The following morning, I wanted to hide in a hole and pretend like I didn't exist. However, I was forced to drag myself through the school doors into the auditorium. The last thing I wanted to do was attend drama, but I had no choice. Instead of skipping, I found a seat in the auditorium, put my hood up, and crouched as low as I possibly could. I could feel a headache creeping on, and the sound of the bell ringing throughout the auditorium indicating the start of the first period made me nauseated.

"Good morning, drama queens!" Jacob greeted us way too excitedly as he hopped up on stage so we all could have a better view of his attractive yet asshole-ish face. I wanted to punch him in that same goddamned face, but I didn't have the energy as I slumped further into the auditorium seat hoping nobody noticed me. "I take it you all read the script last night, so we'll begin with the auditions. I want to thank everyone who texted me back informing me of the role you were going to audition for. However, someone didn't text me back," he scolded as his eyes met mine. I immediately felt my blood run cold as I slumped even further into my seat. 

There was no way he was going to do what I—

"Aubrey, Lee! Get up on stage," he smiled at me. I wanted to shoot him between the eyes as I glared at him while pulling myself out of my seat and stomping up the side stairs that led to the stage. "Since you were the only one who didn't text me back, I want you to tell all of us who you're auditioning for."

I wanted to be snarky and inform the class I didn't need to text Jacob back since my phone was used for emergencies only, and this stupid play was far from an emergency. Plus, I was pissed the damned thing vibrated all night while I tried to sleep. I wouldn't have been so irate if I knew how to put it on silent, but I hadn't used it enough to actually figure it out.

"I didn't read the script," I admitted with a shrug. "So, I don't know who I'm auditioning for."

"You really hate following directions, don't you?" Jacob laughed. His laugh made me hate him even more because it was a genuine laugh as if he truly found me amusing. "Well," he clapped his hands together, "get your script and read Demetrius's lines."

"Demetrius?" I laughed. "Who the hell is Demetrius in The Wizard of Oz?"

"I informed you the play was slightly different. We gender-bendered the characters. Instead of Dorothy, the main character is Demetrius."

"You want me to audition for the main character?" I scoffed.

"No, you want to audition for the main character by the way you're a leading example for the rest of us. You don't want to take orders? Become the star," he challenged me. "Take out your script and read Demetrius's lines."

"I don't have my script. I threw it away," I lied. I was being such an asshole, but I didn't want him to win. I had a nasty fucking headache, and I was getting angrier the longer I stood on stage under the blinding lights that intensified the pain in my cranium. Besides, the Jacob I was warring against right now wasn't the same Jacob I took home. This version of him was ruthless and cruel. Yesterday's version was the Jekyl to this Hyde.

"How marvelous," he sighed. "Do you want to be kicked out of this play? Are you doing everything in your power to destroy this class?"

"No. I'm doing everything in my power to give back to you what you've been given us," I admitted.

A few of our peers gasped, and that was when Mrs. Frita decided to step in.

"Here, Mr. Aubrey, you can borrow my copy of the script," she smiled sweetly to diffuse the tension.

"Thank you," I muttered as I bent over the stage and took the pile of papers she extended to me. I flipped a few pages into the script until I saw where the lines began. There seemed to be a lot of preliminary stuff the cast had to perform on stage before anyone even got a chance to speak. Whatever the hell this new version of The Wizard of Oz was, there was no doubt I would actually have to read the script later to better understand what I was getting myself into. 

Taking a deep breath, I decided to try my best with this audition. I already caused enough scenes for the rest of the year, and I didn't want to embarrass myself by making a fool out of this character. 

"Oh, Uncle Earl!" I drawled in my best Southern accent, "You just can't let her take Toto away! I won't allow it! It's not his fault he acts like a dog when it's in his nature. She's just a mean old witch who forgets to close her garden gate. How is it Toto's fault? I'll keep a better eye on him, I promise. Just please don't let her take him away because of a few ruined vegetables!" I cried. 

