Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie

After Steven accepts that Jeffrey has cancer, he starts to convince himself that if he makes “the right promises to God, he would magically make Jeffrey better again” (80). He tells himself that if he avoids things like eating sweets or thinking “impure thoughts” about Renee, he will be able to keep his brother from dying (80). Since he can never keep these promises, he feels as if he is constantly failing his brother. One day, Steven leaves class to go to the bathroom and hears someone playing the piano beautifully. He guesses it is Annette, but when he looks through the door, he is surprised by how pretty she looks playing the piano. When Annette notices Steven watching, she blushes and explains that she is preparing for an audition for a program at Juilliard School of Music. She then asks Steven to accompany her on the drums. When he struggles to keep time to what she is playing, she explains that the piece, Dave Brubeck’s “Take Five,” is in 5/4 time rather than 4/4 time, meaning that he needs to count five beats in every measure instead of four. When the bell rings, Annette gives him a Dave Brubeck CD and tells him to learn the piece so they can play it together.