"Oh my god, I wanna kick their-" Nova began, watching North Highs video, EJ's hand clasping over her mouth.

"Oh my gosh, that's what's her name? Lily! From our audition." Seb looked up at them with wide eyes, "She isn't just co-directing their show, she's starring in it."

"You mean perfect-pitch, looks-like-an-actual-Disney-Princess, super-fan girl/mean girl Lily?" Ashlyn asked, pacing around in a panic.

"You know what? I could possibly get on light crew with North High." Nova suggested as she looked around, "They let me up on the lights, they put her center stage for her big opening-"

"They have you arrested and put in jail." Nini nodded alongside her, rubbing her shoulders, "Let's maybe keep Nova far away from North High."

"I second that." EJ nodded, taking Nini's place in rubbing her back.

"Thank you all for coming so quickly on a Saturday." Miss Jenn announced as she walked into the auditorium, their heads whipping her way, "Or most of you all. We're missing a teapot and a village idiot."

"I think they're at the pizza place." Ricky announced with a nod.

"Kourtney texted in the group." Seb agreed, suddenly getting a string of wide eyed looks his way, "They said they couldn't get anyone to cover their shifts."

"Oh, I didn't see that text." Miss Jenn frowned as she looked at her phone.

"Ugh, reach your texting limit, Miss Jenn? Staying up late texting single Batchalors? I like your style." Nova snapped her fingers with a wink her way.

"I meant the group chat with me and EJ." Seb corrected himself with a cheeky smile, looking back at the Caswell boy.

"Well, back for the matter at hand. I can tell from your solemn faces you've all seen the video." Miss Jenn spoke with a sigh, ended her hesitant words. A wave of "yeahs" and huffs went through the small group of drama students.

"It's incredible. Even I have no notes." Carlos threw his hands up in disbelief.

"Could use better lighting." Nova crossed her legs.

"I think their Lumiere is an actual French exchange student." Ricky added in, clearly what stuck out most to him.

"Miss Jenn, how are we suppose to beat North at the Menkies if they're churning out this a second after changing their musical? It's like-" Ashlyn frowned as she began to explain while the rest of them did the same, unaware of giving North High way too many complements.

"Wildcats! Take heart." Miss Jenn clapped her hands to bring them all back, "North High is clearly focusing on bells and whistles. Impressive. But distracting. All we need is-"

"Friendship?" Seb suggested.

"No, Seb." the woman shook her head.

Nova snapped her fingers with a grin, "A baseball bat."

"Oh god." Carlos' eyes widened.

"No, Novalie, no, no. All we need is to get back to basics. Emotional performances that connect with the audience can make all the difference with these judges. And I have a plan. Which is why you're all being called in today, and that plan is- a weekend acting intensive." Miss Jenn announced in her usually over the top words, a bright smile across her face.

"Acting intensive like.." EJ trialed off in questioning.

"Improv." Miss Jenn waved a hand, "Character work. Movement exercises. Hey, Gina. Are you here?"

Glancing back, Nova took notice of Gina on her phone behind her.

"Yeah. Yeah." Gina nodded quickly as she dropped her phone in her lap.

"We're going to really connect with our characters. And impressive performances, not fancy staging or actual killer wolves, will be our key to the hood." Miss Jenn tried to ease their panic, not doing so well, "And don't forget, we have something North High doesn't."

"Friendship?" Seb suggested again.

"Two very skilled Chad and Ryan's that still have baseball bats." Nova nodded, pointed between her and EJ.

"A brand-new original song for the Beast and the rose." Miss Jenn waved her hands over at Ricky and Nini with a wide grin, "And how's that coming along, you guys?"

Ricky and Nini shared a slightly panicked look.

"Ricky, you stay here with me for deep-dive Breast character work. Nini, take the weekend, skip the workshop, and get a first draft of the duet down for the Beast and the rose." Miss Jenn encouraged with a clap of her hands, "Nova, EJ! Be the ice breaker of this improv movement and take center stage."

