"Percy!"

"Percy, wake up!"

"Percy! Come on. We have to get to school!"

I tried to open my eyes. I really did. But when they wouldn't open, I concluded that the yelling was from a dream and slipped back into a peaceful slumber, the shouts becoming blurred background noise.

But then I was jarred awake when I fell on the floor. Or more like pushed off the bed. I was tangled in the blankets as I sleepily opened my eyes. I saw Annabeth walk over to me and pull the blankets off me. I rolled as the blankets were taken. The chilliness of the morning hit me when I left the warm embrace of the cloth.

"Percy, I mean it. Get up! We have to leave in the next five minutes, or I'm going to be late for Architecture class!" she pulled me up, and I tried to stay on my feet, but my legs wouldn't work. I ended up leaning on Annabeth as I struggled to stand. She huffed as I stood, and I wiped the sleep from my eyes.

I hadn't changed, so really the only thing I needed was to make sure I had my keys and phone. After knowing their location was safely in my hoodie pocket, I followed Annabeth out of her room. As I got to the stairs, I gulped. With how unsteady I was, it was a given that I would faceplant. Seeing my apprehension, Annabeth grabbed my hand and pulled me down the stairs. I stumbled over my feet but somehow didn't fall.

She let go and ran into the kitchen while I made my way out of the house. Before I got to the front door, I heard her shout, "Catch!"

I turned, and in my confusion and slow cognitive action, I felt something hit me in the forehead. Dazed, I looked down at my feet where the missile had landed and picked it up. It took me a second to notice it was the donuts Annabeth had bought last night at the convenience store. Then I felt her grab my hand and pull me out the door.

We piled into the car, and I ate the donuts on the way. Annabeth said she had eaten long before I had woken up, so she didn't take any that I offered. When we got to school, Annabeth got out of the car and said goodbye with the typical nickname before leaving me to walk into school by myself.

The first time since I woke up, I had a coherent thought. Shit, today's the preliminaries.

The day I figured out I passed the audition stage, I had told my mom, and she had agreed to come. Since the competitors were able a total of four plus-ones for family, I had given mine to my mom, Annabeth and Rachel. Since I didn't know what to do with the last one, I gave it to Annabeth to invite whoever.

I took a second to look over myself. My standard black hoodie, black jeans, and black and white converse. My normal attire. The only problem was that I hadn't been able to take a shower this morning. I chewed my lip and looked at the time. 7:03 am, I had around an hour till the first period started. It could take me around 15 minutes to get to my house, and I could take a quick shower. I nodded to myself and did a 180.

I walked swiftly to my house, turning corners and walking down blocks. When I got home, I quickly opened the door and ran into the restroom, locking the door behind me. I stripped down and turned on the shower. Since I hadn't been beaten up at all the past month, I didn't have any bandages except for the ones on my wrist. I quickly unwrapped them and set the bandages on the counter.

I jumped into the shower and quickly washed my body and hair. Jumping out of the shower, I wrapped a towel around my waist and ran to my room after rewrapping my right wrist. I quickly threw on a clean pair of underwear and skinny black jeans. Then shifting through my shirts, I put on a black long sleeve. I ran back to the restroom and pulled on my black hoodie. After double-checking the pockets for my phone and keys, I walked out of the house towards the school.

I looked at the time when I arrived, the passing period bell had already rung, and I had around a minute to get to class. Sprinting through the hallways, I opened my locker, got my math notebook, and ran to class. Stepping in right as the bell rang, I hurried to my seat.

I couldn't focus on any of my classes and ended up going through the motions. Arrive in class, go to the locker, get the correct book, go to class, repeat. However, when I got to Music class, everything was hectic.

Once the bell rang, Mrs. Fin immediately started sounding off instructions.

"Ok class, today is the preliminaries. Over the past few weeks, the ones who made it past the auditions have been learning songs. Normally we'd go by period, but one of the competitors didn't put one down. Also, they want to remain anonymous by placing a fake name, so every period, I have repeated the number order," she started naming kids in this period off and their numbers. But when she came to my name, I noticed my number was completely different from the others. The ones in this period were numbers like 78 or 83, but mine was 102. I figured they put me last since they didn't know what period I was.

