Miss Jefferson

Chapter 4

The next week was full of rehearsals, late nights, early mornings, and ramen noodles.

That next Saturday, just as Daveed said, a couple of the cast members wanted to get together for lunch.

The place where we were supposed to meet was right down the street from my apartment, so I tied my curly hair up in a bun, and walked there.

Jasmine called me over to their table.
Not everyone had been able to show, but Pippa, Anthony, Jazzy, Ariana, and Daveed made it.

But there was another person there, whom I hadn't seen before.

Well, he looked slightly familiar, like I'd seen him around in rehearsal once in a while, but other than that, I had no idea who he was.

He was a tall, muscular man with dark skin and short hair.

"Glad you made it, Jada." Jazzy said cheerfully.

"Thanks, I'm glad I could too. Um, I'm sorry, but I don't think I've met you." I said, gesturing to to him. "Are you cast?"

"Yeah," he said, "I missed the very first rehearsal."

"This is the guy I mentioned." Daveed said to me.

"Oh," I stuck out my hand. "My name's Jada."

He accepted it. "Okieriete Onaodowan."

I blinked. "That is a spectacular name that I don't think I can pronounce." I laughed. "Could you say that again?"

He laughed too. "Most people just call me 'Oak'."

"Then I think I will be like most people in this sense."

The food at the restaurant proved to be pretty good, and the building itself was very interestingly interiorly decorated: the walls painted one color, and then sloppily painted over with five more.

Little shelves displaying strange little trinkets, such as a ceramic elephant with a deer jumping off of its back.

Despite all of that, I felt that I was paying a special amount of attention to my new acquaintance.

"It looks like it's gonna rain." Ariana commented, looking out the window as we got ready to leave.

"We'll be fine." Pippa said with a wave of her hand.

We exited and all began walking down the street, headed in the direction of the theater. It was a few miles away, but it wasn't to far.

The sidewalk got narrower, insisting that we walk two-by-two.

"What character do you play?" A voice said next to me.

I looked up at him. "I'm in the ensemble, and I'm hoping to get a specific understudy part."

Oak nodded. "Which part?"

I shook my head. "You'd laugh at me."

He smiled, nudging me. "No I won't, come on."

"Fine. Lafayette and Jefferson."

"Really?"

"Don't laugh." I said sternly.

"I'm not laughing. I've just never thought of them casting a girl for that role."

"Well, maybe they will. Who do you play?"

"Hercules Mulligan and James Madison."

"Hey!" I smiled. "We dance together in 'Helpless'! And if I ever have to understudy, then we'll have a lot of the same scenes."