Chapter 34 - Dan's POV

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"Good luck tonight!" Phil says. "Or wait. Break a leg actually!"

"Thanks, I'm kind of weirdly nervous. I can't believe it's already opening night."

"Oh, you'll do great, I know it." He smiles. "Okay I actually really need to go, Jamie called us like five minutes ago for a last minute costume check, but I wanted to wish you luck. "

"Aww, you're sweet. But don't make Jamie mad at you, she's not fun when she's mad."

"Ah, we'll be fine." He kisses me quickly on the cheek. "Break a leg tonight!" He calls, running down the hall.

"Thanks," I murmur.  My fingers brush lightly over the spot where his lips were a moment ago. I catch sight of my reflection in the window. My cheeks are bright pink, only partly from the blush I'm wearing.

I make my way to the dressing room. Jamie's standing outside the door.

"Oh good, there you are," she says. "I was going to check the dressing room for you, but I wasn't sure if everyone was clothed, and naked teenage boys are not high on the list of things I want to see."

She takes a small bottle and a puff of what looks like wool out of her bag.  "I need to put wolf hair on you." She drags me into the bathroom and sets me in front of the mirror.  She hands me the wool. "Start tearing that up," she instructs. She pours a little of whatever is in the bottle onto a cotton ball and starts dabbing on my cheeks and hands.

"Fuck, Jamie, what is that?" I ask, wrinkling my nose at the pungent smell.

"Spirit gum. It's for, like fake beards and shit. " She peers at me. "Why are your cheeks so red? Did you have Saoirse do your blush? She always puts too much on."

"Um, no."

"Ooh they're turning redder, you're blushing! I wonder what it is?" She takes the wool from me and starts sticking it to the spirit gum on my skin.

I hear someone call from backstage "Ten to circle!"

"Thank you, ten!" Jamie and I call back.

"Okay, you're just about done," she says. I stand to look in the mirror and gasp.

"Holy shit, Jamie!" I examine my hands and face in the mirror. I've got a beard that looks like I haven't shaved in months, and almost as much hair on my arms and hands as an actual wolf. Paired with the fluffy tail sticking out of my flannel nightgown and the wire granny glasses perched on the edge of my fake wolfs nose, I look every bit like the wolf about to swallow Little Red Riding Hood.

"My, how much hair you have, Granny!" Jamie snickers.

"Oh, piss off. " I mutter.

"Nah, I'm just gonna stay and admire my makeup skills for a little while."

"Fine, well, I'm leaving anyway. I need to get my nightcap and ears before circle."

I go to the dressing room to get the rest of my costume. I find Danny sitting in front of the mirror facepalming, while one of the younger stagehands giggles uncontrollably.

"Um, do I wanna know?" I ask.

Danny raises his head slightly to look at me and groans. "I asked him to tie this around my neck, and he started laughing because I 'have nuts under my chin' now. " He gestures to the string of acorns he has to wear as a necklace, sending the other boy into another furious fit of giggles.

"Oh for fucks sake." I'm kinda laughing too though, cuz there's not really any other response I could have. Danny hands me the necklace and I tie it on for him. "How did you even get this ugly thing, anyway?" I ask.

"Jamie's head costumer and pulled some strings just to get her revenge." He sighs. "This isn't even an original costume.  It's the one Clarissa wore 3 years ago when she played Peter Pan."

"Jeez how are you even fitting into that?" I ask incredulously.

"Clarissa was tall and according to Jamie I can fit anything because I'm a dancer. Personally I think she just likes to torment me."

"Yikes, is she still getting revenge for that third breakup?"

"No, that one was her fault. " He laughs. "This is revenge for the fourth, which wasn't technically a breakup, but I went out with Kailey and Jamie and I didn't talk for six months."

"Ooh I don't even have the full story on that one, but you two not talking was pretty bad."

Any further conversation about Danny and Jamie's convoluted history is cut short by a shout from outside. "Time for Show Circle!"

"Thank you, time!" We answer. I start to leave, then look back. "You coming?"

"I'll be there in a minute. I have to get these damned tights on first."

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