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When we were back in the car, on the highway, heading home, I decided to bring up what had happened with Joanne.

“Orlando, Joanne had bruises on her,” I said quietly, looking down at my hands.

“I know, love, I saw them,” he said, gently rubbing my knee.

“He’s getting more careless,” I said, more to myself than to him.

“Excuse me?”

“Ramsey,” I said, not sure how to tell him what I was thinking. I’d never really gone into specifics with him as to what had happened with Ramsey, but I knew he deserved to know. “He doesn’t usually hit where anyone can see.” I looked over at him, tears welling in my eyes.

“Charlie, what are you saying?” Orlando said, his hand tightening on my leg. “You said he manhandled you, I know, but did he really beat you?”

I nodded slowly. “A couple times, yes,” I said softly. “The first time, he was drunk, and I didn’t get him another beer fast enough. He, uh, he got me down on the floor and started beating on my back with his fists.” I stopped and took a deep breath. I knew it wasn’t my fault, but it still hurt to talk about it. “I was bruised for about two weeks.”

“Oh my God, Charlie,” Orlando sighed, taking my hand as he drove. “I’m sorry.”

I smiled as tears began to trickle down my face. “Oh, I’m not done yet,” I said, shaking my head. “After the first time, he didn’t do it again for a couple months, and I thought he wouldn’t. I stopped seeing so much of him, and I made sure I wasn’t around when he was drinking. The second time he did it was when I broke up with him. I’d found out he was cheating on me with Joanne, and I confronted him about it, more out of wounded pride than anything. It wasn’t like I really wanted to be with him still, it just hurt that he could cheat on me.”

“And he didn’t take the news well?”

“No, not at all.” I sniffed back more tears. “He wasn’t drunk and he still beat me, this time my sides and stomach, and my legs. Thank God it was still winter, and I could bundle up in long pants and sweaters, because I was black and blue for quite awhile after that. But I stuck to what I’d said, and I didn’t go out with him again. He just started showing up, like he did that first night at my apartment, and, well, you know the rest.”

“I don’t know what to say,” Orlando said, his hand clenching and unclenching on the steering wheel.

“You don’t have to say anything,” I said, squeezing his other hand. “I just thought it was time you knew, and I didn’t want to keep anything from you.”

“I’m glad you told me,” he said, glancing over at me. His eyes glistened. “The good thing is that you got away from him, love, we have to be thankful for that.”

“I just wish Joanne could do the same,” I said softly. “I just hope the police find him, so that he won’t hurt anyone else, at least for awhile.”

“I’m sure they’ll catch him soon,” Orlando said, a gentle smile on his lips. I reached over and stroked his cheek lightly as he drove. “Believe me, darling, I’ll never hurt you like he did. You know that, don’t you?”

“Of course,” I said, running my hand down his arm. “You’re the total opposite of what he is, and I couldn’t be
happier about that.”

I sat back in my seat and watched Orlando as he maneuvered the car through the traffic on the highway. Aunt Tess was the only other person who knew how badly Ramsey had beaten me, and I was glad I could trust Orlando enough to tell him. I hadn’t told my dad, simply because he wouldn’t have handled it well, but I planned to tell him at some point. But for now, Orlando knew and he loved me in a way I’d never known, and that’s all that mattered.

We went back to my apartment to meet Aunt Tess and Dad, so we could do some more cleaning. It was strange to see Orlando on his hands and knees with us, scrubbing and sweeping. But he never complained. It wasn’t the ideal way to spend our last bit of time together, but at least he and my dad were get-ting along again. We fell into bed exhausted that night, but we were definitely not too tired for each other, and it seemed like our coming separation made this night even more passionate than the last.

The morning before we had to leave dawned with a feeling of dread. I rolled over to look at the clock, and saw that it was just after seven. I leaned down and kissed Orlando as he slept, pulled on my robe, and went to get some coffee. I ran into Deanna in the hallway, and we went downstairs to the kitchen, me for my coffee, her for a bowl of cereal.

“Don’t let Uncle Paul know you’re sharing a room with Orlando,” Dee said as she ate.

“I’m pretty sure he already knows,” I said, nursing my coffee. “He’s not happy about it, but he knows.”

