The Variety Show. It was Riverdale's annual talent show. Anyone could try out, but few made it in.
Caia was trying out. However, she could barely keep the nerves down. It wasn't that she had stage fright. Once she was actually on the stage, she was fine. But the moments before were harrowing.
Her stomach would twist into knots. It felt like she couldn't breathe right. She hated this feeling, and she always got it when she was nervous.
However, Archie seemed to be a lot more nervous than she was. From her view in the wings, it looked like the boy was about to pass out.
"Archie Andrews," Kevin called, breaking Archie out of his stupor. "And what will you be auditioning with?"
Archie was silent for a moment. It seemed like he was very out of it. "Uh, an original song that I wrote called try hard," he replied, grabbing the microphone.
"Try harder!" A voice yelled from the audience. Reggie. "Maybe try not sucking so much." Caia wrinkled her nose. She hated when Reggie got like that. She knew he only did it to impress his friends. If she was with him, she would have pinched him and told him to shut up. But alas, Caia was no where near the jock.
She could see Archie start to freak out. She knew he saw something that wasn't there. He was psyching himself out. Archie squeezed his eyes shut and blinked rapidly. Caia figured this would draw him out of his fright. It seemed to do something, but Archie's fingers were shaking as he pressed them near the strings.
"C'mon Archie," she muttered.
Kevin seemed to sense Archie's nerves as well. Though he was more focused on time constraints. "Take you time Archie, though we do have people waiting," he explained.
Archie lifted his hand to the microphone and he was still shaking. Caia felt so bad that she forgot about her own nerves. "Archie, clocks ticking." Archie looked up at Kevin's words.
Archie decided he couldn't take it. "Excuse me. Sorry, I gotta go," he stated, hurrying off the stage. As he left he bumped into Caia. She called after him and followed him for a few steps before realizing that he was probably very embarrassed and wanted to be left alone. Plus, she was auditioning next.
Caia was dissapointed as she heard laughs and mean comments from the crowd. Namely, Reggie's group.
"Well, that was something," Kevin commented. "Anyway, next up, Caia Sinclair."
Caia walked onstage, ukulele in hand. She could feel the nerves coming back again, but she tried to dispel them the best she could.
"Yeah baby!" Reggie yelled from the audience. Caia felt her face grow hot. She loved Reggie, but his way of showing affection was a bit too much for her.
She got to the microphone and smiled at Kevin. "Before we get started, you are actually going to try out, right?" Kevin questioned, referring to Archie's incident. Caia nodded. "Okay, what will you be singing?"
Caia cleared her throat. "Isn't She Lovely by Stevie Wonder," She announced.
Kevin nodded. "Go ahead."
Taking a deep breath, Caia strummed the beginning chords and began to sing.
"Isn't she lovely? Isn't she wonderful? Isn't she prescious? Less than a minute old.
I never thought through love we'd be, making one as lovely as she. But isn't she lovely, made from love?
Isn't she pretty? Truly the angels best. Boy I'm so happy. We have been heaven blessed.
I can't believe what God has done. Through us he had given life to one. But isn't she lovely, made from love?
Isn't she lovely? Life and love are the same. Life is Aisha, the meaning of her name.
Darling it could have not been done without you who conceived the one. That's so very lovely made from love."
As she finished, people in the audience started to applaud. She smiled sheepishly.
"That was great. Thank you, Caia," Kevin complimented, dismissing her from the stage.
Caia smiled as she left the stage. Her smile dissappared as she thought of Archie. She charged down the hallway, looking for him. She felt so bad. She couldn't continue with her day until she made sure he was okay.
As she rounded the corner she spotted him talking to Valarie. As she approached, Valarie left. Archie's eyes followed her down the hallway. He turned to Caia.
"Are you okay?" Caia inquired softly, putting her hand on his arm. "You were literally shaking." She tilted her head as she waited for Archie's reply.
"Yeah, yeah," he replied, blowing her question off. He was silent for a moment before breaking. "It was bad, Caia. Really bad."
Caia sympathized. "Archie, you re a great singer. If you just got a little more confidence-"
"No," He cut her off. "There's no way I can get back on that stage by myself," he explained.
Caia bit her lip. "Archie, if this is about what Reggie said, don't listen to him. He's totally tone deaf." Her try to get Archie to cheer up didn't work.
"No, Caia. It's not that. Don't worry about me, okay?" He stated, patting her on the shoulder as he walked away.
Caia was walking to lunch with Kevin when Veronica joined them. "Hey Keller!" She yelled, getting Kevin and Caia's attention. They stopped and waited for her to catch up. "Can I ask you for a favor?" She questioned.
Kevin sighed. "Oh no. What is it?"
Veronica shot a dazzling smile at Kevin. "I need you to let Archie into the variety show," She stated. Kevin stopped in his tracks almost making Caia run into him.
He violently shook his head. "No way. You saw what he did up there. He completely choked!" While Kevin's point was valid, Veronica wouldn't let her friend down that easily.
"Please Kevin? You have to let him sing," she pleaded.
"You have heard him sing before," Caia added.
He sighed. "Fine. I guess I can find a spot for him," he reasoned. Veronica squealed.
"Thanks, Kevin. I didn't want to let Archie down."
Once outside, they headed over the table Archie was at. Veronica seemed to have heard something about Archie not being in the variety shoe because she interjected the conversation with something about that very subject.
"Except, that yes you do, thanks to a certain Veronica ex-machina. Excuse me," she sated, walking around the table to sit in between Archie and Val.
"What do you mean?" Betty asked. Caia slid in next to Jughead.
"Oh nothing," Veronica started. "Except that I had a few words with our director slash host and Caia and I reminded him that he has heard you sing on multiple occasions." She explained, taking her purse off her wrist. She stared at Archie.
"Although it compromises my artistic integrity," Kevin complained, sitting down across from Val. He violently stared down at his food.
"Cutting to the chase," Veronica continued, ignoring Kevin. "You have a spot if you want it," She finished. She picked up her coffee and took a long sip.
Archie was quick to refute Veronica's plans. "Veronica, thank you, but you saw what happened."
"We all did," Kevin added snarkily, sipping on his chocolate milk.
"Playing my songs in front of you guys is one thing," Archie stated. "But getting back up on that stage by myself," he paused. "I'm not sure if I'm ready for that."
Veronica swooped in with a solution. "If it's a partner you're looking for, I know a certain someone who has a great set of pipes." Shee turned her head towards Caia. Caia, realizing Veronica was referring to her, began to freak out. "I'm sure Caia would be more than willing to help you."
Caia shook her head. "Woah, I did not-"
"No way. I am not letting Caia sing a duet. She's one of the best soloists we've got," Kevin explained. Caia silently thanked him for saving her. Archie was a great friend, but frankly she didn't really want to sing with him.
"Ignoring those two," Veronica continued. "What do you say, Archiekins?" She smiled hopefully.
Archie chuckled. "I mean, I would love to sing with Caia, but she doesn't seem to want to." Her turned his gaze to her.
With everyone staring at her and waiting for a reply, Caia felt extremely pressured. If she refused, she would probably get torn apart. After a moment of harrowing silence, she finally relented. "Oh, fine. I'll do it."