My smile disappears directly. Such a deep emptiness settles inside me leaving me totally paralyzed. An anguish settles in my throat and my belly and I feel my hands becoming sweaty. Cold sweats come over me as the images flash before my eyes. My body, so suddenly weakened by the situation, is totally immobile. I feel my face decompose more and more, as if my soul was going to leave my body. My eyes, ruminating with hot tears, reflect my young face on the screen, so radiant in the company of this person. If I could, I would leave the room without even turning around. I would get in my car and drive until I was hit by a car or a tree. But because of my body tensed up by this buried pain, my legs just totally stopped working.
My mind, totally tortured, is interrupted by a person passing in front of me.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Excuse me, I'm late, I'm looking for a seat. No, no don't get up I can walk. I'm sorry."
The voice is coming closer and closer to me and I remain unable to do anything. My gaze is riveted on the screen, tears are running down my face. Suddenly, I feel someone stumble at my feet. The woman quickly catches herself by grabbing my shoulder.
"Oh my god, I'm so sorry. It's just so dark in the room that I don't know where I'm stepping."
That voice. That voice that acts inside me like another stab in the heart.
"I-it-it's okay." are the only words that can come out of my mouth.
The woman leaves to sit at the other end of the amphitheater, near the old piano. So much information is running through my mind. Anxiety is growing inside me. I start biting my nails. Damn it, I had stopped for so long...
"I hope this evening dedicated to your high school years goes well!" The audience begins to shout and clap. "You know me, I've obviously organized some activities to get you involved!"
Mr. Nolan then pulls out the little cards that I suspect he had prepared in advance. He smiles, all proud of himself.
"We're going to do an assassin in the house? (It's a French exercise where people parade on stage with their eyes closed. There is a designated assassin and his objective is to kill everyone by putting his hand on the shoulders of the other persons. You have to be very concentrated to use all your senses except the sight. Thanks me later) shouts Robin, excited.
- Hahaha no Robin, I think you're a little too old for that. But I did miss your little voices and seeing you all perform on stage. I did some research on my computer and I found a lot of texts on which you'll practiced your acting. I even added some new ones that I thought were interesting. I will then form groups, and each team will have to go on stage. Of course, any improvisation is accepted. Uhm... Let's see... Let's start with my favorite Y/N and... oooh I know, Sarah! You two were so excellent on stage together! Will you do me the pleasure of performing for us again?" He smiles.
No
NO
Absolutely not
Not her
Everyone but her
I see people gradually turning towards me, waiting for an answer.
"I..."
"Okay" Sarah cuts me off.
I see her running down the steps to finally arrive on stage, she then positions herself under the spotlights.
I feel my mouth getting drier and drier. I take my glass and drink it in one go. I still don't feel confident enough to go. I look around and grab Alex's drink. She had previously confessed to me that she had taken a small bottle of tequila with her to "to highlight the cocktails offered by the school". I then drink her full glass and wince as I taste the high level of alcohol in her glass.
Alex then pushes me and I feel my legs are like jelly. I arrive on the floor, but with much less enthusiasm than Sarah. I position myself next to her without even looking at her. The teacher hands us our texts.
"Thank you girls. I'm going to ask you to stand back to back. At my signal, you will walk into the space."
I take a deep breath, hoping she didn't hear it. I feel a jolt of electricity rush through my body as our two bodies touch. Mr. Nolan then claps his hands.
"Okay, now I'm going to let you get in shape because I'm going to need intensity from both of you. The text I have chosen for you is a famous excerpt from the movie Marriage Story. It's about a fight (fantastic) between a couple who are in the middle of a divorce. Sarah, you will play Nicole and Y/N, Charlie.
I can hear Sarah giggle softly the moment the teacher announces the topic. How dare she. He then lets us walk for a few seconds before clapping his hands again, signaling the start of the scene.
