Chereads / The Pariahs: A New Chapter / Chapter 4 - Music Festival Arc: Chapter 3 Brand New Day

Chapter 4 - Music Festival Arc: Chapter 3 Brand New Day

Masahiro was sleeping soundly in his bed until he was awakened, this time he was awakened by James Hetfield of Metallica. he suddenly got up to bed to take a shower, brushed his teeth, and combed his hair. the Japanese tiptoed to Riley's room, quietly reached to the air horn, and blasted at him as his alarm clock wasn't loud enough to wake the 11-year-old up, it did, He fell on his bed while being bewildered as Masahiro interrupt his dream.

"good morning, sleepyhead!" Masahiro said while having a shit-eating grin

Riley wanted to scream at his face but he never said a word as the little kid know what he did to the brunet the other day, Riley took the same matter as Masahiro and they sat down for breakfast, they said their goodbyes to start their days in school to work. Masahiro insisted to bike his way to school rather than taking a bus there, he wore a black hoodie with a white T-shirt, jeans, and Nike sneakers while peddling like he's Lance Armstrong

Harvey Woods High School was considered the largest private school in the Midwest, before it was Harvey Woods, it was supposed to be a golf course and a resort until the person who started the project was halted due to embezzlement of construction funds, it was resumed with new management and opted for a school instead, the facilities consist of a theater, a sports gymnasium to fit indoor sports and indoor pool, baseball field, golf course, football field, soccer field, rugby field, hockey rink, and track and field. four school buildings that were divided into four to accommodate the staggering number of students, the school's parking lot is wide enough to park not only staff cars (even motorcycles) and student vehicles, even school buses as well, and there's a terminal for extended golf carts for those who are too lazy to walk their butts out to navigate the entire school, it was nearly mistaken as a university due to landmass, originally Harvey Woods used to be an average size of a normal high school but somebody burned it down during the summer of 2013, the arsonists were still on the run today

the delayed project for the golf course resort combo ended up for a school instead and the financier of the construction came from Everett Dawson, the multi-millionaire and the alumni of the burned down the school, and the donation drive from across the country.

Masahiro made it on time and parked the bike on the bike rack while students are parking their vehicles at the parking lot, some of which were drove to school by their parents or a chauffeur from the rich kids (there's even a 1955 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud III and the Silver Shadow of '73), one of the cars that caught his eye was a red Chevrolet Camaro with Black racing stripes, the model seemed to came out in 2014, the driver of the said vehicle look down the protagonist for cycled his way to school with a Guitar case still linked to his backpack (those stitches are strong as fuck) but he didn't care until he said without skipping a beat

"nice car out here for a driver acting like a total prick on the first day of school"

"say that again, punk?" he snarled at him

"oh, nothing, just make sure you don't park your car at the PWD Parking Spot" Masahiro replied

the Japanese aren't wrong either, the Camaro was indeed parked in the PWD parking space but the driver doesn't have time for it, Masahiro took his bag and case and went inside the school, every new student was handed out maps of the school to avoid getting lost or late in class, lockers are also available for new students if they walk up to the reception area, they were given keys to their respective lockers while thinking about their locker combination, some of which put dates on their birthdays, their parents birthdays, anniversaries, and all the jazz. Masahiro meanwhile, used the date where Freddie Mercury laid down to rest in his Garden Lodge Mansion of Kensington, United Kingdom.

the locker space was enough to fit the guitar case he had brought to school, The Gibson Les Paul Junior White, and a few of his textbooks, he was introduced to the class as the new transfer student from Japan with Mrs. Billie Jean Jackson, she have a long frizzy hair with a yellow dress, Black skin, white unbuttoned polo, and high heels. her age was around her mid 30's but she's a beauty

"Hi, I'm Masahiro Kishinuma from Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. It's nice to meet you all" he greeted

"Nice to meet you Mr. Kishinuma, I hope you have a good time here in Harvey Woods, you may sit down with Keshawn," Mrs. Billie Jean said

Masahiro walks down the row to take a seat while the prick from earlier tried to pull his seat to make him fall but Keshawn stops him to do so, the brunet sat down with his backpack and calmly listen to the lesson, the classroom layout looks like a normal classroom while the seat colors are the school colors: Black and Golden Yellow, their mascot were Sir Scott Woods of Harvey Woods High School's varsity team. during the passing period, Masahiro switched his textbooks to the appropriate subject and went to class, next subject was Literature.

