Keeping in Line

by Courtney Brandt

  “Uh, J.D.’s not here either,” said Steve.

  Moments later, everyone stopped drumming as Mr. Izzo got on the bus. He cleared his throat and said, “Has anyone seen J.D., Lance, Scott or Adam?”

  Everyone shook their head and turned their heads to Bronwyn. She volunteered, “Sorry, I have no idea where they are.”

  Her response was obviously not the answer Mr. Izzo was looking for. The band director looked at his watch, then addressed the percussionists, “I hate to do this, guys, but we have to leave without them. If you hear from them, please let me know.”

  Bronwyn’s heart dropped to the bottom of her stomach. Without even realizing it, she turned and looked at Tony. Her fellow sophomore looked as if someone had punched him in the stomach. Unless the missing quartet showed up at the game, they had both realized that they would be the only snares marching the show. As the bus pulled away from the school, Mark’s cell phone rang. He scrambled to find it and obviously recognized the caller. The bus was instantly quiet, intently listening to Mark’s half of the conversation.

  “Hello?”

  “No shit dude – is everyone okay?

  “Yeah, we will.”

  “Who?”

  “Yeah, she’s here.”

  Mark pointed at Bronwyn and said, “It’s J.D. He wants to talk to you.”

  Bronwyn nervously answered, “Hello?”

  J.D.’s voice responded tersely, “B, we’re not going to make it to the game.”

  “What happened?”

  “Car accident—”

  “Is everyone okay?!”

  “Yeah, we’re all fine, but there’s no way we’re going to be able to get to the game tonight. So, you’re going to have to lead the Line.”

  Bronwyn squeaked, “Me?”

  “Yes. Tony’s too new and I won’t let anyone but someone I trust to do it. If anyone gives you any crap, just tell them to call me.”

  “And you’re sure Henry’s not going to make it?”

  “Yes.”

  There was no time to think. She scanned her brain for the answer J.D. wanted to hear, “I’ll do my best.”

  “You’d better. Remember this isn’t a night off. We have competitions coming up. I have to go.”

  Bronwyn heard a dial tone in her ear. She slowly closed the phone, realizing that everyone’s eyes were on her. She stood up on the bus, took a deep breath and spoke clearly, “J.D., Lance, Adam, and Scott have been in a car accident. Everyone is okay, but they will not be able to make the game tonight. J.D. has asked that in his and Henry’s absence that I lead the Line.”

  Everyone started immediately talking.

  Bronwyn put her fingers to her mouth and whistled. Loudly. Everyone stopped their conversations. She continued, “It’s going to take all of us tonight. We’re not exactly the most popular section of the band right now, so we need to stick together. I expect you will give me the same respect and courtesy that you give both J.D. and Henry.”

  There was silence.

  Jared was the first to comment, “You got it, B.”

  Ben said, “No worries.”

  Pete added, “We’ll do it.”

  Not bothering to wait for the other confirmations, Bronwyn looked over at Tony and stated, “You. We’re going to need to practice for the rest of the ride.”

  Tony nodded mutely.

  The ride flew by and Bronwyn didn’t even have time to think about being nervous or leading the Line. She was concentrating all her energy on getting Tony ready to march the show and trying to will some of her confidence to him. Unfortunately, Tony kept messing up a lick from the opener. Repeatedly. He finally threw his sticks down in frustration and yelled, “I can’t do this! Can we please just water it down?”

  Bronwyn gritted her teeth, collected his drum sticks, and said forcefully, “No, we are going to play the part as written. Let’s show the Brass what a bunch of sophomores can do. You can do this. I’ve seen you do it a million times.”

  This was an out and out lie, but Bronwyn didn’t think stretching the truth would hurt that much. As they pulled up to the opposing high school, Bronwyn nervously pulled on her uniform and willed her nervous feelings away. She could do this. J.D. had chosen her, and she wasn’t going to let him down. As she got off the bus, Jared and Andy handed her their Lieutenant braids which they had fashioned into a large awkward plait. The bass Lieutenant said, “It’s not much.”

