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I put my hands on his shoulders. “You have nothing to lose by fucking up.”
He cocks his head. “Is that your pep talk?”
“What I mean is—focus on the fun. Nothing hangs in the balance. It’s just going to be you having a blast on that stage. Fuck everything else.”
He crosses his arms and looks away, his jaw tight. “I shouldn’t be doing this. It brings up too many things.”
I feel a pang of guilt, angry at myself for putting this idea in his head in the first place. Despite going through hell and back with this man, his younger years are still a mystery, and I should have known better than to poke where I didn’t belong.
“You can walk away from this,” I say, “if that’s what you think is right.”
He looks around at the other cast members. “It’s too late now.” He draws a breath. “Worst case, I’ll just fuck up.” He winks.
More relieved than he can know, I ask, “Is there a policy against sexually harassing the lead before the show?”
He gives me a warning look. “I’m not the lead, and yes, there is. Go back to your seat before Maya comes here too.”
He has a point, but I still kiss him before returning to my seat.
“Did you see him?” Maya asks.
“Yep, he’s great.”
A minute later, the lights dim. I can barely breathe properly until the second scene starts and Jonah’s on stage. My nervousness vanishes when he begins to act, even though it takes him a few minutes to unwind and lose himself in the character.
Maya clenches my hand tightly, watching intently. She hasn’t been this quiet since the womb.
The only time Jonah almost breaks character is during the second act. It’s a heavy scene between Biff and his father, Willy. When Jonah’s supposed to deliver his next line, his gaze loses focus as if he’s drifting into recollection. The sadness on his face is painful to watch.
Just when I begin to worry, he clears his throat and says,“Why am I trying to become what I don’t want to be… when all I want is out there, waiting for me the minute I say I know who I am?”
END SCENE
