Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 60487 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 302(@200wpm)___ 242(@250wpm)___ 202(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60487 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 302(@200wpm)___ 242(@250wpm)___ 202(@300wpm)
There were a few sorry sighs at this, some nods of understanding, and one merciless smirk—
Carl straightened. Why was Grayson here? He should be feeling sorry for himself somewhere soft. Not dressed in all of Carl’s flannel that he must have found in Jason’s closet. Grayson coughed and lounged against the wall next to Sage, raising his brows for Carl to please, continue. He even motioned a zipper across his mouth, a reminder of his promise not to say a word.
Carl gulped again, and cleared his throat. “My helper Leo will be passing out gummy pianos. On the back of each is a number. At the end of this speech, I’ll use my phone to draw a winner. Leo?”
Leo stepped forward and held up a clear plastic violin filled with lollies. Not a piano, but music-themed.
“Sweet treats for all the studying I’m sure you’re doing.”
He and Leo received a laugh from the teachers and a tremendous cheer from the sweet-starved kids. The sound rushed around him, and . . . this is what he’d meant about Jason being addictive. It felt nice—if also nerve-wrecking.
“There were many things I could have talked to you about today—fascinating musical trivia, accounts of my trips performing abroad, the technical ins and outs of being a professional pianist”—he jerked his gaze away from where it strayed to Grayson’s sick-yet-amused expression—“But I decided to talk about something that is important for everyone sitting here today, no matter how young or old you are: Courage and facing adversity.
“My journey to mastering music—and any journey you might undertake—is marked by countless challenges, feelings of doubt, and Sisyphean obstacles. These are things we all have to face with determination, strength, and bravery.”
Carl had imagined, upon looking at all of Jason’s awards, what fortitude it must have taken to get to where he was, and he hoped he was hitting the spot as he shared these thoughts with the kids. “It’s fun to dream of mastering the great works of composers and moving audiences with the magic of music, but the reality—the road to that emerald city—means aching fingers, stumbling over keys, repeating pieces for hours. It also means battling self-doubt, and refusing to let other people’s negative comments and unimpressed frowns get to you. Each step is a struggle, but the only way to reach your dream is to push on.”
Carl’s gaze had once again wandered towards Grayson. This time, though, Grayson wasn’t amused. Those dark eyes were back to boring into Carl.
Carl jerked his head towards the kids and continued. Facing fears head-on; the necessity of courage in our lives. “Even if it’s uncomfortable, even if it feels like the world is against you. Believe in yourself. Trust in yourself. You may not reach your destination, but your heart will only feel at peace if you’ve taken all the steps you can.”
Carl wrapped up his speech to ear-splitting applause that only grew louder after he drew a winner for the violin-case of sweets.
Teachers and parents flocked to him afterwards, thanking him for coming, and it was all a massive head rush. Seventy percent of him was happy to bathe in the attention. The other thirty percent niggled—and niggled harder when one of the witches asked a technical question about whether learning on a keyboard is easier than an actual piano.
Before the question was fully formed, Carl made eye-contact with Sage, waved, and wrangled his way out of the crowd to where she was patting Leo’s head proudly.
“Leo,” Carl said, “I’ve heard at least three kids say you’re awesome!”
Leo flushed, and his mum cheered.
“Come round to the bakery for cupcakes anytime,” she told Carl, and to Leo, “Enjoy the rest of school, hun, come straight home after.”
Leo waved her off and swivelled around, scanning the crowd like Carl. The witches were leaving, waving to their kids—the two bullying boys who’d tried stealing his bike and a girl with red plaits. The principal asked the kids to start stacking chairs, and Leo gripped Carl’s sleeve and made him promise to not leave him alone with them.
“I know you just talked about courage, but I don’t have any yet.”
Carl patted Leo’s shoulder. “I’ll be your shield.”
“You’re the bravest ever.”
Carl thought about how he couldn’t talk to his real mum about knowing the truth; thought about how he’d run away from his ex because he couldn’t face telling him it hurt too much to be his best man; thought about how he play-acted Jason to avoid feeling like a dead end. He smiled sadly and shook his head. He wondered if this was the reason Grayson had stared at him so hard during his speech. Courage. What a topic to choose.
“Don’t look up to me too hard, Leo. I’m all talk.”
Leo didn’t hear him. He was pointing across the hall to where Grayson coughed into his elbow while being cornered by a half-dozen cooing women.