Well, it's my birthday in a few days time, just putting a mini birthday bash novel on it-
It’s all I ever wanted
Hi, my name’s Sareena, Sazzi for short! I’m 14 years old and I have long pearl black hair, crystal blue eyes, pale skin and rosy red lips and all I ever wanted since I was 4 years old is to have a lead on the west end stage. My best friends, Kat and Ted (short for Katherine and Theodore), say that you have to be fairly deluded to try and audition for the west end, as one person will get it out of the million that try, so I guess they are saying my chances are one-in-a-million. But they can’t talk, they haven’t even heard me sing, I mean why would they have heard me sing? Our school is so rubbish; we can’t even afford a music department.
My family is about average size, but I wouldn’t phrase us as dripping with money. We have a 3 bedroom house. Me and sister in one room, mum dad in another and my brother in the third. I also have another older brother, Kyle, but he has left home, he is only 18, but demanded that our family wasn’t going to last the way it was and that he wanted a new one. My dad works for minimum wage at a tiny sandwich bar called ‘Sandy Franks’, my older brother, Ryan (aged 17) does the paper rounds and my mum helps out at the neighbour’s farm. When I’m not busy, I take care of my little sister, Claire (aged 4), or I babysit. Although on Saturdays I go next door with Claire and Ryan and we take care of some of the smaller farm animals.
In my spare time, and I really do mean spare time, I sing and dance. I love to sing and dance; it creates peace and harmony throughout my body and just wisps all my worries away. I particularly love the Russian play ‘From the heart’. How I would love to play the teenage girl, with a passion for nature, but alas, she is just an orphaned girl who will never get to see the fields in spring and the pretty poppies with their rosy petals and peaceful appearance, so she runs away and pretends to be the princess of all of Asia, just so she can travel the world and see all the wonders of mother nature.
* * *
‘Mum?’ I asked gently, ‘Could I go to a dance school like Kat does?’
‘Oh sweetheart, I wish we could afford it, but Kats parents have more money than we do, and we only have enough to put food on the table.’
‘So If Kat has more money than us, why does she go to such a rubbish school?’
‘They don’t have a car, so they walk everywhere, you know have echo-friendly they are!’ I had to accept mums answers, they were only true, and we were struggling as it was to even pay the bills and we only live in bungalow-shack. I had to stick with singing to Claire.
It was 4pm now and me, Kat and Ted were messing about in the park when Kat asked
‘Sazzi? Did your mum agree to letting you go to a dance school?’ I lowered my head.
‘It’s alright, you still got me and Kat you can sing and dance to!’ Ted said in an optimistic voice.
‘I can’t even sing, I’m just a deluded idiot.’ I frowned, with a tear coming to my eye. When Ted suddenly said,
‘Sing Sazzi.’
‘What?’ I stammered.
‘Sing.’ He repeated.
‘What are you ta-‘
‘Sing, Sazzi, just do it, now!’ He had never been this serious before. I just stared his eyes glimmering, mine watering.
‘Sazzi, do it, sing. Sing anything, I really don’t care what, just do doe a deer or something.’ He just stared at me, I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
‘Drop your shoulders, take a deep breath, relax and sing.’ He told me, I dropped my shoulders, took a deep breath, relaxed and sang. I sang a song from the play ‘From the heart’.
I finished off the song and noticed Ted had the biggest smile on his face and Kat had a tear to her eye. I didn’t know what to do all I could do was sing some more, this time I sang the opening song from the play. Kat had tears running down her face and off her chin. By the end of it even Ted had a tear to his eye. They both jumped up and hugged me.
‘Sazzi, you have the most amazing voice, and yet you have been so selfish as to keep it from the world for the past 14 years.’ Kat praised.
‘Wow Sazzi, you have a voice like an angel, and Kat’s right you were born for the stage and you waste your time on us simpletons!’ Teds voice was delicate and loud at the same time.
We walked home earlier than normal. It was Sunday and the next day would be the beginning of the last week of year 9! Then summer break would fall on us holding more chores than ever before. When I got to home I noticed that dad was outside building something. It looked kinda’ like a chicken pen which could only hold like three chickens. I ran over to see.
‘Hello Saz.’ Dad greeted.
‘Hi, how was work?’
‘Same old, I hope you don’t mind, but the Thompsons have taken pity on us and you, Ryan and Claire will each have a pet chicken and one a fortnight we get a chicken for eating. Your chickens will be for eggs, but you must take full responsibility of them yourselves.’
‘Really!?!’ I asked, my grin going from one ear to the other.
‘Yes, now do me a favour and tell Ryan to come and help me with this.’ He said crushing his finger with a hammer then shouting, ’and run!’
‘I skipped merrily into Ryan’s room and told him we were getting pet chickens his reply was,
‘Get out or I hit you with a pillow.’
‘Pillows don’t hurt.’
‘Fine then, a hairdryer!’ Why do older siblings always behave like know it all’s?
‘Then I will just tell dad you don’t care about him or the family!!!’
‘MOVE!!!!’’ He stormed out, but at least he was now helping dad!