"Ok, now that everyone knows their number, we are going to do one last practice session with the song you chose. Then we are going to head to the auditorium to show you how to act during the competition." With that, everyone headed for their reserved instrument. I got my hands on Riptide and sat down. I played my song softly as I went through the motions. I kept my eyes closed as I played the guitar, hearing the music in my mind and fingers.

I heard a small alarm go off, and Mrs.Fin stood up, shut it off, and started yelling instructions again. "Please place your instruments where you found them. At the competition, they will have your name on a sticky note in the waiting room. Once you place your instrument down, please follow me to the auditorium. Oh, also, grab your items; we won't be returning" she then opened the door and walked out, followed by the trickle of students.

I waited for the rush to be over and placed Riptide down softly as I followed the kids out of the classroom. When we walked into the auditorium, I noticed banners surrounding the outside, wishing the competitors good luck. Inside, the vast theater room was recently cleaned. The stage had a pedestal and a piano, both on opposite sides of the stage. A foldable chair sat in the center facing the audience. There was a stand off to the right of the chair for music. I immediately started feeling the anxiety and nervousness knot my stomach.

"The waiting room is in those double doors," Mrs.Fin pointed towards the opposite side of the room at two doors."There is a speaker inside that lets you hear everything that is being said inside the auditorium. Also, in the room is a TV that will display the number of the contestant on stage or needs to be on stage. When it's your turn, you will either bring your instrument with you or use the piano. You will walk from the waiting room, up those stairs near the pedestal where I will be announcing you and your song, and sit down center stage. If you are playing the piano, stagehands will bring the piano center stage and move the chair and stand out of the way. When your song is done, bow and then head off in the opposite direction, you entered and head into these double doors. Inside will be snacks for you. Any questions?" When no one answered, she nodded and proceeded to show us the process in real-time.

She walked the class through the waiting room, then up to the stage, had us pretend bow, and then showed us the finished-waiting room. Right as she finished explaining a few tips for bows and curtsies, the bell rang. I ran out of the auditorium and into the locker room.

PE was brutal since all I could think about was stressing about the competition. We had to run laps and then do the regular exhausting workouts of push-ups, sit-ups, jumping jacks, and other torturous exercises. Once the teacher said dismissed, I was running with newfound energy into the locker room. I changed quickly in the stall and ran to my locker. I grabbed out my mask and bandana, stuffing them in the pocket with my phone.

I walked swiftly to the library and looked at my phone. I had a few messages from mom, all of them telling me about how far away and how excited she was to watch me play. I grinned uneasily at the screen as I felt the pressure of the preliminaries hit me like a brick.

When I got to the library, I entered quickly and sat down in front of Annabeth and Rachel, who were talking about some kind of book series. I put my head in my hands as I tried to calm down.

"Hey Rusticitas, what's wrong?" my heart warmed at the nickname, but I still felt the uneasiness of the whole situation.

"He's nervous, can't you tell?" I could almost feel Rachel roll her eyes. "Hey, Percy, it'll be ok. You're great at playing and if what Annabeth said about those practices when you were sleep-deprived, I don't think anyone could beat you! I mean, if you sounded that good while half your brain was asleep, imagine how good you sound after Annabeth forced a whole 8 hours into you!" I smiled weakly as I lifted my head from my hands.

"Thanks, Rachel, but I don't know what if I'm just wasting peoples' time and your guys' brainpower. I mean, you helped me get over playing in front of a crowd, for the most part, and you guys helped me keep my identity a secret" I rubbed the back of my neck and tried to calm my racing heart.

"Listen, Perce. You can never waste my brainpower, Rachel maybe, she doesn't have a lot to begin with" Annabeth was interrupted with a shove and a hey! From Rachel," but listen, you can't waste people's time when they listen to you play because they'll want to hear you play more! So don't worry about us or that audience. We're all doing this because we want to! You just have to do your best, and we'll all be proud and happy for you."

