Darren’s POV
I fall into bed after putting my phone away with a big smile on my face. I had been getting tweets all day from fans and most of them were positive.
However I kept on getting the occasional mean one and that’s why I didn’t show Aisha as I didn’t want to upset her.
They couldn’t even see her fully in the photo so I don’t get why they manage to judge her so quickly.
I learnt how to stop my phone buzzing every time I got a tweet a few years back, when Starkid went big. So I put that function on quickly after I saw the pic, thinking of how much it will annoy me otherwise.
I guess I’ll have to teach Aisha as well, considering the uproar of the fandom after she introduces herself on Thursday.
I sigh slightly, excited but weary about what’s going to happen.
All of a sudden, my phone goes off and I squint against the bright light. I reach for it, my eyes half closed and see that I have a new text from Aisha. All it said was:
Aisha: Keyboard! :D xxx
Darren: ….? xxx
Aisha: The first instrument I learnt to play! Keyboard! :D xxx
Darren: And you decide to tell me this now because…? :D xxx
Aisha: I told you I would text you in the middle of the night! xxx
Darren: Night night, Aisha! :D xxx
I put my phone off and fall back into bed, laughing slightly to myself.
I fall asleep with a smile on my face.
Aisha’s POV
As I make myself a cup of coffee the next morning, my phone starts ringing. I don’t check before I answer it, thinking it was Darren.
“Hey, Da-“
“Aisha! I need you at the studio ASAP! It’s an emergency!”
“Why? What’s happened?” I ask Matt, alarmed.
“Aria’s injured, you’re going to have to step in for her.”
Aria is a Bharat Natyam dancer that I’ve known most of my life. She is AMAZING at what she does and is, therefore, supposed to be dancing for Matt’s opening night.
She can’t dance if she’s injured and I choreographed part of her performance. I’m the only other Bharat Natyam dancer he knows. I’m going to have to step in for her.
“How bad is the injury?” I ask.
“If I tell you she’s on crutches, is that enough information?”
“Right, I’m on my way,” I get up and pour my coffee into a flask, grab my car keys and am almost out the door when I realise I had Glee. I stop and turn around, walking into Annie’s room.
“Annie!” I scream, pulling her sheets off her to get her up.
“What?!?! What’s happened?”
“Aria’s injured. I have to step in for her if we want to save Matt’s show.”
“Is she okay?”
“Matt just said she’s on crutches,” I reply.
“So, you have to step in for her.” She concludes.
“Yeah, I know, but Matt wants me at the studio now, but I have Glee.”
“Can you find out how early you can get out of Glee?”
“I’ll ask, but I have to get going now for Glee,”
“Okay, how about this: I’ll take half the day off work and go in about three so I can go to the studio and sort stuff out with Matt; giving you a chance to go to work and then come in to the studio when you can?” She pitches her idea to me and I reply quickly.
“Yes, that would be great! I need to go but thanks Annie!”
“Yeah, well, what are best friends for?”
“Love you!” I say as I race out, late for Glee.
“Right back at you, Ash!”
Darren’s POV
I walk in to see all the girls wearing cute blue dresses and just stop in the doorway. I look around with a little smile on my face, wondering what’s going on. Heather comes over to me and says:
“We’re doing ‘Tell Him’!!!!!” She jumps up and down to express her excitement before running away again, back over to the girls.
I laugh and shake my head before looking up and around, wondering where Aisha is. I get out my phone and am about to text her when I feel hands on mine and hear her voice in my ear.
“Hey babe,” She whispers.
I turn and kiss her lightly hello.
“You’re late!”
“I know, one of the performers for Matt’s opening night is injured, and I’m the only other person who knows the choreography.”
“Oh, what does he want you to do?”
“He wanted me in the studio right now, but I got Annie to cover for me so I could come here first. I need to be there by about four though.”
I stick my bottom lip out and she laughs before saying:
“Ryan wants me!” She indicates towards where he was stood at the other side of the room.
“Wait, just a sec. Can we do lunch later?”
“Yeah, sure!” She smiles at me and I smile back at her.
She squeezes my hand and keeps hold of it until she’s too far away and has to let go.
I smile and turn to watch her go.
I see her reach Ryan, and, after a few seconds, I see her jump up and down and squeal in excitement. I laugh, even though I didn’t know why she was happy.
Aisha’s POV
“So, the next episode is showing girls power- in a sense- meaning that your audition for Glee club has to be a song that shows off girls as strong people.”
I smile at him, wondering what song I would be doing.
“As you play the Piano, I want you to record the backing to….wait for it…..Fairytales! By Sara Bareilles!!”
I jump up and down, excited. I was doing one of my all-time favourite songs!! I had fair reason to get excited.
“Okay, so, today I want you to spend the day in the recording studio and just get this done if possible!”