  Bronwyn grinned and accepted the ‘gift’ graciously, “Thanks, guys. I know either one of you would probably be better at this.”

  Andy said, “I have another year and plenty of time to be Captain.”

  Jared replied, “Yeah, 5th bass leading warm ups? I think not.”

  She took a deep breath and approached Mr. Izzo, who was talking to Drew and Samantha, “Hey.”

  They all looked at her strangely. Bronwyn suddenly wished she were a little bit taller, but squared her shoulders and announced, “J.D. has named me de facto Captain for tonight. I just want to let everyone know the Line won’t let you down.”

  Samantha asked skeptically, “You’re marching two out of six snares? One of whom just joined the section and your Instructor isn’t around?”

  Bronwyn said plainly, “Yes.”

  Mr. Izzo thought a moment and said, “You know, we can just have the set player in the Pit keep time.”

  “No!” Bronwyn exclaimed.

  The drum majors and band director looked strangely in her direction. Bronwyn continued in a more civilized tone, “I mean, it’s under control. We’re ready. I can handle this.”

  “You’ll do fine,” said Drew.

  With Drew’s encouragement, Bronwyn lit up. They watched her walk away. The senior drum major had a smile on his face as he watched her brave figure retreat.

  At the equipment truck, Bronwyn pulled out Stewie and zipped her carrier under her uniform. She figured she should be more nervous, but all her emotions went away when she put on her drum. She called out to the Battery, “You know the drill, guys. Let’s do it up!”

  When the Line gathered, it became obvious to the rest of the band that something was amiss. A distinctly female voice called out loudly, “Eight on a hand…follow my lead!”

  The crisp notes from the snare counted out the warm up and the Line began. Bronwyn held up her stick to signify the end of the warm up, “Great job guys, let’s head to the stands.”

  Like any game, the home band was responsible for playing the National Anthem. The Line stood at perfect attention while they did. The first quarter went by faster than any fifteen minutes Bronwyn had ever remembered and suddenly it was time to go down to the field and warm up. Bronwyn kept a serious face, but on the inside she was jumping for joy. It felt so right to be leading the Line, but the big test was still ahead. After their warm-ups, the band lined up on the far side of the field. Bronwyn forgot that when the band marched out for the opening set, the snares lined up very close to Geoff and the rest of the trumpet section. And with the right half of the snare line gone, he was literally right next to her.

  As everyone got in place and waited for the halftime buzzer to sound, she attempted to make conversation, “Hey Geoff…”

  Although they were both supposed to be at attention, he looked down and asked, “Bronwyn, is it?”

  She nodded. They shared a very random look and were interrupted when Drew coughed right in front of them. Bronwyn immediately shot her eyes forward. Drew nodded and asked, “The beat, Captain?”

  Calmly, Bronwyn began tapping out quarter notes to keep everyone’s left foot hitting the ground at the same time. Once the band was in place, Drew called everyone to attention and the show began. Bronwyn played as loud as she could, trying to compensate for the missing snares. Tony actually performed decently and between the two of them, they marched a pretty clean show. The pair shared a smile as they brought their sticks down at the end of the closer.

  Bronwyn carefully settled Stewie and walked over to the concession stand for the third
quarter. With her unapologetic and successful performance as Captain, she was the new hero of the Forrest Hills drumline. It was a good feeling.

  If only I had known that’s all it would take to gain acceptance, I would have arranged for a car accident a long time ago!

  Hey now, would J.D. have trusted you then?

  Until now, Bronwyn hadn’t really considered the impact of J.D.’s decision. There were many other upperclassmen or section leaders he could have chosen – but he picked her. That alone said more about how he really felt. For the first time in the season, Bronwyn felt really good about her place in the Line. She caught up to Mark and asked, “Have you heard anything from Lance or J.D.?”

  “Nah, but I’m sure they’re okay.”

  Watching Mark walk away, Bronwyn found herself alone, when someone approached her. She turned around and was surprised to see Geoff standing next to her. They both leaned on the fence surrounding the track.

