Chapter 31: Spring Musicale
The play has been going great so far. May and Drew performed the first song when Troy and Gabriella first met during a New Year's Eve party. And the audience is loving it so far. Now for the next scene…
"You have an amazing voice." Drew said. "You're a singer, right?"
"Just church choir is all." May answered. "I tried a solo and nearly fainted."
"Really? Why is that?"
"I took a look at all the people staring at me, and the next thing I knew, I was staring at the ceiling. End of solo career."
"Well, with the way you sang tonight, that's pretty hard to believe."
"Well that was the first time I've done something like that. I mean it was so cool." May said, smiling brightly.
"I know. Completely." Drew agreed.
"Well, you sounded like you've done a lot of singing too."
"Yeah, sure. My shower head is very impressed by me."
The audience laughed and May laughed a little at Drew. The people in the background started chanting. "10! 9!"
May and Drew continue looking at each other.
"8! 7! 6!"
May and Drew look around at several people that are running around the stage right now, holding New Years party favors.
"5! 4! 3! 2! 1!"
May and Drew look up at the area above the audience. From backstage, May's Glaceon launches a Shadow Ball above the audience. May's Espeon used Psybeam and it makes contact with the Shadow Ball, causing it to explode into gorgeous rainbow-colored fireworks.
The audience is staring in awe of the continuing fireworks. The extras on stage are cheering and exploding their party favors as they view the fireworks.
"Wow…" Dawn breathed. "So pretty…"
May and Drew stare up at the fireworks for a while longer. May then turned her head to look at Drew. Drew turned to look at May.
They stared into each other's eyes. They stayed like that for a minute before May finally spoke.
"I guess I better go find my mom and wish her a happy new year."
"Yeah, me too." Drew said. "I mean, not your mom. My mom. And dad."
May nodded her head.
"Uhh…" Drew gasped slightly in realization. "I'll call you. I'll call you tomorrow."
May eyes lit up with happiness. "Yeah!"
May and Drew both reach in their pockets and pull out their phones. Drew holds up his phone and has the camera app opened. May smiles. Drew snaps a picture of her and holds out his phone to May.
"Put your number in." Drew said.
"Okay. You too." May said as they exchange phones. May pretends to put her number in the phone while Drew is taking a picture of himself.
They exchange phones. "There you go." Drew said. May smiles. Drew turns to face the audience, but is looking down at his phone.
May starts to walk away towards backstage through the crowd of people.
"Well, just so you know," Drew said, looking down at his phone. "Singing with you was the most fun I've had on this entire vacation. So umm...where do you live?" He asked, looking to where May was. He didn't see her there, so he looked around a bit. He looked back down at his phone at the picture he took of Daisy.
Drew looked up into space. "Gabriella."
"I'd like to audition, Ms. Darbus." May said, walking onstage from the right.
"Timeliness means something in the world of theater, young lady." The person playing Ms. Darbus said. "The individual auditions are long over and there are simply no other pairs."
"I'll sing with her." Drew said from backstage. Ms. Darbus and May look in the direction of the voice. Drew walks onstage with his right hand in the air.
"Troy Bolton? Where is your sports posse or whatever it's called?" Ms. Darbus asked.
"Team." Drew said.
"Ah." Ms. Darbus said.
"But I'm here alone. Actually, I'm here to sing with her."
"Yes, well, we take these shows very seriously here at East High. I called for the pairs audition and you didn't respond. Free period is now over." Ms. Darbus said as she started walking past May and Drew.
"She has an amazing voice." Drew said as Ms. Darbus passed them.
Ms. Darbus stopped behind them. "Perhaps, the next musicale." She walked offstage.
The person playing Kelsi was sitting at the piano during that conversation. She now grabbed her sheet music and stood up to leave, but she tripped and fell, throwing the sheet music in the air.
May and Drew went to help Kelsi pick up the music. They bent down and started helping her.
"So you're a composer." Drew said. "You wrote the song Ryan and Sharpay just sang?"
Kelsi nodded slightly.
Drew handed Kelsi some sheet music he picked up. "And the entire show?" Kelsi nodded again. "Well, that's really cool." Kelsi started to stand up. Drew held out his hand to her. "I can't wait to hear the rest of the show." Kelsi took his hand and they all stood up. Drew and Kelsi released hands.
"So, why are you so afraid of Sharpay and Ryan?" Drew asked. "I mean it is your show."
"It is?" Kelsi questioned.
"Isn't the composer of a show kind of like the playmaker in basketball?"
"Playmaker?"
"You know, the one that makes everyone else look good." Drew said. "I mean, without you, there is no show. You're the playmaker here, Kelsi."
"I am?" Kelsi asked, smiling. Drew nodded. "Do you wanna hear how the duet's supposed to sound?"
Kelsi walked over to the piano that's on stage. May and Drew looked at each other and then walked to stand next to the piano. Kelsi sat down and placed the sheet music on the piano. Kelsi started playing the gentle melody.
(This song is "What I've Been Looking For" from High School Musical.)
Kelsi looked at Drew and then at the music, signaling him to start singing. May and Drew are both looking at the music. "It's hard to believe that I couldn't see." Drew sang. "You were always there beside me."
