Date: Thu, 13 Nov 2003 20:40:33 -0800 (PST) From: Equinus Scorpius <equinusscorpius@yahoo.com> Subject: Chapter 14, Silent violin Legal Notice: The following story contains descriptions of graphic sexual acts. The story is a work of fiction and has no basis in reality. Although the names of places used DO exist, they are in no way reflected factually in this story. Don't read this story if: * You're not 18 or over, * If it is illegal to read this type of material where you live, * Or if you don't want to read about gay/bi people in love or having sex. The author retains copyright to this story. Placing this story on a website or reproducing this story for distribution without the author's permission is a violation of that copyright. Legal action will be taken against violators. Note: This story will be slow moving, and plot oriented. It is not a porno, though sex will happen. It's a fact of life. Words in between <> are sign language, as text formatting does not support italics. E-mail responses to the story, questions, suggestions, criticism, and comments to: EquinusScorpius@yahoo.com Thanks to all my readers for the feedback so far! Sorry for the long delay! THE SILENT VIOLIN CHAPTER 14 Bastian read the audition notice posted over the bulletin board outside the main office. He wondered how big the turn out would be and if he would have any competition for the part of the Fiddler. When he had told his mother last night about the play she had been very supportive and called Gramps and Gran to let them know. Gramps in particular was looking forward to seeing his protege in the show. Bastian jumped when two hands slipped over his eyes. "Guess who," Aiden said and Bastian relaxed, turning in Aiden's hands. Bastian looked up into Aiden's bright green eyes and smiled widely. He was sorely tempted to kiss him but knew better than to do that in the middle of the hallway before homeroom. They shared a passionate look for a moment then pulled away from each other. "Are you trying out for it, Bastian?" Aiden asked, gesturing at the flyer. Bastian nodded, pointed to the word 'Fiddler' and pointed to himself. "I thought you would. I'm trying out too." Bastian looked surprised at this, his jaw gaping open. Aiden grinned and quipped "If you don't shut it, I'm going to put something in there," before he tapped Bastian's mouth shut with one finger. "Why do you look so surprised? Do you not want me to try out?" Aiden frowned slightly now. Bastian shook his head wildly and held up a hand for Aiden to wait while his other hand scrabbled for a writing pad. Pad and pen were produced from his messenger bag and Bastian proceeded to write a short note. "I'm glad you want to try out. I didn't know you could sing though. What is your audition song going to be? Do you need help practicing?" the note said. Aiden blushed as he read it. "I don't have a song yet." Bastian's eyes widen. "What do you think I should sing?" Bastian shrugged. With Aiden's deep voice, he would probably sing the bass line and Bastian couldn't think of a good song to sing off the top of his head. He snatched the note out of Aiden's hand and wrote a few more lines. "Why don't you ask Mrs. Grainger? Or think of a song you like to sing and just sing that." Aiden read the note and nodded to himself. "I should probably do that. Do you mind if I cut out and see what I can figure out?" Aiden asked, searching Bastian's eyes for permission. Bastian only smiled and nodded, one hand slipping forward to quickly grasp and gently squeeze Aiden's hand before letting go. "Go," his lips said. Aiden smiled and left Bastian looking at the flyer. I wonder what part Aiden will get? Bastian wondered. Maybe just a chorus position. Still, it will be nice to spend more time with him. It's been so hectic with homework and everything. We've barely had time together. Maybe we can do something this weekend. Smiling to himself at that happy thought, Bastian turned and strode do his locker to collect his books for the first few classes. Hunter Greene strode down the hallway, fashionable bag over one shoulder. He wore the latest style, a snug-fitting long-sleeved shirt and loose fitting chinos. One sleeve was pushed up to the elbow to show off a heavy gold watch on one slender wrist. He wore a pleasant, easy grin on his well-formed lips. Dark green eyes (hunter green, he would jest) held the smile as well. His auburn hair was fashionably styled, short on the sides and back, slightly longer on top. His skin was naturally tan and free of blemishes. As he walked down the hallways he greeted those he passed by name. From jocks to 'band geeks' to rebellious misfits, all were greeted in the same cordial sincere manner. All attempts to continue a conversation with him, however, were politely brushed