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𝗡𝗢𝗪 𝗢𝗥 𝗡𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥

chapter four:
for the first time in forever !

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IN ORDER TO keep track of who was auditioning, EJ and Val had everyone fill out these sheets about who they were, and when they were done filling it out, they would get a Polaroid picture taken by Maddox before they auditioned. Athena sat in one of the rows of chairs next to Violetta, filling out her own sheet. Some of the others had started to audition as they did so, like Carlos and Ashlyn. Athena listened to her friends sing as she wrote.

Name. Athena Blake ♡.

Bunk. Honeycomb.

Role. Blank — she wasn't going for anything specific, although Anna would be cool.

Age. Sixteen.

Vocal Range. Soprano and Alto mix. Depends on the song and the key.

Dance Experience? Yes.

Special Abilities. Can play the piano and a little bit of the guitar.

Notes. I hope my hair being dyed pink doesn't deter you, and I'm sorry if it does.

Once she was finished, Athena stood up from her chair and brought her piece of paper over to Maddox, who was currently not taking a picture for anyone. She handed her piece of paper to the girl with a small smile and stood in front of the camera right as the music on the speaker restarted, signaling another audition was taking place.

Athena smiled for the picture, Maddox holding up the Polaroid camera in front of her. However, her focus on the camera was immediately broken by the melodious voice of her boyfriend filling the barn. She looked over Maddox's shoulder, watching as her boyfriend sang For the First Time in Forever extremely beautifully.

Her heart raced and her stomach fluttered as she listened to him. Ricky was really a natural on stage when he was singing. It was kind of weird thinking how he used to be — so anti-musical and shut off. Sure, he might've auditioned for High School Musical as a plan to get back with Nini Salazar-Roberts, but Athena truly thought he found himself in musical theater.

"Hey, Athena," Maddox stated.

"Hm?" Athena hummed in response. She blinked, snapping out of her trance and looking back at Maddox, her cheeks flushing as pink as her hair. "Oh, I'm sorry. Got a little distracted."

"I could tell," Maddox replied, laughing slightly. She glanced back at Ricky. "You two are together, right? I remember Violetta mentioning something about a boyfriend."

"Yeah, that's him," Athena answered. "He's my person . . . but we're getting off track. Sorry, you can take my picture now."

Athena smiled brightly again, and Maddox snapped the photo of her. Once it came out of the camera, Athena walked forwards away from Maddox to adore Ricky on stage. He had a small smile on his face while he sang, telling Athena that he was enjoying every moment. She grinned at it, watching him with love in his eyes.

Finally, the music on the speaker ended and Ricky stopped singing, signaling the end of his audition. Athena's smile widened and she clapped loudly — probably the loudest — for him as he descended down the steps of the stage to return to his seat. He caught her eyes as he sat down. Athena blew him a kiss, and Ricky pretended to catch it, placing his hand right over her heart.

Athena caught Val's eyes. The blonde nodded her head to the stage, urging her to go on. Athena let out a deep breath and got up on stage. She ran her hands down her shorts and faced the room.

"Hi, 'Thena," EJ greeted, smiling at her.

"Hey," she responded. "I'm ready whenever."

Val nodded and pressed play on her speaker, restarting the medley of Frozen songs. Athena grinned and started to sing.

"The window is open, so's that door, I didn't know they did that anymore," Athena sang. "And there's two nice ladies helping me get dressed. Thank you. Thanks! For years I've roamed these empty halls, why have a ballroom with no balls? Coronation day is just best! There'll be actual, real-life people, it'll be totally strange, wow, am I so ready for this change!"

She tried to ignore the way Val was walking around her on stage holding a clipboard. It was honestly kind of nerve-wracking, but Athena kept her gaze ahead, just singing and occasionally glancing at the encouraging looks Violetta and Ricky were giving her.

"For the first time in forever, here'll be music, there'll be light. For the first time in forever, I'll be dancing through the night. Don't know if I'm elated or gassy, but I'm somewhere in that zone. 'Cause for the first time in forever, I won't be alone."

The music changed to Do You Wanna Build A Snowman? Athena counted the notes in her head. She honestly kind of wished that she was playing the piano with this. It was a fun piece to play.

