I sat on my bed staring at the ceiling. My alarm was blaring at me from my nearby chest of drawers. Eight AM. I forgot to turn off my alarm, despite summer break starting today. I tried to close my eyes and sleep through it, but the sound in my ears kept me awake. Yawning, I stood up and fiddled with my alarm clock.
"There." I said aloud, yawning. That wouldn't be bothering me again for a while.
I got dressed and went to the bathroom. I brushed my teeth. I ate breakfast. I watched television. Nothing important. Nothing unique.
This is me, Louis Park. This is my life, nothing but a background character. If there's anything special about me, it would be my memory, which is slightly above average. That sounds like a positive, but it really just made me stand out less. While my friends were complaining about school I couldn't even join in. I just memorized the formulas, the dates, the names, and it was easy. I wondered if my friends even remembered me now that the break began. If they hadn't, would that still make them my friends?
I glanced at the TV. It was displaying an advertisement for butter, tag-lined: "Butter? I think so!" I didn't really get it. My phone vibrated from my pocket. A call.
"Hm?" I answered.
"Yooo Lou, wassup?" My friend Jouey Kallonie, at least I consider him a friend, greeted me with a laugh.
"Nothing." I readjusted my seat on the couch.
"Bro you sound so bored. Wanna hang? I already called up the others." I thought for a moment.
"Yeah, sure."
"Aight, see you at The Park." And then he hung up. The Park, shortened from its full name, Hunsi Park, is where my group of friends and I always hang out. I got ready, then walked to The Park—it was nearby.
My friends waved me over, they all seemed to arrive before me. The cast of characters was quite unique. Jouey, for one, had dyed blue hair and was quite the eccentric. He was also a flirt, assuming people who are horrible with women can still have that title. The rest of my friends all were similarly intriguing characters. I wonder sometimes how I ended up hanging out with them, but I thought about how side characters were always placed by the main characters in order to make them stand out more, and that satisfied my curiosity.
We hung out for a while, then I went home.
The second day of our break began soon after.
I woke up and got dressed. I went to the bathroom. I brushed my teeth. I ate breakfast. I watched TV. I hung out with friends. Nothing important. Nothing unique.
The third day.
Wake, dress, bathroom, teeth, breakfast, TV, hung out. Nothing important. Nothing unique.
The fourth day.
Nothing new.
The fifth day.
Nothing.
Sixth day.
Nothing.
Seven.
No.
The days began to drag on and blend together. Despite my life plan—graduate, get a job, meet a wife, have kids, die—despite my life prior to this point, despite my better judgement, despite everything. I wanted more. I was bored. I've been bored. I've felt this way the whole time. I've felt this way my whole life, pretty much. When you remember everything, everything starts to feel like a memory. With these thoughts invading my mind, as they do every night, I drifted off into sleep.
Eighth day.
I was awoken by the blaring of my alarm again, something that I thought I had disabled. Maybe it was set to some weekly functionality. I turned it off, again. I didn't see any functionality for going off on the same day each week. Maybe it was just a bug.
I went through my routine and watched television once again. The content seemed to be the same as the past few days. I got that butter ad again—"Butter? I think so!" said the woman on screen as she holds up a stick of butter. Of course I remembered the slogan, another example of my brain taking the pointless information I don't need and holding onto it for whatever reason. I got a call again.
"Hm?" Same response from me.
"Yooo Lou, wassup?" He could at least change the way he talked. We planned to meet up at the park again. Something caught my eye as I went to put my phone back in my pocket, though.
"June 13th...?" I said aloud. Sunday, June 13th. That should have passed; it should be the 20th. A bug like this has never happened before. I entertained the idea of it being something more, but then I remembered that I was in reality and nothing interesting happens here. I put my phone back in my pocket, finally, and went to the park.
The same conversations.
The same bed time.
The same next day.
Tenth, eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth. Everything. All the same. And then, on the fifteenth day, I was once again awoken by the sound of an alarm. Instead of the fifteenth day, I guess I could say the first day.
