The Ghost Files

Chapter Nineteen

The theater is housed in Robinson Hall, where the College of Performing Arts plays the bulk of their performances. There are two separate facilities, the black-box Lab Theater, small and intimate, and the main one, the Anne R. Belk Theater. Dr. Olivet's lecture is in the main one, allowing for a seating of three hundred and forty. We arrive early and find seats fairly easily.

Dan complains about my choosing the middle. If we are in the back, we'll miss things and if we are in the front, we'll miss things because we're too close. The middle is perfect. It puts you just above the heads of everyone below you and plus you get a full view of the stage. My reasoning doesn't improve Dan's mood though. I think he's being grumpy because he thinks it's a waste of time. Maybe it is, but I have to try.

It is a beautiful theater. The orchestra-like box seating around the stage gives off a very intimate feel, black seats gleaming amongst the white pillars holding up the theater boxes that go up three levels. It looks very old and elegant. It's a place I would love to sit in and sketch. The orchestra pit was filling up with the orchestra as well. Now what was this? It's not a concert. Were we attending a lecture or a show? The stage curtains are still tightly drawn, but I hear a lot of movement behind them.

After about twenty minutes, the place starts to really fill up. At first, I'd thought that there wouldn't be that big of an audience. There were only about twenty or so people here when we arrived, but now, there's hardly a seat to be found. That could be a good sign, right? I mean, why would so many people show up if he didn't know what he was talking about?

"Richards?"

Dan and I glance up to see a guy heading our way. Dan has an empty seat beside him and he groans. I almost laugh at the martyred look on his face. I'm still mad at him, so I refuse to give in to the urge. The guy falls into the seat next to him. I don't mean sits heavily, he literally falls into it with no thought to the poor seat. My kind of fella. His blonde hair and blue eyes are a stark contrast to Dan's darker looks. He looks at me with very-curious eyes.

"Hey, Mason." Dan greets him. "What are you doing here?"

"Bored. Nothing else to do, so I figured I'd come see the spook doctor's performance."

Then Dan snorts. I glare at him.

The guy leans forward so he can see around Dan. "I'm Mason Jones, by the way."

"Mattie," I smile at him. He's really, really cute. I may be hung up on my maybe-still-boyfriend, but even I can appreciate a cute guy. How can a girl not? It's not the looking part that counts anyway. It's the touching. My theory is you can look at all the eye candy you want and still appreciate what you have at home. Though at the moment, I'm not sure I do have anything at home.

"She's too young for you," Dan growls.

Mason's eyebrows fly up at Dan's tone. So do mine.

"Ignore Officer Dan," I say. "He's being a jerk today."

"That I can believe." Mason laughs. The sound is rich and deep. "He can be a little uptight sometimes. I'm surprised he's here at all, given his opinions on anything... supernatural."

"Opinions?"

"Yeah, he's a firm believer that there is a rational explanation for everything and anything with a supernatural element is just a fabrication."

"Oh, really?" I ask, glancing up at Dan's face. It's a tight mask. He is so trying not to say anything that might get him in even more trouble with me.

"Really." Mason is openly laughing at Dan's expression and it makes me a little angry that he is making fun of Dan's beliefs.

"Well, he let me drag him here," I tell Mason, suddenly feeling like I should defend Officer Dan. "He gets brownie points for that."