Page 50 of Landon & Shay: Part One

“Fair enough.”

“Whatever. I know you’re just trying to get under my skin by showing up here, but it doesn’t matter. You’d actually have to get a part in the show to be around me, and I doubt that’s going to happen. You probably couldn’t act your way out of a plastic bag if you had to.”

“Why in the hell would I ever have to act my way out of a plastic bag? What does that even mean? Also, who has plastic bags that can just fit actors inside of them?”

She rolled her eyes hard, clenching her audition piece in her hand. “Can you just go away? I’m trying to get in my zone before my audition, and you’re really making me slip out of character.”

“Right, right—method actor. You’re in character. Good, me too. Don’t mind me. I’ll be sitting right here, a row behind you, practicing my lines.”

I could see the tension in her shoulders as I sat behind her. I affected her. I didn’t know if it was in a good way or a bad way, but she physically responded to me being nearby. I could almost feel the heat radiating from her body.

Mr. Thymes, the head of the theater department, was calling people up to the stage one by one. To be honest, I didn’t think I’d ever stepped foot into the theater, and everyone was looking at me as if I was some strange alien of sorts.

I didn’t blame them.

Landon Harrison in the theater? Hell must’ve frozen over.

“Shay, you’re up,” Mr. Thymes called out, and she hopped up from her seat. Before walking to the stage, she closed her eyes and muttered something, holding on to the cross necklace around her neck. Maria had the same kind around hers. I wondered if believing in God came easy to Shay.

The battle of God was more like a war for me. I wanted to believe in him, but he’d given me so many reasons not to do so.

When she made it to the stage, the whole room went quiet. The second Shay began her audition, it was as if she became something completely new. She immersed herself in the character, in being Juliet, from head to toe. She moved across the stage as if she were a brand-new person. She talked with such powerful softness to her words. I didn’t have a damn clue what she was saying exactly, but I believed it.

She was beautiful, and anyone else who was auditioning for Juliet should’ve packed their bags and left, because she was easily the right one for the role, and I was determined to be her star-crossed lover.

Everyone clapped for her, and she deserved the applause. I probably clapped the loudest, and when she walked over to sit back down, I leaned forward and whispered against her ear with my hot breath. “You’re meant to be Juliet.”

She shivered from my heat and took a deep breath. “But you’re not my Romeo. You’llneverbe my Romeo.”

“Landon,” Mr. Thymes called out. “You’re up.”

I stood and looked toward Shay. “Aren’t you going to tell me to break a leg?” I asked.

“Go ahead.” She nodded. “Break two.”

Cold, Chick.

I liked it.

15

Shay

Welp,I didn’t see that coming.

Landon got on that stage and blew his audition piece out of the water. He was exponentially more engaging than the other guys who auditioned for the role. He made it look easy, effortless. It was as if he’d been acting his whole life.

Even Mr. Thymes jumped to his feet and started clapping.

“Bravo, Mr. Harrison, bravo!” he shouted. “I think we just found our Romeo!”

For the love of all things righteous, this wasn’t fair. Landon couldn’t be an amazing actor without even trying. I’d have bet he’d picked out his audition piece the night before. It wasn’t right. You couldn’t be that good-looking, that rich, that popular,andthat talented. I wondered which demon he’d sold his soul to in order to become the person he was.

When Landon came to sit back down, he leaned forward near me once again. “What was that about me not being your Romeo?” he mocked.

“Bite me, jerk.”

“Of course.” He leaned in closer, his lips gently touching the edge of my ear. “Just tell me where.”

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