-----
Loop 3
-----
How? I glanced out the window after turning off the alarm as I pondered this question. I've seen Groundhog Day, I'm familiar with the concept, but I had no explanation as to why I, of all people, would be chosen for something like that. In Groundhog Day, the main character (which I'm not) was some horrid person who had to be really nice to everyone in order to escape the time-loop he was trapped in. I'm not a piece of trash, nor am I in a position where people even need me to be nice to them. I had accepted that I was in a time-loop now, that was the easy part, now I had to find a way out. I ran through the days in my head. Nothing stood out, it was all quite standard.
I went through my schedule—old habits die hard, I suppose—and watched TV. Nothing new, of course. My friend called.
I guess I could try something different. I rejected his invitation.
I rejected his invitations all week.
-----
Loop 4
-----
Did not work. Nothing changed. I had tried mentioning the time-loop to Jouey last time, but he just laughed it off then asked if I was too busy being a conspiracy theorist to hang out. I guess I could try some more stuff.
-----
Loop 5
-----
I tried hanging out again but changing my conversation topics and the way I spoke. Nothing changed, no matter what I did. I went through a slightly different week, sure, but that's all.
-----
Loop 7
-----
I got bored of my friends at this point. I developed a habit of going to a nearby pier, alone. No one really talked to me, except for an old man on day five. He told me stories of his life. I enjoyed it. On the seventh day, the pier held a fair. I had heard about it on TV, but this was the first time I went to the real thing. Nothing interesting happened.
-----
Loop 8
-----
I repeated loop 7, it wasn't a waste of time, and even if it was, I had a surplus now. Something struck me as off, though. I got different stories from the old man on day five, but that was because I intentionally asked different things. The week as a whole felt different, though, starting on day three. I kept my eyes alert to spot any discrepancies.
Nothing.
-----
Loop 9
-----
I was alert again. Nothing.
-----
Loop 15
-----
Something felt off about my time at the pier, so for the past 5 loops, I avoided it. I came back this time, though, but nothing was different from all the other times. I felt as though there was something different than the first time I came, though. I would say that it was just a false memory, but I don't have those. Ever.
Nothing changed though.
-----
Loop 25
-----
The boredom was beginning to set in. Curiosity killed the cat, and there was something I had to know. As an American, it was surprisingly easy to get my hand on one. I decided to use someone random as my target, first off. I managed to talk someone into walking over to the side of the pier with me, a man about the age of 20.
Bang.
I watched as the man bled out. I wonder how I would look to bystanders. I committed all the details of the event to memory. Day Six, right side of the pier, sounds good to me. I could hear a few people nearby shouting, probably coming over here, as I don't remember something like this before. I decided to enact part two of my plan. The cold metal of the gun pressed up against my temple. I figured I should have something cool to say here, but this wasn't heroicism, this was simply the curiosity of a bored man. The trigger moved easier than I expected.
Bang.
-----
Loop 26
-----
I survived. No pain. Nothing. I was a bit emotionally distraught due to the rush, of fear, mostly, from shooting myself in the head, but once my heart-rate calmed, I felt fine. I went on day six and checked to see if the man I killed lived as well. He had. Something else caught my eye as well, though. An unfamiliar girl approached me as I began talking to the man. This hadn't happened before.
I scanned her up and down. Tights, big breasts; those traits didn't matter, though. Her eyes looked fearful, for whatever reason, and it wasn't due to the way I was looking at her. At least I didn't think so.
"H-Hey." She said. I honestly began to feel a bit excited. I stayed calm, though, to make sure that this girl being here wasn't simply a fluke.
"Hey, what is it?" I put on my best smile and tilted my head to the side slightly. Anyone who knew me would be creeped out. This girl, I have never seen in my life, though.
"M- I mean, my friend told me that... I should come here and look out for a guy in a blue shirt... And... A businessman." I looked down at my shirt. Blue. The 20 year old across from me, who had been completely silent since this girl showed up, was dressed in a suit. Business enough.
"What would you like us for?" The man asked, glancing between the two of us.
"O-Oh, uh... My friend... Told me to ask if you know the password?" The password?
