SCENE 17
Mr. Bartholomew loved Mary’s performance and wished to replay it all over again. They still waited for Craig, their patience decreasing. Mr. Bartholomew wanted to find a way to make time fly faster, he couldn’t have Craig stalling or wasting time. “Mary, that was spectacular!” Mr. Bartholomew exclaimed. Mary smiled as she gained a warm feeling in her heart.
“Thank you!” She said.
“Where did you learn to sing like that?”
“I’ve had a couple of singing lessons in the past.” Mary loved singing so much that once she turned 13, her parents promised her singing lessons.
“Your performance was fantastic! Sing it just like that for the Musicale!”
“Oh, of course! I’ll sing so well, you won’t even hear it coming.” An odd choice of words to hear from Mary. Mr. Bartholomew grew a confused look on his face.
“What…?” He questioned. Dead Drum burst into the room and beelined towards Mr. Bartholomew. Before he could react, Dead Drum was covering his mouth and he got a face full of spray. He fell unconscious shortly after.
“Well played.” Mary stated. Dead Drum gave his usual grunt. “Now, where are the others?”
Craig ran for several minutes before taking a break. Killer Jam couldn’t have been behind him, not with his injured hand and Craig’s head start. The top priority right now was to find Jerald P. “Jerald! Where are you?! I need to talk to you!” The stage room was the only room where everyone tended to go to when they needed some time alone. Craig swung the doors open and caught himself staring at Mary on stage and Dead Drum setting down an unconscious Mr. Bartholomew. Mary and Dead Drum stared awkwardly at Craig. Craig’s mind was bombarded with information he couldn’t process. He wanted answers immediately. “What’s going on in here?” He asked.
“I was just practicing singing the opening song for the Musicale.” Mary replied. Craig didn’t know what to do except talk to the people who were in the room with him. “Who are you and what are you doing with Mr. Bartholomew?!” He shouted as he pointed at Dead Drum.
Dead Drum grunted nervously, his body shaking from head to toe. Killer Jam’s plan was falling apart piece by piece.
“Where is Jerald?!” Craig roared.
“Which one?” Mary asked.
“Jerald P!”
“He’s right behind you.”
Craig was sick and tired of everyone playing games with him. The only times Craig got serious were the times people played games on him. He hated it with a passion. “I’m not falling for that stupid trick!” Fire burned within his eyes as he huffed and puffed.
“I’m serious. Look behind you.”
Craig, hesitantly, turned around to see Killer Jam holding Jerald P with his right hand on Jerald P’s left shoulder. But… Jerald P didn’t look scared. Not even in the slightest. He looked irritated if anything. “Why hello again. We’ve got to stop running into each other like this.” Killer Jam spoke with a grin stretching behind his mask.
Craig froze in place while the two walked closer to him. Was Jerald P working with Killer Jam this whole time or was he just playing along with his games?! Craig wondered.
“Surprised, aren’t you?” Jerald P questioned.
“What’s going on, Jerald?” Craig asked, trying not to throw a punch at either of the two who stood before him.
“We’ve been trying all week to show you that there are consequences to your bad actions!”
“Really? And look at where that’s going.”
“And look at where you’re going!”
“Exactly!” Craig turned and ran onto the stage. He faced out towards Killer Jam and Jerald P. “I’m heading down the road to fame!”
“That’s what you keep telling yourself!” Killer Jam took his hand off Jerald P’s shoulder and joined Craig on stage. He stared him straight in the eyes, all he saw was ignorance and fury. That needed to chance now. “The road you’re taking is going to lead to destruction and you’ll be miserable!”
“Look at me now! I’m not miserable!”
“Yet.”
“Being famous is going to make me happy!”
“Not truly happy though. You won’t have any friends, you won’t have any relationships, and lastly, you won’t be happy.”
“Okay, and where’s your proof?”
Killer Jam let out a strongly frustrated sigh. “You’re missing the point!”
“You’ve been so focused on living your dream that you seem to have zoned everyone and everything out!” Jerald P added.
“But I still hang out with you guys and talk with you.”
