Man, it's been a while, hasn't it? Almost two weeks. Yeah, well, I'll take the blame for that one, but there are a few things that I've been thinking about and I want to run them by you guys.

First, yes I realize my mistake. For those who don't know what I'm talking about, once upon a time I posted an update chapter to report on the progress of the story. While posting the last chapter, I off handedly deleted the 'Update' chapter, which made chapter 7 be repurposed as chapter 6 by default, and because this website doesn't allow you to leave more than one review per chapter, every one who had left a review on the previous chapter 6 (which was chapter 5) could no longer leave a review on the new chapter 6 (which was the real chapter 6). I acknowledge this mistake, and I can only offer you my most sincere apologies.

Second, the reason this chapter has taken so long to come out is for a couple of reasons. Yeah, work and school and all that is a big issue, but the main reason I haven't uploaded in a while is because I've been thinking about which direction to take this story. As of right now, I've come to a reasonable decision on how to pace it for the time being, as well as the impact the characters will have. Because of this, I am taking Cinder out of the summary. Don't worry, she's still going to be a major player in this, but I've come to the conclusion that her part isn't going to be as important or have as much time devoted to it as Ruby, Blake, or Sun's.

Third, I'm debating on changing the title of this story. Yes, I love it's current title and I really do admire my own cleverness in coming up with it, but I can't help but think that it gives off a skewed impression in comparison to what this story is actually about. It's a minor thing that shouldn't really bother me, but it does nonetheless. So, as a means of putting me at ease, I'd like your opinion on the matter. Should I change the title to something a little more fitting or just leave it as it is?

As always, all comments, negative and positive, are welcomed and I cannot wait to hear your feedback.

"I can't believe you broke the skateboard," Ruby said laughing.

Although it hadn't gone quite as planned, Blake could still say with reasonable assurity that the date had been a resounding success. Ruby was in fact a rather terrible skater, not being able to keep her balance on her own for more than a few seconds before she would spill over and send the board far off into a wall. With Blake's help, she was able to move at a relatively decent pace, and Blake was more than happy to lend her hand.

As time winded down, Ruby had decided she would be okay with simply sitting down watching Blake, who found the activity quite bit more entertaining than she would have ever imagined. She would experiment with how tightly she could turn as well as going up and down ramps, Ruby cheering her on the whole time. At some point, the book worm began feeling somewhat adventurous and attempted to grind down one of the rails.

Only for disaster to strike.

"I'm glad it was only a cheap novice board," Blake said. "I'd hate to have to pay for a broken skateboard that I'd never get to use."

After they had finished up and returned all the equipment, the two found themselves at their original destination, a modest pizza parlor that seemed to only have a few of the school staff as customers, something neither of them minded much.

"I'm impressed that you even went for it, though," Ruby commented as she bit down on her slice. "You're actually pretty good. Are you sure you've never skateboarded before?"

Blake nodded. "Never," she confirmed. "Never even thought about it. This was my first time doing something like that."

She smiled. "Wow. Yang would really like you. She loves that kind of stuff. The skating, the fast cars, the loud parties. One time, a cop pulled up next to her at a street light and she decided to race him." She laughed. "Imagine her surprise when the cop turned out to be our uncle!"

Blake gave her an amused expression. "She sounds like a handful."

"Oh, she definitely is," Ruby agreed. "But, she means well and she can actually be pretty thoughtful." She took another bite. "What about you? Are you missing your family at all?"

Blake sighed. "Everyday. My parents and I are really close," she explained. "My dad was actually against me coming here because he didn't like the idea of me being so far away. When he found out Sun was coming here with me, he just about had a heart attack."

Ruby giggled. "You talked about him before. What's Sun like?"

Blake propped her elbow on the table and rested her chin on her palm. "He's a goofball," she stated. "Loud, obnoxious, and he makes terrible jokes."

"Sounds like he would get along really well with my sister."

Blake smiled. "But, he was pretty much my first friend, and the only one that's stuck around. I'm not exactly a social butterfly. It took him years to get me to come out of my shell, and even now, I'm not so good at making friends."

Ruby arched an eyebrow. "You could've fooled me," she said. "From what I've seen, you're actually pretty charming."

Heat shot up to Blake's face. "O-Oh, really?"

"Absolutely," Ruby asserted. "I mean, look at you. You can skate, you've got pretty good fashion sense, and somehow, you're not a total highbrow. You're really nice and understanding, especially in my case. And when you stood up to Cardin last night..." She shooked her head. "I don't mean to be all sappy, but that really meant a lot to me. I still can't thank you enough."

