Thank you all for your feedback
kiefer4ever: Ohh, don't say that about snow! You can't possibly know how excited I am about it!
Em-958: Yes a winter wedding, but no to the snow (after all the ceremony is taking place outdoors). While winter would have been the last season I would have normally picked, its just the way it has eventuated in the fic.I have never been to LA either, so I don't have a really good idea on what their winters are.So for the sake of the fic, winter, but nice weather.
In regards to your question about experiencing snow for the first time, I mean just that. I have never seen snow in my life (except in movies and on TV), so when I go overseas in January, I will be seeing and feeling snow for the first time ever.
Tuesday morning Sydney was up at the kitchen bench, buttering her toast when the phone began to ring. She looked at Vaughn, who was standing beside her and about to take a mouthful of coffee.
"Can you get that?" she asked. "After yesterday I am not answering another phone for a long time."
"Wimp." Vaughn teased with a grin as he picked the phone up. "Hello…yes, this is Michael Vaughn…yes, I was aware…really…well, that's great…no, no, apology accepted…thank you so much…ok, good bye."
He placed the phone back in the receiver, and looked towards Sydney, his expression jubilant.
"Who was that?" she asked.
"The woman from the function place."
"What?" Sydney dropped the butter knife, and though she was already pretty sure of the answer, she still asked, "What did they say?"
"There was no double booking." Vaughn answered. "Apparently there was some glitch in their computer system. The people they thought they'd doubled us up with were actually a function from February 19th last year."
Sydney let out a short, relieved laugh. "So the venue is ours? There is no longer a problem with the reception venue?"
"Nope," Vaughn confirmed and then gave her a quick kiss. "I told you that everything would work out."
"Yeah, well, that's one day. We've still got bands and foods to sort out."
"You know Syd," Vaughn said jokingly. "I always thought that you were a glass half full kind of girl, but I must have been wrong."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah…" Sydney slapped him lightly on the shoulder. "Oh, I won't be able to make it to the game tonight." She grimaced. "We've got rehearsals."
"That's fine." Vaughn picked up his bag. "So I guess I should expect you to be pretty non-existent this week?"
Sydney nodded. "Yup, but by Sunday I'll be all yours."
"Make that Saturday night."
"Huh?" Sydney looked at him curiously.
"Me, Weiss and Ainz are coming to the show Saturday night. You may be strictly behind the scenes, but you are still going to get to take a bow and we are going to be there to cheer you on."
"Cheer me on? Yeah right." Sydney scoffed. "You and Weiss probably want to relive your favourite high school experience in the hope that one of the students breaks a leg and you can just step in and save the day."
"Am I that transparent?" Vaughn asked, managing to keep his face dead- straight.
Sydney laughed. "Michael Vaughn, do you really even have to ask that question?"
Sydney had to admit that when she got to the theatre Thursday morning, she felt little butterflies of excitement building up in her stomach. If Carrie's almost psychotic behaviour could be removed from the equation, she may have been able to say that she enjoyed the experience. The assistant directors (the other Drama teachers) were a lot more calmer than Carrie and when working with them it was kind of fun. And the students involved were an awesome bunch of kids who had worked their butts off for months.
And that work had paid off. Watching them run a dress rehearsal at the theatre, in full costume and with fully constructed sets, the play appeared professional. Sydney had never realized how much talent there actually was at Ken Olin High.
The dress rehearsal finished early Thursday afternoon and the students were sent home to rest before the opening show that night. Sydney, too, had grabbed her bag and was about to leave but was stopped by Carrie.
"Sydney, can I have a word?"
"Um, ok." Sydney was unable to keep the trepidation out of her voice. To her surprise, Carrie started laughing.
"Oh Sydney, I am so sorry."
Sydney's brow furrowed. "Huh?"
"I'm sorry about me. I get kinda crazy when in charge of things like this. There's just so much pressure, you know?" She sighed, running a hand through her hair. "The other Drama teachers know what I'm like and expect I, but…well. If I was totally heinous to you, then I am sorry."
Sydney smiled. "You weren't…well, you weren't totally heinous."
"Oh god." Carrie smiled. "Well, thank you for the work you've done and thank you for your patience."
"Oh, it was nothing." Sydney shrugged. She was almost feeling guilty about the thoughts that she'd been having of Carrie.
