Page 71 of Play Room Actor

And looks good.

And is having fun.

With Vanja and Eliah.

I gripped my cola bottle and clenched my teeth just as Manuela appeared next to me.

“So? How did it go?” she asked.

I nodded without taking my eyes off Dominic. I had to keep an eye on him since he was surrounded by four women, all seemingly wanting a piece of him.

“Good! The next exhibition is mine!”

“What? Really? Congratulations!”

“Yep. And then I’ll take on the rest of the place.”

Manuela grinned and placed both hands on my shoulders while resting her chin on my left side. We both kept an eye on the dance floor. “Who are you watching? Vanja? Or maybe Sibylle?”

In my silence, she kissed me on the cheek. “Come on! Let’s dance! You’ve got every reason to celebrate!” She grabbed my hand and pulled me behind her. “People are probably already missing you on the dance floor!”

In fact, I was greeted with open arms.

Dancing with actors had always been more fun for me than at any club where everything felt anonymous. The people here were wild, and yet, they were family. What better way to really let loose? If their exuberance didn’t loosen you up, nothing would.

Everyone had adhered to the dress code, with the women in particular making the dance floor sparkle. Many wore flapper-style dresses from the ’20s, combined with floral headpieces and long silk gloves. Most of the men, like me, wore shirts and vests, or like Dominic, suspenders.

The colorful lights and the disco ball completed the scene, making it feel as though we were inside a glittering snow globe—one that was being shaken up.

When the song ended and the guitar riff from “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” by the Rolling Stones blasted through the speakers, people around me screamed, jumping up and down even more excitedly, shaking off the last bit of awkwardness from the dance floor.

Manuela took my hand and let me lead. She spun under my arm in a circle, then switched places with Nadja from the makeup department, who wrapped her arm around my waist and danced around me. I planted my hands on her hips and danced with her, when out of the blue, Sabrina from the graphics department surprised me from behind. Soon, I also had a pink feather boa around my neck.

As Nadja turned to Jacob, my gaze fell on Vanja again, who was making her move on Dominic. She danced closer to him with seductive movements. He placed his hand on her hip and leaned in as she whispered something in his ear. Dominic laughed and nodded. Maybe he was a bit tipsy too, because I wondered if he truly didn’t realize what Vanja was doing. To me, it was so obvious.

Or was this an example of what Dominic meant with his celibacy vow? Apart from the fact that he had still managed to get hard, it seemed this nonsense was important to him. It was almost like he had given himself permission to be blind to Vanja’s advances and didn’t even have to play dumb to do it.

I didn’t like what I was seeing, and imagined myself drowning our Ophelia by the river, giving her the death she deserved.

As I danced, I moved toward Vanja and draped the pink feather boa around her neck. She cheerfully accepted it, throwing one end over her shoulder. When she turned to me, wanting to dance, I led her in a half-circle around me and gracefully handed her off to Eliah. Then, I turned back to Dominic.

He smiled, not showing his teeth, yet the sparkle in his eyes made me feel a lump in my throat.

“Are you jealous of Vanja?” he asked, amused.

“Oh Mick. You might be blind, and that’s fine, but I’ve figured out her intentions.”

“I feel comfortable with her,” Dominic said, trying to stay serious.

“You don’t feel comfortable with me?” I clutched my heart, pretending to be hurt.

It was so nice to see how Dominic couldn’t stop smiling.

“Or is it the Rolling Stones?”

“One point for the Stones!”

“We’ll see who wins.”