The whole time, Blake was stuck staring at her hands as the fidgeted in her lap. She wanted to pull her beanie down over her entire face and hide out of embarrassment. She'd never gotten that kind of praise from anyone, save for Sun during his various proposals, and getting it from Ruby made Blake feel like she was dreaming.

"I told you," Blake mumbled, "it wasn't a problem. Friends stick up for each other." She shrugged her shoulders nervously. "You're really cool yourself, you know. You're pretty and nice, a-and... I'm really happy that you're my roommate." Sucking in a breath, Blake chose her next words carefully.

This is the moment.

"You know, I've been thinking that you're a really awesome person," she said, still staring down. "You're so happy and upbeat and the total opposite of me and I... I'm really glad that I met you and I was thinking that, maybe, we could go out sometime? You know, not as friends, but, like... Something more? That... Doesn't sound weird does it?"

She didn't get an answer.

"Ruby?" She asked, looking up only to see that the seat in front of her was empty. The chiming of a bell drew her attention to the door as she watched Ruby run out. Blake hastily threw two tens on the table and ran after the girl.

So, this is what it's like, huh?

As she exited the restaurant, she spotted her roommate running across the street with little regard towards a large, classical building with elegant grey stone designs and high arches lining the entire outer wall.

Blake quickly followed her. She watched as Ruby reached a black tinted glass door. She attempted to pry it open, but to no avail. After briefly scanning the area, she ran around the side of the building and down one of the alley. Cursing to herself, Blake went in after her. As she turned the corner, she watched as Ruby hopped off the top of a dumpster, grabbing onto the sill of an open window and pull herself in, disappearing inside.

For a moment, Blake was completely deflated, feeling like she'd been ditched, only for Ruby to lean outwards jsut a moment later. She locked eyes with the dark haired teen and waved frantically with one hand.

Blake rushed over and climbed on top of the dumpster. "What are you doing?" She demanded in a heated whisper.

In response, Ruby only put a finger to her lips and held out her hand. Reluctantly, Blake took it and she hulled up and through the small opening. She pushed herself up to a sitting position, then allowed herself to fall to the floor, which was only a few feet below her. The two were now on the second floor of the building, and Blake still had no idea what was going through her friends mind.

Then, she heard something. A combination of piano keys and bass beat.

"Theodosia writes me a letter every day."

Blake watched as Ruby lowered herself down into a crouch and sneakily made her way over to a balcony, of which was the source of the only light in the building that Blake could see.

"I'm keeping the bed warm while her husband is away."

Slowly, Blake followed Ruby's footsteps, making sure to be equally quiet, until they both reached a finely carved wooden rail. Ruby crept up, peaking over the top to see what was below.

"He's on the British side in Georgia. He's trying to keep the colonies in line."

Ruby seemed entirely entranced as she stared downwards. For a moment, Blake was equally distracted from simply staring at the wide eyed girl, taking in her expression of wonder and committing it to her permanent memory.

"But he can keep all of Georgia. Theodosia, she's mine."

Finally, curiosity got the better of her, and she peaked over the rail to see whatever it was that had captured Ruby's attention so fiercely.

Down below were about a dozen rows empty, red theater seats all curving around a single, glossy wooden stage. Standing right in the center of the stage, holding on to a mic stand was a dark skinned boy who looked to be about the same age as herself. He wore a dark fedora with a blue trim as well as a dark vest over a white dress shirt. Behind him was a line of five other kids of seemingly various ages, all of which had their own microphones.

"Love doesn't discriminate

Between the sinners and the saints

And it take and it takes and it takes."

The boys voice came out in a low harmonious tone that came out in rather soft, almost comforting hum. The beat closely resembled a dancehall reggae, and the boy slowly swayed and bounced to the rhythm as he sang.

"And we keep loving anyway

We laugh and we cry

And we break and we make our mistake."

His voice didn't echo like it should have. Though the theater was wide and should have support any and all reverberance, the boys voice still remained smooth and undeterred as it filled the entire structure. Blake watched as the singers behind the boy joined in.

"And if there's a reason I'm by her side

When so many have tried

Then I'm willing to wait for it

I'm willing to wait for it."

Though she sat in an uncomfortable crouch, hiding behind wooden railing, Blake found herself oddly engrossed in the performance as though she were sitting in the very first row. Though she didn't think about it, her eyes were glued to the boy and his entourage as their voices surrounded her, even making her forget that the two had snuck in through an open window and technically shouldn't have been there at all.

