Midway through chemistry, the intercom sparked to life. It was the principal, Mr. Conrad. Normally, Riley tuned the man out, as he found his voice to be annoying. But he held his breath, and listened, his head tilted to the side as he struggled to hear the principal's crackly voice over the ancient intercom system.

"Attention Chancellor Prep!" The principal spoke, with a monotonous voice. "We are pleased to announce that has posted the cast list for Hamlet outside of the office. Please make sure to check on your lunch hour."

Riley was elated. Finally! He thought, his heart leaping in his chest. Riley had waited all week for the cast list to be posted, his stomach clenched with anticipation. He desperately wanted a part in the play, even if he didn't get any lines or anything. Riley was determined to do anything – paint sets, do the lighting booth, sell tickets, be an usher, help with costumes, anything. If only time didn't go so slowly!

He had his heart set on playing Laertes. The character intrigued him, and Laertes' lines were his favourite to read. Crossing his fingers under his desk, Riley listened to the other students work on their assignments, as he watched the clock tick slowly. Half an hour before they were released for lunch, that felt like an eternity, as Riley struggled to focus on his work.

By the time the bell rang, Riley had already packed his books, and had been anxiously standing at the door, waiting for the buzzer to ring. The kids spilled out into the hallway, and Riley had to dart between teens in his mad rush to make it to the first floor.

By the time he made it to the bulletin board, there was already a crowd of drama students.

"Alright!" A tall, Filipino boy named Mark shouted, high-fiving his friend. "I'm gonna be Horatio!"

"Who's on the list?" Riley asked, straining to see. He pushed his glasses higher on the bridge of his nose, and tapped his foot impatiently. "Am I on the list?" He asked a senior, who he vaguely remembered auditioning as Hamlet.

"I didn't get a part," The senior said, glumly, as he stepped away from the board.

Riley stood on his tiptoes, shifting his weight anxiously from one foot to the other, as he struggled in vain to see over his classmate's heads.

"Come on, come on," He muttered, using his elbows to try and push further into the crowd. The boys were unyielding. Riley had to wait nearly ten minutes, before the crowd had dispersed enough for him to see the list. Riley quickly ran his finger down the list of boy's names, hoping to see his own name. He paused at Ben Gates' name, glad to see that Ben had been cast as Hamlet's understudy.

He'd made it! Riley excitedly tapped the sheet with his index finger, ecstatic.

"YES!" He shouted. "I GOT A PART!"

The sudden rush of elation he felt was dampened slightly when he read which character he'd be playing. Ophelia.

"Oh, Holy Lord," Riley whispered, stricken. He'd be playing a chick. So much for getting the role of Laertes, now he was set to play Hamlet's crazy, suicidal girlfriend. Just great.

"What's up?" A familiar voice asked him. Riley spun around. Ben was leaning against the wall, quietly watching him.

"I'm cast as Ophelia," Riley said, darkly. "I made it into the cast, but I'm cast as Ophelia."

Ben grinned. "That's great!" He said. "Why do you look so miserable?"

Riley's eyes went wide. "Dude – Ophelia's a chick! I'll probably have to wear a dress!"

Ben laughed. "Riley, you go to an all-boy's school! Someone's got to play the female roles."

"I guess," Riley said. "But why'd it have to be me?"

Ben looked at the page. "Look – Jerry Simmons is going to play Gertrude," He said. "Besides, it's actually not that uncommon. In fact, during the 1600's the roles of women were filled by young boys, and they'd wear dresses and make –up. I'm sure you'll do fine."

Riley looked surprised. "Really?" He asked. "How do you even know stuff like that?"

"I wrote an essay on the Globe theatre last year."

"Oh."

"Hey, at least you got a part! Normally, they only cast boys in the older grades. I think you're one of the only ninth graders in the play."

"Yeah, but I wanted to be Laertes," Riley sniffed. "And I got cast as his sister instead. This blows."

Ben laughed, and gave him a sympathetic look. "Ophelia's a pretty cool character."

"She's a suicidal, crazy girl who drowns herself. How is that cool?"Riley asked.

Ben shrugged. "She is pretty interesting. You should do a bit of research on her when you get home tonight."

"Okay," Riley said, following Ben into the cafeteria. They bought sandwiches, and cartons of chocolate milk and went outside. It was really hot out, so Ben used his jacket as a blanket, and they sat on the grass. It was like a make-shift picnic, Riley thought, as he took a bite of his food.

He liked listening to Ben talk, liked the way the older boy got so engrossed in his storytelling, that his sandwich sat forgotten in its plastic wrap. When the bell rang, Ben quickly unwrapped it, and scarfed it down as they walked back to the school.

"So, maybe we should get together and practise this weekend," Riley suggested. "I mean, you're Hamlet's understudy. You have to know all the lines by heart."

Ben nodded. "You seemed to have a pretty good grasp of the lines at the audition. That would definitely come in handy."

Riley nodded, emphatically. "Yeah, my place or yours?" He asked.

Riley was hoping desperately that Ben would invite him over. Ben had already told him that he lived with his mom, in a nice two-storey house. He lived near the University, because his mom was a professor.

"Mine," Ben said. He ripped out a sheet of paper from his notebook, and jotted down his phone number and address. "How's Saturday afternoon?" He asked.

"That works for me," Riley said, relieved. "I'll see you then." He folded the paper in half, and tucked it into his backpack. They parted ways, and Riley ran to his English class.

He knew his own apartment would probably look pretty shabby in comparison. He lived in a tiny two bedroom apartment above a convenience store. His mom wasn't rich, and she had to constantly take extra shifts to keep the rent paid. His dad lived out in Iowa, and was supposed to pay child support every month, but they rarely saw the money.

Mrs. Carlyle was writing on the white board, and luckily, had her back turned to him. He easily slipped into his seat, and took out his binder. The last thing he wanted was detention for being late, especially since he had to catch the bus after school. If he missed the bus, he only had two options – walk the eight miles home, or pay a fare on the city transit. And Riley had no money. He hated taking the city bus, it was often filled with homeless drunks that would hassle you for spare change, or crowded with college kids.

Sometimes, Riley felt guilty that he was enrolled at Chancellor Prep, because he knew that even though his scholarship paid for his tuition, the commute and the extra costs really racked up. School lunch program, textbooks, registration fees for various sports, yearbook fees, school supplies. He vowed that as soon as he hit sixteen, Riley would get a part-time job to help offset the costs. Especially since he had University to save up for.

His mom was determined to get him into the best schools. MIT was on the top of the list, as well as Maryland University (which would enable him to still live at home, instead of paying for the costly dorm room.)

But that was still five years away. A lifetime of work lay before him before he was able to graduate, never mind think about college applications.