"Hi. Thank you all for coming to rehearsal in the morning." Miss Jenn smiles at the group in the bomb shelter with her. "I know it's a crazy day with the career fair and all, but given all your behavior last week, I believe we are lucky to be rehearsing at all. For future reference, singing and dancing, good. Breaking and entering, bad."

Oliver was going to speak up to tell her they didn't break anything but Seb beat him to it. "Miss Jenn, we didn't break anything."

Miss Jenn sends the blonde-haired boy an annoyed look. "Would you like me to be the first?"

"I'm good." Seb immediately replied.

"Okay." Carlos raises his hand and everyone looks at him as he speaks. "I'm just going to say it. Zack Roy stole our Beast mask." He lowers his hand, looking at Miss Jenn. "Why are you not freaking out?"

"Because winners don't freak out, Carlos." Miss Jenn answers. "They rise. When they go low, we sing high." 

Oliver jumped, startled when she suddenly sings very high. Realizing he accidentally bumped into Gina, who stood beside him, he grew embarrassed and sent her an apologetic smile when they lock eyes. Gina shook her head, sending him a smile to reassure him he didn't have to apologize.

"That's one way to start the morning." Oliver mumbled.

Gina chuckles lightly and nods in agreement. "Oh, for sure."

"Okay." Miss Jenn smiles. "Let's rehearse!" She glances at EJ, who stood on the left side beside Oliver. "EJ, remember where you are emotionally. Belle has just rebuked your marriage proposal and LeFou is rallying the guys to boost you back up. Let's hit it."

Gina turns to EJ as Big Red and the dancers got to their places and everyone else took a seat on the risers. "Don't forget to start on your left foot at the top of the chorus."

"Thank you." EJ smiles a bit. "Anything else?"

"Try not to fall and break anything." Oliver chimes in. "Remember you don't have an understudy."

EJ chuckles. "That helps calms down my nerves." He sarcastically commented. 

Oliver chuckles and pats his right shoulder. "Don't worry, you're gonna do great."

"He's right." Gina nods, sending EJ a smile. "You're gonna hit this one out of the park."

"Thanks." EJ smiled.

Oliver fist bumps EJ before he follows Gina over to the risers. "Go get 'em, Biggie!" Ashlyn shouted, looking at Big Red with a big smile.

"Thanks!" Big Red smiles at her. "I'm all good."

Oliver sits on the riser beside Gina and slightly in front of where Ricky sat behind them. "I wasn't saying you weren't." Ashlyn continues. "Just know that I am loyally rooting for you, okay?"

"Qui, qui." Big Red responded.

Oliver raised his eyebrows, glancing between the couple. He noticed that their relationship has been kind of rocky since Antoine asked Ashlyn out and basically insulted Big Red.

"Big Red," Miss Jenn said to the red-haired boy sitting on the chest beside the chair EJ sat on. "Whenever you're ready." She glanced at Seb, who stood near the piano that had a laptop sat on it. He was waiting to press play on the music and when Miss Jenn nodded at him he pressed play and then went to join everyone on the risers.

To say that Big Red's and EJ's performance was amazing was the understatement of the year. Oliver was blown away by not only EJ's talent, but Big Red's talent as well. He had gotten so much better over the past weeks of being more confident on stage. At the 'Beauty and the Beast' auditions Oliver remembered he was so scared he hid behind the music sheet at one point in the group part of the auditions. Now he was singing and dancing in front of everyone. Oliver was proud of how far he has come. 

And EJ is seriously talented. In this play he had more of a major character where he could show off his singing talents and acting talents. The dancers were amazing as they always are, Oliver was always blown away by their talents. He wished he could dance like they can.

The room erupted into cheers and applause at the end of the performance. "Dancers, glorious." Miss Jenn comments, standing up from the row of the risers she sat on. "Big Red, hilarious. And, EJ," EJ looks at her with a nervous expression when she was quiet for a few seconds. He let out a sigh of relief at what she says next. "Victorious."

