The Great Gretsky (ATTN: Eddie, open)

[Jude Sheffield]

Arriving home, Jude's mother called her into the kitchen to help with the cookies she had been baking almost the whole day. Jude happily helped with dropping the batter on to the cookie trays.

"So how was school?" Mrs Sheffield asked as she made another batch of cookie dough. Jude looked to her side and smiled widely. "It was okay. I made a friend." She replied, referring to Brad. "He's a performer like me." Jude said. "That's nice." Her mother nodded. "Do you have homework for today?" To which Jude replied, "I did them in the library during the lunch and a bit after school. Do you mind if I go to the Gretsky Club tonight? They have an open mic night tonight and I was wondering if I could go and sing or something."

Melanie Sheffield smiled and nodded. "Sure. Just don't get back too late. Your father will have a fit if you get back any time after ten on a school night."

"Thanks mom." So they spent the rest of their afternoon baking the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies until Jude had to go.

At the club, Jude was immediately recognised by the bouncer who called the manager, gushing about how his niece had loved Jude when she was still young. Jude was so embarrassed but she couldn't help feeling flattered. As she was ushered in by the manager, she was told that open mic night was open for her and someone brought out a piano on to the stage.

The Gretsky Club was an open high end club where ID was not necessary. However, the liquor was only available to those over 21. It doubled as a restaurant as well, which was why everyone was allowed in. Open mic night happened every two months for three days. Quite a lot of people got recognised because of open mic night so it was a big event for the club.

The manager told her she was going to be recognised for sure and warned her albeit playfully to get ready for people and agents to scout her out. Jude was once again embarrassed but quite flattered.

The evening went on with quite a few talented amateurs were brought on stage showcasing their singing and instrument playing skills. Jude drank her club soda, enjoying the performances.

"You're on after this act, Miss Sheffield." The manager came by and gave her a heads up. She thanked him before rushing to the toilet to check her hair and clothes. She was wearing a dark blue denim skirt that ended just above her knee with a tan button-up shirt that hugged her figure with the two top buttons open. Her hair had been softly curled and hung over her shoulders delicately. All in all, she thought she looked quite okay. With a huge smile, she walked out of the bathroom and someone ushered her to the stage where she sat at the piano.

The bright spotlights were on her and she squinted just a little. Tapping the microphone on the piano, she grinned. "I hope the lights don't melt my make-up." She chuckled, not really expectant of other laughs from the audience but a few titters made her heart calm down a bit.

"Hi, my name's Jude Sheffield and I'll be singing Vanessa Carlton's "A Thousand Miles". Hope you guys enjoy this." Her eyes were downcast to the black and white keys as she took a deep breath. Her fingers flew according to the original music of the pop singer and soon, her voice filled the room, delicate yet powerful.

Jude lost herself in the music and before she knew it, the song ended and she heard the claps from the audience. It was exhilarating, just like when she first started when she was a little girl. It felt really good.

She exited the stage and went back to her table, making a few stops to be congratulated.

[Eddie O'Flaherty]

Eddie was both glad and disappointed to have a short rehearsal that evening. Having a large role often meant you were at fewer rehearsals, since you weren't in every scene like the ensemble usually was. A lot of people don't realize that the ensemble usually works much harder than anyone else in the show. Not that Eddie wished to be back in the ensemble, he was very excited for his role. Still, there was the part of him that wanted to just hang out at rehearsal and get to know everyone better.

But he had other plans. His brother had the night off as well and he wanted Eddie to meet him at some place called the Gretsky Club (though it had no relation to the greatest hockey player of all time) for an open mic sorta deal. There was no way Eddie was going to get up there for anything, but his brother had said a lot of celebrities often showed up. That was more interesting for Eddie. Not that he thought it would ever happen, but how cool would it be to bump into some director and just miraculously get cast in a movie?

