Chapter 7: Professor Zack

<🎧 Song Recommendation: Home by Phillip Phillips. (has nothing to do with Chapter’s music>

...

After a quick, agonizingly healthy dinner at the campus cafeteria, Von made his way back to the dorm.

It was already six-thirty in the evening. When he pushed the door open, he wasn’t surprised to find Zack sitting at his desk, surrounded by thick textbooks and a laptop.

"Hey, Zack. What’s up, man?"

Zack took off his headphones and turned away from the screen, his eyes scanning Von up and down. His gaze lingered on the empty corner where the TV used to be, then settled on the black gig bag slung over Von’s shoulder.

"Von," Zack greeted, his tone polite but puzzled. "I couldn’t help but notice the room is significantly emptier than it was this morning. What did you do with all your electronics? And... is that a guitar?"

Von grinned, dropping onto his bed. He was exhausted after the long day, but he felt accomplished.

"Yep," he said, patting the case. "I sold all of ’em to get this bad boy."

Zack raised an eyebrow. "I never knew you played the guitar. Frankly, I didn’t even know you were interested in music beyond listening to it."

Von shrugged as he unzipped the case, revealing the scratched wooden body of his new partner. "Well, now you know."

"I assume you didn’t attend any classes today, then?" Zack asked, sounding less like a roommate and more like a concerned parent. "Are you coming from the pawn shop?"

Von bit his lip wryly. This was exactly why he used to hate Zack in his past life. The guy was a walking interrogation room.

He always wanted to know everything, always had to be the responsible one. It used to feel condescending. Now, Von realized it was just who Zack was, and he didn’t mind it as much.

"Well, I did go to the pawn shop," Von admitted. "But then I went busking at South Beach. Lincoln Road."

"Lincoln Road?" Zack looked genuinely surprised. "Wow. That’s... bold. How did it go? Did you perform well?"

Von stopped tuning the guitar and raised his head proudly. "Of course I did. I made a hundred bucks!"

"A hundred dollars on your first day?" Zack nodded appreciatively. "That’s impressive for a beginner. You must be quite talented."

A thought crossed Von’s mind. He needed fans. Zack was right here.

"By the way," Von said casually. "I’m trying to build a following. How’d you like to become my second-ever fan?"

Zack smiled politely. "Sure, Von. I’ll be your fan."

Von waited.

[Current Fans: 1]

The number didn’t budge.

Von sighed. ’Either he’s a terrible liar, or this System has high standards.’

He looked at Zack. "You don’t believe me, do you? Why don’t I play something for you? I’m actually curious to hear what you think."

Zack turned his chair around fully. "With pleasure. I would love to hear it."

Von positioned the guitar, and began with the intro.

🎸 ♪

🎸 ♪

🎸 ♪

Zack kept nodding his head to the melody, which Von dragged out for a while as he tried to gain composure first. The last thing he wanted to do was make a fool of himself in front of Zack.

After mustering enough confidence, Von began singing. And as he went on, he began to notice that Zack actually paid attention.

His facial expression didn’t change negatively, and he even allowed Von to sing the full song for the very first time.

🎸 ♪

...If you wanna come home!

Then you gotta come~ home!

🎸 ♪

🎸 ♪

Von let the final note ring out, plucking the low E-string for a deep, resonant finish that vibrated against his chest.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

Zack stood up from his chair, clapping slowly immediately Von finished.

Von’s heart softened. "You... really liked my singing?"

"Oh, no," Zack replied matter-of-factly. "Your singing is atrocious. Truly terrible."

"But," Zack continued, "The song itself? That is something special. The melody structure, the lyricism... it’s sophisticated. Wow, Von. I’m grateful to you for introducing me to this masterpiece. Who is the original artist? I’d like to look it up."

Von dropped his guitar onto the bed in annoyance. "There is no original. I wrote it myself."

"Woah, there," Zack blinked. "Excuse me?"

Von fixed him with a hard stare. "I said I wrote it. Is there a problem with that?"

Zack looked at him, searching for any sign of a lie. Finding none, his expression shifted from skepticism to awe.

"Wow. It’s brilliant," Zack murmured. "If only you had the vocal talent to match the composition... But have you released it anywhere?"

"Not really."

"Do you have a recorded version, at least? A demo?"

"No," Von said, getting irritated. "I don’t. What’s with the twenty questions? Do you think I stole it?"

Zack shook his head. "No, Von. That’s not it at all."

"I’m asking because performing an original composition of this quality in a public space without any form of copyright protection is risky. Intellectual Property theft is rampant in the music industry,"

"If a producer happened to walk by Lincoln Road today and heard that melody, they could record it, register it, and sue you for singing it later. Without a paper trail, you would be defenseless."

"You say what now?" Von blinked.

"You need to create a timestamped record of creation," Zack explained rapidly. "Email the lyrics and a voice memo to yourself. Upload a private video to a cloud server. Anything that proves you possessed this intellectual property on this date. It could save you millions in future litigation."

Von stared at him. He finally understood. The kid wasn’t trying to annoy him; he was trying to protect him.

"Thanks for the advice, man," Von said, his voice softening. "I’ll record it first thing tomorrow."

"Good," Zack nodded in satisfaction. He sat back down but didn’t return to his pc. "That aside... why the sudden decision to sell your belongings and buy a guitar? I’ve never seen this side of you. What changed?"

Von looked at the guitar. "You’ve heard of Project Star? I plan on auditioning. You think I’ll make it far?"

Zack pursed his lips, considering the question logically.

"Hmm. Obviously, with your current vocal ability... no."

"But, I’m a huge music enthusiast," he added shyly. "I’ve studied music theory as a hobby for sometime. Perhaps... I could help you train? If you have the talent there, we might see good progress before the auditions."

Von didn’t consider rejecting the offer. Even though he was banking on EXP to save his vocals, it didn’t hurt to get a extra hand on board.

He outstretched his hands. "Okay, Professor Zack. You’ve gained a student."

Zack grinned and returned Von’s firm hand.

"Excellent. Class starts tomorrow, Mr. Varley."

[Congratulations! You’ve gained a loyal fan!]

[Current Fans: 2]