"Thought I was alone with no one to hold." May sang. Drew looked at May/Daisy.
"But you were always right beside me." They sang together. They stare into space. "This feeling's like no other. I want you to know. That I've never had someone that knows me like you do." May and Drew looked at each other in the eyes. "The way you do. And I've never had someone as good for me as you. No one like you." They were supposed to look away from each other by now, but they continue staring into each other's eyes. "So lonely before I finally found what I've been looking for."
"Ooooh…" May harmonized.
Kelsi ended the song. Drew and May continue looking at each other. Drew finally turned his gaze to Kelsi.
"Wow. That's nice." Drew said.
Ms. Darbus walked on stage. "Bolton, Montez," Drew, May, and Kelsi look at Ms. Darbus. "You have a callback. Kelsi, give them the duet from the second act. Work on it with them."
Drew shoots a basketball into the hoop that's on stage. May walks in from behind him.
"Wow. So this is your real stage." May said. Drew caught the basketball and faced May.
"Yeah. I guess you could call it that." Drew said. May held out her hand. "Or just a smelly gym." Drew said, smiling as he handed May the basketball.
May walked a little closer to the hoop. She bounced the ball and made a basket.
"Whoa!" Drew said. "Don't tell me you're good at hoops too." He said as May walked to get the basketball.
May got the basketball and walked back to Drew. "You know, I once scored 41 points at a league championship game."
"No way." Drew said incredulously.
May hummed a yes. "And the same day, I invented the space shuttle and microwave popcorn."
"Microwave popcorn. Ha ha, funny." Drew said, smiling as he took the ball out of May's hands.
May looked at the ball and just grabbed it. She backed up, taunting Drew with the ball.
"Hey, that's traveling." Drew said.
May continued taunting him.
"No, that's really bad traveling." Drew said. He ran over to May and wrapped his arms around her stomach. She started laughing. Drew lifted Daisy up and swung her around.
Kelsi started playing the piano. Drew and May look at the audience. Drew's arm is resting on the piano and May is standing in the center.
May's part to sing comes, but she just takes a deep breath and leaves her mouth hanging open with nothing coming out. Drew looks at May, then at the audience, and then at Kelsi. He signals Kelsi to stop. The piano stops playing.
Drew walks over to May/Daisy. "I can't do it Troy." May said. "Not with all these people staring at me." She started to walk away.
"Hey, hey, look at me." Drew said, grabbing her arm and stopping her from leaving. "Right at me." May turned around to face Drew. "Like the first time we sang together, remember?"
Drew took May's hand and stood next to her. He pointed to Kelsi and told her to start. Kelsi started playing the piano again.
(This song is "Breaking Free" from High School Musical. Watch the video on YouTube to see the way May and Drew are moving around on stage.)
May and Drew look at each other. "We're soaring, flying." Drew sang. "There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach."
"If we're trying, so we're breaking free." May sang.
"You know the world can see us. In a way that's different than who we are."
"Creating space between us 'til we're separate hearts."
"But your faith it gives me strength." They sang together. "Strength to believe."
"We're breaking free." Drew sang.
"We're soaring." May sang.
"Flying."
"There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach." They sang together.
"If we're trying," Drew sang.
"Yeah, we're breaking free." They sang together.
"Oh, we're breaking free." Drew sang.
"Ooooh…" May vocalized.
"Can you feel it building," Drew sang. "Like a wave the ocean just can't control?"
"Connected by a feeling. Ooh, in our very soul." May sang.
"Very soul."
"Rising "til it lifts us up." They sang together. "So everyone can see."
"We're breaking free." Drew sang.
"We're soaring." May sang.
"Flying."
"There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach." They sang together.
"If we're trying," Drew sang.
"Yeah, we're breaking free." They sang together,
"Oh, we're breaking free." Drew sang.
"Ooooh…" May vocalized.
"Running." May sang.
"Climbing." Drew sang. "To get to that place to"
"Be all that we can be." They sang together.
"Now's the time." Drew sang.
"So, we're breaking free." They sang together.
"We're breaking free." Drew sang.
"Ooh, yeah." May sang.
"More than hope, more than faith."
"This is true, this is fate. And together we"
"See it coming." They sang together.
"More than you, more than me." Drew sang.
"Not a want, but a need." May sang.
"Both of us breaking free." They sang together.
"Soaring." May sang.
"Flying." Drew sang.
"There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach." They sang together. "If we're trying,"
"Yeah, we're breaking free." Drew sang.
"Breaking free." May sang. "We're running."
"Ooh, climbing."
"To get to the place to be all that we can be." They sang together. "Now's the time."
"Now's the time." Drew sang.
"So, we're breaking free." May sang.
"Oh, we're breaking free."
"Ohh…"
"You know the world can see us in a way that's different than who we are." They sang together. They continue staring into each other's eyes as the piano faded out.
The audience starts applauding that wonderful performance. May and Drew receive a standing ovation. May and Drew signal to Kelsi. Kelsi stands, faces the audience, and bows. May and Drew look at each other again. Drew takes her right hand.
They stay like that while the audience quiets down. Drew suddenly took a step closer to Daisy and leaned in. He placed a kiss on her right cheek. He backed away and they both smiled at each other with slight blush on their cheeks.