Chapter 31

"Oh, Chloe!" squealed her mother, who pulled her into an exuberant embrace the moment her daughter walked in the door.

"Nancy," gasped Chloe, as her mother was quickly cutting off circulation to the lower half of her body. Her mind was still haunted by the downtrodden Andrew and the memories that today's events had evoked. "What's gotten into you?"

Her mother squealed again and dragged her into the living room. There on the coffee table was a thick packet. "This arrived in the mail today for you."

Chloe approached with apprehension, finally allowing herself to look at the sender's address. Her mouth dropped open. "Juilliard," she whispered. She turned back to Nancy, who was on the verge of tears. "Is it…?"

"Go head, honey," urged her mother, "Open it."

Mother and daughter carefully sat down on the designer couch. It seemed the world stood still, as Chloe reached for that heavy oversized envelope. The seal she gingerly lifted, so as to not so much as startle the contents. She pulled out the letterhead parchment along with a booklet.

Taking a preparatory breath before she let her eyes focus on the perfectly typewritten text, she read, "Dear Ms. Lane," cleared her throat, and continued reading, "We would like to congratulate you on your acceptance to the Juilliard School…" Her voice trailed off, her mouth agape, and looked to her mother. Her mother looked at her.

They screamed.

Neither knew who hugged whom first. It didn't matter.

"Oh, honey, I never had a doubt," blubbered her mother in elation, "I'm so proud of you."

Chloe closed her eyes. Juilliard. The premier school in fine and performing art. New York City. The Met. Her dreams were really coming true. She was on her way. She pulled back, laughing with unadulterated happiness. "Oh, God. I have to tell Philip!"

Her mother's smile faltered.

Seeing this reaction, Chloe covered her hand with hers, much like Philip often did. "Please…" For some elusive reason, her parents' disapproval of him bothered her.

Nancy saw that rare entreaty in her daughter's eyes. Her heart broke. She cupped Chloe's cheek and offered a weak smile. "Go ahead, honey." She watched, as Chloe crossed the room to the phone and excitedly dialed the number.

"Hello, Philip? It's Chloe. I got in! To Juilliard! I got the letter today… That's what my mother just said, but… Oh, Philip…"

From the couch, Nancy sighed with a heavy heart. Her baby, she thought. Her daughter was so different compared to when they first brought her home from the orphanage. Now, her God-given gifts were recognized and would be nurtured, as they deserved to be. Finally after so many tears, Chloe was happy. She watched her daughter giggle and blush. So very happy. But Juilliard was only part of the reason. Her mother sighed once more. She and Craig could no longer deny it. Her baby was in love.

"Oh, Chloe!" Belle hugged her friend jubilantly. "We knew you'd get in for sure."

On cloud nine, Chloe smiled. "Thanks."

"Hey, guys," greeted Mimi with her morning books clutched to her chest, "What's going on?"

"Chloe got into Juilliard. Isn't it great?" piped Belle.

"Congratulations, Chloe," smiled Mimi as brightly as she could manage and went in for a hug. She was happy for her friend, really she was. It just didn't make yesterday's rejection letter from Tulane any easier to swallow. It'll be ok, Meems. It'll be ok, that little optimistic Belle voice inside her said. Just hang in there.

"Hey, ladies." Jason, Philip, and Shawn swaggered up, forming Salem High's most popular circle.

Philip broke away to hug his girlfriend. "Hey, beautiful." Then, he pulled back and with a magician's flair presented a freshly picked daisy from the Kiriakis greenhouse. "Congratulations."

Unexpectedly teary-eyed, she accepted the flower and pulled him into another hug. "Thank you." It was like a dream. Friends. Juilliard. And Philip. Who would've guessed things could be so perfect?

It was no use, Mimi groaned later in her private corner in the library. Full dress rehearsals started next week. The words before her might as well have been hieroglyphics for all the sense she could draw from them. Doomed. She was positively, unquestionably doomed.