I looked up at her and Rachel. I felt incredibly grateful to have these guys as my friends, and I put on a brave face. "Thanks, guys, um, does anyone remember what time I'm supposed to be at the auditorium?"

Annabeth's face fell. "Shit, I forgot! You need to be there a few minutes after the bell rings! How long have we been sitting here?"

"Uhh, around fifteen minutes," Rachel looked at her phone.

"Shit, ok, um, no worries, school ended around 5 minutes ago, Percy get that mask and bandana on and get to the auditorium. Rachel and I will get your mom there. Go!"

I nodded and stood. I pulled my hood back and pulled the bandana over my face as I walked out of the library. I placed my mask over my eyes and tied it in the back. Then I pulled my hood up and ran towards the auditorium. There was a speaker announcement as I ran that basically told me to hurry up.

I slid into the auditorium and signed in. Mrs.Fin clapped her hands together happily as I finished.

"Good, that's everyone, Ky if you would stand up there on stage at the end of the line, that would be great" I followed her instructions and stood at the end. I watched as she handed out papers to each kid. When she got to me, I noticed the bold, large numbers of 102 on it.

"Ok, everyone, place this on your front and then file into the waiting room. If numbers 1, 2, and 3 could begin warming up, that would be great. Also, to make sure everything is set up, please make sure your reserved instrument is in the waiting room." I ran into the waiting room as the kids started filing in. I quickly pinpointed Riptide on the back wall and took it down. Then I rushed out of the room, not too keen to be in a room full of a hundred kids.

I sat outside the waiting room and strummed Riptide a bit. I watched as early birds came and settled into their designated seats. I saw my mom, Annabeth Rachel, and another girl come into the auditorium. I stood up and walked over, not caring if I was allowed to or not.

"Hey, Ky! Good to see you. It looks like you're ready for your performance," Rachel started. I didn't know how she thought I looked ready, but I hugged her anyway.

"Oh, I'm so glad Annabeth managed to convince you to do this! I can't wait!" My mom started babbling, and I hugged her. She kissed the side of my head when I pulled away and walked away, telling me good luck to find her seat.

"Hey, I listen to you after school, the name's Piper if you didn't know" Piper stuck her hand out, and I shook it. "I came to tease Annabeth, so I have no idea if the kids' performances will be good. But good luck!" She released my hand and waved, following my mom down to their seats.

Rachel looked between us and then walked away, wishing me luck.

"Alright, Percy, you've got this, no problem. This is merely a small step in the road. The only thing I'm worried about is when you're walking down those stairs," Annabeth teases as she punches my shoulder lightly. I huffed playfully.

"I'll try my best not to trip on nothing," I promised as more people started coming in. "Um, I've got to get into the waiting room; it'll start soon."

Annabeth nodded. "Alright," unexpectedly, she hugged me and then let go. Turning around, she shouted, "Break a leg," then stopped walking. "That was a figurative sentence, don't actually break a leg, Rusticitas!" she amended. Then she disappeared down the aisle towards the other three in her party.

I walked carefully towards the waiting room, weaving in and out of the people entering the auditorium. Arriving at the room, I quickly entered and searched for a seat that wouldn't draw attention. Seeing a corner empty, I slipped through the many kids and walked towards the space. Placing Riptide on my lap, I sat criss-cross applesauce on the floor and listened to a few of the contestants tuning and warming up their instruments.

I closed my eyes and quietly hummed the song I was playing in my head. Then the speaker started with the announcements.

"Welcome families and friends to the annual Music Competition! We have a total of 102 students competing in this year's competition. Around a month ago, we held auditions to weed out around half of the contenders. The contestants will be coming up by period, but please be respectful of each student that comes up to play.

There's another part of this competition. When you walked in, you were given a piece of paper with a number sign and a pencil. When watching the competition, please write your favorite contender's number on the slip of paper. Then fold it and give it to a helper after the competition. We have judges, but their votes are worth a bit more than yours!