"Do you wanna build a snowman? Come on, let's go and play! I never see you anymore, come out the door, it's like you've gone away. We used to be best buddies, and now we're not. I wish you would tell me why! Do you wanna build a snowman? It doesn't have to be a snowman." She made her face look annoyed. "Go away, Anna." Athena then made her face look a little sad. "Okay, bye."

The song changed again, back to For the First Time in Forever.

"Conceal, don't feel, put on a show, make one wrong move and everyone will know. But it's only for today, it's only for today, tell the guards to open up the gates. 'Cause for the first time in forever, nothing's in my way."

She held her note out until the song ended. Finally, when it did, she let it go. Athena smiled as everyone clapped for her. She gave the smallest nod to everyone in the room as she descended down the steps from the stage and sat down next to Ricky. He instantly interlocked their fingers together and leaned over, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

The singing auditions continued on until there was no one left to go. EJ and Val called for a small break. Athena stood on the stage, nestled comfortably into Ricky's side as his hand ran up and down her back softly. She was currently talking with Carlos, Kourtney, Ashlyn, and Violetta, complimenting all of them on their individual auditions.

"Oh, where are the scripts?" Kourtney asked as EJ and Val walked up on the stage.

"Scripts?" EJ repeated.

"For the scene work auditions?" Gina added, also joining everyone else on stage.

"We're doing a show with no script?" Carlos questioned. "What is this? Curb Your Enthusiasm?"

"Yo, Mr. Director-Man," Ricky cut in, raising the hand that had been resting on Athena's back. "All right, where do you want us all to stand?"

"Can everyone just wait one second?" EJ pleaded. "Please?"

Maddox cleared her throat. "What if they all just, uh, acted out the lyrics from the songs? You know, like a dramatic reading." She cleared her throat again. "I don't know, I'm just a stage manager."

"I think it's a good idea," Athena admitted, giving Maddox a reassuring grin.

"Thank you," EJ whispered to Maddox, clearly relieved.

Kourtney went first. "Don't let them in, don't let them see. Be the good girl you always have to be. Conceal, don't feel." Her voice lowered, and Athena watched her friend in concern as she watched Kourtney struggle for a minute. "Put on a show."

The doors suddenly opened. Athena turned her head to see that it was Jet — he was a camper in Ricky's cabin that was apparently very closed-off and guarded. She stared at him curiously.

"Sorry, auditions started over an hour ago," Maddox said, crossing her arms across her chest.

"It's okay," EJ voiced as Jet started to back away, moving through the circle to stand at the front of the stage. "Everyone's welcome to try out."

"I'm not so sure about this," Jet revealed.

"Nobody's judging you."

Ricky patted the small of Athena's back before getting off of the stage. He picked up the sheet music for For the First Time in Forever. Athena watched her boyfriend hand the sheet music to Jet, her heart warming. He was truly the sweetest.

"Come on," Ricky encouraged.

Ricky patted Jet's shoulder. He backed up to the stage and sat down on it rather than standing this time, facing Jet like the rest of them were. Athena stepped a bit closer to him, and sensing her presence, Ricky leaned back and rested against her legs slightly.

Jet then started to sing. It started nervous at first, but he soon gained confidence. He was incredible.

This voice couldn't go without accompaniment. He deserved a true audition.

Athena reached down and threaded her fingers through Ricky's curls for a second. She then stepped around him and bounded down the steps, heading over to the piano. Athena sat down on the bench and placed her fingers on the keys, starting to play along to the song, finally fulfilling her itch to play the piano.

Jet, still singing, looked over at her. She gave him a reassuring smile and nodded her head. He soon started to belt, and Athena's eyes widened slightly in amazement. When he hit a high note, she nodded in impressment. Athena could honestly listen to his voice all day.

He stopped singing, and Athena stopped playing the piano. She looked over at him, letting out a quiet laugh of amazement to herself. Ricky was the one who started the applause — he stood up from the stage and clapped rapidly. Athena stood up from the piano and clapped along with everyone else.

Ricky walked up to Jet. "Dude, are you kidding me?"

"That was so good," Gina commented.

"You were incredible," Athena complimented him.

Jet, however, didn't look as happy as the rest of them. He threw the sheet music down on the piano and exited the barn. Athena watched him go for a moment. She wondered why he was so guarded.

