by Laura DeLuca
“That may be true,” Justyn agreed. “But not many people who had no training get full scholarships because they have such an amazing, beautiful voice. I’m sure you’ll get a part. Just try not to be so nervous.”
Rebecca smiled when he gave her a gentle nudge. “I don’t think I would be able to do any of this without you by my side.”
“Yes, you would,” Justyn assured her. “Don’t sell yourself short. You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for.”
Rebecca wished he was right, but she still shook as she applied the last of her makeup, brushed her curly brown hair, and tossed a few extra notebooks and pens into her book bag. On the way out, she made sure Gizmo’s food and water bowls were filled. She clicked her tongue at him, and he tweeted “Becca” in response. It made her smile and gave her a little more courage as they walked out to the small shed where their landlord allowed them to store their bikes. No one else was using it, so he had given them their own key, which Justyn had harnessed to an oversized clip with a silver skull design. The key ring was attached to the belt loop of his black jeans, and Rebecca couldn’t help but take a moment to appreciate how perfectly he filled them as he pulled their bikes onto the sidewalk.
They had brought a car with them, choosing Rebecca’s little sedan over Justyn’s ancient black Mustang, only because they weren’t sure the Mustang would survive the four-hour drive. But since the weather in the early fall was mild and the campus was only a few blocks away, they opted to enjoy the sunshine as long as possible. There would be plenty of time for driving when the snow started to fall. So with backpacks in place, loaded with fresh notebooks, Justyn and Rebecca made their way to their college classes for the first time.
The campus was nestled deep in the suburbs of New York, but was only a few hours away from Broadway. It was surrounded by at least a dozen acres of woods, and the trees were just starting to turn golden hues of red and orange as summer overlapped into fall. Along the sides of the pathways, Rebecca saw several brown bunnies and even a few deer grazing lazily. Most of them were so used to the foot traffic on the campus they didn’t even run away until people came within petting distance. Rebecca enjoyed every minute of the ride and was glad Justyn had suggested it. The wind whipping through her hair made her feel more invigorated, and the exercise burned off some of her nervous energy. Plus, it was impossible not to enjoy the lovely scenery.
Less than twenty minutes later, they arrived in front of the regal structure that housed the majority of the lecture halls. Made from mortared stone that looked like castle blocks and standing three stories high, the building had a foreboding presence. There were also several other smaller academic buildings on the campus as well as dorms, a cafeteria, a huge library, and two gigantic theaters that rivaled even Broadway’s massive stage. However, the building they stood in front of was the largest, oldest, and most threatening of them all. When she had first come to visit the campus the previous spring, Rebecca had found the old-world charm of the eighteenth century construction appealing. Now those looming cathedral steeples seemed only menacing. The decorative gargoyle statues appeared to alternately snarl and laugh at her jitters. Rebecca had to swallow back the lump in her throat. She gripped the handles of her bike so hard her knuckles turned white. Justyn saw the panicked look on her face and rolled his eyes.
“Try to remember to breathe, Becca,” he teased. “It’s only college.”
She knew he was right. There was nothing to be afraid of. There were tons of other kids loitering outside the building, laughing and hugging friends they hadn’t seen all summer. None of them seemed nearly as nervous as Rebecca felt. Still, it was easy to pick out the freshmen in the crowd. They were the ones standing alone because they hadn’t had time to make any friends yet. At least she and Justyn had each other. She wondered how Carmen and Tom were making out when they were both completely alone in strange lands. It made her realize again just how lucky she was.
“I know.” She took a deep breath. “I can do this.”
Rebecca pulled her bike over to the rack and tried to puff out her chest in a show of confidence. Justyn watched her with a cocky smile and balanced on his own bike while she got ready. He didn’t have class for another hour, but had come along just to see her off. He planned on riding around the campus for a while, exploring and checking out the scenery. Rebecca wished she still had an hour to procrastinate, but she only had a few minutes before her class would begin. The last thing she wanted was to be late on her first day, so she scampered to get the lock fastened and hoisted her bag on her shoulder.
“Okay then.” She took another deep breath. “I guess I’ll see you at the theater around three?”
Justyn nodded. “You bet. I’ve got my mask all ready. It’ll be just like old times.”
Justyn leaned down. She only expected a peck on the cheek. He took her completely by surprise when he swooped her into his arms and pressed his lips against hers. Only the handle bars of the bike kept them from merging completely into one as his tongue teased its way into her mouth. All the while his fingers ran along the small of her back, giving her goose bumps and hot flashes at once. Justyn was never one to be concerned about public displays of affection, and when he touched her that way and sent that surge of fire coursing through her veins, Rebecca didn’t care who watched either. When they finally parted, she felt breathless and a little giddy.
“Until this evening then, my angel of music,” Justyn whispered.
“It’s actually going to be the afternoon,” she teased once she caught her breath. “Not the evening.”
He shook his head, but his smile was playful. “Yes, I realize that, Becca, but evening just sounds better. Jeez, you sure know how to ruin a moment.”
“Maybe I was just hoping for an encore.”
