Hello. Thanks once again for comments and reviews. And good job HermioneRose (and whoever else) who figured out who that voice was.

Disclaimer: Still not my characters. Shocking, I know.

Chapter 4: Tensions mount

Stella and Joe sat side by side, staring at the blank spot on the school bulletin board in the cafeteria.

Tomorrow.

Tomorrow the cast list would be up and they would know if they had landed the parts they had auditionned for, or if they hadn't. More importantly, though, tomorrow they would know if they had to kiss in front of the entire student body.

"What happens if we do?"

"If we do what?"

Stella sighed. "What happens if we do get the parts, and then we have to kiss in front of the entire school?"

"Then we'll kiss in front of the entire school," Joe said with a shrug.

"Right. But what if we don't."

"Then we won't kiss in front of the entire school."

Stella rolled her eyes at her friend. "I mean what if only one of us gets the role. What if one of us has to get up there and kiss someone else?"

"Then we'll do that."

His indifference at the situation was starting to gnaw at her anger.

"So you're going to be fine if I have to kiss someone else on stage and you won't fly down on a rope and knock them over?"

"Wait, you? I thought we were talking what if I got the role and you didn't. I didn't think about the other way around."

"That's great. Thanks."

"No, well, I was just... Look, there's Macy."

"Don't think you can distract me with— Whoa," Stella stopped when she saw her friend approach and drop down on a chair next to her. "Are you okay, Macy?"

"Do I look okay?"

"No. What's going on?"

"How can you even ask that?"

Stella looked over at Joe who shrugged his shoulders.

"Did you not see who was at the audition the other day and who apparently can sing just as well as she can do everything else?"

Joe made a move to leave the table but was stopped by Stella's hand on his forearm.

"Macy, don't worry about it. You won your bet. Kevin loves you and you're still striker on the soccer team. There's nothing she can do to you now."

"Kevin likes me, and the soccer team is done for the season. Now she's found an activity that's she's actually better than me at. And she just happens to show up? I don't think so. There's something up and I don't want to have to be there when it goes down."

"Macy, Brooke is just being obnoxious. Don't let her get to you. Ignore her. Where's Kevin to cheer you up?"

"Make-up test." Macy sighed. "What are you guys fighting about?"

"We're not fighting. What would make you think that we were fighting?"

"You're always fighting."

"We are debating," Stella said, enunciating the last word carefully, "what we'll do if we get the lead roles and have to kiss on stage."

"You'll freak out," Macy answered without hesitation.

"And what we'll do if only one of us is on that stage kissing someone else."

"You'll freak out and do something drastic to interrupt the play."

Stella sighed. "We were encouraging with your problem. Why can't you help with ours?"

"Because my problem is real, and your problem is you two refusing to admit that you like each other. Get over it. Admit it. Move on. I'm going to go sulk somewhere else."

She grabbed her bag and left them there; her friends happy to notice that there was the tiniest bit more pep in her step.

"She's nuts," Joe scoffed.

"Yeah, I mean, us, like each other. Whatever."

"I have to get to class."

"I have..." Stella blinked. Joe was gone before she could think of an answer. "Something. I have something."

***

Nick sighed as he twirled a pencil between his fingers. It was one thing to make him have to work with Penny; it was an entirely different thing to make him have to wait for her twenty minutes because she was late. Seriously, he did have other things to do in life.

He flipped through the pages in front of him as he waited. He might not have been a big fan of the epic love stories, and he might not have been a big fan of Penny, but he was still him which meant he was still a perfectionist, and had therefore put his all in the lyrics he had written. He had also put his all into preparing for the possible rejection said lyrics would face from the girl who had once gushed over the words he would write.

"Hey, Nick. Sorry I'm late. I had to talk to my math teacher. So, what have you got?"

"You want to hear them or just read them?"

"Just show me the words for now. We can figure out the music for them later."

Nick furrowed his brow but gave her the music sheets anyway. What did she mean "figure out the music later"? He'd already figured out the music and really didn't see where there would be a need to change it.

"This one needs to be sadder," she said, handing him back the top sheet. "This one should be louder. This one doesn't rhyme. Can you change the chorus on this? That second verse sounds funny."

He drowned out the sound of her voice and concentrated on grabbing the sheets as they floated toward him. She had a criticism for each and every one of them.

"It's a good start."

Nick pressed his tongue against the inside of his cheek.

