Tommy sprang off his bed when he heard a knock on the door. It had to be Oliver. He had popped popcorn and everything, eager to share one of his favorite musicals with his closest friend. This wouldn't be the first time the two of them would be held up in Tommy's room watching movies, in fact, this was a pretty common ritual for the friends. But Tommy still felt his insides warm at the idea of spending time with Oliver, alone. He ran up to the door and opened it to find Oliver standing in the door with a bag of Big Belly Burger… and Laurel. "Oh," Tommy said softly in shock.

"I brought Laurel, I hope it's okay. I mentioned it to her, and she's auditioning too and I just thought…" Oliver said seeing the surprise on Tommy's face.

"Oh yeah, of course, the more the merrier," Tommy said doing his absolute best to seem okay. Oliver lifted up the bag in his hand.

"I brought Big Belly Burger!" he said with a grin. Tommy quickly smiled back.

"Great, I have popcorn upstairs, and sodas too," He added. The three of them went up to Tommy's room. Once they all sat themselves in front of Tommy's flat screen TV, wrapped in blankets, and with plenty of snacks, Tommy started the movie.

"Now just FYI, this is NOT as good as the actual play. You have to listen to the cast recording to really enjoy it, but I'm showing you guys the movie anyway. Just be warned that Eddie Redmayne's portrayal of Marius is..." Tommy began.

"We got it, Tommy," Oliver said with a laugh.

"Okay, okay," Tommy said laughing back. "Ready to cry?" Tommy asked as he pushed play.

"So ready," Oliver replied. The screen went black and the movie had begun. DUN DUNNN, DUN DUNNN… the first song began. Although Tommy was also watching the movie, he kept a close watch on Oliver's face. He saw him tense up during the confrontation between Valjean and Javert, laugh during the Innkeepers big number, and even swore he saw flecks of tears in Oliver's eyes during Eponine's death and Marius's moving ballad: Empty Chairs and Empty Tables. Of course, by this point in the musical, Laurel was sobbing uncontrollably, which was slightly distracting. By the finale, Tommy had to turn the volume up so they could still hear the music over her wails. As the credits scrolled, Tommy turned to his friends.

"So?" he asked. Laurel was still crying.

"That was beautiful," she said through tears. "And now, I know that I was born to play Cosette," she added. "I mean I was watching that, and I can picture myself AS Cosette!" Just then her phone rang. "Oh, it's my dad. I should go…"

"Alright, see you tomorrow, thanks for coming!" Tommy said with a wave.

"Thanks for letting me come!" She said. As Tommy closed the door behind her, he turned to Oliver.

"What did you think, Ollie?" He asked.

"That was so good," Oliver said with a little disbelief. "To be honest, I did NOT think I was going to like this, but…"

"You should try out for the lead. You should be Jean Valjean," Tommy said.

"Stop, there's no way…" Oliver said humbly.

"No, I'm serious. You've got the voice Oliver, and you look the part, you're strong and tall, and..." Tommy said stopping himself from going on and on about Oliver's amazing body. Oliver grinned.

"Okay well then you should be Javert," Oliver said. "You have a great voice yourself and how cool would it be if we were leads together?" Oliver added.

"Haha, no way," Tommy said shaking his head but blushing at Oliver's complement. "You sound like my dad, the second he heard I was doing this is started pestering me about being the lead. 'I never was able to be the lead, but you, you have so much talent!'" he mocked his father.

"Com'on Tommy, you know you would absolutely fantastic!" Oliver said. Tommy frowned and dug through his backpack pulling out a paper.

"Look," Tommy said gesturing at the sheet. "There are plenty of roles that don't involve being a lead," Oliver looked at the sheet.

"Fine," Oliver conceded. A faint smile came across Tommy's face.

"Okay, if you're going to try out for Jean Valjean, we're going to have to listen to some original cast recordings," Tommy said, excited for his friend. It was almost midnight when they finally finished practicing. Tommy would accompany Oliver as he practiced singing Jean Valjean's lines. Oliver wanted so badly to impress Felicity with his voice. Maybe, just maybe, she could see that he was more than just a pretty face.

…

Thursday came quicker than expected. The Lobby of the Performing Arts Center was loaded with students staring at sheet music and singing to themselves, desperate for their chance to shine. Soon, one by one, they were called in to audition. Oliver sat in the corner muttering the lines of "Valjean's Soliloquy" to himself, the song that all hoping to be Jean Valjean had to sing. He heard at least eight other kids singing it. He watched Tommy go in, who had auditioned for the role of 'pimp', and come out with a confident smile. Others he recognized went in and out, Nyssa, Kara, Barry, Sara. As Laurel exited she gave the room a look that made it clear she thought she had the part. Finally, Oliver was called in.

He entered the theatre and moved to center stage. The audience was empty, except for his science teacher, Professor Stein, who was the director, one or two faces he didn't recognize, and Felicity. Felicity was the stage manager which meant watching auditions. She was sitting in the back corner, almost out of sight, with her face deep in a book. Oliver noticed her immediately and felt a flush of nervousness overcome him. He cheeks felt warm, and his breath shortened.

"Oliver Queen, auditioning for Jean Valjean," said one of the people Oliver didn't recognize. Felicity's head shot up in surprise. She had not believed him when he said he was going to audition. But there he was. The stage lights highlighted every contour in his muscles.

"You may begin when you'd like, Mr. Queen," Professor Stein said, kindly. Oliver nodded and cleared his throat, his heart now beating out of his chest. He bowed his head, looking away from Felicity's surprised face and tried to swallow his nerves. Then he rose his head looking directly forward.

" What have done? Sweet Jesus, what have I done... " Oliver began to sing. Felicity remained in shock as Oliver hit every note with grace.

"We will send you an email tonight if we want you to come for callbacks," Stein explained. "I have a good feeling we'll be seeing you there," Stein said. Oliver smiled and thanked them before leaving.

…

Oliver and Tommy were walking home about two hours later when their phones buzzed.

Callbacks for Ridgeside's production of Les Mis are tomorrow after school in the PAC. See you there!

Oliver smiled and turned to Tommy to see him with a less than happy look on his face. "What's wrong?" Oliver asked concerned. "Did you not get a callback?" Tommy shook his head.

"No, but they want me to audition for Javert," he said somberly. Oliver looked relieved.

"That's great news, Tommy!" Oliver said. Tommy still looked upset. "Look, Tommy, they want you to be Javert," Oliver added. "Just audition, you can do this," Tommy glanced at Oliver suspiciously. "Trust me," Oliver said with a smile. Tommy couldn't disobey Oliver. His concerned blue eyes pierced through his soul. Tommy smiled.

"Fine," Tommy mumbled.

"Yes!" Oliver said.

…

The next day, Oliver noticed many of the same faces at the callback. He eagerly waited his turn. Today they were having him sing "Who am I?" As he strutted to center stage he felt the nerves attack him once again. But he pushed them away and sang. He couldn't look at Felicity because he knew that even glancing her way would send a wave of nervousness through him. He sang just as well as the day before. But there were still lots of others to consider. For now, all he could do was wait to hear the results.