I suddenly remember my promise to Matt.
“Um, is it okay if I leave a bit early today? It’s just, my friends opening a dance school and his opening nights in just under two weeks and one of his main performers is injured, meaning I have to step in for her, on top of my own performances and he really needs me in the studio by four today.”
I say all this in one breath before looking at Ryan wearily.
He laughs and says: “That’s absolutely fine Aisha! If you get into the Studio now, you should be done way before you need to go and that is all I want you to do today. We’ll start filming with you tomorrow!”
He gives me instructions of who to talk to and what to do and then sends me off to the studio.
I get to the studio and am guided to the piano. I put the headphones on and sit down. As soon as my hands run over the keys, I feel happy and at home.
I look up and see the sheet music in front of me and have a run through, singing lightly as I go. After a few run throughs, I’m asked if I’m ready to record the backing.
I say yes and we record it. They told me to sing through it too as it will make it easier later when I sing over it.
Darren’s POV
“Hello?” I ask into my phone, confused as the number had been unknown.
“Darren? Hi, it’s Annie. I got your number out of Aisha’s phone when she was in the shower this morning.”
“Hey Annie, what’s up?” I say, wondering why she wanted to talk to me.
“Well, basically, Matt and everyone else wanted to do a little party type thing for Aisha, to say well done for getting on Glee and stuff. But we have to do it now, as I need to be back at work for three. So, Matt tried to get her in there this morning but she said she had Glee. So now, I was wondering if you could get her to come to the studio for about an hour or so at lunch.”
“Yeah, that could work. How about one of you guys phone her and tell her that she’s needed in about forty-five minutes, as she’ll probably be free by then, and persuade her to get to the studio. If she’s not persuaded, I’ll bring her myself.”
I suddenly remember what Aisha had said about her friend being injured.
“Is your friend okay? Aria? Aisha told me she was injured.”
“Yeah, she slipped this morning, when she was putting some decorations up. She’s been put on crutches but she should be off soon. She’s fine, she says.”
“That’s good, I guess I’ll see you later than.”
“Yeah! See you later!”
I hang up and decide to have a look around for Aisha.
I walk into the recording studio to find Aisha on the other side of the soundproof glass, recording the piano backing to a song.
Wait….Fairytales. Sara Bareilles.
I can see her singing the words but I can’t hear her voice as the mic wasn’t on. I could hear her playing and I could see the smile on her face though and that was enough to make me smile too.
She still hadn’t realised I was there which gave me a chance to just admire her in secret. She had her hair tied back, away from her face. However, a few loose strands were falling free on either side. She’s not wearing much makeup either and she looks beautiful regardless.
The sight of her there makes me think of the song: Isn't She Lovely.
I suddenly remember when Kevin's Character, Artie serenaded Heather's Character, Brittany in the middle of her class in season two and smile slightly to myself.
She just looks so happy, it made me happy. She feels like my little ray of sunshine, following me wherever I go.
She finishes playing, waits a few seconds, and is given the all clear meaning she could move around and do whatever.
She looks up properly and sees me.
A big smile breaks over her face and I smile back at her. She comes through the door on the side and walks over to me.
“Hey!” She says, still smiling.
“Hey!” I say in the same tone, mocking her and she hits me lightly, giving me a disapproving look.
“Okay!” It was one of the people that were recording for her.
“This is you, Aisha. Feel free to sing over it so we can see if it works.”
The lady who had spoken plays the backing and I come up behind Aisha, wrapping my arms around her waist and resting my head on her shoulder. She starts singing and taps the back of my hand to the beat as she goes.
Halfway through, she starts dancing about as she sings and when it goes into the quieter part of the song she acknowledges it:
Once upon a time in a faraway kingdom
Man made up a story said that I should believe him
Go and tell your white knight that he's handsome in hindsight
But I don't want the next best thing
So I sing and hold my head down and I break these walls round me
Can't take no more of your fairytale love
She starts snapping her fingers as she dances and sings, getting herself lost in the music. I smile and join her, listening to her voice rather than singing myself.
We finish and laugh together, I hold both of her hands and pull them out to our sides, laughing.
She smiles and turns to see what they thought of that.
“Okay, that was GREAT! Lots of energy. Thank you very much. Now, we need some time to edit it in places and add a few backing sounds if necessary. If we could have you back at about one to record your voice, that would be lovely!”
“Okay! That’s great, I’ll be here!”
She smiles and thanks them before turning and walking to the door, grabbing my hand in one of hers and her bag in the other.
Aisha pulls me off to the main part of the set, where Jacob and Becca were doing a scene we creep past and walk over to the room next to it, where most of the rest of the cast was.
We walk inside, smiling together and find the cast looking at us with very weird expressions on their faces.