"...I'm a shooting star leaping through the sky
Like a tiger defying the laws of gravity
I'm a racing car passing by like Lady Godiva
I'm gonna go go go
There's no stopping me..."
-Queen, "Don't Stop Me Now"
***
Dan
Kennedy High School Valedictorian Speech 2002

Well, here we are.

I crumpled up the sheet of paper and threw it in the trash bin. What attempt was that? Number eight? That sounded about right. I unclasped the tongs on my binder and took out another sheet of paper.

KHS Grad-

No. No, no, no.

I put my head down on my desk and groaned. Exactly 10 months from now, I'd be giving the Valedictorian speech in front of thousands of people at the Kennedy High School graduation ceremony, and I'm just now getting around to it. Talk about procrastination. I'm never going to get this damn thing finished. I could see it now: Daniel Howell, the Valedictorian with no speech.

My thoughts were interrupted with a bark. I looked up to see my dog, Bailey, running towards me before jumping into my lap. She barked again and wagged her tail furiously.

"Hey girl!" I ran my fingers through her fur with a smile. "How are you doing?"

She let out an excited bark, and-"Woah there!" I fell off my chair and Bailey put her paws on my shoulders, licking my face. "Calm down!" I laughed. "I have to get started on that speech!"

"Dan! Come downstairs! Dad wants to see you!"

"Okay, mum! I'll be there in a minute!" I tried to sit up, but Bailey wouldn't get off me. "Bailey, you need to let me go," I said.
She didn't budge.
"It's time for you to eat." With that, she let out another bark of excitement and darted down the hallway. Smiling, I secured the cap onto my pen and followed suit.

"Perfect marks in English! I must say, Emily, I'm impressed!" I walked into the dining room to find my little sister beaming at Dad's praise. He looked up to see me standing there. "Oh, Dan! Let's see..."

I made my way over to the table and took a seat next to Emily. "Good job on your grades," I whispered.

"Thank you! Good job on yours!"

"You haven't even seen mine yet," I laughed, ruffling her hair.

"I'm sure they'll be straight perfect marks," she replied.

"She's right," said Dad, beaming. "Every mark here is 100%. Good job son! As a matter of fact..." He dug into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. "Emily, £100. And Dan, £100."

"Thank you Dad! Thank you!" Emily rushed up to her room, holding the money in her hand.

Dad chuckled. "I'm glad she likes it."

I slowly stood up and laughed. "Yeah."

"Aren't you forgetting something?"

"Hmm? Oh, I'm sorry. Thank you!"

"You're welcome, son. You earned it."

***

Ring, ring
I picked up the phone. "Hey, Cat!"

"Hey Dan, there's a party going on at PJ's right now. Can you make it?"

I nodded like an idiot, forgetting that I was on the phone.

"Dan?"

"Oh, right, sorry. Yeah, I'm coming. I'll be there in a few." I slipped my phone into my back pocket and grabbed my car keys.

"Hey Dad, I'm going out."

He nodded in response. Smiling, I opened the garage door and hopped into my car. I turned my key into the ignition and backed out of the driveway. 

***

Ten minutes later, I pulled onto PJ's street. Turning the knob down on my car radio, I scanned the places to park. The street was absolutely packed. It seemed as if every spot was taken up. 

"Dan! There you are!" I saw Cat run out of PJ's house and to my Mercedes-Benz. "Come on!"

"Cat, give me a moment. I need to find a place to park."

Cat rolled her eyes. "For fuck's sake, Dan. Go park in the grass."

"That isn't PJ's yard!"

"So?"

"That's trespassing! I'm not parking in someone else's yard! That's both illegal AND disrespectful!"

"Dan, you're such a baby. Park your car in the damn yard. I'll be waiting for you in the back."

I watched Cat walk back toward's PJ's. I sighed. Was she right? Did parking in someone else's yard really matter? Yes. Yes it did. 

Wait, no it didn't. I needed to get over myself. 

I shut off my music and rolled into the spot Cat was pointing to. It's okay Dan, I told myself as I locked the car door and walked down the street towards PJ's house. You didn't do anything wrong.

***

A/N-Hey, so that's the first chapter of "Let It Be"! I have big plans for this story, and I'm really excited to get on with it. This chapter was rather slow and short, pick up pace. As for now, let me know what you think!