“That doesn’t mean you want to.”
“Your friends want a relationship with you! Specifically, you! God wants a relationship with you! Specifically, you!” Killer Jam stated. Craig had no idea that Killer Jam had words of wisdom inside of him. Craig didn’t want to hear it if it had anything to do with him not becoming famous.
“And what you’re saying is…?”
“Your fame is getting in the way of your relationships with your friends and with God.”
Craig just sighed and shook his head. Killer Jam wasn’t letting Craig go until he’s finally learned his lesson. And he was going to make sure he learned it well. “Speechless? Well, let me help you out!” And he was going to sing in hopes of getting through to Craig. “I bet you’re wondering why I’ve brought you here. Don’t worry there’s nothing much to fear. Now don’t just sit there and stay quiet, it’s time for us to do some rap fighting! I’ll go first since I’m the one taking a stand against the one who thought he was the man! You’ll have to be patient and go second since you were the one who started this chaos in the first place I reckon!”
“No, I do not know what you’re talking about. I’m not the one who had a temper blowout. No, you must be insane because I never acted in vain!” Craig sang.
“Fine then, have it your way! I’m not going to be the one who has a price to pay! You seemed to be listening to the voice in your head that was loud! Did any of your ridiculous actions make you feel proud?!”
Craig’s temper had blown now. He shouted like the wail of a banshee. He grasped a microphone stand and held it high. “Oh, no.” Killer Jam uttered. Craig swung the microphone stand towards Killer Jam. He dodged it. Craig slammed it down onto Killer Jam’s left foot and he shouted in pain, it felt like someone dropping a hammer. Craig’s strength was shocking and unsettling Killer Jam kicked the microphone stand out of Craig’s hand with his right foot and continued singing. “All you wanted was the lead role in the play to receive, and threatening to sabotage the Musicale is what you believed, would solve your little problem after the auditions, just because you wanted to get some serious recognition!”
“No, it’s time for you to go out the door now. You want to rap, I’ll show you how, I’ll make it look like a snap. Try to keep the beat, and soon suffer defeat.” Craig wasn’t finished fighting yet. He was going to end it in a good old-fashioned fist fight. He threw a punch at Killer Jam. Killer Jam sidestepped the punch, Craig threw one more that ended up in Killer Jam’s hand. Killer Jam swung Craig aside, causing him to land on his back. Killer Jam walked towards him, but Craig kicked him backwards and got to his feet. Killer Jam kept his balance on his feet and proceeded with his singing. “Listen! You’ve been acting quite stupid, and I don’t have time to hear your excuses. I know that we’re all just humans, but did you have a point that needed to be proven? If so, then tell me what it is, because I’m not some kind of weird, psychic wiz. But if you’re point was to bring yourself some fame, then you’re no sweeter than aspartame!”
“Well, at least I didn’t name myself something dumb like Killer Jam, did you get that name for being the lead singer in a band? If that’s the case, then why haven’t I heard of you? Is it because your band was old and not upbeat and new? Because my singing is much greater than yours!”
“No, your singing is going to go out the doors!”
“No, my singing is much greater than yours!”
“No, your singing is going to go out the doors! All you wanted was the lead role in the play to receive, and threatening to sabotage the Musicale is what you believed, would solve your little problem after the auditions, just because you wanted to get some serious recognition!”
“No, it’s time for you to go out the door now. You want to rap, I’ll show you how, I’ll make it look like a snap. Try to keep the beat, and soon suffer defeat.”
“Listen! Look at what’s been going on, and look at this chaotic marathon, that you seemed to have caused, without taking a break or putting yourself on pause! Things are seriously getting out of control, all of this happening because you only cared about your goal! You are making everyone else upset all because you decided to make a threat!”
“No, I can’t believe what I’ve been doing, just because of the goal that I was pursuing. And I guess that you are correct, I should have showed everyone more respect. Now, I feel like I’m a failure.”
“No, you are not a failure!”
“I feel like I’m a failure.”
