Page 16 of Method Acting

As much as it annoyed him.

As much as I enjoyed annoying him.

I wanted to say these intimacy exercises would be weird and uncomfortable, but the truth was, I enjoyed them a little too much.

“Amos stand here,” Deirdre said. Then she put me in front of him. “Chase, you’re here.”

I was about to ask if this was more staring-at-each-other exercises when she said, “Chase, close your eyes.”

Okay, then. Not staring.

“I want you to imagine you have no sight. Lift your hands and touch his face. Feel his jaw, his cheekbones, eyebrows.”

Oh boy.

“Picture his face in your mind,” Deirdre said.

And so I did.

I ran my hands up his neck to his jaw. I felt him swallow. I felt every breath, the rise and fall of his chest, his pulse under my palm.

His skin was warm and smooth, and I could smell him. His deodorant or cologne, maybe.

I liked it.

I ran my thumb over his chin, feeling the slightest stubble. Up to his lips, and I expected him to flinch or pull back, but he never moved. His lips were soft and warm.

His eyebrow, his cheekbone, down his jaw. And I could picture his face in my mind so clearly, now that I’d mapped it out. I liked what I saw, what I felt.

I really liked how he smelled.

“Okay, now swap,” Deirdre said.

I’d been so lost in the exercise her voice startled me. I blinked my eyes open, and of course Amos was closer in real life than he’d been in my head.

“How was it?” Deirdre asked him. “How did it feel?”

“Private,” Amos replied. “Intrusive. I’d normally not let anyone touch my face.” Then he shrugged. “Or be in my space, at all, really.”

She patted his shoulder. “It’s not easy, I know. But you’re pushing your comfort-zone boundaries, well done. Physicality is important for acting. Take a deep breath, okay.”

“I’m more of a touchy-feely kinda guy,” I volunteered. “You can touch me all over.”

Deirdre snorted. “It’s not that kind of exercise but I appreciate your enthusiasm.” She left us for the next couple, giving me a parting glare. “Faces only, please.”

Amos looked at me, disgusted. “That was gross. Makes me not want to touch you at all. You’re like an old penny. I don’t know where you’ve been.”

“I am not an old penny, thank you very much.”

“I’ll need more hand sanitizer.”

I smiled at him and mouthed, “Fuck you.”

He made a sad face. “Excuse me, Miss. He said a bad word,” he said, mimicking a little kid’s voice.

I rolled my eyes. “I really want you to keep your eyes open just to make this so much more awkward for you, but this is an exercise in trust, apparently. Close your eyes and do your worst.”

He was quiet for a second, as if he was sizing up the argument and if he could be bothered. I thought he might leave me standing there like an idiot, but he mumbled something under his breath before he closed his eyes. Then he put his hand on my chest.

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