Everyone cheers again for the boys. Carlos stands up, smiling at EJ. "Nice emotional connection to the material."

Gina stands up, opening her notebook to show it was blank. She smiles. "I've got no notes."

It was at this moment did Oliver realize Mr. Mazzara had walked into the bomb shelter. "And as much as I hate to break that connection, I'm afraid I'm a bearer of some hard news. We just got a call from the disciplinary board of an organization I'm not sure really exists." He reveals that he was hiding a note card behind his back and read it out loud. "'Effective immediately, this production will shut down rehearsal for one week as punishment for trespassing by the order of the...Monkeys'."

"It's pronounced Menkies." Miss Jenn told him.

"For the record," Mr. Mazzara continues. "Your competition has been punished as well. North High is benched for the week."

"Okay." Ashlyn speaks up. "That feels generous."

"Miss Jenn, what are we gonna do?" Carlos questions, looking at the girl in question. "We can't lose a whole week when we haven't even started blocking the second act yet."

"We're..." Miss Jenn clears her throat. "We are going to keep our heads down and our chins up."

"I don't..." Oliver glances at the blonde-haired boy beside him, chuckling when he sees Seb is trying to do what Miss Jenn said. "I don't think that's physically possible."

"It's an expression," Miss Jenn sent him an annoyed look. "Sebastian." 

Seb's face fell and he nods. Oliver pats his shoulder comfortingly and sent him a sympathetic smile when Seb glanced at him and Seb sent him a small smile in return.

****

Recently Oliver was getting more followers on his YouTube channel. It made him happy to know that people around the world enjoyed his music. That's all he wanted. To share his music with the world and hoped that they would enjoy it. 

Sure, there were some people who commented rude things, but Oliver just ignored them the best he could. He guessed that's one of the costs of posting your music online. There's always gonna be someone who wants to bring you down.

Oliver even had fans now. He still can't believe it that he's that famous. He always dreamt of becoming a famous musician, but the fact that he was on the road to that point is crazy to him.

"So do you guys have any guesses on the guest speaker?" EJ questioned, glancing at his friends that were in sitting near him in the classroom. 

Oliver glanced at him from his place beside him in the front row, shaking his head in response. He and the rest of the students in the classroom were waiting anxiously to see who the guest speaker would be. Every year for the career fair the school would have some guest speakers to speak about the importance behind careers.

"Unless it's Alen Menken himself," Carlos replies. "Coming to apologize for what just happened to us, I'm not here."

"Ooh, I would die if it was, like, Greta Gerwig." Seb grinned.

Oliver shared an amused glance with EJ and Gina before they each look back at the blonde-haired boy. "You know you're not picking the person, right?" Carlos asked Seb. Seb nodded in response and smiled.

"Well, whoever it is, I'm sure they'll remind us to 'seize the day and then let it go'." EJ sighs, shaking his head. "Every year, same speech."

"Wait." Gina furrows her eyebrows. "What does that even mean?"

"Exactly." Oliver chimes in. "It, like, doesn't even make any sense. You would think they would give us a different speech than that every year." He points at Gina. "And I was really hoping you knew the answer to that."

Gina looks at him, shaking her head as she laughs. "Yeah, no. I don't know." Her eyes widens and she covers her mouth when she snorts. Oliver looks at her with amusement and laughs a bit. "Don't worry, I don't think anyone even heard that."

"I did." EJ cut in and he chuckles, sending Gina a reassuring smile. "But don't worry, I'll keep it a secret."

Gina lowers her hand, sheepishly smiling. "Thanks."

