Our WikiBrother Caio Papai wrote the first chapter of a book entitled "The Long Road of Rock and Roll":

When he could see completely, it was love at first sight. He stared intently at the CD cover, which featured a kind of giant undead doll with long white hair. It bowed down, using a sort of demon as a puppet

Caio Papai

It was a cold July, and this is the story of an ordinary boy who lived in the gray city of São Paulo, where hearts are made of stone, some churches are small businesses, and the only green that truly matters comes from ATMs and goes straight into the pockets of those who drive new cars and wear sunglasses. His name is Theo, a boy with a funny walk, wearing his worn-out black Converse sneakers. A boy who always lived a life like everyone else his age in childhood, attending school every morning. Of average height, with light hair and eyes, he listened to little radio, as he spent much of the journey between his house and school sleeping in the deepest part of his unconscious, waking up a few times with the swaying of the speed bump. His father was a salesman at a candy store, not very large, but with a wide variety of sweets. This store was at the end of the street where he lived, and incidentally, it was frequented by his son's classmates due to its proximity to the school they attended. Her mother was a teacher, she taught math classes in public schools, and luckily for her, she wasn't her teacher.

Theo, like any other boy, made friends easily and got along well with everyone around him, always very cheerful, good at jokes and mischief, which often drove his teachers crazy, and at the same time very quiet in his own world. To get to the classroom, which was on the third floor of the building, Theo walked down a long corridor, where there were windows through which it was possible to see the courtyard where the other students ran, ate, walked to their classes, or chatted in groups until the teacher arrived. Theo had a habit: he made paper airplanes, filling the empty space in the middle of the plane with chalk dust, and threw the plane saying "And there goes the cool guy" (influenced by an episode of El Chavo del Ocho where he throws a banana peel). Of course, after a few months, Artur changed windows, because nobody stayed under the "Chalk Hangar" anymore. Besides that escapade, he's also been caught stealing soda from the cafeteria, tagging the classroom wall, sticking chewing gum on other people's heads, setting off firecrackers in the bathroom toilet, and other school-related incidents that wouldn't fit here.

Yes, he was like some other students in his demeanor, but different when it came to studying. His grades weren't the best; the boy had some trouble concentrating, not absorbing a single word the teacher said. He always promised he would change that and start studying seriously, but a few minutes later he would be distracted by anything else in front of him, often making scribbles in his notebook that soon turned into drawings in the corners of the pages, and by the end of class there were cars, skulls, various characters, but no equations or Cold War stories. This was one of the things that worried his mother, as she always kept a close eye on his tests and homework, as her profession dictated, and of course her son would have to be an example if she were ever his teacher. But even so, Theo didn't concentrate in class. The only subject in which he got good grades was art; he drew well, as the corners of his notebooks and the school walls attest. His dream was to be a draftsman, and from time to time he was put to the test. His teacher, every other class, would bring musical instruments to vary the teaching style a bit and exercise the students' brains with music, because she had read in some cheap magazine sold at the newsstand in front of the school that changing the lesson a little would stimulate the brain and make them evolve.

Theo even had a certain familiarity with instruments; on the recorder he even risked blowing a few out-of-tune notes that sounded more like the whistle of his grandmother's pressure cooker when she was cooking beans. Even so, nothing compared to pencil and paper, or the sound of spray paint on a freshly painted wall. In any case, what motivated him was the feeling of his hand running freely across the immense white space, which gave his imagination the freedom to flow, bringing his mind to life. Of course, education is very important, but when it comes to art, drawing, and imagination, it matters little whether Cabral discovered Brazil or whether Maria Bonita was Lampião's wife and not Zumbi dos Palmares's.

His thick, firm lines and color combinations gave an aggressive aspect to the eyes and brain of those who saw them, which he was often even proud of, as it was different from crooked hearts, and empty houses on the edge of the hill on a sunny afternoon, or flowers before the pain of "he loves me, he loves me not.".

Most of his friends lived on the street where his grandmother had lived for years. He spent his school holidays there, often forgetting his pencil and paper but remembering the walls and spray paint cans, which drove his grandmother crazy. There was also time for street football, where he was always chosen last due to his lack of skill. In July, brakeless go-karts would race down that street, tearing through the night with the deafening noise of metal scraping against the asphalt, leaving "S"-shaped marks in the middle of the road. July is the time when the wind blows strongly, favoring the sky, which was always full and colorful with kites, and saving him the chases after the wind. His fingers were always patched up from the sharp edges used for this type of aerial combat, and when he had some free time, he would glue tissue paper to make balloons, coloring the sky when the wind was weak.

