Keeping in Line

by Courtney Brandt

J.D. tapped the notes on his snare to quickly get the band off the field.

  As per usual, the stands were full and the Forrest Hills marching band had to wait on the sidelines for the results. After the two remaining bands performed, the Captains, Lieutenants and drum majors walked calmly out to the center of the field to await the results.

  Bronwyn thought about the night’s performance, recognizing that as far as they had come, there were still a number of amazing bands in the competition. She didn’t realize until now how much they took winning, or placing in the top three, for granted. In these high stakes competitions, you couldn’t blame rebuilding or injury, you just had to go out and march the best damn show you could. She knew all of these bands worked just as hard as Forrest Hills did – they had been sweating since August, they had put in long hours practicing out on the field. Bronwyn looked out over the field and saw that Geoff and J.D. were standing together – as if they had been best friends forever. Things were as they were supposed to be, but was it too late? Had the band come together in time? As much as she didn’t want to, she also desperately tried not to notice Drew and Christina stood next to each other. In uniform, they looked even more perfect together, if that was possible.

  Finally, it was time for their Class awards. The band was called to attention and, as luck would have it, Bronwyn had lined up near the proximity of the Guard.

  Of all the sections to be lined up next to.

  Just breathe…

  She’s standing right in front of me!

  Although she projected to everyone else that she was over the incident, Bronwyn was still smarting from the rumors Dana started. She didn’t think she was going to be letting go of that grudge any time soon. It was then she looked over and realized she was also standing next to Tony. Since the game last Friday there had been an uneasy truce between them. She wasn’t about to forgive five years of verbal abuse in one night, but she was glad to see that there was a glimmer of hope that people could change. She looked over and tried to control a giggle when she saw Tony and Dana were making weird faces at each other.

  Fortunately, Tony and Dana’s bizarre mating habits were interrupted and it was time for the captions to be announced. As the competition organizers went through each category, each section was shocked and disappointed as the band failed to win even one caption. There were a few second and third place trophies collected, but nothing like their usual placements. Bronwyn saw seriously disappointed looks on the faces around her. When the High Percussion awards were called and the Line placed a mere third, it was like being punched in the stomach. The announcement forced Bronwyn to recognize the obvious, while she knew her part of the show was clean, she had been ignoring the rest of the Line and what she could do to help them. The negative mood this season had come from J.D., but why had she submitted to it? Leaders didn’t have to have something special on their uniform – or be officially designated – they could just be the part.

  The walk back to the equipment truck was an exceptionally quiet one. Bronwyn was especially sorry for the seniors. They only had one more chance to win. She thought about the drumline’s portion of the show and some of the other breaks she had seen. The third place trophy was actually a nice gesture from the judges. From what she had heard, South Washington and Swiss County both looked better and played a cleaner show. Back on the bus, it was obvious everyone was feeling terrible about the evening’s events.

  Henry spoke briefly to the group, “Next week, guys. No worries.”

  Lance added, “I’m sure we can learn a lot from the judges tapes.”

  J.D. seemed especially pissed. Rather than be a good role model and boost everyone’s morale, he was sitting and sulking in the last seat of the bus. Bronwyn secretly wondered what was going through her Captain’s mind.

  Maybe he’s actually regretting his decision to bump Tony up…

  Do you think he would actually admit it?

  This is J.D. we’re talking about.

  I won’t make the same mistake.

  When?

  When I’m Captain.

  Although the atmosphere was sad, Bronwyn smiled to herself. By her senior year, she vowed to learn from those who came before her. She would have the strongest Line Forrest Hills had ever seen.

  Although Mr. Izzo tried to reinforce what a great job the band had done, how far they had come, and how proud everyone should be – the mood in the band room was a quiet one. Returning Stewie to the percussion closet, Bronwyn knew there wasn’t going to be a trip to Waffle House tonight. She and the girls had decided to have an impromptu sleepover. With duffel bags packed for any occasion, Meredith and Bronwyn didn’t have to go home first. They waited in front of the school for Megan’s mom to pick them up. Ben decided to be a gentleman and wait with them, which Bronwyn thought was a very nice gesture. She didn’t realize she had been riding with a romantic all season.

  At least there is some hope out there…

  Around 3AM and halfway through their favorite card game, Bronwyn made an impromptu announcement, “Girls, I have to tell you something.”

  Megan whispered loudly, “You still like Drew.”

  Bronwyn sighed, then threw a pillow at her friend’s head, “Aaaahhhh!! Is it that obvious?”

  Meredith nodded, “Sorry, but yeah. You get all angsty every time he’s around or his name is mentioned.”

  Bronwyn looked worried, “Do you think he knows?”

  Megan replied, “Actually, I think it’s only obvious to girls. Guys are completely oblivious to that kind of stuff.”

  After she played the next card in the series, Meredith asked, “What about Mr. Brass Captain? You guys look pretty cute together, and he’s not dating anyone right now.”

  “He’s nice enough, but it just kills me to see Christina and Drew. I think all of this is being made worse by the fact that skankity Dana and Tony were all lovey dovey in front of me tonight. It seems like everywhere I turn everyone is disgustingly happy. No offense, Mere.”

