Worlds Collide

Chapter 1

The waiting room smelled like nerves. Or maybe that was just me.

I sat in one of the hard plastic chairs, my resume folded and unfolded so many times it looked like it had survived a hurricane. Around me, a dozen other girls tapped their feet, whispered their lines under their breath, or scrolled on their phones like they weren't about to walk into the scariest room of their lives.

Me? I was trying not to pass out.

Zombies 4.
The words felt unreal in my head. This wasn't just another audition for a school play or a community theater show. This was Disney. This was huge. And if I let myself think about the names attached to the project— Milo Manheim, Meg Donnelly—I'd crumble before I even stepped inside.

"Freya Jones?"

My name echoed like a lightning strike, and suddenly every nerve in my body caught fire. I stood, knees shaking, and followed the casting assistant down a hallway that looked longer than a football field.

The audition room was colder than I expected. A panel of casting directors sat behind a long table, their laptops open, expressions unreadable. A camera was set up in the corner. And just like that, all the months of practicing lines in my bedroom, of singing into my hairbrush, of dreaming about this exact moment—it all boiled down to right here. Right now.

"Whenever you're ready," one of the casting directors said, eyes flicking up at me.

I swallowed hard, forcing myself to breathe. You can do this, Freya. You've worked for this. This is yours.

The first line slipped out shaky, but then the second came steadier. By the time I hit the last one, I almost forgot I was standing in front of strangers—I was just her, the character, alive in a way that felt electric.

When I finished, there was silence. A terrifying, suffocating silence.

Then one of them smiled. "Thank you, Freya. That was... very real."

I walked out of the room on legs that barely worked, clutching my bag like it was the only thing keeping me from floating away.

I had no idea what they thought. I had no idea if I'd ever hear back.

But as the door clicked shut behind me, I let myself hope—just a little—that today might be the start of something that could change everything.