"I think it's actually even pretty close to what we're going to need."

Was that supposed to be encouraging? Nick wondered.

She'd just rejected ten originals songs that he'd written, completely ignoring his science homework, and then offered that it was a good start and pretty close to what was needed. This was why he rarely ventured into collaborations.

"I'll see what I can do," was all he finally answered, because in the end, he knew that it was Penny's play and that he had no choice but to be there.

"Great. If you get stuck, I can probably help. Matthew's been helping me with my song writing, so I should be good."

Nick nodded. He did not need to know that animal-activist guy's name was Matthew. He really didn't need to know anything about the new guy in Penny's life.

"I'll see what I can do," he said again.

"You're the best," she gushed, leaning forward to hug him where he sat as she continued to stand in front of him. "Okay, well I have to go help Mrs. Snark make the final casting decisions. I'll see you Thursday at rehearsals. Maybe seeing the actors will inspire you to write something better."

He bit his tongue this time to stop himself from telling her he'd see what he could do. She waved and left the room with a happy hop.

"It could have been worse."

Nick looked up in surprise at the sound of the voice. He hadn't realised anyone else was in the room.

"What are you doing here?"

"Keeping you sane. Remember?"

"Then shouldn't you have interrupted that conversation ten minutes ago? Or maybe before it even started?"

"You were doing well," she said, sitting next to him.

"I think I made myself bleed." Nick stuck out his tongue and tried to look at it to see if he'd bit hard enough to draw blood, mindless of how ridiculous he probably looked.

Sam laughed and swatted toward his mouth to get him to put his tongue away.

"It's her first play. You were probably as possessive of your songs when your first album came out."

"Do you know how old I was when my first album came out?"

"Were you also this modest?"

Nick's jaw dropped. Sass from Sam. Who knew she had it in her?

Fine, she was right, but he had yet to have been criticised for being too full of himself, usually pretty good at keeping a down-to-earth attitude.

"So you think I should just make the changes she wants?"

Sam shrugged. "I think you should take another look at what you've written. If you can see some merit in what she said, make the changes, if not, leave them as is and show her the same sheets you showed her today. If she gives the same comments, she means them, if she doesn't she was just looking for something to complain about."

Nick leaned in and lowered his voice. "You're a genius aren't you?"

"Two points shy," Sam whispered back.

He tried his best to pout as he sat back in his seat and crossed his arms over his chest. Of course she would be smarter than him too. Sam giggled and got up.

"I'll let you work on those. I'll see you at play practice on Thursday."

He nodded his head in her direction as she left. He supposed that he could give the songs another look. Hopefully, he'd find just the right thing that would get Penny off his back, and his participation in this extra-curricular activity done.

***

Macy looked at her watch once again. It was ten minutes after seven which meant that Kevin was potentially ten minutes late.

They didn't officially have a date, but it had become routine that they get together every Tuesday night to watch the Discovery Channel together and learn about a new animal. One week they spent at his house and one week at hers. Macy had now tried to think back countless times to make sure that last week had been at the firehouse, but there was no denying that it had been seven days ago that she had watched Kevin and Frankie try to imitate hippopotamuses fighting over the same female, which meant it had definitely not been at her house. He was late, and after the day of doubts she'd had, this was the last thing she needed.

She jumped off the couch at the sound of the doorbell, not even bothering to check who was there.

"You are so la— dressed up. Why are you so dressed up?"

Kevin smiled as he stuck out his arm, a bouquet of daisies held in his fist. "For you."

"Thank you?"

"You're welcome."

He nodded and smiled as she took the flowers from him.

"Are you coming in?"

"I know it's Animal Kingdom night, but I was hoping we could make an exception this once."

"Why?"

"Because I lo... ike you. Because I like you, Macy. And no matter what you say, I know that seeing Brooke the other day threw you off and made you uncomfortable, and I don't want her to make you doubt yourself again."

"So, we can't watch Animal Kingdom?"

"We could. Or, I was thinking we could go out. Have some food. Take a walk. Hold hands. Find a quiet corner where your father would never find us..."

"Ah, so you thought you could use my vulnerability to get a make-out session."

Kevin's brow furrowed. "Did I mention the holding hands and the food?"

"Oh, I didn't say no," Macy said, already grabbing her jacket. "I was just clarifying. Let's go."

Kevin smiled as he let Macy walk in front of him, grabbing his hand and dragging him toward his car.