Press Pause
Prologue
"Um... I have to feed my cat."
Angela stopped abruptly, holding her arm out to stop her best friend. Her arm was not what caused Jordan to stop, though. It was Angela's elbow, which collided with her stomach, that made the girl stop walking to double over in pain.
"What," she huffed, "the fuck was that for?" She glared up at Angela through her hair.
Angela stared at Jordan seriously. "That was the lamest excuse in the history of lame excuses, and you know it."
Jordan sighed, and straightened up. "Why can't we just go to the dress rehearsal like normal people?"
"Jordy, we are not normal people," Angela said. "We have literally gone to every one of the practices for this play. I will not allow us to miss this rehearsal. All of our hard work will have been for nothing."
The taller girl raised her eyebrows. "Our hard work?"
"We paid Jessa Dawson $50 to get us those practice schedules. We are going to this rehearsal."
Jordan shook her head but said, "Fine."
They walked through the line in the cafeteria, each getting only a slice of cheese pizza and a water, then made their way over to the usual table. Angela and Jordan's friends (a group that consisted of four boys named Nolan, Zach, Conner, and Jed), were already sitting at the table, trays piled high with all of the food they could have possibly managed to get. They hardly acknowledged that the girls had sat down until they'd finished the majority of their food.
"We're going paintballing this weekend. You guys wanna come?" Nolan asked, mouth full of cheesy fries.
Jordan made a face at him and sat her water bottle on the table before answering. "We already have plans," she said, and she threw a napkin at the dark-haired boy. Some of the nacho cheese had dribbled out of his mouth and was making a trail down his chin.
Conner spoke next, as Nolan was too busy stuffing his face with more food to speak. "Plans? What kind of plans?"
Angela rolled her eyes. "What do we do every weekend this time of the year, Conner?"
He shook his head and shrugged.
"They have to go to the play this weekend," Jed said, not looking up from the hand-held gaming device that was now held in front of his face. "Remember?"
"Both days?"
"Um... I don't know. Do we normally go to both shows?" Angela asked.
Zach jumped into the conversation at that moment, putting his book down next to his mostly empty tray. "What's the point of going both nights? It's the same thing, isn't it?"
Angela only glared at him.
Angela nudged Jordan in the ribs, and the two girls slumped down in their seats. They really weren't supposed to be there. It was a closed rehearsal. Dress rehearsal, which all of the student body was able, and encouraged, to attend, wasn't for another two days. Jordan would much rather attend only that, plus the actual play, but that wasn't how Angela worked. Sneaking into the closed rehearsal ("closed" meaning here that only parents and family members of the cast were supposed to attend) had become a tradition, regardless of Jordan's opposition. They'd been doing it since middle school.
Jordan giggled as Angela's cheeks turned bright red. Joseph Gray had seen her, and she knew it. "You're so cute when you're in love," she whispered.
"Shut up," Angela hissed. They turned their attention back to the stage.
While everyone else was dancing and laughing, Joseph and Carl Rogers were walking up the stage. They stopped in the center and turned to face one another. Carl's face was a mask of solemnity, while Joseph wore a smile.
"Come, Darcy," he said. "I hate to see you standing around like this. Come dance."
Carl smirked. "You know how I detest it, Bingley. And besides, you're dancing with the only handsome lady in the room."
As their banter wore on, Angela's smile grew. Her eyes never once left Joseph's face, even while he was dancing with Jenna Hoffman. The light only ever left them whenever he was not on stage.
The two girls sat in the last row of seats behind the family of the cast for two hours, watching the progression of the play. The two girls had been going to all of the practices for the production since they started. Angela had wanted to go because she knew Joseph was in it. Jordan went along not only because she loved Pride and Prejudice, but because Angela wanted her to. She would never leave her friend to sneak into the auditorium alone. Angela couldn't afford to get into trouble like that. Not that Jordan could, but she wasn't going to let Angela get caught on her own.
"You should have tried out, Ang," Jordan said as Bingley asked Jane for her hand in marriage. "Maybe you could have been Jane." She waggled her eyebrows at her.
Angela ignored her, eyes never once leaving Joseph or the smile on his face.