I stopped reading and looked up from the script. Although I didn't read whatever rendition Jacob wrote up for us, I had watched the original Wizard of Oz many times in my life. I knew how to act like a male version of Dorothy long before I knew it would someday come in handy.

"Wow," Jacob muttered before he began clapping. Eventually, everyone joined in, and I found myself embarrassed regardless. "That was brilliant! Of course, we'll have to hear you sing, and we still have a few others who want to audition as Demetrius, but wow!" He exclaimed. "I know I've been hard on you, but that was before I knew you were here to actually try your best. Good job," he complimented me as I hurriedly tried to walk off the stage.

"Wait!" He stopped me. "Sing a verse of 'Over the Rainbow.' You did mention that you enjoyed singing."

I stopped on the second step from the top of the stage before turning around and slowly making my way over to stand on the dreaded x. Now that I had everyone's attention, I suddenly felt very small and shy. I could feel the heat pour into my cheeks, and I knew it was noticeable under the bright stage lights. My head also felt ten times worse than it did before the bell rang, and I started to feel a little woozy.

However, I had no choice but to listen to the dictator. So, I took several deep breaths and played with the cuffs of my blue hoodie before softly singing out:

"Someday I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where trouble melts like lemon drops
Way above the chimney top that's where you'll find me
Oh, somewhere over the rainbow blue birds fly
Birds fly over the rainbow
Why, then, oh why can't I?"

My voice was deep and sultry. I had the perfect voice to sing jazz, and I wondered how well I did with such a beloved song. It didn't help that I was nervous causing my voice to slightly tremble, but I was hoping nobody would notice. After all, this wasn't a Broadway audition.

"Marvelous!" Mrs. Frita clapped before she wiped a few stray tears away. Her behavior floored me, and I became even more embarrassed. They acted like I was some kind of celebrity that ended world hunger instead of a kid that just sang a damned song in tune.

It didn't help that they loved both my audition and singing. Their happy applauding led to a more intense pain shooting through my head, and I decided I was going to see the nurse once I was free to leave the auditorium after class.

"While we'll continue the auditions for Demetrius," Jacob spoke up after the applauding died down, "I will tell the rest of you not to get comfortable. Lee's audition was nearly perfect. However, everyone deserves a chance. Next is Bryson, Drake!"

I hurried off the stage and back into my original seat. I wanted to hunker down until I was invisible, but that was impossible now. The theater kids knew I didn't come to mess around, so naturally they all wanted to talk to me after seeing how well I could act and sing.

"That was amazing!" Some girl complimented me as she slid into the seat directly to my right. She had firey red hair and blazing green eyes. She reminded me of a mermaid the sailors would sing about in hopes of gaining a kiss before their death. She was hauntingly beautiful.

"Thank you," I cleared my throat before sitting up in my seat like a normal person. "I wasn't expecting to audition for the lead role."

"You would've been stupid to audition for anything else," she scoffed. "You do realize you have the role in the bag? Nobody is ever going to top that."

"I wouldn't say that," I shrugged. "I'm an amateur. Some of you are practically professionals."

"Don't sell yourself short, dude," someone to my left chided. I glanced over and saw a guy with brown curly hair and brown eyes to match. He smiled widely to display the neon green rubber bands in his braces. "That was a fucking awesome audition."

"Thanks," I muttered uncomfortably. I wanted to ask them what their names were, but by the time I got another word in, it was almost the end of class. Since they talked to me for so long, it would've been awkward after all of that to remind them I had no clue who they were. Instead, I didn't say anything as I slipped out of my seat and escaped the auditorium once the bell rang. Thankfully, nobody caught up to me and I was able to slip into the nurse's office without someone from the drama club following me. 

Since it was the beginning of the school year, the nurse didn't want to send me home. I could tell she was skeptical of my headache until she took my temperature. I didn't have a high fever, but I was warm enough for her to believe I was suffering from a migraine.

