No one spotted Felicity outside of the music studio for the entirety of Tuesday and Wednesday. Maybe she was not joining the band. Or maybe she was plain busy. Simone constantly carried the letter in the outer layer of her backpack, in case Felicity suddenly show up. She had already formulated a plan. If by any chance she finds Felicity, she would stand still for a few seconds, make sure the person was indeed Felicity herself, text Beth and Julianna, wait for their response, and go deliver the letter. Thursday came along. During lunchtime, several band members announced again about Friday's audition and mentioned they would be handing out leaflets in the afternoon for anyone interested in the band. Simone figured that she would go grab a leaflet first and wait inside a nearby study room to see whoever was coming for the leaflet. If Felicity had any intention of joining the band, it was very likely that she would grab a leaflet.

The music studio was situated on the second floor. As soon as afternoon class ended, Simone quickly packed her bag and dashed out of the classroom. With all the anxiety, excitement, and anticipation mashed up together, she flew up the stairs, bumping into several students leaving for home. The homerooms for sophomores were also situated on the second floor. Right next to the stairs, a row of shiny lockers could be seen. The huge bunk was littered with print-out photographs and cheap posters. To get to the music studio, she also had to pass a corridor on the second floor. No one was noticing what Simone was doing, yet she couldn't let her guard down.

Ten minutes passed after Simone hid behind a study room near the music studio. She was beginning to get a little impatient. She wanted to quickly go to the toilet. When she walked out the corridor, she saw a tall figure appearing in front of one locker. A redhead wearing a high ponytail, a pair of golden hoop earrings, a green linen sweater, and a pair of navy blue flare pants. Simone's radar instantly switched to alert mode.

Fifi? Did she just appear in front of me here?

For a second Simone felt her soul pulling away from her body. She immediately texted Beth and Julianna, asking them to find her.

I will talk to Felicity now. I want to fix my friendship with her.

Okay. Breathe in. Breath out. It's not going to be difficult. First thing to do now — walk toward Felicity. Next — tap on her shoulder. Then — deliver my letter to her, and try to be patient before she responds. Done.

What if Fifi doesn't want to read my letter? What if things never become the way they used to be? Why am I still this afraid? I shouldn't think about those things anymore.

"Uhhhh, Felicity! I have something for you —"

Simone faintly waved at the redhead, trying to gather her attention from the side.

"Fifi! Are you listening —"

With the letter in hand, she slipped and kneeled on the ground.

"Simone, what's the matter? Also, I don't go by Fifi anymore. The nickname seemed a little childlike for me." Felicity extended her arm and pulled Simone up.

"We haven't talked to each other for a long while, have we? I want to be friends again. Here, I wrote something to you. Take a look!"

Felicity grabbed the letter with one hand. Five minutes passed before she put the letter down again.

'Simone. I just read what you wrote. Thank you so much for writing me this. Sophomore year is busy for me, but we sure can grab a meal from time to time. However, I probably need to leave soon if you don't have extra things to tell me about. Those damn homework...so annoying!'

Why is she still like this? Still feigning to be calm after reading the letter?

'Felicity! Don't go yet! Don't you want to just say something after reading the letter? Just..anything is fine.'

"I do find our middle school inside jokes memorable. We were such brats before coming to Laurel." Felicity burst out laughing. "Well, anything else?"

Simone couldn't hold her feelings anymore.

"I hope you can join the band audition tomorrow. I want to hear you play in the band again!"

"Well, I'm sorry, Simone." Felicity suddenly became serious. "That was all in the past. Band was a fun time but I don't think I am doing the band audition."

"Why? You seem to be very interested in the band. Didn't I see you several times hanging out by yourself at the music room? You inspired me in middle school, and I want to write and play music with you!"

"Why would you want to do that?" Felicity shrugged. "I haven't been actively practicing guitar for a while, and my skills aren't even that good. Honestly speaking, I wouldn't want myself in the band if I were the director. High school is already stressful for me. Would I even be able to contribute anything to the band, if my college prep activities already occupy so much of my time?"

"Your college prep activities? What are those?"

"The regular things — test prep, homework, clubs, internships. Honestly, I have no idea what I want to study in college. It's always better to work hard and leave myself more alternatives in the future."

"But you always said you wanted to go to music school!"

"Well, we all had childhood dreams, didn't we? Not often do these dreams come true, though. We weren't mature enough to know what suits us. It's unwise to put all eggs in a single basket when there are so many other career options that might work better for me." Felicity said.

"Practice makes perfect, Felicity." Julianna joined Simone. "Without practice, how can you know you won't be good at something?"

"Society tells you 'hard work leads to success. Schools reward rote learning and repetition. Unfortunately, no amount of perspiration could trump inspiration. What can an untalented musician do, except to find a better alternative?"

"Is that so? What do you plan on doing now?" Simone asked.

"Don't worry about me, Simone," Felicity said. "Music wasn't my thing from the beginning. Playing music was just my way of escapism, and I never intended to get serious about middle school band. Band times were fun but I can't indulge in that anymore."

✨

Beth and Julianna stood behind Simone and Felicity, catching everything from their conversation. Felicity stressed talent. If only I was talented. If only I was perfect. "AmaBirdie" said that the magic which gave her talent with words almost burnt her alive. Bianca said that she couldn't have felt freer after breaking out of her perfectionism.

Beth read a sense of resignation from Felicity's words. She pushed Simone to the side, stepped up, and shouted toward Felicity.

"What's the matter of being an untalented musician anyways!!"

Felicity's eyes widened as she scrunched up the letter in her hand.

"Simone showed me songs that you wrote in middle school. I know you care about them a lot. You like reading Black Andromeda, right? You know Amanda, right? She was so talented, but the stress she felt almost corrupted her!"

"How did you know that...?" Felicity gasped.

"I saw her online thread about her personal journey. She wasn't happy until she found peace with herself. I don't want you to go through that. Please think about your passion and don't make regretful choices!"

"Passion is a concept for people who have lots of room for trials and error. Sorry, but I don't have space for making mistakes for the sake of college application."

"What's wrong with making mistakes! What's wrong with being imperfect!" Beth almost yelled her lungs out. "Imperfection makes us human! A failed performance stays in the past. I have failed many times, but with each failure, I become more resilient. Simone said that you were a brave person. You weren't even brave enough to face what you really want! What do you think you are, some sort of smart pant who has her whole life figured out in high school? Do you even know how much Simone felt encouraged by you? Do you even care about it? Simone wanted to play the guitar with you, not for anything, but for the fact that you are special to her."

Beth walked toward Simone and quietly held her hand.

"Just...don't let her feel sad anymore, okay?"

Felicity looked back to Beth and Simone, who were standing side by side at the moment.

"Beth, you are such an interesting person." Felicity suddenly smiled. "But thanks for telling me all of these."

She put Simone's letter into her backpack and made a finger gun towards the three girls.

"I will consider going to the audition tomorrow, and simply see where that takes me."

"Will I see you tomorrow afternoon?" Simone asked.

Felicity smirked and left without uttering a word, leaving Beth, Simone, and Julianna standing beside each other.

"Hey guys, I might leave a little earlier today.' Julianna picked up her bag and turned to Beth and Simone. 'I want to spend some time alone with my thoughts today."