"Remember, improv works best when you are all in." Miss Jenn spoke as the improvising began, EJ and Nova being encouraged to agree with each other along the way, "If you've got one foot out the door, it does not work, and the audience will smell your fear. Fun! Let's get a suggested from the group on a location."

"Not Slices." Carlos mumbled.

"Slices!" Seb announced with a grin.

"Okay. Slices. Go ahead, you too." Miss Jenn turner toward the pair, backing up. EJ and Nova turned to each other with clears of their throat.

"Obviously , Pineapple does go on pizza, don't be a idiot." Nova began to scene, adjusting her stance to look up at him.

"Well, pepperoni is a classic, we always get pepperoni." EJ went on with her words, looking at a fake menu.

"Then let's get pepperoni." Nova cringed at her lack of creativity, "We can talk about why we decided to come here in the first place, can't we?"

EJ gave a odd look, "Can I not just want to spend time with my girlfriend?"

"Your girlfriend you only started dating because we got tired of everyone pressuring us to?" Nova asked, a sense of fire in her words. She wasn't sure what was coming over her, this conversation too familiar. She wasn't even angry at EJ, far from it, they'd been good. But a side of her was taking over, a memory she didn't like.

"Sure, that's how we started but obviously I fell in love with you along the way." EJ cleared his throat slightly, "I wanted to tell you i'm taking a trip for the summer, i'll be away the entire time. I leave next week."

"We already agreed to go on the boat trip with my parents though. I'll have to deal with them alone now." Nova wanted to stop, wanted so badly to shut her mouth.

"Oh my god, what did you do?" Carlos whispered to Seb.

"I might be back in time. It's really important to me." EJ gave Nova a slightly odd look with his words, almost asking what was going on.

"Sure, or you just want an excuse to go talk to other girls!" her words snapped suddenly before she could realize she was saying them. The room fell silent as her face fell, shoulders fallling. Nova looked up at EJ, "I'm sorry."

Before he could say anything, Nova apologized to Miss Jenn with a flushed face and hurried out of the room.

Novas escape from the school didn't take long to find her. She'd never actually go anywhere except Slices or her house. And after what happened, EJ could suspect she definitely wouldn't be at slices.

"Nova." he walked down the dock behind her house, the one that over casted the lake. Her legs were hanging off, head turning to look back at him, "I've been calling."

"Service is pretty bad right here unless i'm inside and connected to the wifi." she scooted over for him to sit next to her, crossing his legs instead of putting them in the freezing water, "I'm really sorry about today. I don't know why I started saying all that, it was just-"

"Made you think of our breakup, the location and pepperoni talk." EJ nodded his head in understanding, "You don't have to explain yourself, I know."

"I'm over that too, I just- I don't know, everything just staring flying out of my mouth and I couldn't stop talking." Nova pulled her feet from the water, crossing them and looking his way.

"Are you?" EJ gave a frown of his eyebrows her way, "Over it?"

"Of course I am, it was my fault." Nova gave a minor laugh.

"Nova, it wasn't completely your fault. I wasn't very good to you either." EJ disagreed with her slightly, shaking his head.

"No wonder you weren't good to me, I never trusted you." Nova defended him.

"No wonder you never trusted me, I never gave you a reason to." his turn to defend her.

Nova twisted her body so their knees were touching now, biting on the inside of her mouth, "It's why it's taking so long."

EJ didn't get it, "What do you mean?"

"This time around. For us to try again. Obviously I want to, I've made that pretty clear." her words made him smile. Because yeah, it was clear they both wanted so badly to get back together but haven't acted on it yet, "But i'm just scared because I don't want us to be like we were."

"I'm scared too." EJ agreed, his finger touched her knee, "I think we're in a really good place and I don't want anything to mess it up."

"Me neither." Nova agreed with a quick nod, "But I seriously like you."

He laughed at her slightly, "I seriously like you too."

She bite the inside of her mouth once more, "I'm like 97% there on the battery percentage when I wanna date again."

EJ nodded, his finger touched her knees again, "I'm like 99%, so i'll wait for you to catch up."

And they laugh, laughed as friends, laughed as ex's, laughed as soon-to-be lovers.

•

kylie speaks

nova this chapter
though <33333