"What took you? It's nearly ten and Mr. Villefort will have a conniption fit if you're late."

"I know, Mia. But you'll never believe what happened!" Cassie said dashing off the bus and grabbing her friends arm. "It was amazing Mia, I've never felt anything like that before. I mean—"

"What the hell are you talking about Cassandra? What happened?"

Cassandra related to Mia everything from their date and then the song in the park.

"You did what?"

"Yes, we sang All I Ask of You and then he kissed me."

"WHAT!"

"Oh, Mia, it was amazing…."

"What was amazing, Miss Davagé?" Mr. Villefort's words disrupted Cassandra's story. They were walking down the hall to their rooms, Mr. Villefort was behind them, on his way to the music room.

"Oh—I was just—um…telling Mia about the movie that Ryan and I saw."

"You were with Ryan?"

"Yes…he wanted to talk to me about some of the things for the play." Cassie hoped he couldn't see through her lie, that he hadn't heard their discussion earlier.

"Very well, you'll be in the music room shortly?"

"Yes sir." Mia and Cassie hurried down the hall to put up their coats.

"Tell me everything later, OK?" Mia said as Cassie grabbed her music folder from her desk and dashed out of the room where Ann lay snoring.

"You bet. Later."

Once in the music room Cassie put her music on top of the piano and waited for Mr. Villefort to finish writing something at his desk.

"Cassandra, I'd like you to run through The Phantom of the Opera for me." Cassandra listened to the notes pound out of the piano and began to sing. When she hit the run of notes at the end, she hit the high note perfectly.

"Very good Cassandra. There's a lot of passion in your voice, I want to hear that passion every time you hit the stage, the practice room, anything. Now, start here…" They worked together until Cassandra's voice was near hoarse. "I believe that's all for the night. You may leave now." Cassandra went back to her room and flopped into her bunk. This production was turning out to be more difficult than she thought.

The next few weeks at practices Ryan and Cassandra found it difficult to get together and talk. Villefort and Giles seemed to be finding ways to keep them separated on stage and in class work. Ryan and Cassie couldn't even make time for many dates outside practices because Villefort was keeping Cassandra busy with private practices. There were times when Cassandra couldn't even remember which practices were which, they all blended together. There were even mornings she would wake up and wonder if she'd actually been to the private practice the night before or if she'd just imagined it. Ann often complained of the late night intrusions in her sleeping.

Soon it was time to begin fittings for costumes. There were so many that Cassandra lost count. Then there were the dance lessons she had to go to and somewhere in this dizzying world of rehearsals and practices she had to fit in School and homework. She was running so hard that her health began to suffer.

"Cassie, are you alright?" Mia and Cassie were walking down the halls of St. Marks to go to the stage. Tonight was supposed to be a longer than average practice and they were prepared to run through almost the entire first act of the play. Cassie's pale skin was more pale than usual and her eyes were dull.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah…I'm fine." Cassie shook her head and tried to shake off her funk. She had been up the night before with Villefort working on Wishing you were Somehow Here Again, and she was exhausted.

"OK, Act 1—the auction. Let's go people, if you aren't supposed to be on the stage, get off." Giles was yelling. Cassie and Mia went off to sit in the wings.

"I'm going to go get some water, OK?" Cassie went off to the water fountain that was outside the theater doors and took a long drink. She felt tired. She wanted to go take a nap. When she went back inside they were just finishing going through the motions of the last of the chandelier sequence.

"The Technicians will raise the chandelier slowly above you…you need to be out of the way of the arms since it's going to fold out like so—" Mr. Giles looked like he was doing some weird ballet dance as he spread his arms out from his chest and spun. "The Chandelier will be hauled on a series of pulleys up to there…we're getting the janitors to hang that pulley tomorrow." He went back to the audience seat where he and Villefort sat and conversed and called up for Scene II. Cassie was dancing this one and they had to stop several times because she was out of step.

"Cassandra! What's the matter with you?"

"Sorry, Mr. Giles…my head just isn't in it…"

"Well, get your head in it young lady. This is important." Mr. Giles sat back down. This time Cassandra pulled the dance off.

"Better…but it needs to be PERFECT." She ran through Think of Me as if it were old hat and then went right into Little Lottie with Ryan. "Good job Cassandra…Ryan, you need more drive in it. This is supposed to be your friend from childhood and you're falling in love with her all over again."

"Yes sir." Ryan exited and Mark came on to do the Phantom sequence. They moved around the big stage as if the props were in place, but really there was nothing there. Cassandra was singing Phantom of the Opera but heard it as if from a far off place. When she was finished with the final piercing note, she felt winded and ready to collapse. Mark reached his arm out to steady her as she wavered beneath the bright lights of the stage but she waved him off. They were almost finished with the Underground sequence when Cassie felt a horrible buzzing in her ears. She faltered on several of the notes.