-ˏˋThe camera panned over to Oliver who stood in the empty classroom. "I still can't help but think maybe she and EJ might like each other because they've been getting closer lately." Oliver admits, shaking his head. "But that's probably nothing." A smile tugs on his lips as he continues. "And yes, Gina and I are getting a lot closer since we were pretending to be together back at North High." He shakes his head, running a hand through his brunette-colored hair. "That was pretend though. We're just friends...." The smile on his lips grew and his cheeks tinted pink. "For now, at least." When the camera guy asked him if he had a plan to ask Gina out he opened his mouth to reply, but he glanced at the door and closed his mouth when he heard footsteps. Gina's eyes widened upon seeing he was still talking to the camera and a shocked expression formed on her face before she quickly left. Oliver chuckled, looking back at the camera with a smile.ˎˊ-

"Oh. Class, class." Mrs. Day, the teacher, get's everyone's attention and the room quiets down as a man enters. "I am thrilled to present," Oliver turns to the front of the class, his eyes widening upon recognizing who the man is. "A parent of one of our own students and a member of East High's school board, Mr. Flynn Dalwood with tips on success in life."

"Well played, Dalwood." Gina whispered to Oliver with a teasing smile on her lips. He glanced at her with furrowed eyebrows, not really knowing what to say to her so he just formed his lips into a tight lined and nodded before he looked back at the front.

Claps fill the air for Oliver's dad. "Surprise." Oliver's dad said, mostly speaking to Oliver, and smiled. 

Oliver couldn't believe that his dad was standing in front of him. He was told that his dad would be busy with piloting flights for the next few months. Was this his dad's way of surprising him? Signing up to talk on career fair day in front of Oliver's class and embarrass him? That sure is one way to surprise him and he wished his dad waited to surprise him with his presence until after school.

Flynn, Oliver's dad, points at Mrs. Day. "Thank you, Mrs. Day."

Mrs. Day nods, responding with 'anytime' as she went to sit on the edge of her desk. "Students. It's an honor to be here today. I believe that success is all about legacies. The ones that we inherit, including the ones that we build." Flynn smiles at his son, gesturing to him. "I'm lucky to have a son who carries the Dalwood's name with pride."

When he felt all eyes on him Oliver slumps down in his seat and he stared at his desk to avoid eye contact, wishing that the floor would open and swallow him. "I wasn't planning on doing this for awhile, but I might as well do it now." Flynn gestures for his son to come over to him with a small smile on his lips. "Come on up here, Ollie."

Oliver glances up from his desk so fast he thought he might've got whiplash. He looked at his dad with wide eyes, glancing around the classroom as everyone started clapping. For him. Well, they were basically encouraging him to get up there now and he couldn't sit there forever. With a heavy sigh he got up from his seat and went to stand beside his dad. Oliver put his hands in his pockets, trying to ignore the fact that everyone was staring at him. Sure, he could post a video of him singing online where millions would see and be in a play where a lot of people would watch him, but being in front of a class was different. He hated it. 

"My father gave this to me when I got into the Pilot Academy." Flynn explained, getting out a hoodie from his messenger bag. Showing the hoodie to everyone to reveal it was a Pilot Academy hoodie and he turns to his son with a proud smile. Oliver stared at it with wide eyes. He was at a loss for words when he realized what his dad was doing. His mind was full of questions and his heart was pounding so loudly he wondered if anyone else could hear it.

"Now it's yours."

Realizing that his dad had reached the hoodie out to him for Oliver to grab, he finally got out of his state of shock and got the hoodie from him. "Wait, what?" Were the only words that he managed to say, staring at the hoodie with furrowed eyebrows. 

What did this mean? Was this his dad's way of saying that he wanted him to follow in his footsteps and become a pilot? Oliver came from a long line of pilots and they each went to the same Pilot Academy. It was kind of a Dalwood family legacy. So after Noah broke the chain and did his own thing, it was kind of expected for Oliver to continue on with the legacy of being a pilot. 

His dad had mentioned it to Oliver a few too many times that he lost count. Oliver never game him a solid answer on if he was ever going to apply to a Pilot Academy after high school. He couldn't bring himself to say he doesn't want to be a pilot. He doesn't want to let his dad down. But he doesn't want his career to be something he doesn't want to do and won't enjoy.

"Congratulations, Oliver." Mrs. Day smiled and started clapping with everyone else joining her.

