"The Next Morning"
Erik's P.O.V.
I didn't get any sleep all night. I couldn't stop thinking about Caylin and the time we spent star gazing before going to bed. I don't even know what kind of smile it was I was making. Everywhere I looked I saw Caylin's face and I heard her voice in my head, talking and singing.
"Erik!" I heard a loud voice that made me jump. I turned and saw Seth looking at me with a confused look on his face.
"That was the seventh time I called your name!" Seth complained, "What's the matter with you?"
"I'm sorry Seth" I apologized as I got up, "I didn't hear you."
"That was obvious," Seth spat, "You had the same goo-goo look that Mom and Dad get whenever they're together or just want to be alone. You weren't thinking about Caylin were you?"
"What would make you think that?" I asked him shocked that he figured it out so quickly.
"Because ever since you joined the Troupe, every time you look at her, your eyes glaze over and whenever she sings, you smile" Seth explained.
I groaned burying my face in my hands. If a boy at the age of five could figure it out it, wouldn't be long until Caylin knew.
"Are you going to come over and eat?" Seth asked, "Everybody is having breakfast now and Peter sent me get you. It's almost 10:30." My eyes widened. Everybody comes to eat breakfast at 9 in the morning. If I didn't hurry, I wasn't going to get my food. I quickly got dressed and ran to the breakfast table grabbing what food I could.
"You're late" I heard a voice it front of me that I knew so well and made my heart pound.
"I know and I'm sorry" I answered Caylin before I put some more food in my mouth.
"Well you'd better hurry up," Caylin replied, "Peter wants us all gathered around so we could start preparations for when we leave to perform our next show. After that, we're going to visit the area." And with that Caylin walked away, as I lifted my head to look at her. She had tied her hair in a braid, was wearing a long dark blue long-sleeved dress with a ruffle at the end of the sleeves, and I didn't have to see them to know that she was wearing her ring and locket.
"Erik" I turned my head and saw Peter. "Since you're late, you will be sitting out of the practice before we perform for ourselves. When I decide to have you be a part of it again, I'll let you know. Just don't be late next time."
"Yes Peter I understand" I replied, hoping I sounded grateful to his ears. Peter was about to walk away when he looked at me again.
"And one more thing Erik, don't get too distracted by my daughter or you're out" Peter warned me. And with that, Peter walked away. I couldn't believe it, Seth knew and now I know that Peter knows. Word spreads fast in the Troupe. It won't be long until Caylin knew. I just hope that she finds out later than sooner.
Caylin's P.O.V.
We had finished all our exercises and we were having two performances for ourselves before we toured the area. Both performances were showing how far Yves has come as a performer. I felt so proud of him, especially since his birthday was coming up. These performances were not just for surrounding him or even as early birthday presents, but for Yves to prove to himself how far he's gotten and so he could be proud of himself. What Yves doesn't know is that Isobel plans on giving him a BIG kiss after he performs his solo which will be after our group performance with him and she plans on spoiling him today, and not just by getting him souvenirs either. While Isobel is like her mother when it comes to pranks and like her father with his modesty, Jo has been an influence to her when it came to relationships because Isobel's urges became too much for her and she wasn't able to wait it out like her parents did and that's what made her turn to Jo for help. So like Jo, she has had sex with the man she loves, but both Isobel and Yves are waiting for when they both become of age before they marry. I've known for a long time that Yves had been sleeping with Isobel, but it doesn't matter because I know how they feel about each other and neither of them are going to want anyone else (though Isobel is usually the one who does the seducing since Yves is always worried about someone hearing them and walking in on them and Isobel keeps trying to tell him that no one will and that they won't be disturbed and so far Isobel has been right, but it doesn't stop Yves from worrying).
"Yves, are you ready?" Peter called out to him as we all went to our spots surrounding him. Erik was sitting and watching since he didn't know the song we were doing as a group. Yves gave Peter a firm nod and the music began. Yves started to sing in his beautifully developed baritenor voice.
