~A Once and Again Series~

The Way We Are

Chapter 7//In the Maze

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"Milos, I thought you had left."

Travis walked closer to Grace and shook his head, as he read from the script, "No, Cilia, I couldn't just leave you with things the way they were."

Grace didn't need to look at her script to know her next actions. She turned her back to Travis and said coldly, "I didn't think you cared."

Travis grabbed Grace's arm, "How can you say that?"

Grace looked into his eyes, surprised by the intensity in them. Travis was a great actor. He was really getting into character. "Because I heard from Natasha..."

"What did you hear from her??"

Grace looked away from his chilling blue eyes. "I heard that you were at Ronda's last night."

"Cilia, I'm engaged to you!" Travis put a hand on her face, guiding her eyes up to met his.

"I'm beginning to think that was nothing but a mistake," Grace said in a stage whisper.

Travis looked down at his script, and Grace knew what Milo's next stage direction was... to kiss Cilia. Grace looked down nervously at her script anyways, reading the words there: (Milos rushes forward, desperate to prove to Cilia and himself that Ronda means nothing to him. He kisses her passionately.)

Travis looked up at Grace and hesitated, then took an unsure step forward. He looked into Grace's wide eyes...

"And they kiss!" Mr. Morris said from where he sat in the first row of the auditorium. "And scene!"

Grace gratefully stepped away from Travis. Travis looked at her shyly. Grace glanced back at him, with the tiniest of smiles.

"Great work, Cilia and Milos!" Mr. Morris said as they walked off the stage. "I think we'll work on Act II, scene 3 now. Ronda, Natasha, on stage!"

Cynthia passed by Grace and Travis as she walked to the stage and gave them a smile. Grace began to sit down in a seat, but noticed Mr. Morris looking over at her.

"Alright, run through your lines, you two, and I'll be back in a few," Mr. Morris called over to Cynthia and the girl who played Natasha: Sarah Grosso. He then looked back at Grace, "Can I talk with you for a second?"

Grace nodded, and followed him out of the auditorium and onto the back entrance steps. She uncertainly turned to him, "What is it?"

"This is your first play, right?" Mr. Morris asked, running a hand over his completely bald head.

Grace nodded, and frowned, "I'm not good, am I?"

"No, you are good," Mr. Morris assured her, "Very good. But, I know how tough it can be for new actors to handle passionate scenes."

"Oh, you mean the kissing?" Grace asked.

Mr. Morris nodded, "I sensed you holding back there. And Travis was reading off you, and that made him hesitate."

"Oh," Grace managed something between a frown and a smile, "I'll try better next time."

"Grace," Mr. Morris smiled softly at her, "It's okay. You don't have to get it right away. Kissing a stranger can be very odd."

"Well, I know Travis," Grace interjected.

Mr. Morris nodded, "Kissing a friend can be even harder. But, just remember... it's Cilia in there. It's Cilia kissing Milos, her fiancé... the man she loves more than anything... the man she's afraid she's losing to someone else... to her best friend."

Grace smiled, and Mr. Morris continued, "So, she would put everything into this kiss. She would want him to kiss her. She would be waiting for this kiss."

Grace nodded, "I get it."

Mr. Morris gave her a gentle pat on the shoulder, "Just remember that. And do Cilia justice."

Mr. Morris went back inside, and Grace hesitated outside, taking a deep breath of the clean fall air. Breathing in and breathing out.

* * *

"Eli!"

Eli froze with the refrigerator door halfway open. He looked over at his angry mother.

"I just spoke with Mrs. Gonzales. She said you never turned in the forms for the SATs," Karen said, crossing her arms.

Eli flinched at the name of his counselor. "Yeah, I guess I forgot."

"Eli!" Karen's voice raised another level, "Mrs. Gonzales gave you those forms three weeks ago. All you had to do was fill them out and send them in!"

"I didn't feel like taking it," Eli said, closing the fridge door with a slam.

"The SAT?" Karen exclaimed. "You didn't feel like taking it?" She mocked.

"There's really no reason..." Eli began.

"Eli! You know you need that test for your college applications. It's required!" Karen screeched. "Mrs. Gonzales says you can still take it in January, and that should hopefully be enough time to send in your applications and still be accepted. We'll have to rush the scores, of course."

Eli frowned, "Yeah, I'll take it in January."

[[Eli - Anything to get her off my back.]]

"Eli, you've really screwed yourself here. I thought we decided you'd take them in October, so that way you'd have a choice of being able to take them a second time. But now you don't have that choice!" Karen sighed.

Eli began to walk past his mother to his room.

"Eli!" Karen yelled after him, "Don't you care about your future at all? This kind of behavior is not acceptable!!"

Eli entered his room, slamming the door behind himself.

[[Eli - It's MY future. Why can't they understand that?]]

* * *

"Hey Cynthia?" Grace called after practice. "Could you give me a ride?"

Cynthia shook her head, "Sorry G, I've got to pick up my little brother at his Boy Scouts meeting. He totally freaks if I'm even a second late."

Travis, standing next to Cynthia, smiled at Grace, "I can give you a ride, if you want."

Grace hesitated, "Okay."