"A password?" The businessman glanced between us once again, glaring this time. "Is this some sort of new scam?"
"I don't know the password either." I said, shrugging.
"W-Well..." The girl said, turning away from us a little bit. I glanced at the man. He had been staring straight at her boobs. They were out of his sight now. Maybe this girl wouldn't be so mad if she knew I had killed him, even if he was a random choice. "I- I was told to tell you the password then... It's Rejoin... That's all!" She said that last part quickly and then darted off. I tried to grab her arm, but I was too late. She didn't even give me her name.
Mister Business stared at me. "Friend of yours?" He said. I shook my head.
"I saw you staring, by the way."
He cleared his throat. "Well, what did you need me for?"
"Nothing." Rejoin, huh? I'll remember that for next time.
-----
Loop 27
-----
"...Told me to ask if you know the passwo-"
"Rejoin." I said, before letting her finish. I had the set-up the same.
"Wh-What?" The girl looked at me. "Did she tell you?" She shook her head, then spoke again. "S-She said... That the password was Rehop, but that if you said Rejoin... To bring whoever said it with me..." She glanced at the business man. So she changed the password? I kept a grin from my face. This "friend" who set this up is clearly something. It's incredibly likely that she is outside of this loop, just like me. "A-Are you okay with that?" The girl asked.
"Huh?" I smiled. "Oh, yeah, no problem. None at all! Lead the way!" She nodded and then gave a slight wave to the businessman before quickly walking off. I followed, walking by her side.
"So..." There were multiple angles I could take here, but I figured that getting her to like me was probably the best for now. "What's your name?"
"Oh, me?" She said. "Um... Julie."
"Ah, Julie? That's a nice name. I'm..." I paused for a moment. She looked at me, confused. "Sorry, forgot if the stranger danger rule applied to names. I'm Houz, strange name, I know." A complete lie.
"Nice to meet you, Houz. I think that's a fine name..." She bought it.
"Ah, yes, nice to meet you too." I said. She nodded. The rest of our walk was in silence, and after about 10 minutes passed, we ended up at...
"Can I... Uh... Go in here?" I asked, standing in front of Girem Academy, also known as an all-girls school.
"Oh! I... Think so?" Julie said. I shrugged.
"Well, you're off school right now, right?" She nodded. "I should be fine, then." Plus, even if they killed or arrested me, I'd be back home in a few days.
"I-I'll show you the way." I resisted the urge to tell this girl to stop stuttering and followed her. I looked around. It looked very "prim and proper," royal-esque, even. This is how I imagined most all-girl schools would be, but I figured that that was just a false-image created by media representations or just an idealized view of the concept of groups of cute girls all attending a school together. I sighed, which Julie almost reacted to, but probably didn't on account of not wanting to have to talk. "We're here." She said, knocking on a door. It was labelled "Dorm-Q2." A few seconds after the knocking, the door opened. Immediately behind the door, there was a pair of glaring eyes.
"Hey!" I said, falsifying my best attempt at happiness to see this girl. She wasn't even that bad looking, it was just her eyes.
"What's the password?" Said the girl.
"Rejoin, or the one you changed it to?" I asked. The girl glared at Julie.
"He- He got it! I didn't tell him!" Julie said. She continued glaring until she seemed to realize something. She then nodded and stepped aside.
"Come on in." She said.
"Ah, thanks." I said. Her room was about what I'd expect, aside from a large chair in the center of the room, reminiscent of a throne. The set-up, I mean. The chair itself was leather. No gold, no purple. The girl promptly placed herself in the chair and looked at me. Physically looking up but metaphorically looking down.
"You will help me get Henry to go out with me." She said to me.
"I'll what?"
<End of Chapter One.>
<Chapter Two.>
"You will help me get Henry to go out with me." She said, again.
"Who's Henry?"
"WHO?" She shouted.
"Yeah?" I repeated.
"WELL!" She shouted, and then immediately shifted her entire personality. She went from demanding and conceited to a lovestruck girl in the matter of seconds. "He's like... He's like my dream guy!" I didn't know whether to recoil, pat her head, throw up, or all three. "He's... He's a prince!"
