A/N: Hello again and welcome to the auditions chapter. I considered splitting this into two, but decided against it. This chapter again features every character, and is slightly longer than you should expect other chapters to be. Also, it features Riley, who will not get as much screen time throughout the story as she currently is, her POV is just the best to use right now.
So, I hope you like all the characters and that I am writing yours to justice. Please review and talk to me, I want to know what you are thinking. Until next week, my loves.
Enjoy :)
Riley Rodgers sat in Westbank's darkened auditorium, lightly tapping her pen against her currently blank notepad. It was almost three, which meant it was just about time for auditions to start, and she was beyond excited. Hopefully she would get a good batch of singers.
The clock struck three and she was just about to call for the first performer when a curvy Korean girl walked quickly onto stage and straight to the microphone.
"My name is Park Sun-Yung," she said as she reached the mic, adjusting it for her height. "But you can call me Sunny."
Riley nodded. "Thank you Sunny, you may begin."
Sunny nodded as well, taking a deep breath.
Once upon a time, a few mistakes ago
I was in your sights, you got me alone
You found me, you found me, you found me
I guess you didn't care, and I guess I liked that
And when I feel hard, you took a step back
Without me, without me, without me
Riley's eyes widened, surprised by the song choice, but her fingers were tingling with excitement. One person in and she was already off to a good start.
Sunny looked a bit nervous, clutching the mic stand as she continued to sing.
I knew you were trouble when you walked in
Oh shame on me now
So shame on me now
Flew me to places I'd never been
Now I'm lying on the cold hard ground
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble
"Surprising song choice, but well suited to voice," Riley wrote on her notepad as she watched Sunny perform. "Looks nervous."
Soon, Sunny finished her song and stepped back from the microphone. "Thank you for your time," she said to Riley, then turned and quickly exited the stage.
Been wokin' so hard
I'm punchin' my card
Eight hours for what
Oh, tell me what I got
Emilio Rivera was nothing if not fun. He had strutted onto stage and sung with all his heart.
"This boy is a true performer," Riley wrote down on her page as EJ kicked the mic stand down and then flipped it back into his waiting hand.
Now I gotta cut loose, footloose
Kick off your Sunday shoes
Please, Louise, pull me off of my knees
Jack, get back, come on before we crack
Lose your blues, everybody cut footloose
Everybody cut, everybody cut
Everybody cut footloose
By the time he finished his song, Riley too felt like dancing.
"Greg Morin?"
A dark-haired boy stumbled out from behind the curtains, seemingly arguing with someone off stage. He stood there for a moment, trying to find a way off before finally relenting and making his way to the centre of the stage..
"Sorry about that," Greg apologized, straightening his basketball jersey. "Um, anyways, I'll be singing 'Mad World'," he introduced, throwing his hands up with a small shrugged. "Enjoy, I guess..."
All around me are familiar faces
Worn out places
Worn out faces
Bright and early for their daily races
Going nowhere
Going nowhere
Gregory wasn't half bad, Riley reasoned, and it would be good to have more male voices."Strong voice," Riley jotted down on her page.
And I find it kind of funny
I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
'Cause I find it hard to take
When people run in circles it's a very very
Mad world
Mad world
Mad world
A tanned girl with bright eyes stalked confidently onto the stage, stopping as she reached the mic and turning to face the audience.
"My name is Perry Dawson, and I will be singing Joni Michelle's 'A Case of You'," she introduced simply.
Riley nodded. "Thank you, Perry," she said. "Please begin when you are ready."
Perry smirked, turning to nod to the pianist to signal him to start play. She loosened her stance, gripping the mic stand with one hand and she turned back towards Riley.
Just before your love got lost you said "I am as constant as the Northern star"
And I said "Constantly in the darkness,
Where's that at?
If you want me I'll be in the bar,"
Riley's eyes widened, taken aback by the rich vocals. She obviously wasn't well trained, but there was talent there that could not be denied.
"Smooth voice, soothing almost," she scribbled down on her notepad. "Rich vocals. Good stage presence."
On the back of a cartoon coaster
By the blue TV screen light
I drew a map of Canada
Oh Canada
Your face sketched on it twice
She glanced back up at Perry as she continued to sing, brows furrowed in thought as she took in the Latina's appearance.
"Looks a bit rough," she wrote as Perry continued to sing. "Keep an eye out."
Oh, your in my blood like holy wine
You taste so bitter, and so sweet
Oh I could drink a case of you, darling
And I would still be on my feet, I would still be on my feet
Riley clapped as Perry finished her song. The girl gave the teacher a nod and then quickly left the stage.