She shook herself, taking a calming breath. Come on, Meems. You can do this. You can do this, she chanted to herself. She looked back down at the script.

"'As strange as the thing I know not,'" she read at a whisper, for plays were best read aloud, "'It were as possible for me to say, I loved nothing so well as you… but believe me not… and yet I lie not… I confess nothing, nor I deny nothing…'"

Ok. What the heck did she just read? She gave a dejected whine and let her forehead drop onto the script with a thump. Over and over again.

"That's certainly one way to connect with Shakespeare," commented Chloe with a cocked brow. She was using her Study Hall period to get a head start on her homework, which was somewhat of a challenge with a devastating set of dimples constantly finding ways of distracting her from across the library table. Her boyfriend shared only two courses with her, and in each he never failed to lead her attention teasingly astray. So, she escaped those wandering hands to find a journal article for AP Literature. And found a Mimi in distress.

She scooted into the seat beside her woebegone friend and scanned the page. "Oh, one of my favorite parts. Benedick, who'd sworn he'd die a bachelor, professes his love to Beatrice, who'd also scorned love but can't deny her feelings for Benedick. This is where they finally get to know each other beyond the trading of insults and bare their souls."

Frustrated, Mimi's hands clutched her own skull. "Ok. How did you get all of that from what I just read?"

"Well, first I've seen 'Much Ado' performed, so that makes a difference. But Shakespeare is like anything. You get better with practice. You understand it through hearing and reading it often enough." She pointed to the passage, which Mimi just read. "Take this for instance. 'As strange as… it were as possible for me to say, I love nothing so well as you.' She's saying that yes, what was happening between her and Benedick was a surprise and not the easiest idea to accept for either of them, but she really loves him."

"Wow. That's so sweet…" admitted Mimi, looking at the words in a new light. "Now, if you could just explain the rest of this play to me… Hey, wait." She turned back to Chloe with renewed hope. "Could you? Like could you help me out with translating the rest of this stuff, I mean?"

Chloe's eyes widened in surprise. What a request from someone, who once plotted her demise. "I-"

"Hey, ladies," greeted Jason, who flopped down on the seat across from them. He was enjoying an extended bathroom break from Psychology. Who knew psych was all about eyeballs and dudes with big cigars? "What's up?"

"Just helping Mimi get acquainted with Shakespeare," explained Chloe.

"Oh, yeah?" His chair leaned so that it balanced on its back legs. "How much you got to go?"

"Act IV and Act V," huffed Mimi, "I'm lucky the other characters get pretty big parts. That means less to memorize for me."

"But Beatrice has some of the best lines," assured Chloe, "She's so spirited and clever. I'd have to say that she's my favorite in the play. What do you think, Jason?"

He shrugged. "I guess."

Mimi gave an unladylike snort. "I think Beatrice might be a little too clever for Jason."

He replied with another shrug, communicating he could care less.

Chloe looked from Jason to Mimi. Was it her imagination or… Then, she smiled, as an idea bloomed in her head. "You know who else I just love in this play? Claudio," she proclaimed, her eyes ever watchful of Jason's reaction. "He's so sweet and so in love with Hero. Love at first sight. He's every girl's dream. So gallant and brave." Ok, maybe that was laying it on kind of thick, but she watched, as Jason's eyebrows furrowed. "Claudio would do anything for his beloved-"

"Yeah," scoffed Jason, "Like believe some creep and say in front of the whole freaking town that she slept with some other guy and dump her at the alter. What a dumb shit."

Chloe's lips twitched but controlled her neutral expression. "But he was tricked and too young to know any better. In the end, he made it up to her, though.'

Jason rolled his eyes. Jesus, were chicks really this gullible? "Yeah, after he heard she died and everyone and their mother proved that the girl was innocent. Too little too late, buddy. Benedick should've gone ahead and beat the crap out of him."