"Cassandra?" Mr. Villefort had concern in his eyes as he approached the foot of the stage. "What's the matter with you? You shouldn't have a problem with this—"

"I'm fine…my ear is buzzing is all…I can't hear myself." She shook it off and went back to center stage to sing with Ryan.

Say you'll share with
me one
love, one lifetime . . .
say the word
and I will follow you . . .

Cassie closed her eyes against a wave of dizziness and when she opened them again she saw concern in Ryan's eyes. His brow furrowed as he stared into her eyes. He was part way through his verse when Cassandra's eyes suddenly rolled back in her head and she reeled backwards. She would have cracked her head open had Ryan not had a hold on her arms. He lowered her to the stage and cradled her head in his lap.

"Cassie? Cassie? Can you hear me?"

"Oh my God!" Mr. Giles ran up the stairs while Villefort leapt effortlessly up onto the stage.

"Cassandra? Cassandra, open your eyes." The entire cast crowded in to see what had happened as well as the few techies working in the back.

"Everybody back up, let me through." Ryan said lifting Cassie easily. "Let's get her to your office Mr. G." Ryan, Mr. Villefort, and Mr. Giles went to the office leaving the rest of the cast on the stage to wonder what was going on.

Ryan lay Cassie down gently on the couch in Mr. Giles' office and brushed the hair back from her face. Mr. Villefort brought forward a first aid kit and dug through to find the smelling salts. He broke the stick and waved it beneath Cassie's nostrils before she sat up coughing.

"Cassie?"

"What the hell happened?" Cassie said rubbing her head and trying to get up. "What about rehearsals?"

"You passed out on stage—don't you remember?" Ryan asked.

"What?"

"Cassie lay down—" Mr. Villefort instructed as he disposed of the smelling salts.

"Rehearsals are over for the evening…and I think we'll be taking the next few days off as well." Mr. Giles said. The poor man's hands were actually shaking. Mr. Villefort didn't look pleased by his statement. "You kids have been working too hard. Mr. Villefort and I seemed to have forgotten that you have other things besides this play to be working on."

"But—"

"No buts….no Rehearsals until Friday. That gives you kids two days off." Cassie lay back on the couch and closed her eyes. Two days without practice meant she could actually take a nap.

"Mr. Villefort a word if I may?" Mr. Villefort and Mr. Giles left Ryan and Cassie in the office.

"What happened out there Cass?" Ryan said sitting on the edge of the couch looking down at her.

"I don't know—one minute I was singing with you and the next I was laying on this couch. I'm so exhausted Ryan…" Cassie shook her head and looked at the ceiling. "Villefort has been working me into the ground singing."

"I know…every time we try to do something, he calls you in for private practice." Ryan looked over his shoulder at the closed office door. "I don't like him." Cassie grasped Ryan's arm and squeezed lightly, bringing his eyes back to hers.

"It's alright. I mean, I think he just really wants to win this contest."

"Screw the contest! We're high school students Cassie. Not actors." Cassie sat up and leaned into Ryan, his arm going instantly and protectively around her shoulders.

"We open in a month. Our costumes are barely ready, our sets aren't up yet…Ryan, they're as stressed as we are." Cassie smiled up at him. "If we win, we get to go to Paris—if we lose…well, if we lose we get to spend more time together outside of school."

Ryan thought about what she was saying and smiled evilly.

"I think I have incentive to start singing off key."

"If you sing off key, I'll never forgive you." Cassie said playfully hitting him. He leaned down and kissed her.

"Are you sure you'll be ok?" He rubbed her back lightly as she leaned into him.

"Yeah, I'll be fine." He kissed her lightly again before helping her up. She shivered slightly against the exhaustion wracking her body. He walked beside her, his arm around her waist protectively. Mia burst from the stage and was holding Cassie's coat.

"Here, put this on." Mia walked on the other side of Ryan and Cassie as they made their way to the van that carried them to and from St. Isabel's. They turned the corner of the long hall when they saw Mr. Villefort and Mr. Giles arguing.

"How can you cancel the next two practices? They need to be prepared!" Ryan, Cassie and Mia went back around the corner where they could hear the argument, but not be seen.

"Did you see Cassandra? Rick, she's exhausted. The boys have been complaining of school work as well. We need them prepared and healthy!"

"How will they know what a life on the stage is like if they don't experience first hand? Life's hard work…they need to be prepared to work through everything."

"They aren't actors though Rick, they're doing this for fun." The voices disappeared farther down the hall way and away from the three students eavesdropping.