Ricky rolled up his sleeve. "I have chills."

After doing a little more scene-work, which included Athena and Violetta acting out Do You Wanna Build a Snowman?, the auditions finally ended. Athena walked out of the barn by herself, holding onto her bag that rested over her shoulder. Violetta had gone to talk to EJ, Carlos had gone to find Val, Gina, Ashlyn, and Kourtney had left chatting excitedly with each other, and Ricky was somewhere.

Athena didn't mind. She enjoyed having her alone time. As she walked under the California sun, she watched as the trees moved in the breeze. She thought her audition actually went well. Not to mention, she loved Frozen. It was peaceful as she headed back towards the Honeycomb.

And then her peace was ruined. But in a good way, and it brought a whole new sense of serenity.

Athena felt two arms wrap around her waist and pick her up off of the ground. She let out a small shriek from the sudden movement as the person spun her around. The laugh and the feel of whose arms it was told her exactly who the culprit was.

She turned to face Ricky once her feet were back on the ground, lightly slapping his shoulder. "Ricky. You can't just sneak up on me like that."

Ricky ignored her and took her face in his hands, kissing her softly for a moment before pulling away. "You." Another kiss. "Were." Another kiss. "Amazing." Another kiss. "My love."

"Thanks, Ricky. You—"

However, she was cut off by Ricky leaning down again and kissing practically every inch of her face. Athena giggled and allowed him to do so, honestly feeling like she was on cloud nine.

"Okay, okay," she let out through her giggles, making him stop, her face burning red. "I get it."

"Do you?" Ricky replied, kissing her nose. "I don't think you do."

"Are you only saying that because you want to kiss me more?"

"Maybe."

She wound her arms around his neck. "Then what's stopping you?"

Ricky kissed her again, dragging her face as close as he could get to his. Athena pressed up onto her toes and kissed him back, feeling like she was floating. They kissed for a long moment before Ricky pulled back first, smiling down at her with nothing short of love and adoration. Athena pressed another quick kiss to his lips before dropping back down onto her flat feet.

"Can I compliment you now?" Athena inquired.

"No," Ricky refused, walking forwards and extending his hand out to her. She took it and laced their fingers together, swinging their interlocked hands back and forth as they walked across the green. "I'm going to keep complimenting my talented, beautiful, amazing girlfriend."

"Okay, but I want to compliment my talented, beautiful, amazing boyfriend." She nudged their shoulders together. "I'm serious. You were so good."

"Think we have a decent shot at the leads?"

"I don't know," Athena responded. "After what Jet pulled out . . . I think you've got some competition, Ric."

"But you're definitely going to be . . ." Ricky trailed off, thinking for a moment for what the lead roles in Frozen were. "Angelica?"

"Oh my God, I'm going to be Angelica Schuyler in Hamilton? I'm really making it in the world."

"I don't even know who that is."

Athena shook her head. "You're so uncultured, it hurts. I've failed as a girlfriend. Failed. On the way back home, we're listening to the entire Hamilton soundtrack, and I don't want to hear any complaints from you."

Ricky tugged on her hand, his smile as bright as the California sun. "Whatever you want. Wanna come learn some more guitar?"

"Sure. With a teacher like you, I'm bound to excel."

"It's back at the Yurt Locker. Oh, and I have to take this snowsuit off. It's hot out here."

"Never will I ever understand why you brought that."

"Oh, come on, I'm being prepared!"

"Prepared? Baby, it's summer in California. There is no reason why you had to bring a snowsuit."

"Is that judgment I hear in your tone, Attie?"

"Absolutely it is."

Through their love and laugh-filled air, neither of them noticed the watchful eyes from the porch of the barn. Gina Porter might've asked them all to start over, but she couldn't help but wonder what life would be like if things were different . . .

But she supposed Ricky and Athena were meant to be together. They balanced each other out well and just worked, and she was trying her hardest to be okay with that. However, all of her trying plus watching them be disgustingly in love was making her feel hurt all over again, and her hurt was slowly turning into anger.