“Well, you really will have to wait for the evening for that. You’re going to be late if I keep distracting you.” He put his feet on the pedals and pushed off on his bike. “See you in a little bit,” he shouted over his shoulder as he rode out of sight.
“Love you.”
She called out and waved, but he had already disappeared into the swiftly growing sea of students. She knew she was really on her own now. She sucked up her fear, lifted her head high, and walked into the school. As Justyn had predicted, it wasn’t nearly as bad as she had imagined it would be. She took one wrong turn, but still managed to find her way to her English literature class on time. In fact, she was one of the first to arrive and had her pick of the seats in the stadium-sized classroom. Aside from the rooms being so large and the giant movie-size screens that the teachers used as lecture aids, it wasn’t much different than high school. After a few minutes, Rebecca actually started to relax.
The professor had no pity on the new arrivals and assigned them a five-page essay on the hidden meanings in classic literature that was due, typed and complete with footnotes, in two days when class reassembled. On the bright side, they were able to pick any story from the nineteenth century. Rebecca already decided to make use of her Phantom obsession and write about the lessons learned from Gaston Leroux’s classic tale.
When the two-hour class was finally over, she reported for her first day of work study in the campus post office. It didn’t pay much, but helped to cover books and things that weren’t included in her scholarship. Then it was off to trigonometry, and by the time that class drew to a close, Rebecca’s brain was fried. She couldn’t believe she still had tryouts and her acting class on the opposite side of the campus before she could call it a night. She had no idea how she would make it through the whole day. She already needed a nap. Instead, she had to head across campus to the theater to meet Justyn for auditions.
Rebecca glanced at her watch and realized she only had about twenty minutes to get to the tryouts. She struggled with a heavy bag filled to the brim with new textbooks and fumbled with the lock on her bike. She was just about to take off when she noticed a piece of paper stuck in the spokes. Mumbling under her breath abo
ut littering, she pulled the paper out. She intended to crumble it and toss it in the nearest trashcan when the large bold letters caught her eye.
WARNING: SERIAL RAPIST
It was the kind of thing that was usually hanging in police stations or on the occasional telephone poll. Underneath the announcement was a bad sketch of a bleary eyed man in a ski mask. The vague description fit at least ninety percent of the guys on the campus. Underneath the warning was an advisory that women on campus shouldn’t travel alone at night. The paper was slightly worn from the elements. On closer inspection, Rebecca noted it was dated from the previous semester. She told herself that meant the man had either been caught or had long since moved on to new territory. Yet, something about it still made her shiver. It was like an eerie sense of premonition—the kind of feeling Darlene always had before something bad happened, the same kind of feeling Rebecca had had the night of her debut performance.
Rebecca shook her head to try to shake the bad memories away. This was a day for new beginnings, not dwelling on the past. She was just being silly, letting herself get freaked out over nothing. Yet, for reasons she couldn’t explain, instead of throwing the piece of paper away as she intended, she stuck the poster in her book bag before she rode off to her next class.
Chapter Three
There was a completely different atmosphere amongst the college drama club than there had been in high school. Everyone looked serious and intent, most pouring over scripts or studying sheet music while they waited in their seats. A few were even warming up their vocal chords with scales. No one threw spitballs at the staff, though there was one group of girls giggling in the corner.
Rebecca spotted Justyn right away when she walked into the theater. He sat in the third row from the front, flipping through a script. He had his legs spread out across the chair in front of him, and he was so intent on whatever he was reading he didn’t even notice her. She smiled and took a moment to just watch him. That intense artistic passion was just one of the reasons why she loved him so much. Her friends and family couldn’t understand her obsession with the brooding Goth, but there was something about his tortured artist demeanor that had appealed to her from the start.
The year before, when Justyn first arrived at her school, the air had been thick with giggles and bulging eyes whenever he walked in the room. Luckily, it didn’t seem like he was going to have any problems fitting in at the university. People barely spared him and his black ensemble a second glance. If anything, he fit in better among the horde of eccentric hopefuls than she did. More than one of them shared Justyn’s exotic taste in attire, including one strikingly beautiful Gothic girl whose lace-covered legs dangled from the stage. Her pitch-black hair was dyed bright red on the tips and pulled back into two puffy pigtails that certainly didn’t make her appear childish. Her black tulle skirt and bustier gave her the air of a true old-world waif.
Justyn was too immersed in his reading to notice her, but Rebecca noted right away the beautiful girl was giving her boyfriend the once-over. She didn’t like it, but at least the girl had the courtesy to look away when Rebecca greeted him with a kiss. The Gothic beauty turned back to the two preppy guys on either side of her, who were obviously fawning over every word she said.
“So you survived!” Justyn teased as she slid into the seat beside him. He put down the script to greet her, but not before she saw the words Demon Barber on the cover. “I was beginning to wonder if you were coming. You just barely made it here on time. I thought maybe you had chickened-out on me.”