"Next!" Riley called.
A small boy skidded onto stage next, waving up at Riley. He gave her a cute smile, brows raising and pulling at the scar over his brow, making it more pronounced.
"Hey, my name is Spencer McCall," he introduced quickly, rocking back and forth on his heels. "But you can call me Speedy, everyone does."
And Riley could see why. This kid had been on stage for less than a minute and already looked like he was about to burst. "Alright Speedy," she tried out, the nickname feeling strange on her tongue. "Whenever you are ready."
Speedy nodded. "Okay, yep," he replied. "Oh, and I'm singing Harry Potter in 99 seconds, by Jon Cozart. Have you ever seen that video? Well it's really cool, I guess that's why I'm singing it. Okay, I'm ready now." He nodded once more, taking a huge breath.
There once was a boy named Harry, destined to be a star
His parents were killed by Voldemort who gave him a lightening scar
Riley chuckled, what a strange song to pick. "He's cute," she said to herself, writing that down on her paper quickly. "And has good energy."
Not surprisingly, Speedy finished his song in what Riley suspected was less than 99 seconds, grinning and thanking her before running off stage.
A tattooed boy stalked onto stage next, hands shoved deep into the pockets of his ripped jeans.
"Are you Levi Wilson?" questioned Riley, sitting up in her theater seat.
The boy, Levi, nodded, brushing his black hair from his eyes. "Yep, that's me," he said, but nothing more.
"Well, okay," Riley replied, brows furrowed. "Whenever you are ready then, Levi."
"Yep," Levi said again, reaching for the microphone.
When your legs don't work like they used to before
And I can't sweep you off of your feet
Will your mouth still remember the taste of my love?
Will your eyes still smile from your cheeks?
And, darling, I will be loving you 'til we're 70
And, baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23
Levi had a smooth, soothing voice, something Riley definitely wanted to have on her team.
Oh, we found love right where we are
Darling, we found love right where we are
Jordan Greenaway would not stop fidgeting with her hands. She was constantly ringing them, clutching them tightly to her stomach, even as her music began to play.
There's a fire starting in my heart
Reaching a fever pitch and its bringing me out the dark
Finally I can see your crystal clear
Go 'head and sell me out and I'll lay your shit bare
Jordan's version was rawer than Adele's, but no less good.
We could've had it all
Rolling in the deep
You had my heart inside your hand
And you played it to the beat
Riley watched Jordan carefully. Though her singing was good, her hands were constantly moving around, and her sky blue eyes were darting around the stage.
"Watch out for her," Riley scribbled on the bottom of her page, below the rest of her notes. "Seems at bit odd."
You're going to wish you
Never had met me
Rise above, gonna start the war!
What you want, what you need, what'd you come here for?
Well, an eye for an eye and an 'F' for fight
They're taking me down as the prisoners riot
Evan Conaway's version of "Houdini" by Foster The People was nothing short of wonderful.
"Great stage presence," Riley wrote on her notepad. "He is extremely charming."
Evan grinned up at the teacher as he continued to sing, his bright green eyes twinkling,
Got shackles on, my words are tied
Fear can make you compromise
Lights turned up, it's hard to hide
Sometimes I wanna disappear
Evan took a deep breath once her was finished, running a hand through his dark hair. He stepped away from the microphone for a moment to collect himself.
"Thanks for your time," he said after a minute, slightly out of breath from pouring himself into his performance just seconds ago.
Riley grinned. "No. Thank you."
Sabrina Mallory smiled into the microphone, squinting through the stage lights to look at Riley. "Uh, hi Ms. Rodgers," she greeted sweetly. "Can I start?"
Riley nodded. "Of course you can, Sabrina," she assured. "Whenever you're ready."
The British girl grinned, nodding as the recognizable intro to her song began to play. She tapped a beat on her leg, waiting for her cue to come in.
I've got my ticket for the long way 'round
Two bottle whiskey for the way
And I sure would like some sweet company
And I'm leaving tomorrow. What d'you say?
When I'm gone, when I'm gone
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
You're gonna miss me by my hair
You're gonna miss me everywhere, oh
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
When the beginning chords of Iggy Azalea's Fancy began to play, Riley was a bit sceptical. She hated that song, but surprisingly, she hated it a little bit less when Ashleigh Rayne was singing it.
She was good, definitely not the best singer she had seen that day, but her stage presence was fabulous. She danced around the stage like she owned it, and if anyone had asked, Riley would have said she did. Ashleigh was beautiful too, and her hazel eyes were sparkling as she performed.