--- ☆ • ♫ • ♪ • ♫ • ☆ ---

AFTER DINNER, AND definitely after giving Ricky a goodnight kiss (this part was very important), Athena found herself back in the Honeycomb with the other girls. She had showered and gotten into her pajamas, and was currently in the midst of decorating the bulletin board by her bed. Athena had brought some pictures with her to camp to decorate her bunk with, and was putting them up with some thumb-tacks that she had found in the cabin.

The first picture was of her and Artemis. They were sitting in their house by a wall before going out to dinner. Athena was wearing a white dress and an oversized ripped jean jacket. Artemis was wearing a black tank top, black jeans, and a black jacket with white designs on it. They were both smiling brightly and Artemis had her arm around Athena's shoulders. It had been taken by their mom.

There was a picture of the cast of High School Musical on opening night. In a line stood Miss Jenn, Natalie Bagley, Seb, Carlos, Kourtney, EJ, Violetta, Athena, Ricky, Nini, Gina, Big Red, and Ashlyn. They were all wearing their curtain call outfits, smiling wide. It had been taken by Kaden, one of the dancers at East High.

Another one was of her and Violetta. They were inside Athena's kitchen, both of them wearing pajamas, considering it was one of the very early hours of the morning. Athena had the fridge opened and was looking at the camera. Violetta was sitting on top of Athena's fridge, holding a blue solo cup of soda in her hand. It had been taken by EJ at one of the cast sleepovers that they sometimes had.

There was another cast picture, this one of the cast of Beauty and the Beast on opening night. They were all in their costumes — Big Red as LeFou, Ricky as the Beast, Athena as Belle, Carlos as Lumière, Kourtney as Mrs. Potts, EJ as Gaston, Violetta as a Silly Girl, Seb as Chip, Nini as a fork, Gina as Babette, and Ashlyn as the Wardrobe. All of them were doing a different pose, acting as their characters. It had been taken by Miss Jenn.

And, of course, there was a picture of her and Ricky. They were in Athena's living room, Ricky leaning against the wall and Athena standing on front of him. Her hands were resting on either side of his face while his were resting on the small of her back. They were both staring at each other in love and adoration. It had been taken by Artemis.

There was a solo picture of Ricky as well. They had gone out on a lunch date together to a spot in Salt Lake. He had his forearms resting on the table with his hands laced together, and he was wearing a tan sweater that made him look adorable. The sun had shone just right on Ricky through the window, so Athena told him to smile. He did, and the result made Athena's stomach erupt in butterflies every time she looked at it.

Finally, the last picture was of Athena herself. It was her favorite picture of her. Her hair was curled, and it was back before she got her haircut and dyed her hair, so it was still pretty long and all brown. She was wearing a pink tie-dye tank top and had a bag across her shoulder. Athena was sitting in front of a couple plants. She was in the middle of laughing from something that Ricky had said. It was taken by Ricky without her knowledge. Just a pure, candid picture of her laughing, and Ricky had thought to take it out of the blue. Maybe that had something to do with it being her favorite.

"Hey, did Maddox ever come back after dinner?" Gina asked, making Athena look away from her finished bulletin board.

Athena looked at Maddox's empty bunk. Now that she thought about it, she hadn't seen Maddox at all since dinner.

"She probably has some super top-secret important camp tradition business to attend to," Kourtney replied, playing with a butterfly pop-it toy.

"Is it bad to say she's kind of a lot?" Ashlyn asked. "And that's coming from me, someone who is also a lot."

"She's chill," Violetta insisted.

Athena nodded in agreement. "I just think she wants all of us to be friends and bond . . . which, we already are. Also, if she wants to do her cool rituals, I am glad to play along."

"Mmm-hmm," Kourtney and Ashlyn hummed, looking at each other.

"Guys, she's harmless," Gina stated from her place on the swing in the cabin that was wrapped with colorful lights.

Athena laid back on her bed, staring at the ceiling as her pink hair spread across her pillow. It had been a really good day.

═ • ° • ✧ • ° • ═

so um I know it's not a sunday but my own urges by how slow this book is going and by the yolo encouragement from my bestie lucy here's another chapter <3

if you haven't guessed it already ricky will not be interested in gina whatsoever because he will be giving athena his full undivided attention <3 meanwhile miss gina will NOT be a home wrecker but she'll just be a lil angry

I don't fucking care if I have to rewrite the whole damn season I already do that anyways

ALSO these are the pictures that athena was hanging up