Love On Broadway

Chapter 6: Emma

I just finished straightening my hair and put it up in a half ponytail when I heard a knock on the door. "Come in!"

It was Lin. "Hey," he said softly and close the door behind him. He had his phone with him, and picture of my headshot pulled up.

"Oh don't show me that. " I laughed and covered my face.

Lin looked at his phone and smiled sheepishly. "Oh, why?"

"I look too serious."

"You look beautiful." He said softly.

I drew up face from my hands and smiled, feeling more embarrassed.

"I mean-I didn't," Lin rushed, blood coming to his face.

"No, I get it, thank you Lin." I stood up and hugged him,  wrapping my arms around his neck and perched my chin on his shoulder. He hugged my tightly around the waist. "I'm just really nervous, I mean what if they don't like me?" I whispered in his ear.

He didn't say anything for a second just squeezed me tighter. "They will love you, you were made for the stage, not to be stuck behind the stage." I pulled away a little bit so that I could see Lin's face, but still in his arms.

"You really think so?"

"I know so." His face got closer. So did mine.

Then he kissed me. And I was kissing him back before I knew it. Then we both pulled away at the same time. We looked at each other, wide-eyed. "That was practice for tonight." He said quickly, to clarify.

"Yep, thought so!" I said cheerfully and sat back down.

"So I came here to ask if we could put this headshot of you online, because you to be an alternate at least to be on the cast.

"Oh yeah that would be great." I forced a fake laugh, but it sounded, well, fake. I knew Lin knew it.

We smiled brightly at each other, the awkwardness thick in the air.

"Well I gotta go get ready. I'll see you on the wings?"

"I wouldn't miss it."

He walked out and shut the door behind him. I looked at myself in the mirror, my cheeks were flushed, and I looked like a tomato. "Oh my god." I whispered to myself in the mirror. "what just happened?" I put my face in hands and laughed at myself.

***

I stood in the wings on the right side of the stage. My heart pumped violently, like it was threatening to put a hole in my dress. I looked down at the beautiful blue dress. In less than twenty seconds, I was going to be a Broadway performer. When it was my cue, I walked out and started singing. "When he was ten, his father split, full of it, debt-ridden two years later, see Alex and his mother bed-ridden half dead, sitting in there sick, the sent thick."  I set my hands on Lin's shoulder and noticed how calm he was, and it made me calm. I looked out to the crowd during the few seconds I had, I noticed the confusion in the crowd faces, they were expecting Phillipa. I continued on. "And Alex got better but his mother went quick." I walked off the stage. Jasmine and Renee were waiting for me. Their smiles were plastered on their faces. Jazzy hugged me silently because our microphones were still on. They led up the steps to the second level of the stage wings, that gave access to the balcony on the stage. In less than a minute we finished the song.

Everyone rushed off the stage when the lights went dark except for the select dancers, Lin, and Leslie. They started singing "Aaron Burr, sir." Then out mics were turned off to save the batteries. Someone hugged me from behind. It was Jon. Jazzy and Renee cheered. Jon turned me around.

"Step three is done!" He high-fived me.

"Step three?" Renee asked, raising an eyebrow at us.

"It's Emma's Broadway plan." Jon explained. Jazzy and Renee laughed.

"Are you ready for the girl power song." Renee gushed, grabbing my hands.

"YES! It's my favorite out of all them. All forty-six of them." I laughed.

A stage hand told us to be quiet and turn on our mics. I looked out on the stage, it was last part of "My Shot" when Lin was standing on a box and people were listening to him sing, like he was the most important thing in the world. Renee, Jazzy and I waited through "The Story of Tonight."

Each of us exchanged excited smiles when Leslie starting raping in the beginning of the song. Renee led our little line and I grabbed Jazzy's hand and tugged her behind me like Eliza does.

"Angelica!"  Renee sang.

"Eliza!"  I continued.

"And Peggy," Jazzy said in a snotty voice.

"The Schuyler Sisters.'"  The chorus sang.

"Angelica!"

"Peggy!"

"Eliza!"

"Work!" All three of us said at once.

***

"How fun is this?" Lin said, while I was getting water.

I double-checked to see if my microphone was turned off before saying anything. "This is amazing Lin, I can't even comprehend it. And we have to do it again tonight. I think I'm going to be exhausted."

"Try doing it every night."

"Huh, you would never have to go to the gym every again." I joked. In the background we could hear Jon singing as King George the Third. "I mean from doing the choreography for In The Heights I lost twenty pounds over those two years."

"Wow, that's great."

"Not really, I've probably gained them all back from all those chips I have stashed in the secret room."

"You won't have worry about that anymore, now that Jon knows they're there." Lin said.

We cracked up. Then Lin panicked when the chorus from "Right Hand Man." started singing.

"I gotta go, um I'll see you out there... you'll be great." He patted my shoulder and sprinted off and made out to the stage while it was still dark.

I knew what Lin was talking about, my first solo was about to happen. I was crazy nervous. Not only that but I has to kiss Lin three times in three minutes. And they were big kisses. I mean bride and groom 'kiss-the-bride' kiss. I've refused to think about it since the situation the dressing room with Lin. But now that it's coming, it'll all that I could think about.