I had some spare time on my hands, so I took Claire out for a little walk into town. When we finally got there (after stopping to look at every single daisy because Claire was attempting to establish the difference), I caught sight of a flyer on the notice board outside the town hall. This one little glance was the start of something new! A play was being put on at the Grand Theatre in Montgomery, where all the rich people lived. And not only was it in a rich area, but the auditions were being held at the town hall this Friday (A.K.A the last day of school), but there was more the play they were putting on was ‘From the Heart’. I had to audition, I simply had to all I had to do was convince my parents, but that would be no walk in the park. I put Claire on my back and ran home as fast as I could.
I got home a lot quicker than the time it took us to get to town. Mum was just coming back from the farm and dad and Ryan had just finished the chicken pen. Mum called over and waved.
‘Hello Honey, we are going to go and pick the chickens now, are you coming?’ My grin was making my face hurt!
‘Are we getting them now?’ I heard a small comment from Ryan.
‘Duh, that’s why mum asked you if you were coming.’
‘Ryan, ssh. Come on sweetie.’
The Thompsons(our neighbours) gave us a massive choice of chickens! There were black ones, orange ones, white ones, grey ones, orange and white and there was even a black and white one, out of about all of the million chickens, there was only one black and white one. I guess you could say it was one in a million just like me. That was why I chose it and I even called it Anastasia, the name of the girl in the play. Ryan chose a black one and called it Trojan (typical Ryan). Claire made friends with an orange one and called it Barbie (bless)! I loved Anastasia, even though Ryan hated chickens, little Trojan and him seemed to get on like a house on fire! Claire attempted to talk chicken and clucked every now and again.
7am and Dad bursts through the door ringing a bell and shouting for everybody to get up and eat! Today was oatmeal and toast, a privilege to have both, but dad always insisted that the last week of school is important and always makes smiley face toast and oatmeal. Whilst we were eating I had to listen to a very boring conversation about dad not being paid enough. So when there was an awkward silence, I took the jump and asked mum if I could audition for ‘From the Heart’.
‘Absolutely not. You are an elegant young lady and elegant young ladies do not, I repeat do not get involved in such silliness!’ Her words came to me loud and clear. Tears began to run down my face.
‘Don’t you dare get emotional with me young lady.’
‘Give her a chance mum.’ Ryan stood up and shouted at mum. For once in my life I decided that at times like these, Ryan rocks!
‘Ryan, sit down!’ Now even dad was getting involved.
‘No!’ Ryan shouted again.
‘I am your father, and I can make you sit down. SIT, NOW!’
‘NO, you can’t make me do anything!’ He was roaring at dad.
‘Father or not, I’m NOT A STUPID LITTLE KID ANYMORE and neither is Sazzi! Let her audition.’ He roared again.
‘To your room son.’ Dad spoke quietly.
‘I HA...’ Ryan stopped because I had begun singing. I sang the same song that I had sung to Kat and Ted the day before. When I finished, I stood up and walked out. I got changed as quick as a flash, ran downstairs and outside to Anastasia. I was crying, balling my eyes out. I really wanted to audition. I wanted to be Anastasia, I was one in a million and I knew it!
After feeding the chickens, I walked to school. Claire was walking by my side. Giggling as the wind rushed through her hair.
‘Go audition Sazzi!’ This was the first proper time I had ever heard Claire talk.
‘Did you just...’
‘Why won’t mummy let you be Annistasa?’ She was looking up at me. Her big brown eyes glistening from the sunlight.
‘I dunno. She’s afraid.’
‘What she scared of?’
‘Letting me go I guess.’
‘But mummy not holding you.’
‘She doesn’t want me to grow up and leave her, like Kyle did.’
‘Oooh. You won’t leave; you just want to be Annistasa.’
‘Yah, you’re right.’ I said ruffling her hair. We entered the school gates, I dropped Claire of at the reception block and I then walked up to the secondary part of the school. I saw Kat and Ted. Kat began frantically beckoning me over.
‘Guess what!’ she squealed.
‘What?’
‘I’m auditioning for ‘From the Heart’. I have a permission slip from my parents to get me out of school! Isn’t it great?’ My heart was in my mouth, I had to act happy for Kat she was my best friend for god’s sake.
‘Super, not just great, super great. Wonderful. Amazing. I’m happy for you, I’m really happy for you. Really I am.’
‘Thanks, I knew I could count on you for support.’ I had never seen her, this excited about anything before.
We walked up to the Year 9 common room. I was shocked to see a very angry looking Ryan waiting for me.
‘Sazzi, we are going to the town hall on Friday, you are going to audition and you are going to get on that stage and prove to mum and dad you are grown up whether they like it or not.’
‘I don’t know what to say!’
‘Just meet me by the co-op and we can catch a bus from there.’
‘Really?’
‘Saz, your my little sister I couldn’t say no could I?’ As he was in a bad mood, I decided it was a better idea if I didn’t answer the question (answer: he is always putting me down and always saying no).
* * *
Friday, A.K.A The last day of school/’From the Heart’ Auditions
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