It's in the Genes
By Jeune Ecrivain
Rating: T
Summary: When a Troyela son and a Moliver daughter meet and end up going to the same school, history is bound to repeat itself.
A/N: Unfortunately, I'm no songwriter, so I'm going to have to use Disney songs to stand in for songs that would be in Kelsi's musical. I pulled a personal favorite from the Lion King II for this one.
Character Descriptions:
Brian Deffor – Think of Sam from "Life With Derek"
Chantel Deffor – Think of AJ Michalka with auburn hair.
----------MOLIVER&TROYELA4EVER----------
Emily Oken closed the door to her locker with its usual clang and sighed softly to herself. It was only the second day of school, and she was only beginning to settle back into the routine of it all. Yet there was something stirring within her that was a tad out of the ordinary. After only the second encounter with Chris Bolton the day before, she found herself thinking even more about their first meeting and how refreshing the experience had been. Even if she had never seen Chris again, singing with him would somehow be an experience she wouldn't be forgetting anytime soon…and perhaps not ever. With him going to her school, the feeling that her life would never be quite the same was reinforced.
What struck her the most, however, was that her thoughts were now inexplicably drawn towards the stage. On her way home the previous night, she had mused to herself about the possibility that she'd discovered a hidden talent. Did she really have the potential to be a performer? Such thoughts had occupied her mind for the rest of the night and remained with her the following morning. What's more, her mind was growing increasingly bold in its exploration of this new territory.
By now, Emily was feeling simultaneously intrigued and intimidated by this internal debate. Asserting its presence now was the inevitable temptation to experiment, and Mrs. Farforth's reminder about the auditions being held in the auditorium had only fanned the proverbial fire. She was seriously considering visiting the auditorium, if only as a mere spectator, which in itself was quite an intimidating idea. Yet her curiosity was fast gaining the upper hand.
She turned to find two of her cheerleading companions approaching her, as yet unaware of her proximity. Acting on impulse, she decided to make a break for it. Turning on her heels, she hurried as quietly yet quickly as she could down the hall. Feeling her friends' eyes now upon her, she ducked into a nearby classroom that she knew contained an adjoining door to the one right next to it. She went through the door joining the twin classrooms just as her two friends approached the first door. Wasting little time, Emily stepped back out into the hallway through the second room's primary door and silently passed her friends by just as they had surmised her previous move.
Emily descended the west staircase and exited via an auxiliary door at the base of the steps. She was now in plain view of the auditorium's rear-entrance, connected to the main building via a covered outdoor walkway. Spotting her coach coming her way, she concealed herself behind the side of a long array of lockers and waited for the sturdy woman to disappear through a door on the opposite side of the locker array. Taking a moment to make sure the coast was clear, she jogged the rest of her way to the large double doors and stepped inside quietly.
Emily found herself in the back of a huge assembly of mostly empty theatre seats. At the base of the slanted audience seating area stood Mrs. Farforth facing the impressive stage, and a few aspiring thespians sat anxiously in the front row. Emily stealthily claimed a seat in the back row. Half-squatting and half-sitting, she peered out from above the back of the seat in front of her as Mrs. Farforth's eloquent voice echoed throughout the entire building. Out of the corner of her eye, she recocgnized Brian and Chantel Deffor. She mentally smacked herself on the forehead. She should've known they'd be there. If Brian saw her, he would surely take it as a sign of interest and never leave her alone again. She knew she should probably leave before he spotted her, but her newfound curiosity would hear none of it. That intangible something was still holding her interest, and she tentatively decided to stay and hope for the best.
"Chelsea, how about we let them try the duet from the first act," she heard Mrs. Farforth say to a somewhat mousy girl sitting at a large piano. "That's really the best song for testing their voices, anyway."
Emily watched as a boy and a girl stepped up onstage, their nervousness obvious. After a few moments of preparation, the girl called Chelsea began playing soft notes on the piano, and the boy gingerly started singing into the mounted microphone before him. He girl joined in after a few lines. Emily had to admit that they sounded decent, but they were somehow…unremarkable. She could only wonder what the two singers could be feeling, paradoxically wanting and fearing to feel it herself.
As the hopeful pairs took to the stage one by one and attempted to earn a piece of the spotlight, Emily realized that the first had actually been the best. One couple was horribly off key. In the case of another, the guy sounded great but the girl sang as if she was trying to shatter glass. In still another, the girl sounded beautiful but the guy sounded flat. Still another couple never sang at all, but rather simply stood there petrified by stage fright.
