Disclaimer: I do not own Ed, Edd, 'n' Eddy or it's characters.
Chapter 3,
So many auditions, so many voices, good and bad, and Kevin was stiff from standing still for so long.
"Thank you Plank, that was... such a classic audition." Edd said and Johnny ran up and picked Plank up.
"Wowie, Plank, I've never heard you sing that well." Johnny said as they exited the room.
"I think he's the last one." Edd said, leaning back in his chair, and Kevin looked at him.
"Why on earth did you offer Plank throat spray?" He asked and Edd shrugged and put the spray in his hand.
"I was trying to be polite, for Johnny's sake of nothing else." Edd said and Kevin stretched and popped his back.
"I'm not use to standing behind a camera for so long. What should we do now?" Kevin asked and Edd paused.
"Well, I'm wondering if, um..." Edd started, but he was quickly losing his nerve.
"Yeah?" Kevin asked leaving Edd with no choice but to finish his thought.
"Well, Perhaps you should, um... audition for the role of Phantom to make the choice more... authentic." Edd said and Kevin groaned.
"We've heard 'Music of the Night' like twenty times already. I refuse to sing it." Kevin said crossing his arms and Edd cautiously pulled another sheet of music out of his folder.
"I thought that you could sing this." Edd said and Kevin grabbed it.
" 'Till I Hear You Sing (Once More)'?" Kevin read and Double D nodded.
"It's the opening song for Love Never Dies. It's really bewitching, actually." Edd said and Kevin still looked unsure.
"Boy, it's only fair. I will not let one of my children hide behind a mask." Mr. Ryans said, and then he chuckled at his own joke.
"Heh, uh... I guess it wouldn't hurt." Kevin said, glancing at Double D, then Kevin sprayed his throat with the throat spray before putting it in Edd's bag.
"Child." Mr. Ryans turned to Edd who instantly gave his attention to the teacher.
"Perhaps your presence makes the boy uneasy. If he needs to work up to such a performance let him; but let me work my magic, and step out into the hallway." Mr. Ryans said patting the class president on the back. Edd didn't question his authority, and left the room, closing the door behind him.
"Thanks, but I don't know how I'll be able to do well, I don't even know this song." Kevin said and Mr. Ryans sat at his piano.
"Here's you're first step, young one. Just close you're eyes and listen to the music." Mr. Ryans said and Kevin closed his eyes.
Outside of the door, Double D sat against the wall and pulled out one of his textbooks to study. After a moment, he heard feet shuffling towards him. At first, Edd ignored it, but then the feet stopped, and a finger poked his book.
"Excuse me, Double D?" Edd looked up to see Jimmy and he smiled at the young creature.
"Oh, hello there." Edd said and Jimmy paused to twist his fingers.
"Um, is it too late to Audition? I was going to be here sooner, but a teacher needed my help grading papers." Jimmy said and Edd smiled understandingly.
"Well, Kevin is auditioning now, I'm sure that you can go right after him." Edd said and Jimmy sighed.
"Thank goodness. I thought Sarah would get mad at me? Jimmy said and Edd eyed him.
"What do you mean, Jimmy?" Edd asked and Jimmy looked down the hall.
"Sarah and thought being in the play would help with building my confidence up. She told me to audition or else we wouldn't hang out for a whole week." Jimmy said and Edd shook his head at Sarah, though she wasn't there.
"Well, then I've got an idea if you're up to it." Edd said and Jimmy looked at him.
"What is it?" Jimmy asked and Edd pulled out the final song he found and held it up for Jimmy.
"There is a role for the son of Christine. He does play a vital role in the second half of the play. This song is called 'Look with Your Heart'. Christine sings most of the song, but she does sing it with her son. So if you want, I can help by singing this song with you. I know that my voice hasn't deepened much since puberty, but I imagine it would make your voice stand out more." Double D said and Jimmy smiled.
"You would do that for me, Double D?" Jimmy asked and Edd nodded.
"Sure, I've been listening to people sing all day. I may not be a songbird, but I do enjoy to pretend like I am." Edd said and Jimmy chuckled. Edd put away his book when he heard the end of the song, and he cracked the door open a bit.
"Kevin, that was absolutely exceptional. I can not wait to hear what you sound like after you've been practicing." Mr. Ryans said and Kevin rubbed the back of his neck.
"I didn't know that I could even sound like that. Or... feel that way." Kevin said bashfully and Mr. Ryans chuckled. Edd decided to knock, making the teacher and the jock look at him.
"Sorry to interrupt, but it looks like we got one more to do." Edd said and he noticed the blush fading from Kevin's face.
"Ok, Dorko. But I'm gonna head to the restroom real quick." Kevin said walking past Edd and Jimmy.
"Come, now. What song are we doing?" Mr. Ryans asked as the walked closer.
"The fourth one I gave you." Edd said and Mr. Ryans shuffled through his music.
"Is he going to sing 'Look with Your Heart' by himself?" He asked and Edd blushed.
"Jimmy is trying out for the role of Gustave. So... I guess I'll sing Christine's part for him. That way he can just jump in." Edd said and Mr. Ryans nodded.
"Are you ready?" Mr. Ryans asked and Edd looked at the paper.
