Dark Valentine (Monster High; Book 1 of the DV Duology)

Chapter 24: Destined Twins

Jackson

A couple of days after the dress rehearsal came the day of the actual performance. A bunch of parents including mine would be there, as well as Kieran's mom. I was honestly fairly nervous, not just at the prospect of acting in front of a larger audience than the one at the dress rehearsal, but because of the issues backstage. Would they happen during the performance, or would the girls manage to get through it without starting anything this time?

I hoped for the latter.

And on a side note, I ended up finding out why Heath wanted to speak with Abbey so badly. He had been planning on asking her out, and he met up with her outside of her classroom to do so. Fortunately for him, she accepted, and at this point, they were officially a couple.

Before the play was actually supposed to start, there was a series of musical performances going on which Holt would be taking part in. Thankfully, they had the sense to put his song closer to the beginning so I had time to get into my costume after he was done.

That being said, Kieran made sure to wish me good luck before I let Holt out, as did my parents before they presumably made their way into the clawditorium with the rest of the audience.

Holt

"Hi, Holt," was the first thing I heard once Jackson let me out. It was my mother.

After they filled me in on what happened with Eric, I was furious—I'd wanted to go after him just as much as Kieran had. But obviously, I didn't.

"Hey! What's up?" I replied, enthusiasm for the performance building up.

"Not too much, we just came to wish you and Jackson good luck," replied Mom.

I grinned. "Thanks, Mom."

It was at that point they decided to go take their seats. That left Kieran and I. "Hey, you," I greeted him as he moved closer to me in order to give me a kiss.

"You sure you won't tell me what you're performing?" asked Kieran. I'd been withholding that info to surprise him.

"Positive," I replied with a smirk, "I'm sure it won't kill you to wait a few more minutes."

"It better not be 'It's Raining on Prom Night," joked Kieran.

"Fuck no, that song's terrible!" I laughed.

I still couldn't believe they made Jackson sing that with someone back before we moved here. I watched it on recording—he did not look happy. The chick he was singing with did—she clearly adored that song.

I made a mental note for one of us to show that to Kieran later on.

"Or better yet," continued Kieran, "What about 'Barbie Girl'?"

"Not a snowball's chance in hell."

Kieran laughed. "Yeah, no, that'd be torture. Anyway, whatever else it is, I know it'll be wonderful." He glanced at the clawditorium doors. "I should probably get in there now," he added, "Good luck. I love you."

"Love you, too, Kieran."

Since I was one of the first ones, I made sure to tune my guitar as soon as I got hold of it. When they called me up, I immediately spotted Kieran sitting close to the front with our folks. And even though it was written by a Normie, everyone seemed to recognize the melody of 'Iris' by The Goo Goo Dolls. I got a shit-ton of applause for it at the end, too, which was awesome!

After I was done, I was able to watch a couple more things before switching out with Jackson, namely a half-decent performance of 'Dance the Fright Away' by a group of werecats, and a fangtastic version of Theory of a Deadman's 'Angel', done by Avea Trotter.

Once the latter was done, though, I had to switch out so Jackson could get ready for the play. On a side note, I'd agreed to watch the recording with my parents at some point when we got our fearbooks—each came with a USB containing digital copies of everything, plus the play, plus other recorded events.

Jackson

By the time I came back around, the senior choir was about to start their set. It would be them and a couple more groups and soloists, and then the play, so while I still had a bit to wait, it gave me time to have a nice chat with the girls about keeping a lid on it backstage--in much more polite terms, obviously.

While we were waiting backstage, we listened to the other performances. The choir was a mix of good and bad, their first song being a dreadful song called 'Singing in the Rain' followed by Joni Mitchell's 'Both Sides Now.' Their other songs were called 'Loves Me like a Rock', 'Can't Help Falling in Love', and 'Best Day of My Life'.

Then, there were a couple of group performances that were just instrumental, and then someone sang 'Bohemian Rhapsody' by Queen, one of many songs that Holt knew a lot better than I did. That was the last song before we were to get in our places, and thankfully we were able to do so without much trouble.

To be honest, the majority of the play went perfectly fine—although there were a few minor incidents, like Cleo hitting her head during the scene where Lucy gets killed, although she was good at not breaking character despite that. The only other one that stood out in my mind was just before the 'Confrontation' scene when the girls started being disruptive like normal—thankfully the only time that happened this time.

I actually had to snap at them to shut up, though, which wasn't something I normally would've done. But come on—I needed to hear my cue, and this had been a problem for too long not to lead to that eventually.

Playing both Jekyll and Hyde was a bit challenging in the 'Confrontation' scene, but I figured I did alright, and the finale scene went really well for everyone.

Then came the bows, and mine was the last one due to my role. And after that, the play could finally be considered over. I was relieved, honestly, and I was also surprised by how much praise I got on my acting abilities.

"Well done, Mr. Jekyll," I heard as I was exiting the green room after changing out of my costume. I turned to see Murphy, the female cop that had worked for Eric once. Judging by her badge, she had assumed the position of sheriff by this point.

I couldn't help but be wary of what might happen, and Kieran, who had arrived just as she had, clearly felt the same.

"Don't worry," she said, surprising both of us, "I haven't come to hurt you or anything. In fact, I personally arrested Eric and those other idiots who came after you. I never agreed with anything that man did; I only went along with it in order to keep my job."

After she finished talking, Kieran and I both relaxed a bit. It was clear she was telling the truth, and she seemed nice enough. "Thank you," I said at last, "And—and I think I can understand that."

"I'm glad," said Murphy, "I've been meaning to apologize when I got the chance, so—"

"I forgive you," I replied, "I just don't think I could ever forgive the others at this point."

"Understandable," she replied, "I wouldn't, either."

After exchanging introductions with Kieran, she ended up having to leave. Personally, I was glad to have run into her, and to know that I had nothing to fear from her.