"Well, I need to get home and get cleaned up." Carrie announced. "Marshall is coming tonight and I want to look nice."
"Tonight?" Sydney asked. "But I heard him telling Vaughn that he would see him here Saturday night."
Carrie blushed. "Actually, he's coming to all three shows."
"Oh really?" Sydney smiled at Carrie's coy expression. "So, are you two are getting pretty serious?"
Carrie shrugged. "I don't know, but I think we might be." She paused. "I guess I should thank you for introducing us."
Sydney laughed as the two of them headed out of the theatre. "Ah, it was my pleasure."
The performances were fantastic, with the cast raising the bar higher and higher each night. And Sydney couldn't believe it, but when they arrived back at the theatre Thursday night, Carrie was actually calm.
"There is nothing more I can do now," she had said to Sydney. "It's all up to the cast now…and you. If you mess up any stage calls, I'll hurt you." Seeing the expression on Sydney's face, she had added an extremely quick "Just kidding!"
When the backstage brew filed out onto the stage Saturday night for their curtain calls, Sydney found herself cringing. Weiss's voice, in typical Weiss fashion, could be heard even over the music and applause.
"Wooh Syd! You rock! Show us your stuff! Shake that thing!"
He stopped abruptly at that point. Sydney guessed the reason was because of a well-placed fist from either Ainsley or Vaughn. She found out later that night it was both of them.
After all the students had left and Sydney had completed all the jobs that she was needed for, she headed out into the foyer and was greeted by a waiting Ainsley.
"Hey!" Ainsley smiled and gave her a big hug. "That was really great."
"Yeah, well all I did was give stage directions."
"And I was talking about the stage directions." Ainsley replied with a deadpan face. "Best I've ever seen."
"Shut up," Sydney laughed as they headed out to the car park. "Where are the guys?"
"Back at your place…vie the bottle shop. They had the brilliant idea of throwing you your own after party."
"After party?" Sydney repeated with a grin. "So I take it you two will be crashing in the spare room tonight?"
"That's what I am counting on."
"For losers like I've been, it's so hard to say…"
As usual, after a few drinks, Weiss had started up his own personal interpretations of whatever songs were on his mind. That night it was, of course, renditions from The Little Shop of Horrors. This was not surprising. What was surprising that night was that another drunken singing partner had joined him.
"Suddenly Seymour!" Weiss bellowed out.
"Suddenly Seymour!" Vaughn chimed in, singing into the stereo remote.
"He purified me!"
"He purified you!"
"Suddenly Seymour!"
"Suddenly Seymour!"
"Showed me I can—"
"Yes, you can!"
Sydney turned to Ainsley, who was sitting beside her on the couch. "Can you believe they actually remember the words? They didn't even have main roles!"
Ainsley giggled, shaking her head as she took a mouthful of beer, almost choking on it as Vaughn and Weiss began singing a duet into the remote.
"Downtown
Where you life's a joke
You go
Downtown
When you but your token, you go
Home to Skid Row
Home to Skid Row!"
Weiss suddenly jumped up. "And then this was my solo!" he paused, clearing his throat before continuing in a deep baritone.
"Yes, you go."
Ainsley was shaking her head, yet beaming at the same time. "Do you know that it's out three year anniversary on Thursday?" she asked Sydney.
"No." Sydney sat up straight. "Are you doing anything?"
"I don't know yet." Ainsley laughed. "But after this little performance, alcohol will definitely be barred from the evening."
"Now why would you say that?" Sydney asked, cringing as Vaughn and Weiss launched into a new song.
"Little shop
Little shoppa horrors
Little shop
Little shoppa terror
Call a cop
Little shoppa horrors
No!
Oh oh oh no-oh!"
"I don't why, Syd. I really don't." Ainsley shot back and the two of them looked at each other for a few seconds before cracking up with laughter.
"Another drink?" Sydney asked.
"Oh, if I have to continue listening to this, then most definitely."
"Watch em drop
Little shoppa horrors
No!
Oh oh oh no- oh!"
Disclaimer: I do not own the songs 'Little Shop of Horrors', 'Downtown (Home to Skid Row)' and 'Suddenly Seymour' from the musical The Little Shop of Horrors