* * *

"I would have called my mom for a ride," Grace said as Travis drove along, "But she just got a new job, and is busy with that."

Travis nodded.

"I could have called my step-dad, I guess," Grace continued, "But I don't know..."

Travis was silent, his blond hair swinging as he bopped his head lightly to the music.

Grace repositioned her backpack on her lap. "Eli and I might be getting a car though, soon. I won't be 16 till May, though, but Eli is always cool about driving me places."

"Eli?" Travis asked, glancing over at Grace.

"Oh," Grace said softly, "He's my stepbrother."

"Oh," Travis nodded, "Is that the guy who dropped you off the other day?"

"Yeah, that's Eli."

Travis looked briefly at her, "I had thought that was your boyfriend..."

Grace felt like she was choking. She looked away out the window. What could she say in reply to that? Grace found her voice and said simply, "That was Eli."

* * *

"What do you think?" Rick asked the next day.

Eli shrugged, "It's nice."

Rick frowned, "It cost a bit more than we intended to spend, but we figured we'd do something nice for you kids." He looked at Eli's passive face with annoyance.

Eli gave a fake cheerful smile, "It's great, dad."

Grace came over from where she had been inspecting the insides of the red 98 Honda. "It's cool."

"Does it drive nice?" Eli asked.

Rick nodded, "It's a beauty."

Eli held out his hand, "Well, then. Keys?"

"Where are you going?" Rick asked, reluctantly handing over the keys.

Eli shrugged, "You know what, dad... I haven't really planned that out yet." Eli walked over to the car, knowing he should high-tail it before Rick started in with a lecture. He stopped and looked back at Grace. "You coming?"

Grace shook her head, "I've got play practice in a little while."

"I could drop you off," Eli said, but he already knew Grace wasn't going to come with him. It hurt.

Grace shook her head, "No, that's okay."

[[Eli - It really hurts. She's backing away from me. When's the last time I kissed her? When's the last time we really talked?]]

Jessie, sensing the weirdness between them began to wonder something similar to what Eli was wondering... when was the last time the two of them had been acting like a couple should act?

"Bye," Eli said stonily. He got in the car, starting it up. As he backed down the driveway, he saw Grace going back into the house.

* * *

"Grace," Jessie said, following Grace into the house.

Grace turned and Jessie felt Zoe's eyes on them. "Will come to my room with me? I want to talk."

Grace shrugged, "Okay, but only for a bit."

When they reached the top of the attic stairs, Grace spent some time admiring Jessie's new room. She had been so busy with the play lately that she hadn't seen what Jessie had done to the attic.

"So, what's up?" Jessie asked, sitting on her bed.

Grace paused, and shrugged, "Nothing."

"What's going on with you and Eli? Did you break up?" Jessie asked.

Grace didn't respond.

"You did?" Jessie was shocked.

Grace shook her head, "We haven't broken up. We've just been busy."

Jessie frowned and tilted her head a bit, studying Grace. "No, YOU'VE been busy," Jessie said coldly. "You've been too busy for him. He needs you, Grace."

Grace didn't want any of Jessie's protective sister crap. "You don't know what you're talking about."

Jessie glared at her "I know you're causing him pain. I know I see him looking at you and you're always looking away. What changed?"

Grace's eyes were slightly glazed over.

[[Grace - I feel like a walking zombie at home. I'm not really there anymore. Everything seems so cloudy, and distant. The only times I really feel alive is when I'm doing the play. *smiles* I love the play.]]

"You can't keep treating him like this!" Jessie cried when Grace didn't answer. "Eli doesn't deserve this."

"He doesn't," Grace agreed. She looked over at Jessie, really seeing her for the first time in a long while. "How's school going?"

Jessie, shocked by an actual question about herself, stumbled for an answer. "Uh, it was bad for a while, but now it's good..." Jessie smiled, thinking of Katie.

"I'm glad," Grace said, and turned.

Before Jessie could call out, Grace had already left the room.

* * *

"Did you want to eat here or go somewhere?" Eli asked at lunch the next day.

Grace shrugged, "It doesn't matter."

Eli sighed, and Grace didn't seem to notice. He headed out for their car, Grace walking silently besides him.

Eli sat in the driver's seat, and Grace in the passenger's seat. Eli drove to the closest fast food place, and parked.

A few minutes after they had arrived at Burger King, Grace looked up in surprise, blinking. "We're here?" She turned and looked over at Eli. Eli sat so still. "Eli?"

"You missed our gig on Friday," Eli said.

Grace's face twisted up as she thought about Friday... she had had practice and then had gone to the mall with Cynthia. "Oh," Grace said, "I guess I forgot about it."

"I guess you did."

"Are you mad?" Grace asked, studying him.

Eli wouldn't look at her. "Not mad... not really. I'm just wondering..."

"Wondering what?"

Eli looked over, his hazel eyes slightly bloodshot and watery. "I'm wondering where my Grace went."

"Oh," Grace said after a pause. She unbuckled her seatbelt, "I'm hungry."

"Grace!" Eli called after her, but Grace was already heading across the parking lot.

[[Eli - Where did she go? Where is she? How can I get her back?]]

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