Breaking Down the Unbreakable

Friday was here. It was 5 o'clock and I was standing in Evan's closet looking at myself in the mirror just like I had been 2 weeks before.
And somehow the girl looking back at me seemed like a completely different girl. She didn't look any different physically, but I could see the change in her eyes.
2 weeks ago, I'd been the army brat. I was the girl that didn't care about anyone other than her grandpa and couldn't care less what anyone thought about her. I could take care of myself and I didn't need anyone telling me everything would be okay or making sure I wasn't going to fall.
Now I felt different. Stronger in a way, yet weaker too. I was still the army brat, but not to the point where I didn't need anyone. I had a group of friends I loved and had fun with. I care about them and I needed them. I had a boyfriend for the first time, and I knew that he was special. I'd only known him for 2 weeks, so I could say I loved him, but there was definitely strong emotional attachment. I never wanted to let him go.
But even though I felt like I needed them now like I needed oxygen, I knew that I wasn't dependent on them. I could still take care of myself, but I now had a reason to fight for other than my own heart.
Needless to say, I liked this new me. She was strong and beautiful and loved. And it felt good.
"That dress is so hot!" Evan was standing behind me examining the dress she'd thrown at me.
I looked at myself in the mirror again this time taking in the long black dress I had on. It was a simple black dress, which was something I liked. But Evan had decided I needed to look sexy too, so it was a halter that showed off most of my back.
They'd gotten to my hair again as well, this time it didn't take nearly as long. Ali had simply straightened it and pinned it off to one side with a white flowed beret. But I told Evan that if she was going to do my make-up it had to look natural. She didn't look so happy and talked me into some smoky eye shadow.
So we all sat in Evan's room, each of us in our black dresses. Evan's was a shiny satin spaghetti strap with some intricate cut-outs in the back, and Ali's was a short cocktail dress with deep v-necks in the front and back. She was wearing a black undershirt because she said Han would kill her for showing that much skin.
"So what about my dress for the duet with Seth?" I looked at Evan.
"What about it?"
"Can I see it?"
"Not until curtain time." She shared a mischievous glance with Ali before deciding it was time to go.
2 hours passed in the blink of an eye. In what felt like a few seconds, it was 7 and the concert was starting. We'd done a quick rehearsal before, just to makes sure everyone knew when and where they were going.
And at 7 sharp, we were on stage singing our first song.
When we didn't have to be on stage, Seth and I found ourselves in the hallway by the dressing rooms just holding each other. He reassured me that our song would be great and I had nothing to worry about, but he didn't even know the half of it.
Han had told us our song was the last one before the finale. No pressure, right?
Soon it was intermission, and I was nearly hyperventilating in the dressing room next to Ali.
"Relax. Everything is going to be fabulous!"
"You don't know that!"
"Yes I do!"
And somehow, that made me relax. Really, I think she actually has some sort of power. And at that moment, I didn't care how weird it was, because it helped.
Six songs later, I was in the dressing room again and Evan was pulling a dress out of the garment bag she'd brought.
"Put it on." She handed me a long white dress and I nearly fell over.
"Evan, this is too much."
"If you don't put it on, I'm going to put it on you myself."
"Are you sure?"
"Riles, you're gorgeous, and we found this for you on purpose. You deserve to look great tonight."
I hugged them with everything I had before they shoved me away so I could change.
5 minutes later, I was standing in an amazing dress and walking to meet Seth who, as Evan had promised, matched me. He was smiling at me in his black pants and black button up shirt, rolled at the sleeves with a white tie. Man did he look amazing.
"You look more like an angel than ever." He took my hand and kissed the top of it making me giggle.
"Our last song of the evening is a song by 2 of our seniors, Riley Hart and Seth Rider." Han's voice fell away and applause rang through the auditorium.
Seth lead me up to the stage and sat at the piano. I stood next to it holding a microphone and as he started the introduction, I spoke into the microphone.
"This song means a lot to me, and Seth. And we'd like to dedicate it to some very important people."
Seth, who wasn't expecting me to speak, gave me a strange look as I motioned to the side of the stage where 2 people had just appeared. Avery was smiling at me as he pushed Lauren in a wheelchair to the other side of the piano.
As I started singing, I noticed Lauren was holding a photograph in her hands. It was a picture of my mom.
" When you look back on times we had
I hope you smile
And know that through the good and through the bad
I was on your side when nobody could hold us down
We claimed the brightest star
And we, we came so far
And no they won't forget

Whenever you remember times gone by
Remember how we held our heads so high
When all this world was there for us
And we believed that we could touch the sky
Whenever you remember, I'll be there
Remember how we reached that dream together
Whenever you remember

When you think back on all we've done
I hope you're proud
When you look back and see how far we've come
It was our time to shine
And nobody could hold us down
They thought they'd see us fall
But we, we stood so tall
And no we won't forget

Whenever you remember times gone by
Remember how we held our heads so high
When all this world was there for us
And we believed that we could touch the sky
Whenever you remember, I'll be there
Remember how we reached that dream together
Whenever you remember
Yeah, Oh

We claimed the brightest star
And we, we came so far
You know that we, we showed them all
And no they won't forget.
Yeah

Whenever you remember times gone by
Remember how we held our heads so high
When all this world was there for us
And we believed that we could touch the sky
Whenever you remember, I'll be there
Remember how we reached that dream together
Whenever you remember

Whenever you remember

Oh, whenever you remember "
The song ended and I didn't even notice the tear that had fallen from my eye.
Then I heard Seth's voice.
"What Riley doesn't know is that I have a surprise for her too." He motioned to the side of the stage that Lauren and Avery had appeared and I noticed 2 more figured coming in from off stage.
And more tears came to my eyes. Standing next to each other, smiling at me stood my dad and my brother, Jayden. I took a few hesitant steps forward to make sure they were really there before running into their arms.
It was then that I realized the applause coming from the audience. I looked out to see everyone standing and clapping. They didn't know how important this was to me, but for whatever reason they were cheering for me.
I released my family before walking back over to Seth and giving him a hug and pulling him into a kiss right there on stage in front of everyone.
At that moment, I decided I'd been wrong, because right then, everything was perfect.
And right then I decided that sometimes we have to breakdown the walls we thought were indestructible in order to find what we're looking for.
And it is worth every ounce of energy it takes to destroy those blockades.

The End