Oliver stares at the hoodie in his hands with furrowed eyebrows, side glancing at his dad when he wrapped his arm around his shoulders. "I want to talk to you about this after school." Flynn whispers to him. "I really think that you're gonna be a perfect pilot."

All Oliver could do was nod in response and was quick to go sit back down.

"Now, I'm sure you all are familiar with the phrase, 'seize the day'," Flynn continues, looking at the class with a smile. "Am I correct?"

"Way to go, Ollie." Gina whispered to Oliver, looking at him with a smile.

Oliver glances at her with a small smile, his smile falling as he looked back at the hoodie that was now his. He was not looking forward to that talk with his dad after school.

****

So it turns out his dad had called the ones in charge at the Pilot Academy he had went to become a pilot to find out there's a spot available for Oliver to get in. Oliver was mad.

He was mad about the fact that his dad just came back home without anyone telling him about it. Apparently everyone else in his family knew he was coming home but him. Just one of the perks of being the middle sibling. You get forgotten. His mom and siblings told him they didn't let him know that dad was coming home early to surprise him. His mom tried keeping his dad's arrival a surprise from Dahlia and Noah as well but the two found out on their own.

When his dad told him about the opening at the Pilot Academy he had went to and suggested for him to think about dropping out of East High and applying to the Pilot Academy, Oliver ran. He was in a fight or flight mode at that moment and he chose to run. He knew if he stayed he would end up arguing with his dad and he didn't really want to argue. It just wasn't fair. Why did Oliver have to be the one to be the next pilot in the family? He's only a junior. He thought he wouldn't have to think about what he really wants to do as a career until he's a senior.

And why can't his dad just understand the fact that he doesn't like pilot stuff as much as he does? It's probably because his dad isn't home much to understand that and when he is home it's not for that long. The one place Oliver thought of going to when his dad told him that was Ashlyn's house. Only because he knew that's where Gina lives now. He just needed someone to talk to that wasn't his family and Gina always made him feel better.

After ringing the doorbell to Ashlyn's house, he only had to wait a few seconds before the door opened. Gina looks at him with a bit of surprise but she still smiles at him, happy to see him. "Hi, Oliver, what's up?" She had wanted to talk to him earlier since she noticed his weird behavior when his dad was at school. She didn't know how his relationship with his dad was, she thought it was fine, but Oliver didn't act like it was today.

"Um, something happened with me and my dad today and so I just left," Oliver rubs the back of his neck, hoping that he wasn't bothering her. "I didn't want to be at home for awhile and I didn't really know where else to go. You were the first person I thought of to go to."

Gina glances down, feeling her face heat up and felt butterflies in her stomach at the fact that out of all of Oliver's friends he went to her. The smile on her lips widened. 

"I'm-I'm not bothering you, am I?" When Oliver asks that, she looks back at him and quickly shakes her head. "No, you're not. You're fine." She opens the door more, stepping to the side to let him in. "Um, come on in."

Oliver sent her a small smile, taking the hoodie he got from his dad off his right shoulder since he had it laid over his shoulder. He followed her into the living room after she closed the door. Noticing that he had a sad expression on his face when he glanced at his hoodie, Gina decided on getting him to do something that will take his mind off of whatever is making him sad. She hated it when he was sad.

"You wanna help me with this?" Oliver glances at her, furrowing his eyebrows in question and Gina gestures to the ball of yarn she was using to knit something, smiling softly at him. "It's keep getting tangled."

"Oh, um, sure." Oliver responded, taking a seat on the couch beside her and set his hoodie on his lap. He grabbed the ball of yellow color yarn as she continues to make whatever she's making. 

"So, what exactly happened with you and that Pilot Academy?" Gina asks him. "I had no idea that you wanted to be a pilot."

"I don't." Oliver admits, rolling out the ball of yarn whenever Gina would need more to use. He rolls his eyes and scoffs. "My dad just wants me to be a pilot so I can be just like him. Not caring what I want to do."

"I'm sure that's not true." Gina shakes her head. "Have you told him that you don't want to be a pilot?"

