WAY OUT OF MY COMFORT ZONE

3 MARCH, WEDNESDAY, CONTINUED

Bell's expression was perplexed, "Why is there a tambourine in this song?"

Oooff... I mean, I always knew I was the extra in this band, but being singled out like that wasn't the best feeling.

"Okay. I'm out." I tagged out and put my tambourine down on the nearest surface, an upright speaker. I didn't need to be told twice where I'm not needed.

And then Bell asked, "Have you guys ever heard the original?"

Everyone nodded except me.

Bell ran his good hand through his hair, "Ki, play it."

He didn't have to. I wasn't even in the band anymore.

Ki searched his music app and played the song. I had to say, the guys had chosen a really cool song. Too bad we didn't sound anything like it.

"Why don't you have a guitarist?" Bell demanded. (I told you there was a guitar missing.)

"We had Liam, but he had football..." Marcus explained meekly.

"It's not like he could play like that anyway." Henry smirked. (Don't be so smug, you didn't play anything like the bassist either.)

It was pretty ironic. The song they picked had a really strong guitar lead, with a bass at a close second.

"None of you play the guitar?" Bell sounded somewhat incredulous. Why was he looking at me? Unless the entire song was played in a single A minor chord, I wouldn't be able to play it. Oh wait, even if such a song existed, I hadn't learned how to strum properly yet either.

Bell pointed at EJ, "What do you play?"

"My voice." EJ answered proudly. He demonstrated by playing a trumpet. As expected from the sound effects king, he was pretty good too. Maybe we could let him hold a trumpet and pretend to play.

Bell was unimpressed, "What about you Fluff?"

Fluffy beamed like the morning sun, "My first mistress used to learn the violin."

"What has that got to do with you?" Bell growled.

Fluffy beamed even brighter at his Scary Luna's ire, "I was about to explain that I accompanied her for lessons and practiced on her behalf."

He what?

"Her sire wanted to hear her practicing four hours a day." Fluffy explained.

Bell looked to Henry, "Can we borrow a violin, Hen?"

Henry looked at Beta Pete.

"Understood." Beta Pete pulled one of the full-length murals in the music room and it opened up to a built-in cabinet. I would have been impressed, but I've already seen that beta magic trick at home. Inside the cabinet hung several violins.

Bell looked them up and down, "Nice."

And then he decided, "Just take the bottom right one. No point wasting a good violin on this."

"Even if you say that, it's still a Strad." Ki pointed out appreciatively.

"I only play Strads." Henry boasted.

And he still sounded like a goose dying? Hahahahaha.

Anyway, Beta Pete fetched the violin and bow for Fluffy.

"Alright. Play." Bell ordered.

"I don't know this song on the violin..." Fluffy began.

"Just play something." Bell pretty much snapped. I hoped maybe he'd break out of his Lorent Prince mode and turn Tyger, but that was just wishful thinking on my part. Bell only looked like a hot-tempered prince.

"Understood, Luna." Fluffy's smile never faded. He enjoyed provoking the Scary Luna way more than it was healthy or safe, "I would like to dedicate this song to my new mistress and her beautiful luna."

Bell fumed, but only internally. Aloud, he gritted, "Just.play.it."

My poor luna, all this tension cannot be good for his health in the long term.

Fluffy put the violin to his chin and then to my utter surprise, he played Twinkle Twinkle Little Star... and it sounded really pretty. I had no idea violins could sound like that.

"Alright good." Bell was satisfied. He took the violin and bow from Fluffy. Henry's mouth dropped open when Bell took his hand out of the sling.

"You can use your hand?" Henry asked, and then he thought better of it, "Forget I asked. I don't want to know."

Bell smirked, and then turned back to Fluffy, "Now play it like this."

Bell played the violin very differently from the way Fluffy did. He was playing what sounded like the rift of the lead guitar part. I had no idea violins could sound like that either.

He passed the violin to Fluffy who attempted the same. It was a lot screechier at some parts, and not screechy enough at others, but Fluffy pretty much got the right notes. Bell nodded, "We need an electric violin, basic pedal, get Hen a loop pedal too."

A what? Beta Pete looked as lost as I was. Harvey went over to help him out. Band equipment is often more than just the instruments.

I went over and sat on one of the larger speakers and watched Bell show Fluffy how to play the violin so that it sounded angry all the time.

"It'll be easier once you get the electric one." Bell promised.

Okay, fast forward half an hour later and our band was outfitted with a few major changes.

Bell had taught Henry to cheat with the loop pedal. Basically, Henry steps to record himself play the basic baseline and then steps on the pedal again for it to play that on repeat. Once the basic baseline was set, Henry could concentrate on making a few extra notes. He even managed to throw in a couple of slides without sounding like a wildlife documentary. Suddenly, our bass sounded a lot more put together.

Fluffy took to the electric violin like a duck to water, just nyaaaaahhhhhh....

"You've gotta look the part too, Fluff." Bell said. I guess if all he could pick on was Fluffy's angelic smile and classical stance, then that means the actual sound coming out was okay. Actually, more than okay. Fluffy was really good at the violin.

There was only one problem.

"Scary Luna, I can't sing and play at the same time." Fluffy smiled. Now that he mentioned it, I guess it wasn't easy

"But I don't want to sing solo!" EJ panicked, "What's going to happen if I forgot the words?"

"You don't need to remember any words." Bell instructed him as he handed over the mic, "You're the beatbox, Red. Just try not to use any sounds coming from Marc or Hen."

"But... What do I do?" EJ looked like he was seriously going to freak out.

"Just make whatever sound you feel like." Bell said.