"Yes. Wait, I mean no. We need the throat spray." Edd said and he remembered Kevin putting it in his bag earlier and so he reached in and pulled out a bottle and sprayed his throat a few times. Only afterwards did he notice that the color of the bottle wasn't red... it was pink.
"Oh, dear. I used the incorrect bottle. This is the spray I made for mo-ther." Edd's voice suddenly got higher and more feminine.
"It made your voice higher?" Mr. Ryans asked and Edd nodded.
"Mother was worried about her voice deepening, and so I made this, and it's... oh dear, I don't sound anything like myself anymore." Edd said and he looked at Jimmy.
"Well, maybe I can test how long the effects last. Here's the correct spray Jimmy." Double D said, handing him the red bottle out of his bag.
"Let's move on shall we?" Edd said, a bit embarrassed by his accident.
"If you insist. So... one and two and-"
"Love's a curious thing/ It often comes disguised/ Look at love the wrong way/ It goes unrecognized." Double D sang and all three of them were surprised at how glorious it sounded. But not as surprised as the red head who just entered back into the hallway. That song Kevin sang made his temperature rise, and he only needed to splash some water on his face.
"So look with your heart/ And not with your eyes/ A heart understands/ A heart never lies." Kevin heard this angelic voice sing and he felt entranced. He felt himself gliding slowly down the hall as he listened to the songbird.
"Believe what it feels/ And trust what it shows/ Look with your heart/ The heart always knows." Finally Kevin reaches the choir room door again, and was disappointed when he only saw Edd and Jimmy at the piano and looking at each other. That it, until Edd opened his mouth.
"Love is not always beautiful/ Not at the start." Kevin's eyes widened at the now conflicting emotions he currently felt. On one hand, he knew that Edd was a complete know it all.
"So open your arms/ And close your eyes tight/ Look with your heart/ And when it finds love/ Your heart will be right." And on the other hand, listening to Edd sing like this, humbled Kevin's soul in such a submissive way. Emotionally he was ok with what he was feeling, but logically he knew that he shouldn't be having these emotions towards Edd.
"Learn from someone who knows/ make sure you don't forget/ Love you misunderstand/ Is love that you'll regret." No way Kevin was falling in love with Double D right now.
"Mother? Look with your heart/ And not with your eyes/ The heart can't be fooled." Jimmy sang.
"The heart is too wise." Edd sang with a smile.
I'm not falling for a dork. That's, like, against my code.
Kevin thought.
"Forget what you think." Jimmy sang.
"Ignore what you hear." Edd sang.
"Look with your heart/ It always sees clear." They sang together.
This thing with my heart racing and my palms getting sweaty is just a fluke.
Kevin insisted.
"Love is not always beautiful/ Not at the start." Jimmy sang.
"But open your arms/ And when it finds love/ Your heart will be right." Edd sang the ending, and it sent shivers down Kevin's spine.
It's just a fluke.
Kevin practically forced, but he walked into the room anyways.
"Ah, Kevin. Auditions are finally over, so you still want to discuss the selections at your house?" Edd asked, and Kevin couldn't help himself.
"What the hell is up with your voice?" Kevin asked and Edd blushed.
"Remember earlier, you asked me where I got throat spray. I mentioned a spray I made for my mother, yes?" Edd paused and Kevin nodded.
"Yeah, so?" He asked, still wanting an answer.
"Well, Mother was worried her voice would deepen as she got older, because it happened to her mother. She asked me if I could make a spray to keep her voice the same. And I, um... accidentally sprayed that instead of the singing spray." Edd explained and Kevin sighed.
"How long will it last?" Kevin asked and Edd shrugged.
"I made it to hopefully last three hours, but it could be less depending on one's vocal activity. Although I haven't really tested this bath. It could last much longer, or it could end any second." Edd said and Kevin hesitated.
"Fine, I'll get use to it for Nazz's sake. Let's pack up and go to my house Edd." Kevin was and as they cleaned up, Double D wondered if this was the first time that Kevin called him by a real name. Edd chose to not think about it now. Since Jimmy had already ran off, and Mr. Ryans stayed to grade papers, the two boys walked to the front of the school.
"Hey, we're heading to my place anyways. Why don't I give you a ride." Kevin said gesturing to his motorcycle.
"Oh, dear. Oh dear, on that?" Double D asked and Kevin asked and Edd shook his head.
"Yeah, on this. We are seniors, dude, you didn't expect me to ride my bicycle forever, did you?" Kevin asked and Edd shook his head.
"Of course not, but... I..." Edd trembled in the sight of the bike.
"Dorko, you're boring me. Nazz expects a lot out of us in a short amount of time. So put on this helmet, get on this bike and come with me." Kevin said, holding his spare helmet out to him. Edd's heart races and he wanted to run away, but when he finally stared into those emerald eyes, the windows to the soul, he oddly relaxed. He took the helmet with a shaky breath, and sat on Kevin's bike.
"Aren't you gonna hold onto me?" Kevin asked when he felt nothing.
"That's very kind, but I'm unsure of where you or your clothes have been and I am very protective of-" Kevin started the bike and jerked forward about five inches. Edd instinctively wrapped his arms around Kevin in fear.
"Dear Lord, man. Don't do that!" Edd shouted and Kevin chuckled.
"Next time hang on and I will." Kevin said and this time, with the dork's arms securely around his chest, Kevin carefully drove home.