I woke up hurriedly the next morning. It was cold outside, but I slipped on a t-shirt anyway. I pulled on some jeans and then it hit me: Today was my first day in the theatre. The first day working with…her. I gulped. How was I going to do this? Pull it together, I thought to myself as I proceeded out into the hall to grab some breakfast before school. I grabbed my messenger bag, since my back was still sore, and yanked it off the hook in the living room. It was heavy with all of the notebooks inside of it. I checked to make sure I had some pencils and my history book inside of it, and my computer. It did, so I laid it on the couch alongside my jacket. I walked into the kitchen, to find the dishes put away. I stood bewildered for a moment then saw a flash of messy, black hair sneak into the pantry. I grinned.
I looked through the fridge. My lunch was all packed – a sandwich, some applesauce, and a juice box. On top of it was a note that said, “There is a snack on the counter for you for after detention.” I recognized the writing as Mellanye’s. Looking over at the counter, I saw a huge piece of cake with a fork, a banana, and a bottle of iced tea. I smiled. I packed everything into my lunchbox then hit the jackpot when I saw one last package of Poptarts on the table. I downed a glass of milk, opened the package of Poptarts and headed out into the living room. Remembering the little lifesaver in the pantry, I rounded the corner then said, “Thank you Bree.” I ran out the door and grabbed my skateboard. I reached the school in about ten minutes. I was about to enter the school yard when I saw her. She was wearing long, skinny black jeans with a black top and black combat boots. Her long, black haired was being blown by the wind. She looked like a goddess. All of a sudden, SPLAT! I ran my skateboard into a tree, smacking my head on the ground. I got up and dusted myself off. Luckily nothing was torn. I remembered my Poptarts and took them out of my pocket. They weren’t broken either, though now, one was cracked and the blueberry filling was coming out of the top of the icing just a little. I popped a piece into my mouth and walked into the school. I remembered what Mellanye had told me the night before. “Start small. Just say hi. See how it goes.” I decided that I would say hi eventually, but not now. I walked to my locker and stuffed my skateboard in. I snatched my Algebra 2 book and rushed off to class, getting there right as the teacher was locking the door. He let me in, thankfully, and I took my seat next to Jake and Drake, my two best friends – twins. They were both tall, had deep brown eyes, and short blonde hair. Jake had dyed his hair black, but they still looked the same. One was a class clown, and one was a ladies’ man. Either way they were my friends, and they knew all about Halyn.
Class started, and I tried my best to concentrate. I couldn’t though. I kept thinking about her. Class finally got out, and as we were packing up to leave, the teacher said, “Oh, class, I meant to tell you. Today is the first day for theatre tryouts. The play this semester is Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, a wonderful tragedy telling the story of love and death. Our very own Miss Halyn Lenore Morgenstern is in the school play, so if you have questions be sure to talk with her. Be sure to sign up. The sign-up sheet is in the hall, isn’t it Halyn?” The girl nodded shyly, and I went pale. I had no clue she was in my class. I couldn’t believe it. Who knows what she had heard. The twins were always kidding me about liking her. I groaned. I thought I was going to throw up. Class was dismissed, and I ran out of the classroom, Drake and Jake at my heels.
“Roderick what’s wrong?” Drake asked.
“Oh come on, dipshit,” Jake said to his brother, “you know full well what’s wrong. Halyn is in that class.”
“OH. And don’t call me dipshit.”
“I’m older, I’ll call you what I like.”
“That’s not the only problem guys.” They looked at me. “I have been shanghaied into working as a stagehand as punishment for my little smoking incident. I’ll be seeing her a lot.” I slid down to the ground, my sore back grinding against the locker door. I suddenly felt nauseous. “What am I going to do?” I cried, putting my head in my hands. They grabbed me by my shoulders and hoisted me up.
“Don’t go all sappy on us. Everything will be fine. You just have to get her attention.” Drake paused then said, “Besides, we can help you. Just act out at the theatre tonight. The more you annoy her, the more she’ll fight back.”
I got through the rest of my day then went to detention. There the torture continued. Halyn was the detention monitor, and I was the only “bad egg” in the room. I studied her closely. Her nose was stuck in a book, though she would look at the clock above my head what seemed to be every fifteen minutes. Finally, she got up to leave.