"That was great," Riley said as the song finally finished, scribbling down a few notes on her note pad.
Ashleigh beamed. "Thank you," she called, giving a little bow before walking off stage.
Next, a boy in ripped jeans sauntered onto the stage, guitar hanging around his neck.
"Can play guitar," Riley quickly scribbled down before glancing back up to the boy, who was smirking at her.
"I'm Dylan Jamieson," he said with a cool confidence, smirking to himself and leaning back on his heels in front of the microphone.
Before Riley could tell him to proceed, he adjusted his guitar and began to play. Actually, he began to play extremely well.
Is it getting better
Or do you feel the same
Will it make it easier on you now
If you've got someone to blame
Riley nodded to herself. He was good. He seemed a little stiff on stage, but his smile was charming, and there was always something to be said about a bad boy.
"Good job," Riley praised as Dylan finished, though the boy didn't seem to care, nodding and walking off. "Thank you," Riley called, but her was already gone.
"Anya Jacobs?"
Riley waited for a moment, about to call the name again when a small blonde girl slowly made her way onto the stage. She reached up when she arrived at the mic stand, quickly adjusting it so it was her height.
"Here," Anya spoke into the mic, thick Russian accent making it somewhat hard to understand her.
Riley smiled at the girl, hoping to comfort her. "When you're ready, sweetheart."
Anya nodded, looking no less small, but set her jaw as the music began playing.
I walked around the world a hundred times and realized
That freight trains and paper planes were just like you and me
Riley nodded to herself. When singing, Anya's English was almost perfect, unlike when she was just speaking regularly. She was also extremely good.
"High, light voice. Very soft and sweet," Riley wrote.
I wandered down the road and met up with a drifter, he said
"Hey, I don't think we've met, do you need a place to sleep?"
The tides are changing, the wind will lift you up and baby
Where you land is where I'm going to be
Riley leaned back in her chair, almost wanting to close her eyes and drift off to sleep as the girl peacefully sang.
Woah, woah, woah, oh
Where you land is where I'm gonna be
Woah, woah, oh
Said where you land is where I'm gonna be
"Hey, I'm Elizabeth Fletcher," the next girl introduced, fidgeting in her leather jacket under the hot stage lights. She shook out her unkempt red hair, smirking at Riley. "And I guess I'm going to sing for you."
Riley nodded, watching Liz bob her head to the beat of the My Chemical Romance song that began playing just a moment later.
They're gonna clean up your looks
With all the lies in the books
To make a citizen out of you
Because they sleep with a gun
And keep an eye on you, son
So they can watch all the things you do
Elizabeth sang with passion and good stage presence, but the way she was smiling made Riley think that she meant every word she sung.
They said all teenagers scare the living shit out of me
They could care less as long as someone'll bleed
So darken your clothes or strike a violent pose
Maybe they'll leave you alone, but not me
"Um, is there a Shay Meyers here?"
"Yeah, yeah, hold your horses," an athletic girl said as she stumbled onto stage, pushing her hood back off of her head.
Riley furrowed her brows. "Are you alright, dear?"
Shay smirked up at the teacher, her blue eyes slightly bloodshot. "Just fabulous, darling," she responded flirtatiously.
Unconsciously, Riley reached up to button the top button of her blouse. "Maybe you should sing now, Shay," she suggested, before scribbling down on her paper: "Drugs?"
Shay nodded, a lazy smirk still plastered on her face. "You got it, love."
How can you see into my eyes like open doors?
Leading you down into my core where I've become so numb
Without a soul my spirit's sleeping somewhere cold
Until you find it there and lead it back home
Shay sung with the same lazy smile she spoke with, words slightly sloppy, but her voice was good none the less, and surprisingly smooth for such a song.
Wake me up inside
Wake me up inside
Call my name and save me from the dark
Bid my blood to run
Before I come undone
Save me from the nothing I've become
Riley smiled to herself as Shay continued to sing, flipping through the pages of notes she had acquired. This was going to be a good year. She could feel it.
Songs:
I Knew You Were Trouble by Taylor Swift
Footloose by Kenny Loggins
Mad World by Tears for Fears
A Case of You by Joni Michelle
Harry Potter in 99 Seconds by Jon Cozart
Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran
Rolling in the Deep by Adele
Houdini by Foster The People
When I'm Gone by Anna Kendrick
Fancy by Iggy Azalea
One by U2
Paper Planes by East of Avenue
Teenagers by My Chemical Romance
Wake Me Up Inside by Evanescence
Thanks for reading :)