ᴏᴀᴋʟᴇʏ ᴄᴀʀʀɪʟʟᴏ was discovered at fourteen years old, being praised as a musical prodigy by the media ever since. His fame had only increased until now. At nineteen old, he's the most remarkable musician of his age, and he's only getting started. At...
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ᴏᴀᴋʟᴇʏ ᴄᴀʀʀɪʟʟᴏ
The dinner table was eerily quiet. My dad had decided to keep it simple by making some pad Thai, not trusting us when we told him Nolan would eat anything. My sister was working on some project at her friend's house still, so I decided to let her. She'd only feed Nolan's anxiety anyway.
"What do you do in your free time?" my mom asked, trying to keep the conversation going to avoid some of the awkwardness.
"I like baking," he answered.
"He's a really good cook too," I said, looking at my dad who nodded with a surprised hum.
"That's good," my dad replied shortly after swallowing his last bite. "Oakley can't cook to save his life."
Nolan stifled a laugh before taking another forkful of the rice noodles.
"And you're an actor?" my mom asked. I held my breath, wishing that she would stick to the rules.
Nolan nodded, swallowing his food. "Yeah. Always been."
"Always been? That's cool, isn't it?" my mom said, looking at me, her eyes slightly narrowed as though to ask me if this was still safe territory. I cashed her a small smile, letting her know that scraping the surface like this was fine.
"Yeah, but sometimes I feel like I've missed out on a ton."
My eyes turned back to Nolan next to me as I listened to him talk.
"Oh yeah? Like what?"
"Like, I didn't go to a proper school until I was sixteen."
When I looked at him, he was looking down at his plate, like he was avoiding me.
"But you finished high school?" my dad asked to confirm. Education had always been important to him. He never had doubts that my music career would take off, however, he said it was still important to be educated for personal growth and critical thinking.
"Yes, I graduated last year," Nolan said with a proud smile on his face. He didn't look as uncomfortable as he did earlier today. "It was a little difficult at first, but I caught on."
My dad nodded, looking at my mom who was now silently enjoying her dinner.
"Why did you go to high school?" my mom then asked, breaking the short yet awkward silence that had come over the dinner table. "Wasn't your future already set in stone? You've done this since you were a child."
"Yeah," Nolan said, once again glancing at me before answering my mom's question—except this time, his eyes didn't quite catch mine. His fingers curled into a loose fist and his face turned a shade warmer. "I think I had to figure out whether I really wanted to be an actor, or if I was just used to being one."