"He's an actor." I heard Julie whisper in my ear.
"Thanks." I whispered back.
The girl had her blushing face in her hands. "He's so perfect..." She opened her eyes, then seemed to realize I was there, clearing her throat. "You will-!"
"I think you've kind of lost that act." I said, still smiling. She clicked her tongue. "So like, why? You're cute enou-"
"Don't call me cute. Those words are for Henry to say and Henry only." The glare returned.
"Whatever, just ask him out."
"I've tried!" I saw tears forming in her eyes.
"And failed?" I asked. She nodded. "And then what?"
"I was lucky!"
"And a time-loop started."
"Oh my gosh, you are outside of it! Just like me!" Her personality shifting was giving me a headache.
"Can you stick to a personality please?"
"No." Back to the cold one.
"Whatever, how would—no, why would I help?"
"To end the time-loop?"
"You really think this entire time-loop depends on your relationship with some random guy."
"Henry is NOT a random guy!" She continued ranting, but I hardly paid attention. Is it really possible that this entire time-loop thing was only caused by this random girl's relationship? If so, why would I be outside of it? Also, an actor? Like a famous actor? "He's perfe-!"
"Hey, what's Henry's last name?"
She sighed with adoration. "Heartfelt... Henry Heartfelt... It's so perfect for him." I typed the name in to my phone. I clicked the top result. He's been in one movie, a romcom I've never heard of, but that's it. Apparently he was also in some other ads and stuff, but this movie is the only noteworthy thing he's ever done.
"'A Lovey Dovey Picnic,' really?" I said, naming the movie.
"'A LOVEY DOVEY PICNIC' IS A MASTERPIECE OF CINEMA!" She shouted. Clearly it's not, because I haven't heard of it. Ever.
"Whatever, I'll help you."
"R-Reall-"
"If you say please." I said.
"No." I started to walk out, but she stood up and shouted. "Wait wait wait! Please help!" She caved quickly.
"Yeah, whatever. So where is this Henry guy?" The girl pushed her fingers together. "You don't know."
"I don't know." She said. I sighed.
"Screw it, let's just go in order." I glanced at Julie, who I forgot was there, then back to the girl. "I'm Hauz, nice to meet you."
"Ah, Maria. Nice to meet you... I guess." Was that last part really necessary? I guess I felt the same.
"What have you been doing for the past, what, 27 loops?"
"Um..." She twirled a piece of her long blonde hair. "I... I went to the fair... Once." I hit my fist to my palm.
"Oh! On Loop Seven, Day Three, did you go to the pier?" I asked.
"Um... Maybe? I don't remember that far back..." I guess that was like over 140 days ago... Wow, time passed by fast.
"Wait, is that it? Just the fair?"
"N-No! I..." She glanced to a shelf. I matched her sight. A pile of manga and anime. I looked at her. "I had stuff to do..." I walked up to her and grabbed her cheek.
"Do you wanna get this dude, or not?"
"I dho I dho!" I released her, and she exhaled. "I do! I just... Don't know what to do."
"You know, why are you in your school dorm, anyways?" The question just occurred to me.
"I live here."
"Who's this?" I pointed at Julie.
"My BFF." Maria made a heart shape with her hands, while Julie just laughed awkwardly.
"Okay, whatever." I said. "So, I guess I'll see if I can find out some stuff about this gu-"
"I can help!" Maria said, jumping up.
"No you can't." She can't.
"I can!" She insisted.
"Okay, sure. Go ahead." She went to push me, but then recoiled.
"I don't want to touch you, follow me."
"Have you considered suicide?" I didn't think about it, I just spoke.
"H-Huh!?"
"Sorry, forget it."
"U-Um..." She glanced at me strange for a moment, then just shrugged. "Okay...?" She probably thinks she misheard me. "Anyways!" She sat down on a couch set up nearby, then signaled for me to sit next to her. "Oh, bye Julie! You don't need to stay any more!" Is she not worried about being in a room alone with me? Is this girl an idiot or not? Probably the former.