"Ok, then," said Chloe, hiding her grin, "Who's your favorite character then?"

"Dogberry. Hands down," sniffed Jason with a confident, patronizing air.

"The clueless police type guy?" asked Mimi now with surprise. Not only did this boy know the plot development, but also named a relatively small character in the play as his favorite. Of course, he'd recited a line verbatim yesterday…

"Yeah," he answered, "'O that he were here to write me down-an ass!-but, masters, remember, that I am an ass; though it be not written down, yet forget not that I am an ass.'" He grinned now with the scene visualized in his head. "My man Dogberry had me rolling."

Mimi exchanged a look with Chloe, who only shrugged and smiled.

Chloe looked down at the script once more. "'As strange as the thing I know not. It were as possible for me to say, I loved nothing so well as you: but believe me not; and yet I lie not; I confess nothing, nor I deny nothing…' What do you suppose that means, Jason?"

Comfortable as established expert, Jason shrugged, "Beatrice is agreeing with Benedick that loving each other is crazy and she's already pretty bummed about what happened to her cousin Hero, but Beatrice ends up admitting that she loves Benedick."

"You know what?" smiled Chloe, springing the trap, "Mimi needs some help learning her lines. You and I could both help her."

His chair fell forward abruptly. "Huh?"

Mimi stuttered, "What?"

"You obviously know the play pretty well, and Mimi just needs to get used to the language. Jason can read the guy's lines to help you get into character and I'll help you with the other girl lines. We could meet up after school."

"Uh…" He was stumped. Wait. How the hell did this happen? What would people think, if this got around? Salem High star linebacker, as Shakespearean nerd. "Uh, I dunno…"

Mimi added, "Plus, Brian could help me out, too-"

"Uh, I got some time after practice," inserted Jason.

"That'd be great," smiled Chloe, "Besides, Brian has his own stuff and Krista now. So, when should be meet? Opening night's only a couple of weeks away, so we should start tonight. Say about 7? At Mimi's house? I think that'd be best." Chloe didn't think that she'd talked so fast in her life. "Oops, look at the time," she said, glancing at her bare wrist, "I'd better get that article and check on Philip. See you guys later."

Jason and Mimi watched her zip away then turned to look at each other with apprehensive eyes.

Coveted academic journal in hand, Chloe headed back over toward the study area. She hoped that with a subtle push, Mimi and Jason would get a chance to get to know each other better. After everything that had happened, they deserved a chance to build some new history, whether that be in friendship or otherwise. After all, if two unique creatures such as Philip and Chloe could find bliss with each other, then anything was possible.

Speaking of Mr. Kiriakis, she grinned, when she spotted him diagonally across the room, those blond streaks ruffled by frustration and his pencil chewed nearly to the quick. The latest Calculus formulas obviously were giving him a hard time. She shook her head. He didn't give himself enough credit. His standing now was a strong "B+" in the class, after coming from a "C-" in Precalculus. He always had it in him, but he'd never found the right motivation. Well, she supposed with a secret smile, she'd have to continue to show him just how rewarding scholarship and diligence could be.

Hoping to sneak up behind him, she began quiet steps along the carpet, when she noticed a head of short curly brown hair peeking from low behind the rear bookcase. As she neared, she saw Andrew sitting on the floor with his back to the wall between two bookcases. Not waiting to be acknowledged or invited, she plopped down on the floor across from him.

"Hello, Andrew." Chloe remembered that Belle had approached her just this way that first fateful day.

He looked up from his textbook with dull, wary eyes. "Hello." His right eye and nose were still a bit swollen and purple.

Raising her brows in affable curiosity, she asked, "So, what are you reading?"

He looked back down at his book and back up at her. "Just class stuff."