That made the boy's eyes light up; he felt the same impact as with his drawings, and it made him feel different, so he decided to choose that CD as his birthday present

Sitting on the corner chatting with his friends, Theo saw his parents' car turning the corner from the street above, heading towards him. They announced that their vacation was ending and that once again the routine of doing the monthly grocery shopping was approaching, as was his parents' custom at that time of the month. However, he remembered something very important: it was the eve of his birthday, and he still had no idea what he would get as a gift, or ask for. Theo was thoughtful the whole way, trying to come up with a birthday proposal, when his father parked in a tight spot, pulled the car's handbrake, and Theo quickly asked his father:

"Dad, my birthday is almost here, and I still haven't asked you for a present. I was wondering if I could look for my gift around here today? We're at the market; I'll probably find something I like," Theo asked, unbuckleing his seatbelt and expecting a "no" from his father.

"Of course, I don't see any problem, as long as it fits in my budget!" her father replied, smiling, opening the door and asking her mother where she had put the parking ticket.

"Thank you, I'll check the price before bringing it to you," Theo replied, also smiling, already outside the car.

"Just one more thing," her mother said, searching for her eyeglasses in her purse. "Don't take too long; we'll be quick today. We'll only buy a few things. Last week I went to the market near our house and bought a few things already, okay?"

Okay, Mom.

The hunt for presents began. Theo scoured the supermarket aisles as if it were some kind of TV marathon where you have a few minutes to grab everything you can. His feet seemed to fly on the white tiles. First, he went to the toy aisle, picking up boxes of superheroes, but none of them appealed to him. He looked at some remote-controlled cars and a board game, giving up for the first time. He continued his race to the school supplies section, but since studying wasn't his strong suit, his only interest was the pencil case. He found it insufficient and quickly dismissed another section. Theo was already in the electronics section and thought he wouldn't find anything. He looked at some cell phones and MP3 players, but besides none of them catching his eye, his father wouldn't approve of them financially. As the sports section got closer, Theo decided to skip it without even looking due to his lack of skill with sports, until he reached the end of the aisles and decided to browse the music section by genre.

He rummaged through several CDs and DVDs, from Gospel to Funk, and even some books that were displayed near the CDs, probably indicated by some kind of BI system. Suddenly, a loud bang came from behind the boy; someone who had been looking at the DVD shelves had probably knocked everything to the floor, causing him to slowly look to his right in a movement that would allow him to see what was happening. In doing so, he spotted a shelf full of a single CD. He closed his eyes tightly to try to see the cover design better, but it was in vain; Theo had vision problems and his glasses were broken, which was normal for a boy coming back from vacation. The closer he got, the clearer the image became, and when he could see it completely, it was love at first sight. He carefully examined the CD cover, which featured a kind of giant undead doll with long white hair, bowing and using a demon-like puppet, in a landscape surrounded by fire and lightning. It made the boy's eyes light up; he felt the same impact as in his drawings, and it made him feel different. So he decided to choose that CD as his birthday present, but he needed to know the price. Without that, he wouldn't know if this unexpected encounter would have a happy ending.

Theo ran to a barcode reader terminal on a pillar near the CDs, and the terminal confirmed that the gift would probably fit in his father's pocket. It was then that he remembered his mother's words about things being brief, and he didn't know how much time had passed since their separation, and he feared his parents might be waiting for him in the car.

That's when the second hunt began, the hunt to find his father. The market is huge, a hypermarket with giant aisles, making it difficult to find anyone. He didn't even know how he managed to walk all that way in a matter of minutes and see so many potential gifts in such a short time. The boy ran through the aisles and luckily spotted his father in the produce section. He took the CD to his father and began to speak, almost breathless:

"Dad, I found my birthday present! I want this CD here. I don't even know what it is or what kind of music it is, but it must be some kind of horror movie soundtrack. I'm saying this because of the cover, since I've never heard of this movie 'Iron Maiden'," Theo excitedly told his father, still holding the CD in his hands.

Then the silence is broken when a drumbeat emerges directly from the speakers, vaguely reminiscent of a machine gun, accompanied by two distorted guitars

"Son, are you sure you want this birthday thing?" – He looked at the CD with disdain, not liking the cover – "Wouldn't it be better to, I don't know, buy a compilation of famous and trendy songs? Like those summer hits? Something everyone listens to? Besides, isn't this a game?" – His father said, taking the CD from the boy's hands and still examining it with a "I ate it and didn't like it" look, turning it over several times, as if looking for a flaw in something.

"Dad, I'm sure that's it. I don't know why, but it caught my attention, and I'm more than sure that's what I want. Summer hits are boring, and they're not something you listen to all the time, and they have an expiration date—next summer!" said the boy, taking the CD from his father's hands.

