Previously,
Angelina and Ashton were rivals in school. They were both talented actors, and they were both vying for the lead role in the school play. On the day of the audition, Angelina and Ashton gave their all. They both delivered powerful performances, and they both left the audition feeling confident that they had won the lead role.
However, when the cast list was posted, Angelina was shocked to see that she had been cast as the lead. Ashton had been cast as the male lead opposite her. Angelina was disappointed, but she was determined to give the role her best. She knew that she had to work hard to win over the audience and prove that she was the best actress for the job.
Angelina and Ashton walked into the auditorium, both feeling a mixture of excitement and anxiety. This was the first practice for the school play, and they were both determined to give their best.
Angelina was the lead actress, and Ashton was the male lead opposite her. They had been rivals ever since they were in first grade, and they were both determined to prove that they were the best in the school, be it academics, art, acting, (or anything, for that matter), and most importantly, better than the other.
The director, Mr. Smith, welcomed everyone to the first practice. He then introduced the cast and crew, and went over the schedule for the next few weeks.
“You can all take a few minutes to get to know each other. I need to go backstage and check on something,” he said, and walked away.
Ash felt his heart race as he stood next to Angie, his crush, who was co-starring with him. He wanted to talk to her, to make her laugh, to impress her. He wanted to see her smile, to hear her voice, to feel her touch. He wanted to tell her how he felt, how he had always felt, ever since he met her.
But he didn’t know how. He didn’t know what to say, what to do, what to think. He was afraid of saying the wrong thing, of doing the wrong thing, of thinking the wrong thing. He was afraid of being rejected, of being ignored, of being laughed at.
He was afraid of losing her.
So he kept quiet, and hoped she would notice him. But she didn’t. She looked around the room, searching for someone else to talk to. Someone more interesting, more attractive, more confident than him, he assumed.
She didn’t see him. She didn’t care about him.
Angelina, on the other hand, felt a wave of embarrassment and annoyance as she stood next to him. She wished he would leave her alone, but he always seemed to be near her, no matter what. Ever since first grade, whether it was intentional or not, they would always be near each other.
Ash had a crush on her, but she didn’t feel the same way. She only thought of him as her rival, or even her friend, but never anything more.
She didn’t like him. She didn’t want him.
Every time she looked at him, she was only reminded of what happened a few nights back, when she fell asleep on his shoulder, and he, on hers.
They were on the bus back home from the school trip. They had been assigned to sit next to each other, and they were both exhausted from the long day of travel. She had just ended a conversation between the two and about to fall asleep when she felt his arm brush against hers. She turned to look at him, and he was already looking at her.
Their eyes met, and for a moment, she thought she felt something. Something warm, something soft, something sweet. Something that made her heart flutter and her cheeks flush. Something like… embarrassment? Confusion?
But she quickly pushed it away. It was nothing. It was just fatigue, just boredom, just exhaustion.
It was definitely not love.
She closed her eyes and leaned her head on his shoulder. She felt his arm wrap around her waist. She didn’t have the energy to move it away.
She told herself it was just for comfort, just for warmth, just for sleep. ‘Why would it be anything else?’ she assured herself.
It was not for love.
She felt her eyes roll as she saw him smile nervously at her, hoping for her to say something.
She was interrupted from her flow of thought when she heard a third voice say, “So, you two are the ones playing Gia and Scott? Dang, that won’t go well at all!”
“What do you mean?” she heard Ashton reply to the mysterious boy.
She turned around and saw a tenth-grade boy standing behind them, talking with Ashton. He had a friendly smile on his face, which seemed could never be erased. He wore white glasses, and braces holding his teeth in place. Judging by his appearance, he was a year senior to her.
“We tenth-graders hear all the gossip too. You guys used to be rivals, then all of a sudden you started dating, and now you cheated on her.”
Angelina shook her head. “He didn’t cheat or anything. We broke up silently, then afterward, he got together with someone else, really fast.”
“Oh, I’m sorry about that.” the boy said with a sheepish grin.
“It’s all right. Nobody really knew about the breakup anyway.” Ashton shrugged, albeit feeling slightly sad that it was gone, though it was fake. “What’s your name?”
“Benjamin Challenger,” he replied, “And you two are Ashton and Angelina, arguably the most famous, most fierce rivals in school.”
“That’s us.” Angie replied proudly, placing her hands to her hips.
Ash nodded in agreement. “Hey, any idea who plays Layla?” he asked.
“I think it’s her,” Benjamin said. He pointed towards a fairly short girl wearing large, black, cat-eye glasses that seemed to occupy half her beautiful, tanned face. Her dark brown – nearly black hair was exceptionally curly, yet somehow fit perfectly into a fishtail braid. She wore a three-fourths sleeved dark blue top with reversible sequin art work of multiple little stars. Her converse shoes seemed to match with the dark blue of the top. Her green eyes seemed to sparkle in the stage lighting so much that it somehow made Angelina’s own green eyes look a bit duller than usual.
“That’s her, Scarlet Blue. Aptly named, not gonna lie.” the boy commented.
The three of them walked up to her and decided to start a conversation.
“Hi,” Angelina said. “I’m Angelina, and this is Ashton and Benjamin. We’re the leads in the play.”
“I’m Scarlet,” the girl replied. “I’m playing Layla.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” Ashton said. “We were wondering if you had any questions about the play.”
“I do have a few,” Scarlet said, brushing some of her curly hair of her forehead. “But first, I just wanted to say that I’m a huge fan of your work, Angelina. I’ve seen all your plays.”
“Thank you,” Angelina said, blushing slightly. “That means a lot to me.”
“So, about the play,” Scarlet said. “I was wondering what your interpretation of Layla is. I’m not sure how to play her.”
“I think Layla is a strong and independent woman,” Angelina said. “She’s not afraid to speak her mind, and she’s not afraid to stand up for what she believes in. She’s also funny, and loves food. Like in the scene where she grabs the pizza slice Phillip is using to explain with.”
“That’s a great interpretation,” Scarlet said. “I think I can relate to her, but I’m not that extroverted.”
“I’m glad,” Angelina said. “I think it’s important for Layla to be relatable to the audience.”
“I agree,” Scarlet said. “I think she’s a great character, and I’m excited to play her.”
“We’re excited to have you on the team,” Benjamin said.
“Thanks,” Scarlet said. “I’m excited to be here.”
The four of them talked for a while longer, discussing the play and their characters. By the end of the conversation, they all felt like they had made a new friend.
As they were walking away, Angelina turned to Benjamin and said, “She’s not too bad.”
“I know, right?” Ashton said. “I was actually kind of worried about her at first, but she seems really cool.”
Angie nodded to him indifferently, trying not to have their eyes meet.
“I think so too,” Ashton said.
They smiled at each other awkwardly and then they went their separate ways.
As Angelina walked away, she thought about what her new friend had said about Layla. She realized that Scarlet was right. Layla was a strong and independent woman, but she was also funny and provided comic relief. And that made her a very relatable character.
She opened her backpack, and pulled her water bottle outside for a sip of water. While she was placing it back in, she noticed a letter of sorts lying in her bag.
“To My Favorite Rival,
Angie.” read the cover.
The letter was written on a piece of lined notebook paper. The handwriting was messy and childish, but it was clearly meant to be Ashton’s. The letter read:
Angelina smiled slightly. She had no idea how Ash passed any English Grammar exams judging by how the handwriting and grammar looked wonky. She sighed and crumpled it up, leaving no further lingering thoughts of the matter behind.
ns 15.158.61.8da2