Why won't my hands stop shaking
When all the earth is still
When ancient ghosts are waking
So many steps need taking
So many plans need making
I think I will
I think I will
Morning glow, morning glow
Starts to glimmer when you know
Winds of change are set to blow
And sweep this whole land through
Morning glow is long past due
Morning glow fill the earth
Come and shine for all you're worth
We'll be present at the birth
Of old faith looking new
Morning glow is long past due now the rest of us sang the first lyric as a group
Oh, morning glow, I'd like to help you grow Yves sang the part next
We should have started long ago when sang the next part in a round with Yves singing the lyrics first with us following him in singing the lyrics
So, morning glow all day long
While we sing tomorrow's song
Never knew we could be so strong Yves sang by himself now
But now it's very clear
Morning glow is almost here now we were all singing together
Morning glow by your light
We can make the new day bright
And the phantoms of the night
Will fade into the past
Morning glow is here Yves sang his last solo lyric
Morning glow is here at last the music played a little bit and we sang as a group once more
Morning glow by your light
We can make the new day bright
And the phantoms of the night
Will fade into the past
Morning glow is here Heather got up to Yves and looked him in the eye singing her lyrics to him telling subtly that there's still more that'll happen for him
We've got magic to do
Just for you we sang the last lyric of the song together belting it out
At last!
Once the music stopped, there was applause, even from Erik. I think he understood what we were doing. We all took our bow and excluding Yves, we all went to our seats. I sat next to Erik.
"Fell better now that you've eaten?" I asked him. Erik his head since the first notes of Yves' solo started playing. I knew he was nervous but I knew he could do it. Yves had chosen this song his solo because it was how he felt for a while after he joined the Troupe five years go. I sent him encouraging smile. He sent me a grateful one back on started singing.
Everything has its season
Everything has its time
Show me a reason and I'll soon show you a rhyme
Cats fit on the windowsill
Children fit in the snow
Why do I feel I don't fit in anywhere I go?
Rivers belong where they can ramble
Eagles belong where they can fly
I've got to be where my spirit can run free
Got to find my corner of the sky
Every man has his daydream
Every man has his goal
People like the way dreams have
Of sticking to the soul
Thunderclouds have their lightning
Nightingales have their song
And don't you see I want my life to be
Something more than long...
Rivers belong where they can ramble
Eagles belong where they can fly
I've got to be where my spirit can run free
Got to find my corner of the sky
So many men seem destined
To settle for something small
But I won't rest until I know I'll have it all
So don't ask where I'm going
Just listen when I'm gone
And far away you'll hear me singing
Softly to the dawn:
Rivers belong where they can ramble
Eagles belong where they can fly
I've got to be where my spirit can run free
Got to find my corner of the sky
We all applauded and cheered for Yves when finished, especially since that last note is hard for a man to hit since it's in the higher range. Isobel ran straight to Yves and kissed him full on the lips in front everyone. More cheering was to be heard, but even though Yves' eyes bulged at first, it didn't take long for him to kiss Isobel back and embrace her. Their love for each other was no secret to us. Everybody in the Troupe knew about them. As they kissed, Aaron and Seth were the only ones who shouted ews. Since they're five year old boys, it's not surprising that they think kissing is gross. Alicia is the only one out of the little kids who loves to watch couples kiss unless it was her own parents. Yves and Isobel pulled away after a minute of kissing, but Isobel left Yves with a dazed look on his face when she removed her lips from his. Then with a smile, she brought Yves to his seat. Peter came up. He told us all that we could explore the area but we had to be back no later than seven that night.
I decided to spend the day with Odela since it has been a while since we spent time together. Erik stayed behind not feeling comfortable going out into the public without hiding his face even though I tried to convince him that nobody was going to care.
Odela and I went to various stores, shopping for clothes, jewelry, books and sweets. We were now having our lunch.
"Are you enjoying your meal?" Odela asked me.
"Yes I am. What is it you wanted to ask me?" I replied. I knew that whenever Odela asked if someone was enjoying their meal, unless it was something she tried to cook it herself, it meant that there was something she wanted to ask.
"How do you feel about Erik?" she asked me. I raised my eyebrow not understanding where this was coming from.