"Really?" she said in a soft whisper, when the meek librarian passed by with a cart of returned books. "What subject?" She leaned over to take a look at the words and spotted the sheets of written stationary, tucked into the book's open fold. The edges were smudged and wrinkled, indicating they'd been read countless times. She'd managed to read, "Dear Andy," in innocent feminine script, before he quickly closed the book, hiding the letter.

His posture in constant defense, he clutched the book to his chest.

She gave an encouraging smile. "I guess you miss her a lot, huh?"

He looked down at his old hightops. The laces were now gray and fringed. The leather was so worn that one could see the clear outline of toes. He'd had them for a year and a half, but couldn't throw them away.

Chloe waited then asked, "Does she live very far away?"

"Virginia," he replied softly. His eyes looked blankly down at his shoes.

"Is that where you used to live?"

He rubbed the back of his hand across his nose, before he nodded. If he closed his eyes, he could almost smell that sweet Shenandoah air, taste those fresh caramel apples, and see her smiling from her front porch. Home. In this cold and cruel reality, home seemed like some intangible mist on dream's wings.

"When was the last time you saw her?"

"Winter break… I stayed with her family… they're really nice." His grip lessened on the book now, so he could run a finger along the binding.

"Tell me about them," she said softly, honing in on something he liked and seemed desperate to talk about.

"They live across the ways from my house… Annie and I grew up together… and her family would take care of me… when my mom and dad weren't around. They have this big fat barn cat," he smiled for the first time, since Chloe had met him, "He brought home a big old raccoon once. Got kinda put out, when Annie screamed and wouldn't pet him. I pet him though, so he knew he was a good cat." He tugged on a loose fiber in the carpet. "Then, my mom and dad split and my dad got a job in Salem. So, I had to move here with him." That precious, rare light in his eyes died again.

"It's good that you still keep in touch with her." Her heart went out to him. She hadn't wanted to come to Salem either. And the name-calling and endless pranks only made her build the walls thicker. But she'd never had a home or anyone special to miss. She'd grown accustomed to having to fend for herself with absolutely no faith in anyone else to support her. Obviously, Annie and her family had been very important to him. "I know it's been rough for you."

He managed a broken shrug. The bullying was nothing new. Being as small and scrawny as he was, he'd always been easy prey for the bullies, even in Virginia. They'd called him names, like dork and fag, beat him up, and stolen his bike, just like here. But at home, he'd had Annie and her family to go to. To cry. To heal.

Now, he was all alone.

Chloe reached out and covered his hand with hers. "It'll be alright. It just takes time, that's all."

His lips trembled, as the tears formed. His weakness shamed him. "I'm not like you," he said in despair. He withdrew his hand and scrambled to standing.

Chloe rose, as well. "Andrew-"

The lunchtime bell rang.

Without another word, he turned and hurried away, clutching the book to his heart.

"Hey." With the gentle crook of his finger, Philip lifted her face to meet his. "What're you thinking about?"

Chloe gave a helpless sigh. How could she explain it to him? The encounter with Andrew in the library had really struck a cord in her. Andrew was living her hell, when she first arrived in Salem. If only she could help him in some way.

She looked back into those deep blue eyes, filled now with concern. She'd met Philip at his house to have dinner after choir and baseball. His parents, as usual, were out of town on business, so it'd been a quaint dinner with the servants in the kitchens. If truth were told, she preferred those easygoing dinners to the more formal ones with his parents in the dining room. Now, they sat on Philip's bed, while he tossed around his football and chatted about Bandit's first race next month.

Her Philip, she thought. So sweet and without a care in the world, it seemed.

He caressed her jawline. She'd seemed so happy today, after she'd gotten her acceptance letter. "You were pretty quiet at dinner. Is everything alright?"

Looking for solace and knowing exactly where to find it, she drew closer to rest her cheek against his heart. "I'm ok. But I met this guy…"

His brows furrowed, leashing his knee-jerk jealous response. "Ok…"

"He's new in school and he gets picked on all the time… like I was… He seems like a really nice guy, but the kids are being so mean to him. I just… just…"

"Feel bad for him?" supplied Philip.

