Jenalyn: From the Inside (#3) [Complete]

Chapter 60: Hayden

Thursday, 5:28 P.M. EST

Ren laughs at Ella’s attempt at acting.

We all sit in the community room playing Popcorn, a game I didn’t think anybody other than the people in Acting Rec back in Pennsylvania knew.

I used to think the counselors at camp made this game up, but I guess not. Apparently, everybody has been doing so well with their treatment plans that upper management has gifted us with being able to play.

How sweet.

Basically, you take a group of people and sit them in a circle. Two people, the “actors,” center the circle. The actors are given a scene to start with by the nurses, and they act it out until someone in the circle calls “Popcorn!” At that point, the actors freeze in whatever stance they were in for their scene. The person who called popcorn taps the shoulder of one of the actors and resumes their position. The job of the popcorn person is to take the scene in a whole new direction, starting off in the position the actor that they chose left off in.

Sarah and Ella are our first set of actors. I have no idea what scene they started with, but after two minutes of giggling, they find themselves acting out a bullying scenario.

“I could stand here ALL day!” Sarah exclaims as she throws her arms out beside her and puffs out her tiny chest to Ella. “You don’t scare me!” 

Ella brings her hand to her face as she laughs, but tries to continue the scene. She’s interrupted by Dan calling out popcorn though, and is instead frozen looking as if she’s about to cry.

Dan switches with Sarah, resuming her arms open position for only a moment before throwing them around Ella and starting a new scene. 

“Mama! Mama! Don’t you recognize me?!” He cries out as his big arms embrace a very frail-looking Ella. “It’s me! Robby! I’ve been missing for 18 years, ma!” 

Ella catches on after a moment and lets out a half-laugh, half wail. She shoves him off of her. 

Suddenly, she has an accent. “No!” she cries dramatically. “You’re not my Robby! My Robby drowned in the pool years ago!” 

Dan grasps onto Ella’s wrists, his face distraught but hiding a smile. He goes for an Emmy on this next part. “18 years ago, Ma!” he sobs, trying to soften his expression through his laughter. “It’s me, mama! I didn’t drown! I just… got lost!” 

Ella raises her hands to his face, his hands still wrapped around her wrists as she pretends to recognize him.

“Robby?” she asks, embracing his face in her hands and inching closer as if to examine him. She stares hard into his eyes, fake tears in her own. “Robby... is that you-“ 

“Popcorn!” I call out, surprising not only everyone around me but myself too.

I wasn’t planning on participating. I even made it a point to let everyone know exactly that when the nurses started making comments about there being “an actor” in the building.

I really just came for the entertainment.

I guess Jena has other plans though, because before I’m aware, I’m making my way to the center of the circle, tapping Ella on the shoulder, and resuming her position.