"Bye Julie." I said with a wave.
"Ah, bye guys." Julie nodded then left. She didn't sound sad to leave. In fact, she sounded a bit happy with those parting words. How did those two get paired together? A main character and side character pair? Eccentric and shy? I guess that works. I managed to keep my proper position as well, helping out the main character.
I sat down next to Maria. Her leg touched mine, she recoiled and muttered ew to herself. Typical stuff from her. She messed with the TV a bit, until the words "A Lovey Dovey Picnic" showed up on screen. I went to stand up.
"Wait!"
"How will this help us learn about Henry?"
"Um... It's like his best movie!"
"It's his only movie."
"I don't care, come on! You have nothing else, right?"
"I could just..." I sighed. "Whatever." I slumped back down on the couch. "How long is this."
"Two and a half hours." She said. I sighed again. What else do I have to do, I guess?
About 10 minutes in to the movie, Maria already dropped the disgusted by me act. She was constantly poking and prodding at me in order to attempt to point out parts of the movie that she deemed important, such as that Henry's character was eating an egg salad sandwich (not important) or the brand of hair spray that he used (also not important). This continued for two and a half hours.
"So, so!?" Maria looked at me expectantly.
"I would say it's not the worst movie I've ever seen, but it is."
"What!?" She pouted. "Clearly, you don't understand good movies!"
"I don't know why a ten minute scene focusing on Henry's hygiene would be a good idea. Also they just didn't bother naming the characters, just gave them the actor's names. I assume, I don't know the main heroines name. Also, they didn't have-"
"Aah, shut up!" Maria covered her ears, elbowing me in the face in the process. "It's good, got it!?"
"It sucks."
"La la la!"
"How old are you?"
"Sixteen."
"Wait." I looked up Henry's age. "Eighteen, you're right on the edge of legality, I guess."
"So there's a chance!?"
"I don't know." I haven't met the man in real life. I know he's bad at acting, but that's about it. "Can we talk about the more important stuff?"
"Hm?"
"I let you go through with your movie trash, now answer these, got it?"
"Uh... Sure?"
"How did this time-loop start?"
"The power of my love for-!"
"Real answers only please."
"I don't know." She looked at the floor.
"You... don't know?" She shook her head. "Why am I not effected?" She shrugged. I sighed. "Okay, sure."
She has no clue, then, about anything.
"Ugh..." I rubbed my eyes. "I'm getting tired."
"Me too." She said, yawning. She seemed to realize how close we were, as she moved away and grimaced. "Did you do th-"
"You. Did that."
"Ugh."
I stood up and stretched. "Well, I'll get to work on figuring stuff out, because you clearly aren't smart enough to get it done."
"Hey!"
"Anyways, see ya." I threw up my arm in a wave as I tried to leave.
"Wait!"
"Hm?"
"What's your phone number?"
"Just tell me yours, you'll forget mine."
"N-No! Plus, I'll just save it as a conta-"
"Time loop."
She glared at me for a moment, then listed off 10 numbers.
"Thanks. Bye." I said.
"Bye." She spat, as I closed the door behind me.
The next day, I clicked through my computer. "Henry Heartfelt," which sounds like a fake name, "is an up-and-coming actor known for his work in 'A Lovey Dovey Picnic,'" (which got 2/10 on Gross Tomatoes by the way), "and is starring in an upcoming project, name yet to be revealed to the public. Casting began last Monday and filming should be starting now. Make sure to follow our pa-" I stopped reading. I flicked through a few other articles, but most of them just said the same things. Henry seemed to be a nobody with an upcoming project. I could tell from the pictures of him (and the movie yesterday) that he was attractive. That was about the only thing going for him. He seemed nice, but he's also an actor, so I doubted the validity of that observation.
I spent the rest of the day toying with ideas on how to get Maria a date. Helping a girl get a boyfriend wasn't something I had ever planned or expected to do, but at least I can practice several times. I had a few other ideas unrelated to that topic, but I had a few things worth trying.