"Good!" – He exhaled through his nose – "Alright, it's your present, it's your birthday, you get to choose, but there's no point in regretting it later, let's take it, okay?" – said the father, placing the CD in the shopping cart.

– Okay, thanks Dad, thanks Mom – Without taking his eyes off the CD.

Item by item, everything was scanned at the checkout and the bags were placed in the car. Meanwhile, the boy began rummaging through the bags until he found the CD at the bottom of the plastic bag. As soon as he found the CD, the boy struggled to remove the plastic seal (which is very difficult, by the way), until he managed to open it with his teeth. He then began another (unsuccessful) battle to listen to that mysterious sound in his father's car, which was quickly interrupted when a flashback began to play. But this didn't discourage the boy; while he was on his way home, he leafed through the CD booklet and observed the artwork.

Theo was freaking out! He stared as if the eighth wonder of the world was right in front of him. That's when he heard the sound of the automatic gate opening until his father parked the car in the garage, making the fan work while the tired engine took a break. The boy jumped out of the car, opened all the doors as fast as he could, climbed the stairs to his room, hopping two at a time, finally Theo turned on the stereo, pressing the button to open the drawer. With the drawer open, Theo carefully placed the CD, finally pressing the play button, making the CD spin and the reader work a little; this process was almost a ritual, the anxiety completely overwhelming the boy.

Then the silence is broken when a drumbeat emerges directly from the speakers, vaguely reminiscent of a machine gun, accompanied by two distorted guitars. Immediately following is a completely fast bass line, in a frenetic rhythm; the instruments blend into a uniform sound. Theo's gaze is fixed on the speaker, perhaps waiting for the musicians to emerge from it, and he begins to freak out, a huge smile spreading across his face as he says to himself:

– That's it, damn it! That's it! – While imitating the guitar with his arms raised and jumping frantically on the bed.

When the vocalist starts singing, his excitement is inevitable; the boy begins to shake his head almost involuntarily. The introductory song, "Invaders," was living up to its name, because it was invading the boy's room and transforming his life in a way he never imagined before. That CD was listened to all afternoon. Theo fell in love with something he didn't even know existed, but which has a name: it's called Heavy Metal.

He became addicted to Iron Maiden, spending hours and hours researching the band online, buying magazines and posters whenever possible to read about them. Soon his room was filled with rock and roll, and the blue of his wall had disappeared; probably, if Iron Maiden had been on a test, Theo would have gotten a 10. Influenced by his curiosity, he started listening to other sounds, such as Megadeth, Slayer, AC/DC, Judas Priest, Dio, Ozzy, KISS, Alice in Chains, and discovered that Brazil also has excellent national bands like Lobão, Barão Vermelho, Cazuza, Paralamas do Sucesso, Raimundos, Ultraje a Rigor, Sepultura, Motorocker, Angra, among others.

The years went by and Theo was now 16, getting to know life better. Luckily, influenced by music, he developed a love of reading and started doing better in his studies. He was also learning more about the world, learning to decipher his feelings and the society he lived in. He read the news online, started taking English lessons as his mother had advised, and trained his listening skills by following the lyrics of his favorite bands online and in CD booklets. One day, walking back home, Theo noticed a stall selling rock t-shirts. The boy approached, looked at some models, and on impulse, he was introduced to the underground world of black music.

Theo bought an Iron Maiden t-shirt with the Killers album cover printed on the front. From that day on, the boy began to wear that t-shirt not only to show how much of a fan he was of the band, but also to make a visual impact on his family and the society in which he lived, since he was often reprimanded for his actions at school, such as graffiti, as his studies no longer concerned him; what he enjoyed most was seeing the look of disgust when others looked at his t-shirt. Furthermore, the fact that his mother was a teacher demanded a very strict upbringing that almost suffocated the boy at home. As for his father, because he didn't have a very good financial situation and his shop wasn't very large, there had been months when he hadn't made enough profit to cover expenses, so there was a lack of money at home. Money was the main reason for arguments between his parents. Now he saw the world from the other side of the prism, and as time passed he began to express his feelings of rebellion without a cause, becoming a regular at Barba's stall (the t-shirt vendor). Now he didn't just have one black Iron Maiden t-shirt, but several t-shirts from various bands; his drawer was completely filled with black clothes. It was while looking at this drawer that Theo said:

Welcome to Preto.

Top 5 Songs to Listen to While Reading This Chapter (They played while I was writing and motivated me):

1. Led Zeppelin – Rock and Roll
2. Iron Maiden – Invaders
3. Anthrax – Poison in my Eyes
4. Megadeth – Holy Wars
5. AC DC – Back in Black

*This text was written by a Wikimate and does not necessarily represent the opinions of the site's authors.

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