Twenty Five. the way you smile
XXV. the way you smile
Marlowe sat in a booth at Salt Lake Slices with all of her friends to celebrate. She heard Nini's voice and looked over to see her on FaceTime with Ricky. She gasped. "Nini!"
"Is that Nini?" Kourntey said after hearing her voice
"Pizza tonight for the world's best kiddos!" Big Red's mom announced and came over with trays of pizza. "Don't forget to tip your waitress!"
"Mom!" Said Big Red.
"You love me and you know it!"
"I love you Mrs. Red!" Marlowe shouted to her.
"I love you, Miss Belle!"
She looked at Ricky. "Can you believe we're the leads together? I mean, I've tried for years to get you to audition for a play and you always said no!"
"And now we have to play love interest," he replied and grimaced. "Sorry, EJ."
EJ waved him off. "You're the least person I'm worried about."
Ricky wasn't sure if he should be offended or not.
"Nini!" Luca said loudly and Kourtney handed him the phone. "Guess who's the new Lumiere!"
"YEAH!" They all cheered and he held up the phone so they could all see her.
"And LeFou!" Big Red exclaimed.
"And Chip!" Seb added.
"And Babette zee father duster!" Gina acted, making them all laugh.
"Wait, what are you doing?" Carlos laughed.
She chuckled like it should be obvious. "A French accent?"
Marlowe moved so she could see Nini. "Nini, I miss you so much!"
"Mars, I'm literally so proud of you! Belle? That's huge!" Nini praised.
She blushed. "Oh, it's nothing. I literally felt like I was going to vomit."
Ashlyn scoffed. "Don't let her fool you, Nini. She was perfect!"
"The best audition ever!" Said Knox.
"Careful guys, you'll boost her ego more." Luca commented and she hit him on the arm.
"Actually, there was this one girl who auditioned who kind of looked like a Disney princess," said Ashlyn.
"Yeah, I think I saw. Bird land on her finger while she was singing," Gina said when she turned around in the booth.
Marlowe scoffed. "Yeah, then her attitude caused it to burst into flames."
"I think you caused it to burst into flames, missy." Seb laughed.
"I swear, if she laughed one more time, I was going to rip her vocal cords out myself!"
EJ laughed and then remembered something that made him smirk. "Wait, wait, if I'm playing Gaston, does that mean I have to make you fall in love with me?"
"You won't have to try that hard." Gina chimed and Marlowe gave her a look, lighting hitting her on the shoulder.
"It also means she has to pretend to hate you," Knox mentioned.
"That definitely won't be hard."
"Oh!" Big Red said loudly and they all bursted into laughter.
EJ narrowed his eyes at her and kicked her foot with his under the table. Marlowe just gave him a sweet smile. "It also means I have to pretend to be in love with Ricky," she spoke and made a fetching noise. She looked at Nini again. "Nini, I promise you, I'll be throwing up in my head the whole time!"
"Yeah, and I'll try to be as gross as possible." Ricky added, making her narrow her eyes at him.
Nini laughed through the phone.
Big Red's mom came back with a tray full of cupcakes. "Now, before you get dessert, mom gets a picture. That's the rule."
"Mom!" Big Red objected.
"That's the rule, all right?" She said again and moved back with her phone. The kids moved closer together to fit into the frame. "Got you all. And. . . It's cute!"
They immediately went to get cupcakes. Marlowe picked up a cupcake with a plastic Belle figure on top and squealed. She went back to the table and switched sides with Knox. She pressed her hand against the opposite side of EJ's face and brought him close so she could kiss him on the cheek. "I'm excited to pretend to hate you again."
He smiled at her. "I'm excited to watch you be a princess."
"Aww, our Mars is a princess!" Ricky swooned and they all awed at her.
She went red. "Please, like we're just now figuring that out." She playfully rolled her eyes.
"Drama queen is more like it." Luca said and they laughed.
Marlowe threw her Belle figure at him.
Valentine's Day. It was a day that Marlowe was never particularly a fan of. She was usually always grossed out about the amount of affection was given out on the day along with all the red and pink decorations she had to see everywhere. She also always felt a sliver of jealousy when she would see happy couples celebrating the day.
But today she wasn't so disgusted because she had a valentine of her own. This would be her first Valentine's Day with a boyfriend and she was excited. When Marlowe heard the doorbell go off, she opened the door to see a smiling EJ standing on the other side, a bouquet of daisys in his hand. She awed out loud. "EJ,"
"I was going to wait till after school but I just couldn't. I was too excited," he told her with a wide smile. "And to start off our first Valentine's Day together, I thought I'd give you a ride to school."
Her heart swelled. "You're the best."
He shrugged sheepishly. "I try."
She took the flowers from his hand. "They're so pretty."
EJ walked inside her house and followed her into the kitchen. "Are you excited for our first rehearsal?" He asked.
Marlowe took out a vase from under the sink and started filling it with water. "I'm super excited," she smiled. "The only thing I'm worried about is being the lead with Ricky."
He leaned against the counter. "Cause of what happened during the musical?"
"I know he's a good performer but. . ." She started to say and turned around, leaning back on the counter. "Am I bad friends for thinking he'll mess up?"
EJ shook his head. "No. You want to be perfect. I can understand that. He doesn't exactly have the best track record,"
She formed a frown. "I just don't want anything to go wrong."
He stepped forward and kissed her on the forehead. "Don't worry, okay? Even if he's bad, you'll outshine him."
Marlowe looked up and him and smiled. "Thanks."
"Now come on. The sooner school's over, the sooner I get to take you out." He smirked and grabbed her hand, leading her out of the house.