-----
Loop 28
-----
Day Two. I had to try something. It might make Maria hate me, but that was a risk I was willing to take. I called her multiple times before she finally answered.
"Who is this?"
"Who do you think?"
"Oh, uh... Yeah, you're that one guy... Uh..."
"Hauz."
"Hauz! I knew that." A lie. "Did you think of something?" So she can, in fact, remember things. I guess I figured, but I still wanted to confirm.
"I'm coming over."
"Wai-" I hung up. I stared down at my phone. Acting this way was a bit out of character for me. Normally I just let the major characters around me talk as I listened and absorbed the information. Maybe this girl rubs me the wrong way, or maybe I'm subconsciously mad that she got me caught up in this.
Well, there's a chance that all that will end today. I stared at the gate to Girem Academy. Right as I was about to call Maria again, Julie unlocked the gate and let me in. I didn't bother talking to her, it's not like she'd remember it, nor did she want to talk. Julie led me to Maria's room and opened the door.
"Hauz, what did you find out? Did you think of any-" Boom. I watched as Maria's body fell on the floor. I heard a scream from beside me, but it all lasted for only a second.
-----
Loop 29
-----
"Huh." I said, sitting up in bed. That was only day two, yet the moment I shot Maria, the time loop started again. I guess that meant she really was the center of this whole thing? I shivered. I didn't expect to feel bad after shooting her, but the look of betrayal in her eyes was enough to make me feel sick. I got out of bed, threw up in the toilet (which I didn't even do after shooting myself) and then, after cleaning myself up, called Maria.
No response. I guess that made sense. I guess I would just go apologize in person, assuming she's... Okay. I was hoping the time-loop would just end with her death, but it seems that wasn't the case. Eventually, I made it to the gates. Locked, of course. I looked at them for a second, then decided against climbing them. They were too slippery for me to climb, anyways. I tried calling Maria again. No response. I guess I wouldn't want to talk to someone who shot me, either. I slumped down outside the school and sat against the gate. A few hours passed. I didn't bother moving. I heard a gasp of surprise from behind me. Julie.
"Ah hey." I waved. I didn't know if Maria told her about me or not.
"H-Hi... What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to see Maria... You see, I heard she was feeling down, so I came to cheer her up." I could make up a more advanced lie, but Julie seemed like the type to buy it.
"O-Oh, I see! Maybe you can help her then!" She opened the gate without a second thought. Nice. I followed her to Maria's room again, and then she knocked on the door. "Maria, someone's here to see you."
"H-Huh?" Maria didn't seem to understand for a second, until she did. "W-Wait!" Too late, Julie already opened the door. Maria was still dressed in her pajamas and was holding up a Manga of some sort in front of her like a shield. "S-Stay back!"
"Ah, sorry about... Last time." I said, scratching the back of my neck awkwardly.
"You sh- You SHOT me! And that's it!? Sorry!?" She shouted.
"I mean..." What else am I supposed to do? "I was... Curious."
"Curious? So curious that you k- k- killed me!?" She struggled to get the word killed out.
"Maybe if I killed you the time-loop would've ended." I said.
"But then I would've been d- d- d- d- dead!"
"Well, you aren't, are you?"
"But I could've been!"
"Well..." I said. "I can leave you be, if you'd like, but I don't think you're going to get to this 'Henry' guy on your own."
"I'd rather do it myself than stick with a serial killer!" I'm... Wait, am I technically a serial killer by now? I've killed three people if you count myself. I think that's the baseline.
"Well, I have no reason to kill you now, do I?"
"I- I-" She sighed. "I don't know." Tears filled her eyes. "I don't know anymore, okay? Just leave me alone."
"I'll be there when you need me. Just call me. Sorry again." I said, then waved as I left. I figured I should give her some time. Maybe she would recover after a while. I truly was sorry.
Day Seven I got a call on my phone. "Fine." Said the voice, muffled on the other side. "You won't do it again, right?"
"Nope."
"Then... Next time, let's meet up on Sunday." First day of the loop, huh? "You have something in mind... Right?"
"I've got you." It was the least I could do at this point. "See you soon."
