5: A Woman in Love (Barbra Streisand)

Ryan smiled as he passed a couple holding hands in the hallway; he loves how free it is at Julliard. The aforementioned couple were two good-looking guys, one of whom was in Modern Dance with Ryan. He might have introduced himself, but Ryan was better with faces than with names, and could've forgotten it. They looked so happy. Ryan sighed.

The girl in the dorm room next to his (whom he had dubbed "Clarinet Girl" for lack of proper introduction) passed him in the hall on her way to dinner. He nodded in her direction, and she gave him a small smile in return. He had a feeling she was shy.

He'd met a lot of people since coming to Julliard, and many he already considered to be friends. Lillian, for example, had been very helpful in teaching him the ropes and showing him around; she was a year older than he was, and extremely intelligent. For some reason she seemed to take the place of Sharpay in his day-to-day life, minus the constant ordering him around that he'd grown used to.

Kelsi, on the other hand, had yet to do more than say "Hi," to him once or twice when they bumped into each other around campus. He felt slightly hurt, knowing that someone whom he had considered a good friend was now abandoning him. He wished he could spend more time with her. That was his mission today.

He found her without too much trouble, as she kept to her dorm room when she wasn't in class. He could hear the sound of piano playing and wondered how on Earth she'd managed to fit on in her room without losing the space meant for a bed. He raised my hand and knocked.

The piano music continued to play as Kelsi opened the door, and Ryan realised it was only a recording of her playing. The melody was one he recognised, and when the singing began, he recognised the voices. It was a Troy and Gabriella song, and it made him feel terribly homesick.

"Ryan?" Kelsi asked, bewildered. She looked at him a moment before asking, "What are you doing here?"

"I... came to see you?" Ryan was suddenly apprehensive. Kelsi had always been his friend. He could tell when something was wrong. And something definitely seemed off about her. "Are you alright? You haven't called in a while and I just thought—"

"I'm fine," she snapped, looking disgruntled. After a moment, her expression softened, and she rubbed at her eyes with both of her sleeves. "I'm sorry, Ryan. I've just been really busy."

It was then he noticed the dark circles under her eyes, and how much smaller she seemed to have become. Kelsi hadn't looked like this in high school; she was now pale and sickly looking, and her hair was unkempt and unruly. Ryan paused, biting his lip.

"Are you really okay?" he asked, "I mean, seriously. You look... well, awful."

Kelsi scoffed. "Thanks so much for the honesty," she said facetiously. "That's exactly what every girl wants to hear!" Ryan grinned.

"May I come in?"

"I guess so." She turned herself sideways and he squeezed past her, noticing how undeniably thin she'd gotten. "I'm sorry I haven't called or anything," she said after closing the door, motioning for him to sit down in the only chair, sitting at her lonely desk. She herself flopped onto the bed, pulling her pillow to her chest. "I'm taking three extra courses and a night class, and I'm teaching piano to a friend in my spare time, so... I have none left over."

"Oh, Kelsi," Ryan said sympathetically, "You're overworking yourself. Geez, no wonder you look so ill; have you been sleeping at all?" When she shook her head no, he sighed and scooted the chair to beside her bed. "You can't push yourself this hard, Kelsi. You're going to kill yourself! When was the last time you ate?" He poked her in the rips to prove his point. "You're thinner than arail!"

Kelsi jumped up, her eyes burning. "If I'd known you were just going to rag on me, I wouldn't have invited you in," she said, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at him. "I'm trying, Ryan. I didn't think college would be this difficult."

"It isn't that hard, if you pace yourself. You said you're taking four extra classes? I don't understand why you haven't fallen over yet. You look exhausted." Ryan stood also, but bent down so as to make eye contact with her. "Eat something, sleep for a while; you'll feel better."

"I can't, I have a paper due tomorrow and a composition due next week and an audition in the morning—"

"You'll work twice as fast after you have some nourishment, at least," he urged, taking her arm and pulling her to the door. "We'll pump you full of coffee and sandwiches, and you'll feel better. C'mon, I'm buying."

Kelsi let herself be persuaded after a while, and soon thereafter they sat across from one another, Kelsi devouring a chicken sandwich and Ryan sipping at a tea. She ate as if she hadn't eaten in weeks, barely bothering to taste the food he repeatedly put in front of her as she filled her stomach. Ryan watched her incredulously, thanking himself for taking the initiative to go see her. If he hadn't, she would have surely passed out on stage during her audition the next day.

When she started slowing down, somewhere around her third sandwich, Ryan thought it alright to talk to her. What he really wanted to do was ask her if she were completely nuts, but he didn't. Instead he asked her who she'd been giving piano lessons to. Her face turned bright pink and her ears burned red at the mention.

"Just a friend," she said after swallowing her mouthful, taking a long drink of coffee to wash it down.

"Must be some friend if you're giving up what little spare time you have to teach him," Ryan prodded, a grin spreading across his face. "Are you sure he's just a friend?" Kelsi's blush seemed to go from the roots of her hair all the way down her neck. She shrugged, putting another large bite in her mouth to avoid answering.

Ryan thought it over, and came to a startling conclusion. "Please tell me you haven't been trying to lose weight for this guy," he almost begged, "He isn't worth it, I'm sure he isn't."

Kelsi rolled her eyes and held up a finger to tell him to wait a moment. She finished chewing and swallowed again, her eyes never leaving his.

"I wasn't trying to do anything," she said, and gave a huff at his unbelieving stare. "Honestly! I just haven't had time to eat... or sleep... or really do anything but work in a week or two. Well, I mean, I have eaten, just— stop giving me that look!" She smacked his arm. "I'm not going psycho-anorexic on you, okay? I swear."

"But you do like this guy you're tutoring?"

Kelsi sighed. "Yeah, Ryan, I like him, okay? But I'm not stupid. I wouldn't try to change myself for anybody. I've just been majorly overworked."

"You think?" Ryan playfully pushed her shoulder, and she smiled.

He walked her back to her dorm when she had finished eating, and before they parted ways, he gave her a look.

"I'll try to sleep more," she promised. "And to eat when I'm hungry."

"That's my girl." He gave her a hug. "And you'd better, because you know I'll check up on you." She laughed and let herself into her room. He wished her a goodnight, as it was now nearly eight, and he hoped that she would try to go to sleep soon.

"Poor girl," Lillian said sympathetically after Ryan told her the story of the day's events. She was happily stretched out on Ryan's bed next to him with several books open around them. "I could barely function after taking one extra class last year; I can't imagine why she thought she could handle four. That's academic suicide!"

Ryan nodded, absently chewing the end of his pen. "Absolutely. I can only pray she takes my advice and drops a couple. She can't do it all; it's breaking her." He sighed and rubbed his chin, blankly staring at a textbook. "Is The Merchant of Venice a Shakespearean play?"

"Yes."

There was a long pause in which the pair read silently from their books, and all that could be heard in the small dorm room was breathing and the turning of pages. Lillian was the first to look up from her text, silently regarding Ryan. He was posed in what she could only describe as a seductive way, lying on one said with his right hip toward the sky. He had never look more gorgeous to her than when he bit his lip in concentration and practically pressed his nose into his textbook, his eyes following the tiny print on the page. She licked her lips. This was it; her opportunity had arisen.

"Ryan," Lillian said in what she hoped was a sexy voice, closing her book and pushing it aside. He looked up at her, his eyes slightly unfocussed. He was beautiful.

She took a deep breath, and pounced.