“Of course he’s not happy,” she said, rolling her eyes and smirking. “His daughter is sharing a room with someone as hot as Orlando. I wouldn’t be happy either.”

I laughed, surprised. “You’re older than we give you credit for,” I said, fighting the urge to tousle her hair.

“I’m not dumb,” she said, stirring her cereal with her spoon. “But you’d be crazy to not spend the night with him if he wants you to.” She grinned.

I laughed again. “That’s true,” I said. “But we’re leaving tomorrow, kiddo.”

“I know,” she said. “You’re going to miss him, aren’t you?”

I nodded. I hated thinking about it, but the time was approaching when I wouldn’t have a choice anymore.

“Do you love him?”

I’d been asking myself that for the past few days, since he’d said he loved me. I couldn’t quite make the rational part of my brain be quiet, though, when it told me it was too soon, so I hadn’t really decided.

“I’m not sure, sweetie,” I said, toying with my coffee cup.

“Does he love you?”

“He does,” I said, unable to keep from smiling.

“He told you?”

“Yes.”

“Then why don’t you love him?” She was staring at me like I’d lost it. “If Orlando Bloom said he loved me, I’d
die.”

I chuckled. “It’s not that simple, baby,” I said. “I wish it were.”

She finished her cereal without asking me anymore questions. Aunt Tess came downstairs and made breakfast for us while Deanna finished getting ready for school. Just after she left, Orlando came down, showered and dressed in dark jeans and a white long-sleeved t-shirt, open at the neck. His hair was still wet and pulled back in a ponytail.

“Good morning,” he said as he sat down beside me and kissed my cheek. He helped himself to the scrambled eggs and bacon Aunt Tess had set out on the table for us.

“What are you two up to today?” Aunt Tess asked.

“I have to get together with Cooper to do some practicing,” I said, rising to get orange juice out of the fridge.
“Then we’re not sure.”

“Is he coming here?”

“If that’s okay,” I said. My apartment wasn’t useable yet, so we couldn’t practice there.

“Of course,” she said, smiling. “I’ll be working until six-thirty anyway.” She stood up. “Speaking of which, I should go,” she said. “Have a good day, you two.” She kissed Orlando and me good-bye, then left.

I sat back down at the table with my eggs and juice. Orlando still hadn’t said anything. “Are you okay?” I asked, touching his arm.

He smiled at me, a smile that could only be called bittersweet. “The countdown has begun,” he said sadly. “This time tomorrow, we’ll be heading to the airport to say good-bye.”

“Try not to think about that,” I said softly, rubbing his arm lightly. “We’ll just make tonight as memorable as possible.” I’d already packed my bags and they were sitting in the trunk of Orlando’s car, so it was one less thing to worry about. “I’ll rehearse with Cooper and Janna, and then we’ll have dinner or something, okay?”

“Sounds good,” he said, that sad smile back on his face.

An hour or so later, Cooper and Janna arrived at the house. Janna is another of Cooper’s advanced students. She’s a bit older than me, short, just over five-foot, with straight red hair cut really short. She’s a bit chubby, but it suits her. Cooper had decided long ago that our voices complimented each other, so we worked together quite frequently. There were two female duets in Wicked that Cooper loved to hear us do, and I wanted to work on them anyway before I went to New York.

I set up my new stereo in Aunt Tess’s living room, and put the performance CD in while Cooper got water from the kitchen. Orlando was upstairs, packing up his stuff. He said he’d be down shortly.

“Sorry to hear about your apartment, Charlie,” Janna said. “Did they catch Ramsey?”

“Yeah, they picked him up the day before yesterday,” I said, setting the CD case on the coffee table and grabbing the stereo remote. “He’ll be going to court for vandalism charges. He won’t get much for it, but he’ll be in prison for a bit.”

“That’s something at least,” she said.

“Ready to go?” Cooper asked, bringing three bottles of water into the living room. “Where’s Prince Charming?” he teased me, handing me a bottle.

“Upstairs,” I said, blushing slightly. “He’ll be down shortly.”

“ ‘Prince Charming’?” Janna said, confused.

“Charlie here is dating Orlando Bloom,” Cooper said, grinning like the Cheshire Cat. I smacked his arm.

