Chapter One

“Sorry!”

A young and beautiful blonde ran down the busy streets of New York City, dressed in a short dress with her waitress apron still wrapped around her waist. The pretty woman carried three bags with her, which did not help with the crowded nature of the street. She didn’t mean to, but she kept crashing into people as they kept walking in her way. It’s like they had no concern about her panicked or rushed state and was, in fact, trying to make things worse for her. The blonde grunted and groaned as her shoulders kept ramming into strangers, and she would shrink into herself every time someone yelled at her. Which was often.

It wasn’t her fault. Really, it wasn’t. Her boss had made her work overtime even though the blonde had somewhere to be when work was finished. Luckily, she wasn’t about to miss the entire rehearsal, but she was still late. And oh, the director was going to kill her. Or worse, replace her.

After ten minutes of running like her life depended on it, she could see her final destination clearly. The young blonde pushed past her exhaustion and ran faster, her converse trainers slamming onto the concrete below her. Honestly though, all she could hear was her own heavy breathing and her heart beating rapidly in her ears. The blonde woman was officially drained and the last thing she wanted to do right now was sit through a rehearsal with a director who hated her guts for no reason.

Well, maybe he had a reason. But it wasn’t her fault. Honestly, it wasn’t. How was she supposed to know he hadn’t had a doughnut yet? You can’t blame her for going in for seconds. They were covered in chocolate; chocolate was her weakness.

The woman finally burst through the doors of the theatre and she quickly made her way to the auditorium. She exploded into the room filled with rows upon rows of seats but her eyes were drawn to the stage and she ran down the aisle. There was a massive group of people who were stood on the wooden stage, and every single one turned to look at her when she flung open the door. Including her favourite director.

“Sorry! I’m sorry!” She yelled as she ran up the side stairs and onto the stage.

“Sofia… You’re late.” The director deadpanned.

The director was called Simon Elder and he was an older man. Not elderly, just… Old. He certainly looked older than he actually was, as he looked like he was in his late fifties, but he was actually in his late forties. His eyes were a piercing shade of blue that made the younger girl run cold. Simon had black hair and it looked unkept, like he just woke up in the morning and decided he looked fine enough to leave the house. And he obviously took his role as the director very seriously as he always, always wore one of those silly little director hats.

“I know, I know. I’m sorry.” Sofia threw her bags off to the side, so they were hidden backstage before quickly untying her apron. “My boss wanted me to work overtime and I tried to tell her that I couldn’t do it, but I was the only one left so-”

“I didn’t ask for your excuses, Miss. Emerson.” Simon cut her off, his tone of voice showing that he was getting annoyed with her talking. “If you want to work in this business, then you need to learn better time management.”

“Yes, sir… Sorry, sir.” Sofia brushed her hair behind her ear nervously, looking down in embarrassment as her cheeks heated up.

“Will you start taking this production seriously? Or do I need to start looking for a new ‘Amber Von Tussle’, Miss. Emerson?” The older man asked, making Sofia quickly panic.

“No, that won’t be necessary, sir… It won’t happen again.” The blonde assured him.

“It better not!” Simon ordered, making her nod. “Alright, let’s get started. From the top!”

******

Five hours later and rehearsals were finally done. Their main focus were the songs and dancing scenes, so whenever they got to those scenes in particular, they slowed down and went over them multiple times. While Sofia might have been late, she certainly knew what she was doing. Simon kept trying to give her notes on what to improve on (more like telling her everything she was doing wrong), her co-star backed her up, saying she’s doing everything right.

His name was George Carter, and he had been cast as Link Larkin in their production of ‘Hairspray’. George had a crooked but strong jawline and beautiful brown eyes that reminded Sofia of hazelnut or the coffee she served customers at the diner where she worked. He was a kind man, about a year older than Sofia herself but they got along well. Sofia and George had met when they were both auditioning for their roles, and they got along like a house on fire. Without him, she doubted she’d be able to survive the torturous rehearsals with the devil incarnate (Simon Elder).

After rehearsals were finished, Sofia put her hair up in a messy ponytail. The blonde was backstage, tidying up all of her things and making sure she had everything. Beside her, George walked up to her with his bag (he only had one which contrasted greatly to her three) and he smiled kindly at her.

“Hey, you were great today.” George complimented.

“I think Simon would disagree with you.” Sofia chuckled slightly, rolling her eyes at the mere thought of their director.

“He’s a dick. Don’t worry about him,” George waved him off with a shrug of his shoulders. “Everyone here knows how good you are.”

“I’m not sure everyone does.” The pretty blonde said, glancing at another girl who was glaring at her.

Candice Collins was a very beautiful girl with beautiful blue eyes. They shimmered like sapphires and it was hard not to get lost in them, even for Sofia. Her brown hair cascaded down her back in a long and elegant plait. She had auditioned for the role of Amber, but she obviously didn’t get it. Instead, she had stuck with the role of Penny Pingleton. Not that it was a bad role, on the contrary. If the roles were reversed, Sofia would have been ecstatic with the role of Penny.

The Emerson woman remembered meeting her on the day of the audition. She had blonde hair back then, so Sofia could only assume that she had dyed her hair, hoping it’d help her get the part of Amber. Sofia thought she looked better with brown hair anyway, blonde did not suit her.

“Ignore her,” George said when he noticed who she was looking at. “She’s just jealous. She’s used to getting everything she’s ever wanted, but obviously, you’re just better.”

Sofia let out a small laugh at his words, finally moving her eyes away from the brown-haired beauty that continued to glare at her. She picked up her bags, throwing one of them over her shoulder. George also picked up his bag and they both started to leave the theatre.

“Do you have a ride home?” George asked the moment they got outside.

“No. I was just going to walk.” Sofia explained.

“No, you can’t walk. It’s dark, something could happen. Let me drive you.” The brunette man said, making her shake her head.

“You don’t have to. It’s fine, really.” The blonde tried to turn down, not wanting to burden him.

“No, it’s not. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something were to happen to you if you walk.” George told her, his voice soft and gentle. “Let me drive you.”

After a moment, the pretty blonde sighed but nodded her head. George gave her a smile before they turned to walk down the street, towards where he had parked his car. The duo arrived at his car and the Carter man was quick to unlock the doors of his car.

He opened the trunk of his car and threw his bag inside. George turned to look at Sofia, motioning with his head for her to throw her bags into the trunk as well. The young blonde rolled her eyes but smiled as she gently put her bags into the trunk of his car. George reached up and slammed the trunk closed before they walked around the car. The brunette man opened the door to the drivers’ seat while Sofia did the same with the passenger side door.

They slid into their seats and closed the doors, with Sofia being mindful of the car while George just slammed it shut. He turned on his ignition, the soft hum of the engine filling their ears. And after Sofia had made sure she had her seatbelt on, George pulled off and began driving her home.