"Odela, you know how I feel about Erik, he's my friend" I answered her, "Why are you asking me this?"
"Come on Caylin, are you really that blind?" Odela exasperated, "You're worse than my sister right now."
"What is that supposed to mean?" I inquired.
"Erik is completely in love with you" Odela told me as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "And I know you feel something for him as well."
"You're talking nonsense Odela," I replied not believing her, "Erik isn't in love with me and I love Erik as a friend, nothing more."
"Then why does Erik go out of his way to spend as much time with you? And when he sees you, he looks at you like you're the only person in the world that exists or even matters. And just by seeing the way he looks at you, he thinks you're the most beautiful person he's ever seen. I know this because it's similar to the way Lynette and Enjolras look at each other" Odela explained, but she wasn't finished yet, "And you Caylin, you always talk to him when you get the chance and you're always in his corner ready to protect him if necessary. Also, when we came here to set up the outdoor theatre for the show and Erik was helping in the construction, when he accidentally bruised his hand and that bad, you immediately jumped at making sure he was ok and tended to his hand. The way I see it, when a woman tends to a man's wounds when it's in her occupation, its sign that she loves that man. Also, remember for a long time before meeting Peter and joining the Troupe, I was a prostitute. During that time, I learned to tell if a man or woman was in love just by looking at them."
"Odela don't be ridiculous" I protested, "I was taking care of my friend." I took a bite out of my salad right after the words left my mouth.
"Whatever you say" Odela sighed.
As we continued to talk and finish our meal, tour the area more I began to think about what Odela said to me. Even though I don't think Erik loved me, did I love him? I'll to ask someone else about this, but not Erik. The first person that came to mind was Yves. I'll ask him what he thinks.
Odela and I got back at the end of a fun day, bringing with us some souvenirs. I took out a box of chocolates I bought earlier and started to eat them.
"Did you have fun today?" Erik asked walking over to me, no mask or wig. Now among those in the Troupe he walked went around without the mask and wig. I'm very happy about that as well as for him. Nobody cares about how he looks. Everybody was used to what he looked like and it's because of that deformity, Erik is beautiful in his own way and the fact that he's not who he was before helps greatly.
"Yes I did" I answered him as he sat next to me, "You want one of the chocolates?" Erik nodded and took one of the dark chocolates and put it in his mouth.
"Smart choice" I told him smiling.
"Of course," Erik responded after he finished chewing the chocolate, "Always good to have a small piece of dark chocolate before singing."
"You're going to sing tonight?" I asked him.
"I already have a song in mind" Erik answered, "But it's not a solo. I already asked to musicians to help. They said, but I still need another soloist to sing with me. Will you sing with me again?"
"Yes" I answered him smiling and giving him a nod. Erik the second he heard me answer had a HUGE smile on his face. He pulled me into a hug and whispered "Thank you" to me before letting me go and walking away filling with joy. I was stunned. Erik had never done anything like this before. Why did he do that? So, I laughed. I couldn't help it. There was just something funny in a relieving way about it all. I took another one of the dark chocolates and went over to where Erik went to find out which song he picked so we could sing it together with the musicians. Once I got over to Erik, he told me the song he picked. I ran over to another part of the room to get my guitar. I sat on a stool as I tuned it. Once I had finished my guitar, after checking to see if the musicians finished tuning their instruments, I saw that everyone had gotten back and they were all sitting around to watch. How is it that I didn't notice that everybody had come back? Was I that much in my own world? Peter gave us the signal, and I played the first notes of the song and Erik started to sing, and playing the piano at the same time.