The club was very busy that night, and it took a while for Eddie to get in. He was also very hungry, so he immediately ordered some fries and a coke. He figured he'd wait to get dinner once Tommy showed up. He watched the crowd as they cheered, booed, and often ignored the performers up on stage. Though a couple of the people were not very good, some of them seemed to have real talent. In particular, Eddie noticed a blonde haired girl who sang some old pop song very well. She looked slightly familiar, and Eddie thought that maybe she went to school with him, but it was hard to tell. He had seen so many new faces in the last week and a half his brain was mush.

Shortly after Jude Sheffield exited the stage, Eddie phone buzzed. A text from Tom let him know that his study group was running late and he wasn't going to be able to make it. Sighing, he put his phone back in his pocket. As he nibbled on the last of his fries, Eddie glanced around the room. No famous directors, or even actors. No brother. No one to join him. What a night! Eddie stood and got ready to leave.

As he was about to leave, a pair of incredible blue eyes met his. They belonged to the blonde girl who had just finished, and Eddie noticed that she was sitting alone. She smiled shyly as she looked away. Eddie froze for a moment, not knowing what to do. Should he go talk to her? He'd had enough girl trouble in the past few months, and the last thing he wanted was more. And there was the super cute Brittany that he had been thinking about quite a bit lately, though there seemed to be no hope there. And the look seemed almost inviting. Did she know who he was? How could she?

Curiosity got the best of Eddie and he nervously walked over in the direction of the girl's table. She was very pretty, and the closer Eddie got the more nervous he became. Why would a girl who looked like that be interested at him? Maybe she did go to his school and she at the very least recognized him. That would explain the look. Right?

He went around a table so that he wasn't approaching her from behind. Something his brother had taught him, never go up to a girl from behind. It's just creepy. Let them see you come and be confident. So, in as strong a voice as Eddie could muster, he said, “Hi, uhh... Jude, right? You look familiar, and I just maybe thought that, umm, do you go to Gould? Or Silver, but you know, we're at Gould now, so it's just like all the same school...” He was babbling! Stop Eddie! “Anyway, I thought I recognized you when you were up on stage, which you were very good by the way, and then you looked at me and it looked like maybe you recognized me so I thought maybe you did. Go to school with me. And I'll shut up now.” Eddie blushed, and chuckled a little. So he was an idiot to a girl. It wasn't the first time it happened and he was sure it wouldn't be the last. That thought helped him calm down a bit as he waited for her reply.

[Jude Sheffield]

Jude was sipping a little of her club soda when her phone rang in her pocket. She picked it up and saw that it was her mother. "So, have you performed yet?" Melanie Sheffield asked her daughter. Jude smiled. "Yeah. It wasn't my best performance but we haven't really practiced that much the past couple months so I suppose it's to be expected. A lot of people clapped though so all is good..." Her eyes wandered around the dimly lit club and settled on an insanely adorable guy. And the more she stared, the more appealing he became.

Her mother was talking but Jude was staring at the guy too much. When he stood up, Jude almost groaned until he turned to meet her eyes and she froze. "Mama...I'll call you back." She whispered before turning away, her cheeks heating up. She slipped her handphone into her skirt pocket and looked everywhere else, hoping the guy didn't think she was a freak for staring at him.

When a voice caught her attention, Jude couldn't help but look up and surprise surprise it was the guy. Her cheeks heated up even more, which made her damn glad that the club was not so bright. Chances of him seeing her blush was minimal. As he started to talk fast, Jude began to calm down. So he wasn't going to tell her to stop staring at him. Well...that was a nice turn out. As confident as she was, when it came to boys, she hadn't a single clue to how to react when they showed interest.

Certainly, in the past she had been the object of quite a few innocent crushes that weren't going anywhere and she had handled them accordingly but now that she was in their shoes and she was the one having the innocent crush...she didn't know how to handle it. When he was done with his monologue, Jude pushed the chair beside her out as an invitation for him to sit down.

"I'm Jude." She nodded. Her voice was not so loud as it had been when she was on stage. She supposed that she felt more at ease on stage where she didn't have to be herself so much. No personal connection whatsoever. She never had to relate to any of her characters yet most of them turned out believable, which have made her the big bucks so she wasn't complaining.

