The Stranger I Met

Act Four

"No Chloe, it doesn't matter whether you touch his left shoulder or right. Just remember your stupid lines." I had never heard Mrs Hall so furious. She kept scolding every one on every single detail. I was sitting a few rows behind her. She went easy on the main cast during the morning rehearsals.

Today, Naisha had got me out of bed, a thing she didn't do on a daily basis. She had striped off my comforter in one go. " Rise and shine kitty cat. You are going to be late for school." She shouted on top of her voice." Ugh- let me sleep." I had protested." No babe, holidays are over. You are going to school today. No more running from your troubles." She sat on the edge of my bed. She put her palm under my neck and pulled me up into a sitting position." Why so ruthless." I croaked, half asleep. " Stop moaning and chug that coffee down." She got up from my bed and stood in front of it." Today's agenda." She said, all business." You will go to school. You will face Jason and Tyler like an adult. You will kill at the rehearsals. You will focus in your classes. You'll come back home and we will discuss about the party." She finally finished." That's a lot to take in." I replied rubbing my eyes." Exactly, so what are you waiting for. Chop-chop." She clapped her hands.

A small smile forms on my lips thinking about the morning. Mrs Hall turns back ," Aurora, honey. It's your scene next . So please go and stand with Madison."" Which scene are we doing?" I ask her." Act Four dear, now go." Oh yes, the one where Nicholas finds that his fiancée, Emily, is cheating on him. Madison was chosen for Emily's role. Serves her right. I go and stand behind Madison and as usual, she gives me one of her famous glares and then ignores me. Typical of her.

We both get on the stage from the right entrance while Jason ,who plays Nicholas, gets on stage from the left one.
The scene begins with a conversation between Nicholas and Emily. Jason does his role very sincerely. Madison is her usual, trying to make it a chick flick. As their dialogues proceed, I could see the way Jason portrayed his feelings more through his face rather than his lines. His face goes from angry to betrayed to utterly helpless." What did I not do that he did, Em? I loved you, I worshipped you and this is what I get." Damn, he is so good. How the hell did he not get the lead. " Enter Erica." Mrs Hall says as Madison leaves, fake crying, the stage.

I snap out of my thoughts and walk on the stage, Jason is sitting on a chair with his back towards me." Nick." I say in a concerned voice." He turns around. His eyes meeting mine. The pain in them is so real. I don't have to put a lot of work when I say the next lines." What happened? Why are you crying?" I place one hand on his shoulder and I use the other to wipe his tears. He visibly melts at my touch. I couldn't understand whether it was real or not. He is at the level of my shoulders.

Our eyes are connected with an invisible thread, neither of us breaking the contact. But then he looks down , sobs a little and hugs me. I look towards Mrs Hall quizzically. She nods. I remember the hug being in the script but till now we hadn't practiced it. His head rests on my chest and my chin on his head. His arms are tight around my waist. I realize that this is the first time I have embraced him. It felt- nice. I rubbed his back , calming him down while he kept telling me what had happened. I couldn't focus on what he said as I was too busy enjoying the feel of his hair below my hand.

We break apart. He looks up," Did I not love her enough, Erica? Am I the reason she is with him?" I almost forget my lines while looking at him." No, Nick. Absolutely not." I sit down on my knees, coming eye to eye with him. He looks behind me, conveying to the audience as if he is waiting for Emily to come back to him. I take his face in my hands. His face is perfectly smooth with no stubble. It feels wonderful holding him like this.

He looks at me." In all these years with you, if she didn't value what she had and ran around to find a fake moment of joy, then it is her loss, not yours." I say in my most affectionate tone." But she was my one true love." He cries." You haven't met your one true love. She won't run away when you need her, she will sit with you through your sorrows. She won't be with you for your outer charm. She will see right through you and realize the treasure that has been gifted to her as you. She will love you for your kindness, your compassion, your empathy and will except your flaws as her own." I say the last line slowly." She will love you, no matter what. That girl is your one true love, Nicholas." As in the script, I kiss his forehead and get up to leave.