Oliver exhales. "No, I haven't."

"Well, then that's the first thing you need to do." Gina tells him. "He's your dad, I'm sure he'll understand."

"He might." Oliver shrugs. "My older brother isn't a pilot and he was supportive with his decision. But it's kind of expectant that I become the next pilot of the family. After Noah decided he didn't want to be a pilot, everyone in my family turned to me to be the next one to carry on with the pilot legacy." He sighs. "I mean, my dad is one of the best pilots there is and so is my grandpa and his dad. The list just goes on. It's just a lot of pressure. They all think I will apply into the academy at 17 just like my dad did. My family thinks I'm my dad's 'mini me'." Oliver stares at the ball of yarn in his hands with a sad expression. "I mean, sometimes that's a good thing. But I don't wanna be just like him." He glances at Gina, seeing she was looking at him with a sympathetic smile. "I just feel like my whole life is planned out for me." He sends her a small smile, shaking his head as he set the ball of yarn on the table. "Does that happen to you?"

Gina shakes her head. "Not really. I'm always one natural disaster away from landing in a new place."

"Really?" Oliver raises his eyebrows, tilting his head to the side. "So what's that like?"

"Sometimes stressful," Gina replies. A small smile tugs on her lips. "Sometimes freeing." She shrugs. "I don't really worry about the future 'cause I can't control it."

"I wish my family realized that." Oliver sighs. "That they can't control my future. And besides, you always seem to know what you want." He points at her and then at himself. "I on the other hand am still trying to figure out what I want to do with my future."

"I don't think that's what they're trying to do." Gina speaks, shaking her head. "They're just trying to help you." She tilts her head to the side, sending him a smile. "So, what is that you want?"

Oliver is quiet, staring into space. He wasn't used to getting asked that. He barely ever got asked that since as the middle kid he just often went along with the flow. He often got neglected or his parents were too busy for him. It really warmed his heart to know that Gina cared enough to ask him that. He wasn't for sure if she actually wanted to know, but the way she was looking at him intently made him think she did. 

"I don't know." And it was the truth. Oliver didn't really know what he wanted to do with his future. He knows he wants to do something involved with music. But he also doesn't want to disappoint his family on not becoming a pilot.

"Okay." Gina sets her knitting supplies on the table. She moves so she's sitting in a crisscrossed position beside Oliver, looking at him with a smile. "Close your eyes."

Oliver looks at her weirdly. Gina chuckles and nudges his knee with her hand. "Just do it."

"Okay." Oliver chuckled and closed his eyes.

"So, Oliver, when you think about your life, what do you see?"

Oliver thinks for a moment before he sighs. "I see a shy wannabe musician who was invisible literally to everyone beside his two best friends until he joined the drama club." A frown tugged on Gina's lips, looking at him with sadness and disbelief. She couldn't believe this was actually how Oliver thought of himself.

"And a guy who gets forgotten by his own family." His shoulders drop in defeat, shaking his head as he opens his eyes. "If this game was to make me feel bad about myself, then it's working. This is stupid." He sighed heavily and glanced at his lap, playing with the sleeve of his hoodie that's in his lap. He had avoided eye contact with Gina since he felt tears beginning to build up and he definitely didn't want to cry in front of her.

"My turn." Oliver looks up from his lap to look at her with surprise. He opens his mouth to protest, but he closed it when he saw she already closed her eyes and continues to speak. "When I think of you, I see a guy who was always willing to give me a ride home from rehearsals so I wouldn't have to walk." A smile tugs on Oliver's lips as Gina speaks. "And a guy who bought me a plane ticket back to East High so I could be apart of the show. I see a guy who has no idea how talented he really is." Gina continues, her cheeks tinted pink with a smile on her lips. Oliver smiles shyly at that comment, glancing at his lap as he feels his face heat up. "And he's someone who is always there for his friends and is one of the best people I have ever known."

Oliver looks at her with a wide smile, butterflies swarming in his stomach. "That's-That's what you think of me?"