  “Good job tonight. Too bad you aren’t in charge of the Line all the time.”

  Bronwyn’s keen eyes swept over the band, enjoying their break time. She didn’t want to, but her gaze was drawn to the new golden couple, holding court with the seniority of the band. Drew and Christina. Then she realized she still hadn’t responded to Geoff’s comment, and finally replied, “Thanks! I guess things got a little out of control this week.”

  “I just still can’t believe Pete would…”

  Bronwyn interrupted, “Would what? Want to be a drummer? It’s not like he’s dead – you have to cut the kid some slack.”

  “Yeah, but he was a strong player.”

  “I know. He’s already a strong player for us.”

  Geoff sighed and finally said, “Y’know, I could let everything go. If only J.D. wasn’t—”

  “Such a dick?”

  Geoff turned to look sideways at her, a mixture of surprise and approval on his face, and said, “You took the words right out of my mouth.”

  “Well, take it from someone who knows.”

  “Let me know if he ever crosses the line…”

  Bronwyn couldn’t help herself, “Then what? You’ll cross the Line?”

  Geoff hung his head and said, “That was terrible, but seriously just let me know.”

  Bronwyn said softly, “I will.”

  Balancing a Coke and some popcorn, Bronwyn returned to the stands and was almost back to the Line when she overheard Dana say, “Yeah well, to get Captain tonight, I heard she—”

  What Bronwyn heard next was the most ludicrous and perverted thing ever – which was a lot, considering she was a member of the drumline.

  You’re in uniform. You’re the acting Captain of the drumline. You cannot punch her in the face.

  This is my reputation we’re talking about. I don’t want people thinking—

  Do you trust your Line?

  Yes.

  Will they believe this kind of slander?

  No.

  There’s your answer.

  The look on Bronwyn’s face must’ve told Ben and Mark everything. They weren’t the only ones watching. A familiar pair of blue eyes were focused on Bronwyn as well.

  Ben was immediately at Bronwyn’s side, “This way, Captain.”

  Bronwyn forced a smile on her face, when all she really wanted to do was thrust her head into Dana’s face.

  “But she—”

  “Shake it off, B,” said Mark.

  “I wanna—”

  “Now’s not the time, Bronwyn,” said Ben.

  Having missed their friend during the third quarter, Meredith and Megan had been looking for Bronwyn. Seeing the stormy look on her face, they immediately rushed to her side. Meredith looked at Ben shyly and said, “We got it from here, boys.”

  Megan said, “Thanks for your help.”

  Bronwyn allowed herself to be led to where the Pit was seated, far away from the other sections. Megan asked, “So, what happened exactly? I thought you’d be happy. Everyone’s been talking about how well you did.”

  Bronwyn grappled for the right words. Finally, she sputtered, “It’s not about that, apparently, Dana believes, well… She, she—” After finally whispering the implied and completely unfounded acts she had carried out to become Captain for a night, Meredith and Megan were appropriately shocked and outraged on Bronwyn’s behalf.

  “How could she even…” Megan was blown away.

  “I don’t know. It just makes me feel sick.” Bronwyn wiped away the one or two frustrated tears that had leaked out and admitted angrily, “Tonight, I did good and now she’s taken it away from me.”

  Meredith patted Bronwyn gently on the shoulder, “Everyone knows it’s not true.”

  Seeing Drew climb up on the drum major podium, the redhead looked up and said, “Well, girls, one quarter to go. I just thought my first time as Captain would be less dramatic.”

  Her friends made their way back to their respective spots in the stands, while Bronwyn contemplated her next move. She glanced over at the Guard and rolled her eyes. She was still glaring when Tony nudged her, “What’s the deal, B?”

  Bronwyn looked at Tony, took a deep breath, then said, “Nothing. Just some stupid girls. Good job tonight.”

  “Yeah, by the way, thanks for helping me.”

  “No worries. The sophomore snares have to stick together.” Bronwyn continued, “Now, pick a cadence and let’s make some noise!”

  * * *

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN: Hollaback…Boy?

