The moment Ophelia stepped inside, Professor O'Neil gestured her towards the door going out into the hallway.
"Hey, Ophelia. Where are you going?" Isabelle asked as she saw her cousin walk towards the door.
"I apologize, dear cousin, but I must meet with Professor O'Neil. It is important." Ophelia replied before making her way out the door.
"Why does she have to meet with the Professor?" Adam asked.
Massie and Isabelle didn't want to expose their friend, so they simply shrugged their shoulders and said nothing.
In Professor O'Neil's office, Ophelia was sitting on the desk with a tube in her arm that was hooked up to a machine that was pumping blood.
"Five more minutes, then you have to go back into the gym." O'Neil said, looking at his watch.
"This is a very silly play, although I do recall the story that is being told." Ophelia said as she was watching an episode of a television show called 'Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre' with a curious expression on her face.
"Yeah, well that's one of the only few stations we get out here. How are we doing?"
"I do not feel as though I am becoming more human as yet."
"Just give it some time."
"Time, Professor… I have an unfortunate access of."
Back in the gym, Vice Principal Hoffman was announcing the final event of the Students Games which was about to begin within a few minutes. The students from both schools were waiting impatiently in the audience.
"Even though Collinsport High has won the first two events so flawlessly, this final event will determine the real winner of the Student Games." She explained. "There is a karaoke machine up here on stage and the members from both teams will each sing one song and nothing more."
By the time Ophelia had made it back to the gym, she was greeted by the students cheering for Vice Principal Hoffman's statement.
"Ophelia! Over here!" Massie called, waving her friend over.
"What have I missed?" Ophelia asked as she made her way to her friend.
"You just missed hearing the final event." Massie explained. "It's gonna be a karaoke contest."
"Karaoke?"
"It's pretty simple. You pick a song on the list, the lyrics show up on a screen, and you do your best to sing the song you choose… You can sing, right?"
"I have been known to sing many a time before I was… you know."
"Great! You should go first."
"Me? Oh, no, no, no, no! Heavens, no!"
"What? Why not?"
"Because… I cannot sing in front of such a vast number of people."
"Wait… Don't tell me you're scared."
"Regrettably, Massie… I am. I am so very sorry; I cannot do it."
"What about Alex? Do you really wanna disappoint him?"
Ophelia turned her head to see Alex standing by the stage. When their eyes met, she felt a new feeling grow within her… a feeling of strength. She wanted Alex to be happy and she knew what she had to do at this point; she looked back at her friend with a determined look in her dark eyes.
"When does the competition begin?" She asked.
On stage, the two groups of six were huddled on either side of the stage as Barnabas made his way to the center.
"Before we begin, each student will need at least one minute to think of the song they wish to sing." He explained. "The student with the most applause at the end of each song wins that round and the school with the most succeeding students wins the Student Games. One student from Angel Prep shall go first, then Collinsport, then Angel Prep again, and so on."
"That's good." Massie whispered to Ophelia. "If you're going last, then that'll give you enough time to pick a song."
"I understand." Ophelia whispered. "But who of Angel Prep shall go first?"
The first Angel Prep singer was Nick Franklin and he chose "Let's Get It On" for his song. But the moment the music started playing, everyone realized that he couldn't sing. His voice was so off-key that everyone from Collinsport High and Angel Prep, both students and staff, desperately covered their ears to try and block out the awful sound. The moment it was over, only a few Angel Prep students clapped their hands just to be polite while everyone remained silent while they sighed in relief in their heads. But Adam was another story; he chose to sing "I'm A Believer" and surprisingly, he was a decent singer. But only about a fraction of students clapped in applause; they thought he was good, but not that good.
This transition from bad to good or good to bad went back and forth for nearly half an hour until the final Angel Prep singer came up: Alex. He was up after Massie finished singing "Macavity" from Cats and by now, Alex was in a cold sweat as he stood in front of the crowds. His eyes glanced from the people to Ophelia who was giving him a sympathetic smile and a reassuring nod. He smiled at her, took the microphone, and said,
"I choose to sing 'Hot Patootie' from The Rocky Horror Picture Show."