Chloe sighed once more. "Yeah. I know what he's going through. But here I am. I have you and friends and now Juilliard, but I… I feel…"

"A little guilty?" he finished, stroking her hair.

She closed her eyes. "Yeah. I just remember how Belle was so nice to me, then there was Shawn, and then there was you." She smiled a little, when his arms tightened around her. "So, I guess I wasn't ever totally alone. But I have a feeling that this guy is."

"He doesn't have any friends?"

"I don't know. If he does, they aren't working." She took comfort in running a hand along his side and back. "I'm worried for him. I guess I want to help him, you know, get on his feet."

"Then, this guy's pretty lucky to have my angel looking out for him," he murmured with a loving kiss to her forehead.

She smiled. He was so sweet. She pulled back to look into his eyes. "No, I think I'm the lucky one." His lips curved against hers, as her arms came around him and she gave herself to the kiss.

Lavender intermingled with a scent that was distinctly Chloe and permeated his brain. He groaned and he leaned back onto his bed, pulling her on top of him. The kiss turned feverish. God, what a body she had. He praised nature for conceiving something so lovely and so absolutely sexy, while his hands coursed under her snug cotton shirt to the staggering feel of skin beneath.

When his lips blazed a path down her neck and his hands shifted to remove her top, she gasped. "Philip," she said breathlessly, "We shouldn't… I promised Mimi I'd help her-" The room tilted, when he pressed her intimately against him. "I-I'm supposed to meet…" Whom? God, how was she supposed to think? "…J-Jason and Mimi for the play." Her muscles wouldn't obey, when she tried to stop his roving hands.

He flipped over, so he could gaze down upon her. "I think," he said, after taking a breath, "They'll be just fine on their own," dimples winking, "Jason knows his stuff."

Chloe chuckled, despite her body's chaotic state, "Yeah, that's what Mimi's afraid of."

He grinned, situating himself comfortably over those amazing curves and valleys. "I think, we should just let nature take its course. On both counts."

"Philip Kiriakis…" she chided with little conviction. Then, she couldn't think at all, when his lips descended on hers.

"I wonder where Chloe is," thought Mimi aloud.

Jason shrugged and appeared perfectly cozy on the sofa in her family's living room. The curtains looked even prettier from the inside, he thought absently to himself. The script was open on the coffee table, all ready to go. Meanwhile, Mimi stood by the window, keeping a lookout for their friend, who was now thirty-five minutes late.

"Maybe I should call her house," said Mimi.

"Phil told me that they'd be having supper at his house, so you could try there. But," he grinned, "We wouldn't want to interrupt anything, would we?"

"Jason, you are so…" she growled.

"Look, we're both here already and we each still got our own homework to do. By the time Chloe makes it, it'll be about time to go home. So, why don't we just get started?"

Mimi bit down on her lip in doubt, but she had to admit, superjock had a point. So, she made her way over to sit down on the sofa, establishing a full two feet of distance between them.

Jason looked over at her with a mocking expression. "What? You afraid of me or something?"

"As if," she sniffed, relinquishing a couple of inches to make her point.

His brows rose high and he let out a long breath. "Ok…" Then, he hunched forward to see the script. "Where do you want to start?"

"Oh, Shawn," squealed Belle the next morning, before she jumped into his arms. "I'm so proud of you!"

Shawn smiled, "Likewise, Perfect Girl."

"Hey, guys," said Mimi, "What's up?"

"Shawn and I both got into Salem U.!" Belle hugged her friend in joy.

Mimi sighed and found a smile for her friends. "That's so great for both of you. Congratulations."

"What's all the hubbub?" asked Philip, who approached with his arm around Chloe.

"College is a go, man," grinned Shawn.

"Dude!" exclaimed Jason, who'd just arrived, "That's awesome!"

