Ophelia, waiting backstage for the next act to start, noted the students setting up musical instruments. “Guess someone’s going to torture our eardrums with bad singing,” she joked to no one in particular.

“That would be me,” a voice behind her said. Ophelia turned.

“Mae!” Ophelia gasped, surprised. Mae was wearing her normal clothes again.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m going to perform a few songs,” Mae replied, smirking a little. “Feel free to laugh. It took two weeks of allowance and several promises to get my cousin to agree to help me.”

“Wow,” Ophelia responded, not knowing what else to say. Mae gave Ophelia a broad grin as she, along with Julia and Andi, stepped onto the stage.


“Helloooo, Oakdale!” Mae called out. “And now, for your pleasure, or lack thereof, my friends and I will be performing some oldies and a few more recent songs. Now would be a good time to go to the bathroom, get some food, or invest in some heavy-duty earplugs!”

The members of the audience laughed appreciatively. Mae chuckled and then she and the others began playing their instruments. She began singing,

“Daylight, alright
I don’t know, I don’t know if its real
Been a long night and something ain’t right
You won’t show, you won’t show how you feel
No time ever seems right
To talk about the reasons why you and I fight
It’s high time to draw the line
Put an end to this game before it’s too late…”

Ophelia watched from the wings, a small smile on her face. “It’s good to have the old Mae back,” she murmured.


After Mae finished the song, amidst much applause, she blushed a little and said, “Thanks, guys. Now, let’s take things up a notch. For the next two songs, I’ll need someone to help me out.” She turned and peered into the wings. “Hey, Ophelia, I know you know these songs. Come on up and join me?”

“Are you sure?” Ophelia mouthed, suspecting a trick. Mae gave Ophelia a thumbs-up. To the audience, she said, “It looks like Ophelia is going to be shy today. How about we give her a little bit of encouragement, eh?” The crowd began cheering loudly.


“Fine, fine,” Ophelia called, stepping onto the stage. Mae handed her a microphone and said, “After you hear the first few notes, you’ll know what songs they are.” Ophelia raised an eyebrow but nodded. Mae nodded to Julia and Andi, and the three of them began playing. Ophelia smirked a little, recognizing the song.

Guess I know what the other song is, then, if Mae is going to go with her running joke, Ophelia thought.

Ophelia joined Mae, singing,
“Her eyes look cold. I see hate.
This blade sunk deep inside your wrist,
it's not worth fighting, just resist.
With a knife, and a thought so sincere.
Five times the pain so make it last
don’t walk away, don’t walk so fast…”

After finishing that song, as Ophelia expected, Mae launched into “I Set My Friends on Fire.” Ophelia remembered that Mae always joked, referencing the song titles, “If it’s so cold tonight, I should just set my friends on fire for warmth.” She wondered if S would go through with his plan.