Blake never made a habit of breaking rules. In fact, more often than not, she made a point to follow regulations without question, as she found that simply doing as she was told was the quickest, most convenient way of proceeding through life, and though sneaking into a locked building had definitely rubbed her the wrong way, at the moment, she was simply too distracted to care. She would never be able to properly describe it, but something about watching and listening to their performance was captivating in way that nothing she'd ever experienced had ever been before.

"And if there's a reason

I'm still alive

When so many have died

Then I'm willing to wait for it."

The singers behind the boy repeated the final words after him, giving a vibrating effect to the line as their voices slowly drifted off into silence, their final note washing over the theater in a subtle yet powerful wave.

Blake watched in utter intrigue as they finished their act and congradulated each other on their performance. She revelled in silence at how incredible they had sounded, despite being live, a concept which never interested Blake before hand for fear of her favorite music groups sounding awful when not in a recording studio.

However, Ruby seemed to have other ideas, as she hopped to her feet released a loud cheer.

"Woo!" She cried, clapping her ecstatically.

All the performers turned around and looked up at the two girls, all of them giving the two a mix of confused and agitated glares. Desperately, Blake grabbed Ruby by the wrist and dragged her back over to the window where she quickly ushered her out. She listened for the sound of her landing on the dumpster lid before quickly following after her.

"Ruby," Blake whispered in exasperation, still hurrying to lead Ruby away from the building. "What were you thinking?" She asked, glancing over her shoulder nervously. "If we had gotten caught breaking into a building before classes even started, who knows what might've happened. We might have been suspended, or worse, expelled!"

"Did you see them?" Was Ruby's only reply.

Blake hesitated. "What?"

"They were amazing weren't they?!" She exclaimed. "I mean, they were all on stage and the sang together perfectly! And the kid, the one with the hat, he sounded incredible, didn't he?"

Blake stared at the girl for a moment, still unsure of what to say. But, after only a few seconds of staring into those marvelous silver irises, Blake resigned herself, knowing she'd never be able to stay angry at the girl. "Yes," she said with a sigh. "They were pretty good."

"Pretty good?" She repeated. "They were unbelievable!" She hugged herself in excitement, twisting and turning uncontrollably. "I bet you they're auditioning for the talent show this Friday! They have to be! Oh I can't wait to see them live!"

"Ruby," Blake said, attempting to calm the girl. "Let's talk about this back at the dorm, yeah? You kind of got spotted by one of the singers."

Ruby nodded, and the two ran off back to their dorms.

Blake was a relatively level headed person who could maintain her composure in most situations. Her hobbies were primarily limited to reading and writing which provided her with enough entertainment to fill most of her free time. The literary culture, however, did not leave much room for excitement. The most excitement Blake could ever recall feeling was whenever the next installment of a series she was interested had been announced or released.

Though she would never describe herself as impassionate, in fact, she was very much the opposite, she couldn't really recall a moment where she was able to just expound about a certain topic she found interesting. She could vaguely remember having the urge to talk about upcoming novels she was looking forward to or new authors she would discover, but perhaps the reason she could never truly indulge herself as ardently as she wished because she never really had anyone to whom she could indulged hersel with.

But, had she someone who could honestly relate to her and listen to her, Blake supposed she would have sounded very similar to how Ruby was sounding right now.

"Did you see that place! I thought the theater was in the Arts building!" She exclaimed. "What song was that? I've never heard it before! Where do you think they got the music from? Are they apart of the same music group? What if they're all independents who just decided to work together for this?"

Blake held a pleasant smile as she watched the girl's rampant gesticulations and listened to her wistful voice.

"Oh, wonder what that boy's name is," she pondered out loud, leaning against the kitchen counter. "I wonder what grade he's in."

Blake, who had found a seat at the bar, rested her chin on her fist as she leaned forwards, staying tuned in for every word that came out of the girls mouth. "Well, he certainly was talented," she agreed. "I wouldn't be surprised if he was a senior. Maybe next time we could wait until the theater is actually open to ask him."

Ruby rubbed the back of her neck and laughed nervously. "Yeah, sorry about dragging you in there. I didn't ask if you would be comfortable doing something like that."

Blake waved a hand. "Nonsense," she said. "It was fun. To be honest, I never have done something like that, sneaking into places and such."

