(THIS IS A LONG, AND EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER,
I HOPE YOU'RE READY PEEPS!!!
Ps. Listen to the song if u wanna get in the feels towards the end hehe)
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𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙏𝙬𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙮 𝙎𝙞𝙭:
"Act Two."
The orchestra began playing the music for the final number, 'We're All In This Together.' I honestly can't believe we actually made it to the end of the show, considering how much went wrong, and how much was very improvised.
I'd left the dressing room once I'd calmed down and convinced myself that I wasn't actually going to vomit. I made my way back to the gym and stood side stage with Miss Jen and Carlos, as I watched the number and my friends come out one by one for their bows.
First was Ashlyn, then it was Seb who was being lifted by some of the guy dancers, then Gina and Taylor came out and grooved a little, and then EJ, wearing his 'Danforth' costume, and spinning a basketball on his finger.
I saw Ricky and Nini on the other side of the stage preparing for their entrance, but he wasn't looking at Nini. Instead, he was looking straight at me and I swallowed the lump in my throat. Nini muttered something to him, and then they both looked at me. I stared at them in confusion, but they walked on stage hand in hand before I could do anything further.
"We're all in this together, once we know that we are, we're all stars and we see that!" The ensemble cast sang and the audience cheered and clapped as the two took their bows.
"We're all in this together, and it shows when we stand hand in hand, make our dreams come true!"
Then everyone broke into the famous dance number for the rest of the chorus.
"We're all in this together, when we reach we can fly, know inside, we can make it! We're all in this together, once we see, theres a chance, that we have and we take it!"
"Wildcats sing along, yeah, you really got it goin' on..."
Nini and Gina stopped mid-dance to talk, then Nini did the same to Ricky, and then ran off stage. Ricky muttered something to Gina next, and they both nodded to each other.
What on earth is happening?!
"Wild cats in the house, everybody say it now!"
"Where is she going? This isn't the choreography." Carlos exclaimed.
Then both Gina and Ricky ran over to the three of us; Gina grabbed Carlos and Miss Jen and took them both on stage. I furrowed my eyebrows at Ricky as he grabbed my hands in his, and then took me on stage as well.
"We're all in this together, when we reach we can fly, know inside, we can make it!"
"You know what to say!" Nini said to Miss Jen, handing her a red tray with a fake apple on it.
Miss Jen smiled and then turned to face the audience. "Is that the last apple?"
"Sammy, you deserve an applause too!" Nini smiled. I smiled back at her and stepped forward to bow. I heard Paige and my family cheer even louder for me and I couldn't wipe the smile off my face. I stepped back and stood beside Ricky.
"This is kinda the best." Ricky said.
"Oh honey, wait til you see what I picked for the spring musical!" Miss Jen replied.
"We're all in this together, once we see, there's a chance that we have, and we take it!"
Ricky then grabbed onto my hand, smiled at me and Nini held my other one, and we walked forward singing the final part of the song.
"Wildcats everywhere, wave your hands up in the air."
A chain of bows came next as we sang, "That's the way we do it, let's get to it, come on everyone!"
The music finished and the audience gave us a standing ovation; my ears rang with the sounds of their thundering cheers and applauds, and I grinned at my family and best friend - who was jumping up and down, waving excitedly and squealing.
Suddenly the confetti canons burst, and out came flyers for Mr Mazzara's robotics club.
I guess I didn't have to hand them out after all.
We all cheered and jumped up and down excitedly, hugging one another and then the audience started chanting "Wildcats!", so naturally the rest of us joined in.
My heart burst with happiness, and my face hurt from smiling but it's so worth it.
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After the show, I went to the dressing room to pack up my stuff. Nini arrived a few minutes later and it wasn't as awkward as I expected it to be.
"You were amazing out there." I said.
She smiled. "So were you."
"I still can't believe I did that." I chuckled. "Why did you give up your solo anyway?"
"I see the way you look at Ricky, and I see the way he looks at you. I didn't think it was right for me to be up there singing with him."
I looked down at my hands. "You really didn't have to do that."
"I know." She said. "But I wanted to." I looked up and gave her a small smile.
"Did that scout lady talk to you yet?" I asked after a moment.
"No, she left before the end of the show."
"Oh, I'm sorry."
Nini shrugged. "It's fine. It just wasn't meant to be."
It was silent for a few moments, before I spoke up again. "Can we start over, and be friends?"
Nini smiled, and pulled me in for a hug. "Of course." She said. "I was never not your friend, we just got caught up in all the drama."
I chuckled. "True."
Just then, Ricky appeared at the door and raised an eyebrow at us girls.
"We're not fighting, promise." I said.
"Oh, thats...great."
"I'll see you guys later." Nini said, smirking at me slightly and then left the room.
I stared at my feet as the room filled with awkward silence.
"So..." Ricky said, I looked up.
"So..."
"That duet was, uh...something..." He said, scratching the back of his neck uncomfortably.