  “None taken.”

  Megan asked, "So you don’t want to even try dating Geoff?”

  “Do you really think he likes me that much?”

  “I wish you could’ve seen yourself in the stands last night.”

  “Was I that bad?”

  Meredith laughed, “Well, I can see where he might be getting the idea that you like him.”

  Megan joined her friends laughing and said, “I think the whole band could see that.”

  Bronwyn put down the winning card and said, “Did I ever tell either of you that I had no idea my 10th grade year was going to turn out like this?”

  Meredith answered, “Well, I seem to remember you saying you wanted things to be different this year.”

  “Remind me to keep my big mouth shut next time.”

  * * *

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: Accelerando

  After sleeping in the following day, Bronwyn went home feeling significantly relieved she had finally shared the “secret” that she wasn’t quite over Drew like she had been trying to convince herself she was. That being said, now that the information was out there, she still had no idea what to do with it. The end of the season was in sight, and as a sophomore, Bronwyn wouldn’t have many opportunities left to interact with Drew after November.

  Bronwyn walked into the percussion period on Monday, not exactly sure what the tapes from the competition were going to say. As a freshman, and a member of the Pit last year, she hadn’t been so keenly aware of what the tapes highlighted. However, last year, the show had been amazing and they had received firsts left, right and center. Former quint Lieutenant Tom had been so proud of the first competition tape that he had it framed and it was placed above the door of the percussion room. It had even become a tradition that before a competition, the drummers would touch it for good luck. The sophomore snare had a feeling the tapes today were not going to be so kind.

  Before starting the first tape, J.D. addressed the other members of the Line, “If any one of you is
mentioned specifically by a judge in this thing…you get laps before practice tomorrow. Don’t think I’m not serious.”

  Bronwyn doubted she had anything to really worry about. She knew she had played a very clean show.

  With the sounds of the crowded stands and announcer in the background, the judge’s voice carried over, “…Always look forward to hearing the Forrest Hills drumline. Let’s see what you have for me tonight.”

  Bronwyn heard Drew count the band off and the show started. She held her breath until the drum solo. The snare solo was very close to being clean however, she could hear someone lagging just a little bit.

  “…quints great job, snares….solo…almost clean, looks like one of you on the end has a little more work to do.”

  The judge frantically talked his way through the entire show. As the closer came to a finish, the judge had one more remark, “Oh, what’s this? First bass is off step.”

  While the judge wrapped up his comments about the overall performance, J.D. looked at a notepad he had been frantically scribbling on. There were only two snares “on the end,” Bronwyn and Tony. There was only one first bass, Pete. With how close the drumline captions were, it could’ve been those small things that had lost first place for the Line. J.D. put the notebook down and said, “Let’s start with the snares.”

  Tony was the first to speak, and put his hands up, “No way dude, you don’t actually think it was me, do you?”

  Bronwyn was flabbergasted. She was sure that Tony had messed up the solo. She could understand the pressure he was under in such a large band, with more than 5,000 people watching, and only six people playing…it was easy to drop notes or lose concentration.

  Tony continued, “Look, Bronwyn can’t even speak up. Obviously it was her.”

  Through clenched teeth she said slowly, “I did…not…f…up…the…solo.”

  J.D. looked at both of them.

  Adam had sat by listening for long enough. He said, “Tony, believe me, I can vouch for Bronwyn. We were clean on the West Side.”

  Lance added, “There’s no shame, dude. I mean you just joined the section like, a week ago.”

  Tony crossed his arms and challenged, “You all heard my audition. I nailed the solo.”

  Bronwyn threw her hands up in frustration and said angrily, “I can’t believe we’re even having this conversation. I played the solo perfectly.”

  There’s only way you’re going to be able to prove this…

  Bronwyn stood up, “Right now, Tony. You and me. Let’s drum.”

  Tony looked wary for a moment before agreeing, “Fine.”

  Neither looked at J.D. for approval. Bronwyn angrily grabbed Stewie and her carrier, while Tony did the same. By the time they exited the percussion room, J.D. had cleared a space in the middle of the band room. He told the two sophomores, “If you’re going to do this. You’re going to do it with drill.”

  Bronwyn looked at the kitten heels she had put on that morning. Kicking them off, she said, “Fine by me!”

  J.D. looked at both drummers, “On my count. The entire drum solo. Mark time, hut.”

  He clicked off the notes. The pair marched the drill effortlessly and as they reached the end of the break, Bronwyn knew she had played a more precise show – complete with visuals and the audio phrase they had added at the end.

  When they finished, Tony and Bronwyn looked at J.D.

  J.D. said stoically, “Tony, laps and push-ups tomorrow afternoon. Pete, you too.”

  Bronwyn resisted the urge to once again stick her tongue in Tony’s face. Then she sighed, realizing it wasn’t about playing better. The snare line was only as good as its weakest instrumentalist. Animosity in the section and across the band had earned the Flyers an overall fifth place finish – how hypocritical could she be? It was time to put her pride aside and deal with the situation.