So
If you ever want something
You call, you call
And I'll come running to fight
And I'll be at your door
And there's nothing worth running for I sang with Erik as I continued to play my guitar
When your mind is made up
When your mind is made up Erik sang the next lyric alone and then I joined him in the following two lyrics, then he sang solo again
There's no point trying to change it
When your mind is made up
When your mind is made up
There's no point trying to stop it
You see you're just like everyone
When the shit falls
All you want to do is run away
And hide all by yourself
When there's fall, there's fall
There's nothing else I joined in with Erik again, the music began to get more intense
When your mind is made up
When your mind is made up
There's no point trying to change it Erik sang alone, and I sang with him again
When your mind is made up
When your mind is made up Erik sang by himself again, followed by me joining in the next two lyrics again before he sang solo again
There's no point even talkin'
When your mind is made up
When your mind is made up
There's no point trying to fight it now Erik and I sang with the musicians, all of them playing their instruments
When your mind, your mind
Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
There's no point trying to change it
Whoa! I sang this part by myself belting it out with everything in me
Ah! Erik sang alone right before we all joined in together again
When your
Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Erik, sang out his piece before he sang the last few lyrics, and when that happened, the only instruments being played was my guitar and Erik's piano
Whoo!
So if you ever want something
Then you call, call
Then I'll come running
When the song ended, everybody broke out into applause. Erik, the musicians and I all stood up and we took our bow. As soon as Erik and I got to our seats (after I put my guitar away), Isobel ran up with a performance of her own. She asked for the musicians to stay in their seats, which they did. Before singing, she turned to us and began to speak.
"This is something I've wanted to do for some time, but it's important I sing this song today. It's the first song I ever sang to you, Yves" Isobel said, her eyes on my son, "And we also sang this same song to each other to support each other for whenever either one of us felt sad, upset, to remind each other never to give up and since both of us were alone in our own way just like everybody else in the Troupe and it was one of the many reasons we needed each other, other than us loving each other that is. And Jo, thank you for teaching me this song before I had my eighth birthday. It's saved me and Yves so many times." We laughed a little bit before Isobel thanked Jo. The first bit of music played and Isobel vocalized the first few notes in her beautiful alto voice. Then the rest of the music started to play and Isobel sang her song dancing in her spot as she sang. Yves couldn't take his eyes off her the whole time.
My heart is ready to beat
I can feel the wind underneath my feet
I'm gonna jump over the moon
Hands in the air waving up like a balloon
I'm free as a bird
Lost in the stars
And waving down to earth
Don't know where I'm gonna land
But you gotta wobble before you stand
I'm soaring all alone
And on my own
I'm soaring
And I know my heart will lead me home
Just look in my eyes
Can't you see I'm not the same today
I can see farther now
Step from the edge I'm making my own way
Don't know where I'm gonna land
But you gotta wobble before you stand
I'm soaring
All alone and on my own
I'm soaring
And I know my heart will lead me home
And I know that I'm gonna touch the sky
I'm soaring
All alone and on my own
I'm soaring
And I know my heart will lead me home
All alone and on my own
Soaring
All alone and on my own
I'm soaring all alone and on my own
I'm soaring all alone and on my own
When Isobel finished, we all applauded for her, but Isobel decided to do a small curtsey before making her way back to Yves, grabbing his hand.
Jo's P.O.V.
"Erik!" I called to Erik as soon as he got his dinner. He turned and looked at me.
"Come with me" I told him, "I think it's time I told you a little of my history, since I'm sure you're wondering why I taught Isobel that song." Erik nodded his head telling me he agreed with me. I moved my head in the direction of the outdoor theatre. I wanted to talk to him there. We both went to the stage in the outdoor theatre, sat down and ate our food as I started talking.
"I was born in New York, into a family on the streets. They already had an eleven year old son, but my brother and I never got along with him. I didn't get along that well with me parents either. I was always wandering around, wanting to explore. They wanted to keep me close to them. At first I thought they did it because they didn't want me to get lost and never find them again from wandering off. It was until I was eight that I realized the real reason they didn't want me to wander around. They were criminals, living on the streets, begging for money because they were in A LOT of debt. And the debt wasn't because they didn't pay their bills in time. It was because both my parents, though my father more than my mom had an addiction to gambling. They used to have the money to raise a family, but they could never have enough money, and often enough, after losing all that money and living on the streets, they did a few cons from time to time. They didn't want me to wander around in fear of getting caught, by both officials and by the rich people who owned the gambling halls that they owed money to. I was always at odds with them because not only did they neglect me and I kept begging for them to be there for me, but I also begged them to stop doing what they were doing. They refused to listen, my brother included. Four years later, I ran away from my family because I couldn't stay with them. I had to leave and I was terrified. Even though my parents neglected me most of the time, I still loved them and it hurt somewhat to leave. My brother wouldn't come with me because he had become too much like my parents, and he wasn't really there for me either.
