To you, My heart

To You, a Small Nod

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A loud, piercing sound echoed through the theater. Jake cringed as his left hand met his forehead. "Sorry..." the small girl on the stage let out in a panic. "It's fine, continue." A hint of irritation was plastered on his face as the boy beside him let out a small laugh. The girl began to fake cry and whimper into the microphone, trying to get the attention of the director, who was marking things on the paper in front of him. Sunoo, the laughing boy from before, glanced over at the paper, frowning. "Thank you, that's all I needed." Jake cut the girl off before signaling her to walk off the stage.

Jake wasn't rude; he was determined to make a lasting impression on the scouts who were attending the show. It was the second day of auditions for the play he had painstakingly crafted, In Loving Memory. The title itself was a testament to the emotional depth of the show. This would be another powerful performance that Jake would deliver. As he finished marking the previous girl's name out, Sunoo's voice broke the silence. "Next, please!" His cheerful tone brought a small smile to Jake's face, but he didn't lift his head to see who was now on stage.

"Jake, look."

The sunny boy's voice broke through Jake's concentration. "Hold on, I need to finish this part first." He was rapidly writing, dismissing Sunoo's attempt to get his attention. "Sorry..." Sunoo mumbled, shrugging, as he finally looked at the boy on stage. "Alright, name pleas-" Jake's words trailed off, his attention captured by the boy's striking appearance. "Hello, my name is Heeseung, and I'm auditioning for Ethan, the male lead." He respectfully bowed his head towards the director and smiled, revealing perfect teeth. "Ahem...you may begin." Jake composed himself, jotting down Heeseung's name on the sheet.

Jake stared at Heeseung's performance the entire time. He never even looked away to write down his thoughts. As he was coming to a stop, Jake froze. The actor on stage suddenly made eye contact with his soon-to-be director. Heeseung shot him another smile, and Jake twisted in his chair. "Thank you. You will be hearing from us." Jake quickly looked down at the paper and only wrote two words: Fucking amazing. In response, Heeseung gave a slight nod as he walked off the stage, smiling at the people who clapped for him.

"Sunoo," Jake began as he looked up to his friend beside him, "I think we both already know who will lead this story." He had a hint of confidence in his voice as he slid Sunoo the sheet. "He was indeed amazing..." They continued to whisper about his performance briefly before continuing with the auditions. Sadly, after Heeseung's performance, Jake soon disregarded everyone after him.

Jake stood up from the small table placed in front of the stage. "That's it, everyone; thank you for coming out today. We will post the results soon." And with that, he dismissed the people in the theater and walked out the door with Sunoo to his left. While the two were following the large crowd, lagging and talking about the outcome of today, Jake felt a tap on his right shoulder. He looked over, surprised to see Heeseung so close to his face. "Sorry, I was just wondering if I could get feedback on my performance!"

Jake, Sunoo, and Heeseung stopped in the hallway. Jake opened the small folder and immediately glanced at Heeseung's notes. He hesitantly handed him the paper before snapping the folder shut and continuing without glancing at the elder. Sunoo followed shortly after, noticing Heeseung's perfect smile plastered on his face.

"Didn't you need that?" The sunny boy asked, "No, I already know where to place him."

The boy who was left behind kept smiling at the paper. He had lost sight of the director and was deep in thought when suddenly an arm was wrapped around his shoulder, making him jump. "Lord, Jay, you almost killed me." He quickly glanced at the boy before continuing to the paper. "Look, the director wrote notes on my audition." He held the paper up to Jay's face. The latter read it carefully. "Flipping amazing?"

Heeseung nodded.

"I'm very confident in my acting; I think I got the lead." The two boys walked until they reached the exit of the hall. "Well, then, congratulations! Are you sure you want to work with him, though? I heard he's really picky." Jay questioned his elder, a minor concern in his voice. "Picky?" Heeseung thought for a moment. "He's a director, after all; he wants his shows to be good."

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Jake posted the results quicker than usual. Most supposed Jake knew who he wanted to be in his last show. And to no one, it was a surprise that Heeseung had gotten the lead role. As he carefully checked over his words on the post on the student discussion board, he sighed. "Something wrong?" A familiar voice filled the small classroom. Jake looked towards the door and saw his dear friend, Jungwon, stepping inside and smiling. "Ah, no. I hope I made the right decisions."

Jungwon nodded, leaning against the desk Jake was sitting at. "You always make good choices regarding your shows, so have faith in yourself!" As always, Jungwon could lift the mood in an instant. "But...Heeseung has never participated in a show the school hosts, especially one by you..." He paused, taking time for Jake to look up at him. "Are you sure making him the lead is the right choice?"

Before Jake could answer, someone answered for him.

"Of course, he's sure." A man stood in the doorway as he caught the boys' attention. "Oh, hello, Jay." Jungwon greeted, being friendly as always.

Jay nodded and smiled at the younger boy, respecting his position as student president. He walked into the conversation..."Heeseung was obviously the best choice to begin with." The boy spoke with confidence, bragging about his friend. Jake hummed in response. "He indeed was..." Jake, a usually quiet boy, smiled and talked about how good Heeseung's performance was. However, his smile didn't last long as he stared back down at the post on his phone. He grimaced before standing up. "Sorry, I have to go sort some things out."

Jungwon and Jay stared at the boy, who suddenly left them alone. They glanced at each other before shrugging at the situation.

Jake was fast-walking towards the theater. He had not only posted results on the discussion board but also printed them on the theater door. His lips parted at the disturbing sight ahead of him. The results were ripped and shredded into hundreds of pieces of unreadable paper. Instead, Jake's photos were pinned up to the door. Regular images would have been creepy, but these were photos of Jake's workplace, his family, and even candid photos of him with his eyes crossed out.

He quickly took down the photos, balling them up in his hands as tears crept into his eyes. He blinked them away when he noticed someone else had begun to help him. He glanced over to see Heeseung, now staring at the photo with Jake's eyes crossed out.

Without thinking, he snatched it from the elder's hands, furrowing his eyebrows at him. "Jake, what is this? Are you alright?" Heeseung addressed him by name, knowing the boy had never introduced himself. However, Jake stayed quiet, ripping up the last picture and throwing it in the trash bin nearby.

Heeseung watched as the boy's movements were stiff and hesitant. Jake picked up his phone and sighed. "Jake..." The boy glared over at his male lead. "Are you alright?" Heeseung stepped closer, trying to comfort the boy. In response, he received a small nod before Jake pocketed his phone and walked away, his hands in a fist. 

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AUTHOR'S NOTE

1.3k Words

Chapters are only to get longer. Please tell me if it feels like dragging!

I hope you enjoy it so far.