Break a leg

TW: Physical violence, strong language, mentions of suicide

The school was old, very old. Located comfortably in a 19^th century building, it has given a start in life to many generations of children. Its steps carried memories of tens of thousands of feet hurrying up and down, chasing after and running away.

Right now the school was empty. Only in the small theatre the lights were on, highlighting a young couple on stage.

“O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo! Deny thy father and refuse thy name; Or, if thou wilt not…”

“So fuckin` easy, babe,” a boy`s voice interrupted a red-haired girl`s monologue, “You don`t even have to be THAT elaborate.”

She drew a deep breath and slowly turned around.

“O Romeo…”

“Here here, Rapunzel, want me to come?” a lopsided grin lit up his green eyes.

“I swear to God, if I had a say in the casting process, you`d be hanging from an oak tree outside!”

“The smell of my rotting flesh would reach you anyway, “ he circled her, “ I`d stink to high heavens, love.”

She shot him an angry look and swayed away from his touch.

“Makes me wonder how stinkers like you still get along. The opening night is in two days and I have no idea if you know your lines!”

“You suck at improvisation.”

“You suck at life! Can you stick to your lines, for heaven`s sake?!”

“Wow, easy, Juliet! No wonder the guy offed himself!” he put up his hands in surrender.

“If I were her and you were anything like your stupid self, I`d end you myself, Dylan, and have no remorse whatsoever.”

“If ever thou art that lady and my poor self still stayed the same, Thou wouldst killeth me and has`t nay remorse,” Dylan bowed comically as if inviting the girl to a dance. She grimaced and shrugged her shoulders.

“O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo! Deny thy father and refuse…”

The lights above the stage flickered. Dylan looked up.

“Hey, Tessa…”

She sighed.

“It`s like…”

The lights flickered again and then went off.

“It`s like we`re not meant to be performing together,” Dylan giggled in the darkness, “The gods above have madeth their decision clear. In order to obey in timely fashion, the mistress and myself shouldst part their ways. But fear not f`r thine self is under my protection.”

“The panel must have been faulty as I said!” Tessa`s eyes started to get accustomed to the darkness, “I`m definitely not meant to be wasting my time with you but now it`s…”

“It`s all about those Hollyweird snobs coming to see you julietting yourself out for an audition.”

“Your romeoing will never get you any further than a local car wash, Dylan. Truck drivers would tip well for some Shakespeare-versed cleaning.”

“Still more male attention that you`d ever get, my little angry bee. Beware, bees are going extinct.”

“Relics in plaid like you have already perished and you have been left behind by a mistake.”

Tessa was making her way to the wings to check on the panel, but Dylan was faster.

“Stay here, I`ll check everything myself. Relics might need some electrocution to operate faster, mightn`t they?”

Dylan had reached the wings before Tessa came with yet another insult. If only she resembled a human a bit more, he would`ve had warmer feeling towards her.

Complete darkness enveloped him pierced only by the green lights of an emergency exit. He tried to squint to see better in the eerie green light but had little success. His hearing though picked up on some noises echoing somewhere in an office down the corridor. The faulty panel was instantly forgotten while Dylan moved slowly towards the voices. Tall and sporty, he managed to stay almost quiet as a mouse.

“I`m telling you for the last time, Charlie, it`s MY play, MY edit, MY chance! My play will win and I will get to produce it in Hollywood,” the voice definitely belonged to Mr Bailey, the headmaster.

“But, Richard, all the rehearsals, all the literature classes! They are MY students and this play is MINE, too! You can`t come in and demand full credit to OUR production!” disagreed the voice of Mr Williams, the teacher.

“What will you do in Hollywood, Charlie boy? You can`t tie your shoes or drink your coffee without spilling it all over your ghastly sweaters! You dine at cheap holes and you are so terrified of life! What good would winning do to you?”

“Ye-yes, partially you are correct, I admit that,” Charlie sounded ashamed, “But, Richard, it`s my work as well!”

“I`m not saying I won`t… mention you somewhere… It`s just better if I`m in the limelight. I can take it, Charlie, and you can`t.”

There was a pregnant pause. Dylan was slowly creeping towards the streak of light across the floor. An old floor board creaked. Dylan froze.

“Did you hear that?” the headmaster`s voice turned ice-cold, “Are we expecting any company, Charlie?”

“No, absolutely not!” Charles Williams clearly panicked, “I swear I did as you told me to. We are alone.”