the teacher wore a teal polo shirt with brown pants, his name was Mr. Edward Johnson but the students called him Mr. Squidward due to his dry sense of humor, wit, and pessimistic attitude that matched the personality of the cartoon character, minus the clarinet gig. recess has started and students were gone in a flash while Masahiro was left behind

"Mr. Kishinuma? Recess already started" Mr. Edward said in a monotone voice

"wait, oh, my bad Mr. Johnson" Masahiro replied while looking at his watch

"don't worry about it, I did that before since college" he also said

Masahiro got up and went back to his locker to fish out his guitar case and entered the cafeteria, the school cafeteria was as big as the food court of Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, it was different than any other school cafeteria exists in this country as the food was made by the best quality rather than eating the same junk as other schools made, vending machines filled with soda, chips, biscuits, and chocolates that were ready to serve you with a dollar in your hand or a water fountain with a spout for those who bring a tumbler to school.

the snack of the day was Cuban Sandwich and Breakfast Burritos, both have the meat and vegan options in the bay while the cafeteria cooks were noted for possible allergens when cooking as well, some of which are graduated from culinary school, when the Japanese received a wrapped sandwich with an accompaniment of French fries, a bowl of salad, a small milk carton, and a side of napkins. Masahiro meets up with Keshawn and his friends, the brunet then came back with a cold can of of iced coffee

"yo, you new here?" the black teenager asked

"yes I do, do you have a problem with that?" Masahiro said

"holy shit, you're the guy at the Food Court yesterday" the Black girl asked another

"yes, that's me. I'm that Asian Kid that sang Somebody To Love with the Choir" he replied while eating the Cubano

"sweet, I'm Keshawn and these are my cousins Felicia and Brian. and you must be Masa- I didn't get the memo earlier"

"Kishinuma, Masahiro, you can call me Hiro if you're having trouble pronouncing my name" Masahiro introduced to them

"what's up man," Brian said

The Japanese made friends with the African Americans while eating lunch, the Camaro driver and his goons decided to mess with the weaker students to appease their amusement, Keshawn and his cousins groaned at how much an asshole to that guy, Masahiro finished his sandwich and the salad was next to his gullet while he washed it down with canned ice coffee

"it's Jeremy, the popular kid, and a popular asshole" Felicia groaned

"tch, he's the guy who drove a red Camaro? he's gonna get his car towed away, must have been a couple of times he did it before coming back to school" Masahiro shakes his head with disbelief

"How did you know that?" she asked

"I'm guessing parking fees that he didn't pay for a long time, he's a rich kid for what I know" the brunet replied

"I'll give ya cash if that's legit," Keshawn said while pulling out dollar bills

"deal, If I don't, I will give you the same amount" Masahiro replied again

"yo, Jeremy! your car's getting towed away!" the student said out loud

Jeremy bolted to the parking lot and he saw his priceless car getting towed away by a towing company, Masahiro, Keshawn, and Felicia ran outside to see Jeremy's misfortune and the Japanese won the bet of ten dollars while muttering 'called it', the blonde driver heard it, rallied up to Masahiro and pinned him on the pillar, the blondes' eyes are filled with rage while the Japanese act cool with eye contact

"What did you just said!?" Jeremy shouted on top of his lungs

"Easy big guy, I didn't call the towing company to do that, if you shouldn't have paid your ticket fees" Masahiro calmly replied

"say that again!?" Jeremy raised his fist to Masahiro

"go ahead, I dare you, don't try my patience or you'll regret it" he barked back to him

"Hey hey hey! that's enough, he has nothing to do with your car, man!" Keshawn shouted

"you know what, fine! I'll give him a duel, no fistfights, however, a simple guitar show-off. make the best Guitarist wins" Jeremy declared

Jeremy declared a guitar show off in the school gymnasium tomorrow at 3:15

o' clock, the group of five came back to the cafeteria until the bell rang, Brian took guard of his Bass and thanked him for keeping in watch from possible thieves, the bass later came back to his locker while retrieving his textbooks for Mr. Johnathan Beach and Ms. Isabelle DiMartino.