Just as Emily mused that the girl from one pair and the guy from another would've both been shoe-ins if they weren't so mismatched, she felt a slight motion beside her. She turned her head and came face to face with Chris.
"Hey," he whispered.
"What are you doing here?" she whispered back as he took a seat next to her and assumed a position similar to hers.
"Honestly,…I don't know," he said softly. "I guess I'm just curious, for some reason."
"Did our little incident together give you a taste for the spotlight?" she teased.
Chris smirked good-naturedly at her. "I might ask you the same thing."
Emily blushed slightly and decided to turn her attention back to the auditions. Brian and Chantel were now mounting the stage, giving the impression that they were perfectly at home atop the polished wooden platform. Brian was dressed in a pair of designer jeans, a white polo shirt, and a blue blazer. Chantel, a slightly petite girl with auburn hair, was clad in a floral-print blouse and khaki mini-skirt. They both appeared perfectly calm and confident as they adjusted their respective microphones.
"What key are you guys using?" Chelsea asked.
"Oh, don't worry about that," Chantel replied coolly. "We came up with an accompaniment track of our own."
Brian set a small boom box atop the piano. "Here you go, piano-girl. Just press 'Play' and let us do the rest."
Before Chelsea could respond, Brian turned on his heel and took his place in front of the microphone with Chantel following suit. "Let's do it," he said with a snap of his fingers.
Chelsea resignedly followed Brian's single instruction of a few seconds ago, and an upbeat, sped-up version of the music Emily had heard during every previous audition immediately filled the auditorium. Brian began singing, and Chantel joined in at just the right moment. The two cousins proceeded to perform as if they were born to be on stage. Their timing was perfect, their voices were melodious and blended together perfectly, and to top it all of, they spiced the song up with a dance routine apparently of their own invention.
"Wow! They're awesome!" Chris observed silently, in awe of the impeccable performance being played out before him.
"Yeah," Emily agreed. "They are really talented. I just wish they didn't monopolize the theater. Do you realize that those two have played the lead roles in every single school play since kindergarten? It's like clockwork. The worst part is it's really gone to their heads. They think every role is owed to them or something. I don't think they've thought of auditioning as actually earning the roles in a long time. More like just a formality."
"Monopoly of the stage, huh?"
"Exactly!"
The Deffor cousins soon finished their performance and were greeted by a resigned round of applause from Chelsea the few other hopefuls who had remained to watch the show. Mrs. Farforth's applause, however, was significantly more eager. "Well done, as always, Brian and Chantel! The effort you've obviously put into your audition will bed duly noted."
"Mrs. Farforth," Chelsea spoke up, "that was a really great performance, but I'm not sure if that tempo is what Kelsi Cross had in mind when she wrote this."
At this, Brian shook his head and chuckled, as if amused by the naïve words of a child. "Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea," he said, "playwrights write plays all the time with the expectation that the actors interpret it in their own ways. That's how it works in the theatre. The writers write the words and the music, and the actors use their own gifts to make something out of it all that the writers never could. Writers can't sing or act, so I think it's best to just leave that part of it to the people who know what their doing."
"Still, is it not the actor's job to at least pay some respect to the playwright's intentions?" Chelsea argued, albeit somewhat meekly.
"Well, we could argue that point back and forth, but even so…are you Kelsi Cross?"
"No, but…"
"Well then, I rest my case. So you really have no interest in how we do this. You just play the music Mrs. Farforth gives you and leave the rest to us, ok?" Brian spoke with superficial friendliness, but his subtly intimidating demeanor caused the shy girl to just nod in acceptance.
The issue having been resolved, the crowd soon dispersed. Mrs. Farforth promised everyone that the names of the people receiving callbacks would be posted on the bulletin board very soon. The now-dejected hopefuls were the first to leave. Brian and Chantel followed Mrs. Farforth out the door, spouting pretentious yet flattering theatrical remarks along the way. As this was happening, both Emily and Chris felt a sudden urge to come out of hiding and request a chance to audition, but the uncertainty of what such a move would entail kept them silent.
Before they knew it, the only figure left in the auditorium besides them was Chelsea, who sighed resignedly before starting to gather her affairs and depart. As she turned to leave, an unseen impediment caught her foot and caused her to trip. A flurry of papers descended on the stage floor, and she looked at the mess hopelessly. At this, Chris' compassion took over. He stepped into plain view for the first time and jogged up to the stage. A surprised yet intrigued Emily followed soon after.
