make yourself a photograph and laugh at me

[_dawnie_]

Everything feels unsettled today. I'm not sure if it's Buffy being gone... still... or Avasa having to leave for a little while because of his grandmother's death, or just that I miss my friends and some of it's my own fault. Or maybe it's all of that

Comments

[_dawnie_]

"Jordy's gotten mean?" I know he's a werewolf, but still the concepts of Jordy and meanness just don't compute. I'm whispering now, not wanting to be overheard by anyone. "What did he do?"

I shiver, just a little.

[_janice_]

I lean in closer also, wiping the brush off so it doesn't drip all over us. And then, it just all starts spilling out, a jumble of words. "I went out looking for him the other night, and he's got this thing where he's been calling me Rosaline, like in the play, only you know, we never dated or anything so I don't know why he thinks I'm her."

I sigh. "We were talking...but he's so far from making any sense, and he'd been seeing some guy he calls a priest but who really looks like a drug dealer or pimp or something. Plus he burned his hand on the locket Sophie made me take to him and it still hasn't healed, and I was saying wasn't there some special ointment or something for silver burns, and--"

"He asks why am I worried, we're not friends anyway," I finish quickly, afraid I'm gonna get choked up again.

[_dawnie_]

She looks upset, and I can't blame her. That's so not like Jordy. I chew on my lip, thinking. "He normally would never say that," I mumble. "Ever since this whole play thing started..."

I trail off, rubbing my nose absently.

[_janice_]

"Yeah, I know," I say, regaining my composure. "I think it's the spell or whatever, but still, why did he peg me as Rosaline, anyway? Why am I the big bitch? I'm not even in the cast!"

I stab the brush back into the can of gray paint, a little angry now.

[_dawnie_]

I watch her, hoping she doesn't get carried away and splash our clothes while she's doing that. "I'm not in the cast either, and go figure, the two of us aren't acting all Shakespearean."

I have to chuckle a little. "You know, I wonder if I'd be acting wonky too if I'd learned my understudy lines like I was supposed to? It might be paying off that I'm a slacker."

[_janice_]

I look up at her when she says that. "You haven't been learning your lines?" I ask, something finally clicking. "Okay, this is weird, 'cause I did learn a few lines, to run them with Amanda, and I swear...it was really weird when we were practicing the scene. I was like feeling all the emotions, like really into them, getting pissed off and everything!"

I give a short laugh. "I was reading Romeo's part, and he was all pissed off at Rosaline, how's that for irony?"

[_dawnie_]

"No, I haven't been," I say slowly. "I should've, because what if Sophie got sick and I had to do the part?" I stare at her.

"Everyone seems really into the characters' emotions. Way, way into them."

[_janice_]

"Yeah," I say slowly. "That's how I was, really emotional and it...kinda lingered the rest of the afternoon. So maybe, I dunno, if they're doing the lines all the time, it just...sticks?"

[_dawnie_]

Okay, that's really creepy. "You mean what if they're like, becoming their characters? Oh, my God." I jump trains of thought. "You said Miss Dante said something to you about it?"