Unwanteds Stories

the one where there's not actually a secret exit (and sky is a queen)

Alex glanced over at Sky, Meghan, and Lani, who were chatting excitedly about the play they had just watched. Tapping his foot, he looked to the door leading backstage, where he knew Samheed would be emerging shortly. He decided to go and meet him himself, knowing their friends would be content to just wait in the auditorium.

Sky saw Alex walking backstage and raised an eyebrow.

Alex mouthed something meaningless, trying to confuse her just for fun. "Sugarberries! Platyprot eggs!" he mouthed.

She stared at him in confusion. "What?" she mouthed back.

"Applecorn rhubapple!"

She gestured at him, bewildered.

He grinned wildly and gave her two thumbs up, then backed into the narrow, dimly lit hallway which led behind the stage.

She sighed and turned away, tuning back into Lani and Meghan's conversation.

Alex whistled tunelessly as he walked down the hall. He reached the end of the corridor and gazed into the better-lit area lined with dressing-room doors. He heard rambunctious chatter, loud laughter, and ridiculous, off-key singing.

Did he dare, he wondered, open a door and look for Samheed?

A burst of giggles erupted from behind the thin wood, followed by a loud shriek.

No. He dared not.

He turned and roamed backstage, almost getting knocked over by a blond boy striding past hurriedly, carrying heaps upon heaps of costumes and props, and one, inexplicable hat which was shaped like a fish. Alex vaguely remembered the boy from the Purge a few years before his.

The boy dumped his huge load on a prop table, then raced back down the dressing rooms' hallway.

Alex walked onto the stage, which still was lit by spotlights, though the curtain was closed. Admiring the finely painted sets, he smiled, remembering how he'd helped to make many of them.

"Hey Al."

Alex startled and turned, then raised a hand in greeting. "Samheed, hi." He grinned.

"What are you doing back here?" Samheed wondered. "Not that you can't be, just . . ." he trailed off.

Alex shrugged. "Figured I'd come and wait for you," he said.

"Huh, thanks. Where is everybody?"

"They're waiting out there." Alex gestured vaguely to the space behind the curtain.

"So what did you think of the show?" Samheed asked.

"It was fantastic! We practically laughed our heads off a couple of times, and at one point I think I saw Lani crying, just a little. She glared at me, though, so I didn't comment."

Samheed grinned. "Yeah, it was fun. I can't wait for the next one!"

"Woah there, calm down!" Alex laughed, raising his hands as if to ward off his best friend's excitement. "You just finished this one!"

"Yeah, but the next show is about this prince, and he's got to get married but there's, like, this lowly kitchen boy and they're friends, and they like each other, but the prince is gonna have to marry this girl, and there are all these princesses, like, trying out." Samheed's face lit up, hands gesturing wildly. "And this one girl doesn't want to marry him because she doesn't like people like that, like, romantically, and she would never want to have, like, an heir because she doesn't like people, um, that way either-" Samheed grimaced awkwardly, "-and she's an imposter princess because her parent is actually an evil mage who forced her into this so their child would be next in line, and the girl sees the prince and his boyfriend because he raced out of the throne room all upset after finding out about all the prospective brides, and she warns them about her parent's plan, and the three of them have to go on a quest to-" [an: this is an actual story i'm writing lmao haha i had to include it]