Shine, Aaron Tveit [1]

three.

chapter three, proud.

      ROSE WAS NEVER NERVOUS, actually, that's a lie. She was always nervous. But, after some time being on a stage she never really got nervous to preform. Especially now, three weeks into opening Moulin Rouge! On Broadway, she wasn't nervous. However, in a few days Roses family would be coming to see her perform. That's what made her nervous.

Roses family, although she loved them, were the worst people ever when it came to theater. They expected way too much from their daughter, especially now since they had a name and reputation to uphold. Her mother, Caroline, would often throw backhanded compliments at Rose. Caroline loved to act supportive and proud while simultaneously picking and prodding at things Rose did wrong. Roses father, Charles, never once paid a compliment. He would always crush her and tell her how bad of a job she did, never once did she get a good job from him. And last but not least, Roses dear brother, Richard, well he just didn't care. He couldn't care less about how good or how horrible Rose did on stage, because he had something better going on. He was the attention whore.

Truth be told, Roses family issues is actually what drove the girl to be as successful as she was. But, after a while, Rose stopped really caring how successful she was. She just wanted to be happy. Luckily, she was talented and was constantly being offered roles, the girl could have her pick of the litter. But Rose never really took the roles she was offered, unless she had auditioned for the show. She didn't want success if she didn't earn it herself.

Today, Rose was rehearsing her songs in her dressing room as she got ready for the show. Her door was closed, and she sang quiet enough to not disturb anyone outside of the room.

After Rose got her wig and mic on, she really just paced around her dressing room. The girl ran through all of her lines and scenes in her head, nervously picking at her finger nails. Over the PA system she heard their stage manager call places, causing the girls heartbeat to quicken. She quickly looked herself over, making sure everything was perfect. It was.

Quickly, Rose made her way backstage, just as the opening number ended. She saw all of her cast-mates run around, getting ready for the next number which she was not in. She nervously smiled at some of her friends, which they returned. Again, Rose paced.

Finally, the second of the number ended, signaling that Roses entrance was about to happen. Rose quickly got onto her trapeze, securing herself to the bar so she didn't go flying off. The girl shook her hands, trying to get the nerves out.

Before she knew it, Roses song had started. She was lowered into the view of the audience, a bright smile on her face. The trapeze stoped mid-air, signaling for her to begin singing. Her voice came out angelic and soft, flowing with the rhythm of the song.

The number went by smoothly, no mistakes what so ever. This was a good sign, maybe today was the day that Rose received the approval of her family she so desperately longed for.

As the show went on, Roses performance only grew stronger. It was like second nature now, acting as this character and preforming this show. But, all good things come to an end. During a specific scene, Rose had a dainty little tissue as a prop, and she had to hold it while she was kissing Aaron.....but as she began to kiss him, the tissue dropped. The girl had fear roll through her veins, she knew her parents saw that.

The scene went on, and Rose fled the stage as it was her last scene before bows. Rose had to stop the tears that threatened to escape. She knew it was silly, the tissue dropping looked like it was supposed to happen, but she knew her parents would see right through that.

Aaron walked off, finishing his last scene. The first thing he saw was Rose, sniffling back some tears. Of course, he was concerned. Why was she crying? Was she hurt? Why did he care?

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Something's wrong."

"It's nothing, Aaron. Leave me be." Rose spat, securing her new costume around her body. She quickly walked to the other side of the stage, just in time for Aaron and her bow. And just as quickly as it started, the show ended.

Rose dreaded leaving the theatre, she knew what she would walk out to. And it wasn't a ton of happy fans...well it was but, it was also her family.

Rose quickly left the theater, smiling at fans and signing their playbills. As the last few people left, Rose noticed her mother, father and brother waiting for her.

Roses mother quickly engulfed her daughter into a hug. Rose looked past her mothers shoulder, being met with her fathers stone expression and her brothers bored one.

"Honey, that was a great show! I especially liked your opening song, I liked the visuals. Oh! But darling, you need to work on your dancing. Oh, and that napkin? Don't drop it next time!"

"I didn't mean to, but does it really matter? It just adds to the element."

"Yes, it certainly adds to the element of you being a lazy actress," Charles, Roses father, spoke. His gaze was cold and emotionless, causing the girl to feel uneasy.

"Yes, I will remember to not drop the napkin next time," Rose spoke, the words leaving a bitter taste in her mouth.

A few feet away, Aaron overhead this conversation. Sure, he didn't like Rose but he wasn't about to let people tell her she wasn't a good actress. That just wasn't true, she was amazing.

"Hey, Rose! You did amazing tonight, I'm really proud of you." Aaron said, smiling at the girl.

"Thanks?" Rose said, looking confused. Rose turned back to look at her parents, who were watching Aaron carefully. Aaron quickly left, being too tired to deal with Rose and her horrible parents right now.

"Anyway, darling, as I was saying...You're dancing, you need to work on that."

"I'm not a dancer in this, the most I do is move around."

"Whatever, you still need to work on it! Oh, and your belt! It's sounding horrible," Caroline, Roses mother, spoke. Rose gave her a hurt look, causing Caroline to say, "don't look at me like that, Rosalyn. I'm only trying to help you here."

After a few more insults, Roses family left, letting the girl finally breathe. After a second of standing outside the theater, Rose decided to go home. The walk home wasn't too long, but if you were as emotionally and physically exhausted as Rose was, it wasn't easy.

Once the girl got home, she couldn't even bring herself to do anything other than go straight to bed. Unfortunately, her mother's thoughts were playing on a loop in the girls head. She may not like her mother, but her words meant something.

Today wasn't the day that Rose got her family's approval, but then again, would there ever be a day? Probably not, but Rose hoped there would be.

But another thought arose in the sleepy girls head, why did Aaron say those things about her? That he was proud of her? Why would he say that? There had to be an explanation. But, unfortunately, there wasn't one. Neither Aaron nor Rose knew why.