Celeste was standing, her back to Patrick, her lower lip facing almost all the stress it could take. "No, no. My love, we must part. The fear is too great. They will find us, if you don't leave now!" Patrick sighed, and reached towards her. "No. No. Please don't say that. I can't leave you. My body may belong to the birds now, for my heart belong with you, and there it will stay." Celeste made a gutteral noise in the throat, stamping her foot and spinning around to face him. "And what of my heart? Would you deny my heart of the pleasure, the joy, the home it has found?" Patrick was about to pull her into a loving embrace when the bell rung. The Doctor looked around the room. "Very good, Drama one students. I shall see you tomorrow when the two thousand word essay on Shakespearian period acting and the affects on the acting of today." Celeste dropped her royal airs, grinning at Patrick. "And Natty doesn't mind you confessing your undying love for me?" Patrick went bright red, and mumbled something to the saddle shoes on his feet. "Speak up, Scarecrow. I can't hear you." Patrick looked up, inwardly sighing. "I said, we aren't dating." Celeste gave him a look. "But you like her?" He nodded. "More than anything else." "Well then, win her heart. Look, it's pretty obvious that she likes you."
Patrick looked at her, surprised. "It's obvious?" Celeste giggled, shaking her head. "You're clueless about girls, aren't you? Well, let Auntie CiCi tell you a little story. When a girl likes somebody, she rarely tells him that. Especially a girl like Natty. She's too bold to fall for sweet words. You need to prove to her that you won't leave, otherwise she won't let you stay. She let you touch her without putting you into a headlock, didn't she?" Patrick nodded. "This is very true. But doesn't she let Louis near her?" Celeste shook her head. "That's different. They've known each other forever. Besides, just between you and I, I'm almost certain Louis doesn't play for her team." Patrick looked at her with surprise. "Why do you think that?" "Haven't you seen the looks he sends DJ in class? I've seen that look before in the eyes of my friends, when they look at their boyfriend." Patrick wasn't convinced. "But doesn't Mary look at you like that?" Celeste shook her head again, her response a bit too quick in coming. "Oh. No. She gives me the, 'you're my hot bitch best friend'. It's a very similar look, but not quite the same." Patrick looked at her. "So, Louis is really gay?" DJ had begun to walk along side the two of them, but he stopped short at this, coughing. "Wait, Louis is gay?" Celeste looked at him. "Uh. Duh? You didn't know that, DJ?" DJ shook his head, and Celeste looked at her nails. "Awkward. I kind of thought you two were an item." "What? No." "You're pretty much the only person he talks to, apart from Natty." "He sung a duet with Echo last week!"
Patrick was the one to shake his head. "No. That's different. That duet had the same energy as the duet Shawn and I had." "The feel?" "Yes. Each song as a different feel." Mary slipped beside Celeste, effectively blocking Patrick, and crowding the hallway so everybody had to skirt around either Patrick or DJ. "Hey hey, sexy mama. What's up?" "We were just talking about Louis, Mar." "Who? Oh, you mean the huge sausage fest who occupies half the choir room?" Celeste giggled. "Yes. His name is Louis, in case you didn't remember." "It's not really important to me. He can't really duet with me, he's not into women, and he makes me kind of uncomfortable. I'm not into the strong and silent type." DJ looked at Mary. "You knew Louis was gay too? How? And why are we talking about his sexuality? Isn't that his business?" "What's got under your skin, DJ? We were talking about what he wanted to bed because Patrick here is hopelessly in love with Natty, and we can all tell she's really into him too, but he thinks her and Louis are an item." DJ stopped for a split second, almost knocking over a member of the cheerleading team who was following Mary and Celeste around. "Sorry, Hope. Wait. Natty likes Patrick?" "You have a problem with that, white boy?" Mary waggled an eyebrow at him. "I knew she was tough, but isn't she a bit too girly for your liking?" DJ nodded. "Yes, it's just…" They never got to hear just what it was, because DJ had spotted Natty, and rushed to catch up with her. "Hey! Natty, Natty! Wait up."