“That’s not right,” Janna said. “He’s dating some actress, isn’t he?”

“We broke up awhile ago,” Orlando said, coming into the room behind us. I froze, honestly not wanting to hear about his ex-girlfriend. I also didn’t want to upset him with tabloid rumors.

“Oh, sorry,” Janna said, an embarrassed blush spreading over her face.

“It’s okay,” Orlando said as he kissed me. “What’s done is done.” He looked at me meaningfully.

“All in the past,” I said, nodding in under-standing. We weren’t going to discuss it.

Orlando settled himself on the sofa and Cooper went to the piano so we could warm up. We’d had my piano brought to Aunt Tess’s for safe keeping while I was gone. When we were warmed up, we began working on the songs.

“Let’s do ‘For Good’ first,” I said, taking a sip of water. “We can work our way up to ‘Defying Gravity’.” It was very difficult, and I wanted to be ready for it.

“I bet you’re getting quite an education on musical theatre, eh, Orlando?” Cooper teased, sitting beside him. “You’ll be hard pressed to find anyone who loves it as much as Charlie.”

“I love seeing her happy,” Orlando said, winking at me as I rustled through lyric sheets. “And she lights up when she’s singing, so I know she’s enjoying it.”

“Okay, Cooper, can you walk us through this song, please?” I said, getting uncomfortable at the turn the conversation was taking.

“You know this like the back of your hand, silly,” Cooper said, grinning.

“Don’t be a pain in the ass,” Janna said, throwing her empty water bottle at him. “Just go through it with us.”

“It’s simple,” Cooper said, getting up. “Elphaba and Glinda are saying how much they’ve changed each other’s lives.”

“There’s more to it than that,” I said, getting exasperated at his lack of enthusiasm. “They’re saying how much they care about each other, and how they’ll take the most from their friendship, even if they won’t see each other again. They’re acknowledging how much they’ve meant to each other, how they’re different people because of their relationship. Remember, this is right before the finale, so they’re essentially wrapping up their loose ends.” A familiar pang of sadness swept through me. This was right before Orlando’s and my finale, too, and again I’d found a song that hit close to home.

“See, what did you need me for?” Cooper said, sitting down again. “You know this show inside and out, Charlie. Just go for it. I don’t want to hear any safe singing today, okay?”

I nodded and started the performance track.

“I’ve heard it said that people come into our lives for a reason,” Janna sang, her voice strong and sure. But there was something missing in her emotion. “Bringing something we must learn, and we are led to those who help us most to grow, if we let them, and we help them in return.” Something wasn’t quite right. She just wasn’t in the same place I was emotionally, and it was showing in her performance. I hoped I could get her back on track when my part came. “Now I don’t know if I believe that’s true, but I know I’m who I am today, because I knew you…”

When my part came, I was ready for it. Having Orlando there was definitely helping me. “It well may be, that we will never meet again in this lifetime, so let me say before we part, so much of me is made of what I learned from you. You’ll be with me, like a handprint on my heart,” I sang, feeling not only my voice flow from me, but also everything I was feeling about my time with Orlando. “And now whatever way our stories end, I know you have re-written mine by being my friend…”

When it came to the harmony parts in the second half of the song, Janna had picked up on what I was feeling, and tried to match my emotion. She came close, but since she wasn’t going through the same feelings, she didn’t have the hands-on experience I did. I was proud of her anyway for giving it all she had.

“Who can say if I’ve been changed for the better?” we sang, in harmony. “I do believe I have been
changed for the better. And because I knew you, I have been changed for good…” The song ended.

I wasn’t as drained as I had been at my apartment when Cooper and I performed “As Long As You’re Mine”, but the ache was still inside me, throbbing dully, reminding me of what I had and what I would soon lose. It was amazing to me how much I’d been affected by Orlando in such a short time.

“That was good,” Cooper said. “Janna, you really need to emote, like Charlie does. Bringing up the necessary feeling to make your performance believable is all part of being a per-former, don’t forget.”