“No, you are not a failure! All you wanted was the lead role in the play to receive, and threatening to sabotage the Musicale is what you used to believe, would solve your little problem after the auditions, just because you wanted to get some serious recognition!”
“Now, it’s time for me to go out the door now. You wanted to rap, you showed me how, you made it look like a snap. You really kept the beat, and I suffered defeat.”
“All you wanted was the lead role in the play to receive, and threatening to sabotage the Musicale is what you used to believe, would solve your little problem after the auditions, just because you wanted to get some serious recognition!”
“Now, it’s time for me to go out the door now. You wanted to rap, you showed me how, you made it look like a snap. You really kept the beat, and I suffered defeat.” Craig wanted to leave the camp right then and there. He couldn’t take the guilt he was feeling, his heart ached, and his mind spun like a tornado. But Killer Jam had one last thing to sing. “But wait, you don’t need to feel like you’re done, all you need to do is apologize to everyone. I can guarantee that you will be forgiven. Because love is what everyone is to be given. Craig, you are saved!”
The singing was done. The only thing left was to see if Craig had really changed. Craig exhaled deeply and walked closer to Killer Jam. “Craig, this is what we’ve been trying to show you all along. That you can still be an amazing, talented singer and still have friends and still use your talent for God’s glory. Just because you didn’t get the lead role, doesn’t make you a bad singer or performer.” Killer Jam commented. Unexpectedly, Craig gave Killer Jam a hug. It felt nice, and Craig felt better about what had been going on. Killer Jam gave Craig a hug back, showing that he was being sincere in wanting Craig to change.
“Thank you.” Craig and Killer Jam stopped hugging. “Thank you all for doing this. I seriously needed this.”
Killer Jam pulled out his cell phone and dialed in Sadistic Synth’s number. Luckily, he answered, but he didn’t say anything. He must’ve had a headache from when Jerald P slammed that snare drum into his head. “Let them go. Our plan was a success. Craig has changed.” Killer Jam said. A light cheer came from the other end of the line and Sadistic Synth did as he was commanded. Not long after hanging up, all of the students that were supposedly kidnapped ran into the stage room and cheered for Craig. Craig couldn’t hold his tears back. He didn’t realize how much these people cared about him and to go to great lengths to make him become a better person.
“See, Craig?” Killer Jam placed his right hand on Craig’s shoulder. “Nothing actually happened to your friends.”
Craig smiled genuinely and faced his friends. His heart raced like a speeding vehicle, but he calmed himself by breathing deeply. “I would like to sincerely apologize for my inappropriate and naive behavior earlier and throughout this week. I was strongly focused more on my goal than I was on you guys, and even on God. Can you guys forgive me?”
Everyone shouted, “Of course!” without hesitation. Craig jumped off stage and gave everyone bear hugs. He couldn’t have been happier to see all of them. Mr. Bartholomew watched and smiled, but Dead Drum had him tied up to make sure he couldn’t run off. “Can someone untie me now, please?” He politely asked.
“Oh, yeah. Sorry about that.” Killer Jam jumped off stage and walked over to him. He untied the man and set the ropes aside on a chair. Mr. Bartholomew and Killer Jam stood side by side and scanned over the crowd in front of them. Killer Jam was proud that his plan had worked, but he couldn’t take credit. He knew that God was the one who gave him the idea in the first place. Killer Jam got a pat on the shoulder from Mr. Bartholomew. He was glad Killer Jam’s worked too. Not only was his plan beneficial in helping change Craig, but it was a lot of fun. It made him feel young at heart again. Craig continued to give everyone hugs while Killer Jam and Mr. Bartholomew stayed behind and talked to each other a bit. “Your guys’ plan really did work. I’m impressed, Jerald.” Mr. Bartholomew stated.
“Thank you, sir.” Killer Jam responded.
“I’m glad to see that Craig has finally changed.”
“Definitely.”
Craig stopped giving everyone hugs and exclaimed, “Now, who wants to sing together?!” The students cheered and shouted in agreement. With that, they all celebrated what an awesome week they’ve had together. But that week had come to an end.
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