She stopped, and he almost ran over her. "What do you want, DJ?" Her voice was surprisingly sharp. "Why did you lie to me?" "What are you talking about?" She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at him. "When you said you liked me. You lied." "Why does it matter?" "Why did you really want me to stay?" "The club needs the right number of members." DJ grabbed her messenger bag, slamming it against the wall in frustration. "Bull shit. We could easily get another member with people like Leanne and Mary in the club. Why did you want me to stay? You clearly don't like me." "Says who?" "Says Mary and Celeste. According to them, you're completely into Patrick." She flushed unpleasantly. "So what if I am?" "I asked why you lied to me." She sighed, pushing the bronze curls from her eyes. "It was a favour to my friend." "Who? Was it Louis? Because they're talking as if him and I are an item." "Perhaps it is. Why does it matter to you, DJ?" "Because…people are saying we're dating." "So? People spread rumours all the time. If you don't care about Louis, you shouldn't give a damn. You're clearly not ashamed of your sexuality. The entire football club knows about it." "I had to tell them. We're bros." She sighed. "You didn't answer the question." "What question?" "Do you care about Louis, DJ?" "Why the hell does it-" "He's my friend. And he deserves to be happy. That's why it matters. I might not be sweet like Elle, or open about my feelings like Echo, but I still have a heart. I care about people." He sighed. "Look. I'm not going to say I hate the guy, but I barely know him. I have no idea." Natty nodded. "All right. Say, I hate to ask this, but could you pick that up for me? You kind of spilled my backpack everywhere." He sighed, nodding. He picked it up after a little while, handing it to her. "Here. See you on Saturday." She smirked. "See you at sectionals, DJ."
Celeste smiled over at Mary. Her friend looked simply stunning, in her dress of jade. Formfitting, it was strapless, and the skirt flowed out in crepé-like folds, that rustled slightly each time Mary took a step towards her, and paled the jade to a seafoam. "I know I'm one sexy bitch, Cici, but your gaze is kind of making me nervous. I'm extremely nervous." Celeste sighed, looking away quickly. "Mary. Somebody said something that really bugged me." Mary nodded. "Talk, girl." Celeste was about to ask the question that had been lurking in the back on her mind for a while when the Doctor called them into ranks. Russell had been handed complete reign over what the club was to wear, and she'd outdone herself. All were in the dresses in a similar style to Mary's, but they had a dash of personality to each of them. Celeste's only differed in her colour; a deep purple generally only found in amethyst. They ranged all colours of the rainbow; paler or brighter colours for those who had darker skin tones, whilst the blondes were each decked out in deep tones. Elle and Lise looked the picture of every young girl's dream: their dresses had slightly exaggerated skirts, and slim silk straps appeared from the shoulders and waist. Patrick, as the other duet member for their first number, was to match Celeste, the shirtsleeves of his violet top already rolled up, the white bowtie popping out of the slight folds of the fabric.
The Doctor sighed, motioning for Echo to come forward. "You still have not learnt the proper way to tie a bow tie, I see." He was almost as green as the shirt he wore; he was one of two soloists, Mary being the other. He hadn't wanted to, but the Doctor had insisted. "Your confidence will never rise if you never push it to." There was the sound of an inpatient horn from the car park, and the Doctor, straightening her auburn hair, and her steel pencil skirt, nodded. "If you do not win, I shall not bother to speak to you after. If you do…" The threat trailed off, and Leanne leant over to Shawn. "You might not love me, hot shot, but you're still my boyfriend. No running off." She grabbed his hand and practically dragged him onto the bus, planting herself firming on his lap, the crimson of their matching outfits blending into one. He inwardly groaned, looking around for help, and noticed that DJ was in the same situation with Skyler, though the oranges of their outfits were so matched. "I don't like girls." "Then there should be no problem with me sitting in your lap." "Skyler, get off me. Now." She opened her mouth to speak, and rather screamed. Louis, looking rather smug, set her down, the blue moving away from the orange. "He said no." DJ smiled weakly at Louis, looking a tad shaken. "Thanks man." Louis nodded, still smug, and slipped into the seat behind Skyler, where he was shortly joined, much to DJ's confusion, by Kyle. The smirk faded from Louis' lips as he shook his head, but Kyle gave him a look. "I'm not sitting with any of these crazy girls, man. You have to let me." Louis sighed, and gave a motion of consent.