"Y-Yeah. See you soon." She still didn't sound as if she'd fully recovered, but I guess it was more worrisome that I recovered from dying so quickly.
"Wait." I said, right before she was about to hang up, I assume.
"What?"
"When I died... Did the time-loop instantly restart?"
"Oh, you mean when the businessman and you died by the side of the pier?"
"Yeah." Based on the fact that she had remembered that, I could guess the answer.
"No, why?"
"Ah, it happened when you died."
"Mm." She made a strange noise, probably because I referred to her death.
"Sorry. Well, see you."
"Y-Yeah." She hung up.
-----
Loop 30
-----
As we agreed, I went to Maria's house on the first day, Sunday. When I got into her room again, she still kept far away from me. "S-So. What's the plan?" She said. She was wrapped up in a blanket, with it over her head.
"This." I held up my phone. She moved slightly closer to see it.
"T-Tryouts for a movie?" She said.
"Casting." I replied.
"W-Why?"
"Henry's one of the main actors in it."
"H-He is!?" She jumped up out of the blanket. She was still in her pajamas, again.
"Yeah." I glanced her up and down. She clearly hadn't prepared at all. Luckily, the auditions start tomorrow so we weren't crunched for time. "Can you act?"
"Act?" She said. I nodded. "N-No, why?"
"Well, I guess we can practice."
"Wh-What do you mean? We don't have time. It's tomorrow, right?"
"Are you stupid?"
"H-Huh?"
"The time-loop."
"A-Ah, yeah."
"I think we should try out tomorrow anyways, though. We have as many attempts as we need, so it doesn't really matter."
"Y-Yeah. I guess so."
"You know," I began. "I've been wondering, how did you end up asking him out originally anyways?"
"O-Oh! I saw him on the side of the street and went and asked him out!" She was grinning like that was a completely normal thing to do.
"No wonder he rejected you."
"H-Huh?"
"Whatever. Do you want to practice in that, or do you want to change?" I motioned to her clothes and she immediately turned her back to me and covered herself in her blanket.
"I-I'm changing!"
"Okay?" I walked out. "Tell me when you're done." I saw Julie on the way out, who walked with me. I consistently forgot she existed. I guess as fellow side-characters, we're good at blending in to the background. Maria on the other hand couldn't blend in if she tried, which I guess meant she'd be trying out for a major role. She overreacted to me seeing her in her pajamas as well. They weren't revealing at all.
A few minutes passed before Maria softly opened the door. "I'm ready to start." She had changed her outfit, but hadn't bothered fixing her hair. Not like I cared. I glanced at Julie. Last time we were doing something, Maria had asked her to leave, but she wasn't this time. I looked back at Maria, still keeping her distance. I guess she doesn't trust me anymore, as much as she originally did. She still trusts me a bit more than she probably should, though.
"So..." I said aloud. I had no clue where to start. I'm not an actor. I searched up "Monologues" on my phone, since that was something listed on the audition website. "Here, try this." I handed her my phone. She scrolled through the monologue, then cleared her throat and smiled.
"Charlotte walks into the room." She began.
"Don't read that part."
"Oh, uh..." She cleared her throat again. "I can't believe that you are late, Bobby. I was. Going to. The market without you if. You didn't stop the train." Did she skip a line? This painful reading went on for about two minutes before Maria stopped and smiled. "How'd I do?"
"Trash."
"H-Hey!" I was being honest.
"Honestly I don't know if we should even try out tomorrow."
"Why not?"
"You suck."
"No I don't!" I glanced up at the roof and thought. This wasn't untrained acting, this was a natural lack of any talent for acting. Surprising, considering she's quite the emotional person. I thought that would help her to be good at this thing.
"Why don't we have Julie try?"
"Huh?" Julie and Maria said in tandem. I ignored their protests and handed Julie the phone.
"I-I mean... I guess I can... Try?" She held up the phone. "O-Okay, so..." She began. "I can't believe you're late, Bobby! I was going to go to the market without you if you took any more time! You can't stop the train, it would've left without you if you took any longer!" She read for a bit longer and then finished and looked at me. "I-I don't know what's going on, but did I do fine?"