EJ paused, "Like any sound?"

"Yes. Whatever Red. Just dance and be annoying." Bell snapped.

"Hoi hoi! EJ is in the house!!!!" EJ grabbed the mic and tooted his own horn - yes, he literally tooted, "The Last Hurrah is coming at you!!!"

Hahaha. That sounded immediately fun.

"Okay, let's try it from the top. Princess, come here." Bell fitted a mic into the mic stand in the middle of the band.

Eh? Me? What did he want from me?

"Stand here." Bell ordered.

Wait, what?

"So I just stand here?" I asked.

"Yes." Bell said, "Can you do that, princess?"

I shrugged. If it's just standing... He was really looking down on me, huh?

Bell took the few steps back to stand next to Beta Pete and Harvey, and Ki, "Alright, start."

He was so bossy, I flared. Stoopid mate.

The baseline started this time, followed by the drum the moment the loop came on. And EJ pretty much jumped in front of me, beatboxing with the sound of scissors, and heels clacking, the sound of a can of coke being cracked open and I don't know what else. The boy sounded like he was possessed by the voice of random sounds.

But the sound of everything put together made my heart skip a beat. When the keyboard came into the background, I could feel a shiver down my spine. While the keyboard had sounded like it was the main melody dragging the others through the song earlier, now it just blended into the music. And then the violin slid into the spaces... And wow. We still didn't sound like the original, but we didn't sound worse either.

"Stop!" Bell yelled.

I blinked. WTH was his problem? We were like seriously good now!

"Princess..." Bell ran his good hand through his hair. (His other hand had been returned to his sling after he finished giving Fluffy a crash course on angry violin sounds.)

Oh right. Me. I was the weakest link here. Again. Why? Should I stand quieter?

"You missed your cue." Bell said.

"Perhaps I can help cue her." Fluffy offered.

Yeah, or here's an idea. Maybe if someone would just tell me what I was supposed to do...

"Do you even know the words?" Henry asked, "She never remembers her lines."

Wait, I had lines?

"Someone give her the lyrics." Bell sounded exasperated.

Beta Pete magicked out a printed copy of the lyrics and even a score stand to put in front of me.

"And the competition is tomorrow?" Bell asked.

I looked at the lyrics and then the mic in front of me. It took me a whole second to put it together, "Wait, I'm supposed to sing?"

The other guys just looked at me like "duh."

"You better memorize the lyrics by tomorrow, Sam." Henry bossed immediately, "Don't you dare take the lyrics out on stage tomorrow."

"What makes you think I can sing?" I asked. I couldn't sing! I'm not Lola!

"Come on, Sam." Marcus sounded desperate now, "Please... We're so close."

It's not that I didn't want to help, but it just wasn't something I could do. How about we change our act to a fight demonstration instead? I could lead that...

"Goddess, don't worry, I don't think Luna Bell means for you to sing like the original." Ki seemed to think that my hesitation was only due to the fact that I didn't have the voice of a male adult.

"Maybe you could just try it like when you stood in for Lola to perform A Whole New World." Harvey suggested.

"Yes." Bell nodded, "Just sing like you did in the video."

Wait, he saw the video of my impromptu performance at New Leaf? Of course, he did. It was all over social media...

"Just wing it, pretty alpha!" EJ said, "It's fun!"

Fun for you! I wasn't the limelight-loving redhead with the acrobatic moves and arsenal of sound effects!

This was way out of my comfort zone.

"Just do it, Sam." Henry ordered.

But I'm bad at it! I wanted to yell, but the words just wouldn't leave my mouth. My alpha wolf just hated admitting my weakness.

"Okay fine! I'll sing." I said, "But don't blame me if I ruin it!"

I also hated being the weakest link. I looked at the lyrics in front of me... To tell the truth, I knew the song. I've heard Fluffy and EJ sing it enough times.

"Okay, let's start again." Bell ordered. My Luna was damn bossy.

{Mate! ~❤️ } Boo liked bossy mate.

Wait, if I sang badly, would it be grounds for rejection? Omo.

The music started, I shook my head to clear it. It's okay, Sam, just sing.

I was going to just sing, get it over with, and then get replaced. I even figured out who might be able to replace me - Janice had a nice singing voice. Jasmine could sing too. Or Liam. If Liam was the frontman, that would officially be all the "hot guys" in one band.

See, I'm such a good band manager!

So why was the band manager standing in front of the band?

I started off pretty "meh." I just wanted to get over with it, let them see I can't do it and move on, but then I suddenly suffered a flashback:

"Don't worry, Samantha." Ms Pitera said, "I won't give up. Promise me you won't write off music without giving it a real shot too. You have a clear tone and breathtaking charisma when you sing. Maybe music isn't high in your priorities now, and you don't take it seriously..."

"I'm not good at stuff like that." I shook my head quickly. It wasn't that I wasn't trying... "I'm more of the fighting type."

"Well then, don't write yourself off." Ms Pitera told me, "Every lesson you come in, you hold out. It's like you are afraid to succeed."

"I'm not afraid of anything!" I flared slightly, but Ms Pitera didn't back down, "Then why do you do everything you can not to stand out in my class?"

Because it was mortifying to sing in front of your classmates. I thought the answer would be obvious.

"I won't be surprised if you sang even better than you fought." Ms Pitera told me.

End of blasted flashback. Grrr... We just hit the chorus and the violin just blasted off. As an Alpha Wolf, I hated everyone seeing my weakness, I hated knowing that I was the weakest link. I hated when someone else was right. But I hated losing even more.

As if I would lose to an angry violin! Chi-ka-boom time, Boo!