You might be good at baseball

You might be good at track,

But when it comes to basketball

You might as well step back

You might as well step back!

It was exhausting to keep that smile plastered on her face while putting on a show. Could no one tell she was just faking it? Not even the girls behind her following her every step?

Oh well, as long as it sold. She may even really perk up...,

If she accidently high kicks someone in the face.

Chapter Two:

Doctor Who Fireflys Over Planet Vulcan

All the girls made their way towards the locker rooms, covered in sweat after a rough practice. Utau could feel the stares from the soccer team whose members seemed to be distracted away from the ball due to the girls' uniforms of shorts and tank tops. It only took a bit of shouting from the coach to get them focused again. Utau smirked at their expense. Guys could be so stupid at times.

The girls were all chatting about their plans after practice in the locker room. Utau listened distractedly to their topic discussions of new fall apparel and latest brand named merchandised as she showered and changed.

"Can you help me chose a skirt Saaya?" One of the freshmen girls asked as Saaya was slipping on her flats.

"I can't help you today," Saaya told her without a hint of apology, "I'm off to have men fall at my feet."

"You got the part?" Utau asked, knowing the answer, but loving how it bothered Saaya to not know.

"Yes." She announced flamboyantly to all the girls, "I got the part of Helena, of course."

Utau shook her head at the girls gathering around Saaya in awe. It wasn't as though Saaya was suited for the part. Sure she was pretty enough, but Helena was also self-conscious and doubtful of the love Lysander offers her. Well, Tadase seemed to think it suited Saaya, but he didn't know Saaya like she did. And unlike Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Saaya was anything but a faithful, lovesick girl.

"The director knew at once I was perfect for the role." Saaya boasted. Then again, Utau thought, she is dramatic enough for any role.

"Do you want to go to the mall with us Sempai?" Another girl asked Utau, snapping her back to reality.

"I'm busy." Was her only reply as she took her backpack out of her locker and slammed the door shut.

"Doing what?"

"Family get together." Utau thought of quickly.

"Sounds lame." Saaya commented glossing her lips. Utau thanked Saaya silently for being too self-absorbed to pry into her business.

"Maybe next time." Utau told them with a goodbye and walked out. Looking back to make sure no one was behind her, she took a left down the hall towards the media room.

~Flip the Paige~

Nagihiko and Utau were alone in the media room. Utau took a seat in one of the chairs in front of the computer with a notebook prompt on her lap. Nagihiko stood in front of the chalk board ready to begin.

"How about we start with the basics?"

"Yeah. That sounds good."

Nagihiko began with an intro into Star Wars and Star Trek. "It is essential to know both, but you may only be a fan of one or the other."

"Why?"

"Because the devoted fans don't wish to share their love."

"Wouldn't it be better to like both? To stay neutral?"

"No, you'll just piss people off that way."

"But what's the big deal? They're basically the same thing."

"No. No, they're not. They are distinctly different, and we'll get into that later."

Before Utau could ask anything else, Kukai skateboarded in playing his PSP and holding a bag of chips with his teeth. He sat down beside Utau and asked, "Has it started yet?"

"I'm teaching here Kukai."

"Yeah, television series. You have to show these things to get a good understanding of their awesomeness."

"I'm starting with a background information. We'll watch them later."

"I don't think she needs to know the origins of Star Trek."

"I doubt her boyfriend does anyway." Kairi added, coming in with a package of Little Debbie snack cakes.

"Did no one get the memo that I was teaching?"

"Yes." Amu answered, with a six-pack of Mountain Dew in each had, "And we're all eager to learn."

"Don't you have to go pick up that new manga release you were talking about earlier?"

"Not until later. So I came to watch some Doctor Who."

"We're starting with Star Trek."

"That's too much for one afternoon, though!" Kukai complained opening the chips.

"We're not going to watch it all."

"I believe he was referring to the background information." Kairi noted taking a Mountain Dew.

Utau wanted to leave. Their eagerness was just too much for her to handle. Nagihiko sighed too, exasperated himself. "Alright then. Kairi, can you pull up some clips to watch for an idea."

"No problem." Kairi answered pushing his feet against the wall causing his chair to move to a computer. "What show?"

"How about Star Trek?"

"No. That will be too dull for a newbie." Kukai complained.

"Doctor Who then."

"That'll be too confusing if we watch just a clip." Kairi noted, "Why not Babylon Five?"

"No one likes Babylon Five." Amu stated popping open a can. "How about Buffy? That's pretty modern and appeals to the masses."

"It's great, if you ignore the horrible acting." Nagihiko threw in.

"The Big Bang Theory?" Kukai asked, receiving looks from his fellow geeks, "What? Not even for fun."

"Smallville?"

"Too much detail?"

"Twilight Zone?"

"Only if it's not the 2002 version."

"Mystery Science Theater 3000?"

"Too stand-offish"

"Futurama?" Received again by looks of wonderment. "It's science fiction!"

"Red Dwarf?"

"Too unknown."

"Batman: The Animated Series?"

"Hey! Graphic novels are my territory!"

"It's not a graphic novel, it's an animated television show."

"Based off a graphic novel!"

"Lost?"

"Ok, now you're just being ridiculous." Kairi shouted at him putting an end to Kukai's reign.

"Oh, and what would you categorize the show as?"

"Not worth watching."

And that was the only one I knew, Utau thought as they continued to argue with Spaced, Vernica Mars, and The X-Files, while she tried to wish herself away.

"Stop!" Nagihiko yelled with authority, "We'll just watch Firefly. It's hold modern dialogue, humor with action, and doesn't take much understanding to watch."

The group nodded their heads in agreement, and Utau was relieved that she didn't have to endure anymore of their talk.

"What episode?" Kairi asked pulling up the screen.

"The first one obviously."

"No, the first one is too informative, we just need some basic action."

"But, the first one is the original."

"Actually, episode two was the first to be aired to pull in fans and gain popularity for the show."

"And look how well that turned out."

"It's wasn't the show. It was stupid Fox for canceling it!"

"Bastards."

"Episode five was the best though."

"What? Is that a joke?"

It was then Utau realized how deep she was getting into this world, when all she wanted to do was crawl out.