Angela stopped abruptly, holding her arm out to stop her best friend. Her arm was not what caused Jordan to stop, though. It was Angela's elbow, which collided with her stomach, that made the girl stop walking to double over in pain.
"What," she huffed, "the fuck was that for?" She glared up at Angela through her hair.
Angela stared at Jordan seriously. "That was the lamest excuse in the history of lame excuses, and you know it."
Jordan sighed, and straightened up. "Why can't we just go to the dress rehearsal like normal people?"
"Jordy, we are not normal people," Angela said. "We have literally gone to every one of the practices for this play. I will not allow us to miss this rehearsal. All of our hard work will have been for nothing."
The taller girl raised her eyebrows. "Our hard work?"
"We paid Jessa Dawson $50 to get us those practice schedules. We are going to this rehearsal."
Jordan shook her head but said, "Fine."
They walked through the line in the cafeteria, each getting only a slice of cheese pizza and a water, then made their way over to the usual table. Angela and Jordan's friends (a group that consisted of four boys named Nolan, Zach, Conner, and Jed), were already sitting at the table, trays piled high with all of the food they could have possibly managed to get. They hardly acknowledged that the girls had sat down until they'd finished the majority of their food.
"We're going paintballing this weekend. You guys wanna come?" Nolan asked, mouth full of cheesy fries.
Jordan made a face at him and sat her water bottle on the table before answering. "We already have plans," she said, and she threw a napkin at the dark-haired boy. Some of the nacho cheese had dribbled out of his mouth and was making a trail down his chin.
Conner spoke next, as Nolan was too busy stuffing his face with more food to speak. "Plans? What kind of plans?"
Angela rolled her eyes. "What do we do every weekend this time of the year, Conner?"
He shook his head and shrugged.
"They have to go to the play this weekend," Jed said, not looking up from the hand-held gaming device that was now held in front of his face. "Remember?"
"Both days?"
"Um... I don't know. Do we normally go to both shows?" Angela asked.
Zach jumped into the conversation at that moment, putting his book down next to his mostly empty tray. "What's the point of going both nights? It's the same thing, isn't it?"
Angela only glared at him.
---
Angela nudged Jordan in the ribs, and the two girls slumped down in their seats. They really weren't supposed to be there. It was a closed rehearsal. Dress rehearsal, which all of the student body was able, and encouraged, to attend, wasn't for another two days. Jordan would much rather attend only that, plus the actual play, but that wasn't how Angela worked. Sneaking into the closed rehearsal ("closed" meaning here that only parents and family members of the cast were supposed to attend) had become a tradition, regardless of Jordan's opposition. They'd been doing it since middle school.
Jordan giggled as Angela's cheeks turned bright red. Joseph Gray had seen her, and she knew it. "You're so cute when you're in love," she whispered.
"Shut up," Angela hissed. They turned their attention back to the stage.
While everyone else was dancing and laughing, Joseph and Carl Rogers were walking up the stage. They stopped in the center and turned to face one another. Carl's face was a mask of solemnity, while Joseph wore a smile.
"Come, Darcy," he said. "I hate to see you standing around like this. Come dance."
Carl smirked. "You know how I detest it, Bingley. And besides, you're dancing with the only handsome lady in the room."
As their banter wore on, Angela's smile grew. Her eyes never once left Joseph's face, even while he was dancing with Jenna Hoffman. The light only ever left them whenever he was not on stage.
The two girls sat in the last row of seats behind the family of the cast for two hours, watching the progression of the play. The two girls had been going to all of the practices for the production since they started. Angela had wanted to go because she knew Joseph was in it. Jordan went along not only because she loved Pride and Prejudice, but because Angela wanted her to. She would never leave her friend to sneak into the auditorium alone. Angela couldn't afford to get into trouble like that. Not that Jordan could, but she wasn't going to let Angela get caught on her own.
"You should have tried out, Ang," Jordan said as Bingley asked Jane for her hand in marriage. "Maybe you could have been Jane." She waggled her eyebrows at her.
Angela ignored her, eyes never once leaving Joseph or the smile on his face.