loml ~ Neil Perry

Chapter 7

Third person

Neil spent the remainder of the hour running lines between individual characters, and doing some blocking for the play.

Ginny, playing the character of Hermia, was for some reason extremely bothered by Neil getting cozy with Lakyn in the dressing room.

"What were you going in there?" Ginny gives Neil a flirty smile, crinkling her eyebrows out of confusion.

He doesn't give her the response that he wanted, "we're going out after this."

Ginny scoffs, dropping her hands to her side and gazing at Neil as if he was crazy.

"Why would you ever want to go out with her?" She asks.

Neither of the two noticed, but Lakyn stood in the curtains of the theatre, successfully taking cover behind one of the thick velvet cloths to listen to their conversation.

"Because I am attracted to her." Neil side eyed Ginny for a brief second, barely acknowledging her flirtatious stature.

"I don't know why." She laughs incredulously, "her mother is vain, her father is a deadbeat, and the apple never falls far from the tree. I'm sure she's awful-"

Lakyn walks away teary eyed before hearing Neil come to her defense, but she didn't doubt that he did. She couldn't sit there and listen to the things she heard every day from her peers be repeated to Neil, it was mortifying.

"Have you ever taken a second of your precious," Neil puts mockery on the word precious, "-time to speak to her in a way that isn't belittling?"

Ginny is more quiet now, her lips sealed into a straight, unamused line.

"Well, no. But-"

He interrupts her, "have you ever taken a moment to look at one of her paintings? Taken a moment to consider how the fact that her father left her might have made her feel... or the fact that just because her parents have a certain reputation doesn't mean she's the same?"

Ginny clears her throat, "I'm sorry I imposed."

"Next time you see her, take a second to talk to her without your awful predisposition." Neil has edge to his tone, indicating that he will not tolerate her being spoken about this way, "it'll do you some good."

A moment passes between them, the silence filled with resentful thoughts circling Ginny's mind, and empathetic ones circling Neil's.

He knew how hard it must be for Lakyn to experience this treatment constantly, Charlie had mentioned previously that she deals with it at school, and now it's bleeding into something that's meant to be enjoyable for her.

Eventually, Mrs. Woolsworth walked in, and Neil's eyes lit up as if she were royalty. He was ready to get over with running lines between Puck and Hermia, so he could breathe clean air without Ginny's negativity polluting it.

                                     ~

"Are you ready?" Neil smiles down at the beautiful girl beside him. Rehearsals had just wrapped up, scripts tucked away and artwork preserved tediously.

"I'm dying from the anticipation." Lakyn admits, tilting her head upwards to look at him.

"I can assure you that I won't let you down." Neil reaches between them, lacing their hands together gently and taking a step forward to indicate that he would lead the way.

"How will we get there?" She tilts her head as the two of them walk further from the theatre.

"You'll hop onto the back of my bike." Neil shrugs, mounting his bike and nodding towards the back of it.