

 

“Hea Jung, you have applied for music, right?”

 

She looked down at her hands. “Well… Yes. I’ve applied for Julliard for piano and flute….”

 

He raised his eyebrows. “I know that. Anything else?”

 

She bit her lip. “And three other business schools.”

 

“You’re not doing music?”

 

“I…” She shook her head. “My parents won’t let me. I only auditioned for Julliard to see if I got in.”

 

“Hea Jung…” He sighed. “You have a brilliant future in music. Everyone can see it, it’s only your parents who can’t.”

 

She stayed silent.

 

“Anyway, did you check your mail yet?”

 

“My mail?” She shook her head. “No….No, Sir, I haven’t.”

 

He stood up and opened one of the shelves, pulling out a large white envelope with a red seal stamped on the flap. “Good for you then. I waited until I could see you to open this letter.”

 

Hea Jung immediately recognized the seal’s design to be from Julliard and she trembled, sitting on the edge of her seat, her fingers clenching at the pleats on her uniform skirt.

 

The professor broke the seal swiftly, and reaching in the envelope, he pulled out the letter and began to read. After a minute, he looked back up at Hea Jung.

 

“It’s a re-audition for piano. You made it to the second round.”

 

“I….did?” Hea Jung felt her fingers let go of her skirt, now crinkled, sliding back into her lap. “I really did.” She sighed, an uncontainable smile spreading across her features.

 

“I’m so proud of you.” He said, grinning as well. “What are you planning for your second audition piece?”

 

“I don’t know.” She shook her head slowly. “Maybe… Rachmaninoff?”

 

He nodded approvingly. “I’ll need you in room 146 every third period and after school until your re-audition date, which is May tenth, in several weeks.”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

What is my mom going to think?

HOLA ITS BEEN A WHILE (: 

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