"I go to Gould. I actually just started a few weeks back. Still adjusting to the whole...different scene, I suppose. Are you from Gould?" She smiled politely at him, wondering why he was so nervous talking to her. Did he know who she was? Damn YouTube for posting up her old performance videos.

[Eddie O'Flaherty]

A sigh of relief fell from Eddie's mouth as the pretty girl pushed out a chair, letting him know she accepted his company. He found it interesting, though, how she had such an incredible stage presence, but when she said her name he could barely tell what she had said. He sat in the chair and leaned closer to her. “Nice to meet you June. I'm Eddie.” He extended his hand with a pleasant smile.

He was excited to hear that she had recently moved to the area. It was quite fortuitous to have something that big in common. Otherwise, Eddie wasn't sure what they could have talked about. “I actually go to Silver, not like it makes a big difference now. But I think I'm still obligated to be your enemy. Sorry!” Eddie liked joking around, and he hoped this girl could tease right back. He had always found playful antagonism a great way to flirt with a girl. Without it, he was nearly powerless as his two greatest strengths were being cute and being funny.

“I actually just moved here like a week ago, too, though!” He smiled again and leaned in closer. “I came from Iowa, but I'm starting to find the weather is just a bit nicer here!” Eddie wondered where this girl might be from. Heaven, most likely, since she looked like an angel. He wished he had lived here longer, though. His method of dating girls was to hang out with them as friends for a while, get to know them. He liked being a friend first, as it let you know if you can even stand spending time alone with the person. So step one was befriending and getting to know the cute blonde. “How about you, where are you from?”

[Jude Sheffield]

When Eddie said her name wrong, Jude was inclined to set him straight. "It's Jude. With a D." She took Eddie's hand and traced the letter D on the palm of his hand. "As in...the Beatle's Hey Jude? I'm Jude." She should stop blabbering. And she did as she leaned back on her chair.

When Eddie talked about being enemies, Jude was about to blanch since she didn't know that Silver and Gould were rivals. But when she listened carefully to his tone of voice, Jude knew he was joking and she stilled her laughter. "Oh well...we really shouldn't be seen together then." She shook her head seriously. Then her face broke into a smile and she relaxed again against her chair.

"Iowa." She smiled before leaning forward. "I'm actually from around here but when I was little, our family moved to Georgia for my dad's family business. I've been there almost all my life until recently." She explained. "And I suppose the weather is a bit nicer here. I like it." She agreed before leaning back into her chair. "So, Eddie...I came here for the open mic night. What are you here for?" She asked before taking a sip of her club soda before asking for another.

Jude was intrigued by the boy with the dimples. She wondered if he could actually be someone she would be glad to see every now and then.

[Eddie O'Flaherty]

How could Eddie be such a dope? The club was loud, yes, but he should have made sure she had said June before saying it! He had met so many people and gotten so many new names in the last week, but he had to screw up the name of a super pretty girl. Just his luck.

“Jude, oh my gosh, I am so incredibly sorry!” He felt his face getting warmer, and though it was hard to see under the dim lights of the club his face turned a very bright red. “I'm horribly embarrassed!” Her writing the letter in the palm of his hand was an interesting move, though, and at the very least it showed she didn't entirely hate him. “Jude is a very unique name. I'm sure you're completely sick of people singing that song to you, though!”

Eddie loved a girl that could joke around, and Jude won some bigtime points playing along with the “enemies” bit. So she was pretty and had a sense of humor. Eddie noticed a lot of similarities to his old ex-girlfriend, and that both interested him and scared him. If she were too much like Jessie...

Eddie didn't want to start thinking about her, not right now. He still hadn't had the guts to call her, even after the shooting. Maybe it was mean, but he had told all his friends back home he was okay, so he was sure she knew. Still, she had called a lot that day. And almost every day since.

“Iowa.” The word from Jude's lips returned Eddie to the immediate, and he smiled. “Yeah. Cornfields, pastures, and baseball diamonds, that's pretty much it. But it wasn't bad, I guess. I had some good friends and all.” He paused, and for one last moment thought about Jessie. “But, you know. That's all behind me. And my good friends will stay in touch, you know?” He smiled.