aside and further deterred by the quick pace he set. Hunter Green was always on a schedule. He turned the corner into the music wing only to come face to face with a tall, lanky freckled boy with black hair. It took Hunter a moment to recognize Aiden McKennough without the gothic makeup that had been his trademark for the past years but Hunter had heard that Aiden had recently undergone a change of style. "Hey there, Aiden," he said pleasantly and moved to step around him to continue on to Mrs. Grainger's office. Aiden sidestepped to block his path. "I want to ask you a question," he said without preamble. Internally Hunter sighed and groused. Outwardly he plastered a pleasant grin on his face. "How can I help you?" "I want to be in the play." "That's not a question," Hunter quipped and instantly regretted it. Aiden's green eyes narrowed and his lips tightened to a thin white line. "Well it's a musical, can you sing? Are you familiar with 'The Fiddler on the Roof'?" Aiden shrugged. "I've seen it on television before. I dunno if I can sing. Haven't tried really." Not lately, he added mentally. "Well you'll have to try out. You'll need a piece to sing for the audition. It's a bit late to be memorizing a piece but if you still want to try, go see Mrs. Grainger. What's this sudden interest in the school play? Since when have you participated?" Aiden smirked. "I need something under 'extra-curricular activities' for my college application. Why not the school play?" Hunter didn't swallow the blithe response but nodded anyway. "Well go see Mrs. Grainger. If you can't sing there're always stagehands and such needed. Show up Eighth Period and we'll see what happens." "Thanks," Aiden said and let Hunter pass. Hunter continued on down the hall and into the auditorium. Mrs. Grainger's office was at the back of the stage between the dressing rooms. Her door was open and Hunter could see her hunched over a box next to her desk. "Good morning, Annette." Hunter said. Among the students, only Hunter called her by her first name but then again he'd known her for ten years since he first took part in a school play at the tender age of eight. Annette Grainger looked up at the sound of his voice like a doe scenting the air. She was a tall, willowy woman with short blond hair cut close to her head. Before accepting her current position at KHS she had been a ballerina. She moved with an unconscious grace born of years of training. As co-choir mistress and theater coordinator, she was triply qualified to handle the school plays. "Good morning, Hunter. How are you today?" she asked, straightening up from the box of props. "Have a good night?" "Well enough, and you?" Hunter responded amiably. He decided not to bring up Aiden McKennough. "I made a list of the casting positions. We have a lot of shoes to fill. Are Jillian and Marian still willing to play the parts of Shprintze and Bielke?" Jillian and Marian were Annette's daughters, aged eight and ten. Annette volunteered their services to fill the spots of Tevye's two youngest daughters in the play. Mrs. Grainger nodded an affirmative and added, "Well the roll of Tevye is obvious. I don't know who else could play it but Matt Werner. That boy is just made for the part." Hunter had to agree. A fellow senior, Matt Werner had been singing his entire life and was possessed of a rich baritone over which he had masterful control. It also helped that he could grow a full beard, much like that sported by Tevye, the main character in 'Fiddler,' in a week. Barrel-chested and thickly built, Matt was a consummate performer but was never obnoxious about it. Hunter approved of the casting choice and said so. "Contingent upon his agreement, we still have thirteen major singing parts, plus the chorus and the Fiddler to fill. Do you think we'll have enough turn out?" Mrs. Grainger smiled. "We always manage, Hunter, dear. I do hope Linda and Veronica will have free time. We don't have nearly enough outfits for the cast and they do such wonderful work." "I'm working on getting my synagogue on Lucas Avenue to donate some yarmulkes. Rabbi Levinstein said he'd see what he could do. You can use my prayer shawl as a model for others." "That's wonderful, Hunter." "I also gave Arkady Brighton, you know, the gymnast, a note asking him to come to the auditions today. He would be perfect for the part of the leader of the Russian dancers. How was Mrs. Tolner on raising the orchestra members?" "A good turnout, really. And one interesting development. Are you familiar with the new freshman, Bastian Blackmoore?" Hunter nodded slightly. "Well it seems he'd like to be the title character, the Fiddler. It would work out well, with him being a superb violinist, according to Mrs. Tolner, and as it is a non-speaking