Chapter 71

71 Losing It

“Let’s start reading the lines. We’re not physically acting it out yet but try your best to put emotion into your voice. This is a very emotional scene. She just lost her parents, she is scared, she is devastated so on and so forth. EROS, you try your best to comfort her,” Doreen instructed.

My hand clenched harder around the script as I felt increasingly dizzy. I tried not to look down at the lines, instead, I looked over at EROS.

“Ok...” he said.

“Let’s start. I’ll be Naomi for you because you have to be Dylan. From the top please,” Doreen said.

“Naomi...are you ok?” EROS said, basically reading the script.

Doreen frowned by decided to go on.

“I’m so scared. I don’t know what happened. Why did my parents...” Doreen said while sobbing.

She wasn’t crying but it sounded like she was. Wow...

“Let’s go to my room for now,” EROS said emotionlessly.

.....

Doreen sighed softly but decided to continue.

“Thank you for helping me...” Doreen mumbled sadly.

“Have you called the police?” EROS asked. Suddenly, it sounded like he was interrogating her.

“No...I haven’t. I was too shocked to do anything. Dylan, what should I do? My parents are gone...” Doreen whispered as if in pain.

“It’s ok. Stop crying now. I’m here for you,” EROS said.

I’m starting to feel very sick as a wave nausea hit me and it had nothing to do with EROS’s appalling acting skills. Seriously, if you found your parents had just hung themselves, you wouldn’t be calling or running to see anyone. You would be collapsed on the floor in shock, and you’d feel like you’re about to faint. You would feel like you’re ready to throw up every single thing you ate since you were born into this world. You’d want to scream but realize that you can’t because your lips won’t stop shaking. You’ll be there on the floor wondering if it was all just a bad dream only to realize that everything was real and then you’ll start fooling yourself into believing that it wasn’t real.

By the time you come to your senses, someone else would have entered the room and that person whoever it was would be the one that would call the police. The rest of the day would go by in a blur and the only question that will go through your mind has nothing to do with what you should do next. The only question that you would repeat itself in your mind was why the hell did they do that? Why? Why? And why?!

“Elena...” EROS’s voice calling my name softly snapped me out of my thoughts.

I turned to see him looking directly at me. Apparently, both EROS and Doreen had paused their rehearsal to stare my way. Suddenly, I felt like I was going to throw up.

“Excuse me...” I managed to say before I ran out of the room.

I could feel their eyes on my back as I left the room, but I didn’t have time to care about that. My legs raced me towards the nearest women’s toilet where I could hide to either be sick or collect myself. My head felt like it was going to explore, and I realized that I was having a panic attack. I used to have these attacks often when I was a little girl...

Hiding in the toilet cubicle was the best option right now. I sat down on the toilet seat and closed my eyes as I concentrated on taking deep breaths. The past hasn’t bothered me or haunted me for so long now that I had forgotten how fearful it was to feel just like this. A few minutes later, I had managed to gather myself together enough not to puke in the toilet bowl.

“Elena!”

EROS?

I heard EROS’s voice calling my name loudly. Did he come to get me? Shouldn’t he be rehearsing his lines with Doreen? My head still hurts, and I wasn’t sure if I was ready to go out and face him. Maybe if I stay quiet, he’ll just go away? How does he even know that I’m in here?

After calling my name a couple more times, EROS went completely silent. I breathed a sigh of relief and figured that he must have given up and left. However, that wasn’t the case at all. Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door of the cubical that I was in.

Don’t tell me...

“Elena! You’re in there, right?” EROS asked and I could hear urgency and worry in his voice.

“Yes! I’m here...” I replied as I quickly stood up from the toilet seat.

Many things should have concerned me at that moment but the only thing that I could think of was: Oh my...EROS came into the girl’s bathroom?!

“You shouldn’t be in here!” I exclaimed the moment that I stepped out of the cubical.

EROS was standing there with a worried yet extremely annoyed look on his face. Sorry for ruining your rehearsal, I guess?

“That’s not the main problem. Are you ok? You looked...very unwell when you left the room,” EROS asked with genuine concern.

“I’m fine now. Sorry for making you worry...” I apologized.

I headed to the sink and started to wash my hands as I checked out my pale face in the mirror. EROS came to stand next to me and I could feel his eyes on my face.

“You’re still in the women’s toilet, you know...” I said as I glanced over at him.

EROS didn’t seem to care about it at all. He continued to watch me without saying a word and I began to wonder what he was thinking.

“Is something the matter?” I asked, curiously.

“Nothing,” he quickly replied.

“You should go back to rehearsing your lines with the coach,” I suggested as I turned off the tap.

“No need. I already chased her off,” EROS said with a shrug.

“You, what?!” I exclaimed loudly.

What does he mean by he chased her off? Why did he do that?

–To be continued...