"Well, they say college is your chance to experiment and explore," Ruby stated. "It's always good to try out new things."

"Perhaps," she replied. "But, maybe we should stick to trying out things that wouldn't get us kicked out of school. You know, just to be on the safe side."

Ruby smiled, clearly taking Blake's suggestion as a joke, which is exactly how Blake intended for it to come out. The fact that she didn't actually take it seriously actually eased Blake's worries even more.

All her life, one of the biggest problems Blake had when it came to socializing was coming off a bit too stand-offish. Having read many, many different books at such a young age, her only reference when it came to real life conversations were those of which she read in her novels, which usually centered around colorful, witty and sarcastic characters that, had they existed in real life, would be considered to be more rude than clever.

And that is exactly how Blake usually came off whenever she had tried to fit into a casual conversation. She had a bad habit making entirely rhetorical remarks that weren't meant to be taken seriously, but due to her rather humorless image, most of her classmates wouldn't know that, and Blake would only end up making everyone uncomfortable. Thus, she learned to keep her mouth shut lest she make the situation awkward, a lesson which, unfortunately, led to her being even more antisocial.

However, seeing Ruby smile at her remark was very much reassuring, letting her know that she, around her roommate, she wouldn't have to constantly keep watch over what she said and didn't say for fear of offending her.

"Don't be a scrooge," Ruby said, leaning over the bar as well. "We wouldn't have gotten kicked out even if we were caught. It's only the first week, and we would have gotten off with a warning."

Blake shrugged. "Still, it was quite a risk to take just to see a couple of students singing a song on stage."

"But they weren't just students," Ruby insisted. "Did you see their outfits? And their stage placements? That was planned! It was an actual, real performance!"

"And?" She asked. "Have you... Never seen a performance before?"

She put a hand on her hip. "Of course I've seen a performance!" She exclaimed. "Just because I was poor doesn't mean I've never had the chance to see some more classy entertainment." She turned around and crossed her arms, closing her eyes in silent contemplation. "Hey, Blake."

"Hmm?"

"You said I can trust you right? And you wouldn't judge me?"

Blake sat up straight. "Of course," she said seriously. "I would never judge you for anything."

Ruby hopped up on the bar and began swinging her legs mindlessly. "Remember when I told you about my two majors?"

"Business and hotel management," Blake said, not skipping a beat.

Ruby smiled. "Yeah, I might have... Lied about those."

Blake furrowed her brow. "About your majors? Why would you lie about those?"

She held her arm and looked away. "Well, because my real majors are a little... Childish," she explained.

"What are they really?" Blake asked, perplexed by Ruby's attitude.

She hesitated, and lowered her head, and in a quiet voice, murmured, "Music and theatre."

Blake tilted her head. "Music and theatre?" She repeated. "Like, Broadway stuff?"

Ruby spun around, her expression determined. "Yes!" She blurted. "Exactly like Broadway!" She let out a soft sigh. "I've always wanted to be a Broadway actress. I remember my mom taking me to see all kinds of plays when I was little. And it was... It was just amazing! All these stories about redemption and love and heroes and villains, and what's more, they since and dance them! The amount of skill and talent it takes to perform just a half hour play is ridiculous! On top of that, the time and effort it takes to choreograph and practice and perfect is unlike anything else in the world! And I... I would do anything to be on that stage."

Blake watched the girl closely. She spoke with such conviction, like this idea of her performing on the stage had been implanted in her mind the very day she was born. She didn't talk about it like it was some unachievable dream, but more like it was a far away destination that was taking way too long to reach.

She turned to Blake, weariness clear on her face. "That's not... Childish, is it?"

Blake smiled. "Of course not," she said. "It's not anymore childish than anyone else's reason for coming to this school. But... Can you sing?"

Ruby folded her hands in her lap. "I can. Well, I do. When I'm alone. I've never sang in front of anyone."

"You should," Blake stated, causing Ruby turn turned to her and meet the raven haired teen's eyes. "I would love to hear you sing," she proclaimed.

For a moment, Ruby simply stared at her. Then, a wide smile spread over her face. "Thank you. I think I will. Sometime."

So, not gonna lie, some of you may noticed a few things. Yes, certain events seemed a bit rushed and even forced, I will be the first to admit that this was partly due to my own mistakes. After not having uploaded in nearly two weeks, I was in a rush to get this chapter out and typed it up in the span of only a few hours. If there are any inconsistencies, feel free to let me know in a review. Thank you so much for reading!