Russell and Natty, the former in blue, the later in gold, were deep in discussion. "The student council doesn't do anything, Russell." "We would help, if the student body would instil their trust in us." The Doctor called for silence. "No speaking on the bus. We will save our voices for the competition to hear, and quake in fear."
None of them could remember listening to the competition. For most of them it was their first time, and for those of them who weren't knew from experience it was better not to listen to the competition. After a group or two, they filed into the green room, where time passed in silence, with the exception of a couple stifled sobs from Leanne. Disaster struck two minutes before show, when the Doctor left the room. Leanne waited for the door to close, and launched herself at Celeste. Fortunately for her, Mary had seen this coming, and tripped her. "No you don't. This is a competition. Like cheer last year. Remember? When you stole Hope's boyfriend? We hold all our shit and arguments until after the show. I would love to get down on your ass, but now is too important. Shawn, make out with her until curtain rises. It will calm her." Shawn sighed, and grabbed Leanne. Sometimes you just had to take one for the team. Patrick was nervously adjusting his tie for fifty-millionth time in two seconds. Natty sighed, and walked up to him. "Your ties fine, Patrick." He grinned weakly at her. "What if I mess up? Sing Celeste's lines? What if I'm off pitch?" Natty sighed, and grabbing his shoulders, reached up to gently peck him on his lips, stretching up on her toes.
"You're not allowed to mess up. I just kissed you. I don't kiss people that often." He nodded, swallowing, somehow feeling so much better, and infinitely worse, all at the same time. Celeste smiled across at him, but her eyes still rested on Mary. Mary wandered up. "Listen, Cici. Whatever happens, you're the best bitch here. Don't forget that." She nodded, and then Mary was falling away, and the music beginning.
"Spending all my nights, all my money going out on the town." Celeste looked at Mary before stepping forward, the words already beginning to form.
"Doing anything just to get you off my mind." Patrick might have been singing with Celeste, but he was singing to Natty. And, judging by her smirk, she knew it too.
"But when the morning comes, I'm right back where I started again." No matter which way she looked at it, she definitely had feelings for Mary. Feelings that she was fairly certain fell into the love, lust, and need categories a bit too snugly. She reached out for Patrick's hand, but as a friendly gesture. They could be friends, couldn't they?
"Trying to forget you is just a waste of time." Patrick too the hand, flushing slightly as he wondered what it would be like to hold hands with Natty. To walk around with Natty, to have her smile that cheeky smile at him, just for him.
"Baby come back, any kind of fool could see." She needed to tell Mary how she felt. She knew she had to; she was her best friend, she would figure it out.
"There was something in everything about you." Was there anything about Natty that he didn't like? He was thinking, but he couldn't find a single thing about her that he didn't like. She was charming, could stand up for herself.
"Baby come back, any kind of fool could see." The club echoed their words, gracefully walking on; a slow jazz run of sorts, their toes turned out and pointed.
"I was wrong, I can't live without you." Just the girl's this time. Elle and Lise were holding hand, and Elle reached to Natty. She, smiling took the hand, and spun, like a ballerina. The rest of the song fell into place, somehow managing to convey the mood without the normal cheesy attachments to the song. They finished, and Celeste murmured is Mary's ear, as she was taking her spot in the spotlight, "I love you, Mary." For the first time in her life, Mary blushed, and began to wonder. As she look the mic, she wondered if her daydreams might actually be true.
"Daydreamer, sitting on the sea, soaking up the sun." Celeste shined like the sun. Mary doubted Celeste realized this, but it was true, all the same. She was beauty and light, she was music, she was dance. She was Mary's daydream, her life.
"He's a real lover, of making up the past." Shawn could shove it. Celeste was her's, and hers alone. Unless Mary had imagined the words; the fact that Celeste might have been lying never even crossed her mind.
"And feeling up his girl like he's never felt her figure before." She had always shone, but she was simply radiant now. As the choir took up the words, Mary began to dance, her feet flashing as she went up on pointe. The chorus once again took up the words, and she began one with her heart, and the music; her and Celeste's song, until her next solo. Fixing her skirt, she once again took up the mic. The words blurred into the crowd, and Mary closed her eyes, a single tear sliding down her face as she sung the last line. "And I'll can tell she'll be here for life."