“Never! I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”
Rebecca’s voice was filled with bravado, but she felt some familiar butterflies stopping back for a visit as she stared up at the enormous stage. It was more than twice the size of the auditorium at their high school and the lighting and equipment in the overhead scaffolding seemed much more advanced. There were even private balcony seats for the elite that the phantom himself would have approved of. There were also at least four times as many people trying out for roles than there had been in high school. Rebecca looked at her watch again and fretted that she wouldn’t have time to audition before her next class started.
“Wow, there are really a lot of people here,” she observed.
Justyn nodded. “And these are just the freshmen and sophomores. The upper classmen have another show going on over in the other theater.”
“At least that means we won’t be the only newbies.” She looked at her watch again. It was already a quarter after three. “Do you know how long the tryouts will last?”
Justyn shrugged. “It could he hours, based on this crowd. The sophomores have seniority, so they get to go first. But don’t worry. I already talked to the director, and he said you can leave as soon as you’re finished. You won’t have to sit through the rest of the freshmen auditions.”
Rebecca nodded, relieved there was at least one thing she could stop worrying about. Of course, once the auditions actually began, she started to get nervous all over again. This definitely wasn’t high school. She remembered sitting through a barrage of offensive voices during the tryouts for Phantom that made her cringe more than once. This time around, every voice was in key. Every person excelled. Rebecca had no idea how Justyn expected her to compete with a room full of experienced, professional singers. One-by-one, each brilliant performer was called up to the stage. Each voice resonated along the high ceilings of the theatre, shattering the silence with their perfect vibrato. The best of them would return for the callbacks before the main roles were cast. If they made it that far, they would be required to learn one of the songs from the script Justyn was already studying. Leave it to him to get a jumpstart on the competition.
“Livinia Clairoux!” Professor Carter announced.
Professor Carter, the director of the play, was a middle-aged man with thinning hair and a face that was severely pock-marked from an earlier battle with acne. The constant scowl he wore only deepened the burrows of those scars. He was the head of the theater division, and it was a position he took very seriously, judging by the way he eyed up the performer that glided toward the stage. It was the Gothic girl Rebecca had caught watching Justyn, with a fittingly exotic name to match her eccentric style of dress. She seemed unperturbed as she skipped up the steps to take her place behind the microphone, and the director barely looked up from his notes as she adjusted her corset, pulled down her long ruffled sleeves, and whispered her selection to the lone pianist they were using as musical backup.
“And what medley do you plan to woo us with today, Miss Clairoux?”
She licked her black lips in a manner that was almost provocative. “I’ll be singing Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina.”
Professor Carter nodded but seemed disinterested. “Very well. Proceed.”
As soon as the piano accompaniment began the soft ballad, Livinia’s face transformed. All hint of mirth vanished, though there was still a trace of sexuality as the sincere emotions poured forth from her soulful soprano. Even the movements of her arms were mournful. She beckoned to the audience with one outstretched arm and clutched the microphone stand against her breast as though it were her lover. She was radiant, sensual, and alluring. Rebecca felt her mouth drop open in wonder. Beside her, Justyn nodded his head in appreciation.
“She’s really good,” he whispered when the music came to its somber end.
The director agreed, though it was hard to tell from the lack of enthusiasm on his face. “Amazing, as usual, Miss Clairoux,” he said, his voice monotone. “You may take your seat.”
“Thank you, Professor Carter.”
Livinia stepped down from the stage with a look of undisguised triumph. Every movement was as fluid and graceful as her audition had been. She joined the two boys she had been chatting with before, both of whom looked as though they would be happy to lick her shoes if it meant getting to stand beside her onstage. They had each had their turn already, and while they had amazing voices, they dulled in compari
son to their female companion.
Once Livinia took her seat, the next hopeful was called to the stage. It went on like that for about an hour. At least twenty other students performed while Professor Carter continued to look bored. They were all excellent, but none gave a performance nearly as heart-wrenching as Livinia’s. There was one guy named Quinn Martin, who was as handsome as he was talented, but still nowhere near Livinia’s level. It was obvious she was the star pupil and Rebecca’s biggest competition.
Instead of letting herself fret over things she couldn’t control, Rebecca decided to enjoy the beautiful selection of music. She felt like she was at a paid concert, instead of college auditions. Nevertheless, she was still worried about being late for class, so she was relieved when it was finally time for the freshmen to get a shot at the spotlight. Again, they were all beyond talented, but you could see the younger students were nervous. For the most part, they weren’t as well trained as their sophomore counterparts. Rebecca caught the professor shaking his head more than once, and he finally showed some hint of emotion, though that emotion was only disgust. After his critiques, more than one of the girls ran from the room in tears, and even one of the guys looked close to weeping.
The best of the freshmen was a girl named Megan Rice, who sang a heartfelt version of Memories Rebecca found particularly moving. She was not only talented, but exceptionally beautiful, with flaxen curls down to the small of her back and perfect curves she couldn’t hide, even under her baggy sweater. She had a sweet, cheerful face, and she smiled at Rebecca as she stepped off the stage. Rebecca recognized her from her English class and hoped maybe she had found her first friend. She was about to mention it to Justyn, but the next thing she knew, the professor called their names. Rebecca stood on trembling legs, but felt a little bit better when Megan flashed her a thumbs up from her spot in the audience.