𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 - 𝐡𝐬𝐦𝐭𝐦𝐭𝐬 (𝐢𝐯)

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀𝒙𝒗𝒊𝒊. 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧
━━ 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔

Before Juliette got the opportunity to walk out of the room, she heard a loud bang that made her turn around and run to Maddox.

    "What happened?" she asked, seeing the sound system machine she had been using on the floor, completely broken.

    "Maddox, are you okay?" Jett urged her, a tinge of concern in his voice.

    "Does she need mouth-to-mouth?"

    Mr Mazzara walked up to them and looked at the machine before looking back up at them. "Someone will have to operate the sound system manually for Act Two," he determined. "But if I do, who will play Coach Bolton?"

    Carlos turned to look at Seb, who was by his side, but he was quick to refuse with a shake of his head. Instead, Juliette spoke.

    "I may have an idea, give me two minutes."

    Still in her prom dress and her dance heels, she ran out of the room and into the hallway, where she had to subway-surfer her way through the groups of attendees that had gathered there.

    "Juliette, you're doing it–" Lisa called for her as soon as they saw her.

    "Tell me later," she interrupted her, almost out of breath. "Have you seen EJ?"

    "He went that way," Ava pointed to the other side of the hallway, towards the bathrooms and exactly on the opposite side of where she was supposed to meet Ricky. "Why? Everything okay?"

    "Yes! Talk to you later!" she yelled, already running away. She didn't even stop to ask why they weren't with their parents. It took her a couple of minutes to reach EJ, who was walking out of the bathroom.

    "Hey, what's wrong?" He stopped her, putting his hand on her shoulder, allowing her to breathe.

    "Do you... do you remember when you said you wanted to be out there with us? Well, go get your clipboard, Coach Bolton."

    "Wait, what?" he asked, but it was no use. Juliette was already running all the way back to the dressing room, where she hoped Ricky was still.

    "Sorry, sorry!" she ran inside, yelling. "Something came up! Come with me!"

    She took Ricky's hand and, still out of breath, ran with him to the bomb shelter, where a piano was waiting for them. Her bag was already there (thanks to Big Red, who had obliged to take it there after hearing her plans).

    "Hey, Juliette, I think we–"

    "Let me go first or else I won't have time to show you something," she pleaded, an apologetic look on her face. She sat down at the piano and took her journal out of her backpack, placing it in the music desk, before putting her hands to the right keys. Ricky sat down beside her.

    "Juliette, I really think we..." he began speaking again, but this time interrupted himself. "Okay, go on."

    "I may have to rush through this because we've only got like seven minutes left so... bear with me." She took a deep breath and started playing the song she had written. "Not long ago, when I saw you there, with your brown-eyed grin and your messy hair and every girl at the party was looking at you."

    Her voice trembled slightly but she pushed through it. She could feel Ricky shifting in his seat, but he didn't say a word.

    "I wonder what I'd say if I knew back then that the brown-eyed boy'd be my best friend and the one I'd give my heart to. Now everything reminds me of you, your pictures framed all over my room and if I hate someone you'll hate 'em too." Now came the part she was most nervous about. Until then, her lyrics had been accompanied by a hit of the keys, but now she had to really play the piano and she really wasn't the best at it. She had learned the notes specifically for that. "As long as I'm your darling angel, I don't need anything in the world, 'cause I feel like the luckiest every second that I'm your girl. Take the highs, I'll take the lows, I'll keep you close, give you the most. I like you so much it's kinda gross."