That warm day in August certainly had led to something more. But not in the way you had hoped.

It's been six months since your rivalry with Angelica Hamilton had ended. The two of you have become close friends, nearly inseparable, and it had turned the entire school on it's head. And in those six months, your feelings for Angelica have deepened beyond friendship. But it seems that hers have not. Because if they had, you were sure she would be sitting with you right now, and not animatedly chatting with a love struck looking Georges de Lafayette.

You knew Georges, but not well enough to call him a friend. He was a senior, and close to the Hamilton family. His father, Gilbert de Lafayette, was incredibly close to Alexander Hamilton, so it was familiar enough sight. But Georges has never looked so...in love before.

You watched from across the auditorium as Angelica gave him her undivided attention, and jealousy stirred inside you. It didn't go away until the band director finally announced to his students that they were returning to the band room, prompting Georges to say goodbye to Angelica before following his classmates out the door.

A piece of you felt bad for being so happy to see Georges leave. You couldn't control who loved who. And lov- liking Angelica did not mean you were entitled to her reciprocating your feelings. But the jealousy died down and was replaced with happiness and contentment nonetheless. You took your place next to her, the two of you sharing a glance and a warm smile before Mr. Miranda began announcing this week's class assignment like he did every Monday.

With Valentine's Day fast approaching, it only made sense that the assignment, which was carrying over into next week, was to perform a love song.

"Duets and group performances are acceptable, but no slacking or hiding in the background. I want to see everyone perform at least a one verse solo." Mr. Miranda said, "And any love song is acceptable, however love songs from musicals are encouraged. It is also encouraged that your song choice be inspired by whoever your special someone is this year."

You tuned out the rest of announcement, and glanced at Angelica out of the corner of your eye. Her brown eyes focused on the teacher in front of her, her lips upturned in a smile at the news of the assignment. You knew exactly who your inspiration was going to be.

It was getting harder and harder to deal with your growing feelings for Angelica. The way her eyes sparkled in wonder, or how her smile lit up a room, or how soft her hair looked when she ran her fingers through it, made your heart want to burst out of your rib cage . Even after show choir rehearsals, wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt, with her hair thrown into a messy bun, and sweat clinging to her skin, she looking absolutely breathtaking.

Which is why you decided that you should test the waters and see if she was interested in Georges. You finally gain the courage to approach her on Thursday.

"So, you and Georges, huh?" you ask after rehearsal one day, forcing a smirk and teasing tone.

"What about him?" Angelica asks.

"You two seem pretty. . . ." you wiggle your eyebrows at Angelica and she seems to get the message. She blushes.

"Oh, no, we're not- he's not, uh. . . ." she trails off, chuckling and seeming mentally scattered. She takes a moment to gather herself before saying, "He and I aren't a thing. He's actually been asking about my brother, Philip. He wants to ask him out on Valentine's Day."

"Oh. I was way off." You said, laughing along with Angelica.

"It's alright. Besides, Georges isn't really my type. We both play for different teams."

Teams? What did sports have to do with- oh.

Oh.

"Oh," you finally said aloud, smiling at Angelica, "Okay."

"Okay?" Angelica responds. She looks a bit worried. You understand. Even when you trust someone, even when you're confident, coming out can be scary.

"Okay." you repeat, your smile never wavering, "I like girls, too."

Angelica visibly relaxes at your confession. Her eyes seem to light up a bit, but maybe that's your imagination tricking you. Either way, you're happy the both of you were able to trust each other.

And the fact that it just may be bringing you one step closer to being with Angelica.

The next week you found that one step forward always meant two steps back. Your newfound hope was crushed the moment you walked into school, your greeting, or rather rude awakening, in the form of your crush holding hands with Frances Laurens.

Seeing Frances and Angelica causally hold hands as they leaned against their lockers was like a knife in your heart. Of course, holding hands didn't always mean anything, but you couldn't help but assume the worst.

Frances Laurens was adopted daughter of John Laurens, another person who was close to the Hamilton family. She was also close to Angelica. As far as you knew, they had been friends since they were babies.

The only other things you knew about Frances were that she's openly bisexual and is very sporty. Every year she tried out for, and made, the cheer team, softball team, and volleyball team. She was still a junior, but she was looking at several possible scholarship opportunities. It made sense to you why Angelica would be into her. She was pretty attractive, too.

You continued to mope all day, finding yourself sitting alone when lunch time came, watching from across the room as Angelica and Frances sat next to each other.

You were suddenly pulled from your thoughts by a tug on your sleeve. You turn to see Edward Van Ness, a classmate of yours. The two of you had grown up together, what with your fathers being as close as brothers.

"Hey, Y/N, you got a minute?" he asked as he sat beside you.

You didn't want to drag your attention away from the Angelica-Frances issue, but you felt like it would be best to have a distraction.

"Sure, what's up?"

"I was wondering if you would perform a song with me for the show choir Valentine's assignment. I want to practice before I sing it for Catherine later that night at the cafè."

You smiled. You were glad to be distracted by someone else's love problems.

Edward had been pining after Catherine for three years. A lot of people wondered why they weren't a couple already. But Edwards nervousness seemed to keep him from confessing every time he thought to. It seemed that his flair for the dramatic, however, seemed to be outweighing his fear of rejection.

