Work of Art

Chapter 27

Nick finished as fast as she possibly could, then went home for a couple of hours to nap before the show. Before she knew it, her alarm was once again blaring and she washed the sleep from her eyes. Seeing her tired face in the bathroom mirror, she decided to apply some night makeup, trying to hide the fact she'd rather she continuing to sleep. After a little bit of mascara and eyeliner along her waterline, Nick grabbed her keys and headed towards the school.

By the time she got there, Alice was already waiting by the front doors, claiming her mom had dropped her off a few minutes ago. The two girls stood and chatted for a few minutes, Alice skirted careful around the subject of vampires when Nick began to talk about her little role. Soon, Jonah and Gia joined the two girls. Alice volunteered to go backstage l, leaving Jonah and Gia to wait with Nick to enter into the audience.

Time went by faster than Nick thought it would, and soon a couple of students running the ticket station propped the doors open.

Before she could step through the open doors, Jonah grabbed her arm. "Aren't you supposed to be wearing that white shirt?" he asked confused.

"Shit!" Nick exclaimed before quickly turning away from the open doors. She tossed her head over her shoulder and tossed a quick thank you to Jonah who stood shaking his head at his friend's forgetfulness.

Once she reached the hallway, she practically ran to the temporary girls changing room to find and put on the shirt.

Meanwhile, Carlisle Cullen had finally given in to his brain's nagging and walked up the front steps of the school. He'd only been in the school once before, so he made his way cautiously through the front foyer. After quickly buying a ticket, he walked into the auditorium. Walking down the aisle of seats, he spotted one that was roped off, appearing to be closed. Excited at his luck, Carlisle walked over and sat in the empty seat next to it. He figured the chair was broken and would be empty for the night, which allowed himself to put at least a little distance between himself and all of the other humans in the room. He considered himself quite lucky again as the auditorium began to fill in further around him and no one sat in the seat on his other side either. He should have known better than to think he'd truly get so lucky, though.

Changing room Nick a little longer than she thought it would, so she once again ran back through the hallway then power walked through the foyer and into the auditorium. She was so focused on getting there in a timely manner that she wasn't even looking at the people around her, she just assumed that the seat next to her would once again be empty like it was the previous night. It wasn't until she was pushing down on the seat of the folding auditorium chair that she looked up, only to find herself face to face with the man she had so vigilantly tried to avoid earlier that day.

"Dr. Cullen," she gasped surprised.

The doctor was just as stunned as she was, his golden eyes blown wide. He truly had not expected that the seat next to him was even able to be used, let alone that she of all people would sit in it.

"Miss Lexers," he replied, shock still exigent in his voice. "I didn't think anyone would sit here," he spoke to the girl.

Nick tried to focus her brain to formulate a thought. "It's for the whole vampire thing."

Carlisle's eyes once again widened before he remembered what she said about being pulled from the audience. He cursed himself silently, he should have realized that the seat was likely reserved and not broken, but at this point it would just be odd to move. So, the pair sat in silence, both looking straight ahead.

Nick squirmed uncomfortably in her chair, thinking of their interaction a few hours ago. "You changed," she pointed out, glancing down at the man's pants.

He lofted a brow. "So did you," he observed. He ran his eyes down the girl, Nick burning under his gaze.

She cleared her throat as Carlisle peeled his eyes from the young girl, throwing the pair back into silence.

Nick couldn't stand it, she was sure the doctor could hear the way her heart was erratically beating out of her chest. She glanced over at the man who was still looking straight ahead. Now Carlisle was the one practically burning under the girl's gaze. He ran a hand through his blond hair, unsure what to do.

"Thanks again for the coffee," Nick once again spoke up.

"Any time," he replied without a thought.

Nick cocked her head at him with a small smile. "Is that a promise?"

Carlisle tried to speak, but instead cleared his throat.

Nick's small smile grew as she saw the man sitting beside her was just as nervous as she felt. She caught his eye as he glanced over at her again. Carlisle once again ran a hand through his hair, trying to quell his nerves. "Would it be a problem if it was?"

Nick's heart picked up even more at the man's reply, a fact that did not go unnoticed by Carlisle. Before the girl had a chance to reply, the lights began to dim and the curtains swung open. Nick answered instead by flashing the man a smile and turning to face and he stage once more.

They both sat stiffly in their respective chairs, afraid moving would bring the others attention back on to them. But as the show progressed, Nick relaxed, sliding a little lower. Carlisle subconsciously allowed his body to relax as well, his legs spreading slightly as he got more comfortable. Just as soon as they relaxed, the pair both tensed once more as they felt their loosened legs press against each other. Both sat frozen, Nick's breathing picking up as she felt it was almost physically impossible to pull away. He wasn't even sure it was possible, but Carlisle swore he could feel his unbeating heart practically flutter out of his chest. It was the smallest graze of fabric against fabric, but it felt electrifying. The situation reminded Nick a bit of when Meyer had pressed his leg against hers for support during rehearsal, but that touch hadn't set her whole body ablaze. Nick found herself unable to focus on anything but the brush of his leg against hers, forgetting to follow along with the play in front of her. It was practically a surprise when the dark clad figure ran down the stairs of the stage and down the aisle. There was a collective gasp from the crowd as they streaked by them all the way to Nick. The girl felt all eyes on her as she stood from the chair, mourning the loss of contact with the doctor beside her. Carlisle had to flex his hand, fighting the urge to reach out to the girl and pull her back.

Within seconds, the fake vampire's hand was on Nick's arm as she was being pulled down the aisle back onto the stage at a quick pace. For the first time, she felt a little nervous as the crowd trailed her movements in anticipation. She felt the hands of the senior grasp her shoulders and on instinct, she tilted her neck. Carlisle couldn't help but stare at the soft exposed skin, his mouth practically watering with venom. He watched intently as the boy lowered his head slowly, and Nick let out an ear piercing scream. It was like Carlisle's whole body rejected the sound he gripped the wooden arm rests of his seat so tightly he could feel then begin to splinter under his grasp. He barely even noticed the other scream that joined hers on stage.

The lights faded to black, and the applause masked the sound of the group walking into the wings of the stage. As soon as she made it past the framing curtains, Nick was ingulfed into a hug.

"You did so well!" Alice excitedly whispered. Nick still in her grasp, Alice lifted her head to glance out across the audience.

And just like her vision all that time ago, a golden set of eyes in a sea of humans met hers.

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I may or may not have written this in my phone at work because it's been such a slow day...