We went through the song a few more times, and each time I locked eyes with Orlando, wanting him to know that I was singing to and for him. He made me feel the words so much more than I ever could have before, and I knew that without him in my life, I would not have been able to do as well with the songs as I did. His small smile as he watched me told me he understood. It was in that moment, while I sang “you’ll be with me, like a hand-print on my heart” for the fourth or fifth time, that I realized I did love him. He was exactly what I needed in my life, offering me strength as I stepped into the unknown. I felt comforted, knowing that he was with me. But just knowing he cared helped. Tears filled my eyes as I finished the song again.

“Charlie, are you okay?” Janna asked, lightly touching my arm. “You’re crying.”

I wiped the back of my hand over my eyes to clear the tears. “It just got to me, that’s all,” I said, trying to be reassuring. Orlando got to his feet and came to take me in his arms. His heart was pounding in his chest, and I knew he felt what I did.

“We still have to do ‘Defying Gravity’,” Cooper said after a minute or two.

I pulled away from Orlando and kissed him quickly.

“Are you sure you want to do another song?” he said quietly, stroking my cheek. “I don’t want you to overdo it.”

I shook my head. “I’m fine,” I said, and kissed his palm. “This one isn’t as emotional for me right now as the last one.”

“Only if you’re sure.”

“I am.”

He sat back down and I changed the track on the CD. “Defying Gravity” is one of those powerhouse songs that all singers aspire to. To be honest, it made me a bit nervous, as it was vocal gymnastics at the end. But I would have to get over that if I was going to do it every night for an audience, raised on wires above the stage.

“Something has changed within me,” I sang, as we got into the song. “Something is not the same. I’m through with playing by the rules of someone else’s game.” I had to let myself become Elphaba, to feel her disillusion with the Wizard and with the life she had wanted for herself. This was her cry of freedom, and I owed it to her to give it everything I had.

“It’s time to try defying gravity, I think I’ll try defying gravity, and you can’t bring me down…” I could feel the flame start low in my stomach, rising up as the music consumed me. By the end, when I sang, “So if you care to find me, look to the Western sky. As someone told me lately, everyone deserves a chance to fly!” I was Elphaba, I knew exactly what she was saying, wanting to do things her own way without superficial rules being placed on her. “And if I’m flying solo, at least I’m flying free! To those who’d ground me, take a message back from me! Tell them how I am defying gravity, I’m flying high, defying gravity, and soon I’ll match them in renown…” I locked eyes with Janna, seeing only Glinda, and the chains she represented. “And nobody, in all of Oz, no Wizard that there is or was, is ever gonna bring me DOWN!” I hit the final note and a wave of triumph swept through me. I had given it my all and I had succeeded, even if it was only in a practice session. I had proven that I could do this song, and do it well, and that was the greatest feeling in the world.

When the music ended, no one moved or spoke. Then Cooper let out a whoop and scooped me up in his arms. “That was fantastic!” he cried, swinging me around. “You nailed it, baby! Congratulations!”

“Charlie, that was phenomenal,” Janna said, smiling widely when Cooper put me down. “You’re really going to wow them in New York.”

“Thanks,” I said, taking a sip of water and trying to catch my breath. I looked down at Orlando, and he had tears in his eyes.

“Come on, sweetheart,” I teased, much as he did to me at the Elizabethtown premiere. “I wasn’t that bad.”

“I’ve never heard anything so powerful,” he said, getting up. “You really do belong on the stage, love, and they’ll be lucky to have you.” He swept me up in a bear hug and kissed me soundly. “Incredible,” he breathed as he released me. “Simply incredible.”

“I don’t think we need to do anymore with that today,” Cooper said, gathering up his things. “We’ll let you two have some time.”

I showed Cooper and Janna to the door. I said good-bye to Janna and she went to Cooper’s truck, then I turned to Cooper.

“Well, kiddo, this is it for awhile,” he said, somewhat sadly. “Just remember us little people when you’re a big star, okay?”

I hugged him tightly and fought back the urge to cry. “Thank you for everything,” I said into his shoulder. “I wouldn’t be the singer I am without you.”

“Nonsense,” he said, stepping back from me. “I just encouraged you, it’s your talent that did the rest. Don’t ever forget that.” He gazed at me for a sec. “Now go get that man of yours and tell him how much you love him, okay? I’ll talk to you when you’re settled.” He kissed me on the cheek and I closed the door behind him.