Jaded by Bright Colors and Faded Walls

Her feet tracked through the slight damp grass as she moved down the slightly slopped hill. Her brown hair fluttered behind her as her pale dress flapped and snapped in the air rushing past her while she moved as fast as she could. Her arms were up in front of her slightly as she swayed and circled trees in pure excitement.

Her hands collided with the cold metal of the asylum gate with a clatter, a smile spread over her lips as she smiled up at Jake. Her body stuck between the bushed that surrounded the gate.

“Duck down there’s a few lower bars missing.” Jake laughed seeing her ecstatic face. Something about it made him feel warm and fuzzy inside, like a little kid at Christmas time. The pure joy on her face made it seem as if he was simply giving her a present, not helping her bust out of an asylum for him and his friends own selfish needs.

“I like singing.” Jade stated as she popped up next to him. He laughed placing a hand on top of her head. “I really do.” She stated. “I think it’d be fun to sing for the rest of my life.” She gasped nodding vigorously.

“Well that’s good, ‘cause we kinda hope you can sing for the rest of your life while we play our instruments behind your vocals.” Jade giggled and clapped as they walked away. She knew to the extent that an instrument was a musical object and gave off a musical sound. Other than that she wasn’t sure what they were or what the ones the boys were going to be using even looked like.

She took in the details of the night city as they walked along out to the suburbs. It wasn’t a far walk, it was rather close. Jade stopped to look at the house before her. It looked similar to the one she use to live in when she was little. It wasn’t the same one, she knew that, but it was similar.

She smiled as they walked into the front door. It looked like a home. There were pictures on the walls, warm, earth toned couches that matched the tan colors of the walls. The lamps gave off a warm yellow-orange glow unlike the bright, white lights in the asylum. It had a warm inviting feel and intoxicating aroma.

“I like your house.” Jade whispered as Jake led her to an old wooden looking door, like the ones in the movies.

“Yeah?” Jake asked looking around. “It’s probably better than the asylum at least.” Jade nodded quickly as she took in the pictures that led up the stairs. “Come on.” He whispered opening the door. Jade stopped at the black think coating the other side of the door, it was bumping and plush feeling under her finger tips. “It makes the room sound proof so we won’t wake any one when we play.” Jake laughed seeing her eyes wide at the sight. “Come on.” He pulled her gently down the stairs, the door closing behind her as she watched it. All the walls were covered in the black bumpy stuff, even the ceiling. She let her fingers trail down over it. “Hey guys.”

Jade’s head snapped to the others. Dan sat behind a large sparkling, lime green set of objects, with golden discs on tall silver rods. Jade pulled away from Jake and moved to it. Her fingers trailed over the golden discs before they moved to the lime green, glittering, round objects.

“It’s a drum set.” Dan laughed pushing his blond hair out of his blue eyes. A wide smile spread over Jade’s lips.

“It’s pretty.” She giggled as she traced it. He laughed nodded.

“Yeah I thought so too.” He chuckled as he watched her trace the outline of each drum. “Do you know what it does?” He tested. She shook her head. “I’ll show you.” He muttered. He stepped on the bass pedal. The loud booming sound echoing out and off it startled Jade.

She jumped, her hands moving to her face as her body tensed. All four of them watched her as her wide emerald eyes slid into slits before she started laughing and hunched over at the waist.

“Do it again!” She gasped. Dan not only stepped on the bass drum but hit a few of the toms, and cymbals recreating the part of Paramore’s, That’s What You Get that Jade knew. “I know that!” She gasped one hand sliding up her neck and bunching some of her hair against the side of her head as she lifted the other hand in the hair and pointed with a long, slender, pale finger.

“Yeah, can you sing it?” Dan asked. Jade paused as the others starting playing it.

Giggling she clapped and stomped her feet with excitement. She’d never been near anything like any of this, or any of them. She opened her mouth and sang the part she knew, after that she stopped for a lack of not only words but the item hanging around Aaron’s shoulders had snagged her attention.

She stared at the item as his fingers moved over the silver strings which seemed to hover of the red-brown glossy wood piece that had silver metal bars running up it. His other hand held a small object which moved rhythmically over the strings that hovered over two black boxes with silver frames around them the silver frame held in place by a yellow, orange and red colored body. If she knew guitars she’d know it was a Gibson Les Paul with sunburst wood finish on the body and a rose wood neck.

She moved over to him slowly and touched the body of the guitar; it was smooth under her finger tips. Aaron stopped as he watched her fingers trail over the pick-ups under the strings to the strings and up the neck. It looked so complicated to Jade, all their instruments did, including the one Doug had around his shoulders. It only had four strings unlike Jake’s and Aaron’s, but it still looked like it’d be hard to play and here all she had to do was sing.