"Awesome, bro," Philip conveyed his congratulations to his friends, as well. He was happy for them, really he was. Even though he'd gotten his first rejection letter from Columbia last night, after he'd come back from walking Chloe home. He took a silent breath. He'd deal with it later. Oh God, what would he do, if…

"So, Belle," began Mimi, "Now, it's California or here. How're you going to choose?"

Shawn's expression was veiled, while everyone waited for her response.

"Well," shrugged Belle guilelessly, "I guess I'll have to see about all the other schools first. Then, I'll visit the campuses and we'll go from there."

"Cool," nodded Mimi. Then, she turned to Chloe. "Hey, you were supposed to come over. What happened to you yesterday?"

Philip had to grin, while Chloe fought a blush.

"I-I'm sorry, Mimi-"

"Lady Beatrice," declared Brian from stage right, "I do love nothing in the world so well as you; is not that strange?"

Mimi smiled and replied, "As strange as the thing I know not. It were as possible for me to say, I loved nothing so well as you: but believe me not; and yet I lie not; I confess nothing, nor I deny nothing."

Brian let a slow grin spread across his face. "By my sword, Beatrice, thou lovest me."

Beatrice frowned, "Do not swear by it, and eat it."

With a triumphant grin, Benedick took her hands in his, "I will swear by it, that you love me; and I will make him eat it, that says, I love not you."

Beatrice looked at their joined hands. "Will you not eat your word?"

"With no sauce that can be devised to it: I protest, I love thee."

She looked soulfully into his eyes. "You have stayed me in a happy hour; I was about to protest-I loved you."

His eyes twinkled in glee. "And do it with all thy heart."

"I love you with so much of my heart," she said raising a hand to his cheek, "That none is left to protest."

"Oh, Mimi," squeaked Belle with tears running down her cheeks. "That was so romantic."

Even the boys had to grin.

"Wow, Mimi," said Brian, shaking loose from his role, "You really got those lines down. We'll be rocking opening night for sure."

The warning bell rang.

"I'll see you at rehearsal, ok?" Brian waved in farewell and headed for class.

"Bravo, Mimi," smiled Chloe, taking an insinuating look at Jason.

"We'd better get to class, guys," said Philip, swinging an arm over Chloe's shoulders and led everyone toward American History.

Followed behind them were Shawn and teary-eyed Belle. Finally, Mimi filed in behind them into the classroom and took her usual seat in the unassuming center of class. A moment later came a tap to her shoulder. She turned to see Jason had opted not to sit with the jocks today. When he held up a hand and grinned, she grinned right back and gave him a high five.

The final bell rang.

"Ok, people," proclaimed Mr. Woods from the front of the room, "Class is in session. Now, yesterday, we talked about the Civil Rights Movement-"

A loud, explosive sound jolted the class. Firecrackers? Bang. Bang bang bang. Hysterical screams came from the halls, as shots rang out.

"Oh my God, what was that?" exclaimed Mimi.

Her classmates gasped and murmured around her.

"Settle down, students. Settle down now," instructed their teacher, "I'm sure the neighboring class is watching a video today. Just remain in your seats, while I check."

Mr. Woods was walking around toward the door, when it flung open.

Bang bang bang. The sounds pierced the air, echoing off the walls. Students screamed, as bodies hit the floor.

Gasping for breath, Chloe looked up from under Philip, who had quickly jumped across to pull her to the ground and cover her with his body. Her eyes darted to and fro in shock and confusion. What was happening? her mind screamed.

"Chloe," Philip's voice rumbled from his chest, "Stay down."

She nodded without comprehension. All her classmates were huddled on the floor, some crying, some whimpering, some not moving at all. Puddles of red formed across the linoleum floors. She finally forced her eyes to look up and saw the gun. The light bounced off it, like a jewel. Then, her eyes followed down the barrel to the trigger to the hand down the arm and up to the face.

"Andrew," she whispered.