part, his muteness won't be a problem. Oh, and I gave Mr. Castigliani the mechanical designs for the pieces we need for the dream sequence and he said he'd get his brother on them right away." "That's really good. One less spot to fill. So the plans are feasible then?" "Mr. Castigliani made a few modifications to the design but otherwise, yes. It shouldn't take long to rig up. I think we're doing very well. I'll print up the forms for auditions and I'll see you Seventh period. You better get going to homeroom," Mrs. Grainger said, motioning to the clock. Hunter blinked, not realizing the time. "Sure thing. This is going to be great, Annette. Have a good day. I'll see you later." Hunter grabbed his bag and headed out the door. Annette Grainger was surprised to hear a hesitant knock on her door and turned in her chair to gaze in surprise at a tall and lanky Aiden McKennough. "Yes?" she asked, not placing the face. "Umm," he began awkwardly, shuffling his feet. He had large feet, she noticed. "Hunter said I should ask you for a piece to sing for auditions tonight. For 'Fiddler on the Roof.' I want to try out for it." Annette smiled. "Oh, of course. I haven't seen you in chorus, have you sung before? What's your name, again?" "Aiden ^Ö Aiden McKennough. I was in chorus in elementary school, but nothing since then," he answered and stepped hesitantly into her office. "Well let's see what we can find for you. Why don't you sing me something so I can get a taste of your voice," she said and began to rifle through some musical scores. Aiden hesitated, trying to think of something to sing. A song popped into his head and he took a deep breath. He began to sing. The day passed quickly for Bastian. His excitement and nervousness about the upcoming auditions helped him breeze through his classes. Arkady remarked several times during the day on his happy mood, but Bastian just shrugged and renewed his bright smile. He even managed to pay attention (for the most part) in History class despite Aiden's light humming next to him. He was trying to memorize the song Mrs. Grainger had given him for the audition. Aiden wouldn't let Bastian see it and although Bastian recognized the melody, he couldn't identify the song Aiden hummed. Even gym class swam by swiftly. Bastian noticed Arkady seemed to be anticipating something as well. He too hummed a melody under his breath as he got dressed after the showers. Bastian zipped up his jeans, grabbed his backpack from the locker and hurried to the orchestra room to retrieve his violin. He wasn't sure if he'd be required to play or not, but he assumed he would. He'd been practicing the Fiddler's Solo from Fiddler on the Roof for the past few nights and was comfortable with it. The orchestra room was empty of students, it not being an orchestra day. Bastian also noticed the sign up list on the bulletin board was gone as well. He bent to retrieve his violin and almost bumped his head on the cubby when Mrs. Tolner said, "Good luck, today, Bastian. You're a fine violinist, though I won't admit to saying that." Her lips curled into the semblance of a smile. "Do well, I told her you would." With those final parting words, Mrs. Tolner disappeared into her office as quickly as she'd appeared. Bastian shouldered the violin case and made his way out of the orchestra room and into the auditorium. Bastian entered the auditorium and saw Aiden wave to him, motioning to the empty seat next to him. Bastian made his way over and sat down. The auditorium was packed full for the auditions. Bastian gazed around in awe at the number of people who were interested in the play. He sat there, his violin on his lap, running silently through the fingerings of his audition song. Aiden sat on his right, frantically running through his own song one more time. Bastian was surprised to see Arkady claiming a seat a few chairs away. There were several other faces he recognized in the audience. Harmony, Jen, and Alex, along with several other members of the orchestra whose names he did not know were crowded together in the back of the auditorium. A tall, slender woman and an attractive, impeccably dressed young man strode out onto the stage. She moved like a dancer, while he moved like one who knew how attractive he was. The auditorium burst into applause. The tall woman smiled and turned to the younger man. Bastian read her lips as she said, "And you were worried about turnout" to which the boy replied, "We're going to be here for a while." She nodded and addressed the room in a strong, well-trained voice. "Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I want to thank you all for coming to the auditions of 'Fiddler on the Roof'. For those of you who don't know us, I am Mrs. Grainger and this is the student director