Rain (A Will Poulter fanfic )

Chapter 24

    I curl up in my blankets, not wanting to get out of bed. My mattress embraces me and I don't have the heart to disappoint it, so I stay exactly where I'm at. The weight of what I have to face is bearing down on me. I have to spend this whole week with a team of crazy kids and an anxiety-prone man. I think to myself. What can be worse than that? A lot of things can be worse than that, but I choose to ignore that thought and continue to procrastinate. I lay in the same position for twenty more minutes. Then Harper comes busting in. " What do you think you're doing?" She asks, stomping over to where I lay in the fetal position.

     " I'm trying to ignore life, go away," I growl, batting her hands away. She has begun to shake me violently, which is a great disturbance to my comfort.

     " Why would you want to ignore life? You get to see Will Poulter every day!"

     She has a point. But still, what are men compared to a comfy bed? Harper doesn't get it. She rolls me out of my covers like she's unearthing a caterpillar and I plop on the floor in a tangled heap.  Harper looms above me, every once in a while prodding me with one of her feet. " Fine, good grief." I untangle myself and stand.

     On a good note, at least I get coffee. I have just enough time to make a cup before we have to head out the door. My attire only consists of a black t-shirt and jeans because I'm too much in a hurry to care about my wardrobe. Harper says I look like I'm headed to a funeral but I ignore her. As we ride to camp, I vent about Will and I's team.

    " First of all, there's Oliver who's so gloomy. I bet that kid hasn't smiled once in his life." I complain.

    " I thought he was kinda cute," Harper says, turning onto the highway.

    " Cute? He's way too serious to be cute, I mean that whole thing with how potatoes don't do anything, and such was so... weird. And who does he think he is to talk back to the director!" I rub my forehead with the palm of my hand and groan. " and then there's Mark. He gets on my nerves more than anyone in the world. He knows that our team sucks, and he had the indecency to come and ask me how my team is." I pause to angrily take a sip of my coffee, " He sat right next to me and just started talking."

    " That's usually what people do," Harper cuts in.

    " But he doesn't have to be so jerkish about it. Thank God Lena came in and saved my life with that zucchini bread."

    " Where was Will during all of this?" Harper asks.

    " He was having some anxiety attack that made him deadly silent. I even offered him some zucchini bread but he was unfazed." Sighing, I reach for my coffee again.

    " Have you found any ways to help him?"

    " Nope."

    " I heard that some people with anxiety crave physical touch. But of course, they're too scared to admit it. He probably just needs some reassuring gestures on your part." Harper advises.

    " Hm. he has been touchy recently, but I just thought that meant we are best friends so..."

    " I think he likes you."

    I choke on my coffee. " He friend-zoned me, Harper! How on earth is that possible? We are best friends for Pete's sake."

    " What guy just puts his arm around you all the time, at random. And yesterday he knew that Mark was creeping you out," Harper tries to explain.

    " Exactly, that's what friends do."

    " Someday you'll see Skye, and then I can tell you I told you so."

    I scoff and look out the window. If only Harper, if only.

                             ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

    " So, to start this scene, there is Du Croisy and La Grange who are discussing their visit with the young lady's. Nolan and Nat, that's you so," Will gets cut off.

    " Oh, so we're young ladies," Nat says, striking a pose acting like some flirtatious girl. I roll my eyes. Why did Nat have to be the other counselor helping us?

    But Will keeps right on going, as if no one said anything at all, " stand center stage... yea like that, and look as if you just had the worst encounter of your lives."

    Nolan puts on a very convincing look, but Nat just looks as if his face got blended, that's how disconcerted it is. I put my head in my hands. This'll take a while.

    " Alright, now let's run through this scene and I'll block you while you say it." Will continues.

    Nolan starts. " Mr. La Grange, what do you think of our visit? Are you quite pleased with it?"

    Will blocks their scene well, actually getting Nat under control enough to say his lines correctly. Nolan is a natural, and I can tell he's probably the best actor on our team so far.

    When we finish the first scene it's time for Caleb, Evelyn, and me to show our talents. To my annoyance, I have to act as one of the two girls. I can tell Evelyn is proud that she gets to be the main character. Ava drills into all the campers daily that every actor has a very important piece, and if we all work together well, it'll make a beautiful show. Evelyn has forgotten this already it seems. Oh, and another thing Caleb is the uncle. We'll just leave it at that.

    Will directs us to enter center stage right. Evelyn flaunts into the scene as if she owns it and I meekly follow her. Oliver, who is playing the servant leads us. He stoically walks onto the stage with Evelyn and me in tow. We run through the whole first half of the one-act. It goes okay, but I have trouble acting well with Evelyn. Will keeps telling us to act like cousins do. Particularly stuck-up cousins, which is who we are in the script. But it's difficult translating who my character is in the script into my body language.

    I walk weakly over to Will when it's over and plop onto the chair next to him, leaning my head on his shoulder. I'm trying to put Harper's guidance to good use. " How did you think that went?" I ask though I know what his answer is going to be.

    " Eh," he shrugs the shoulder that my head isn't resting on.

    " It's awful isn't it?" I sigh.

    " No, not awful, just not all that great,"

    Suddenly a laugh tumbles out of me. " Aren't we just so positive?" I say sarcastically, lifting my head from his shoulder.

    " Very," Will chuckles, and stands, grabbing my hand and pulling me along with him. "Though I have a good reason to be positive."

    " Why?" My eyes twinkle as I stare up at him.

    His blue eyes search my face and he looks like he's about to say something. Then he just smiles, shakes his head, and says, " It's lunch."

    " Is that really what you were going to say?" I ask teasingly.

    " Maybe," he heads toward the kitchen.

    " Wait!" I quickly follow him.

    Will turns around, " But it is lunchtime."

    " That's not good enough, c'mon were best friends!"

    " If I say I may have some brownies that I'll share, will you shut up?"

    I sigh. He's beaten me. And he knows it.

    " Fine."

    Authors note

    What do y'all think Will was going to say?

    Comment your thoughts!

The pic at the top is how I imagine Evelyn😊
                                     - heavengrace55