"Good morning, everyone! I'm so sorry for being late!" Nate suddenly made his entrance, while gasping for breath.
"You're not that late, Nate. We're still doing warm ups." the old director reassures him.
"Thank you, Sir." Nate heaved a sigh of relief. Then afterwards, he walks towards his cast mates to join them.
"Celine isn't here yet?" Nate asked everyone, while looking worried.
"Yeah. Maybe she overslept?" Nick did a wild guess.
Nate's brows met in a curious frown when he saw Gale giving him a challenging stare. He doesn't have any idea on why he's looking at him like that...
===========================
Twenty minutes have passed, but Celine is still missing in action. But the Director still went ahead with their rehearsals, as scheduled.
"Today, we're going to discuss the list of songs for our musical play. Next week, a pianist will be here so that we can start with your vocal rehearsals." Director Alford informs everyone on what they will be expecting at the rehearsals next week.
The director is still talking about many things, but he suddenly stops when Celine finally appeared.
"Good morning, everyone! I sincerely apologize for being late!" she apologizes non-stop.
"I will let you off this time only, Celine. There's no more second chances. Anyway, please join us so that we can finally proceed with the rehearsals." instructed Director Alford.
"Thank you very much, Sir." Celine gratefully stated, then afterwards, she joined the other cast for their practice.
She didn't notice that Gale has been looking at her...
===========================
As hours go by, their meeting is finally over. Director Alford stood up and looks at everyone.
"That will be all for the time being, everyone. It's already lunchtime, so you go ahead and enjoy your lunch." the old man finally announces.
The boys started planning on what to get for lunch. Nate suddenly realizes that Celine is nowhere to be seen.
"Huh? Has anyone seen Celine?" he suddenly asked the boys.
"Oh, she said she needs to go outside to buy something." Justin answered, while shrugging his shoulders.
Nate's curiosity deepens when he also noticed that Gale is nowhere to be found.
"Where the heck are they?" he anxiously asks himself...
=============================
Meanwhile.
Celine's face became pale as a white sheet of paper after she heard Gale's revelation.
"How did you know that I was with Nate the whole night?" she asked him while she's still in shock.
"I called Nate's landline number and I was able to talk to his mother. She said that Nate isn't home yet. Afterwards, I also called your home number, and I got the chance to talk to your father. He told me that you called, and told him that you're going to have s sleepover at your friend's house. And obviously, you sent me a text message with a different reason last night. And it made me think that there's something going on between you and Nate." Gale explains everything.
"Oh." that's all Celine can say, as Gale catches on her with her white lies.
"Please don't misunderstand, Celine. I was really dead worried about you, but I know that Nate has a good and valid reason why he did that." Gale tries to clear the misunderstanding between them.
Celine took a deep breath first. Then, she explained everything to Gale. She told him about Nate wanting to have a one-on-one practice with her, without any distractions.
After Gale heard all of the explanations, he lets out a big smile.
"Now, I finally understand everything. And you don't have to worry. I will keep your secret. That's a promise."
"Thank you, Gale. Nate and I really appreciates it." Celine can finally rest easy.
============================
At Waldorf High School... 
"Yay! Hooray for christmas vacation! By the way, do you have any plans for the winter vacation, Celine?" one of Celine's classmates, Brittany, happily exclaims as soon as their teacher steps out from the room.
"Well, aside from doing rehearsals for our upcoming musical play, I'm also going back to our farm to visit my parents." Celine smilingly responded.
"That's nice! Just keep me posted if you met any cute guys, okay?" Brittany jokingly stated.
"You know very well that I don't like chasing boys, Brit." Celine responded, while rolling her eyes heavenward. 
Brittany started talking about her latest crush from another school, but Celine isn't listening to her.
She's really excited and looking forward to see her parents, Nathaniel and Celeste Montecarlo, and she can't wait to go back to their beloved farm for winter vacation... 
===========================
It's another day of rehearsals at Waldorf Auditorium.
And this must be their lucky day because Director Alford seems satisfied with their overall performance.
"Good work,everyone!" the old director praised everyone, much to their surprise.
"Thank you very much, Sir!' they all said in unison.
"I'm aware that all the schools in the area has finally announced the beginning of winter vacation. I want you to enjoy your holidays, but at the same time, don't forget to practice on your own, okay?" the director reminded them.
"Of course, sir. That's already given." Nate nodded in return.
"You don't need to worry. We will not slack off during the winter vacation." Gale reassures the director.
"We will not forget everything that we learned for the passed few weeks... Right, everyone?" asked Nick.
"Yes, we promise you that we will not be complacent!" Celine firmly said.
"Everyone's right, Director Alford." Justin nodded in agreement as well.
"Alright. I trust and believe in you. Let's all call it a day, and I will see you again after two weeks. Happy holidays, everyone!" Director Alford greeted the youngsters.
"Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, Sir Alford!" the youngsters all said in unison. 
 
================================
The next morning, Celine is humming happily while waiting at the bus station. She had her earphones on, and she's currently enjoying listening to music.
Celine happily steps inside the bus and found herself a good seat. Everything is going so smooth for her.
"I can't wait to see Daddy and Mummy!" she whispered to herself. 
===============================
After an hour.
Celine didn't realize that she fell asleep on my seat, while the bus is moving. When she finally wakes up, she looked at the window, and she saw the vast greeneries, and it made her smile.
"That was a good nap." she whispered to herself, while yawning.
"Hello there, sleeping beauty..."
Celine held her breath in suspense when she heard that familiar voice. She then looks at the other seat, and she saw Nick, who was grinning from ear to ear.
"Fancy meeting you here, Celine." Nick teasingly greeted her, as his eyes sparkled in amusement. 
"W-What are you doing here?" Celine asked Nick in disbelief.
"Well, the wind called me here." Nick continues with his joke. 
Celine frowned at him in return.
"Okay, sorry. I'm actually doing a holiday visit at Walnut Creek." Nick finally revealed.
"Is this for real? I'm also going there!" exclaimed Celine.
"Ouch. I'm not expecting that you'll have a negative reaction about this. But don't worry, I won't spoil your fun. It's just a mere coincidence that we're both going to Walnut Creek. I'm going to visit my family there...." Nick started talking about his family.
Celine didn't have a choice but to stay beside Nick, as the bus continues to travel to Walnut Creek...