And Jude was from here, but lived in Georgia for a while. Eddie thought he heard a little bit of a southern accent. “I've been to the Atlanta airport before, but other than that I've never really been to Georgia. Did you like it?” Eddie had been to Florida numerous times to visit family, so he was used tho that part of the country. He actually really liked it, and it was much different than the West Coast, despite many similarities.

“Well,” Eddie started, trying to think of why his brother had dragged him to this particular club. “I was supposed to meet my brother Tom here, but he just texted me, said he can't make it. I guess I'd hoped to see someone famous, but I haven't recognized anyone really.” He glanced around the room again for good measure, but alas, no one he had ever heard of was apparent. He turned back to Jude and smiled. “But I'm glad I came to say hi, I don't know a lot of people in town yet.”

[Jude Sheffield]

"Oh it's okay. I suppose the club's too loud anyway and at least you're not THAT far off from Jude. And...yeah. As much as I love that song, having it repeated over and over again after finding out my name kind of gets tired. I'm really glad you didn't start." She gave a short laugh. She was really glad he had the decency not to start.

Jude saw the faraway gaze Eddie took on in the middle of their conversation but she chalked it all up to him trying to pay attention to her boring monologue. Not that she blamed him. When she started talking, she usually bored people. And then he snapped back to the present and she smiled at his description of the small state. "I suppose I got used to all that in Georgia that I don't mind it anymore. I didn't really mind it back then either. In fact compared to here...I kind of miss the country side. The peace and quiet of it all..." she reminisced to the times when all she had to worry about was a cow getting pregnant and waking up early so she could get fresh eggs for breakfast.

"Oh you have a brother, I have a brother too. A younger one. He's a runt but I love him." Jude shrugged, thinking about JB. He wasn't as annoying as most of her friend's little brothers were made out to be and despite the stigma little brothers have, Jude loved Johnny. In ways, he was her best friend. Especially now that she didn't have any friends. Well...Eddie seemed to be an interesting candidate for a friend. He was cute, friendly, funny and...cute... He was REALLY cute.

When Eddie started talking about not seeing anyone famous, she blew out a sigh of relief as it meant Eddie didn't know who she was. She was relieved YouTube hadn't done its damage on him just yet. She wondered what he would think of the videos of her running around a barn yard or in moon bounces singing about having fun at the barn and...moon bounces. So she wasn't an original child singer, it wasn't really her fault. At least she wasn't the one who wrote them. But what if Eddie thought they were lame? That's going to ruin any chances of him being her friend.

Then Eddie said that he was glad he said hi to her. That made her smile shyly. It didn't even matter that it was only because he didn't know anyone from around here. "I'm glad you did too. I don't know anyone from here really. Except you...I mean I'm just getting to know you but...you know, at least I know you."

Okay, she was nervous. Really nervous. But they were talking to each other and he seemed to be quite into their conversation so she should ease up a bit. Maybe he liked her enough to stay until she had to go home to meet her curfew. "So, Eddie...uhm...do you like plays?" Of all things she could ask. She supposed it was a valid question. It was a deal breaker if Eddie ended up revealing that he thought that the theater was for gays or something. The theater was what she grew up with. And if her friend didn't like it even a little, she didn't know what they would ever have to talk about.

[Eddie O'Flaherty]

“Your brother is younger? Ah,” Eddie said. He was the runt in his family, much shorter than his brother. “Mine's older. He goes to USC here.” He was glad he got to be close to his brother, even if the guy did bail on him. The two got along pretty well, and it was nice to hear Jude and her brother seemed the same. Family was important to Eddie, and if he ever dated a girl again he hoped she felt the same way.

“We just seem to be complete opposites,” he joked, slightly keeping up the enemies idea. His brother would be so proud of him! “It's like you're Paula Abdul and I'm a cartoon cat!” The second he said it he realized Jude might not get the reference. It was old, something his brother had watched when he was younger. Eddie wouldn't have ever even seen the video for “Opposites Attract” if it hadn't have been for Tom. He just hoped Jude either didn't care or ignored it.