"Sure. What are we singing?"

"I Never Planned On You from Newsies. I want you and Sally to do the back up vocals. I'll have my sisters doing it tonight at mom's cafè."

"Sounds good. Count me in."

You tried to concentrate on your assignment with Sally and Edward. It kept you distracted from the heartache you felt every time you saw Frances and Angelica together. Eventually, Wednesday rolled around. While it had only been a couple of days, it felt as though it had been years.

You weren't nervous about taking the stage with Edward and Sally. You had grown comfortable with the rest of the students in show choir, and even solos didn't scare you anymore.

However, you were a bit nervous about what you had planned. No amount of encouragement from your fellow classmates could prepare you for singing the solo you had planned in front of the girl you were crushing on.

"Hey Y/N, you ready? Mr. Miranda is on his way down the hall." Edward asks, once again bringing you back into reality.

"Yeah, I'm ready. I think we should go towards the end, though. Save the best for last, right?" you say, trying to be as positive as you can.

Edward's smile widens. "Definitely!"

Everyone takes their seats in the middle section as Mr. Miranda walks in. Your heart drops when you see who's following behind him. It's Frances and Angelica, holding hands again. Angelica came to sit beside you, as usual, with Frances on her other side.

"Hey Y/N! I brought Frances along to watch the other show choir students perform." Angelica whispers.

"That's nice," you whisper back, trying to be polite despite your jealousy, "I hope she enjoys it."

That was the end of the conversation. Before Angelica could respond, Mr. Miranda was standing in front of the stage asking who would like to volunteer to go first.

You clapped at the end of every performance, but you barely paid any attention. The only time you really watched was when Angelica performed No One Else from Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812. She sang beautifully, every note coming out perfect. Every repetition of "I love you" went straight to your heart, filling it, and then draining it once you realized it was probably meant for Frances.

You didn't realize you were crying until you blinked and suddenly felt a wetness on your cheek. You wiped your eyes hurriedly, trying to play it off as allergies.

"What did you think?" Angelica asked once she sat back down next to you.

"Beautiful." you answer. You weren't sure what else to say. Before Angelica could respond, you heard Edward stand and volunteer you, Sally, and himself.

Since Sally had also done a duet with another student, she was already in the clear for her required solo. But you still had the short one you had prepared. The nervousness you felt about it still hadn't dissipated, but you pushed onward.

Two minutes later, the three of you were still on stage. The song had just ended, everything went well, but there was a nagging feeling in your gut. It was amplified when Mr. Miranda said, "Good job, students. All that's left is a solo from Ms. Burr. Do you have it ready?"

You nod, "Yes, sir. I've got the instrumental on my phone, if that's alright."

"That's fine. Students, come a little closer to the stage." Mr. Miranda says, beckoning for them all to move closer.

Everyone, including Mr. Miranda, sat on the floor several feet from the stage. You pulled your phone out of your back pocket and opened it, finding the file with the instrumental on it and pressing play. You sit on the edge of the stage and gather your nerves.

"Don't wish. Don't start. Wishing only wounds the heart." you sing, eyes closed at first. You regret opening them. You're met with the sight of not only Angelica and Frances holding hands, but also Frances' head resting on Angelica's shoulder. "There's a girl I know." you say, trying your best to fight back tears, "She loves her so. I'm not that girl." As the music fades, you realize your mistake. You said she instead of he.

No one seemed to notice, or if they did they didn't care, because they cheered you on. Mr. Miranda nodded, a smile on his face as he marked down your grade on his clipboard.

"You're all free to relax." Mr. Miranda says, before disappearing backstage.

You hop offstage and go straight to your backpack in the tenth row, glad that everyone has broken off into their individual groups and no one was approaching you.

You found that your solitude was short-lived when a familiar voice asked, "So, girl troubles?"

You turn to see Angelica. She has a sympathetic look on her face. You didn't know how to tell her the truth.

So you lied.

"Oh, no, I just really like that song. And almost every Broadway love song is straight so, ya know, why not out my own spin on it?"

Angelica smiles. Something about it seems off, like it isn't reaching her eyes. "Oh, okay. I really liked it. You're a great singer." she says.

"Thanks. So are you."

The two of you hug, and as Angelica pulls away she says, "Hey, I got my parents to agree to a sleepover if you wanna come over this weekend. Just the two of us. My brothers will be out of the house, my dad's always working, and mom is pretty quiet."

Your heart beats a little faster. A weekend with Angelica? It sounded wonderful. Even if she was with Frances.

"I'd love to. I'll ask my dad when I get home. Worst comes to worst, I'll get Edward and his sisters to cover for me."

Angelica's smile is more genuine now. "Great! I have to go, the bell is about to ring and I can't be late to my next class, but I'll see you later."

She gives you one last hug, and then a peck on the cheek. It's only a second, and her lips barely brush your skin, but it makes your heart stop. She says, "Love you!" and then she's gone, running up the aisle and waving as she leaves.

You're still standing there when the bell rings, unable to hear it over the static in your head. Your fingers brush your cheek as you stare at the door she disappeared through. You crack a smile.

"I love you, too." you whisper.