for 'Fiddler', Hunter Greene. Now, please bear with us. We are going to be handing out forms for you to fill out. Please fill out all that you can as quickly and as neatly as you can. Pay special attention to the roles you want to try out for, if you have one in mind. Any questions?" The room applauded again, but there were no questions. Hunter spoke up now. "Before we go too far and waste everyone's time, I want to tell you the rehearsal schedule. Stage parts will meet Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm and Sundays from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. The orchestra members will meet after 8th period on B Days from 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm. Additional rehearsals might be scheduled for major parts to work on your individual pieces, but these will be arranged after casting. If you don't think you can make at least 90% of these rehearsals, please reconsider trying out. I don't want to cast someone who can't show up for rehearsals. I realize this is a lot of rehearsals, but this is a complicated play, full of choreography, multiple scenes, tricky blocking, and a large cast. Again, if you can't make these times, I suggest you save yourselves and us some time and not audition. Any questions?" There were none. Bastian mentally checked his schedule and realized he shouldn't have any problems. He'd talk to his mom about it tonight when he got home and double-check. A few students shrugged, disappointed and left the auditorium, obviously not able to make the rigorous schedule. Mrs. Grainger and Hunter walked to opposite sides of the stage, each picking up a pile of paper. They commenced handing them out along the isles, and they were passed down the isles quickly. Bastian passed his to the girl on his left and began to look over and fill out the form. There was a list of the parts for the play with check boxes next to each one. Bastian checked 'Fiddler' and 'Orchestra' scrawled a hasty signature and was done with the form. By this time, Hunter was back up on the stage. Mrs. Grainger was waiting at the front row. Hunter called out in a pleasant voice that sounded like it was used to being obeyed. "Please pass your completed forms up to the front of the room where we will collect them. We'll take a few moments to organize the forms, and then we'll call you up for auditions. Will anyone who is not actually auditioning for a stage role, this includes orchestra members, stage hands, costumers, et cetera please sit in the left-hand section. Those in the left-hand section, please find seats in the other sections. Thank you." There was a shuffle of paper and people and soon Mrs. Grainger and Hunter Greene were efficiently sorting through papers. Despite the number of people, it only took 20 minutes or so for them to get organized. A stout, silver-haired woman, whom Mrs. Grainger identified as Ms. Zweifur, took a seat at the small piano and Mrs. Grainger and Hunter sat at a small table in front of the stage. "Ms. Zweifur will be accompanying you on the piano if the piece calls for it. On another note, it is my practice to have understudies for all major roles. These understudies may also be called on to perform in one of the series of performances we will hold so they will get a chance to play as well." Hunter added, "Without further ado, let's get the auditions on the road. Will Sebastian Blackmoore come up to the stage please?" Bastian was startled to be called on first, but Aiden patted him comfortingly on the knee and whispered good luck. Catcalls and cheers rose from the left-hand side, and Bastian acknowledged his orchestra friends with a smile. His violin cradled in one hand, he made his way up to the stage. On the way, he passed the sheet music for the piece he was going to play to Mrs. Grainger and Hunter. Both of them smiled widely and motioned for him to continue. Gathering his roiling emotions, Bastian made his way up the stairs and stood center stage. He assumed a comfortable but professional stance and began to play. He lost himself in the music after a few measures, only snapping out of it to end the song with a wink and a grin as he plucked the final note. He was surprised that they had let him play the entire solo, it was a long solo but was lost to the applause that filled the room. Mrs. Grainger and Hunter were whispering to each other, both smiling and nodding. Bastian bowed and made his way off the stage. "Ben Custern?" Hunter called out, and a tall, skinny boy walked up on the stage, his violin gripped tightly in white-knuckled hands. He looked nervous following such a performance and his eyes flickered to Bastian several times before he just closed them and began to play. Ben was a fine player, but Bastian knew he was better. There