The music started and the moment Alex started singing, everyone of Angel Prep was shocked to hear the nerdy loser they know and love to pick on sing in such a smooth, clear voice. Even Collinsport High was surprised; so much so that everyone on both sides started to dance along. Ophelia was more entranced by Alex's voice than anyone else; she had fallen in love with that voice almost immediately. When Alex finished, he was almost out of breath and nearly everyone in the audience cheered in applause.
Then finally, Ophelia was up. She calmly walked out to the middle of the stage, took the microphone, cleared her throat, and said,
"I wish to sing 'Hallelujah'… please."
A few Angel Prep kids laughed at her under their breath. The music began to play; Ophelia nervously glanced at the lyrics on the screen, cleared her throat, took a deep breath, and she began to sing. And to everyone's surprise, she was singing in the most angelic, smooth, enchanting voice anyone has ever heard; it was so beautiful that a few people had started crying. Alex's eyes widened as he heard his friend sing for the very first time; now he had fallen in love with that voice. When Ophelia finished her song, half of the people in the audience clapped their hands and cheered and the other half cheered and clapped with tears falling from their eyes. Ophelia gave a quick curtsy before going back to her group.
"Ophelia, that was so beautiful!" Massie sobbed as she hugged her friend tight.
"My darling Ophelia, you were fantastic out there!" Barnabas exclaimed as he and Isabelle ran over to the group.
"I had no idea you could sing like that!" Isabelle exclaimed with tears in her eyes.
"I did not know either." Ophelia said, wiping her face with a handkerchief she had in her sweater pocket. "To be honest, that performance has quite emotionally drained me. Whew!"
"That was amazing, Ophelia!" Alex said, joining the group. "I've never heard anything like it."
"Thank you very much, Alexander. Thank you all. I am truly glad you thought so." Ophelia said, turning around to face him. "And I must admit that your voice was also very enchanting."
"Me?" Alex asked.
"Yeah! Your performance was sick!" Massie cried. The others agreed.
"You were amazing back there, Alex!" Isabelle added; Barnabas smiled and nodded his head, agreeing with his daughter.
"You know something, Alex? You're alright." Adam said, putting a hand on his shoulder.
"You're pretty okay in my book." Ramona said.
"Totally." Noah and Ben commented.
"Really? Wow thanks, you guys. I really appreciate it." Alex said before wrapping his arms around Ophelia in a hug. "And Ophelia? I want to thank you the most."
"Me? For what?" She asked as she and Alex parted; he took her hand in his own.
"For making me feel welcome here at Collinsport High; for making me feel at home again. No one else has ever done that for me. So… thank you… so… much."
Before anyone else knew what was happening, Alex leaned in and kissed Ophelia full on the lips. At first she was surprised, but then she closed her eyes and kissed him back.
Principal Bouchard kept his eyes on Alex and he angrily sneered at him once he kissed Ophelia before coming up with an idea. He looked up at the mirror ball hanging above the middle of the gym and smiled evilly. Within a few seconds, the ball fell from its latch and it began to fall; the students took notice and they screamed. Ophelia looked up and gasped in shock. With great speed, she pushed a remaining student out of the way of the falling ball and Principal Bouchard opened the windows and doors to let in the light of the now setting sun, allowing Ophelia to bathe in it. Within a few seconds, her clothes and parts of her hair and flesh had started on fire. The other students and teachers stared in shock while Massie and Persephone only stared with looks of pure terror.
"Um, Ophelia, sweetheart? You're on fire." Dean Stoddard said before a nearby bucket of mop water was thrown on Ophelia to put out the fire.
"That was rather uncalled for…" She muttered, spitting the gross soapy water out of her mouth.
The other students backed away from her, unsure of what she would do. Ophelia looked at Alex with a saddened look on her face. Alex looked at her with a look of shock and confusion; he didn't know what to think now.