“Good boy. I like obedience, so you will do as you`re told. Hand over the rights and I`ll do the rest myself. Now sign here.”

Dylan swallowed, leaning forward and forgetting about Tessa and the rehearsal altogether.

“No,” said Charlie hoarsely, “ I will sign nothing, Richard. I`ve sacrificed enough moments in life that I`m never getting back.”

“Sign, you fool,” hissed Bailey.

“No. This above all, to thine own self be true, and it must follow as the night the day.”

“Is this your last word?”

“Hamlet. Act one, scene three.”

“Well, in Shakespeare`s own words…”

And then there was a rich, juicy cracking sound of something hard. A dull thud indicated something heavy falling down on the floor. Something dark slowly pooled in the light on the corridor floor.

Sickness strangled Dylan`s throat. His heart was pumping like crazy pushing its way out of his chest. Slowly, tantalizingly slowly he backed off. Only now the thought of Tessa sent cold shivers down his spine. His imagination was waiting for that moment to flood his eager brain with the most hauntingly horrifying images. If Dylan and Tessa got caught, they might have survived long enough to perform and ended up in the Hudson river afterwards.

“What the fuck?! Can`t you manage…”

“Shhh!” Dylan grabbed her and pulled away from the stage, “Careful! Quick! Don`t trip!”

“What the?..”

Tessa hated being touched especially by that ape. Other girls found him attractive but she saw nothing interesting in his pretty face with grass green eyes. Even those freckles and a lopsided cocky grin left her indifferent.

“Shut up and move!”

“Let me go!” she pulled her wrist out of his grip the very second they made it out into a warm spring night, “You can`t take anything seriously, you, stupid football player, you`re worthless! Why can`t you just be normal for once?! What the fuck was that?!”

“Shut up, you don`t understand! Be quiet,” Dylan was pale. Nervously biting his lip, he was looking around like an alert dog. He tried to grab her by the hand again but she dodged his touch.

“Freak!”

“Tessa, listen, please!”

“Fuck off!”

She almost ran towards the parking lot. What an idiot!

A body landed on the concrete pavement right in front of her. The scream died in the throat as a big hand covered her mouth and someone heavy pushed her into a hedge.

She fought, she really did but she simply wasn`t strong enough.

“Shhhh, stupid,” hissed Dylan, pressing her into the ground, “Shut up!”

The girl was breathing heavily, ready to dig her nails into his eyes. Slowly, watching her every move, Dylan took away his hand.

“What…”

“It`s Williams. Bailey killed him. I think he wants it to look like a suicide,” he whispered in her ear.

“But... No way! How?!”

“Same shit, honey. Big Hollyweird a`holes,” he still was towering over her, propped on his elbow.

Tessa`s eyes widened.

“And how do you know that?”

“I overheard them when I went to check the panel. And now we are witnesses.”

After a long pause terrified Tessa mumbled, “I`m sick, I`m gonna throw up.”

“Don`t you dare puke all over my gorgeous face,” Dylan`s hand landed on her mouth once again. The girl froze, staring at him in sheer panic.

“Stop with the stare! I have a plan. The question is, do you have the balls to help me?”

Tessa bit his hand.

***

“You can do it, you can do it,” no makeup could hide how pale Tessa was looking at herself in a mirror in a dressing room. It seemed that even her cheeks had hollowed out in just two days. She struggled to remember the lines. All she felt was the pain of wiggling her way out of the hedge away from the dead body on the concrete.

The next morning the police were called and the ´Do not cross´ lines circled the bloody scene. Cops were asking questions but the headmaster stood adamant in his statement amidst the storm of the tragedy. According to Mr Bailey, Williams had been deeply depressed and all the stress had finally caught up with him and pushed him to his demise. It was incredibly tragic but to honour his memory everyone had to soldier on and carry on with the play.

The same sad morning Dylan brought Tessa a piece of paper and told her to memorize the lines.

“Your life depends on it, love.”

As if she didn`t know that.

***

The theatre was full. The atmosphere of excitement was tarnished by grief. A huge photo of Charles Williams was placed to the left side of the stage, and an occasional sob here and there was pretty noticeable. Bailey was accompanying a group of Hollywood agents. A black satin ribbon was tied around Bailey`s sleeve. Girls, giggling and blushing, were trying their best to be noticed by the agents.

“I can do it, I can do it. No, I can`t do it.”