She smiled again like a little kid.
Any hope that Marlowe had in Ricky was slowly deteriorating. He was completely exhausted. He explained to her that he drove to Denver to visit Nini but she ended up driving to Salt Lake to surprise him for Valentine's Day. As a result, Ricky spent all night driving back and he didn't sleep. "Dear God, please let this go right for me." Marlowe muttered to the sky. . .well, ceiling.
Luca stood behind her and rubbed her shoulders. "Stop worrying. You're going to be the best Belle this town has ever seen. You might even beat Emma Watson."
She scoffed. "Nobody will ever beat Emma Watson in anything."
"Okay people. The title song of Beauty and the Beast is the centerpieces of our show," Carlos announced to everyone in the rehearsal room. "Written at the height of Ashmam and Menken's powers, and it's the most romantic ballad since Suddenly, Seymour. As a reminder, Belle is finally falling for the Beast and it's not because of Stockholm Syndrome, y'all. Love is Love."
"Love is love!" Knox agreed and winked at Luca.
"Okay, Marley and Ricky. It's time to review the waltz," Gina broadcasted.
Marlowe squealed and clasped her hands together. "This is my favorite scene!"
"Let's take it way under tempo."
The leading lady and man came together and she gave him an encouraging smile. Seb began to play the piano. They took each other by the hands.
"Take as old as time," Kourtney began to sing.
Marlowe did the correct steps and Ricky stared down at his feet. She furrowed his brows as how long their strides were. "You okay?"
"Yeah. Sorry." he replied tiredly.
"It's okay. Just use both of your feet."
They began the waltz again. Ricky stared down at his feet and started counting the steps. Marlowe was not prepared for him to step on her foot. "Ow!"
His eyes widened. "Sorry, Mars. Sorry!"
"It's fine." She mumbled and winced.
Luca and Knox shared a look and the twin pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Kourtney, honey, I know we aren't up to show tempo, but sing out, and make sure to really look at Belle and the Beast during the song." Miss Jenn instructed.
Marlowe flashed a full smile at Kourtney, making the girl chuckle.
"Remember, what Mrs. Potts is observing is a miracle,"
"Is that what this is?" Luca questioned and Knox quickly nudged him in the side.
"Belle is the most beautiful girl in the land, and the Beast is. . . I'm sorry, Ricky, beastly."
Marlowe laughed at him and Ricky returned it, only sarcastically.
"Maybe close your eyes and imagine the full scene in makeup and wardrobe. Ready?"
Kourtney nodded quickly.
Marlowe turned to Ricky and grabbed his hands. She smiled with her teeth. "Ricky, you know I love you, right?"
Him and EJ pulled the same face. "I don't like where this is going." The senior commented.
She held her hand up to him, signaling that it was okay. Marlowe smiled at Ricky again, but it was the kind of smile that creeped him out. "You're my best friend. I never get mad at you for anything—"
"You get mad at me all the time."
"But this is super important. You get that, right? So please, please, please try and get this right?"
Ricky hesitated but gave her a wavering smile. "I promise. I'll give you 100%,"
Her smile turned genuine. They took each other's hands again and Kourtney began to sing. Ricky stared down at his feet again and counted under his breath.
Everyone watched them awkwardly. Luca cringed at the long strides Ricky was taking. Without meaning to, he stepped on the girl's foot again. Marlowe groaned louder that time. "Ow! Ricky!"
"I'm sorry!"
"Okay, why don't we take five?" Said Miss Jenn and faked a smiled."Let's take some time to recollect ourselves."
The students began to scatter and Ricky frowned. "I'm sorry, Mars."
She put a hand on his shoulder. "Go wake yourself up, Ricky." She walked back to the bleachers and at down to rub her sore foot. "Jesus Christ."
"You okay?" EJ asked with a frown.
"Looked a little rough out there," Knox chimed in and he and Luca came and sat with them.
Marlowe sighed. "I'm fine. I'm not being too harsh on him, am I?" She asked as she rubbed her foot.
Luca shook his head. "No way. This is important."
Knox agreed with him. "Yeah, Marley, this isn't just a school musical anymore. This is for a competition. He has to take this seriously."
Marlowe still frowned. EJ saw her downturned expression and wrapped his arm around her. "Hey, don't worry. It's only the first day. If anyone can screw his head on right, it's you."
She smiled at him. "Yeah?"
"Absolutely."
The bell rang. "Okay. Thank you, everyone, good job. We'll nail this number in time for the Menkies. The Beast's castle wasn't built in a day. Have a wonderful Valentine's Day." Said Miss Jenn.
Knox grinned widely. "Oh, I intend too."
Luca went red.
Marlowe grabbed EJ's hand and they walked out of the rehearsal room. "Sooo. . ." He trailed and swung their hands back and forth. "Are you excited for tonight?"
"I'd be more excited if I knew what we were going."
She walked down the hall to where her locker was and EJ leaned on the locker next to hers. "It's called a surprise for a reason." He smirked.
Marlowe gave him a side eyed look. "I hate surprises."
"Well, you'll love mine."
She hinted a smile. "Okay, maybe I'm a little excited. At least tell me what I should wear." She inquired.
EJ hummed. "Well, I'm all for sweatpants and comfortable clothing but this particular event requires us to dress up."
Her excitement grew a bit more. "Okay." She said while smiling.
"I gotta get to class but I will see you later." EJ leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. He pulled away slightly but their noses were still touching. "Bye."
She swooned. "Bye." Marlowe watched him walk away and she rolled her lips back into a smile. She pressed her back to her locker.
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: Truyen247.Pro