JONATHAN'S POV

"Surely not." Danielle said the word that had been on the tip of my tongue.

"Maybe it's just one of the props to make the room look full." I said, even though we both knew that couldn't have been possible. The machine was the biggest item in the room and if we still believed that, the music stickers on the wall told us exactly what that room was meant for. I didn't even remember the last time I'd listened to any music, apart from the ones they play on the car radio. As to singing, I couldn't remember the last time I'd attempted it.

The speaker made a sound and we both turned to it. "Congrats on passing your first hurdle. We understand how much fun you might have had there, but this place is different. You see the machine in front of you, take a look at it. That will determine whether you leave this room smiling or not…"

I glanced at Danielle who was looking at the karaoke machine. She shrugged when she felt my eyes on her, and we turned to the speaker again.

".…that is a karaoke machine like you must have figured out but, like always, with a twist. The machine has something it looks for beyond a nice voice and singing, and you have to prove that you have it before it rewards you. To say it simply, you have to get 100 points before you can be considered successful. Wishing you luck. I'll see you in the next one." And the speaker fell silent.

A hundred points. Weren't we being set up for failure? I looked at Danielle. "Do you sing?"

She gave me a pitiful smile. "I'm horrible at it. You?"

I smiled. "The last time I did, I was told my ear had a purpose to listen and if I really loved music, I had to be satisfied with just listening and not bother opening my mouth."

She laughed, the brief tension evaporating from her face. "So what do we do now? It's been a while since I've been to a karaoke place and I don't even know many songs."

I picked up the two microphones, switched it on and held one out to Danielle.

She collected it with a frown. "You weren't lying when you said your singing sucked, right? It won't be fair if I start singing, and I realize you just said that to make me feel better. I'll really do something I will regret." She finished playfully.

I bent so I was on eye level with her. "Ditto."

She nodded, and I turned on the machine, and we started going through the collection that was available. After I'd passed about twenty songs, neither of us were sure of the tune, Danielle sighed. "If I had my phone on me, I would have been able to Google easy songs."

I nodded in agreement and an idea came to mind. I started typing out 'The star-spangled ba…'

Danielle choked. "Is that the National anthem?"

Sure it was, and it was available on the machine. "It's also a song." I replied when she kept on looking at me like she wasn't sure if she should insult or compliment me.

She sighed, deciding on neither. "Alright. Fine. But won't we be fined or maybe arrested for ruining this honorable song?"

I narrowed my eyes. "Are you preparing me by making it appear worse? Your voice can't be that bad."

She eyed me and pressed the remote for the song to begin, all the while staring at me like she was challenging me. The song started and she started singing along. The first line was perfect, and I opened my mouth to complain about her deceit when she started the second line.

It wasn't bad, per se, at least she was using the right tone to sing. The only problem was her voice was deeper than other women and the high notes were battered. I continued singing with her before she could begin to feel self-conscious.

I knew the moment she stopped singing to stare at me. "Are you doing that on purpose?" She asked. I shook my head and she nearly fell over laughing.

"Wow. You really didn't exaggerate people's reaction." She said, and I nodded, also laughing. I could understand. I was one of the people that were completely tone-deaf. I hadn't realized I was singing horribly until people had sat me down and advised me not to sing again.

At that time, it was when I still had enough freedom, and I'd felt I could ignore the warnings which I'd done. Until my parents had banned me from singing, altogether. That had also killed whatever love I could have had for music.

I kept on singing until the anthem was finished and turned to Danielle. "How did I do?" I asked innocently, and she did fall to the floor laughing this time.

She stood up. "Why did I assume you will be perfect at everything? Singing? Cooking? Being a businessman? This is strange." She explained.

I shrugged. "It's really hard to teach someone who is tone-deaf how to sing. I'm not hearing how what I'm singing is bad."

She raised her eyebrows. "Even when you listen to a replay of what you sang?"

I nodded and glanced at her when the score came out. We had gotten twenty-four And we needed a hundred points.

Danielle's eyes widened. "They mean a cumulative score of hundred, right?"

The voice through the speaker laughed. "You played five minutes away already. Good luck to you."

I glanced at the speaker and felt like kicking it. "Let's try something else. What do you think the machine wants to hear? I'm sure it isn't a perfect voice."

Danielle shrugged. "Maybe harmony?" She suggested and I laughed.

"Oh. You don't want to hear harmony from me." I'd teased Danielle about her competitiveness, but I was also competitive, if not more than she was. I believed everybody that did business needed to be.

She sat on the couch that was in the room. "Let's try something simpler. The National anthem is one of the hardest songs to sing. Let's try happy birthday to you."

She proposed, and I nodded, typing in the word and sure enough, it was there. "Do you have any strategy we could adopt?"

She thought for a moment, her eyes going up. I wasn't going to mention it to her ever, but she looked a little weird doing that. Her eyebrows would clinch together as she frowned, and her eyes would be looking at a random space up, but it made her look determined and focused. I'd never been disappointed in whatever her mind cooked up, so whatever her eyes looked like when they cooked it up wasn't my business.

"I'll change it to my comfortable key, and you can sing a little quietly. Is that okay?" She asked hesitantly. I realized why she had sounded hesitant.

"I don't get offended because my tone isn't comfortable for others. I've heard it a lot to care." Particularly from my parents.

She shrugged. "Be that as it may. It will not be a nice thing to hear, especially as a young person."

I shook my head. "It doesn't bother me now so there's no need to be hesitant about saying it." I glanced at the timer. "We have seven minutes left, let's see what your strategy will bring."

She narrowed her eyes and I laughed. "Don't worry. If we are unable to finish before time, I'll not see it as your fault."

She scrunched her nose, frowning at me and I briefly considered pinching it because of how cute she looked when she did that. I mentally slapped my hand. What being had stolen my mind because it was obvious I was out of my mind.

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