“Does this mean detention is over?” I asked shyly. I stopped. I had asked her a question! She nodded to me and left. I walked down the hall to my locker and grabbed the extra books that I would need to finish my homework this weekend. I then ran to the theatre, somewhat excited at seeing Halyn again. I was ten minutes late, and Principle Blackthorne was not happy.
“You were supposed to be here ten minutes ago, Kallow,” she said with a frown on her pretty face. She sighed. I didn’t apologize. “Start working on the set. I will show you the controls tomorrow. For now you need to start painting.”
“Wait…tomorrow?”
She smirked. “You didn’t think that this job was something that only occurred during the week did you? No…we work every day except Sunday. Better get used to coming here every day…You’ll have to be here by ten tomorrow morning. If you don’t want to spend your full Saturday here at school, I’d suggest you start painting.” She handed me a paint brush and a can of brown paint. “Start with that tree.”
Sighing, I took the brush and stuck it in the can of paint. I drew it upon the tree slowly, then stroked again. Suddenly I heard, “Romeo! Juliet! We need to rehearse the balcony scene! Take your positions!” I saw a boy with short black hair proceed to the stage, the beautiful Halyn at his feet. She wore a robe of passion red, a gown of royal blue. She was beautiful. He was, in a girl’s eyes, cute I suppose. He was dressed in a puffy shirt with a ruffle at the neck. He wore brown tights, which I found hard not to laugh at. Then I remembered something when I had read this play for English – Romeo and Juliet kiss in the balcony scene. Jealousy shot through me. I wanted that kiss more than anything. “I would give myself six more months of detention just for my lips to touch hers,” I thought to myself as I watched her climb the steps to the balcony. Just then, Drake’s words rang through my skull. “Just act out at the theatre tonight. The more you annoy her, the more she’ll fight back.” I grinned. He was right. Now I knew what I had to do. I continued painting, pretending not to notice what was going on. Romeo was climbing the ladder. Now was my chance. Dropping my brush, I ran headlong into the ladder, knocking Romeo to the ground. I rolled off of the stage, in agonizing pain, as I had landed on my back. I groaned and passed out. I woke up to find both Principal Blackthorne and Halyn leaning over me. Principal Blackthorne didn’t look pleased, neither did Halyn. Halyn looked more concerned than unhappy, however, and that made me feel a bit better. I got up uneasily, holding my hand to my head.
“What happened Mr. Kallow?” Principal Blackthorne asked. I thought up a story quickly.
“I thought I saw the ladder falling, Ma’am,” I said with a smile of reluctance. “I wanted to stop it. I ran too far and fell off the stage. I’m sorry.” Principle Blackthorne looked at me with concern.
“Well then. Perhaps a bit more sleep will do you some good. Halyn, what is the damage to Romeo?”
It was at that moment that I heard Halyn speak for the first time. Her voice was quiet, and somewhat shaky, but she sounded intelligent. “Romeo is hurt, Principal.” I stood there in shock. Her voice was like a melodious tune that I never wanted to leave my ears. “Damn,” I thought, “she is way out of my league. Come on, speak again.” Principal Blackthorne thought for a moment. “Well we need a new Romeo.” She looked at me. I turned pale.
“No…don’t put me in the play…please…” I thought to myself. Principal Blackthorne smiled.
“Why Roderick…I think you would make a wonderful Romeo…Tell me, what is your clothing size?” I gulped.
She brought the costume to me and told me to change. I took the costume reluctantly and changed. I looked ridiculous. Halyn, since the first time I had seen her, was hiding a very shy smile that had appeared on her lips. Then it hit me: I was Romeo! I would be kissing her! I blushed as I thought of this. I walked out on stage, looking and smiling like a complete idiot. I smiled a little at Halyn, who in turn glared at me. I looked away quickly. A script fell into my hands.
“Make sure you know these lines backwards and forwards Mr. Kallow,” Principle Blackthorne said. “Miss Morgenstern will help you.” At this, Halyn’s head popped up and the expression said it all: “You have GOT to be kidding me.”
Instead of making a fuss, she nodded. “I will,” she said.
The principal spoke. “You may go now Mr. Kallow. You will need to learn some of your lines by Monday. Be prepared to spend a lot of time here, for now you will not only help with props and costume design, but also have a lead part in this play. I will make a call to your mother and let her know that you are planning to spend most of your free time at the theatre.”