"After I ran away, I started to steal food to stay alive. Half of that year went by and one night I tried to steal a bag of apples, but the bag had a hole that I didn't see and apples fell out causing people to notice me and what I was doing, including a police officer. I ran as quickly as I could. I wasn't fast enough. The officer caught up with me and placed me in a child prison. I was furious and angry. And I felt so alone. To try to calm myself down, I began to hum whatever melodies came into my head. The same officer that arrested me came back, opened gate of the cell I was being kept in and told me I could go. I didn't move. As much as I hated being in prison, I didn't have anywhere else to go. When the officer asked me why I wouldn't leave after he saw that I wasn't moving, I told him after a few moments of silence that I had no home. Right after I said that, he understood why I was trying to steal the apples. He asked me how long I'd been stealing food to stay alive. When I gave my answer, he offered a chance for me to pay off a debt for the food as he called it. I would work in a dance studio, keep it clean and organized, have a home, food and clothes and the money I made would be paid to whichever people I stole the food from.
"That was how I met Anita, who was my first real friend. To this day I still keep in touch with her. Anita's mother owned a newly opened dance studio which was used for professional ballet dancers, but on the side she used it to keep her culture's dances alive, teaching them to her daughter and anyone else who wanted to learn. Anita and her mother, Nina came to New York from Mexico in hopes of a better life. Since their skin colors was white, they were able to fool people about what they're culture background was until they opened their mouths. So, as a result, whenever someone had them come onto the stage for whatever they did, Nina and Anita made sure to keep their mouths shut so people wouldn't hear their accents. The reason they looked white was because Anita's maternal grandparents and paternal side of the family are from Argentina. They went to Mexico instead of America because Mexico was as far as they were willing to go since they wanted to be surrounded by people with a similar background. Within a few years, I had managed to pay off my debts for the food I stole from all the vendors I stole from, but I continued to stay with Anita and her mother, since not only Anita and I were such good friends, but also because they made me feel like I had a real family. Any way that was made by me or Anita wasn't ours, anyway we made went right to Nina, because she had bills and food to worry about more than anything else. For a long time, Anita and I studied ballet as well as their stories. Nina would call us "Dirty Naughty Girls" because we always saw all the sexual tendencies in the choreography of the ballets, not just in the music or the stories of the ballets and we both knew that once we found the men we were supposed to stay with, we wouldn't be able to wait for our wedding nights to sleep with our future husbands. Both of us knew that we'd have sex with those men long before getting married. But both of us also knew that we'll be faithful to our men, not go sleeping around and definitely not flaunting it to create a scandal. While Anita and I may have a mischievous side, both of us know when not to do something in public, so we kept that side of us to ourselves. While I was happy with them, I still loved to wander and explore. I could never stay in one place for too long. One day when I was shopping for groceries, I heard some commotion. My curiosity got the better of me and I looked to see what was going on. I saw my parents and my brother getting pulled out of another gambling hall and getting arrested. I felt horrible for them, but I knew there was nothing I could do. They had six years and more to change their ways, but they never did. When I got back, I told Anita what happened and I was tears from feeling so helpless. She told me to express what I was feeling in a way to help me feel better for when she wasn't around. Anita was becoming more and more popular with her dancing. That was where the song came from. That even though whether I was alone or felt alone, things will get better, even though I will have to fall a few times before getting back on my feet and move forward. Singing that song to myself always helped. I started to dance alongside with Anita. I felt alive whenever I performed on stage, but dancing just wasn't enough for me. I had to do more. One night when I reached the age of nineteen, I was singing in the streets, just for the fun of it and Anita came over to me with Peter. Peter explained what he was doing and the Troupe to me. Peter told me that he wanted to observe me before deciding to take me on. For an entire year, Peter observed me when I sang, acted as well as danced. He offered me the chance of joining the Troupe. I wanted to, but at the same time, I couldn't leave Anita and Nina, so I had Peter make to offer to them as well. They said no. Nina was still working her job and couldn't leave. Anita loved her dancing too much to go and she loved the city. Before I accepted Peter's offer, Anita told me that I needed to live my life, not hers. She encouraged me to go, as long as I wrote to her. That was when I accepted Peter's offer and with a tearful goodbye, I left to join the Troupe. I had already met everybody in the Troupe before joiningthem. After I joined them, I began to open up and so did they, and it's also when I taught the song to Isobel. After joining the Troupe, many months later, we came to the Opera House in Paris, and you know what happened there" I finished with a laugh. Erik laughed a little too.
