Whimsical Perfection

18. Pressure

"Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown."
       —King Henry IV, Henry IV

~♤ ▪︎ ♤ ▪︎ ♤~

"Who's up for the next scene? Please come forward, let's get over with it today." I said, breaking the tense silence in the room.

The show had to go on, no matter what happens. That was rule number one in the theater industry. I had no time to worry about his mood swings and abrupt departures. There was a lot of pressure on me for this one, and I won't let anybody ruin that for me.

"You just had a fight with your lead man, and you wanna go forward without solving it? Isn't this an issue to be reported to the higher ups?" Evangeline, the lead actress asked me sardonically, finding the situation funny.

"I obviously don't have time to waste on him, whether he is main or second lead. He will come back once he has calmed himself down. We can't keep waiting for him and tolerating his temper tantrums forever." I said in a clipped tone, shutting her successfully.

Thankfully, the rest of the practice didn't have as much roadblocks and was completed quietly. Still, I could feel the atmosphere wasn't as light as before, and everyone was a bit awkward. Maybe they were worried that this project might get dropped out and their efforts might go to waste.

I was suddenly fuming on the inside – and it was all directed towards that cocky, self-centered man. He couldn't have discussed this with me in private, when the others wouldn't get so overwhelmed by his temper and lose their streak of acting. Sometimes, he just acted like a little boy who wanted what he wanted in a particular moment, as if he could never get that thing again. And it was annoying as hell.

Making up my mind to talk to him once in private, I packed up my bags and left. As I came out from the building, the atmosphere had changed drastically. The clear sky which I had been rewarded with this morning, was snatched once again, as all I could see in the sky now were grey clouds of every shape and density. Soon, it started drizzling, and along with the water droplets, all my enthusiasm and energy flowed towards the drain.

Today had got to be the worst day of my life. Never in my life before, had I felt so distressed and.... uncertain. This was like walking on a road with no source of lights in hand. It seemed like an empty space fit for walking, but it wasn't. In reality, behind the darkness, there were things I couldn't see. And that terrified me. I wanted to be able to look at my obstacles before I tackled them, but all because of this one man, the stakes were suddenly sky-high, and there was no clarity of the road we were walking on.

But all of this wouldn't matter to him, it never did. All he wants is to do things his way, and let the others suffer the consequences. No wonder nobody in the industry wants to work with him right now.

As I sat in my car, contemplating over what I should do next, my phone began to ring. Looking at the caller id, I took in a deep breath, getting annoyed already. This man won't let me breathe.

"Good evening John. Why have you called me twice in a day? Are you finally admitting that you're lonely?"

"Never. I just called because I heard from a little birdy, about our favorite sensitive boy. How are you holding up with such a pain in the ass?" He asked me, eliciting a smile out of me. I could have never believed he would call me being this concerned for me.

"I'm fine, just worried about the future of this play. I can't let one man ruin it all, so I'm going to do something instead of just sitting in one place and hoping he would get his brains back. Someone needs to tell him how direly he needs this project, and that someone will be me." I told him, finally making up my mind.

"What exactly are you going to do Scar?" He asked me, his intrigued voice rising an octave higher.

"I'm going to talk, obviously. It's not like I can point a gun at his head and force him to do as I say. It would be so cool to have him at my feet like that, but unfortunately, I can't have that. So, talking it is then."

He laughed at my words, and suddenly I missed my dad so much. Why haven't I called them yet? "You're still able to joke in this situation? The problem must not be too huge then. Okay, go talk to him. And tell me the outcome, otherwise I will step in for you."

"Thanks John. Goodbye."

"Take care sweetie."

I sighed. Isaac's house it is, then.

~♤ ▪︎ ♤ ▪︎ ♤~