I said nothing but nodded. I changed back into my regular clothes and, with a new costume and a four-hundred page script in hand, walked home. I walked through the door at seven o’clock. Once inside, Mellanye met me at the door.
“How did it go?” I grinned.
“I’m Romeo!”
“WHAT?”
“I…got jealous in the balcony scene. I’m Romeo now – look!” Grinning stupidly, I pulled out the script and costume. Mellanye’s jaw dropped.
“Wow Roderick. I didn’t think that you would be excited to be in the school-“ It hit her. “There is a catch, isn’t there?” I nodded. “Tell me.”
“She gets to help me learn my lines! And get this: she’s the detention monitor!” Mellanye grinned.
Chuckling she said, “Come on. I have dinner waiting for you. You must be starving.” I followed her into the kitchen. On the table was a large glass of milk and a plate of steak and a baked potato. I grabbed a fork and sat down. While I ate, Mellanye asked me questions about the play and about how I got the role. I related the whole story to her. After I ate, I started the dishes. I was so tired that I accidentally cut myself on a fork, and Mellanye had to get the first aid kit. By the time I finished the dishes, it was nine o’clock. I still had homework to do. I asked Mellanye if she wouldn’t mind helping me finish, as I had a lot to do, including a four page paper on Alexander Hamilton for history, sixty pages of English, a new song for my piano class (which I took on Mondays as an extra-curricular activity), and a beaker experiment for science. I also had a mural to paint, as I was in art class. And now, on top of all of that, I had a four hundred page script to memorize for the school play. Mellanye gladly stayed up with me. We worked until two in the morning, and after that I remembered nothing more.
I woke up the next morning in my own bed. My room had been cleaned. My books and clothes were set out, including my costume and script for the play. My alarm was going off an hour before I had to be at school. I got dressed and for once, made my bed. Grabbing my costume and my bag, I walked out into the hall. Something smelled delicious. I walked into the kitchen to find Athena cooking pancakes and bacon. Vladymyr, Bree, and a very tired-looking Mellanye sat at the table. They smiled upon seeing me, but stayed quiet. Athena came over and hugged me tightly.
“Morning!” she said happily. “Hope you are hungry.” I nodded and sat down after Athena broke the hug.
I ate quickly, then said, “I have to get to school. Be back later.”
Mellanye ran after me and said, “Here, I have to go to work anyway. I’ll drive you.” I nodded and put on my jacket. I grabbed my lunchbox, which Athena had already packed for me, costume, the play script, and messenger bag then followed Mellanye out the door. A navy blue Mercedes sat parked in the driveway. I climbed in after setting my things gently in the back. I looked at the clock. It was ten until ten.
“Mellanye, can you make it quick? I don’t want to be late.”
Mellanye looked at me in shock. “I never thought I’d hear you say for me to make sure you were at school on time.”
“This is different. This is for Halyn.”
She nodded and drove me to school. I sat there, thinking of her. The beautiful black hair, the stunning blue-green eyes, the melodious voice. Nothing I could do could keep her off my mind. Every song I heard on the way to school reminded me of her: You and I by Anarbor, All Around Me by Flyleaf, Little Wonders by Rob Thomas, Reason by Hoobastank. I arrived at school finally and, gently grabbing my things from her car, said goodbye to Mellanye. She offered to pick me up but I had other plans. Mellanye grinned and rolled her eyes, but wished me luck and drove off. I walked up to the theatre and burst through the door. Principal Blackthorne looked shocked. I plopped my stuff in a chair, grabbed my costume and script and said eagerly, “I’ll be right back!” I rushed to the dressing rooms and put on my costume. I walked back out onto the stage, then flung my regular clothes into a chair and opened my script. I looked at the principal.
“What is my first duty today?”
“Wow…Roderick I didn’t think you would be so enthusiastic about this play let alone show up on time…Miss Morgenstern is over there – she’ll tell you what to do.” I nodded and walked nervously over to Halyn. She looked up.