"You did great." I said.
"Y-Yeah..." Maria said. She had started hugging her knees halfway through the performance, probably noticing their distinct difference in skill levels. Why though?
"Ah, th- thanks."
"Do you have practice?" I asked.
"Oh, um... I'm in the Drama Club here at Girem... Although we haven't done any big performances yet."
I looked at Maria. "Why didn't you tell me that?"
"Why does her acting being good matter? I'm the one getting with Henry!"
"Yes, but she works as an 'in.'"
"An 'in?'" They said at the same time, again. I guess I can see why these two get along.
"Yeah. An 'in.'"
Day two, Monday, the day of the casting. Me and the two girls stood outside of the studio that they rented out to hold the auditions.
"A-Are you sure about this, Maria?" Julie asked.
"Of course...! Right, Hauz?"
"Yeah, we might as well try." I walked in and the other two followed me. The room was dimly lit with a spotlight at the stage. A group of what I assume was actors were standing around up there. It was a mismatch of teenagers and adults. They all looked pretty anxious. I scanned the crowd and Henry was nowhere to be seen. I saw Maria doing the same thing. "Well, go ahead up." I said to Julie, giving her a light push on the back.
"H-Huh?" She turned around to look at me. "A-Alone?"
"Well, we aren't trying out." I said.
"You've got this, Julie!" Maria said, a bit loud for my liking.
"B-But!"
"Here, I'll go with you if you want." I said.
"But then...!" Maria said.
"Just sit and wait."
"But-!"
"Unless you want to talk to the actors?"
"I can do that!"
"And risk getting us kicked out."
"...Fine." Maria sat down in the nearest seat and pouted as me and Julie walked up to the group of actors.
"Oh hey, new guys!" One man said. He looked about the same age as me, 17.
"What's up?" Another guy said.
"Oh wow, you're cute!" One girl said to Julie.
"Th-Thanks..."
"Is he your boyfr-"
"No." I said.
"Ooh, cold. Are you trying out for the villain?" The first man said, elbowing me in the ribs.
"No, I guess I'm like... Her agent, in a way?" I said, motioning to Julie.
"Really? I thought for sure you were an actor." Said the second man. Glancing at the group, I didn't recognize any of them except for one girl who was messing with her phone. I think she was a side character in that movie "A Lovey Dovey Picnic" that Maria had me watch. I guess it made sense that she would be involved in this too.
"Ah, don't worry about her." The first guy said, matching my gaze. "She's a buzzkill."
"Really?"
"Yeah, thinks she's better than all of us." He said. "Or at least makes it seem that way. The rest of us are much more chill!" He said, patting my shoulder. Are actors really this hands-on all the time? He pulled me in and whispered. "Hey, is your girl single?" He moved his head to point at Julie.
"Who knows?" I said. He clicked his tongue, then laughed.
"Sorry man, had to ask, you know?" He said.
"Yeah, I get it." I glanced back at Julie. She was attractive. "Well," I pat Julie's shoulder. "I'll be going now."
"W-Wait!" She grabbed my arm.
"Hm?"
"U-Uh..." She looked at the others. "I..."
"Look, you'll be fine, okay?" I pat her head, intentionally playing up our relationship. "Just read the lines like you did earlier, got it?" She nodded and gently released my arm. "Well, see you all. Please treat Julie well." And with that, I walked offstage and went and sat next to Maria.
"Did you just pat her head?" She asked the moment I sat down.
"Look, if those guys think that she's close with me, they probably won't hit on her... I hope."
"What's your real reason?" She said.
"That is my real reason." I responded.
"Really?" She still sounded doubtful.
"That and calming her down, I guess."
"If you say so." She looked at the stage. "Hey, when is Henry showing up?"
"Don't know." He might not even show up to this, but who knows what saying that to Maria will cause? "Don't you wanna see Julie audition anyways?"
"W-Well, yeah. But like... I wanna see Henry too."
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I like this one. I might finish it eventually. It's unique enough.