“How can you play these things?” She whispered as they all stood around watching her. No more music flowed from the large black boxes around them as the boys played or from Dan’s drum set. “They look so hard to play.” She whispered despite the fact that she didn’t even understand fully that the chords hooked to the bottoms of the guitars and bass hooked into the black boxes and the sounds the guitars and bass made came out of them. She just knew when they ran the small objects over the string of their instruments the black boxes made a wonderful sound. She also didn’t know the black boxes were called amplifiers, or amps for short.

“We’ve been playing for a long time. So it’s easy for us to play.” Doug smiled at her. She smiled back. “That,” He pointed at a long black pole with a black thing attached to the top and at one end of the black object a chord came out, at the other a round silver object gleamed. “Is yours.” She blinked looking at him startled. It looked harder to use than all theirs’ combined. There was no was she could sing using that. “You walk up to it, make sure your mouth is in front of it and sing. Watch.” He stated moving to it and taking in a deep breath. Jade spun as she heard the loud intake from all around her. “That’s what you get.” He mumbled. “Only you’d sing. I know if I sang it’d be horrid.” He laughed Jade walked up to it and frowned at its height. “Here.” He laughed twisting something on the black pole lowering it to her height before twisting it back. “I’ll show you how to fully use and understand it later.” He winked at her as he moved back to the spot in which he’d been standing.

“What do I sing?” Jade asked her voice boomed around them. She giggled at the sound and hunched over, her hands over her mouth as she did so. Everyone always told her it was rude and impolite to just randomly laugh at things. It insulted people. She didn’t much care, but she also didn’t want to upset her new… well she wasn’t quite sure what they were to her, but she knew she didn’t want to upset them or make them mad at her.

“Good question.” They all muttered softly.

Jake clapped as he removed his guitar and headed to the opposite side of the basement. He plugged something into something else and messed with a few things Jade couldn’t see.

Turning he spun as the one song Jade new apart of began to play from the beginning.

“Now just listen to the words. We’ll play it later and sing with you. You don’t have to get it right the first time.” Jake stated. Jade nodded listening intently to the woman’s voice. She liked the sound of it, she like the sound everything made behind the woman’s voice, but she liked the fact that she was being told to do something she wanted to do anyway. She wanted to know all the words to the song. It was annoying that she only knew one part of the song. “Think you got it?” He asked as the song ended. She nodded slowly. “Let’s give it go.” He laughed picking up his instrument.

“Now Jade,” She looked at Dan behind his sparkly lime green drum set. “All you have to do is remember the words, what order they go in and at what time. Nothing more.” She nodded. That sounded easy enough.

Boy was Jade wrong. She was too exited to get half the words out on time and when she did it sounded nothing like what she thought it was meant to sound like.

Jade sank to the ground, a frown set on her doll like features as her legs poked out from under the pale dress on either side of her, her hands between her knees on the fabric.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered disappointed in the fact that she couldn’t do it. They probably hated her now.

“Don’t worry about.” Jake laughed patting her on the head.

“Yeah it’s your first time with this whole experience. It’s bound to be over whelming at first.” Aaron muttered softly placing a hand on her shoulder. “You’ll get better.” She smiled up at them. Never once had she such caring people around her. The only ones that seemed like they cared were Lilly, when she wasn’t freaking out, and Abby, who was her constant care taker.

“We should get her back.” Dan muttered softly. “It’s been and hour and a half.” He stated glancing at the clock. They all nodded and watched as Jade frowned again.

“Hey don’t look so glum.” Doug laughed pushing her chin to the side. “We’ll see you tomorrow night and try all over again.” Jade grinned and nodded at them. “Yay! Hugs!” He declared throwing his long arms around her. Jade giggled hugging him back tightly.

“I’ll take her back.” Dan offered. Everyone nodded.

“Now Jade. Same time tomorrow, one of us will be out here waiting okay?” Dan stated as they stood outside the gate. Jade nodded as she ducked down and pushed through the bushes. “And don’t sing the song all the way through if you know all the words. They might suspect something since you were only singing one part before.” Jade frowned. She’d never learn all the words that way then. “Write it down over and over again and if they ask you made them up.” Jade nodded again. She always did like sneaking around behind her wardens back. “See you tomorrow. Get some sleep.” He laughed walking off with a wave. Jade giggled as she ran back up the hill to the door. A smile plastered on her face as she snuck through the hallways and back into her room silently.