Gina nods, her smile growing. "Of course. Oliver, you are such a good guy. I just wished you saw yourself the way that I-The rest of us sees you." She caught herself from almost exposing how she really feels about him. She wants to tell him, but she just wasn't for sure if he felt the same way. She didn't want to lose him because of how she felt about him.

"Okay, it's my turn." Oliver spoke. 

Gina chuckles lightly and shakes her head. "No, you don't have to do that."

"You're right, I don't. But I am anyway." Oliver sent her a smile. "I see one of the bravest girl I know." Gina looks at him with a smile, her eyes lighting up and Oliver thought she looked really beautiful in this moment. "A girl who always blows me away with all of her talents and-"

Oliver stopped himself in the middle of his sentence when he hears the door open and a close. Upon hearing footsteps coming towards the living room he scooted away from Gina a bit, turning to face the person who walked in.

"Hi, roomie." Gina greeted. 

"Hey." Ashlyn smiles at her. She glances at Oliver with a small smile. "Hey, Ollie."

"Hi, Ash." Oliver returned the smile.

"Everything okay here?" Ashlyn asked, gesturing to Oliver and Gina.

"Yeah," Gina nods. Oliver glances at her, locking eyes with her. He smiles at her and she smiles back at him. "Everything's perfect."

"Okay." Ashlyn smiles knowingly as she watched the two. "I'm gonna be upstairs if anyone need me."

"Okay," Oliver says after Ashlyn left. He scoots closer so he was sitting beside Gina like he was earlier before Ashlyn arrived. "As I was saying."

"You don't have to continue." Gina shook her head, not wanting him to feel obligated to do so even though she was curious as to what else he was going to say.

"Trust me, I want to." Oliver sends her a reassuring smile. He bites his lower lip nervously. "And if I don't say it now I know that I might not ever say it." He takes a deep breath. "I like you. Like a lot." He looks at her with a nervous smile. "And I'm really hoping that you like me back 'cause otherwise I just made a fool of myself."

Gina chuckles lightly, looking at him with a bright smile. "I like you too." She nods and a grin replaces the smile on her lips. "Like a lot." 

The two shared a laugh and they both smiled at each other. Oliver somehow got the courage to lean forward and kiss her cheek even though his heartbeat was beating rapidly and he was blushing the whole time. He really wanted to kiss her, but he wasn't for sure if she was okay with that yet so he decided on taking things slow. Gina smiled shyly at the action and looked down, knowing for sure that her face was a bright red.

****

Oliver ended up staying over at Ashlyn's a little bit longer, he and Gina deciding on having a 'High School Musical' marathon. Gina fell asleep halfway through the second movie though. Oliver glanced at the sleeping girl beside him with a gentle smile. He reached over to grab his hoodie he got from his dad and stood up, placing the hoodie over Gina's shoulders, using it like a blanket. He bent down, placing a kiss to her forehead and his heart fluttered when she smiled in her sleep.

He stood back up and got the remote off the coffee table to turn the tv off. The brunette-haired boy pressed the off button on the remote and set it down on the table. Walking around the couch to the small table behind it, he turned off the lamp that was on so the living room was now dark.  When Oliver got home he went to his dad's office where he knew his dad would be. He could feel his eyes start to get teary as he walks to his dad's office. He didn't know how this conversation could turn out to be, but he only hoped that his dad and the rest of his family isn't disappointed in him. 

"Um, dad,"  His dad looks up from the paper he was looking at, looking at his youngest son with a smile. Oliver takes a shaky breath, nervous about the conversation that was about to happen. "I don't want to be a pilot." His dad looked at him with surprise. Those words were the last thing he thought were ever going to come out of his mouth.

A/N yes i changed up this episode a bit to focus on oliver's relationship with his dad & his relationship with gina :) i made the crackship i used in this chapter so i apologize if it's kinda bad. i still like it though cause i love olina ! & yay oliver & gina finally confessed their feelings !!