With that, let's start the competition with number 1, Alice Cortez, with her clarinet playing This Is Halloween from the movie The Nightmare Before Christmas.

A girl with brown hair pulled into a braid walked out of the waiting room once Mrs.Fin said her number. There were a few minutes of silence until the clarinet started. I kind of zoned out after number two. I knew it would be a while until my number, so I just stared off in space. Once the first few went out, people started talking to each other. Their nerves probably make them all giddy and talkative.

I yawned, today had been stressful, and the eight hours of sleep were not cutting it. I yawned and laid my head against the wall; closing my eyes, I decided to take a short nap. I'm sure someone would wake me up if I didn't get up first.

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Someone was shaking me. I groggily opened my eyes to see my teacher, Mrs.Fin, in front of me.

"Ky! Ky! It's your turn, come on now! The audience is waiting!" she sounded stressed. I wondered how long it took her to wake me up.

I cursed my paranoia for my sleep deprivation and stood, holding Riptide.

"Ok, I'm going to go reannounce you. Wait here till you hear your number" she rushed out the waiting room door, and I shook my head to clear it.

Come on, Percy, get it together. I strummed Riptide a bit as I heard my number. I quickly made sure my mask, bandana, and hood were in place as I walked out.

"-Ky, who will be playing In The End by Linkin Park" I heard her finish as I focused on hurrying up the stairs without falling on my face.

Good thing, I made it up the stairs without making a fool of myself.

Bad thing, in my relief, I tripped and fell.

Good thing I managed to catch myself before I fell flat on my face.

Bad thing, the whole audience saw it.

Ok, calm down, Percy, it's fine, you've got this, no problem, walk it off. But my nerves were even more jarred. I made it to the chair and almost missed while sitting down. My hands were all shaky, and I was mildly freaking out; it was quiet. Too quiet. I'm sure the whole audience could hear my ragged breathing and my heart that was not helping at all. I took a deep breath. It didn't do anything. I distinctly remembered the word carved into my wrist, and I placed Riptide on my lap.

WEAK, why couldn't I do anything? Why couldn't I just play this song and get off stage without an issue? What is wrong with me?

"You got this Rusticitas!"

I froze.

I felt a bit of confidence in the break of silence. My heart warmed when I recognized the nickname, and I felt more relaxed as I held Riptide. I took a deep breath, ok, no worries, like Annabeth said, I've got this, just a short two-minute song.

Yea, in front of probably over a hundred people.

Shut up. It doesn't matter, just think, it's just Annabeth, Mom, Rachel, and Piper. The rest of the friend group is here, that's all, it's no problem. You've got at least eight hours more sleep on your past performances; this should be a piece of cake—another deep breath.

I placed my fingers on the strings. I wasn't using a chip this time. I closed my eyes. Feeling the music and seeing it in my mind's eye, I began the song. My hands moving in sync with how it sounded in my head. I hummed quietly where the words would go. I felt my heart swell as I played a hard part perfectly, making a small smile play on my lips. I continued playing and humming along. When I finished, I let my hum dim out quietly as the guitar quieted. Then I opened my eyes and stood up. The entire auditorium was quiet, and I winced as I bowed.

Then the cheering started. I walked off the stage as the audience clapped. I wasn't sure why the audience waited till after my bow. They probably did the same during the other contestants.

Remember when Annabeth told me to break a leg? Well, she said figuratively, but my feet didn't listen. I tripped as I walked down the stairs, and since there was no handrail, I fell over myself and face planted into the floor.

Some of the audience laughed as I pushed myself up. Riptide was thankfully off to the side, so I didn't smash it, but my ankle didn't like what I was trying to do, which was stand. I winced as I leaned on my left leg and limped over to Riptide. I hobbled over the finished-waiting room and entered. I placed Riptide on the rack in the back of the room and walked to the refreshment table.

Thankfully, there was a teacher in the room, so not everything was taken. I grabbed a water bottle and a cookie. Sitting down, I noticed some kid glaring at me, but I could care less. Honestly, the only thing that mattered right now was the cookie I was eating. It made all my ankle pain go away if that was possible.