If anybody noticed the change of gender in the name, they let it go unnoticed. She gave Echo an almost friendly clap on the back as he passed. Echo flushed. Girls didn't touch him often. In fact, they often avoided him.
"If you want to hang out, you've got to take her out, cocaine." The boys had exited halfway through the last song, and came out, with druggie makeup fully applied. They were each paired with a dance partner, save Lise, who could not dance more than one number due to her still paining injury. It was a wonderful dance, full of slap stick and deliberately dragging feet.
"If you want to get down, down on the ground, cocaine." Mary bent all the way back into a bridge, Elle's hand at her back, as she flipped up, almost missing a step as she caught Celeste's eye.
"She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie, cocaine." Russell feigned fainting, and Russell, picking her up, quickly slipped off stage.
"When your day is done, and you want to run, cocaine." The girl's rolled over the willing backs of the boys, each pulling up their partners. Leanne winked at Shawn, but he wasn't looking at her.
"If you've got bad news and want to kick the blues, cocaine." Skyler pretended to kick DJ in the face, and he fell back into Celeste and Patrick, the latter of which collapsed and began to shake. Celeste dragged him off the stage.
"She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie, cocaine." Skyler almost 'tripped' off the stage, but DJ caught her waist and pulled her over his shoulder, he too slipping backstage.
"If you thing is gone and you want to ride on, cocaine." Natty 'kneed' Kyle in the crotch, his bloodshot eyes flashing and falsetto echo of the word 'cocaine' clearly heard. Natty flipped, and Kyle followed, both disappearing for the stage.
"Don't forget this fact, you can't get it back, cocaine." Leanne grabbed Shawn, and 'cracked' his head on the ground, rubbing up against the 'body', before being separated by a normal faced Louis, who dragged them both off stage.
"She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie, cocaine." Mary and Elle, leaning against one another, half-crawled, half-pulled one another through the curtains.
"She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie, cocaine." He started this verse eerily high, and dropped half an octave on each word, finally collapsing, one twitching wrist hanging off stage, the only sign of life. There was silence, and then slowly, slowly, the crowd began to cheer. A few people stood, and soon the entire auditorium was on their feet, applauding. The curtain closed, and Echo stood, turning around to see the grinning faces of the rest of the Callback Kids. "That was amazing man!" Kyle chest bumped him, a sign of ultimate brotherhood. DJ followed suite, his murmured, "That was epic" was enough to bring the faintest hints of a smile to Echo's face. Patrick grabbed one hand, Shawn the other, and they both pumped his hands until he thought they would fall off. Natty ruffled his hair slightly, and Mary and Celeste even stooped to giving him a quick side hug. Russell, Elle, and Lise all left little lipstick stains on his cheeks. Even Skyler and Leanne had a word of praise. "You weren't totally repulsive for a few moments." "I almost believed you were a person, for a second there." He looked around, his face falling slightly when he realized his idol had not said anything. And then he was picked up in a big bear hug. Louis was chuckling, for the first time in a long time, and he was squeezing Echo in a big hug. When he set him down, it was almost time for the curtains to open back up again. They all linked hands, for once the good mood even reaching Leanne, though Skyler would only hold a hand that was either Louis' or DJ's. DJ didn't even notice that his hand was in Louis until he felt the tight squeeze of strength that could only come from him. He looked up, smiling, and shrugged. Louis nodded. It was fair enough. He could wait.
Mary leant over to Celeste as the beginning announcements began. "What do you mean, you love me?" Celeste grinned. "Exactly what I said. I love you. I've always known you were one sexy bitch, but lately, I've been feeling things more than friendship for you. So, basically, I love you." Mary grinned. "Does that mean I can have those sweet lady kisses in public now, Celeste?" Celeste looked at her, about to speak, when they both felt DJ's arms around them. "We won, you guys! Didn't you hear that? We. Won!" DJ was pulled away from the two by Louis, and Mary, winking at Celeste, leaned over, this time to catch her lips. Celeste heard herself murmur, "What about Leanne and Skyler?" before the warmth engulfed her, and all thoughts of words were forgotten in the rush of feelings, and the press of lips.