Hi there. This is basically my answer to 'Dalton', but for Carmel students. Lots of OC's and Jesse, so if you're not interested in that, read no further. Will be updated as soon as I get all new chapters written. :)
Carmel High
Chapter One
First Love
"We have no chance this year. Not without Jesse," Alli huffed quietly as she took a seat in one of the padded seats in the humungous building they called an auditorium.
She was quickly followed by the thirteen other members of Vocal Adrenaline; all of them murmuring quietly to one another.
"Let's face it," she continued, "Our songs are definitely lacking something without him."
The fellow members of VA glanced at one another, nodding slightly in agreement. It was true—at least to a certain extent. Their vocals, flawless; their dance moves, flawless; but their stage presence was lacking the insane energy that Jesse was able to give off when performing. The arrogance, the 'holier than thou' attitude he possessed gave them the extra boost they needed to be the best they could be. Even their newest director, a sultry young guy by the name of Dustin Goolsby (who, for some reason, liked to be referred to as G-Money), couldn't even pep them up.
"Calm down. You're such a spazz," Dan muttered, referring to Alli. "Even if that were true, we're still better than 'Nude Erections'. The only relatively good performer in the group is Berry. No one in the club matches her talent, so unless they plan on having her sing two solos at the competition, it's a safe bet that we've got this."
The little speech seemed to light a spark in some people. They glanced around and smiled, nodding in agreement. It was sort of true after all. They wiped the floor with ND last year, and Dan was almost positive that they would do it again—with or without Jesse. And on top of that, this was Dan's year. He was the 'star', so to speak, this year. He followed closely in Jesse's footsteps and the rest of VA looked up to him. But what he didn't say out loud was that he hated everyone in the club. Especially Alli, who had been obsessed with Jesse ever since they both got smashed at a party and slept with each other. She came to school the next day nursing a hangover but making it a habit of telling everyone that she slept with Jesse. The VA star.
"Berry was good, I guess, but Jesse is perfect," Alli piped up again. "If he—"
"But he's not. He's not part of the club anymore!" Dan cut in, nearly yelling. "He graduated. He also doesn't give a rat's ass about you, Alli. You slept with him while you both were drunk off your asses. That hardly screams that he loves you. And besides, I am the male soloist this year. If anyone should be getting credit for being perfect, it should be me. So, if you don't mind, kindly shut up so we can move on."
The tension that filled the room from that mini-rant was almost unbearable. Alli looked like she was on the verge of tears and a few others shot Dan a hateful glare. His ego was almost as big as Jesse's and that's saying something. But if we're being truthful, he had a right to be as egotistical as he was. He had all the girls—well, except Alli and a hateful bitch named Tierra— swooning over him. He was the definition of hot; tall, tan, muscular and dark hair. He had piercing blue-green eyes that only took one look from until you were under his spell. And according to every girl he'd ever slept with, he was an animal in bed. His sexual reputation sprung from the very party that Alli and Jesse had hooked up. Dan, a junior at the time, slept with Nat, who was a freshman at the time. Since they too, were drunk off their asses, they ended up having sex in the kitchen, where, of course, Jesse had walked in and witnessed part of the encounter. That wouldn't have been that big of a problem if he wasn't falling in love with Jesse.
Freshman year, Jesse (or just Jess as Dan liked to call him) had taken Dan under his wing; he showed him the ropes of the school. How to be popular, how to win the teachers over, and most importantly, how to have the girls dying at your feet; you know, the normal teenager stuff. To Dan, that was totally ironic since he was getting dating advice from the one he was actually in love with, and wasn't actually a girl. Dan wasn't exactly sure how Jess never caught on to his noticeable flirting (or if he caught on, he chose not to act on it), but then again, Jess didn't have much common sense. Sure, he was music and book smart, but his common sense sort of fell by the wayside. By the end of freshman year, they were best friends. It stayed that way until Jess graduated and Dan lost all contact with him.
Everyone had fell quiet for a few minutes and then Alli spoke up again, much to everyone's dismay.
"Why is it that every time I mention Jesse, you get so butthurt? You're just jealous you can't get with me," She spat towards Dan.
Dan couldn't help but scoff at the accusation.
"It's true," she started in again.
"Actually, no, it's not. I don't like girls like you. I like them with a little sense of pride and respect. You know, ones who don't sleep with every guy in school," Dan shot back.