  Bronwyn was still questioning how to make things right as she walked down to the practice field the following afternoon. She saw Tony preparing for his run and felt guilty. Without thinking much through her actions, Bronwyn ran as fast as she could and joined him.

  Tony looked at her strangely and said, “What are you doing?”

  “What? I just felt like running.”

  “You’re not helping the situation.”

  As mad as Tony might have been, they ran in companionable silence the rest of the laps. Bronwyn’s mind wandered as she ran. Henry, true to his word, had passed out the Indoor show music and she was surprised at the skill level he had written. She hoped that they would be able to perform to his expectations. Looking across the field, she made eye contact with Geoff and quickly looked away. After the sleepover with her friends, she realized the best thing to do would be to finish the season as a strong player of the snare line and nothing more. A relationship seemed like the perfect way to complicate the acceptance she had worked so hard towards.

  Given that Homecoming is a mere three weeks away, most girls would be chatting a potential date up rather than running next to some jerk when they didn’t have to.

  I’m not most girls…

  After an intensive week of rehearsals, Drew brought his hands down and the final "HUT!" was shouted back to him, echoing across the crowded stadium. He felt much better than he had a week ago. As his last competitive performance, he was proud of himself and the entire band – let the judges makes their own decisions, he knew it was the very best run of the show possible. If that wasn’t good enough, the band could still take pride in what they had achieved.

  Once settled on the track, the Forrest Hills marching band could only wait patiently until the scores were tallied. The perfect version of a show was such an intangible thing to measure. To have every section come together, to have the chemistry just right, to build the energy, to engage the crowd, it wasn’t something that could be easily forced. Bronwyn was finally able to see what Mr. Izzo must have seen so many months ago. The potential of the show had always been there, but until tonight it had never come together. Would it be enough? She knew they were up against some particularly difficult competition. It seemed every band had brought their best game to the field that evening.

  Unsurprisingly, the Forrest Hills band received all Superior ratings. Bronwyn held her breath as the captions were called. She was glad to hear some of the sections receive second and third place marks. When the announcer began calling the drum major caption, Bronwyn crossed her fingers. Even if she didn’t have a chance at a relationship with him, she still wanted Drew to be successful.

  “In third place, Benedictine High School.”

  “In second place, South Washington High School.”

  Bronwyn held her breath. With all the great performances during the day, the award could go to a few of the schools present.

  “In first place, Forrest Hills High School!”

  After hearing the drum major caption award going to Drew, Samantha and Alex, Bronwyn beamed with pride as she looked at the field. Then immediately wished she hadn’t. She watched jealously as Christina give Drew a kiss on the cheek as he walked forward to receive his trophy. Luckily, Bronwyn’s envy was quickly replaced by anticipation. The Line’s category was next. She barely had time to hold her breath when the announcer said, “For High Percussion honors…in third place, Forrest Hills High School.”

  Bronwyn shared a look with the rest of the drummers. They watched J.D. strut out across the field and accept the trophy. If he was dissatisfied with the placement, he didn’t let it show. Although Bronwyn was disappointed for the seniors, she felt third place was what they had earned…what they deserved after such a disruptive season. Maybe their book was more difficult than others, but their execution hadn’t been perfect. In the end, she knew the judges had made the correct decision.

  Overall, the band placed third and were happy to do so. After everything that had happened during the season, a third place finish was one everyone could be proud of. Bronwyn also realized that if the band won every year, what would push them
to be better next season? Sometimes the challenge was trying to do the best with what you had. Given the talent that had graduated previously, she was happy with the results.

  In the wee hours of the morning, when the band finally pulled into the familiar Forrest Hills parking lot, Bronwyn walked back towards the school with Stewie in one hand and her carrier and uniform bag in the other, and suddenly found herself walking next to Drew.

  “Congratulations,” she said softly, genuinely proud of his effort and leadership of the band.

  “You too.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Bronwyn, I should tell you—”

  He was cut off as Christina came around the corner and exclaimed, “There you are!”

  The Guard Captain linked her arm through Drew's and she steered him in the opposite direction, leaving Bronwyn completely alone.

  After safely putting Stewie away, Bronwyn met up with her friends and pretended to get caught up in their enthusiasm. She didn’t feel like going to Waffle House to celebrate with the Line, so she caught a ride to Krispy Kreme with Ben and Meredith. Bronwyn watched jealously as she walked out with the pair, when Ben took Meredith’s hand. Meredith said quietly, “B, I should tell you something.”

  “What’s up?”

  “I heard Drew asked Christina to Homecoming.”

  Was that was he was going to tell me?

  “Oh.”

  “I just thought you should hear it from me.”

  Bronwyn sighed and said, “Thanks.”

  From across the parking lot, Drew watched the trio confused and a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Judging from the body language, there was no way Ben was involved with Bronwyn. The tenor player was super attentive to the other girl with them, and friendly, at best, to the sophomore snare.

  Geoff joined him and congratulated Drew, “Great job tonight.”

  “You too. I can’t believe, well, it doesn’t seem like it was our last.”