their teacher was in his early 50s, donning grey hair over Black with a blue suit and a burgundy red necktie, blue eyes, slightly tanned skin, and a clean-shaven face, the students and staff called him Miami due to being born and raised in Tampa Bay, Florida or a play on his surname, the class may be boring but the teacher added some flair for brightening up their mood to listen.

the next class is Mathematics, Masahiro's weak point, the teacher in her late 20s wore a red button-up shirt with a pink and orange skirt, red high heels, tanned skin, 36 D Cup Bust, Black eyes, and Black long hair with a yellow hairband. everyone else fell in love, especially gays, bisexuals, and lesbians, with her due to her makeup and great personality, but she's not the one who you messing with, she practiced Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu during her college days and she's still a pro today, she's a seventh-degree black belt from the martial arts she skilled for, Masahiro meanwhile, has a brown belt in Krav Maga before moving to the United States and he's close to grasping for the black belt as soon as he returned to Japan.

Good thing the caffeine he brought during recess wake him up during Math Class, in which he's getting a hard time finding a way to solve the question from the whiteboard to the exam papers, the bell rings for lunch and everyone scurried out to the cafeteria to eat lunch.

the meal of the day was Grilled Chicken Breast with Succotash, Salisbury Steak, and Corn Chowder, the school's population was around 70% White, 30% Black, 20% Asians, 10% Others (Europeans, Native Americans, and Hispanics). same table, but different meals, Brian got Salisbury Steak while Felicia helped herself with Corn Chowder, and lastly, Keshawn and Masahiro had Grilled Chicken with Succotash, the same talk about everything until the Japanese pulled out his guitar.

he twists the knobs of the guitar while plucking the strings for the right tunes until Masahiro build up the rhythm to American Idiot by Green Day while using a 1970 British Sixpence Coin as the plectrum, the only thing was missing was the Amplifier, ever since his guitar was destroyed by a religious zealot, he was receiving donations from people who are concerned about his downfall, it was estimated about $40,400 (¥4 182, 127.20), five guitars (ranging from Fender Stratocaster to the Sterling Maj100), two Bass Guitars (both Fender Precision Bass but different color scheme), $400 soundproof padding, three guitar pedals, an acoustic guitar (it was made in the Philippines), ten guitar picks, and three Amplifiers. the 10,550 was sent to his bank account while he gave his mother the other half for the financials, which he thanked the donators for their kind help and especially with the guitars and equipment.

Masahiro received a message from his mother, she said that the music equipment that he received from the donations were sent to America by Mr. E while the postal fees are answered by him, he exactly knew he's gonna beat Jeremy from a guitar show.

as Lunch was finished while his guitar was exchanged for a science textbook while getting ready for Ms. Wimbledon, her build was similar to Mrs. Jackson but dreadlocks instead of the usual frizzy hair, but she wore a black T-shirt with AC/DC written in red text, red/blue/green/yellow checkered skirt (with black shorts underneath), and brown flat shoes. rumors said that she and Ms. Natalie Agreste were engaged last year before Nicholas Williams' demise.

the rumors might be correct due to their engagement ring had their initials etched in there. during class, Ms. Wimbledon noticed the transferee and he quickly introduces himself as the teacher didn't get the memo earlier but she understands now and continued the lesson until the bell rings to Foreign Class

each student are assigned to each Foreign Language taught in the curriculum, some picked Spanish, some also tried Japanese, the other one is Mandarin, while Masahiro checked on the schedule for his Foreign Language Classes: it's German from Monday to Tuesday while French starts in Wednesday to Thursday, Masahiro sat down with his fellow batchmates who are ready to learn German and boy, it was a rough time for Masahiro to learn the language, their German Teacher is a former Border Patrol Guard for the Grenzpolizei during the mid 80's, he took up as a teacher after the Berlin Wall was demolished and immigrated to America as he was trialed along with his colleagues at the border but he was released as the former never killed an escapee during his service.

at music class, Mrs. Hammersmith teach about the fundamentals of music and arts, in which some students know how to play an instrument of their choice, as the bell signaled that the class is concluded, Masahiro waved goodbye to Keshawn and Company while Jeremy flipped the bird at Masahiro for towing his ride (he got picked up by his dad), which the brunet decided to take up driving lessons as soon as he gets a part-time job to buy a second-hand car, as he passed by to a used car dealership, an array of vehicles from Ford to Honda are up to a sale, there's a few Lada 2106 that were imported from Europe and are up to sale for a two thousand dollars for the car due to the rarity of the brand being sold in the United States, there's even a few Mustangs, both 60s to 70s and 2000s models are also available for sale, even Pick-Ups, SUVs, Station Wagons, and Sedans too, especially Crown Victoria and Taurus (both Civilian and Police Interceptor models)