  For the final fifteen minutes of the game, Bronwyn forced herself to concentrate on the stand's songs and cadences instead of her rapidly declining reputation. Fortunately, her technique worked and the fourth quarter went by quickly. The Flyers football team won, which helped divert some of the attention away from her, but when she was supervising the loading of the percussion equipment a group of Guard girls passed by giggling and whispering and her bad feelings quickly returned. Bronwyn willed the tears back until she got on the bus.

  Standing with Christina, Drew watched the scene. He nudged the Guard Captain, “Who are they talking about?”

  Christina’s perfectly arched eyebrows went up and she asked, “Why do you care?”

  “Just wondering.”

  Dropping her voice low, she murmured, “It’s about Bronwyn and well, apparently they’re saying…”

  As the girl he was dating revealed the sordid details, Drew’s eyes widened, then darkened in anger. He could see now why Bronwyn had been so upset earlier in the evening. Not bothering to hide the rage in his voice, he asked, “Who the hell is behind that messed up rumor?”

  Christina looked away and answered, “I’m not sure.”

  Drew crossed his arms, “That’s the most immature thing I’ve ever heard. I mean, everyone knows Bronwyn is a decent drummer. I’m sure J.D. had his reasons for choosing her.”

  “Isn’t this the guy who revealed your evil plan to everyone? I thought you guys hated each other.”

  Drew said quickly, “We do. I just think it’s crappy someone would mess with another person’s reputation like that. Especially when it’s not true.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “Don’t ask me how, I just know.”

  Closing his eyes, Drew was instantly brought back to the kiss he shared with Bronwyn. Surprising himself, Drew was secretly honored that he had given the pretty redhead her first kiss. He knew later in life Bronwyn would probably be a heartbreaker, and he was glad he got to be first on the list.

  “Drew…?”

  The drum major snapped back to reality, realizing Christina had asked him something, “What?”

  As the bus pulled up to the school, the Line began cheering. Bronwyn looked out to the window to see what everyone was yelling about. Sitting in the parking lot were the missing snares: J.D., Lance, Scott, and Adam.

  Bronwyn smiled to herself as they piled off the bus. Proving there was some hidden gallantry within him, J.D. took Bronwyn’s snare case and, looking her up and down, comm
ented, “You look like you’ve had a hell of a night. What happened?”

  Too tired to get into the alienation of another section from the Line, Bronwyn shrugged and responded, “Nothing I couldn’t handle.”

  J.D. nodded and they walked into the school together. The percussion room was full of band members trying to return their instruments to their upright and locked positions. J.D. nodded at Lance, who shut the door, “Alright, so let me fill you in on what happened. We were enjoying a little pre-game dinner at WaHo and decided we would all take one car over to the school. On the way, someone pulled out in front of us from nowhere and we kind of couldn’t stop in time and ended up hitting them. The air bags deployed and we were all advised to go to the hospital. Seeing as though none of us want an injury to go unnoticed this close to competitions, we decided to go and get checked out and we’re all fine.”

  The room was quiet, when Mark asked innocently, “So, who was driving?”

  J.D. turned a very uncharacteristic shade of red.

  Lance pointed to the drumline Captain and answered, “That would be him.”

  The semester continued forward, and it was apparent to everyone that the band was not overcoming their differences. For the first time in a long time, it looked as though the band might not come together and be a force for the upcoming competition. Drew, Geoff, and J.D. could just not agree on anything. Rivalry wasn’t just concentrated within the leadership either. Bronwyn was finding new levels of patience she never knew she had…especially where persons named Dana and the Guard were concerned. She was finally gaining security on the Line, but the annoying looks and idle gossip were wearing on her patience.

  To clear her head, the sophomore snare signed online, hoping to see Lucy’s familiar screen name and was excited when the former bass drummer immediately wrote to her.

  bassgirl17: Hey there!

  redheadedsnare: Hey yourself.

  bassgirl17: How’s the season? I haven’t heard from you in a while.

  redheadedsnare: Just dealing with rumors, nothing you haven’t been through.