"What about Sal?" Erik asked, "Where does he fit in this?" I blushed at this.
"When I first met Sal before officially joining the Troupe, I was instantly attracted to him. I didn't he'd ever care about me since not only did I think that I wasn't pretty enough for him to notice me, but also because I believed he'd see me as trash since that was all people saw me as for a long time, even after my parents and brother got arrested. Everyone knew I was related to them and made sure to shame me for what they did, even though I had nothing to do with the actions they did. Those who were rich especially made sure to slam me since my blood family was a hilarious joke to them, which was the biggest reason as to why I was so scared about making Sal choose between me and the wealth he always had. So I was surprised when I saw him looking at me all the time. I knew that if he decided to be with me, not only have I always been poor, but because of the family I come from, it would've made things even worse for Sal which was another reason why I didn't want to pressure him. You already know that we didn't get together until after we arrived at the Opera House five years ago." I answered Erik. Erik nodded his head understanding.
"Jo, I'm sorry you had to go through that," Erik replied feeling bad.
"Don't worry about it. I'm married to the man I love, have a beautiful son and am living with the biggest and best family in the world" I exclaimed, "I won't tell you Sal's story though, That's something you'll have to talk to him about. I'm about to go back inside. Want to come?"
Erik nodded his head. "Another thing Erik" I said to him before I took a step toward going inside, "I know how you feel about Caylin. All I will tell you is this, don't say anything about it to her, unless you're sure it's what you're really feeling and don't rush her into doing anything. You know how Caylin is, she told us all everything that happened under the Opera House when she took the formula. She won't have anything to do with any man unless she's sure that what the man is feeling and what she's feeling is real."
"Does she feel anything for me?" Erik asked me.
"It's not my place to tell you what Caylin feels" I explained to him, "That's Caylin's job. Good night Erik."
"Good night" he replied and I went inside, and put away the now empty and dirty dishes. Once I got into my temporary bedroom and locked the door, I felt a pair of arms I knew so well wrap around my waist. I leaned my head back, looked into Sal's eyes smiling at him and met his lips with my own before we both fell onto the bed.
WOW! FINALLY GOT THIS CHAPTER FINISHED! A lot has been happening here for me, not to mention my muse refused to visit me for SO FREAKING LONG!
I hope you all enjoy this chapter and once again I'm sorry it took too long to finish. I'm not giving up on this fanfic. I'll keep writing it until it's finished, that's promise.
I want to thank MarieCP, Inuyasha611 and BlackHreat for favoriting this story; Inuyasha611, jesskalynn4, jigokunooujo, odessa-fairychild, shika93 and BlackHreat, and everyone who reviewed this story during this much too long wait.
I want to thank Nakia-Park23 and DonJuana19 for their helping me with the lyrics for Morning Glow.
I also want to thank DonJuana19 for letting me use her amazing characters. I just hope I do you and them justice and I how I use and write them in this story.
Morning Glow and Corner of the Sky belongs to Stephen Schwartz
When Your Mind's Made Up belongs to Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová
Soaring belongs to Sydney Forest
PLEASE REVIEW! THEY MEAN A LOT TO ME!
I own NOTHING but my OCs.
Once again I'M SO SORRY that this chapter took so long to finish, let alone do. I'll do everything I can to not make the wait for the next chapter so long.