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Secret Songs

  Secret Songs

  JAMIE CAMPBELL

  Copyright © 2015 Jamie Campbell

  Jamie Campbell asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

  This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the author.

  “Sing like no-one’s listening..”

  Chapter 1

  Kaley was mesmerized as everyone in the school passed around her. There had to be dozens of broken hearts, hundreds of missed opportunities, and thousands of reasons to fall in and out of love.

  Every person at that school had a story to tell. She could have written a song about any of them. Their feelings, their joy, their sorrow. As she tapped her fingers on the table to an unnamed tune, she could already see the words forming into song lyrics.

  High school was just rampant for songwriting.

  One person in particular stood out above all others: Eli Stone. He was the head of the football team. A tall, strong guy with messy hair and mischievously sparkling eyes. He seemed extraordinary in an ordinary world.

  He was talking to his friends, his face animated while his hands gestured to emphasize whatever he was saying. Kaley sighed as she rested her chin on her hand and watched him.

  If there was a song she could write about Eli, it would be the tale of the fact he didn’t even know she existed. How she felt her heart race whenever he was near but she may as well have been invisible to him.

  That was her story.

  There would be no love or heartbreak for Kaley Thorne. Just missed opportunities that never even presented themselves to her to begin with. She was invisible, completely under the radar of the vast majority of her peers.

  She loved the way Eli’s face lit up when he spoke to people. He could have a whole conversation where he was completely present and in that moment. He didn’t just humor people, he really listened. If she could get him to look at her like that she knew she would be the luckiest girl alive.

  “Earth to Kaley. Come in, Kaley,” Harper said as she waved her hand in front of her best friend’s face.

  Kaley snapped back to reality, her cheeks reddening with a flush of embarrassment at getting caught staring. Again. “Sorry. I was just thinking.”

  “Daydreaming, more like it.” Harper slid into the seat next to her. She was dressed in the regal blue of the school band, ready for practice. “What are you looking at?”

  “Nothing,” Kaley replied. Quickly, too quickly to escape suspicion. Harper eyed her carefully, knowing her friend was lying but letting it drop for now. “Are you practicing outside today?”

  “Yeah, we’re doing the full routine on the football field. Want to watch? Or, you know, you could always join the band.”

  “I’ll watch.”

  Harper rolled her eyes. “When are you going to give in and just join already? You play, like, a million different instruments.”

  “I play the piano and the guitar. Hardly school band instruments.” There was no way she was joining the band, no matter how many times Harper asked. And she did ask a lot. At least once a week.

  “You could try the drums. Marty broke his hand over the weekend so we are in desperate need of a new drummer.”

  Kaley laughed, already imagining the visual. “I don’t think that will work. But thanks for the invitation.”

  Harper stood, sighing. “Fine. But I’m not going to stop asking you.”

  “I know.” She stood and followed her friend. As they left, Kaley caught one last glimpse of Eli. His girlfriend, Abigail, was now at his side. She was tugging him away from his friends, looking up at him like he was the most incredible thing in the world.

  Nobody dared to mess with Abigail. And nobody stole her boyfriends away from her. She had marked Eli as her own and that was it. End of story. Another fact Kaley was acutely aware of.

  She tore her eyes away from the couple and trailed after Harper. She took a seat in the bleachers while the band started their practice on the football field. They weren’t that bad, Kaley considered. Their lines were very straight, even if their uniforms could do with some updating.

  It wasn’t so much that she didn’t fit into the band but more the fact nobody knew how talented Kaley actually was. Nobody could play the instruments like she could, her hands moved with such ease that it was like something possessed her while playing.

  And if she joined the band she would have less time for her songwriting. Nobody knew about her songbook but it was her most prized possession. Everything she felt, heard, or wanted to say went into that songbook. She turned every emotion into a melody. It was her diary in more ways than one.

  As she watched the band, Kaley tried to get rid of the tune that had been making her fingers tap on the table. It had been with her all day, lingering in the back of her mind and begging to be extracted into a full song.

  It seemed like a happy song, or perhaps it could be slowed down to a mournful tune. She needed to find some lyrics to accompany it, only then would she know for sure. Right now, she just wished her songbook was handy so she could make a start.

  Maybe then the tune would leave her alone.

  The view of the field was suddenly blocked as Harvey stood in front of her. He hitched his backpack higher on his shoulder while plastering on a smile. “I never thought I’d find you here.”

  “You were looking for me?” Kaley asked. She didn’t remember making plans with her next door neighbor. They usually walked home together after school but she had let him know she would be late and he should go on without her.

  “Yeah, check this out.” Harvey held up a poster. It was missing all its corners from where he had torn it off the notice board.

  “A talent competition? Isn’t that a bit… outdated?”

  “Maybe. But there’s a thousand dollars of prize money up for grabs.” He sat beside her, neatly folding the poster before tucking it into his pocket. “Just think what you could do with a thousand bucks.”

  Kaley knew exactly what she would do with it – buy the Taylor guitar she had been saving for. “Pity we don’t have any talent.”

  “Yeah, there is that.” Harvey chuckled. He, like everyone else, didn’t know about her musical ability. Harper knew she could play but had never heard her. Harvey knew even less. “Maybe we could learn something? We’ve got three weeks.”

  Kaley couldn’t help but laugh. “I think I’ll give it a pass. But good luck with that.”

  “I’m not letting you off the hook that easily, Kaley Thorne. I will think of something,” Harvey declared before he left her, walking like he was on a mission. She watched him leave with a smile on her face.

  Chapter 2