"I can send you home," she informed me as she dug in her locked cabinet for some medicine. "But the year just began."

"It's okay," I promised her. "I have a history of headaches. I just need some medicine to get me through the rest of the day. I won't be able to survive these fluorescent lights without some pills."

"I understand," she smiled softly. "I have some Excedrine. I'll write you a note for your teachers in case you decide later on that you can't handle the pain."

"Thank you," I smiled appreciatively as I popped the pills into my mouth and washed them down with the little cup of water she handed me after I ingested the medicine.

I had to wait a few more moments as she wrote the note before I was able to leave and go back to class. As much as I would've loved to go home and lay in bed, I didn't want to get behind so early in the semester. Luckily, after an hour the medicine seemed to kick in and I felt much better. 

Classes went by with ease, and I was pleasantly surprised that I didn't see one single person from the drama club.

That was until lunchtime.

I was sitting with the same friends I always sat with, when I spotted the fiery red hair in the crowd. I watched her get her food and glance around the cafeteria before her eyes landed on me. She smiled, waved, and walked right over to my table.

"Mind if I join you?" She asked, but she didn't give anyone enough time to respond before she plopped down into the seat next to mine. "I hope I'm not bothering you," she said as she opened her chocolate milk. 

"You're fine," I shrugged even though I enjoyed my usual quiet lunch. Despite sitting at a table full of people, they genuinely left me alone. I liked being alone for the most part, so I didn't mind.

"You don't talk much, do you? You're not someone I would picture in the drama club, but you're also not the same person you were up on stage. Up there, you were Demetrius. Right now, you're yourself," she analyzed.

"I'm the same person at all times," I contradicted her.

"You're telling me your British-sounding-ass is the same as that hillbilly-hick-accent-sounding-ass you were on stage?" She laughed. "It's okay to admit you were in character. That's what acting is."

"So, Jacob just constantly acts then?" I asked as I pushed my vegetables around with a fork.

"You don't like him very much, do you?" She observed as she took a bite of her hamburger. "Jacob can be overbearing as a director, but that's one of his specialty characters. Outside of the drama club, he's truly a sweetheart. I know you both started out on the wrong feet, but now that he knows what you're capable of, I promise you he won't give you as much shit as he has."

"I don't want his opinion of me to change just because he realized I'm not taking drama to dick around," I snapped. "He should've believed in me before I got up on stage. After all, we're his actors."

"It's hard to believe in someone who can't stand you," she muttered as she sipped her milk. "You weren't giving him a chance either."

"He was a jerk right off the bat!" I defended. "All because of my High School Musical comment."

"See? Then you admit to starting it. And let's not even talk about the spat between the two of you this morning. Not texting him the role you were auditioning for? Not reading the script? Admitting to throwing the script away?" She laughed dryly. "Your ass was asking for it."

"Starting what?" I scoffed. "So what if I didn't read the fucking script or text him back. And I didn't throw it away, I was just pissed off and wanted to piss him off too. Besides, if he's that serious about drama and can't take a joke, then that's his problem."

"Jacob is super good at his job, and he's also super sweet. Don't make excuses for yourself and blame others because you were an asshole," she snapped as she gathered her food and stood up to leave. "I'll see you tomorrow, Dick," she smiled before taking her food and joining another table across from ours.

"Great," I muttered as I picked up my tray and dumped it into the trash. I now had another enemy because I was unaware the beautiful mermaid was sucking off our director and was sensitive to how others perceived him. 

Gathering up my stuff, I decided to spend the rest of my lunch hour alone in the library reading over Demetrius's damned lines that I knew I'd have to memorize before the year was over.

***
I know I said I would update Monday, but I have so much of this book written and I'm an impatient bitch lololol. So, enjoy <3

Dedicated to my bestie because she's the greatest supporter and bestest human in the universe <33 I love you bunches boo