“Would you get that camera out of my face, Cal?” My best friend Calvin Reid had been working on a so called film program scholarship for the past two months, and I was apparently the star of this video. We both had a dream of getting a letter from Berklee College of music that says, “Zoey Cruz (or Calvin Reid), we are delighted to say that you have been accepted into Berklee college of music.” He had the guts to send in this video to Berklee once it was done. When it comes to me auditioning, I’m a coward.



“Sorry, I have a deadline to meet, and you, Ms. Zoey Cruz, are the star.” That just annoyed me more. I was desperate to find out what this video was about. Actors know what they’re acting for, but I had no idea.



“What is this video about anyway, Mr. Calvin Reid?” Cal almost got lost in her ice blue eyes. What Zoey had never figured out, is that he was deeply in love with her. He had been ever since that first time they met, and he remembers that day perfectly. It had been late in the year in 7th grade, and he was sitting in his 1st block, which he always dreaded, his English teacher hated him. Maybe it was because of his terrible grammar on paper, who knows? On this day, a beautiful girl walked into the classroom, she had dark brown hair, a dark complexion, but she had ice blue eyes that didn’t match a thing. The teacher, Mr. Spencer, sat Zoey Cruz in the seat behind Cal. He turned around and said hi as soon as she sat down. Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love. All of the sudden it’s senior year and his best friend Zoey is waiting for a response as to why he’s been recording her for the past two months.



“Calvin Reid! God, what is on your mind? You’ve been going incoherent all day!” Zoey always acts as if she’s mad at Cal. But the truth is, he’s all she has anymore. She had been popular since the first week of moving to Manhattan, New York, but at the beginning of senior year, people got tired of her, prettier people came along, people moved on. The only person that truly stayed with her was Cal. He should be popular himself, he has shaggy brown hair, a cute face, and he dresses really nice. We both got hired on at the music store that my brother Skylar owns. This store is my dream job, working with all of this music around me. On my breaks I practice my piano, guitar, and singing. Doing all of this while Cal records me with his moronic camera. So everyday after school Cal and I would walk to Sky’s Music Store, as my brother so unoriginally named it.







“So how much money do you have saved up by now, Zoey?” My brother came up to me when I came through the door. I was a little late, but Skylar always lets me off the hook since I have to walk 5 blocks from school. Skylar has known that since he gave me this job when I turned 14 that I have been saving the money up for college.



“well, I get paid 200 a week and I’ve been working for 156 weeks, so that’s around 31200, but I’ve spend some of it. So I’d say around 28,000-ish.” Sky started laughing.



“Ha-ha, an amazing singer and an amazing mathematician!” Sky has given me trouble for being good at math since I was little, but maybe that’s because I could add 2+2 before he could.

“Just let me do my job, Sky.” But he saw, I couldn’t hide my smile. So he kept on bugging me all day about how smart I was. Finally, it was break time. I got my lunch, and sat down on the guitar bench. I started playing and singing Heartless by The Fray. This had been the first song I learned to play on the guitar. Soon, my brother was in the room, picking up notes on the piano by ear. After he came in, Cal soon followed with his annoying video camera. But at the moment, I don’t even care.



“In the night I hear ‘em talk, the coldest story ever told. Somewhere far along this road he lost his heart to a woman so heartless…” As I finished up the song, I heard Cal clapping. Now he was shouting.



“Encore! Encore! Encore! Zoey, have I ever told you that you’re absolutely amazing at everything you do?”



“Yeah Cal, once or twice.”



“Calvin Reid, have I ever told you that you’re the most annoying kid I know and that you should get back to work so I can talk to my sister?” Sky can be a bit pushy when he feels like it, but it’s funny when he’s pushy to Cal, because cal is a pushover.



“No, but you just did…so I guess I’ll leave now…” When the door closed Sky played a few chords on the piano and then turned to me.



“Zoe, are you gonna audition for Berklee?” He was the main person that wanted me to go after my dream.



“Mom and dad…”



“Zoey, who cares what mom and dad will say? Berklee has been your dream since you were little. Trust me, I remember. All I heard was “Bubby, do you think I’ll make it?” I always told you that you would, and I never lied. Not once. I will guarantee you that you’d make it. All you have to do is reach out and grab your dream, because it’s right in front of you.”



“God Sky, why do you have to be so deep about everything?”



“Ha-ha, that, my little sister, will remain a secret!”



“Well, big brother, I think we should get back to work before Cal wrecks havoc on your store. He’s probably dropping every CD that touches his hands.” Cal is not the most coordinated person you will ever come across in your life. He falls about 20 times everyday (no exaggeration) and drops about everything that touches his hands.



“Anything he breaks he buys!” Sky loves his store, and everything in it. But he loves to pick on Cal more than anything. I love the sound of my 24 year old brother bickering with my 18 year old best friend. It’s the funniest sound in the world.



“Sky, I swear to God I didn’t break anything!” MY brother was like a bully to him. Finally I decided to go break it up before Sky picked Cal up and shook him to get his lunch money out of his pockets.



“Skylar Cruz, let the kid go! He didn’t break any Cd’s. I checked.” I saw a smile break out on Cal’s face. He started to run over to me, but he went back to Sky and whispered something in his ear. “You didn’t tell her anything about what I’m doing with the video, did you?” Cal asked Sky.



“Nah, man, I’m not going to tell her. But you better send that thing in soon. You’re about to reach the deadline. I looked online and the deadline is in a few months. I’m not going to tell her. But you better send that thing in soon. You’re about to reach the deadline. I looked online and the deadline is in a few months. I’m going to give you all of Zoey’s information soon so you can do her application. Can you believe it? I looked on her computer documents and I found the essay and application she did a few months back just because she felt like it. She wasn’t just messing around on it either. It’s really good.”



“I know, but don’t worry, the video is almost done. Then I just have to edit it. And thank god! I’ve known Zoey for years, but I have no idea what she would write on a college application, so I was terrified about trying to write that.”



“Good, I’ve always wanted you all to get your dream. Did you get some good footage of her?”



“Excellent footage. She always sounds amazing, though. I think I’ll make it in too for film scoring and editing.”



“So cal, when you going to tell the girl?”



“Tell her what?”



“That you LOVE her. I’m not gonna lie, I’ve known since the first time I met you, kid.”



“Uh-huh, well if you tell her, you’re dead.”



“Ohh, I’m shaking with terror, Calvin.” But he said this while smiling, Cal knew both of his secrets were safe.



“Hey Cal, what was that about?” Zoey had been watching from afar.



“Nothing, just some manly bonding!”



“Ha-ha! Okay Cal, we’ll go with that. Hey, when our shift is over do you want to go grab something to eat?”



“Sure, that sounds great.” Cal said while smiling.