Masahiro shrugged off and continue to peddle back to the Collins' Residence while the owner of the dealership sighed as his potential customer had no intention to buy their products even though the Japanese didn't have a driver's license yet.

at the house, Robert had a search for a great dinner recipe while dozen of cookbooks are sprawled out of the kitchen, Sheryl won't be home until nine o'clock due to her stint in the IT Department of a large office firm, she got a $30,000 salary, combined with the current income of $40,000 from working at the music studio called Orpheus Recording Studio, one of the finest music studio in America and Robert worked there as an audio engineer and a sound operator. back in the kitchen, Masahiro parked the bike inside the garage while placing his backpack and the guitar case in the sofa to see the patriarch of the Collins Family, confused about the dinner that he's going to cook while his wife is in overtime, cookbooks revealing cuisine from another culture, luckily they already brought groceries before Masahiro arrived in Michigan.

"Hiro! thank God you came home, did you received my text before going home?" Robert asked

"shit, I forgot" he cussed back

"Hiro, language! good thing Riley isn't home to hear that, he was at his friend's house from soccer practice" he replied back

"Does he? I would teach him some skills or two, what are we cooking tonight?" Masahiro asked Robert

"I dunno, how about the son of a gun Stew?"

"too cumbersome to make"

"how about Rotisserie Chicken?"

"Sounds great but that's gonna hurt your gas bill"

"you got a point their kid, what about Beef Stroganoff?"

"brilliant, I got Boneless Ribeye in the freezer and pasta at the pantry, do you want with rice or potatoes?

"potatoes, rice gonna take longer without a rice cooker"

"good, we got leftover Chowder last night, you can reheat it while I'm cooking dinner, there's a lot of packages in your room"

Masahiro nodded while dumping the Chowder into a pot and reheat while going to his room and changed, he saw guitar cases filled with five guitars while crates of Amplifiers and wires, the soundproof paddings, and a parcel of Guitar picks that are ready to be used for a guitar session until he installed the soundproof paddings in the walls, which it takes a minute without any hassle due to minimal posters that were hung up on the drywall, flick the switches of the Amplifier, insert the wire to the guitar and strummed a few solos until Robert send him a text message to eat dinner while finishing the Thunderstruck solo from AC/DC, the guitar he shredded earlier was the red Sterling Maj100 John Petrucci Signature.

they ate dinner with Riley after heading home soon from his friend's house from practice, Masahiro decided to give away one of his guitar and a few pieces of equipment after dinner but that was in the meantime, right now, he's prepared for bed and slept in. around midnight, Riley knocked on his room while Masahiro got up and quietly cussed, opened the door to reveal a weeping eleven-year-old boy, wearing yellow pajamas with blue threads and socks while the Japanese wore a black tank top with blue and white stripes boxer shorts covering his plain white underwear and barefoot, his hair was about to be messy in the morning until Riley showed up

"you had a Nightmare?" He bluntly asks Riley

"yes, but I can't wake up mom and dad right now" Riley replied while rubbing his eyes

"I see, there's an inflatable mattress in the closet. grab your blanket and pillows, and I'm sorry for waking you up in the morning" Hiro also said

"Nah, that's alright. I think I deserve it for being a jerk to you that day" Riley also replied

Masahiro went downstairs to grab an air compressor for the inflatable mattress while Riley got his blanket, pillow, and his baby blue alarm clock. the air compressor is loud but the soundproof paddings muffled the sound of the noisy motor. Riley only to gave notice of the guitars and Amplifiers that Masahiro already have while boxes filled with packing peanuts are about to be thrown out of the trash, the guitars are lined up with guitar stands while the Amps are stacked into twos while the pedals and wires are stored in the closet, the guest bedroom turned into a mini music studio but minus the recording booth

Both Riley and Masahiro fell asleep after Masahiro turned off the alarm from his cellphone as the blonde kid brought his alarm clock with him, double the chances of getting a headache tomorrow morning, and hopefully, he's gonna beat Jeremy's ass tomorrow with music.