To be read after "My Brother's Keeper 5"
Spirit Week meant everyone had to see Ms. Spectra for counseling, and Jacob's appointment was on Monday. He went into the appointment after Jimmy, who looked forlorn when he came out of the office.
"Jimmy, what's up?" Jacob asked his brother.
Jimmy glanced at him, then returned his gaze to his feet. "Nothing. I'll see you at home." And he shuffled off without looking back.
"You're turn, young man," Ms. Spectra said to Jacob.
Worried, Jacob walked into the freezing office. He wrapped his arms around himself and asked, "What's with Jimmy?"
"I'm afraid that falls under patient confidentiality," Ms. Spectra said sympathetically. "He'll be alright after he works through some things. Now, how about you? Are you doing okay with your art obsession?"
"Obsession?" Jacob asked. "I wouldn't call it an obsession. I just like art."
Ms. Spectra touched his shoulder in a caring way. "You don't think you're not good enough?"
Jacob sighed, suddenly upset. "Well, maybe… Sometimes I wonder if I'll ever be as good as famous artists I like."
"You'll probably never be as good as them," Ms. Spectra said.
Jacob's heart sank. She was right, he would never be good enough. It took him a moment to realize Ms. Spectra was pushing him out the door.
She sang, "But that's no reason to stop trying!"
"Jacob, you okay?" Jo asked.
He looked up to see his sister sitting in the "Happy Chair" waiting for her turn.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he lied, feeling deja vu. It was just like his interaction with Jimmy. He gave a fake smile as Jo went into Ms. Spectra's office, and dropped it as soon as the door closed.
In art class that day, Jacob didn't feel like drawing anything. What was the point if he wasn't any good? Kamal noticed and nudged him.
"Hey, what's going on with you?" he whispered to Jacob.
"I'm a no-good artist," Jacob lamented. "What's the point of trying?"
Kamal frowned. "What are you talking about? You're better than anyone else in this class!"
"If you say so," Jacob said.
"Just pick up your pencil and start drawing," Kamal said. "You don't want to fail this assignment, do you?"
Jacob sighed. "No, I guess not."
At the pep rally on Wednesday, everyone was listless, even the cheerleaders.
"Two… four… six… eight…" they droned out.
Mr. Lancer stalked up to them and said, "Hey! What's the matter with you kids? You call that a cheer?" He took the pompoms from one of the cheerleaders and made his own cheer. "We've got spirit, yes we do! We've got the spirit, how 'bout you?"
The student body just stared at him.
Jacob tried to listen to the speaker, but his brain was in a fog. Something about a centennial year and dominoes… He didn't really care. He just wanted to go home and sleep. He watched the dominoes without interest until they hit the button at the end, causing a bright flash of light and a crackling sound.
That woke him up. He sat up straight and blinked the spots away. When the smoke cleared, the speaker was gone.
A chant started up, low and slow at first, then getting more and more enthusiastic. Jacob joined in the cheer, pumping his fist in the air.
"Jazz! Jazz! Jazz!"
It was the name of the speaker. Everyone wanted her to come back after her amazing disappearing act. For the first time in days, energy sizzled through the air.
That day and the day after, Jacob sketched the dominoes as they were after getting knocked down. He didn't remember what they looked like before then, but that was okay. He felt better about his talent, and that was all that mattered.