The petite pianist almost didn't notice Chris as he approached her. She looked surprised yet too occupied with her current predicament to properly greet him. "Let me help you with that," Chris offered as he bent down and proceeded to pull together the loose sheets of paper.
"Thanks," replied Chelsea.
Emily, who had caught up to Chris seconds before, silently knelt and picked up a few paper stragglers. "You're really awesome on the piano," she said, feeling like Chelsea deserved some recognition after the way Brian had treated her.
"Thanks," Chelsea answered again, her tone belying puzzlement at having received two compliments in the space of 30 seconds. She looked up to see who had spoken the second one, and her eyes widened. "Emily Oken," she realized.
"Hi!" Emily responded, feeling a little awkward. She had never grown completely comfortable with the reverence most of her peers had for her. She loved cheerleading, but there were times when she could've done without the issues of status that come with it. This was one of those times.
"Emily's right," Chris concurred, almost seeming to sense her awkwardness and rush to her aid. "You're really talented. I don't think Brian and Chantel give you enough credit."
"Yeah, why do you take that stuff from them, anyway?" Emily asked indignantly.
"Well, they are the best performers in the school," Chelsea reminded her, rising with her now neat folder of papers clutched tightly to her chest.
"Yeah, but that doesn't give them the right to put you down like that," Emily stated.
"Oh, well, I guess I've just learned to put up with it, then," replied Chelsea. "I just wish they didn't have to be so big-headed with this play." She shook her head. "That new tempo they used for the song, it just doesn't do justice to what Kelsi Cross intended."
"Are you a fan of her work?" Chris asked perceptively.
Chelsea smiled genuinely. "Definitely! I really admire how she draws her stories from people she's known in real life! Plus, she writes the best songs!"
"Will you play one for us?" Emily requested hopefully.
Chelsea blushed. "Sure. Let me show you how the duet we've been doing is s'posed to sound." She resumed her seat at the piano, and a soft melody filled the auditorium once more.
Chris found himself quite enjoying the tune that filled his ears. Turning to look at Emily, he found her smiling as well. When she caught his eye, she gave him a pointed look. He shot her one back, knowing perfectly well what she was suggesting. Finally, he chuckled at the situation and decided to just go for it. Throwing Emily a final meaningful glare, he tentatively began singing the lyrics he had learned well enough from having watched the auditions.
In a perfect world,
One we've never known,
We would never need
To face the world alone.
Emily smiled in admiration of Chris' gentle voice, and in appreciation, she joined in.
They can have the world.
We'll create our own.
I may not be brave,
Or strong, or smart,
But somewhere in my secret heart,
Chris rejoined Emily, and their voices blended in perfect harmony for the second time.
I know
Love will find a way.
Anywhere we go,
I'm home
If you are there beside me.
Like dark turning into day,
Somehow we'll come through
Now that I've found you.
Love will find a way.
As Chelsea played the last dwindling notes, in awe of what she had just witnessed, Chris and Emily were gazing pleasantly at each other, reveling in how much they had enjoyed singing again.
Chelsea opened her mouth to berate them for not having auditioned, but another voice stopped her before she had a chance. "Oken, Bolton,…"
The three teens turned to find Mrs. Farforth standing in the door to the auditorium's large entry hall. "I left my audition notes in here a few minutes ago, and I'm now quite glad I did," she said. "Oken, where have you been hiding that beautiful voice all this time? I daresay you seem to resemble a certain pop star from my generation vocally as well as physically! And you, Bolton! I'm very impressed, to say the least!"
Emily blushed crimson, and Chris felt a little odd getting such unusual attention. "Oh, we were just goofing off," Emily said.
"Well, if that's what you call 'goofing off,' let's see what you can do when you're actually working towards something! I expect to see you both back here in two weeks for our second round of auditions." Emily and Chris' jaws dropped. "Consider yourselves called back!" The drama teacher tucked the paperwork she had come to retrieve under her arm. "Chelsea will work with you on preparing a song to perform at your callbacks."
"Gladly!" Chelsea interjected, barely able to contain her excitement.
Mrs. Farforth sighed contentedly and added softly, "Good luck to you both! I think you two could make a fine Gabriel and Tracy."