I stifled a laugh. "Yeah...it was..."
"So what happens now?"
"What do you mean?"
"Um, I've never opened or closed a show before, so like, what happens now?"
"Oh," I chuckled. "Well usually the theatre kids cry, and then we go to Denny's for a celebratory dinner."
"I mean, now that it's all over?"
"Uh...I guess we just go back to our normal lives. I'm sure you have a lot of video games and skateboarding to catch up on."
He chuckled. "Yeah, I guess I do."
There was another moment of awkward silence, before I cleared my throat. "I should go. My family are probably waiting in the lobby for me."
"No, yeah, of course."
I slung my bag over my shoulder, gave him a tight smile and started to walk out.
"I love you."
I froze.
He what now?
My eyes started to brim with tears, as I turned around slowly. "What did you just say?" I asked, my voice came out as nothing more than a whisper.
"I said I love you, Sam. I've loved you since the first time we sang together that day in the theatre. I love everything about you; the way you sing, your smile, and the way the room lights up when you enter. You're so kind and you always know just the right things to say." Ricky said, his own eyes brimming with tears.
"When you told me at the skatepark that if I wanted to prove I was committed to this show I had to put in the effort,"
"Yeah, I remember." I laughed softly. A tear slipped from my eye, but I didn't bother wiping it away.
Ricky laughed too. "I wanted to prove to you that I could do this. You've stood by me through everything, and you never stopped believing in me, and these last few months have been the best months of my entire life because of you. I know I've made mistakes, and I know I've let you down so many times but..."
He paused for a few seconds; his chest was moving up and down, and his eyes were still glassy.
"I'm done with that." Ricky said. "I care too much about you and don't want to hurt you ever again. When I'm with you I'm the best version of myself."
Now I was full-on ugly crying like a big old sappy teenage girl in love.
"I don't know what happens when we walk out that door, all I know is, I don't want this feeling to stop..."
"Me neither." I admitted, wiping my face with my sleeve. I stepped forward and only left a small gap between our bodies. I looked up at him, my face inches apart from his.
"I don't expect you to say it back, but I needed you to know how I felt."
"Ricky..." I said softly. My eyes travelled from his eyes, down to his lips, and then back up to his eyes.
"Yeah?" He asked, just as quietly. His warm breath fanned my face and all I could think about was what was definitely about to happen.
My heart pounded against my chest as I muttered the words.
"Kiss me."
Ricky smiled and pressed his lips against mine, and held my face gently in his hands. Fireworks exploded, sending an exciting, buzzing feeling all throughout my body as our lips moved in sync.
His lips were a little chapped, but they were soft, and tasted like vanilla. I didn't know why vanilla, but I didn't care; my entire body felt like it was on cloud nine. The kiss was sweet, and I finally felt like the girls in those cheesy romcom movies.
After what felt like forever, we pulled away to catch our breath.
I've never been kissed before, but if that is what it's supposed to be like, then it's the best feeling in the entire world and I never want it to stop.
"I wrote you something." I said after a moment.
Ricky raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
I nodded, pulled the paper out of my pocket, and handed it to him. He opened the paper up and then read it aloud.
"After all is said and done. I can't pretend I'm moving on. Now we can't play pretend and I'm scared to talk to my best friend."
"Maybe, your heart still stops when you see me. Maybe it's worth another try. A better place. A better time."
"I wrote it a couple days after our fight. They started off as lyrics to an unfinished song, but I ended up leaving the words as they were." I explained when he finished reading. "I've been meaning to give it to you ever since, I just didn't have the courage."
"I love it." Ricky said and I smiled. "Now I don't feel so stupid for getting you this."
He pulled a small box out of his bag and handed it to me. Inside the box was a necklace, with a tiny piano charm on it.
"Ricky, it's beautiful."
He took the box from my hands, and took out the necklace; he unclasped it and I turned around, blushing slightly as Ricky put the chain around my neck. As soon as it was on, I turned back around and kissed him again. He placed his hands on the small of my back, and pulled me closer to him. The kiss didn't last as long this time, but the sparks were definitely still there.
I pulled away and sighed. "I should go...see you out there?"
Ricky nodded. "I'll catch up. I'm just gonna wipe off this makeup."
I chuckled and pecked him on the lips a couple more times. We laughed, and Ricky pressed one more kiss to my lips, before I left. I held onto the charm tightly and bit my lip as I made my way to the lobby.
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I listened to one direction while writing this and let me tell you, 'loved you first' is #RAMMY'S song. (why I included it up the top)
I know u all wanted the poem to be a confession, but those lyrics from just for a moment felt appropriate to use. I obviously changed it a little bit so that it sounded more like a poem rather than a song, but it still worked. At least in my opinion it did lol
I was also going to have Paige walk in on them making out but I was like nah, I'll let my babies have this moment privately lmao they deserve it after everything they've been through amirite
Anywayssss, I know it was long but I hope this chapter gave you what you wanted ;)
Sadly only one more chapter left :((