Chapter 2

The next week flew by for Jennifer and before she knew it, she was backstage with Mark and the fairy make-over queen, watching Cinderella perform. As the final strains of 'I'm the best damn thing that your eyes have ever seen' floated from the stage, Mark stepped up next to Jennifer, whispering in her ear as he passed, "Nervous?"

Jennifer grinned and threw back at him, "Not a bit!" and watched him approach Cinderella who was currently bowing and smiling at her 'adoring fans'.

"Well, that was Miss Cinderella, and wasn't she wonderful?" With a few final waves and theatrical kisses blown, he finally managed to usher Cinderella backstage, where she promptly tossed her head at Jennifer and pranced towards her chair, from where she could see the entire performance and the judges' reactions. "And now, our finalist, chosen by the judges, Miss Jennifer Garnet!" Jennifer bounced excitedly onto the stage in a sky blue knee high dress, a stark contrast to her previous jeans and long t-shirt ensemble, passing Mark, who whispered "Good luck," as she did, along the way to the microphone where she, following the music, opened her mouth to sing, once again captivating the audience.

Breathe you out

Breathe you in

You keep coming back to tell me

You're the one who could have been

In my eyes

I see it all so clear

It was long ago and far away

But it never disappears

I try to put it in the past

Hold on to myself

And don't look back

I don't wanna dream about

All the things that never were

Maybe I can live without

When I'm out from under

I don't wanna feel the pain

What good would it do me now?

I'll get it all figured out

When I'm out from under

So let me go

Just let me fly away

Let me feel the space between us

Growing deeper

And much darker everyday

Watch me now

And I'll be someone new

My heart will be unbroken

It will open up

For everyone but you

Even when I cross the line

It's like a lie I've told a thousand times

I don't wanna dream about

All the things that never were

Maybe I can live without

When I'm out from under

I don't wanna feel the pain

What good would it do me now?

I'll get it all figured out

When I'm out from under

And part of me

Still believes when you

Say you're gonna stick around

And part of me

Still believes we can

Find a way to work it out

But I know

That we tried everything

We could try so let's just say goodbye

Forever

I don't wanna dream about

All the things that never were

Maybe I can live without

When I'm out from under

I don't wanna feel the pain

What good would it do me now?

I'll get it all figured out

When I'm out from under

I don't wanna dream about

All the things that never were

Maybe I can live without

When I'm out from under

I don't wanna feel the pain

What good would it do me now?

I'll get it all figured out

When I'm out from under

When I'm out from under

The crowd, once again, rose to their feet for the young girl on stage before them, many with teary eyes as Mark, once again beaming, made his way towards her, clapping along with them. "Miss Jennifer Garnet, ladies and gentlemen! And now let us take a break whilst the judges confer."

"And we're back with the results. And the winner of tonight's competition is…" a quick glance around the stage area revealed the two contestants, one on either side of Mark, a smug Cinderella and a quietly excited Jennifer. "Jennifer Garnet!" Both girls' jaws dropped open in shock as confetti rained down from the ceiling. Jennifer recovered once Mark twirled her round in a hug, both laughing happily as Anthony and Donal came forward with her prize. "And for our winner, a recording contract!"

That was when Cinderella snapped.

"WHAT!" Everyone's heads snapped round to face her as, growing increasingly red in the face, she started to scream and stamp her feet. "This competition was supposed to promote me! ME! I was supposed to win, not her!" The three boys gathered round, all nodding their heads as Anthony spoke.

"Cinderella, on account of your actions, your contract with our company is officially retracted."

At this, Cinderella simply screamed all the louder until she was dragged off the stage, screaming "You're nothing without me, you'll be sorry!" at which eyebrows were merely raised.

"Well, that's all from us, goodnight!"

"Wow," Jennifer let out a breath, they were the only two left on stage after the cameras had been shut off and Cinderella forcibly removed from the building. "That really was something, huh?"

"Yeah," Mark mumbled distractedly. "Uh, Mi- I mean, Jennifer?" She turned to face him, head cocked to the side. "Would you…uh…would you like to go out with me sometime?" At this she smiled brightly.

"I'd love to."

The fairy make-over queen, who was watching from the side, commented to the audience "It looks like someone is going to get a happily ever after, after all." She paused, considering. "Well, as long as they don't let it get to their heads." At which point the curtain dropped for the final time.

"Congratulations guys!"

"That was brilliant!"

"Let's go and get ice-cream to celebrate!"

The others all filed out of the theatre after the audience had left, leaving Charlie and Jason alone on stage, as their counterparts in the play had been.

"Well, that certainly went well."

"Yeah, I told you that you'd be fine, didn't I?" Charlie giggled, glancing over her shoulder at Jason as she continued to tidy up after them. "Uh…Charlie, I-uh-I was wondering…"

"Spit it out Jason." She giggled again, peering through her hair at him, still wearing the blue dress.

"Would you like to?"

"Huh?" Charlie's nose wrinkled in confusion as she finished picking up the scripts.

"I mean, go out with me sometime. For real." She eyed him for a moment, gauging his sincerity before her face broke into a wide smile which was soon mirrored on his.

"I'd love to."