was no arrogance in his assessment; he just knew it to be true. Ben left the stage to a smattering of applause. There were no other Fiddlers called. One by one, names were called and Bastian cast roles in his mind as he heard them audition. Matt Werner, a husky bearded senior with a deep baritone voice was perfect for Tevye. In Bastian's opinion, Aiden did well singing "You've Lost That Loving' Feeling'" and could probably pull off Tevye or Lazar Wolfe. Mindy Christiansen, a plump, fierce-looking junior with a set of iron lungs blew everyone away with her rendition of "I Will Always Love You". When Arkady got up on stage and performed a traditional Romanian dance filled with impressive-looking acrobatic maneuvers, Bastian knew he would be the leader of the Russian Dancers. Bastian didn't have any other opinions on the other auditioners. He sincerely hoped that Aiden would get something in the show. When the last singer, a graceful Lori Downs singing and performing a short ballet routine, descended from the stage, Hunter scrubbed his face with his hand. He looked tired. Bastian checked his watch and was surprised to see it was close to 8 o'clock. Hunter stood up and addressed the room. "I'd like to thank everyone again for auditioning. Everyone was very talented and I'm sure we'll have a place for everyone. We will be posting the results of auditions on Monday outside of the auditorium on the bulletin boards. I realize it is slightly unusual not to have callbacks, but frankly, we don't have time. We will make the best choices we can, and if they don't work out, we'll change them early on in rehearsals." Mrs. Grainger continued Hunter's train of thought. "You guys were great tonight, and I'm really impressed with the talent we've seen. I look forward to seeing you all Monday night for the first rehearsal. Come ready to work. You can all go home now." Tiredly the students filed out of the auditorium, talking among themselves and wondering how they did in auditions. Bastian walked out with Aiden; both of them exhausted after the long day. Bastian paused outside the auditorium and messaged his mother that the auditions were over. A message shot back a few moments later, she was waiting outside and would take he and Aiden home. "How do you think I did Bastian?" Aiden asked, searching for some reassurance. Bastian gave him a thumbs-up and smiled tiredly. He grabbed his notepad and jotted down a quick note. I think you did great. How would you like to spend the night tonight? Think your mom would go for it? I can help you with your homework too. I know we haven't had a chance to study together recently, and I missing hangin'. Watcha think? Aiden read the note with heavy-lidded eyes and smiled. "I'd like that, Bastian. I'll give my mom a call. You want to double-check with your mom? I'll call her now. I'll meet you out front. Go ask your mom. It's probably better if you don't ask her with me standing there, she might feel pressured to answer yes, and I don't want her upset or anything." Bastian nodded in agreement and headed out towards his mom's car. Aiden moved to the phone and made a quick phone call home. "Hey Cassidy, is mom there? Yeah, the auditions went okay. Not sure how I did, but Bastian was awesome. Too bad you didn't get to see it. Thanks, Cass. Yeah, put Mom on. Thanks." He waited for his mom to come on the line. "Hey Mom. Yeah, auditions went okay. I might have even gotten a part, who knows. No, I don't need a ride home. I was wondering if I could spend the night at Bastian's tonight. He's checking with his mom now, if she says yes, can I? She'll bring me home if not. Great, thanks, Mom. I'll make sure she's okay with it. Love you too, Mom. Good night." With his mother's blessings, Aiden walked out of the school with a decidedly lighter heart. He saw Bastian signing to his mother at the bottom of the steps. Dozens of cars were lined along the drive with students getting into them. He waved to a few of them who recognized him and offered well wishes on their auditions as he approached the Blackmoores. Bastian turned and smiled at him as he approached, giving him another thumbs- up. Marjorie called out to him from the driver's side. "Of course you can, Aiden. You really don't need to ask, but I appreciate your asking. Hop in you guys its getting late. Have you two eaten yet?" Both of them realized they were starving at the mention of food, since neither had eaten since lunch. Aiden's stomach rumbled loudly and Marjorie laughed. "I figured as much. Growing boys. We'll stop at Denny's and get something to eat and then head home. Sound good?" Both boys nodded and she started up the car and maneuvered carefully onto the street. "Denny's here we come!" she said, laughing. _______________ To Be Continued.