He completely understood what it was like to be alone in a new place. Though he had met a lot of people that seemed pretty cool, none of them so far had panned out as friends that he hung out with often. He hoped some might yet, like Julia or Mom. And no doubt the theatre people in South Pacific would get together at times. But it would also be nice to have friends outside the cast. Back in Iowa, Eddie's group of friends were pretty diverse, so being in a clique just didn't exist really. There were definitely the weird kids that no one wanted to hang around with, but most everyone else hung out with whoever they wanted. It didn't matter whether they were in drama, choir, football, hockey, or whatever.

“If you wanted to hang out sometime, I could give you my phone number. I'm kinda busy with school stuff a lot, but outside of that I don't really have a lot to do, and I'd really like to get to know the city a little better.” Eddie smiled, hoping she said yes. And not just because she was totally cute, but mostly because he was sick of not having a friend and this girl seemed super cool.

Eddie heart nearly skipped a beat when she asked about theatre. “Umm, yeah. I guess I like plays.” He smiled, knowing how understated that comment was. But the last thing he wanted to do was totally geek out over theatre. She must like it, since she asked about it, but he didn't know how much and he definitely didn't want to look like some theatre weirdo. “I take it you do? Did you audition for Grease at all? I heard they didn't find many people so audition are still going on.”

[Jude Sheffield]

The "Opposites Attract" video reference made Jude giggle behind one hand. "Oh I don't know...you just don't seem to resemble a cat whatsoever. But I suppose being Paula Abdul in the scenario wouldn't be so bad. She was at her prime then." Jude was being sarcastic but with her demeanor, she didn't know if Eddie got it or not.

When Eddie offered to give her his number, Jude almost jumped at the chance but controlled herself and settled for a smile, which was shaky at best. "Uhm...sure. I don't really have anything going on for...me for now." Jude paused in the middle of her blabber, thinking 'Yeah, way to sound desperate Jude.' Eddie probably thought she'd do anything to get a guy's number.

Momentarily, she beat herself up until she heard him say that he was into plays. Okay so he sounded hesitant about it but there was also some interest in that voice. "Well, I grew up with theater. I mean...my mom told me I directed my own play when I was three with my dolls and stuffed animals. Embarrassingly enough." Jude blushed, not knowing why she was intent on making herself sound like such a weirdo in front of this boy.

"Um...yeah. I auditioned but I still don't know what role I'm playing. I'm kind of hoping for a big part but I'd settle for just a singing part." Finally she learned self-restraint and didn't tell him about all the plays she had starred in prior to coming back to Beverly Hills.

"You should come for the production. I'll probably be a backdrop or something but it'd be ncie to see a friendly face in the crowd." She smiled warmly albeit a little shyly.

[Eddie O'Flaherty]

Eddie wasn't sure whether Jude being a theatre girl was a good or bad thing. He had known many theatre girls (including his ex-girlfriend) and while they were usually tons of fun, they also had a tendency to be overly dramatic and just all sorts of crazy. But this girl seemed pretty normal, at least for now, and Eddie figured there was no harm in getting to know her. He was desperate for friends, and he was thankful Jude seemed to have a lot of similar interests.

“Since you were a kid, huh? Me too. My mom got me into a University production of Oliver! and I've been knee deep in theatre since!” Eddie chuckled. He was very glad he could admit that to Jude and not fear that he sounded like a weirdo. “Though I never put on plays with dolls, so I think you have some experience on me there!”

Part of Eddie really wished she had auditioned for South Pacific instead of Grease, but Gould never had the choice that Silver was given. But he could imagine being up on stage with this very pretty girl, singing a duet. Her voice was far superior to his, or at least that was his opinion. Eddie had never liked his voice, it always sounded weird to him. Yet still he was cast in good roles, so there had to be something about it people liked.

“I'll definitely come see your show, but then you have to promise to come see mine,” he replied, smiling as he looked into Jude's gorgeous eyes once again. “Fair's fair. I'm in Silver's South Pacific.” Part of him wanted to completely brag about the role, but he hated being that boastful. Eventually she would ask, and eventually he would relish telling her.

“Maybe sometime we could help each other go over lines?”