The Final Act by Dee Bonnie

Author:Dee, Bonnie
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
Published: 2008-08-25T16:00:00+00:00

Scene Six: Prop Room

The week in Connecticut felt like months. Michael helped his mother make funeral arrangements and accept condolences. He played the part of dutiful son almost as well as she played the grieving widow. His mother was graceful and stylish in her black dress as she stood greeting the many business associates and relatives at the visitation. Her somber face expressed resigned acceptance of her new status as a widow. A very wealthy widow.

Michael believed she’d honestly been attached to her husband, but with emotion based on financial security and status rather than love. He wondered if he would ever be able to get past his cynicism and truly love a woman, given the cold-blooded template of his parents’ relationship.

When he stood by the coffin and stared at his father’s still face, he expected to feel something: guilt for staying away so long, anger at never receiving any positive recognition, sadness at the relationship they might have had. Instead he felt nothing at all, just a great, big, blank wall of nothing.

His mother asked him to remain an extra day after the burial to meet with the lawyer, but Michael used his work as an excuse to escape. She promised to come see the show some time then let him go with a polite brush of lips on his cheek.

Arriving in Philadelphia in early evening, Michael felt like he’d come home. The dingy, run-down, cinderblock apartment building looked like heaven. The shabby rooms of the apartment were at least lived in, unlike his parents’ immaculate house.

He dropped his bag on the floor and checked his watch. The second act of the show would just be starting.

In the kitchenette he took a beer from the tiny fridge, popped the top and drank deeply. He wandered back out to the living room, carried his suitcase into his bedroom, unpacked it, then checked his watch again. They were probably through the first scene by now.

Returning to the living room, he flopped down on the couch. Without cable, the television only received a few fuzzy local channels. The CSI episode was halfway over and he couldn’t figure out what was going on.

He looked at his watch again. If he left right now, he’d be able to catch the end of the show. Michael gave in to the call of the theater.

It was odd standing in the wings watching Chris play Aaron. Michael felt like a kid forced into a time-out from the playground. He noted the nuances that made the role different from the way he performed it.

Chris did the breakdown well, choking up but still making the words clear. It was hard to do. Michael had once been in a death scene where his character gasped out information vital to the plot with his dying breath. Projecting volume while fading into the grave was tough.

When Chris and Elena kissed, Michael felt a flare of annoyance. The couple broke apart and began their duet, voices blending nicely. The song was all right, but it was better when he and Elena sang it.

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