Tessa jumped at the knock on the door.

“It`s me, Dylan.”

“Come in,” Tessa slid down to the floor. Her fancy gown skirt looked like a sea of velvet.

“Here, I got you something,” he reached into his pocket and produced a flask, “Drink a bit. Rye whiskey. You need it.”

“Is HE there?” asked Tessa wearily taking the flask, “I`m afraid I`ll freeze if I see him.”

“Hence the whiskey.” he pointed at the flask and sat down next to the girl, “ He is there but so are the cops, I saw them. I`ll be there, it`ll be ok. Chin up.”

Tessa slowly took Dylan`s hand.

***

Afterwards Tessa couldn`t remember much. The whole evening, that very evening that she thought to be her hard-earned triumph, had flown by like a mere kaleidoscope of coloured glass shards. There was Dylan, tenderly kissing her lips on a balcony, there were all the fair maidens and gentlemen dancing together. There was friar Lawrence, silent and serious, and Dylan helped her to kneel on a small cushion as Romeo and Juliet were getting wed. She wasn`t sure what she said but Dylan, that stupid giant ape of a guy, lifted her veil and looked at her with such love that she finally felt brave.

“Juliet, mine own sweetest bride, to strengthen our wedding vows I wanteth a token tiny of thy sweetest love to make me certain that thine love be true.”

Friar Lawrence, played by an always happy fat guy Jimmy Doyle, gracefully produced a quill and a piece of paper. Dylan had paid him a hundred bucks and still owed him a favour.

“To wipe away thy fear and doubts, I knoweth that thou love me and therefore shall obey. And as I am thy head and master by God appoint`d to enlighten thee, No hesitation shoudst thou have to sign this contract.”

“What contract, husband? I am thy wedded wife, what more do thou desire?”

Bailey coughed as if his breathing was strained.

Dylan stood up towering over Tessa. There was an uncomfortable movement in the audience, the actors could hear the rustling of leaflets and whispers. Someone coughed, Bailey`s lips turned into a thin line. Dylan`s blood rushing almost blinded him but Tessa was there looking at him and there was no way back.

“I told thou, sign the contract. Thou art my wife, my treasure, my possession. What`s yours is mine and mine to spend f`r I`m a husband best equipped to handle my affairs.”

“But, husband dear, words cannot describe how pained I am that thou believe me not. I pray to thou that my intentions clear be as waters of a forest stream.”

A policeman, watching Bailey, saw him leaning forward, sweat beading on his forehead.

“Thine disrespect and lack of proper knowledge shall I forget not. Be still, for I desire no longer stay in presence rotten of foul wives pretending to be saints!”

With these words he hit her on the head. Tessa fell down, blood staining her veil. Someone screamed.

“Stop it now!” Bailey was furious. His wonderful plan was falling apart.

“Blood thicker be than wine, it taketh longest hours to wipe hands clean and yet a soul stained still blackened stays forever,” Dylan was looking the headmaster in the eyes. He saw the cops slowly moving towards Bailey. There had been a forensic team in the office early in the morning and Dylan could bet his last cent that Charlie`s blood was traceable.

“You`ve ruined everything!” Bailey jumped to his feet, screaming, and pulled out a small revolver, pointing it at Dylan. Without so much as blinking, he rushed to cover Tessa with his body and a second later Dylan`s world turned dark with a bang.

***

“Stupid, stupid idiot! Why the fuck would you do all that?!”

Dylan slowly opened one eye.

“Now I know I`m alive. Hopefully I`ll be treated way better in the afterlife.”

“You could have died!”

“You`d have inherited my locker full of sweaty socks and underwear, I made a will since we`re married now.”

“Fuck off,” Tessa was sitting on a chair next to Dylan`s hospital bed, biting her nail, “I guess no amount of blood loss can upgrade you to a human.”

“Nah, I`d rather be a relic and travel with a circus. What happened to Bailey?”

“He tripped and fell on that old staircase, broke his leg and got arrested. They found Williams` blood in Bailey`s office and they are saying that... Well, that it wasn`t a suicide," she looked down for a moment, "It`s funny because Bailey didn`t even say Macbeth and yet Shakespeare had dealt with him accordingly still.”

“And the Hollyweird agents?”

She shrugged her shoulders, trying to hide her victorious smile.

“They want to make a film about all this crap. I guess we are back to rehearsals, you idiot.”

Dylan pretended to have a heart attack.