Needless to say, Dan wasn't out to anyone but himself. He hadn't even told Jesse. It's not that he hated who he was; it's just that his parents would. They weren't religious or anything like that, but he had been told many times that they both found homosexuality to be "gross". At least he accepted himself, is what he told himself all the time.
Alli crossed her arms like a six year old would who didn't get their way, and glared at the empty stage.
"Can we please get back to the issue at hand?" Renee asked shortly. "It's not that I don't love hearing lovers quarrels but now isn't exactly the time for that."
"Yes, I do believe we have some brainstorming to do," a voice echoed throughout the empty auditorium.
Everyone's eyes, including Dan's, went wide and flicked right to the stage.
"Jesse?" Dan called out, visibly perking up in his seat.
The figure of the former soloist walked in from left stage, smirking the evil grin he was notorious for. He took center stage and slipped his hands into his pockets, scanning the crowd of shocked VA members. A few seconds later, a round of thunderous applause broke out among the clubbers, starting with none other than Dan. Jesse bowed slightly.
"Thank you," he replied. "I can see that VA has nearly fallen apart without my presence."
Dan could almost feel Jesse's eyes boring into him as he spoke to the club. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, looking more towards Jesse's feet rather than his face.
"If you are going to win this year, you need to work as a team. But before I get into technicalities, I do have a wonderful announcement for you all. Yours truly is now the assistant director for Vocal Adrenaline starting today."
Jesse paused for dramatic effect. And once more, a thunderous applause broke out among the clubbers, his face stuck permanently in that smirk. Dan's eyes shot up to Jesse's face, mouth falling open slightly. He was back? Dan couldn't believe it. Just when he'd almost forgotten about Jesse, he comes back. He swore that God was out to get him.
"I can see that I am the only one who saw New Directions at Sectionals," Jesse stated, shaking his head in disappointment. "Their vocals were good, yes, but their song selection was mediocre at best. They have a few new strong voices on their team this year. One is named Sam Evans, I believe and their other is an atrociously overweight girl named Lauren Zizes. Oh, and interesting fact, they lost their second strongest vocalist in the club to an all-male prep school. Kurt and the Warbler's rendition of "Hey, Soul Sister" was flawed, but still presentable. I can see why they placed. Dan, can you tell me why you didn't know any of this?"
Dan bit his lip, instantly hating himself for not doing the obvious. "Well, I figured since we wiped the floor with them last year, we wouldn't have a problem this year. But, as you can see, we have pretty much lost all sense of unity after gaining our newest director. He's not as strict as Shelby was…"
"I wish that were a valid excuse, but it's not. I'm sorely disappointed in not just you, but the entire club."
The club collectively looked down at their laps. It was one thing to make G-Money mad since he usually didn't do anything to them, but to make Jesse mad, be ready for the wrath of hell to be released. A few 'sorry's' were scattered among the clubbers, and a few said nothing.
"We're not going to have practice today, seeing as I need to have a one-on-one with Dan, but be prepared for a double practice tomorrow to make up for lost time. Dismissed," Jesse said, waving them off.
Dan's heart sank as he watch the clubbers slink slowly out the door and to their lockers. He looked back up to Jesse, still standing with his hands in his pockets and his grin glued permanently to his face. Dan stood up and made his way up to the stage, looking like a kicked puppy. He was bracing himself for any of the rude and degrading remarks Jesse was sure to throw out.
"So," Jesse started, crossing his arms in front of him. "Please tell me that you've at least given some thought to a setlist for Regionals."
"Of course I have. I've narrowed it down to 4 songs…" Dan said, just above a whisper.
"Let's hear it."
"Alright. "Chasing Pavements" by Adele, "Mr. Brightside" by The Killers, "Go Your Own Way" by Fleetwood Mac, or "Uncharted" by Sara Bareilles…"
"Hm..interesting choices. You'll have to let me listen to your arrangements before we decide."
Jesse took a step closer to him, looking him in the eyes, almost like he was trying to see into his soul. Dan felt so little, so inferior in this gaze. He hated it.
"O-of course, wouldn't have it any other way."
"Good, now run along. I have a lot of stuff I need to do. We will talk further tomorrow. See you later."
Dan waved slightly and let out the breath he had been holding. He was almost pissed at himself for believing that Jesse was going to kiss him. It looked like it, right? No, no, no it didn't. It was just wishful thinking.
Having Jesse back was going to be the death of Dan, he could already tell.