THE SLOWEST BURN ~ wally clark x oc

~ light ~

KAITLYN

It's still hard to believe that the simple act of walking down a hall without help and without depleting my stores of energy is such a joyous new development. Wally tags along cheerfully and carries my books, and I clutch the stack of notes. I'm a little nervous but eager to read through them. And at least it's something to do other than run in circles.... Though running in circles earlier was pretty damn great.

It's pitch black in the theater when Wally and I slip through the doors, but I'm familiar with the tech booth, so I gingerly feel my way over there and fiddle with the light board to turn the house lights on low to illuminate the space.

This is the first time in months that I've stood from the audience's perspective. My thoughts wander to Beauty and the Beast. Mom and Penny in the front row. The "Home" song. Acting with Aiden. Laying on the green couch during intermission. The deafening applause. The roses Alison gave me after the show. Yellow ones, my favorite color.

"Damn, you really know how to handle those knobs."

Wally joins me in the tech booth, checking out the sound and light boards. His comment jolts me out of reminiscing, and at first I wonder if he was going for sexual innuendo. I glance at his face as he innocently examines the equipment though, and he seems genuinely impressed. Apparently he's completely clueless about how his compliment came off. It's cute. I suppress a smile.

"Want to see something cool?" I ask him.

"Oh, I am always down for something cool, Kaitlyn. Let's goooo," he responds with a grin.

I click around to load a program and then point at a button. "Press this," I say, my eyes alight, anticipating his reaction.

Immediately, colored lights flood not just the stage but the house too. Each one moves in slow circles in random timing, and all together the effect is mesmerizing.

"Oh, hell yeah!" he exclaims. "Now we just need music."

"I got you covered." I open the laptop connected to the soundboard and fire up the music player. "What mood are we in?"

WALLY

"Ummm..." I sneak a look at her next to me. I can see the lights' colors reflected in her eyes. "You pick. Educate me on something you strange aliens from the 2020's are into." I imagine she'll choose something dancey and upbeat to go with the moving lights.

She clicks around the laptop and then sits back in one of the booth's ofice-style chairs as some mellow r&b song starts up. "Definitely a SZA kind of night, I think."

I sit in the other chair and lean back. Umm hi 911, I'd like to report a crime. She's trying to kill me. Kaitlyn clearly does not realize how romantic this is. I want to reach out and hold her hand so badly. She is literally setting the scene for it. I'd slip my palm under hers and intertwine our fingers, and then-

"Do you like it?" she asks, interrupting another daydream. Ughh, even the innocent fantasies drive me wild. It doesn't help that she's leaning back in the chair, legs crossed and propped up next to the equipment. Her dress rides up her thighs.

"Yeah, I love it." I'm not exaggerating. This is probably the best time I've had in years. As much as I want to keep the conversation going, I know she's the kind of person who can just sit and take in an experience without speaking. So I let her, even though I'm aching to know her thoughts.

We sit there for a couple songs, and I start to wonder if now is a good time to admit I've seen her onstage. I'm so worried about sounding like a stalker. I use another full song to plan out how to word it, but then suddenly I find myself blurting it out with zero smoothness.