Chris didn't know what to do. Sitting in her car, her hands gripped the steering wheel like a vice even though the vehicle was no longer in motion. She was breathing deeply through her nose and out her mouth, trying desperately to turn off her "fight or flight" response. Looking at the gear stick, she imagined choosing flight, putting the car in reverse and quickly exiting the parking lot. How did she ever get herself into this?

The only shows she had ever been in were affiliated with her school's drama department. Chris never had any large parts. The shows were fun and she enjoyed doing them with her best friend, Maggie. They were all great experiences, even if Mags often complained that Chris or herself would've fit the parts better than the actual leads did. Maggie always auditioned for the big roles, but often fell short; she was just a better dancer than singer. Maggie's mother was the choreographer for the dance numbers in most of the school shows, and Maggie herself went to Dance Camp every summer. Chris would've gone with her, but money was tight and besides, she wasn't exactly a graceful girl.

So when Maggie told her she was going to audition for the nearby opera house summer season, Chris wasn't exactly surprised. It seemed to be the next step for Maggie, even if she hadn't had any success in the drama club so far. There was always senior year, right? She helped Maggie pick out her audition piece and her dress, a soft pink, knee length, form fitting dress with brown flats. Maggie wanted something not too dark, even though that was customary for an opera audition. Maggie was bright and bubbly, and so was her piece, "Voi Che Sapete." She wanted a dress to compliment that.

Originally, Maggie wanted Chris to audition with her, "It could be really fun for both of us!" Of course, Chris knew nothing about opera or professional performances. She was quiet and usually had easy roles in the school musicals. The musical director constantly told her to sing louder. She would never have made it in opera.

Not even a few days afterward, Chris received the following email, "Hello again, Ms. Day. I forgot to ask what piece you would be coming with in my last email. Please rsvp as your time slot has just been confirmed. Thank you -Apollo Opera House."

And then she freaked.

"Maggie how could you?!" Chris was almost in tears over the phone. Maggie emailed them on her behalf- now she had to audition.

"I just thought it could be a great opportunity! We would get bigger roles next year… If we get in-"

"That's just the thing Mags, I'm not going to get in," Chris dabbed a tissue under her eyes. She had work in an hour; there was no time to fix her makeup, "You're the performer here. I'm just- I'm just the backup!"

"Christine-" She was interrupted immediately.

"Don't call me that." Chris hated her real name. She was named after an old horror movie- thanks, dad.

"Chris. Look," There was a sigh from the other end. Maggie hated fighting, "Look, you're a fabulous singer. You're amazing, you just have to get up there and do it. I mean look at last year's show! You were great!"

"I was in the back Maggie. I had maybe ten lines. Nobody even remembered I was there most of the time!"

"If you'd just try and assert yourself, you could be the lead next year! You just need to try harder!"

"Just-" Chris was getting angry, "Stop it, Maggie. You shouldn't have gone into my email. That's a really crappy thing for you to do."

There was a pause on the other side, "Okay, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done it. I won't do it again. But...will you at least consider actually trying out? You could really nail it... And even if you don't get a big part, we can still hang out!"

Christine sighed, "Yeah...I'll think about it," She turned to the clock. It was almost four twenty-five, "Jesus, Mags! I'm going to be late for work. I'll text you later okay?"

"Okay. See you, Chris."

"See you! Bye."

And, there she was…After a long shift at the Ripe of the Mill, a local clothing store where Chris made $9.50 an hour for organizing "specialty" clothes, Chris decided to respond to the email. She then shut her laptop and took a deep breath.

"Maaaagieee..." Chris groaned, closing her eyes. She looked at her sheet music lying readily on the seat next to her, neatly tucked away in a dark blue binder. With a decided nod of her head, Christine pulled the material into her arms, shut off the car, and began her march to the main entrance of the Apollo Opera House.