“Principal Blackthorne said that you would tell me what my first duty for the day was?” I asked shyly. She nodded and handed me a list. I looked it over. Written in her neat scroll, were these tasks:
To Do List:
1. Paint Tree Leaves
2. Polish Juliet's Shoes for Balcony Scene
3. Rebuild Balcony Ladder
4. Learn Controls for Lighting
5. Help Hang Curtains
6. Re-enact Capulet/Montague Meeting Scene
7. Sweep Stage
8. Arrange Lights
I smiled. The hardest tasks were these in my hand right now. I switched into my old clothes again and took off to paint the tree leaves, occasionally bugging Halyn with color choice. I vowed to that day that I would take that list home with me and tape it to my wall with my best posters. Perhaps I could get a photo of her from one of the photographers. I was through with the tree leaves around one o’clock or so, and so I stopped to eat. I pulled out a ham and cheese bagel and an apple. I ate fast, packed up my trash, and went back to work. I consulted the list. I had to polish Juliet’s shoes for the balcony scene. Normally this was one of the lowliest tasks in the theatre, but considering that Juliet was being played by Halyn herself, I took on the task with pride and content. I spotted the shoes hanging up backstage, and I took them down. I grabbed a cloth and some polish then sat down. I started scrubbing, humming a song I had heard on the radio earlier – Boulevard of Broken Dreams. After a while, I saw Halyn enter, but kept humming, staying focused on my work. She stopped for a second, the royal blue gown swishing around her ankles.
Shyly she said, “You…you know Green Day?” I spun around.
“Mmhmm,” I said, trying not to smile. “It’s one of my favorite songs by Green Day.”
Halyn smiled a little. “Oh. Well, carry on.”
“Actually, I just finished your shoes for the balcony scene. Time to rebuild that ladder.” I hung the shoes back up, put away the polish and scrubber, then grabbed a hammer and a carton of nails. I walked over to the ladder and laid it down gently. I started hammering fresh wood into the rails and on one occasion lost my precision. I had been looking at her when suddenly I felt a huge pain in my finger. I frowned. I had to pay attention otherwise I would hammer my fingers off. By the time I finished the ladder, it was close to three o’clock. What else did I have left? I consulted the list again. “Learn the controls for lighting,” I said aloud to myself. “Sounds easy enough. Principal Blackthorne could I have your assistance please?” She came over.
“What seems to be the problem Mr. Kallow?”
“Oh, nothing is the problem, but my next task is to learn the lighting controls. I was wondering if there was a booklet or something?”
“Oh, yes. Come with me. I will show you.”
It took a while, but finally I had memorized the controls well enough to follow commands by the other members of the stage crew. After this was done I climbed a ladder and started hanging curtains. Principal Blackthorne had never been happier.
“I can’t believe your work ethic, Mr. Kallow,” she said, smiling.
“Don’t praise me, Ma’am,” I said. “I got this from my parents. They deserve all the credit.” It was four o’clock. I didn’t have a lot of time left. My pocket vibrated, so I climbed down the ladder and answered my phone. It was Mellanye, asking how much longer I would be and how things were going.
“Things are going well,” I told her. “I have spoken to her, Mel. I’m making baby steps at least. I should be home by seven. Do you…” I paused. “Do you mind if I have someone over for dinner?” I could feel her smile on the other end of the line. Once I got the okay, I decided that now would be as good a time as any to ask Halyn over. I approached her.
“Yes?” she said, looking me over. I was covered in sweat and dirt.
“Um…well we still have to go over some of my lines. I was wondering if you would like to come over tonight so we could practice. My family will be cooking dinner, and you haven’t really eaten much today…” My voice faded. She smiled shyly.
“Sure. We don’t have much left to do today, but you still have three things to do on that list of yours. Go change. We’ll rehearse the meeting scene.”
I nodded happily and went to change. I only had 15 lines, 4 of them being stanzas, in the first scene, but it still took me two hours to perform the scene accurately. By the end of the scene, my head hurt, and I realized how tired I was. I looked at the list. I still had to sweep the stage and re-arrange the lights for the balcony scene. The sweeping only took ten minutes, but the lights took about half an hour. I fixed the last light then fell flat on my back tiredly. I winced. My back hurt. I ran to the changing rooms and showered quickly then got dressed. I didn’t see Halyn anywhere. My heart sank.
Then I felt a tap on my shoulder. Halyn had changed and she looked beautiful, even in a t-shirt and jeans. I blushed as I looked her over. I smiled. “Ready to go?” She nodded shyly. We gathered our things and left the theatre, heading for my house. When we approached the door, I noticed that both of my parents were home, along with all of my siblings. I groaned, and Halyn noticed.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing…just…I have a weird family. Just saying.”
Halyn shrugged and looked away. Suddenly the door opened, and Mellanye stood there, waiting for us.
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